F1 Madness

Tag: ferrari

  • F1 2016: Russian Gp Tyre Strategy

    F1 2016: Russian Gp Tyre Strategy

    The 2016 Russian grand prix didn’t play to varying tyre strategies as much as the first three races of the 2016 season.

    The Sochi Autodrom brings with it a unique set of conditions for the Pirelli tyres. As the circuit is mainly un-used for the remainder of the year it’s track surface is particularly kind to Pirelli rubber. The Italian tyre manufacturer arrived in Russia with the white-walled medium, yellow-walled soft, and red-walled supersoft tyres.

    Owing to the lack of degradation most drivers were able to complete the 53 laps with a one-stop strategy. At the head of affairs Ferrari extended Kimi Raikkonen’s first stint over on the supersoft tyres over Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas. The aim was to prize open a slight advantage over the two with whom Raikkonen had been keeping close company. Though the Ferrari driver was able to jump Bottas with this call Hamilton stayed ahead of Raikkonen thanks to a burst of three quick laps on new soft tyres.

    Red Bull Racing’s afternoon was compromised when Dannil Kyvat twice crashed into the back of the Ferrari of Sebastian Vettel. It resulted in damage and a forced pitstop for both Kyvat and Daniel Ricciardo. The Red Bull pitwall opted to fit the white-walled medium tyre and go to the chequered flag without another visit to the pitlane. While the medium compound survived for 52 laps on Kyvat’s Red Bull the pace deficit to the soft, and supersoft, tyre meant he could make little to no headway.

    Haas F1’s Esteban Gutierrez also opted for to run the medium compound for 99% of the race without success and eventually finished eighteenth. Teammate Romain Grosjean opted for the favoured supersoft > soft strategy and ultimately finished eighth.

    In hindsight, given the lack of degradation the spectacle would have been better served had Pirelli opted to bring the purple-walled ultrasoft compound to the Russian grand prix.

    04-Russian-Race1-4k-IT

  • F1 2016: Russian GP Review – Rosberg Wraps Up Win Number Four

    F1 2016: Russian GP Review – Rosberg Wraps Up Win Number Four

    If you were a neutral there wasn’t much to enthuse about in the Russian grand prix. But these days’ neutrals are few and far between.  And even a true neutral would have to be impressed with the spellbinding way in which Nico Rosberg has won the Russian grand prix.

    While Nico Rosberg led serenely away from pole position and Kimi Raikkonen snatched second from Valtteri Bottas the carnage behind started to unfold. Sebastian Vettel, recovering from a five-place grid penalty, was attempting to pass Daniel Ricciardo’s Red Bull for fifth when Daniil Kvyat rammed into the back of him. As if to compound matters Kvyat rammed into the back of Vettel a second time in turn three. The Ferrari speared off into a wall prompting a colourful tirade over the German’s radio.

    Kvyat’s catastrophic exuberance resulted in damage for both Red Bulls and the Force India of Sergio Perez and prompted the deployment of the safety car.  Through the shower of carbon fibre and expletives Lewis Hamilton emerged in fifth. The Brit was forced to start tenth after another power unit issue in Saturday qualifying.

    At the restart Bottas was able to get the better of Raikkonen and snatched second as Hamilton made his way past the second Williams for fourth. He took advantage of Raikkonen’s poor exit off turn three and quickly made it third place on the track. Bottas held off Hamilton until the first round of stops but was unable to resist as Hamilton took second place with a move up the inside of turn two.

    GP RUSSIA F1/2016By now Rosberg, untroubled in the lead, had built a near fourteen-second gap. Once in clear air Hamilton reduced the gap to 7.5 seconds before being warned of a water pressure issue. In the end Rosberg’s domination ended in a fourth consecutive victory by 25 seconds over Hamilton. Roughly six seconds down the road Raikkonen completed the top three and rather sedately scored Ferrari’s 700th podium.

    Bottas finished a distant fourth ahead of Williams teammate Felipe Massa in sixth. Fernando Alonso scored his first points of the season with a fine sixth place ahead of Renault’s Kevin Magnussen in seventh. Romain Grosjean salvaged an eighth place finish for Haas ahead of Sergio Perez in ninth. Jenson Button made it a double points score for McLaren by taking the final point in tenth.

    It’s difficult to say that the Russian grand prix revealed everyone’s true form. Yes, Mercedes are still clearly the leaders of the pack but in modern Formula 1 several factors conspire to control the pace of a driver. For Kimi Raikkonen it was the necessity to save fuel that stopped him from pushing the Ferrari to its full potential. For Hamilton yet another power unit issue halted his assault on victory. “There wasn’t a doubt in my mind” Hamilton responded when asked if he could’ve won the race.

    GP RUSSIA F1/2016As it were Hamilton, in the unfamiliar bridesmaid role, sulkily made his way through the podium ceremony without bothering to spray the champagne.  While Hamilton’s mood was understandable given his issues so far in 2016 it was unbecoming of F1’s “best ambassador” as he has dubbed himself.

    The 1st of May commemorated the death of the great Ayrton Senna 22 years ago. A driver who when truly tested delivered the very best of himself and his abilities. A driver who typified what a champion ought to be.

    The character of a true champion isn’t revealed as he basks in the glory of win after win. True champion character is revealed in how a driver responds in the difficult moments. For two years Nico Rosberg deferred to Hamilton but now he has responded with the sort of tenacity that, if maintained, could carry him all the way to championship glory.

    (All images courtesy of Pirelli)

  • 2016 Formula 1 Russian Grand Prix: Post Race Press Conference

    2016 Formula 1 Russian Grand Prix: Post Race Press Conference

    DRIVERS
    1st Nico ROSBERG (Mercedes)
    2nd Lewis HAMILTON (Mercedes)
    3rd Kimi RAIKKONEN (Ferrari)

    PODIUM INTERVIEWS
    (Conducted by Martin Brundle)

    Congratulations Nico. Wow, a man who can’t stop winning – seven in a row. Only three other drivers in the history of Formula One have done that: Alberto Ascari, the great Michael Schumacher, Sebastian Vettel, and now you. Well done.
    Nico ROSBERG: Thanks very much. It’s been an awesome weekend. The car has been fantastic all weekend, really even in qualifying and in the race today. It felt very special out there. So, very, very happy. Thanks to everybody. Thanks to all of you in Russia who have come here. The sport is growing; 60,000 of you – amazing, great atmosphere, it’s been a great weekend.

    Full house for you today: pole position, led every lap, fastest lap, and you won the grand prix. You were putting in some spectacular times at the end, just to make a point I guess?
    NR: I just like to it for concentration; just keep going, because if I slow down otherwise, you start making some mistakes and I was enjoying it out there, just flat out until the end.

    And you were aware obviously that Lewis was up into second place, so you and to keep an eye on his pace?
    NR: Yeah, of course. Great job from Lewis to come up through to second so quickly from down in tenth and I was always aware of what he was doing and trying to keep the gap as big as possible.

    Lewis, you stayed out of trouble on the first lap and there was plenty of that going on in front of you?
    Lewis HAMILTON: Absolutely. It was not the easiest first corner but all races have been the same so far.

    So are you pretty happy? Yeah, you’ve had a difficult weekend, but you must be pretty satisfied to be up here, even though it’s only second place?
    LH: Yeah, absolutely. I’m really happy for the team and you know, I got the points.

    Some critical overtakes you made that really made your afternoon – one on Kimi and the other on Valtteri Bottas.
    LH: Yeah, I mean with Kimi I don’t know if he was expecting me to overtake there, which was great and with Valtteri it was from quite far back but he didn’t seem to defend, so it was quite easy.

    You got the gap down to 7.7s; you must have just have seen down the pit straight. Was there a moment. Was there a moment where you thought ‘I could still win this’?
    LH: There wasn’t a doubt in my mind that I could win it. I had the pace but then I problem with the engine again, so I had to back off.

    That was the water pressure situation we hard about? So you had to get out of it a little bit to protect the engine?
    LH: Yeah, I wasn’t at full throttle down the straights, so just trying to look after it.

    Thank you. Over to Kimi. Kimi Raikkonen your third place man today. Very popular man out there, Kimi, and you have the honour today… this is the 700th podium for the Ferrari team. How are you feeling about third place in particular today?
    Kimi RAIKKONEN: Of course it’s not exactly what we want. We want to win races and put the two cars as far up as we can. We tried to today. I had a pretty OK start, managed to get Valtteri on the first lap but again after the restart, same like last time here, we just don’t have the speed. He managed to get me and then when I tried to get past him obviously Lewis got past me, but we just had to try to run a bit longer and pass them and we managed to do the Williams but not fast enough for Mercedes. Then we had a good speed but with the fuel saving we had to take some measures, so obviously you cannot push as fast as the car can go.

    Lewis says he’s not sure you knew he was coming through. Did you know?
    KR: yeah, I could see him. When I tried to pass Bottas then I was obviously close to him in there and got some understeer and ran wide, so he got a good run on me. I tried to block a little bit but it was too late, so I had to let him go.

    OK, good stuff. Back to you, Nico. We head off to Spain of course. You have a 43-point in the World Championship. A long way to go, but that’s pretty healthy.
    NR: Yeah, but it’s four races from 21. Lewis is going to come back of course. He’s on it and as motivated as ever. So, early days, just taking it race by race, looking forward to Spain now. We have such an incredible car, which is really a pleasure to drive, so just want to try to win races.

    PRESS CONFERENCE

    Q: Nico, many congratulations, four from four, seven in a row. It was a superbly-controlled drive right from the start. There was a moment when Lewis was catching you midway through the middle of the second stint. Was that still under control? Were you fuel-saving and tyre-managing at that stage or he genuinely catching you, was there an issue?
    NR: No, for sure, I mean I knew the gap to Lewis and it was just through the traffic. If I get the traffic first I lose a couple of seconds, then he gets it and it opens up again. No, I was feeling really comfortable today, especially at the end of the race, in the last 15 I opened the gas and pushed a little bit more because I knew it was safe to push and definitely get to the end of the race with that set of tyres. It was working really well. The whole weekend. Even in qualifying. Seldom had such an awesome car. So, special weekend.

    Q: Lewis, you were probably one of the only drivers up here to see what happened at the start, to make your way through the chaos. How was it from your point of view, how difficult to get through? Then your problem with the water pressure late in the race. How serious was that?
    LH: I just caught a small glimpse of some drama happening, in the corner of my eye. I knew someone looked like they were spinning so I drove wide to avoid that. Then when I got to Turn Three, one of the Ferraris was right next to me and all of a sudden I heard a big bang almost and he was gone – so I don’t know really what happened. After that, I don’t know how criticial the engine was. There was no indication for me in the car but I did have to slow down.

    Q: Kimi, you obviously had a good battle with Valtteri at the beginning and then you were slightly ambushed by Lewis after the restart. Beyond that it seemed to be a pretty regulation race for you. Was it a lonely experience to some degree?
    KR: I think a little bit yes – but the start is so important here because it’s such a long straight to the first corner, so I got a very good – well not very good but as good as the other two in front of me – start and then you get the big tow effect and I managed to get past Valtteri. I was surprised how little Nico pushed, or went fast in the first lap and obviously it was a Safety Car and after the Safety Car the same happened as last year, that Williams with the long straight just towed past me and nothing that I could do on that. Then I was able… speed-wise the lap time was good. I was able to follow and then I tried once to overtake in the first corner and was a bit unsure. I lost some speed a few corners later and made some small mistakes, so Lewis got next to me. I tried to squeeze him a little bit but then he was there and I had to let him go and the only chance was to follow them and run a little bit longer and push when we had free traffic. We managed to get Williams. Think the car behaved pretty nicely but there was quite a bit of fuel saving to do, limiting us on the lap time. But it was a fine race. Definitely want to be more higher up with two cars – not ideal on that side. I had quite a big struggle the whole weekend so I’ll take third place but in the race the car was good, like I wanted, but qualifying we struggled, and in the practice. OK, fine but not what we want.

    QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

    Q: (Livio Oricchio – Globoesporte.com) Lewis, you said you didn’t have any indication on the dash that you had a problem with the power unit, right? So it was the team that signalled it for you. Without this problem, do you think it would have been possible to fight with Nico? At one moment you were 7.7s behind him.
    LH: I think it’s impossible to really say right now but the car felt good. At that time I was lapping a little bit quicker than Nico so I was chewing away… there was quite a big gap but it did come down from 13s to 7.5s or something like that. At that point it was when I had to back off and drive a second slower through the laps, just to try and hope that the car was going to make it. Because I had no indication or didn’t really know what the biggest issue was or whether the engine was going to make it so I just tried to nurse it home.
    Q: (Livio Oricchio – Globoesporte.com) Were you surprised?
    LH: I’ve been surprised every weekend… the last two weekends.

    Q: (Kirill Zaytsev – 66.RU) Kimi, will we see you here next year?
    KR: I don’t know.
    Q: (Kirill Zaytsev – 66.RU) What about your contract, I mean?
    KR: I have a contract until the end of this year so who knows what will happen next year but I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t enjoy what I do. Obviously I have a passion for racing but many things are not in our hands. We can only try to do our best and then see what the future will bring. We go race by race. I’m sure at some point this year, latest next year we will know.

    Q: (Angelique Belokopytov – AutoDigest) So before the season began, there was some expectation that Ferrari’s performances which were announced and now after a few races we see that it’s not really achieved so my question is for you Kimi, I’m asking for your point of view, what Ferrari is missing to be a real threat to Mercedes?
    KR: I think it’s not very easy to pinpoint what we need but I’m sure we know quite a few small things that we want to improve and we know that there’s some improvements coming but Mercedes were very fast for the last few years and they are fast this year. I don’t think that so far this year we have ever really put together a really clean weekend either so that doesn’t help. You cannot give anything away  and expect to beat a team like them. We definitely have it to be done but I am quite confident that once we get everything as we want that we can be very strong as a team. We’ve been failing to finish with two cars in the position that we probably deserve so yes, it’s been disappointing but now we have a good way of doing things. We are behind where we want to be but I’m sure as a team we will get there.

  • 2016 Formula 1 Russian Grand Prix: Post Qualifying Press Conference

    2016 Formula 1 Russian Grand Prix: Post Qualifying Press Conference

    DRIVERS
    1 – Nico ROSBERG (Mercedes)
    2 – Sebastian VETTEL (Ferrari)
    3 – Valtteri BOTTAS (Williams)

    TV UNILATERAL

    Nico, congratulations. How nervous were, though, after making a mistake on that final attempt, with your helmet off and strolling down the pit lane that somebody might pip you for pole position?
    Nico ROSBERG: Well, to be honest, I was quite confident that the lap was good enough out there, because in quali two, Ferrari was quite far away and I knew that Lewis was not able to participate in the last part of qualifying, so I was very sure that it was going to be enough. But you never know, your know, so there’s always still a remaining uncertainty and so I was glad eventually when Sebastian finally crossed the line that it was good enough.

    Nico, we’ve seen Lewis had the same engine problem as he did in China, Sebastian has to take a five-place penalty – this championship’s just coming your way naturally isn’t it? Do you believe in good luck?
    NR: Well I didn’t know these facts, I mean, of course I knew about Sebastian but I didn’t really know what Lewis had until now. I was just focused on myself out there and really going for it and feeling great about it. It was really going really well today. From Q2 onwards it just felt awesome. Of course the others have been unfortunate today, extremely unfortunate, and that makes my race a little bit easier tomorrow, but an F1 race is never easy. Of course even from where Sebastian is, where Kimi is and with Valtteri behind the opposition is still there and so still need to keep focused and get the job done as good as possible.

    OK, turning to you Sebastian. How was today, obviously important to get a lot of laps in after losing a lot of time yesterday. Was it a good recovery today?
    Sebastian VETTEL: I think so. Of course I would have liked the gap in the end to be a bit smaller. But yeah, I think in Q2 we saw that Nico in particular is very strong getting the lap in, so good job from his side. I think from us it was the maximum. Obviously we benefit from what happened to Lewis, which I’m not sure exactly what it was but it allowed us to go P2, which helps for tomorrow with the penalty. We are a bit closer, starting on the clean side of the track. I think we can have a good race from there. It should be quite exciting. The car feels good and yeah, I think all weekend it had been quite strong. Obviously we lost some time but obviously we made it up this morning, as you touched on, so it shouldn’t be an issue.

    Of course, it’s second in qualifying, but with the gearbox penalty it will be seventh on the grid, ahead of any other penalties we don’t know about. How frustrated, if at all, are you getting with Ferrari’s unreliability?
    SV: Not frustrated at all. Obviously it’s not nice if these things happen, because they don’t make your life easier, but equally it’s part of racing, these things can happen. They didn’t happen in purpose; they weren’t planned. But I think we are pushing very hard trying to catch up, which I think, especially in race pace, we’ve proven already this year. Obviously we didn’t have a properly clean race yet but maybe we’ll have one tomorrow, you never know, it’s a long race, a long way, especially around here, there’s a lot of things that can happen. So I think we have to wait and see, but you know, now it’s still April, tomorrow is May, it’s a long, long way to go, so it’s a long championship. At the moment I think it’s important to do your best to get the maximum points every single time and the rest you’ll find out anyways.

    Thank you Seb. Valtteri, to you, how good does it feel not only to be third in qualifying but as it will be on the grid for the Russian Grand Prix tomorrow it will be second on the grid and nobody in front of you?
    Valtteri BOTTAS: Yeah, he’s a little bit in front, but yeah, very good in qualifying. Really pleased with how it all went. This weekend has been very positive. We have some new bits on the car and the car has been feeling better. It’s also a good track for us. I’m glad we could maximise the qualifying today. Pleased with that but it’s tomorrow that counts. So far my Sundays haven’t been so great but I’m sure tomorrow we have a good chance to have a good one.

    Nico a final thought from you: you’ve won every race there is so far this season, you’re on pole again, after a few times off the front row, you must be thinking that this is your race to lose tomorrow?
    NR: At the moment I’m still feeling happy with how qualifying went, because it just felt awesome out there. The car was balanced perfectly and through the weekend we just progressed so much and then to hit it in Q2 and from then on it was just going really well and that’s what I’m really pleased about and I haven’t thought too much about tomorrow yet. Of course starting from pole position will be great. As I say, it’s never easy but the way the grid is it does help me out a lot for sure to try and get that win tomorrow.

    PRESS CONFERENCE

    Nico, in China you said you had looked forward to the battle with Lewis and it didn’t happen. It didn’t happen here again today. That’s obviously gives you a good opportunity tomorrow but how disappointing is that for you?
    NR: No, I can’t say I’m disappointed after today. All in all I’m really satisfied because it really felt great out there. It was awesome balance. We got my car together well for qualifying and from Q2 onwards it was just going great. Sao I’m really satisfied with that and that’s a good sign for tomorrow’s race and that’s about it.

    Sebastian, the gap was quite significant, were you surprised by that? What’s the recovery plan for tomorrow?
    SV: Well, obviously Nico starts from pole, which I think he deserves; he has done a great job today in all sessions. For us obviously with the penalty we are a bit further back. Kit would be nice to start on the front row, but it doesn’t happen. But nevertheless I think we can have a very good race. The car feels good. Obviously we know that on Saturdays we are probably a little bit still further back than we want and a bit further back than on Sundays, so high hopes for tomorrow. As I said the car feels good. I think we’ve done our homework, so I expect a strong race. Obviously it’s never easy when you start further back – overtaking is possible but usually people don’t wave you past, so we’ll have to work for it but it should be good fun.

    Q: Valtteri, third time here qualifying in third place, you start second. Power was obviously a significant element of today’s qualifying. Did today’s qualifying bring Williams back to where it should be?
    VB: Well, obviously we want to be higher than this, of course. I think this season it is extremely difficult to beat Ferrari and Mercedes. Of course we’re trying to really close the gap but it is nice that now, today, we’re clear of Red Bull and Toro Rosso who’ve been really challenging us in the last few races. So I’m pleased with today, with the result, and it gives us a good position for the race tomorrow to really make some good points. We need those points so, pleased with today. It was all about team-work and bringing some updates here, so also people at the factory have been doing the right job.

    QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

    Q: (Livio Oricchio – GloboSport.com) Nico, from Q1 to Q2 you did a great step in performance. Did you change the car? Did you put more power in the engine? And, also a question to Bottas: if your performance here related to the new aero front you have in the car or maybe to the characteristics of this track?
    NR: Q2, that’s when it really came together for me. It felt just so great out there. It was mainly the front flap. Went up on the front flap to take away some understeer – so that was good. I thought there would be some downsides but it was just positives.

    Valtteri?
    VB: I think it’s both, to be honest. The updates we bring here, they help us a bit, and also the track suits us better than the first three races so far. So I think it is a combination of both – but I would really hope, I would like us to be better than the first three races in the coming races, so we need to keep progressing.

    Q: (Vladimir Rogovets – Belarus Segoduya ) My question to Nico. Your partner Lewis Hamilton has a lot of problems this year and you, from last year to today are showing very, very good stability. How long will you be staying without engine problems?
    NR: I need the crystal ball now. You have one? We look together! I don’t know, I can’t look into the future. You’re saying this year: it’s only three and a half races from 21. You can’t really say ‘this year’, it’s been a couple of races and yes, it’s been consistently working well for me and I’m happy about that but normally over a season – and especially over 21 races – in F1 things have always evened-out at the end of the year.

    Q: (Michael Schmidt – Auto Motor und Sport) Sebastian wanted to challenge Mercedes this year but now it seems that the gap gets bigger rather than smaller. Is that a concern for you?
    SV: I don’t know. Bloody Germans! Always pessimistic. Show  some optimism! I think it’s only three and a half races. We’ve hah… yeah… quite a trip so far with not everything going according to plan. We could have won the first race if things go a little bit different. So overall, it’s not so bad. We have shown great pace, especially on Sunday, and that’s where you get the points. We know that we need to work and we are pushing very hard – but it’s not so easy. Mercedes is doing a great job, those two guys driving the car are going a good job, so it’s a difficult team to beat. We are not playing… it’s not a kindergarten, I think it’s for grown-ups and therefore the challenge is tough – but ultimately we want to be the best so we need to be ready to tackle the best and, so far, we’re very optimistic we can turn it around.

    Q: (Krill Zaytsev – 66.ru) Question for Sebastian. After a penalty tomorrow do you have chances to get a podium. Here in Sochi there are lots of straights and your engine works good here – so do you have any chances to get up?
    SV. Yes. Obviously when you qualify second, that’s were you sort-of belong. With a penalty you start further back and I think we’re quicker than those cars so I think we have a good chance to make progress. Having said that, it’s never easy. Yes, there are straights – but there’s also a couple of corners, we know it’s not so easy to follow, etcetera. So, we’ll see.

    Q: (Livio Oricchio – GloboSport.com) Sebastian. Once you would be penalised, did you expect your team-mate could be in the first row in order to help your team?
    SV: Well, I don’t know how the session went for him, obviously. Once qualifying kicks off, it’s very difficult to know what happens on the other side. You’re quite busy yourself/. I think Nico said the same thing before: he doesn’t know what happened to Lewis. I don’t know if he had an issue but we’ve been fairly close this weekend, so I think it would have been ideal for him to be third today and therefore starting on the front row – but equally, being third and on the clean side is not bad either. It’s a long way to Turn One, so I think still as a team we are positioned probably as good as possible.

    Q: (Andrea Cremonesi – La Gazzetta dello Sport) Sebastian, have you found with the new power unit some benefit today?
    SV: Well, we brought it here, it was always the plan, we brought it because we believe it is better. As of now, it is doing what it should, so I’m confident that it helps us today and tomorrow.

  • F1 2016: Russian GP Free Practice 1 Report – Rosberg On Top

    F1 2016: Russian GP Free Practice 1 Report – Rosberg On Top

    Nico Rosberg set the fastest time for Mercedes in the first free practice session for the 2016 Russian grand prix.

    All eyes focused on Red Bull Racing as it trialed the aeroscreen for the first time. The aeroscreen is Red Bull’s offering for head protection to be introduced in 2017. The aeroscreen was run for only one installation lap as team principal admitted that it has a “huge impact” on the car’s cooling.

    The two Mercedes of Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton set the early pace in the session. With Red Bull’s Daniel Ricciardo and Williams’ Valtteri Bottas rounding out the top four early on. Williams teammate Felipe Massa was unable to set a time due to a gearbox issue. The Brazilian did make his way out for an install lap in the second half of the session. Mass eventually ended the session with the fifth quickest time.

    Nico Rosberg set the quickest time overall, a 1:38:127 followed by teammate Lewis Hamilton on a 1:38:849. Both drivers used the red-walled supersoft tyre to set their fastest times.

    Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel set the third quickest time, a 1:39:175 ahead of the sister Ferrari of Kimi Raikkonen who set a 1:39:332. The Ferrari’s quickest times were set on the yellow-walled soft tyre.

    Mexican driver Alfonso Celis took control of Nico Huldenberg’s Force India for the practice session. Elsewhere Sergey Sirotkin ran the first free practice session for Renault in place on Kevin Magnussen.

    Final Standings for Free Practice 1:

    Screen Shot 2016-04-29 at 10.33.03 AM

     

  • Red Bull to run canopy in Russian GP practice

    Red Bull to run canopy in Russian GP practice

    The Red Bull Racing F1 team is set to debut its canopy protection system during the first free practice session ahead of the Russian Grand Prix at the Sochi Autodrom.

    The sport has been making attempts to increase driver head protection in recent months, with the ‘halo’ device which was recently trialled by Ferrari, currently being favoured by the FIA.

    The halo was trialled by Kimi Raikkonen on Ferrari’s SF16-H during pre-season testing and was met with divided opinions.

    Red Bull will run the canopy, which it has labelled the ‘aeroscreen’, on one of its RB12s during today’s first practice session. The system was fitted to the car on Thursday afternoon.

    Red Bull Racing Aeroscreen Canopy

    Photo Credits: Red Bull Racing / Getty

  • F1 2016: Russian GP Preview – Russian Showdown

    F1 2016: Russian GP Preview – Russian Showdown

    When you think of motorsport Russia isn’t the first place that comes to mind. In fact, it’s probably not even in your top five. However, this weekend the Formula 1 paddock puts Russia front and center as it heads to the Sochi Autodrom for the fourth round of the 2016 season.

    The Sochi circuit hosted its first grand prix race in 2014 and is the first purpose-built Formula 1 site in Russia. The 5.8 kilometer track was built under the watchful eye of F1’s favoured designer Herman Tilke and has a capacity of 55 000. The most striking feature of the circuit is its integration to the Olympic Park that hosted the 2014 Winter Olympics.

    The circuit, second in length only to Spa and Silverstone, requires compromise in terms of car setup. The start and end of the lap demands good traction and braking performance while the middle sector requires a more technical approach to master the flow of the corners.

    “It’s a very modern track with a few corners that look quite similar by they are never as easy as they might look, because you have to try and driver the car in the limit each time you turn,” says Russian driver Daniil Kvyat.

    Motor Racing - Formula One World Championship - Russian Grand Prix - Race Day - Sochi, RussiaIn the two races it’s put on the Sochi Autodrom has shown little tyre wear. So little in fact that in 2014 Nico Rosberg was able to complete a stint of 52 laps on one set of tyres. But the introduction of a third compound choice in 2016 means that we’re unlikely to see a repeat of what happened here two years ago.

    The Red Bull and Haas F1 Team have opted for an aggressive tyre strategy by selecting ten sets of supersofts, two sets of softs, and one set of the medium compound tyre. It’s an expected choice for these two teams who have been able to make the supersoft tyre last longer than their closest rivals. The Red Bull drivers, Daniel Ricciardo and Daniil Kvyat, may not have a straight forward shot at the podium but will be ready to pounce should either of the Merc or Ferrari drivers have an issue during the Russian GP on Sunday.

    There is a marked difference between Mercedes and Ferrari’s Russian GP tyre choices too.  While all four drivers have only one set of mediums on the shelf Hamilton and Rosberg have opted for eight sets of supersofts, and four sets of the yellow-walled soft tyres. In contrast, Raikkonen and Vettel have chosen six sets each of the soft and supersoft compound.

    The thinking behind Ferrari’s tyre choice could be to do one less stop than Mercedes in the race by running the more durable soft tyre for a longer stint. As the supersoft is generally the quicker tyre to run on much will depend on how big a time deficit there is between it and the more durable soft tyre.

    Lewis HamiltonThe run down to the first corner is a long one, which dramatically tightens into turn one. Ferrari will be extra vigilant after Sebastian Vettel got into the side of Kimi Raikkonen in China. In every round so far Ferrari has faced some issues whether through their own making or uncontrollable reliability problems. If the Italian team is to mount a serious challenge for the top step of the Russian GP podium, which it seems likely they can, the first order of business will be to have a clean race.

    The last time we visited Russia, Mercedes were on the brink on clinching a constructor’s title and Lewis Hamilton had been outperforming teammate Nico Rosberg by a considerable margin. In 2016, the story so far reads much differently. Now it’s up to Lewis Hamilton to show what being a three time world champion really means.

  • Broadcast Times for the 2016 F1 Russian Grand Prix

    Broadcast Times for the 2016 F1 Russian Grand Prix

    The Russian Grand Prix was moved up in 2016 and it’s now Round 4 of the Formula 1 World Championship. The Sochi Autodrom is a semi permanent facility that was built as part of the Winter Olympics park. Built on the shores of the warm waters of the Black Sea the popular seaside area is being called the Russian Rivera.

    The circuit hosts its third F1 Russian Grand Prix race in as many years. No major changes have been made to the layout of circuit and the low degradation characteristic of the asphalt seems to have remained over the years. The super soft, soft and medium compound tyre should throw up a few surprises although we may not see that many pit stops due to the low degradation levels.

    With Nico Roaberg’s championship lead at 36 points, his team mate Lewis Hamilton will need to put in a strong performance this weekend to show some intent. Red Bull put in a strong performance in China and would’ve had two cars on the podium had Daniel Ricciardo not suffered his puncture.

    Ferrari will be looking over their shoulder a bit more after China while focusing their efforts chasing their first victory for 2016. Ferrari have pushed their engine development and are expected to debut their upgraded engine at the Russian Grand Prix weekend together with a new front wing in the hopes that it may bring the Scuderia their first win of the season.

    Herewith your broadcast times for the 2016 Russian Grand Prix weekend:

    CDT GMT+2 GMT Local
    Free Practice 1 04:00 (Fri) 09:00 (Fri) 07:00 (Fri) 10:00 (Fri)
    Free Practice 2 08:00 (Fri) 13:00 (Fri) 11:00 (Fri) 14:00 (Fri)
    Free Practice 3 06:00 (Sat) 11:00 (Sat) 09:00 (Sat) 12:00 (Sat)
    Qualifying 09:00 (Sat) 14:00 (Sat) 12:00 (Sat) 15:00 (Sat)
    Race 09:00 (Sun) 14:00 (Sun) 12:00 (Sun) 15:00 (Sun)

     

  • Niki Lauda wins Laureus lifetime achievement award

    Niki Lauda wins Laureus lifetime achievement award

    Three-time Formula One world champion and non-executive chairman of the Mercedes F1 team Niki Lauda was honoured with the lifetime achievement award at this year’s Laureus World Sports Awards.

    Lauda was presented with the award by Mercedes F1 team driver Lewis Hamilton and actor Daniel Bruhl, who played the role of Lauda in the 2013 film, ‘Rush’ about the 1976 Formula One season. It was the year of Lauda’s close fight with James Hunt and his horrific crash at the German Grand Prix, which left him with severe burns.

    Lauda remains the only driver to have won world championships for both of the sport’s two most successful constructors, Ferrari and McLaren.

    Lauda, who won the title in 1975, 1977 and 1984, said his award was a good reminder of the harder days he endured during his career.

    Speaking at the ceremony, Lauda said: “Thank you very much for this award, I know it’s very important. But I want to say one thing, I’ve seen a lot of people here winning and losing. So I’d like to dedicate this award to the losers.

    “Because I can tell from my own experience, winning is one thing, but out of losing I always learned more for the future. So one grows stronger in losing.

    “One thing that is really worrying me is the world is not turning in the right direction. But sport should be the best ambassador for the future generation to get us closer together again. This is really important for me.”

    Lauda’s legend also includes what could perhaps be the most courageous comeback in sporting history, as he returned to racing just six weeks after suffering horrific burns and being read his last rites following the fiery crash at the Nurburgring in 1976.

    Tennis ace Novak Djokovic received the World Sportsman of the Year award, which Hamilton had been nominated for. Toro Rosso star Max Verstappen had also been nominated for an award – the Breakthrough of the Year award – which went to golf’s Jordan Spieth.

  • F1 2016: Chinese GP – Rosberg Makes Hay In China

    F1 2016: Chinese GP – Rosberg Makes Hay In China

    For years we’ve been frustratingly calling for Nico Rosberg to up his game. With a third win out of three in 2016 he’s done it.

    The German driver effortlessly converted pole position into victory as the chaos unfolded behind his Mercedes. However, it was second-placed starter Daniel Ricciardo who snatched the lead of the race off the line in his Red Bull. Behind this pair the two Ferrari’s of Kimi Raikkonen and Sebastian Vettel, starting third and fourth, looked set to challenge for the race win until Vettel barged into the side of Raikkonen to avoid the sister Red Bull of Dannil  Kvyat on his inside.

    Although Vettel recovered to second place in the end it was a sloppy race for the four time champion. The clash with teammate Raikkonen caused damage to his front-wing which was required replacing. But it would be damaged again as he tried to find his way passed the Williams of Valtteri Bottas.

    Visibility in F1 car is limited but into such a tight corner Vettel should’ve been aware of Raikkonen on his outside given that he started close to him on the grid. Though the German did his best to shift blame to Dannil Kvyat the Russian driver was well within his rights to place his car alongside Vettel’s Ferrari into turn one. Kvyat eventually finished third and despite a confrontation with Vettel after the race wasn’t unhappy at all to secure only the second podium of his career.

    Ferrari contact for Kimi Raikkonen and Sebastian Vettel at the chinese GPRaikkonen’s front-wing damage and punctured tyre meant into turn one meant he had to crawl around the entire lap to make it back to the pitlane. It dropped him right to the back of the field and onto an alternative strategy which had him running on the white-walled medium tyre in the middle stint of the race. The Finn had shown great pace throughout the weekend was able to resist an attack from Hamilton on quicker tyres.  It left the soft, yellow-walled, tyre for the final stint of the race and with it Raikkonen was able to make up enough positions to ultimately finish fifth.

    Even Lewis Hamilton was involved in the mess of the opening lap. After starting last following an overnight power unit change the Brit also lost his front-wing and sustained damage to his barge board into turn one.

    In the lead of the race Daniel Ricciardo’s hopes evaporated as he picked up a left-rear puncture on lap three. Ricciardo was able to recover to fourth. If it wasn’t clear before why both Mercedes and Ferrari refused to provide the Red Bull team with an engine from their shed it is surely clear now. The 2016 Red Bull car is a great chassis, with two great drivers and all they’re missing is a great engine.

    Daniel Ricciardo puncture at the chinese GPDebris from Ricciardo’s blown tyre prompted the deployment of the safety car and drivers took the opportunity to fit the more durable soft and medium tyres. Behind Raikkonen in fifth Williams’ Felipe Massa was able to hold onto sixth while Hamilton had to settle for seventh. Toro Rosso’s Max Verstappen finished eighth ahead of teammate Carlos Sainz in ninth and the second Williams of Valtteri Bottas rounded out the top ten.  Despite numerous incidents throughout the race all twenty-two cars saw the chequered flag at the end of the race.

    Since the start of the 2016 season things haven’t been going Lewis Hamilton’s way. Less than ideal starts off the line, unreliability, and damage early in the last two races have severely tested the champion. He’s response has been to remain remarkably cool about it all. However, three victories and a thirty-six point lead in the driver’s championship for a perfect Nico Rosberg  is getting to be a bit tight. It’s a good thing Lewis Hamilton likes a fight because he has a big one on his hands now.

    (Featured image courtesy of Pirelli Motorsport)