Tag: fernando alonso

Wonderful Webber on Pole in Abu Dhabi

Red Bull’s Mark Webber put in a scintillating flying lap in Q3 to take pole position for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

With both the Red Bulls on the back foot through Q1 and Q2, they seemed to have found some extra pace in Q3 to lock out the front row with Mark Webber in P1 with a 1:39.957 and Sebastian Vettel in P2 with a 1:40.075. Vettel who wasn’t very far behind is team mate made a mistake at the exit of T1 on his flying lap by running wide onto the astro-turf and lost a bit of time there.

The Mercedes pair of Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton locked out the second row of the grid in P3 (1:40.419) and P4 (1:40.501) respectively. Both Rosberg and Hamilton were in the top two in Q1 and Q2 and were faster than both the Red Bulls. But they were no match for the Red Bulls who seemed to have found a bit of extra pace in Q3. Hamilton’s final Q3 run did not end the way he wanted it as he had an over steer moment coming out of the T13 chicane. He ran wide over the kerbs and spun. “Something gave way on the right side of the car. I got out of the chicane and something snapped on the car” said Hamilton.

Lotus’ Kimi Raikkonen will line up 5th on the grid alongside Sauber’s Nico Hulkenberg who had another strong qualifying session in 6th. The other Lotus of Romain Grosjean will start in P7 with Ferrari’s Felipe Massa in P8. McLaren’s Sergio Perez (P9) and and Toro Rosso’s Daniel Ricciardo (P10) round up the top 10.

It was another bad qualifying for Fernando Alonso who could only manage P11. It is the first time in the 2013 season where Alonso did not go through to Q3. “A difficult weekend for us. We are not competitive. My laps were not clean. We will see what we can do with a fresh set of tyres in the race” said Alonso. McLaren’s Jenson Button was the other big name that did not appear in Q3. Button, whos qualified in P13, was left feeling rather frustrated with his performance saying that everything for them today was a challenge. “We were maxed out on front wing from the word go. There’s nothing much we could do” said Button after being knocked out at the end of Q2.

Below is the full timing sheet from the 2013 Fomrula 1 Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix

November 2, 2013
F1 2013: Practice 3 Report – Abu Dhabi GP

Sebastian Vettel headed the timing sheets of the third free practice session ahead of the Abu Dhabi grand prix.

The newly crowned four time world champion was followed by teammate Mark Webber as Red Bull again locked out the top two positions in the standings. The session got underway with a track temperature of 47 degrees Celcius; three degrees warmer than Friday’s first free practice session.

Several drivers including Lotus’ Romain Grosjean and Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso endured several off track excursions during the session but sustained no damage. Marussia’s Jules Bianchi was as fortunate as contact with the barrier brought a slightly premature end to his session. However, the Ferrari of Alonso looked a handful as the Spaniard was shown sawing away at the wheel of the car as the coaxed it through the corners around Yas Marina circuit.

Pastor Maldonado and Valterri Bottas ran the Williams with a revised exhaust system and both driver’s provided encouraging feedback. The system is a reversion to an ‘old-style’ system which sees the exhaust exit to top of the body work.

The qualifying simulation, run on the yellow walled soft tyres, revealed an average gain of 1,7 seconds but several drivers were able to gain more than two seconds during their run. Nevertheless, we are of course unaware of the different fuel levels that are being run by teams in practice sessions.

The Mercedes pairing of Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton appeared as the best of the rest behind the Red Bulls. Interestingly, Mark Webber set the quickest first and second sector while Vettel came out tops in the final sector of the lap. Abu Dhabi has never been a happy hunting ground for the Aussie but Webber may yet prove Vettel’s stiffest competition in qualifying later on this afternoon.

November 2, 2013
Vettel On Top in FP2 in Abu Dhabi

Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel topped the time sheets at the end of the second free practice session at the Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi.

The young German set the pace this evening in Abu Dhabi with a 1:41.335 with his team mate Mark Webber P2 with a 1:41.490, 0.155s slower than Vettel. What was also encouraging for Red Bull was the very good long run pace they had on the primes and on the soft option tyre.

Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton finished the session in P3 with a 1:41.690, 0.355s off the pace of Vettel. Lotus’ Kimi Raikkonen finished P4 with a 1:41.728 and Nico Rosberg ended his session in P5 with a 1:41.758. Raikkonen was very strong on his long run pace this session, his team mate Romain Grosjean who finished FP1 in P1 finished FP2 in P12.

McLaren’s Sergio Perez received some very encouraging news towards the end of the session from his race engineer Andy Latham telling him that they were very similar on pace to Mercedes and they were quicker than Ferrari. Checo ended the session in P6. Jenson Button trailed a very different setup by running a very shallow rear wing. The proof of which reflected in the speed traps where he was quickest.

Ferrari seemed to be struggling for pace in the session. Fernando Alonso ended the session in P8 and his team mate Felipe Massa finished in P10. They’re long run pace seemed to be there about, but nothing close to Lotus or Mercedes. It looks like its going to be a difficult weekend for them.

The full time sheet for the session is included below:

November 1, 2013
F1 2013: Race Preview – Amazing Abu Dhabi

Less than twelve months ago Sebastian Vettel stood on the cusp of becoming a three-time world champion ahead of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. One year later Vettel returns as a four-time champion and no less hungry for victory that the first time he rolled out onto a Formula 1 starting grid.

The only twilight race on the F1 calendar is unquestionably one of the most stunning venues of the season. Set against the fabulous backdrop of the setting Arabian sun the cars hardly look more spectacular at any other stage of the season. Even though the Yas Marina circuit still feels like a fairly recent addition to the calendar, the 2013 grand prix will be the fifth visit to the east coast of Abu Dhabi.

Similar to the Indian GP, Pirelli will provide the medium and soft compound tyres to the teams. The Budhh International circuit rendered the yellow walled soft tyre extremely fragile but in Abu Dhabi is expected to have a significantly longer lifespan. “The way that the track temperature falls in Abu Dhabi obviously has an effect on both wear and degradation, meaning that teams are able to do longer runs even on the softer compound later in the race,” said Pirelli motorsport director Paul Hembery.

It is an important time of the season for those drivers who still need to secure a 2014 seat. Despite being linked to several front-running teams it seems as if Nico Hulkenberg will not be jumping into a leading car, at least not in 2014. The immensely talented Hulkenberg has been linked with a move to Lotus with the German having supposedly signed a provisional agreement during the Japanese GP weekend. However, recent rumbling suggest that this agreement has been scrapped because the team cannot afford Hulkenberg. Instead Pastor Maldonado, and his PDVSA sponsor, look set to snatch the Lotus seat.

Nevertheless, Hulkenberg will be focusing on the task at hand this weekend and getting the best possible position by the end of the fifty-five lap race. The Yas Marina circuit should play to the strengths of the Sauber.

The first sector is relatively short and punctuated with several medium speed corners and bolstered with turns two and three acting as the two high-speed corners in the sector. The middle sector mainly distinguished by long straights with low-speed corners in the mix to provide some challenge to the drivers. The final sector of the 5.554km long lap is an unyielding series slow to medium speed corners which require the utmost precision. “The track is pretty tricky and technical, especially the last sector which has a lot of twisty, 90-degree corners. It’s easy to get it wrong and overdo it in qualifying,” said Nico Hulkenberg.

Red Bull has already sewn up both driver’s and constructor’s titles for 2013 but the battle for second and third place rages on. Whilst second place in the constructor’s standings for Ferrari holds an important psychological connotation, Lotus’ quest for the top three is purely financially motivated. Reports about financial trouble have hounded the Enstone based team throughout the season and the supposedly ‘done deal’ with Quantam (formerly Infinity) has allegedly hit a snag in recent times.

While several important stories develop behind the scenes it is on the track where the attention will be focused this weekend. Fernando Alonso is due a better result than he has been able to achieve in the last few races. It will be a difficult task however since the Ferrari doesn’t have a great record around Abu Dhabi. In addition, Alonso has appeared to be slightly dejected at the last few race meetings but Ferrari has dismissed talks about tension between the team and the Spaniard.

A team that cannot talk away the tension amidst their ranks is Lotus. Alan Permane’s now infamous race message to Kimi Raikkonen has been well publicised and met with a vast amount of criticism. Lotus team principal Eric Boullier has released a subsequent statement apologising for the message and the team will undoubtedly want to focus on fighting for a better position in the constructor’s championship.

There is nothing to suggest that Sebastian Vettel won’t be the odds on favourite to yet again occupy the top step of the podium. But just maybe the stars are aligning for someone else. However the cards fall for the Abu Dhabi GP, a cracking race is surely in prospect.

October 30, 2013
F1 2013: Indian GP Review – Super Seb Achieves Greatness

The Indian grand prix has found itself in the privileged position of crowning Sebastian Vettel as the 2013 driver’s world champion.

There are few greater moments in this majestic sport than seeing a driver crowned champion. Whether you are a fan of Sebastian Vettel or not seems irrelevant in the face of this massive achievement. Only Juan Manuel Fangio, Michael Schumacher and now Sebastian Vettel has won four consecutive world titles. It not only deserves recognition but tremendous respect.

The Budhh International circuit played host to the third Indian GP and tyre strategy dominated the headlines from the first free practice session on Friday. It was evident early on that the yellow walled soft compound tyres were extremely fragile and would, presumably, dictate the rest of the weekend. Unsurprisingly, Saturday’s qualifying session saw a split in tyre strategy with several drivers opting to set their fastest time in Q3 on the medium tyre. Mark Webber emerged as the best of those on the alternate strategy with fourth place and seemed in the pound seats for Sunday’s race. The untouchable Sebastian Vettel went about his business and wrapped up yet another pole position ahead of the Mercedes duo of Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton.

The dicey option tyres were given the short prognosis of lasting a maximum of six to seven laps. Sebastian Vettel made his customary break in the first lap of the race and by the end of it was leading Felipe Massa by 3.5 seconds.

Not wanting to risk anything on the perilous Pirelli rubber Vettel dived into the pits on the second lap and fitted the medium compound tyres for his second stint. The German dropped into masses of traffic and seventeenth place overall. This was the moment that those who started on the more durable tyre were expected to craft a sizeable gap over the number one Red Bull. But Sebastian Vettel is never one to be outdone not by rivals and certainly not by strategy. He scythed his way through the pack and by the end of the twentieth lap he was right on the gearbox of Sergio Perez’s third placed McLaren.

The only man who could mathematically stop Vettel from winning the title was Fernando Alonso. However, the Ferrari driver’s race got off to a disastrous start as collisions with Mark Webber and Jenson Button demanded a front-wing change. The Spaniard never recovered from his early set back and ended the race in eleventh place. Teammate Felipe Massa enjoyed a far better outing and led the Indian GP for a spell before pitting for fresh rubber. The Brazilian ultimately finished a solid fourth place. Sergio Perez provided a boost for McLaren with a fifth place finish after pulling off a great overtake on Lewis Hamilton. Hamilton finished a quiet race in sixth place for Mercedes.

Raikkonen, after having made a late race pitstop, finished seventh whilst struggling with overheating brakes in the beginning of the race and fuel issues towards the closing stages. Paul di Resta and Adrian Sutil came home eighth and ninth at Force India’s home race as Daniel Ricciardo secured the final point on offer for Toro Rosso.

The podium finishers looked as if they would include both Red Bull drivers but an alternator failure felled Mark Webber and promoted Nico Rosberg to second overall. The German’s second place finish was his and Mercedes’ first of the season. Rosberg’s other visits to the podium this season have all been victories. Romain Grosjean delivered a stunning drive to recover from 17th place in qualifying. The Frenchman and his ever improving consistency netted him third place over all; but not without some controversy for his Lotus team.

Lotus tried to play the long game with Kimi Raikkonen’s tyre strategy by suggesting a more than 50 lap stint on the medium tyre. Pirelli had advised teams that a thirty-five lap stint was potentially the most tyres would be able to stand and although some drivers pushed a bit further than the 35 lap limit Lotus’ pitwall thought they would the exception to the rule. The appalling strategy called failed, as it did in China, and Raikkonen was left defenseless and losing nearly two and a half seconds per lap. It smacks again of Lotus being a team who are not able to handle complicated strategy calls in the heat of the moment.

Logic suggests that as soon as Raikkonen starting losing chunks of time, around lap 40 to 45 with a nineteen second gap over Massa and Hamilton, the call to pit should have been made. Raikkonen’s tyres were shot by the time Grosjean caught up to the back of the Lotus nevertheless the Finn’s racer’s heart demanded that he fight for his position; and fight for the place against Grosjean he did.

Alan Permane, head of trackside operations for Lotus, revealed the less than cordial feelings the team has for Raikkonen with vulgar radio message: “Kimi, get out of the f&^$ing way.” Raikkonen responded by asking the team not to shout at him. Raikkonen has also responded by driving without being payed for the majority of the season, paying his own traveling costs, and with 183 of Lotus’ 285 constructor’s points. Since Raikkonen put pen to paper to join Ferrari in 2014 Lotus’ attitude toward the Finn has taken a significant turn. Snide comments in the press about Raikkonen being “ungrateful” were a small insight to this shift. However, this radio message painted the picture a lot more clearly. Permane revealed after the race that he was “disappointed” that Raikkonen had chosen to fight for position. Perhaps his disappointment could be better served by aiming it at the strategic calls made by the team.

In the end, the day belonged to the incomparable Sebastian Vettel. Four times a world champion Vettel has earned the respect of the motorsport world with a sublimely flawless racing craft that is second to none. Success in Formula 1 demands the perfect blend of man and machine and Vettel has flawlessly delivered his end of the deal.

Personally, he has handled the jeering of the crowds with great character; professionally he has blown away any suggestion that he is anything less than pure class. Vettel thrilled the Indian crowd with several donuts on the start/finish straight but in truth he has thrilled motorsport fans with a superlative talent that knows no bounds. At only 26 years old Sebastian Vettel has entered into Formula 1 immortality.

October 27, 2013
Vettel scores his hat-trick pole in India

Sebastian Vettel took one step closer to his 4th World Championship title by claiming a commanding pole position for tomorrow’s Indian Grand Prix.

Vettel put in an incredible lap – the fastest ever recorded at the Buddh International Circuit – with a time of 1.24.119, a crazy 7 tenths faster than the rest of the field. Nico Rosberg will share the front row of the grid with Vettel tomorrow after qualifying second with a time of 1.24.871 followed by team mate Lewis Hamilton.

Mercedes did mention that Lewis may have been held up by Vettel but it would seem the incident was minor and there will be no further action.

Mark Webber brought his Red Bull home in 4th place with Ferrari’s Felipe Massa behind him. Massa outqualified his team mate Fernando Alonso once again but Alonso opted for the medium tyre strategy which will see him starting the race on the longer lasting medium tyres tomorrow.

Romain Grosjean made a shock exit out of qualifying after Q1 after only completing a time on the medium tyres, when everyone else except for Vettel had completed their laps on the softer compound.

Both McLarens made it through to Q3 today and have also opted for the medium tyre strategy.

One has to believe that unless something goes wrong with Hungry Heidi, Sebastian Vettel will be crowned World Champion tomorrow. The German only needs to finish 5th in order to clinch the title and the clear dominance he’s shown over the weekend so far shows his clear intention to wrap things up.

Join us on Twitter @F1_Madness for live commentary and interaction with other F1 fans, during the race tomorrow.

Here is the timesheet following today’s qualifying in India:

October 26, 2013
Indian GP Preview: History Beckons In India

The Formula 1 paddock heads to one the most unique countries on the planet as India hosts its third F1 race.

From the culture to the people to the food India stands out as one of the most distinctive venues on the F1 calendar. The possibility of hosting an Indian GP has been in the works from as early as 1997 and after years of negotiating New Delhi was announced in 2007 as a future Formula 1 race host. The first Indian GP was received with much fanfare and praise as it made its debut in 2010.

The Budhh International Circuit is similar to Korea’s Yeongam circuit despite not being as technical in nature. The steep uphill climb and the blind apex into turn three is the highlight of the first sector which is otherwise dominated by power hungry straights. The second sector progresses with a mixture of medium to high speed corners which is capped with a short, slow speed final sector. The elevation changes may not be evident on television but provide a challenge to drivers with off camber and blind entries to some of the turns.

A significant weekend in the history of Formula 1 lies in prospect as Sebastian Vettel bids to become a four time consecutive world champion. Irrespective of what rival Fernando Alonso can do in his Ferrari this weekend Vettel will only need fifth place to clinch the 2013 title. However, ten points seems like a decidedly unspectacular way for the German to win his fourth title and at the very least he will want to occupy one of the steps on the podium if not the winner’s step. Only Juan Manuel Fangio and Michael Schumacher have previously achieved four consecutive titles.

Lotus’ E21 has shown improved pace since the introduction of the longer wheelbase car. However, if Kimi Raikkonen has any designs on troubling the front of the race this weekend he must deliver an improved performance in qualifying. “Hopefully we finally get it right in qualifying as the last five qualifying sessions have not been that great for me. If we don’t, it’s going to be a difficult Sunday afternoon, although of course we’ll keep pushing. If we do get it right, then we can really go for it,” said Raikkonen.

Race after race has seen Fernando Alonso and Ferrari lose the opportunity of fighting for the title. What is more, the lackluster Ferrari pace has slowly but surely led to Alonso’s unflustered nature becoming a tad more edgy of late. A few statements here and there by the Spaniard have revealed his slightly despondent attitude regarding his position in the standings. The Scuderia’s sole aim is to beat Mercedes and Lotus to second place in the constructor’s title and they will have to summon something special if they are to re-ignite Alonso’s once unyielding determination.

Regardless of who the winner at the end of the Indian GP is, the day will undoubtedly belong to Sebastian Vettel. It doesn’t seem that long ago that a bright-eyed, eager nineteen year old German meandered into the pitlane, completely unknown and on the cusp of completely re-writing Formula 1 history.

October 23, 2013
Indian GP – A special record helmet for Fernando Alonso

Ferrari driver Fernando Alonso will wear a different helmet design at this weekend’s Indian Grand Prix, marking his passing of Michael Schumacher’s previous record of most career points scored.

Alonso’s fourth place finish at the Japanese Grand Prix was enough for him to increase his career points tally to 1571 and overtake Michael Schumacher’s previous record of 1566 points.

A regular helmet livery changer, Alonso will sport a special design on his crash helmet at the Indian Grand Prix this weekend.

Using the hashtag #1571, Alonso gave his Twitter followers the first look at his new helmet starting with a couple of black and white cropped drawings of the new design, and ending with a full colour look at the top and side view of the helmet.

The special record helmet sports a large number 1571 at the top, centre of the helmet as well as on the side. The words, “F1 points world record” are also displayed accompanying the record number.

On the predominantly white-coloured background, there’s also a thank you note to his fans in three languages – English, French and Italian.

Alonso will no doubt be hoping to increase his points tally by 25 points to 1596 at the upcoming Indian Grand Prix this weekend but even a win would not be enough to keep the world championship out of Sebastian Vettel’s hands, should the German finish anywhere within the Top 5 positions.

With everything on the line at the Indian Grand Prix, where the world championship title could very well be decided, Fernando Alonso will be hoping that his new record, and helmet livery will be a little more than just lucky for him. Either way, it’s going to be a nail-biter of a race!

Here are a few more images tweeted by Alonso of his new helmet:

October 23, 2013
Domenicali Plays Down Ferrari Team Orders Issue

Ferrari Team Principal, Stefano Dominicali played down the team order instruction that was ignored by Felipe Massa during the Japanese Grand Prix

The Brazillian ignored the team order which was given to him in a coded message by his race engineer, Rob Smedley. The instruction, “multi-function strategy A, now please”, was a apparently a coded message to allow Alonso through.

Massa, however, chose to ignore the message and carried on racing. Alonso eventually passed him using DRS on the run down to Turn 1.

“At the end of the day Fernando overtook him on the track. For sure Felipe is trying to be as quick as possible and I understand his feelings. He will find the team totally supporting him up until the end of the season with no problem” said Dominicali.

After the race, Massa had this to say: “But I was happy today. It was unfortunate for the race the drive through and what has happened in the race. It was not over any instruction, he overtook me on the track.”

With Massa leaving Ferrari at the season, and with him declaring that he will be racing for himself, there’s not much the team can really do. Although he may have been given a serious dressing down after the race.

October 14, 2013
F1 2013: Japanese GP Review – Seb Rules Suzuka

Demanding or easy, big or small Sebastian Vettel will win them all. The Red Bull driver has increased his tally of victories for the 2013 season to nine with another fine victory in Japan.

Saturday qualifying delivered a first pole of the season for Mark Webber but the Australian couldn’t quite manage to seal the deal on Sunday. However, AussieGrit gave it a good go in a race defined by strategy and patience.

Neither of the front row starting Red Bulls covered themselves in glory as the red lights extinguished. Instead they fell prey to the fast starting Romain Grosjean. The Lotus driver blitzed both Red Bulls and sensationally snatched the lead of the race.

The merest of touches between third placed Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel at the start of the race completely wrecked the Brit’s afternoon. A trip into to the pits with a right rear puncture only postponed the inevitable as Hamilton pulled his Silver Arrow into the garage only a few laps later.

The factor that added to and made the show in Japan was the unknown. For the better part of 53 laps there was no definitive certainty who the eventual victor of the race would be. Romain Grosjean had the lead of the race right off the bat and appeared to have the pace to beat Red Bull. But he is after all in the cockpit of a Lotus and though he got heartbreakingly close beating a Red Bull, much less two, is nigh impossible. Mark Webber’s three stop strategy nearly gave him enough of an undercut to take the victory from Vettel but he ran out of laps before he was able to fully exploit his astute plan. The final stint of the race on fresh medium tyres did however reward Webber with second place at the chequered flag.

There was a third driver in this mix too. Sebastian Vettel patiently waited for his chance to make his own strategy talk. Electing to pit later than his two rivals in the first round of stops meant he would have to stick to a two stopper if victory was to be on the cards. Vettel’s unfailing ability to reel off quick laps paid dividends in the end as he took over the lead of the race from Webber.

Finger boy, selfish, lucky – whatever you want to call Sebastian Vettel he revealed a bit more of what makes him so unbeatable in this race. Beneath that quirky, sort of cheeky, grin there is more talent and skill than we have even begun to glimpse. The regularity with which he is able to set fast laps isn’t in the repertoire of someone who is lucky, that is a skill of a champion.

Further down the field Fernando Alonso played second fiddle for a big part of the race to teammate Felipe Massa. Alonso failed on more than one occasion to overtake the Brazilian; surprising given Alonso’s performances relative to his departing teammate throughout the years. Nevertheless, Alonso managed to get the better of Massa eventually but could not advance much further through the field. “We weren’t as quick as the Red Bulls or Grosjean so fourth was the maximum. We recovered some of the pace we didn’t have earlier in the weekend, but the top three were too strong for us even without traffic,” Alonso concluded.

The traffic Alonso referred to came in the form Daniel Ricciardo. The Toro Rosso driver started his race on the orange side walled hard tyres enabling him to run a good deal further into the race than those immediately around him. The Aussie was lapping three seconds off the front running pace and drivers stuck in the Ricciardo-train included both Ferrari’s and Kimi Raikkonen. The Finn ultimately finished fifth ahead of Sauber pairing Nico Hulkenberg and Esteban Gutierrez.

Gutierrez is the first of the 2013 rookies this season to score points and aptly on the weekend of Peter Sauber’s 70^th birthday. Nico Rosberg’s race was dealt a blow when the pit crew released him into the path of Sergio Perez; the McLaren driver had to take avoiding action and Rosberg incurred a drive through penalty but was still able to salvage eighth place. Jenson Button said a late set-up change made his McLaren quite difficult to drive and that ninth was the maximum. Felipe Massa scored the final point on offer.

Notwithstanding Red Bull’s dominance of the season it has taken until the fifteenth race of the year for any of the rookies to score a point. Add to this that points are awarded all the way down to tenth place, as opposed to sixth in the past; it is an indication that competition for those elusive points is a closely fought affair and more importantly that Formula 1 is healthy and highly competitive.

It will take at least two more weeks for Sebastian Vettel to become a four times world champion. Fifth place is all the German will need to clinch the title in India. If the Japanese GP showed anything it solidified that Seb Vettel is entirely unruffled and that very little is going to keep him from making Formula 1 history, again.

October 13, 2013