F1 Madness

Tag: hungarian gp

  • F1 2023: Hungarian Gp Review – Red Bull’s Record-Breaking Streak: 12 Wins and Counting!

    F1 2023: Hungarian Gp Review – Red Bull’s Record-Breaking Streak: 12 Wins and Counting!

    There aren’t many superlatives that remain to be espoused in honour of the Red Bull team. So, we’ll give you the stats instead. The latest win in Hungary has taken Red Bull to a record-equaling twelfth win in a row. They share this auspicious record with the 1988 McLaren. The difference in 2023 is that there are still eleven races to be run. There’s no telling then where Red Bull’s record of consecutive wins will end.

    A seventh win in a row for Max Verstappen has also taken him into some elite company. From Ascari, to Michael Schumacher (twice), to Seb Vettel and Nico Rosberg, Verstappen joins a short list of drivers to win seven grands prix consecutively. The outright record of nine wins, is held by Seb Vettel. There is every expectation that Verstappen will blow past this record in relatively short time. This weekend’s Belgian Grand Prix could well be number eight.

    The Saturday qualifying result would have come as a surprise to many given the current run of form. Lewis Hamilton delivered a truly impressive lap to snatch pole position by just three thousands of a second. It was the Brit’s first pole since the Saudi Arabian Gp in 2021, some 33 races ago. The resurgent Hamilton brought with him a real sense of optimism that he could perhaps challenge for the victory. But it was nothing more than a short-lived fantasy.

    A poor start from Hamilton saw him drop behind not only Verstappen but also the two McLaren’s of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri. And although he showed a good turn of pace towards the end of the race it wasn’t enough to recover to the podium.

    Formula 1 2023: Hungarian GPAs it were, once Verstappen took the lead, he disappeared into the distance quite rapidly. In fact, the Dutchman was leading by more than half a minute by the time the chequered flag appeared. In second place Norris drove yet another impressive race to hold off Checo Perez for a second consecutive podium finish. Perez, who qualified a lowly ninth, delivered the drive of the day, according to the fans’s vote, to finish third. The Mexican driver unquestionably pitched up on Sunday and delivered a drive that reminded everyone just how good he can be.

    Hamilton’s late charge saw him finish fourth ahead of Piastri in fifth. George Russell, who had to endure a qualifying faux pas, recovered from eighteenth to sixth place. It was yet another forgettable day for Ferrari as Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz trundled home in a lowly seventh and eighth; Leclerc having been demoted from sixth after incurring a five second time penalty for speeding in the pitlane. Aston Martin’s recent drop in performance was underlined too as Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll finished ninth and tenth.

    The returning Daniel Ricciardo was rock solid in the AlphaTauri. He both outqualified and outraced teammate Yuki Tsunoda to finish thirteenth in what has been described as a very difficult car to drive. To deliver a performance such as that after only two days in a completely new car and environment is a perfect start to his return.

    Formula 1 heads straight to Belgium this weekend for a race around the famed Spa-Francorchamps circuit. Regardless of the weather conditions, which is notoriously unpredictable in these parts, there is unlikely to be any genuine threat to Red Bull’s dominance. At this point only unreliability or a freak turn of events are likely to stop Red Bull from owning the top step of the podium once more.

    All images courtesy of Pirelli Motorsport
  • F1 2021: Hungarian Gp Review – Ocon Emerges in P1

    F1 2021: Hungarian Gp Review – Ocon Emerges in P1

    You’re only as good as your last race. If there were any truth to this old racing adage then half of the Formula 1 field would be absolutely elated while the other half is absolutely fuming. Such was the chaos at the 2021 Hungarian Grand Prix.

    The wet weather that came down just minutes before the race start seemed like it would cause the most difficultly on the opening few laps but it turned out to be Valtteri Bottas instead. As the drivers battled wheel-spin off the starting grid Bottas made the poorest starts of the first few rows. Hamilton, starting on pole, was relatively clean away with Verstappen, starting third, well on his way to slotting in behind him. But Bottas’s mind clearly wasn’t where it needed to be. The Finn, at best described as an errant torpedo, failed to brake early enough for turn 1 and scuttled nearly half the field. The Mercedes driver triggered the chaos by hitting the back of Lando Norris who in turn walloped the side of Verstappen. In a sort of two-for-one special Bottas also collected the other Red Bull of Sergio Perez on his way into the turn 1 barriers. Bottas wasn’t the only one who forewent the braking into turn 1 as Lance Stroll skittered across the inside kerb of said corner and took out himself, Charles Leclerc and punted Daniel Ricciardo into a spin.

    The shambolic start couldn’t have been worse for some but several others were still in the running and picked their way through the mess of carbon fiber. With Hamilton unscathed in the lead it was Esteban Ocon in second with Aston Martin’s Seb Vettel in third. Carlos Sainz, who’d started 15th was now fourth with both Williams drivers also running solidly in the points. But the debris on track proved too much and the red flag was subsequently put out. As the cars came to a halt the Red Bull mechanics worked feverishly to repair Verstappen’s car that was, miraculously, still running. Albeit car no. 33 had suffered significant damage, including a missing right bargeboard and severe damage to the floor which resulted in a nearly un-drivable car. Not only was Verstappen at the back of the field with a drastically damaged car but Perez too was out of the race.

    Formula 1 2021: Hungarian GPAnd still the shambles of the Hungarian Grand Prix was far from over. The red flag period was long enough to dry the track and prompt the drivers back into the pits at the end of the formation lap. All the drivers bar one. Lewis Hamilton remained on track and lined up as the only car on the grid. In comical fashion the lights went out and Hamilton pulled away. It was clear fairly quickly that Merc had made the wrong call to stay out and Hamilton was forced to pit at the end of that lap. It dropped him to last place for the time being.

    As the race sorted itself out at the front Ocon led Vettel by roughly a second for the majority of the race. Try as he might Vettel was not able to overtake the Alpine for the lead of the race. Initially, Hamilton’s progress was stunted but once he undercut Verstappen with a slightly earlier switch to hard tyres he was on the move. The damage to Verstappen’s car was evident as the Dutchman spent far too much time trying to overtake the much slower Mick Schumacher in the Haas. As it were Verstappen would only manage tenth place by the chequered flag.

    Meanwhile, Hamilton had made a second stop for brand-new medium tyres and was on an almighty charge with a substantial pace advantage over those ahead of him. It seemed highly likely that the Brit would recover to win the race. That was until he encountered the Alpine of one Fernando Alonso. Despite being in a slower car with much older tyres Alonso delivered a stunning defensive drive to hold off Hamilton just long enough. Eventually the Merc was past the Alpine and also made short work of Sainz’s Ferrari in third but it was too late for Hamilton to attempt an overtake on either Vettel or Ocon.

    Formula 1 2021: Hungarian GPUnfortunately, Seb Vettel’s great drive was sullied by a post-race disqualification. As per regulation the FIA requires the withdrawal of 1 liter of fuel from the car, which they were unable to do. Aston Martin has lodged an appeal against the disqualification. Bottas and Stroll get off fairly lightly with a 5-place grid drop at the next race as the only penalty for eliminating half of the field.

    The last two races have been nothing short of a nightmare for Red Bull who has now lost the lead in both the constructors and driver’s championship. But it doesn’t diminish what was a good day for many others on the grid. Vettel’s disqualification moves Hamilton into second while Sainz is third. The driver-of-the-day Alonso is fourth ahead of Alpha Tauri’s Gasly and Tsunoda in fifth and sixth. Nicholas Latifi is seventh with Williams teammate George Russell in eighth and Verstappen in ninth. Somehow, despite a 10-second penalty for an unsafe release by the Alfa Romeo team in the pitlane Kimi Raikkonen is able to salvage tenth and the final point on offer.

    After being dumped out of F1 in 2019, for no good reason, Esteban Ocon had to somehow find his way back into the sport in an ultra-competitive midfield. He’d done so slowly but surely and Sunday’s drive showcased not only his determination but put on display all the skill and talent that he promised a few seasons ago. It was an utterly stellar drive and win for one of the nicest guys in the paddock.

    All images courtesy of Pirelli Motorsport
  • F1 2021: Hungarian Gp Preview – Battle Ready

    F1 2021: Hungarian Gp Preview – Battle Ready

    In 2021, Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen have been at the forefront of conversation. It’s established now that these two are the main protagonists in the fight for the ultimate prize of the world championship. And as with any good drama an intense amount of controversy has been added to amp up the intensity. After all, what good is any story without some type of conflict?

    The 2021 British Grand Prix and the clash between Hamilton and Verstappen lives rent-free in the minds of most F1 fans. Regardless of who you think is to blame, or not, it has magnified an already fierce battle. In Hungary this week there will undoubtedly be questions from the press to both drivers and their respective teams about the incident and it will all receive run-of-the-mill ‘we’ve moved on’ responses. The best and most important response will come on the track where it matters most.

    Despite a nightmarish race weekend at Silverstone with zero points in the bank Red Bull is still likely to start the Hungarian Grand Prix weekend as favourites. The Hungaroring circuit might be known as one of the most spectator friendly, given that it’s effectively situated in a bowel, but it is not one famous for overtaking opportunities which places most, if not all, of the emphasis on qualifying. There’s no special format this weekend either as F1 returns to its traditional three practice sessions, quali on Saturday, and the Grand Prix on Sunday afternoon. So far this season Red Bull have held the ascendancy in pure pace over one lap. But Mercedes, through Hamilton, was able to best Verstappen at Silverstone. It might have been the rather big upgrade package or the vociferous home support or a combination of the two that propelled Hamilton to p1. The true test of whether Mercedes are genuinely closer, or even equal to Red Bull on pace, will come in Hungary.

    HungaroringAs the championship battle expectantly twists and turns at the epicenter of Formula 1 there is much else that need to be confirmed, sorted out, and finalized during the winter break that follows the Hungarian Grand Prix. One of the most prominent stories involves the 2022 Mercedes seat alongside Lewis Hamilton. Toto Wolff has been just short of singing Valtteri Bottas’s praises after the Finn moved out of Hamilton’s way at Silverstone. And still George Russell continues to outshine his Williams car in an effort to snatch the Merc seat for himself. Elsewhere, Checo Perez hardly covered himself in glory in his last race but the expectation is that the Mexcian has done enough to maintain his Red Bull seat for next year.

    Then there is the perennial question of Kimi Raikkonen and if he will continue or retire. The Finn is not only the oldest driver on the grid at 41 but also the most experienced in the history of the sport. As Alfa Romeo has re-stated its support of the team there is a raft of possibilities for the two seats. From GP2 stars such as Callum Illot and Theo Pourchaire to Mick Schumacher and even Valtteri Bottas have been linked with the team. It’s unlikely that all of this will be resolved in the winter break but the picture of 2022 will definitely begin to take shape.

    As much of the focus is on the Hamilton/Verstappen duel the titanic scrap between McLaren and Ferrari, for third in the constructors standings, is another enticing prospect for this weekend. And such is the form of Charles Leclerc and Lando Norris that it can’t be ruled out that they may be able to mix it at the sharp end of the grid, at least in qualifying.

    As enthralling as the title fight is one of the most enticing things about this season is that up and down the 2021 Formula 1 field there are drivers eager to stake their claim, teams keen for supremacy over their nearest rivals. And all there is only one place all of it can come to a head – on the track.

  • F1 2020: Hungarian Gp Review – Merc in a class of one

    F1 2020: Hungarian Gp Review – Merc in a class of one

    Ninety-one race victories and seven world championship titles seemed inaccessible for so long. But now it is case of when rather than if Mercedes and Lewis Hamilton will reach and break the lofty records set by the great Michael Schumacher.

    Lewis Hamilton cruised to a dominant victory in round three of the 2020 championship. An eighth win around the Hungaroring, with a fastest lap and pole position to boot, has also given Hamilton the lead in the driver’s standings. So comfortably dominant was Hamilton’s pace that he was able to pit near the end of the race and still emerge well ahead of second-placed Max Verstappen and Valtteri Bottas who completed the podium in third.

    The races started in damp condition but the switch to slick tyres happened within a few laps of the race start. There was drama before the race even started for Red Bull as Verstappen fell foul of the slippery conditions on the way to the grid. The Dutchman clouted a barrier with the front-left of his car breaking the track rod and front-wing. Somehow his mechanics were able to change the track rod in record time to get their driver into the race. Max Verstappen may have been voted Driver of the Day by fans on social media but the real MVPs were unquestionably his mechanics.

    Saturday qualifying confirmed Racing Point’s pace as they locked out the second row of the grid with Lance Stroll and Sergio Perez. It is often easy to dismiss Lance Stroll seeing as his father owns the team he’s driving for. But his performance and fourth place finish in the Hungarian Gp deserves praise. He thoroughly outpaced Checo Perez whom is the much more highly rated of the Racing Point drivers.

    Alex Albon recovered from a nightmarish qualifying position of 13th to finish fifth ahead of Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel in sixth. Ferrari’s woes were eased somewhat with Vettel but Charles Leclerc was only able to bring his Ferrari home in 11th. It’s going to be a long old season and, unfortunately, the light at the end of the tunnel is nowhere near in sight for the Scuderia.

    Sergio Perez was seventh for Racing Point however Renault hit them with another protest after the race. Renault had also lodged a protest with the FIA following the Stryrian Gp (Austria Part 2) challenging the legality of the Racing Point’s car design. Racing Point has made no secret about the fact that they had copied, from pictures, the design of the 2019 Mercedes. Renault believe though that Mercedes lent more of a helping hand than was legal.

    Renault would likely not have raised the issue if they were ahead of Racing Point on pace, but they aren’t. As it were Daniel Ricciardo finished eighth for Renault ahead of McLaren’s Carlos Sainz in ninth and Haas F1’s Kevin Magnussen in tenth. Magnussen had finished ninth on the track but was subsequently dealt a ten-second-time penalty for receiving prohibited instructions during the formation lap.

    On current pace it is clear that Hamilton might only have one challenger in 2020 – Valtteri Bottas. Valtteri Bottas started the season like he has in the last few years. Victory in race one is almost a given for the Finn but inevitably he is bested by Hamilton in the next few races. Bottas made two mistakes in the Hungarian grand prix. A stutter, nearly a jump start, at the beginning of the race saw him lose several places but luckily avoid a penalty as he was adjudged to still be in his grid slot despite a small amount of relative movement before the lights went out. The second slip-up was his inability to overtake Verstappen despite having significantly fresher tyres and boatload more pace. Yes, overtaking around the Hungarian circuit isn’t the easiest feat but if Bottas is serious about taking the challenge to Hamilton then he must make that pass for second. The fact is that Bottas is not going to beat Hamilton, over a season, on pace. The only way of beating Lewis Hamilton is to get inside his head. Bottas needs to be utterly relentless and to make Hamilton aware that he isn’t going to yield.

    The good news for Bottas is that there is unlikely to be a consistent challenge from anywhere else. Mercedes Benz is simply in a class of its own. The on-board footage of Hamilton’s qualifying lap pretty much defied the laws of gravity so ridiculously planted was the Merc around the Hungaroring.

    It is quite astonishing that the Mercedes factory and engineers is still able to produce an even quicker car than they have in the previous six years. Every year the car created is a masterpiece of engineering and innovation to the point where one thinks it surely cannot get any better. But it does. And what they have conjured with the W11 in 2020 is gob-smacking. It is unfathomable to imagine that the championship titles will be going anywhere other than Mercedes’s undoubtedly overflowing trophy cabinet in Brackley. In fact, the rest would do well to get a win off them this season, on merit.

  • F1 2019: Hungarian Gp Review – Hamilton Charges to Victory

    F1 2019: Hungarian Gp Review – Hamilton Charges to Victory

    For the first time in his career Max Verstappen secured pole position for the Hungarian grand prix with a breathtaking lap on Saturday. Not only was P1 a new experience for the Dutchman but so would be leading a grand prix from the front.

    For nearly all of his previous seven race wins Verstappen has been the hunter. However, the tables were turned and it was up to the Red Bull driver to control the race and maintain the lead while being hunted by the Mercedes of Lewis Hamilton. And until the last third of the race Verstappen had been doing a mighty fine job of holding P1.

    But such was the pace of the leading pair that it created a colossal gap to the Ferrari’s of Leclerc and Vettel. A gap big and obvious enough for Mercedes to bring Hamilton into the pits for a fresh set of tyres. While Verstappen tried to eek out the laps on his set of hard tyres Hamilton was unleashed on fresh rubber and eviscerated the nineteen-second gap to the leader. Initially, Verstappen seemed able to respond and for the briefest of moments it seemed possible that he could hold the lead. But Hamilton delivered a blistering pace, sometimes more than two seconds a lap quicker, to be right on the Red Bull’s gearbox with four laps to go. He made short work of a defenseless Verstappen and career victory number 81 was in the bag.

    It’s gone from bad to worse for Ferrari in the first half of the season and Hungary was no exception. Sebastian Vettel, on an alternate strategy, was able to snatch the final step of the podium from teammate Charles Leclerc but it was an embarrassing outing for Ferrari who finished more than a minute adrift of the race-winner. Fundamentally, the 2019 Ferrari is lacking in downforce. So it doesn’t come as too much of a surprise then that they would struggle around the long medium speed corners of the Hungaroring. Still, to be more than a minute behind will smart all the way through the summer break.

    2019 Hungarian GPElsewhere, Carlos Sainz finished in a fine fifth place ahead of the ever under pressure Pierre Gasly in sixth while Kimi Raikkonen, in seventh, once again punched well above the Alfa Romeo’s weight. Valtteri Bottas finished eighth after suffering front-wing damage on the opening lap with a coming together first with teammate Hamilton and then Charles Leclerc. Lando Norris made it a double points score for McLaren in ninth while Thai-born driver Alex Albon secured the final point on offer in tenth.

    After pre-season testing the mid-field battle looked as if it would be an extremely close fight between several teams. And while it is for the most part still closely fought the opening half of the season hasn’t gone quite the way many would have expected. What has gone accordingly to expectation is that McLaren are well in charge of the mid-field battle with 82 points on the board. Toro Rosso too will be pleased with 5thplace in the constructor’s championship courtesy of Kvyat’s podium finish in Germany.

    But there are big question marks at Renault as they are not only being beaten by their customer team in McLaren but also by both Honda powered teams. For a works team it simply isn’t good enough and the French team will have serious conversations over the break. It could possibly result in some restructuring at the top with team principal Cyril Abiteboul likely the most under pressure.

    2019 Hungarian GPAlfa Romeo may not say so publically but they’ll be thanking their lucky stars for Kimi Raikkonen who has scored 31 of the teams’ total of 32 points in 2019. They might even try to extend the Finn’s contract which currently takes him to the end of 2020. Despite a significant uptick in investment Racing Point it hasn’t materialized in the way they would’ve expected. There is still half a season to go however and they may yet come good as that investment begins to filter through.

    So far 2019 has been a head-scratcher for Haas. Though the American-based team clearly has a quick car it’s only shown in brief flashes. By their own admission they have struggled to understand the car and are still trying to comprehend why and how of it. For Williams there has hardly been a more difficult time than this season. But there is light at the end of the tunnel, as a new upgrade package appears to have pushed the team closer to the rest of the field. The important thing now for Williams will be to continue with this trend.

    In Austria, Silverstone, Germany, and Hungary Formula 1 have delivered four stunning races in succession and the good news is that there is still half a season to go.  It re-starts with the famed Belgian grand prix on August 30.

    All images courtesy of Pirelli Motorsport 
  • 2019 Formula 1 Hungarian GP: Saturday Press Conference

    2019 Formula 1 Hungarian GP: Saturday Press Conference

    DRIVERS

    1 – Max VERSTAPPEN (Red Bull Racing)

    2 – Valtteri BOTTAS (Mercedes)

    3 – Lewis HAMILTON (Mercedes)

    TRACK INTERVIEWS

    (Conducted by Paul Di Resta)

     

    Q: Question inaudible

    Max Verstappen: It’s incredible! This one was still missing. The car felt good all weekend and then of course you know it’s always going to be hard in qualifying but we managed to do it and of course a big thank you to the team. The car was flying out there in qualifying. It was incredible.

    Q: If you’d saw how nervous the garage was when you went out for that last run, but I guess when you hear on the radio that you’ve actually nailed that, it’s just growing isn’t it, the confidence with there, and tomorrow you’re in a great position with that.

    MV: Yeah, absolutely. Very happy about today. Still a race to do and that’s at the end of the day the most important, but for me today was an important one, a very nice one and also a great one for the team.

    Q: The Dutch travel in form and you can hear when you drew up… ? 

    MV: They’re loving it!

    Q: …You had the engine noise but you could hear them. You’ve lifted this place. Max, congratulations. Valtteri, you nearly got the job done. I guess after last weekend, Max pulling out a great lap, but you came close and you’re in a good position.

    Valtteri BOTTAS: Yeah, I’ve been kind of chasing a little bit this weekend after missing pretty much all practice one, only limited laps in practice two, and I only really started to get into the rhythm this morning. It was getting better and better in qualifying and I’m pretty pleased with the lap in the end. Very close with Max, they’ve been quick all weekend, but, you know, as always it’s tomorrow that counts.

    Q: Can you still win this race from the position you’re in?

    VB: Of course. We are here to fight for the win. There’s lots of support for that, so that’s going to make a difference.

    Q: All the best. Lewis, third position. I guess you would say it’s been a difficult day after your form in qualifying normally. But I guess Max pulling out a great lap, Valtteri there as well, are you happy with where you ended up?

    Lewis HAMILTON: Naturally we’re always targeting first. Max did a great job and so did Valtteri. It kind of got away from me a little bit once we got into qualifying but still we’re in a good position to fight for the win, so we’ll just be pushing hard tomorrow.

    Q: These guys are starting to ramp up the pressure now, Ferrari were very close as well, the Red Bull. Are you relishing this fight that they’re taking to you?

    LH: I’m always down for a fight so…

    Q: I guess you’ll have to pass some cars tomorrow to try and get this win?

    LH: Yeah, I think it’s obviously a long, long way down to Turn 1, so it will be interesting. It’s not the easiest place to overtake, but strategy will come into it tomorrow, so I hope we can give them a run for their money.

     

    PRESS CONFERENCE

     

    Q: Max, what an exciting moment for you. You’ve had a few minutes now to digest it, how does it feel?

    MV: Yeah, it feels good. I think the whole weekend already the car was very competitive. Of course there’s always a bit of a question mark how it’s going to work out in qualifying when we know that they can turn up a bit more power. But we seemed to hang in there and the car actually got better and better throughout qualifying. I was very happy with it, very pleased. It was really enjoyable to drive. I didn’t really have any comments throughout qualifying, I just said ‘keep it going, keep the car going and give me new tyres’ and that’s exactly what we did. Of course to get your first pole is very nice but it’s of course what counts on Sundays always.

    Q: Well, you’ve been brilliant on Sundays, you’ve had seven wins. What’s the overriding emotion now that you’ve finally go this first pole?

    MV: People will stop asking me that question. Yeah, I guess so. For me it never really mattered. I knew it was a matter of time. You need a bit of luck sometimes as well. Of course, I made mistakes myself to miss a pole position shot. And today we got it, so very happy with that.

    Q: Many congratulations, well done. Valtteri, it’s been a difficult build up to qualifying for you, with very little running in practice yesterday. How was the car this afternoon?

    VB: Yeah, it’s been not the easiest of weekends so far. I missed the whole of practice one, I had no track time, and I obviously very limited running in practice two. So this morning it was really important in practice three to find the rhythm and it was really getting better and better. I was getting the confidence in the car. Luckily there were no big set-up issues and I could just fine-tune it for qualifying. And again in qualifying, just learning each lap more and more and it started to feel very nice in Q3. It’s a shame to miss the pole by such a small margin, always, but congrats to Max and to Red Bull, they’ve been strong all weekend. But on how the weekend started, in that sense, I’m quite happy with that, but obviously a lot happier sitting in the middle.

    Q: Thank you and well done. Lewis, you came into the qualifying session seeking your seventh pole position here in Hungary. You’re lining up third. Just talk us through it?

    LH: Firstly, congratulations to Max. It’s an amazing feeling to get your first pole position, so really happy for him. For me a difficult qualifying session. Practice was going quite well. We knew the Red Bulls were quick – they’re always quick here. I think when I got into qualifying the car wasn’t the same as it was in P3 and it just was a bit of a struggle from the beginning and it kind of just plateaued there. It didn’t really get any better. But nonetheless we’re still there in the fight and hopefully for the race we’ll have better race pace than I did in quali.

     

    QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

     

    Q: (Dan Knutson – Auto Action and Speedsport) Max, you have a powerful engine but I think at the start of the season the chassis wasn’t really optimum. How much has the chassis improved from Spain testing to here?

    MV: I never said it was only the chassis, I think it’s a bit of both where we were lacking in the beginning. We made good gains with the engine, but we’re not where we want to be and I think everybody knows that. But we are pushing hard and we are improving and we are getting close to Mercedes and Ferrari, especially Ferrari, they seem very quick on the straights. With the chassis I think since Austria where we introduced a few crucial updates I think the car has been a lot better. From there onwards we kept bringing new parts. Maybe not as major as that one but it always gave me more of a balanced feeling in the car. And that’s exactly what we were looking for in the car and I guess it shows today on a track where you need a lot of downforce that the car was working really well.

    Q: (Vladimir Rogovets – Sb Belarus) My question to Mr Hamilton. Lewis, seven years ago you were here the winner but 2012 we had six champions in the peloton and you were only a one-time champion. Today we have only three champions in the peloton and you are a five-time champion. Do you think tomorrow, will it be easier for you to win than seven years ago – or not?

    MV: I didn’t know we had a peloton…

    LH: Did I win 2012? I don’t really remember that far back. Competition-wise, I don’t think it makes any difference, I don’t think, between those years. We’ve got some fierce competition within the top three teams. Is it easier now to win than before? I wouldn’t say so. It’s different circumstances now, naturally, and with more experience hopefully you are slightly prepared that I was back in… I would hope I’m better prepared than I was in 2012 but you’re still fighting an uphill battle all the time. You’re always finding new circumstances each weekend. This weekend, it started out well and it’s not gone great today but that doesn’t mean tomorrow can’t go great.

    …but you have more experience?

    LH: So, hopefully we’ll see that play its role.

    Q: (Scott Mitchell – Autosport) Max, by getting the breakthrough pole position for yourself and Red Bull with Honda, what message do you think that sends? Obviously you’ve made it clear that qualifying is the area you think you need to improve. And to the two Mercedes drivers, obviously you won’t take your eye off the challenge from Ferrari but do you think that Max is now your nearest, most consistent challenger?

    MV: We know that, if you can start more upfront in the race, it all makes it a bit easier to control a race – but we kept working really hard to improve the engine, to get a bit more out of it in qualifying, and I think that showed again today – that we were able to push it a bit more but of course within the limits of not blowing up. We keep improving. There are positive things also coming in the upcoming races. Of course, very happy to get my first pole position but also with the team, how quickly we turn things around from the beginning of the year where we were clearly lacking and now we are definitely closing up. And this weekend we were there, so that was good.

    Mercedes drivers: Valtteri, how do you see the pecking order at the front now? Do you think Max is your closest rival?

    VB: Well obviously it always depends on the tracks and circumstances but if you look at the trend, let’s say from the last five races, I think Red Bull has been the one who has been improving the most, closing the gap and today qualifying on pole. So, for sure they are doing many things right, and that means we have to work harder as a team but, y’know, I’m sure Ferrari isn’t standing still either. It’s maybe a tricky track for them but we’re going to see a strong performance from them as well.

    Lewis, your thoughts.

    LH: Enough said.

    Max is the top scorer in the last four races

    MV: You need to be the top scorer over the whole season, that’s what counts.

    Q: (Péter Farkas – Autó-motor) Max, you have been quite close to pole on a couple of occasions recently but you had a problem with the throttle application – turbo-lag, I think – is that problem now solved. And do you agree with Lewis the Honda engine is now at least as powerful as the Mercedes one at certain places.

    MV: Yeah, no problems this weekend, so that was all very good. No, I think we are still a bit down, in qualifying especially, but we are definitely closing up.

    Q: (Heikki Kulta – Turun Sanomat) Valtteri, you have had only one victory from P2. How tricky a place is this to get the second one?

    VB: Well, for sure it’s going to be a good battle tomorrow. It’s never going to be easy, and that’s obviously the only target as a driver. And starting in the front row and it’s very much possible. If the performance is there from my side, we as a team, it’s possible. It really doesn’t matter where you start from, as we’ve seen in the past, anything can always happen. Good chance. Very upbeat for tomorrow.

    Q: (Luke Smith – crash.net) Max, throughout your career so far you’ve held the majority of records for being the youngest driver to hit certain achievements. This is one of the few things you’ve missed out on. Do you care much for those kind of accolades and records – or not really?

    MV: No. I don’t’ know, I can make it a long story but it’s not so. It’s nice but it doesn’t make me sleep better, or anything.

    LH: Who has the youngest pole?

    MV: I think it’s Seb.

    VB: Now you can’t sleep.

    MV: Yep, now I’ll have a bad sleep.

    Q: (Masahiro Owari – Formula Owari) Question to Max. You struggled with an issue at a couple of grand prix, Hockenheim and Silverstone, how was the issue in today’s qualifying?

    MV: Yeah, I just had the same question before. There was no problem this weekend.

    Q: (Peter Vamosi – Racing Line) Renault claims that the engine is now at 1000bhp. What about Honda and Mercedes engines in this case? And an engineer said it’s impossible right now in this state to break this, also for Ferrari.

    MV: Well, if they claim to have a thousand horsepower they have a really bad car! I think it’s better to do the talking on the track than in the media anyway.

    LH: I have no idea what brake horsepower we have so similar; it’s all very close.

    VB: Actually just yesterday I asked the team – because we had some engine issues, we had some talks about the engine and I asked how much horsepower we had in qualifying and the engineers said they don’t know, they don’t actually know, so no one knows.

    LH: That might be why you’re catching us up.

    Q: (Peter Windsor – Clarksport) Max, you used the phrase earlier on ‘we knew Mercedes were going to turn up the engines for qualifying.’ Just to be clear, are you now able to turn up the Honda engine for qualifying, because you implied that but not actually said that?

    MV: Yeah, we do but it just seems like it’s not as powerful as maybe… well, looking at Ferrari they really turn it up. We do turn it up but maybe not as aggressive.

    Q: (Livio Oricchio – liviooricchioF1.com) Lewis and Valtteri, Mercedes presented almost a new version of the car at Hockenheim with great changes in the aero package and here the results were maybe not what the team expected. Is that because the teams needs to understand better the new spec of car or even the upgrade was not one the team was expecting?

    VB: Well, based on everything we saw with the new package and analysis after last weekend as well it’s working as it should, so it’s a reasonable step forward in terms of downforce and efficiency. I guess other teams are moving ahead as well, forward as well with the performance but for sure we kind of expected to have a bit of a step compared to others but I think they are improving as well. It’s still a development race for quite some while before things are done.

    LH: Still trying to understand it. I think there are bits of it that are better and bits of it that are the same. So as I said the other day, we’re just constantly trying to understand it and improve it and I don’t think it’s a negative at all. We definitely have moved forward but clearly the others continue to move forward at the same time, at a steeper pace, maybe.

    Q: (Louis Dekker – NOS) Practice starts, did they go OK, did they give you confidence?

    MV: Yeah, they were all good.

    VB: I had a really good practice start.

    MV: Yeah? I had a wheelie off the line! I was wheelie-ing.

    VB: Yeah? Me too!

    MV: Up to second gear!

    Q: (Daniel Majer – GPHirek.hu) Lewis and Valtteri, track position on this track is very important so tomorrow if Max comes first from the start, he can have an easier task. Do you think it would be good to discuss with the team any kind of tactics to hunt him down and then play it between yourselves or do you prefer just to mind your own thing?

    LH: Where’s the other Red Bull? So we’re in a good position in terms of working as a team tomorrow. We’re in a fortunate position, potentially, if we can hold on to Max to be able to work together to pull him closer to us and give him a bit of a run for his money. It’s a little bit harder when you’re on your own at the front in the team, because you can come under attack from undercuts and all this sort of thing. We’ll see how that plays out but we’ve got a long run down to turn one so hopefully we will have a nice long battle down there and then after that it’s down to team tactics.

    VB: Yeah, for sure we always discuss it, especially if we’re kind of starting next to each other and like Lewis said, we have a good chance as a team because we have two cars very much at the front. Obviously we are both also racing for our own result but also working as a team will benefit both of us so it should be interesting tomorrow.

    Q: (Zsolt Godina – F1Vilag.hu) Lewis, can you please tell us how was your preparation for this race weekend after your problems in Hockenheim?

    LH: It was just sleep. I didn’t get any training done, just literally sleeping a lot all week. That’s all I can really say about it.

    Q: Are you healthy this weekend?

    LH: Yeah, I feel a lot better, a lot better. Sweating a lot still but much better.

    Q: (Viktor Bognar – Magyar Szo) Max, in the past couple of weeks you were quickest in the fast and very hot Red Bull Ring. You were quickest in the wet Hockenheim and now you’re quickest here in the cooler and slow Hungaroring. Can Red Bull and you be favourites in the next races or what makes you think you can’t be?

    MV: I don’t know. We’ve got Spa and Monza coming up. Monza is maybe not our best track. Spa I don’t know actually, but first we have the summer break as well so honestly I’m not thinking about that yet. I feel good. I think the last few races, even on tracks where I didn’t expect to be like really, really competitive we were still there so anything can happen, to be honest.

  • 2019 Formula 1 Hungarian Grand Prix: Friday Press Conference

    2019 Formula 1 Hungarian Grand Prix: Friday Press Conference

    TEAM REPRESENTATIVES – Andreas SEIDL (McLaren), Christian HORNER (Red Bull), Mattia BINOTTO (Ferrari), Claire WILLIAMS (Williams), Beat ZEHNDER (Alfa Romeo)

     

    PRESS CONFERENCE

     

    Q: Christian, Max Verstappen is the man of the moment, having won two of the last three races. Can you just give us your thoughts on his current level of performance? Have you worked with a better driver? And how tough is it for any team-mate to match him?

    Christian HORNER: I think Max, not just in the last three races but during the course of the whole of this seasons, indeed pretty much Montreal last year, he’s been driving incredibly well at a very high standard. It’s certainly started to come together over the last few races. The win in Austria was a watershed moment, we were competitive at Silverstone, and obviously the race, the excitement of last weekend was a phenomenal performance by him, to keep his head, to have the pace in all varying conditions, and come out on top and win the grand prix. So, yeah, he’s in great form and you know, hopefully we can continue that form into the summer break and out of the other side as well. He’s certainly delivering at an extremely high level.

    Q: How tough for any team-mate to match him?

    CH: I think very tough. If you go up against Verstappen at the moment, for me arguably he is the most in-form driver on the grid. That’s an enormous barometer for any driver to go up and be measured against. As a competitor you always want to measure yourself against the best that you can. So, he’s a benchmark that obviously Pierre is measuring himself against.

    Q: Mattia, if we could come onto you please. Rollercoaster weekend for the team at Hockenheim – the disappointment of qualifying and then the brilliant comeback drive by Sebastian. How do you begin to analyse a weekend like that?

    Mattia BINOTTO: I think, as you said, the disappointment at first. I think we knew that we’d got a good car at Hockenheim, we’d been fast on Friday, Saturday and in the race itself. We didn’t score the pole but we believed that we’d got the potential for it. And certainly when you’re starting a race on the front row or the back of the grid, it’s two different scenarios. Again disappointment, because it’s more the empty glass. I think it’s really a missed opportunity again for us, to have a victory in Hockenheim. And I think as a team it’s where we need to focus: first of witnesses of what was wrong during the weekend. On the other side, I think still positive feedback, and we should not forget about them. I think we got, as I said, a competitive car whatever the conditions from hot conditions on Friday or cooler temperatures on Sunday, even the wet, so I think a lot of positives, the strategy of the team, the way we managed strategy, the pit stops during the race, race situations. And the team somehow kept focused after the disappointment of Saturday, and somehow were prepared for a good race. And a good race for Seb. No doubt. We are all pleased for him. I think it was important for him to have such, let me say, a race in Germany with a hometown and the crowd there. So, all pleased by that but I think overall we keep the disappointment of the weekend.

    Q: Claire, you scored a point at Hockenheim, pending the appeal by Alfa Romeo. Your team has scored 3561 points in its history – but what did this point mean to you? Was it just reward for all the hard work?

    Claire WILLIAMS: I think the point Tom, that you made about the number of points that Williams has scored in our history. I think for us to get excited about one point would probably be slightly erroneous. Everybody at Williams has been working so hard this year, it has been another brutal season for us, so I suppose to get any kind of reward, we should take and we should accept gladly – but as you say, Alfa have submitted their appeal against that so I think we’re going to have to wait and see – but one point for me, I think, as a Williams, I can’t personally be happy with that and I don’t think anyone in our team is necessarily ecstatic about it.

    Q: Let’s move on to Beat and talk about that appeal. You’ve lodged the appeal after the race. Can you tell us what you’ve done that?

    Beat ZEHNDER: We’ve been penalised after the race and we went for appeal, which is the normal procedure if you want to fight, and you think you have some arguments to win – otherwise you wouldn’t do it.

    Q: What were the mitigating circumstances? Why have you lodged that appeal?

    BZ: It’s an ongoing process and I cannot give you any information. Everything will be disclosed on the 24th of September when the hearing will take place in Paris.

    Q: OK, let’s cast the net a bit wider then. You’ve now been at Sauber for 32 years – the team in all its different guises. What’s your assessment of the path that Alfa is now on? Do you feel more comfortable than you’ve been for several years?

    BZ: Of course, we’re in a better situation, especially on the financial side. We’ve gone through very difficult times in 2014, 2015, 2016; we’ve been close to shutting down the company. And I think this is, with Alfa Romeo and with the new ownership, we’re in a much better situation and I think the big achievement of the team is that we’re still around.

    Q: Andreas, it’s been an impressive season for McLaren. You’re now 31 points ahead of Renault. Does the size of that gap surprise you in any way?

    Andreas SEIDL: It’s obviously good that we have all these points in the pocket with not necessarily having the fourth fastest car for all the races, so that’s good but at the same time it’s not something we get carried away with. We have seen, for example at the last race, you just need one crazy race where Hülkenberg, for example is scoring P2 and we have no points and we would have a different discussion today. It’s important for us to keep our heads down, to just keep pushing, to bring more and more updates on the track, and keep this positive journey up. But, of course, it’s nice to be in this P4 at the moment and we try to fight for that until the end of the season.

    Q: Tell us more about this positive journey, because last time you were here you said you’d arrived at a team on the rise. Just how far can you go? Can you challenge Red Bull?

    AS: The reality is that we’re still getting lapped. If there’s a normal race. So there’s still a lot of hard work in front of us. But, as I said before, it’s important that we keep progressing as a team together with our drivers. It’s good to see that the updates are working and hopefully we can make the next step with our car, also for next year. This is really what my focus is on. There’s no magic, as we know, in Formula 1. It’s down to hard work, to stay focused, and this is what I try, together with the team.

     

    QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

     

    Q: (Luke Smith – crash.net) Question for Christian. Tom touched on Max’s incredible recent form – I think he’s been in the top five for all the last 20 races. He really appears to have hit the potential that we saw in the early part of his career. What changed with Max to cause this form recently? You said Montreal last year. Was it that rough start to last season? How important was that to him do you think?

    CH: I think that Max is obviously still a young guy, he’s only 21 years of age – but he’s now in his fifth season of grand prix racing and he’s now got the benefit of experience under his belt as well. His speed, his race craft, has never really been in any doubt but he’s got that collection of knowledge and experience now. I think, you know, obviously last year, the beginning of the year was a little challenging for him with some missed opportunities. I think he reflected on that and really turned the corner from Montreal last year. That run of performances really since then has been phenomenal. I think he’s continuing to evolve. I think that this year he really has stepped up as well as the senior driver, and he’s performing at a very level – and that in turn pushes the team very hard as well. I think with the new relationship with Honda, he’s enjoying that working environment, that working relationship as well. And so, there’s certainly a very positive vibe around him at the moment.

    Q: (Scott Mitchell – Autosport) To all five please. The talk about expanding the calendar. If we go up to 22 races do you think we would need to increase the number of engines and engine components you are allowed to use over the course of the season? Would that be one of the defining factors? And what does that do for the costs involved. Obviously F1 wants to bring down the cost, but adding more races, using more engines is expensive. Your thoughts on that please?

    AS: Yeah, in principle we support the direction of going for 22 races next year. There’s a discussion ongoing at the moment about what that means actually in terms of the number of components to be used and also the costs for a team like us, so that’s still ongoing. I think if you look at the bigger picture for us, it’s simply important now also to be a bit careful not to increase the number of races even further – for two reasons really. First of all, I think we really need to look after our people and make sure that we don’t ask for too much there, because I think if we go now for the next step of even more races we definitely have to change some things inside our organisations, for all teams. And then, yeah, that’s pretty much it. The second point of course we understand the commercial point of view but I think it‘s also important that we keep this exclusivity for each of the events, which doesn’t necessarily get better by adding more and more races.

    CH: The commercial rights holder has come to us to say, you know, that 22 races is a possibility for next year and would we support it. I think in principle, yes, is the answer, but it has to be combined with what other activities are going on in terms of: do we need to do as much in-season testing as we currently do; do we need to do as much pre-season testing? And I think if we are to introduce a 22nd race the majority of teams are taking penalties and using four engines anyway, so one would assume that it would make sense to increase the allocation on power units and components and perhaps if we look at the ratio and say ‘well, OK, rather than using engines for going testing and if we reduce the in-season testing and pre-season testing slightly, if that frees up an engine that the majority of teams they’re going to use anyway. From the next race there is going to be a whole raft of penalties coming through, and we’re only just halfway through the season, so introducing another race on top of that and expecting teams to get through on three engines and three sets of components is a bit of a tall ask.

    MB: I think very similar to the first answers. We are supportive on a 22nd race if that means some more revenues but we need to certainly be careful on the costs, the extra costs. If you look as well at 2021 at the moment we are discussing for 24 races but no extra engines, no extra units, so I think it’s only a path to 2021, so increasing the number of units for next year would be simply wrong, because it would mean, yes, more revenues, but then more costs, which would make no sense overall and so it should be on the power unit manufacturer to try to do an effort which is in the direction of 2021 to afford an extra race with the components we’ve got.

    Q: Would you like to see a reduction in testing as well, like Christian?

    MB: I think it’s certainly something we need to discuss but it could be a great idea, yes.

    Q: OK. Claire?

    CW: Yeah, I would probably just echo what everybody else has said. I there is a lot more conversation to be had around it, particularly around the components. From a financial perspective, we need to just make sure that it’s going to work, that it cover all our costs, and we are at that point now where we’d say yes it would. But I think most importantly from our side it’s consideration of our team personnel. I think pretty much they are pushed to the limit at the moment with what we are asking them to do with 21 races and the tests on top of that and then the work they have to do in the factory in between. In our team we don’t necessarily have the luxury of rotating staff in and out, we are at capacity on head count. So it would be around looking into that and working out whether we need to bring in more people to support it. I think from our perspective again, I wouldn’t want to see a triple-header on the calendar. I think we have been assured that there wouldn’t be one. I think that broke a lot of people last year, but also from a logistical perspective that is just a nightmare; it’s a disaster. Going to Austria I think it was when we all took makeshift motorhomes, it doesn’t look great for the race but it’s just not good for anyone’s cost base either.

    Q: Beat?

    BZ: I see it more from an organizational point of view. I’m not too concerned about PU elements; I’m more concerned about team members. As a small team we’re at the limit with 21 races already. Any additional race will make it more difficult and we have to think about increasing the number of race team members and establishing a rotating system in a way.

    Q: (Phil Duncan – PA) Christian, have Mercedes approached Red Bull about Max’s availability and would it be a good thing, do you think, for the sport to have Lewis and Max together in the same car?

    CH: Toto has certainly not spoken to me about it. He speaks to almost every driver on the grid, so I would think if he has had a conversation it’s been direct not through the team. The situation with Max is clear and as with other drivers there are always trigger points. But in terms of having those two in one team, I haven’t heard from Lewis either that he wants to join next year. You can see positives and negative in that. I think that ideally we want to see teams going head to head and the drivers are obviously very much part of that team. It would be great to see Ferrari with their drivers, Red Bull with our drivers and Mercedes with their drivers all fighting it out, and whoever else can get up there as well. It doesn’t necessarily mean that two drivers have to be in the same team.

    Q: (Andrew Benson – BBC Sport) For everybody, on the 2021 rules. How concerning is it that less than three months to go before the deadline you are still discussing major, fundamental issues like refueling and how heavy the cars are? How has it ended that way, with such a short amount of time left, and what are the risks of the F1 rules, as intended, not actually happening as a result?

    MB: How much concerning it is? I think certainly there is very little time now from until the end of October and certainly there is quite a long list of open items, open subjects. But more important, I think, is that the discussions ongoing. I think it would be a lot worse if no discussion would take place and somebody is deciding for everybody. So the fact that we have go discussion is certainly what’s positive and it’s in our hands to make sure that we properly collaborate with F1 and the FIA and the teams to address the main points for 2021. And as I often indicated I think, we have certainly got common goals and common objectives for 2021 – sustainability is a key factor – but I think we need as well to pay attention not to overreact in terms of technical, because do we need a better show? I think if you look at the last races, certainly we may still have a good show in certain conditions, but certainly these conditions need to be identified and pursued, so I think changing the car, changing the technical means, spending, re-engineering, proof of concepts, so whatever we may choose, we need to choose it because we are fully all convinced that it is going in the right direction. But yeah, there is very little time and it’s a lot to discuss, but good that we are still discussing.

    CH: Well, I pushed very hard to get the rule process to be moved from end of June to what’s now the end of October because I think if we would have had regulations just introduced we would have been in a real mess. So I think the key thing now is how we use that time during the next three months to ensure that the regulations that we do end up with on October 31, as Mattia says, that we focus on the right things. There is a series of collective meetings that between now and the decision point where we really need to get into the detail of what is the objective of the change and does the change of regulation achieve those objectives, from a show point of view, from a cost point of view. I think we really have to drill into detail over the next few meetings to ensure that with what is presented on October 31 there is a sensible theme to.

    AS: From our point of view we see it clearly it different. I think it’s about time now to simply stop discussing. We all have downloaded our input. We do this since two years, all teams. I think FIA, Formula 1 has a clear idea of what they want to put in place, they presented that also to you guys two weeks ago. We simply want to see action now and we can move on.

    CW: Not a whole lot to add. I think everybody has said it already. The regulations were delayed a little bit but I don’t think they were in the right place in order to sign them off anyway back in June. It gives us a bit more time to debate. I suppose my bigger concern is not that we won’t get it done it’s more about what’s going to change between June and October. We had some foundation principles in place and we fundamentally agreed with those at Williams and I’d like to see those stuck to as best as possible between now and then, but I think it’s par for the course this process in Formula 1 and we have to have those regs signed in October, whatever they will be, so we’ve got to do a good enough job between now and then to make sure they are the best they can be.

    BZ: There is a lot of work to do in all the several working groups. What slows down the process is probably is that there are new elements coming on the table every now and then, like refueling. Six months no one talked about refuelling and we have to consider it carefully. There was a reason we stopped refuelling in 2009. It was not only for financial reasons. It was not good for the sport. Before we talk about re-introducing we should carefully assess whether it is good for the show and good for the sport.

    Q: (Alan Baldwin – Reuters) I wonder if I could get an update maybe from Mattia and Christian about the unsafe release situation. Has there been an assurance from the FIA as to how they are going to handle this in the future? Obviously, Mattia, your team was fined rather than being handed a time penalty at Hockenheim.

    MB: Several races are difficult situations, difficult situations to judge, difficult situations to act on. During the weekend at Hockenheim, I think that the drivers met with the FIA on the Thursday and discussed the approach. What was key was certainly to be safe respective to the mechanics in the pit lane which was a key factor and for example, in the case of Charles, the Red Bull team was ready for a pit stop and was just in front of him and I think the way that somehow Charles drove was very safe in respect of the mechanics and the pit crew. Yes, he had to slow down to be careful with the cars coming in but that’s a racing situation and I think that as a team, when you’ve got such traffic, again, I think what is key is safety first and then in a racing situation where we have been fined, I don’t think there will be a much different situation or different judgement in the future. I think the way it has been judged was the proper one.

    CH: I slightly crapped myself when I saw Romain Grosjean heading for me at the pit wall. From my point of view it looked really unsafe, pretty frightening prospect that. Yeah, it’s a tricky one isn’t it? Max got a penalty in Monaco for what was an unfair release and it was deemed that it was because he touched the car of Bottas. It’s a tricky one, they are slightly different incidents but I think that what you want to see more than anything is an element of consistency because otherwise, from a team point of view, from the guy that’s releasing the car, what call does he make when he’s making that release now? It’s a difficult one. Where there are pit lanes like in Silverstone, we actually had a good scenario where the two cars were released and there was enough room for them to go side-by-side down the pit lane.

    Q: (Viktor Adorján – GP-Hírek) Going back to the topic of logistics, there was a road accident involving one of the Renault trucks earlier this week, coming from Hockenheim. Can you please tell us facts and figures about the level and volume of equipment that you brought here and what kind of security measures do you take in order to ensure that this precious equipment actually arrives safe and sound to European locations?

    BZ: Obviously, as a team you are well prepared for back-to-backs and all the other European races you normally have external truck drivers, or truck drivers, team truck drivers who have rested on the Sunday and only drive when they’re supposed to. You don’t have team members like twenty years ago who worked the whole day and then in the evening jumped in the truck and then drove to the next event, so everything is safe and sound and accidents like this can happen. I think we’re moving more than 400 lorries from one event to the next and considering that, there are not a lot of accidents happening.

    CW: First, I don’t have an update from the driver that was driving that truck and I hope that he’s alright. Thank you. I don’t know, necessarily, I apologise for it, I don’t necessarily know the tonnage of equipment that we send between back-to-back races – I know it’s an awful lot, there are an awful lot of people involved in the logistics in our team and they do a fantastic job of it and as has been said, we do everything to comply to the regulations that are out there by how many hours the drivers can drive, they’re not working prior to them driving etc, so you do take the best approach that you can to avoid those situations. But sometimes those situations are unavoidable but in this case, I think we’re all just pleased that the driver was OK.

    MB: Not much to add. I think that Beat made the picture and the picture is very similar for all the teams. As he said, the drivers are not people that are working throughout the weekend, especially not at a back-to-back. Certainly we as team principals of teams are taking care of our people, making sure that what they are doing at the tracks or driving, we are always doing that in a safe manner with the proper way of applying things, let me say. But what happened is to be considered serious, no doubt, and whatever is happening, as a team, we have the responsibility to review what happened and there is a necessity to try eventually to improve. I don’t have the details in that case but as Ferrari we would certainly consider if we can even do better in the future.

    CH: It’s a big challenge getting all the equipment, the cars, the engineering centre, in our case the Energy Station – I think we’re in excess of 40 trucks to get to an event and when you’ve got a back-to-back event, that’s an added pressure, that they’ve got to be here really by Tuesday, Tuesday afternoon so it’s another thing to take into consideration, with the logistics of an increased calendar is not putting too much tension on the movement of parts and people from one venue to another. Accidents do happen and I don’t know the details of the accident, thankfully the driver, from what I heard, was OK but it’s inevitable that, unfortunately accidents do happen and I think the most important things are you try and mitigate that as best you can and as others have said, with contract drivers it’s not like the old days when the truckies – well, the truckies don’t drive trucks any more. I don’t know why they’re still called truckies. In fact I think we’ve only got one truck driver who can drive a truck. Everybody has contractors that specifically are here just to move the vehicles around.

    AS: Yeah, nothing to add, really. Happy that the driver is OK on the Renault side and as mentioned, each team puts a lot of effort into making sure our people are well protected, get their sleeping times, resting times and so on and luckily, as Beat said at the beginning, with all the movements that are happening we can be lucky that not more is happening.

    Q: (Ian Parkes – New York Times) To the four people either side of Mattia: I was just wondering if I could get an appreciation please from you all of Mattia, his longevity in F1 and his handling so far of probably arguably the toughest job in motor sport?

    CH: How long have you been at Ferrari? Thirty-five years? Twenty-five. Crikey, you must have just left school and gone straight there. Well, look, running Ferrari obviously has pressure. I think Mattia has obviously been managing the technical side and team principal side of things but he’s great to work with… it’s strange talking about your competitor when he’s next to you but he seems to be doing OK so far.

    AS: Obviously I respect all of my colleagues here inside the paddock a lot. But I have my own dream job and that’s the focus on so not a lot to comment really. Colleague, good to talk to.

    CW: Did you say that Mattia has the hardest job in F1 at the moment? I thought that was me at the moment! Mattia goes to work for Ferrari. He probably gets a free… How many free Ferraris do you get, Mattia? Probably about ten in your driveway! No, all joking aside, I’ve only had the privilege of working with Mattia for a short amount of time in our strategy groups etc but I have all due respect for him and I hope that he stays with us for a long time. Obviously Ferrari have had a lot of chopping and changing with their TP so it would be great to have some stability.

    BZ: I’ve known Mattia for a very long time and appreciate him very much and his work. I think every team principal at Ferrari has a difficult job if they’re not winning races but as Claire said, every other team principal has a similar task and a difficult job, especially if you don’t have a competitive car or if you have financial difficulties so it’s not only the top shots, it’s the bottom end as well.

    Q: (Peter Farkas – Auto Motor) Mattia, before the start of this season, you pointed out that one of the things that was missing at Ferrari maybe in the last couple of years was having fun with the racing. Obviously, as the season has turned out, is it possible to have fun in this situation and to restore that fun, and if so, what are you going to do to restore it? Or if not, how can you manage the mood?

    MB: You’re right, I think having fun is important if you think of how many days we are here at the race tracks or back at the factory and how much time we are really spending for what we are doing, so having fun is important, it is something which we are trying to pursue. Not winning doesn’t make the task easier no doubt but I think having fun is a matter of team spirit as well, how the team is behaving together, with the drivers, with the engineers, the mechanics and if there is anything I can say is that I think we have got a great team spirit at the moment and that is that the people are happy to come to the race track for at least challenging the next race and we are all here to seek our victory which didn’t happen so far. I think there have been a few missed opportunities but I think again the fun is in the spirit and that can be done whatever the results.

    Q: (Dániel Horváth – The Paddock Magazine) Andreas, as you mentioned earlier, McLaren made a big step forward this year and you already have more points than last year. What course will you set for 2020?

    AS: The targets for 2020. I think it’s simply important to make the next step as a team, together with our drivers and also in terms of car performance. Next year will be first car under the full leadership of James Key compared to the previous cars; also I think we are somehow back to a more normal rhythm in terms of timing, when we started with the concept phase of the car, but again there’s no magic in Formula One. I hope we can fully make the next step but at the same time we shouldn’t get carried away and dream of challenging for race wins or stuff like that next year.

  • F1 2017: Hungarian Gp Review – Formation Flying For Ferrari

    F1 2017: Hungarian Gp Review – Formation Flying For Ferrari

    The Hungaroring was always a circuit slated to suit the characteristics of the 2017 Ferrari and the Italian team drove home their advantage with a controlled one-two victory.

    As in Saturday qualifying the Ferrari driver pair of Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen were line astern in first and second at light out. As the pair cleanly led at lights out the Mercedes duo, Bottas and Hamilton, had there hands full of fast starting Red Bulls. However, while the initial start went relatively well Verstappen clouted the side of his teammate Ricciardo in a clash that would ultimately come with a hefty price. The coming together put Ricciardo out of the race while Verstappen incurred a ten second time penalty for his part in the incident. While Verstappen’s move was rather silly there was, clearly, no intention on his part, which made the penalty somewhat harsh.

    Initially, pace set by Vettel and Raikkonen was much too quick for Bottas to live with who quickly fell seven seconds behind in the opening stint. Vettel too seemed to have the measure of Raikkonen in the opening laps but as the race drew towards its pitstop phase the Finn was clearly the quickest of the two Ferrari’s and easily maintained a second gap to his race leading teammate.

    048Despite the track temperature soaring in the mid fifty degree range and fears of increased tyre degradation they Pirelli compounds held up well, perhaps a bit too well. It’s no secret that Pirelli’s approach to the manufacturing and construction of their 2017 tyres has been conservative. It is this conservatism that has led to drivers being able to make one stop per race.

    It is likely that Pirelli conservative approach stems from an apprehension that the quicker, and heavier, 2017 cars needed more robust tyre construction. Here’s hoping that with all the data gathered this season that 2018 sees malleable range of compounds.

    While Vettel wrapped up the 46th victory of his career it was clear that he was not the fastest Ferrari driver on the day. For the majority of the second half of the race teammate Raikkonen ran within a second of the leader clearly illustrating his superior pace. But as the Hungaroring is notorious for lack of overtaking second is what the Finn was confined too. It didn’t make for a comfortable afternoon for Ferrari though as both Mercs of Bottas and Raikkonen started closing down the leading pair at a rate of knots.

    There was a suggestion that Ferrari swap Vettel and Raikkonen so as to ensure a comfortable victory but this move never happened. Contrary to many on social media, who slated Ferrari’s unwillingness to swap its drivers around, it was the right move. The reality of the team orders debate is that you can’t have it both ways. In Monaco, Ferrari handing Vettel the optimum strategy and ultimately the race win was rightly criticized. If this was unacceptable from Ferrari it shouldn’t have been accepted, or called for, in Hungary either.

    065While it ended well for Ferrari in Hungary Mercedes and Hamilton would’ve won a few more fans with the spirit they displayed. On the instruction of the team Bottas had let Hamilton, with better pace, through to third with the aim of catching the Ferrari pair and giving back the place if he couldn’t do so. However, by the start of the final lap Bottas was seven seconds adrift and under pressure from a recovering Verstappen.

    Nevertheless, Hamilton, in a superb show of sportsmanship, slowed significantly in the final corner to give return Bottas’ third place. While Hamilton gave up three points by finishing fourth his move has earned respect. Verstappen, apologetic after the race for the clash with his teammate, eventually finished fifth.

    Amazingly, Fernando Alonso set the fastest lap of the race and finished a solid sixth ahead of Toro Rosso’s Carlos Sainz in seventh. The Force India drivers continued to keep each other honest with Sergio Perez in eighth and Esteban Ocon in ninth as the second McLaren of Stoffel Vandoorne scored the final point in tenth. Williams’ Felipe Massa withdrawal from the Hungarian Gp with an inner-ear issue meant that reserve driver Paul di Resta was subbed it almost literally at the last minute. While he ultimately retired with an oil leak the Williams reserve driver did his reputation no harm with a measured performance in a car he’d never driver before.

    The majority of the 70 laps of the Hungarian Gp were nervy for Ferrari but they emerged with an important one-two finish. It allows Sebastian Vettel to stem Mercedes’ momentum and to crucially take a fourteen-point lead into the month-long break.

    (All images courtesy of Pirelli Motorsport)

  • 2017 Hungarian Grand Prix: Post Race Press Conference

    2017 Hungarian Grand Prix: Post Race Press Conference

    DRIVERS

    1 – Sebastian VETTEL (Ferrari)

    2 – Kimi RÄIKKÖNEN (Ferrari)

    3 – Valtteri BOTTAS (Mercedes)

     

    PODIUM INTERVIEWS

    (Conducted by David Coulthard)

    Q: Sebastian, 46th victory in Formula One, very measured but looked like you had some issues there with the steering, we heard lots of radio transmissions saying “keep off the kerbs”. First of all, congratulations on your win and tell us about what you had to manage there…

    Sebastian VETTEL: I’m over the moon. I mean it was a really difficult race, maybe it didn’t look like but I had my hands full from three or four laps after the safety car. There was something wrong, I don’t know why the steering started to go sideways and it seemed to get worse. Then I stayed off the kerbs, tried to save the car. It wasn’t easy. I didn’t do a favour to Kimi who obviously could go faster. I didn’t have the pace. But then towards the end it did come back a bit. I had a couple of laps where I had a bit of a cushion and I could breathe a bit. But yeah, I really had to stay focused the whole race. I was hoping for a couple of laps to breathe but they didn’t come, so really tough. But great result, great day. Thank you for the support. There was a guy out of the chicane, every single lap he was thumbs up, thumbs up and keeping us going, so it was really great.

    Q: So you had one eye on the fans and one eye on the steering?

    SV: And one eye on the steering, because it wasn’t straight.

    Q: Can you explain that? Can you explain what can give you that?

    SV: I don’t know, we’ll have a look, but to be honest it doesn’t matter now, we won the race. It was a weird feeling because basically it was tilted to the left so you go down the straights and the steering isn’t straight and then in right-handers it’s sort of OK, but in left-handers you have to get used to it. After a couple of laps it’s OK but if it’s changing all the time it’s difficult because you have to further than you want and than you think in your head. Not ideal, but as I said, it doesn’t matter. A big thank you to the team, it was a great race.

    Q: Kimi, there’s huge Finnish support here, maybe a couple of words of Finnish for your fans before we got to English…

    Kimi RÄIKKÖNEN: Oh, I think they all understand English. Obviously great support, unfortunately I couldn’t give them the win. We had a one-two as a team, so I had a great car today, but obviously when you… I had a mistake yesterday in qualifying. I got a good start but I didn’t want to force the issue and obviously after that just kept following the 71 laps. Not ideal, obviously I want to win, but it’s great for the team.

    Q: You have been very consistent on this race track, this is your eighth podium here. Sadly, six of those have been second place. Clearly you had the speed today; it’s just impossible to overtake on this circuit… 

    KR: Yeah, the other guy has to do quite a big mistake or have some issue. It’s not easy to overtake and especially with team-mates you take more care. But at least they are still happy – that’s the main thing.

    Q: Valtteri, we saw a very sporting gesture from you, at the request of your team, to move over for your team-mate. You must have thought towards the end that he as not going to be able to give that place back because of all the traffic and because of Verstappen hunting you down. What are your thoughts on this great sporting gesture?

    Valtteri BOTTAS: For sure in the end I was getting a little bit worried as the gap was increasing. I really struggled with the backmarkers today and was a little bit unlucky also with those. But really, thanks to Lewis to keep the promise and let me by in the end, because I gave him the shot to try and get past the Ferraris. It’s a shame, we had good pace in the end today but with the starting position we couldn’t finish any better. Just want to say thanks for all the support this weekend. It’s been really cool to drive here with all this support and Finnish flags.

    Q: Did you doubt at any point whether the team would make the call on Lewis given that you are in the championship battle, absolutely, but given that he is the lead driver? Did you have any moment of doubt or absolute trust in the team?

    VB: Well, for sure when the gap was big I knew it could be a problem but in the end I just want to thank the team.

    Q: So, Sebastian, 14-point lead, that’s a nice way to go into the summer break?

    SV: I don’t mind; it’s OK. It could be worse!

    Q: What are your plans for this break from Formula One. You’re notorious for being a hard worker, are you going to be at the factory simulator or are you really taking time out?

    SV: Well we have a test here in a couple of days, but after that to be honest no big plans, I just want to enjoy the time at home. We spend so much time on the road travelling and I know you have a family as well, so you know how it is, so it’s nice just to have a couple of days at home and rest and enjoy that.

     

    PRESS CONFERENCE

    Q: Sebastian that’s win number 46, your fourth of the season but it didn’t look like it was one of your easiest. When did the problems with the car first materialise?

    SV: Well, it was a tough one. I was hoping for a bit more quiet afternoon. I had a very good pace and I think Kimi had a good pace, so I think he could go a lot faster than me for the majority of the race. I don’t know, I felt already that there was something not right when we dropped the car on the grid. Now, driving the car to the grid was fine but then for the formation lap when we dropped that the steering wheel was not straight and then… well, I did the start and then there was a safety car and then during the opening laps I felt that it wasn’t right but it didn’t impact too much because it was only small. Then it did get worse and towards the end of the stint it started to ramp up and gradually get worse. It was more and more difficult. Simply… I think after this race I am quite certain there is a reason why the steering wheel is straight and not shifted to one side. Because it’s very tricky – left-handers to right-handers and then if it keeps changing to adapt. I did try to adapt and I obviously knew that we can’t change it. Then I tried to save the car, also we spoke a little bit on the radio about it. I was talking through the problem and they told me to avoid the kerbs, which I was doing already, but on a track where you use the kerbs nearly on every corner it’s obviously also compromising your performance. In the second stint then I just wanted to make sure that I’ve got enough tyres with whatever problem I might face, so just towards the end of the race I’d have enough tyres. So of course I was holding it back a little bit. It’s not like I had an awful lot more pace. Also, in the end I was really going flat out and obviously they were all behind me, queuing and it’s good that you can’t overtake that easily around this track but I had no room for error. It was a tricky race, with the lapped cars not the easiest to go through. As I said, there was no room to the cars behind. It was difficult but the mindset that I had half way through the race was “it doesn’t matter. I can’t change it now – I’d love to but can’t. We keep going and just try to hang in there as much as possible.” The race felt very, very long. Every lap I was looking down; it didn’t end. The last couple of laps I was able to find a bit of a rhythm, opened a bit of a gap, which helped me to take the very last bit of the race a bit easier through the traffic and controlled the race to the end. The result is great. How we got there was very tense but very happy, obviously great result for the team.

    Q: Kimi, how do you feel after that one? You’ve said that you had a very good car, do you think you had the pace to win this grand prix?

    KR: Yeah, definitely. But obviously… I had a pretty decent start, our starts were pretty similar but obviously I get the tow effect and braked slightly later but obviously I’m not going to force the issue in the first corner. We’re going to fight, but we’re going to fight fair. Since that moment there is not an awful lot you can do. I had a very good car today, like it was yesterday, but obviously my mistake didn’t help. The biggest chance was in the start and then took it quite easily at the beginning and my car was handling well and I was closing up. We were pretty on the safe side in the first stint because we pull away from Mercedes and then I catch up with Sebastian again in the end of the first stint but once he went in I had very good speed, I could have stayed longer out. I guess there are reasons – maybe the Mercedes they stopped earlier and they fresh tyres so… Anyhow, the whole race, basically, following Sebastian and hoping that he goes as fast as he can but not saving tyres because then there was a Mercedes catching me. Once you are in the middle it’s a bit awkward place, because if you get a bad exit in the last corner or something the guy behind you with the DRS might get you with a good run but actually maybe once when I got a little bit sideways. I must say the car was great today. I was just, basically, following my own rear wing, same looking at least. Obviously I want to win but great for the team.

    Q: Valtteri, I guess it was an afternoon of damage limitation for Mercedes? It seemed to be just a tense, difficult race for the team. Radio problems etcetera, just talk us through it.

    VB: Yeah, unfortunately we couldn’t really gain any positions today. First of all the start was quite average so I couldn’t really attack in Turn One. The initial bit of the start was OK but then I had bad upshift from first to second gear so I lost a bit of momentum and after it was tricky. In the beginning Ferrari seemed to be just really strong with the supersoft but then when we went to the soft, with the issues of Sebastian, everything started to be a bit more interesting. We were struggling with radio communications – sometimes they couldn’t really speak to me. I don’t know what was the issue – but anyways, I was trying to get close enough to Kimi at some point to attack but there was no opportunities, and then we swapped, as a team, and Lewis tried it as well. When he was trying, at the same time I really struggled with the backmarkers. I felt that I was really unlucky with a few of the guys, being behind them for full laps and losing time, losing the rhythm but then the team promised me that once we did the swap and I let him go and try that, that we would swap again back, if he couldn’t make it. And he couldn’t make it and the team kept the promise, which I’m really, really happy about and really thankful for the team that we swapped again at the end. Big thanks to Lewis as well because I don’t think every team-mate would have done the swap back. If you’re running for a podium place – so I think that was nice from the team and nice from Lewis. But unfortunately, damage limitation.

    QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

    Q: (Flavio Vanetti – Corriere della Sera) Question to both Ferrari drivers. Can you tell me how did you deal with the situation, especially from the mental point of view, having such big pressure from Mercedes behind – was it one of the toughest tasks of your career?

    SV: Well, I didn’t have a Mercedes behind me so it was quite… I saw obviously that Valtteri was closing in. I didn’t know about the Lewis swap and stuff but yeah, I was very busy driving to be honest and trying to keep it on the track without using the kerbs, which wasn’t easy. I saw that Kimi sometimes got closer, sometimes not. At some point I think they were asking how much faster I can go. I knew that Kimi doesn’t feel comfortable because he was a lot faster. I know that I wasn’t very quick, so not a great position, as he said, to be in the middle for him but for me obviously it was good because I had Kimi and then, let’s say, other people, so it was OK. In the end it’s not so easy to pass here. I still had some pace – I don’t think I was completely off the pace, which obviously helped. But not an easy on, as I touched on before.

    And Kimi, that pressure from Mercedes?

    KR: I was really not too worried. Obviously I talk with the team in the radio but I was not too worried because my car was handling so well. Even though I was very close, the whole race, to Sebastian, my car was still very good and no issue with the tyres. I could follow very well through the last corners. I had only one… two times a small issue in the second-last corner and then in the last corner pushed a bit too much, really the only time my car snapped, even once. But it wasn’t ideal, obviously, because I felt I had speed and I was stuck in the middle because then it’s always… we know how fast they can be on the straights sometimes, Mercedes. I also felt pretty comfortable because my car was so good that I didn’t really… once there was traffic or something and I dropped a little bit back, I could just speed up and make the gap before the last few corners. So, that was just… to know what we were going to do because I could have slowed down in the first part and speed up in the last part. It helped me a bit. Not a big worry.

    Q: (Tomasz Kubiak – ŚwiatWyścigów) Question to Sebastian. You said you wanted to answer the critique which came after the last race. Would you say now that it’s a job done?

    SV: I didn’t say that. I don’t remember. Maybe I have a bad memory. What I said I think, what I meant is that there’s always a lot of talk and it’s good to move on and get to the next race and then the talking usually stops. I think it’s normal, based on what you did last race. People say something good or say something bad. I think something that has always worked for me is that you’re never as good as they say, and you’re never as bad as they say, so… yeah, if the Silverstone race was the worst race of the year, then that’s fine, we move on. But it’s a long year, a lot of races, normal to have some ups and downs. It was a nice race here. Really enjoyed it. Obviously yesterday was great, today was a bit more difficult but the result in the end matters and that’s what makes us very happy, obviously, that’s what the team deserves. I think they are working very hard. Again, you mustn’t forget where we were last year, the end of last year, and the step that Ferrari has made is bigger than anyone else. That is easily forgotten when you are fighting, challenging – but there’s a lot of things that the team can be proud about, and they can be proud of themselves, so I’m very, very happy. I think we’re both very happy where we are with the car. The car felt good today and the whole weekend overall. So, yeah, it’s been a good day.

    Q: (Péter Vámosi – Vas Népe) Question to both Finnish drivers. Are you interested in a day competing in the Race of Champions as Team Finland? Mostly the question is for Kimi as you had opportunities with testing Peugeot at World Endurance Racing, NASCAR, whatever, so you have really tried out many cars. And Valtteri, what are you interested in more; to compete in Race of Champions or Stars and Cars?

    KR: I’ve been asked to be there many times but I always said that once they go back to how it started with rally cars and then the proper circuit with the two lines, with the gravel and asphalt, I’ll be in – but before that, forget it. It’s not… it’s a show, that’s it.

    VB: Yeah, I’d be up for it, I like to drive anything with an engine and at least two wheels, so I’m up for it. I don’t really know much about those competitions, I’ve never really looked into it but I’ve always liked driving so…

    SV: …but you need a team-mate and you’ve just lost him…

    VB: Better change the competition then…

    Q: (István Simon – Auto Magazin) Question to Kimi. Had President Marchionne not been here today, would you have tried a proper overtaking manoeuvre against Sebastian? Because you’re car has been obviously faster today…

    KR: No, it makes no difference. Obviously we know as team-mates what we have to do and like I said, I had a pretty good run into the first corner on the first lap but being team-mates… we can fight but we probably leave a bit more space and not going to force the issue as maybe against somebody else. At the end it was obviously for a one-two and I can only look what I did yesterday and complain to myself I was not in a very good chance to win the race – but nevertheless my car was good and, as I said, we had a plan as a team and, y’know, it was a fair game. Seb was yesterday first and he got away first and obviously the aim was whichever way we finish we’re going to finish one-two. That’s the aim. No difference would the president be here or not. To be honest I haven’t seen him – apart from podium. Haven’t had time so far today…

    Q: (Livio Oricchio – GloboEsporte) To Sebastian. Sebastian you know Ferrari history of team orders and giving privilege to one driver. Could you comment please on Mercedes having one driver that is your main driver that is your main competitor for the world title asking to him, give this place back to Bottas?

    SV: Well, I don’t know. As far as I understood, Lewis was behind you, and he said he wanted to try, and the team’s decided to swap as I understand and then swap back, so it’s pretty straightforward. I don’t think it’s the first time that somebody has done it. Obviously if it works, great, if it doesn’t work, then you have to give the position back – so I think it’s pretty straightforward, otherwise you overtake yourself and you don’t need to give positions back. Not sure I understood the question still…

    Q: (Ysef Harding – Xiro Xone News) This is for Kimi and Valtteri: after speaking with a number of Finnish fans last night who were very passionate about you guys, and finding out that saunas are a thing in Finland, they asked me to ask you guys what you plan to do for the break and how will you celebrate being on the podium today?

    KR: Obviously we have the test on Wednesday so from that point there’s not an awful lot of plans. The biggest plan is to be with the family; obviously we have some time and spend time with them. We have to travel an awful lot so it’s great to have some freedom now.

    VB: We’ll be testing here on Tuesday but then we’ll go back home to Finland. We’ll go to the sauna and have a beer. That’s my plan.

    Q: (Luis Vasconcelos – Formula Press) We are in a unique situation in which the three podium finishers don’t have a contract for next year as far as we know. Is this going to be a priority for the next four weeks or are you happy to sort it out later in the season? 

    SV: I think there’s a bit more time to talk about these things but I’m also quite keen to find out how long Valtteri lasts in the sauna and what type of beer he is drinking, so I’m waiting for an invite.

    KR: No different than any year. It’s not really my decision. For the team knows what is my preferred option and then see what happens.

    VB: Yeah, for sure soon we will start to… we need to speak (about) what’s going to happen, obviously. I have no idea about the future yet so for sure we will speak at some point but the problem is that the mobile phone is not so good in the sauna. It doesn’t work so it could take a while so don’t expect anything in Spa.

    Q: (Jerome Pugmire – Associated Press) Sebastian: you said just now we mustn’t forget where we were last year. Ferrari’s made a bigger step than anybody else; a 14 point lead with nine races left. Could you have ever imagined being in this position at the start of the season or is this beyond what you would have dreamt of?

    SV: No, it’s what I dream about to be honest. I want to win so that’s where you want to be. I don’t have very precise dreams in terms of gaps, points and stuff like that. I think I’m more basic on my dreams as long as I remember; most of the time I forget but yeah, I think all in all, the mission has been to get back to the top so obviously we had a great year, I’m only two and a half years in with the team. I think we had a great year in ’15 which helped to get the project going. ’16 was difficult, I think, for many reasons but I think it was a great year to set things up, a lot of change for the team but yeah, over the winter I think we were the team that made the least noise. There was a lot of talk about the new cars and the new regs and how it will favour one team over the other and how it will bring back other teams and so on. I was very happy that we just worked, we just kept  to ourselves and did the job. We have a great car. We know, I think, by now with a lot of races done, what the strength of the car is, where the weaknesses are, that’s where we need to work on.  For sure you cannot expect it to change overnight but yeah, I’m very confident the group of people… We have a lot of people that you maybe don’t know because from the outside people try to identify a team with one person in terms of who is the driver or obviously it’s easy because there are only two but in terms of who is designing the car, it very often ends up with one… you point the finger at one person. It’s not fair. The team is very big and there’s a lot of people so we have a lot of great people, young people coming up and a great culture, people taking risks and that’s what we need to do. We want to win so very happy where we are going but it’s not yet enough. Today’s great, we got a one-two but that’s what we want every weekend. We haven’t done it so far, I know it’s difficult but it’s not impossible so we keep working.

    Q: (Peter Farkas – Auto Motor) Kimi and Sebastian, the Mercedes guys seem to think that now it’s clear that the balance of power between the two teams is track-specific so as you were very quick in Monaco and then the Hungaroring, two very twisty tracks and at Silverstone they were quicker; do you agree with that, that’s it’s track specific and if so what do you think will be particularly strong tracks for Ferrari until the end of the season? 

    SV: I find it’s a bit difficult… I mean you have very little time during the weekend to change things so I think it’s normal that some tracks are more in your favour, also from a driving point of view. You mustn’t forget that we are all different so some things we maybe prefer at some tracks over other tracks and it’s not always the same. It doesn’t mean that (because) you won the year before that you are always great on this track, you know. Maybe over a couple of years you can draw other tendencies but yeah, overall, I know we have a very strong car, we have a car that is competitive everywhere. We have had circuits on which it was less competitive. If you want to point out Silverstone, we weren’t quick enough to win, that’s a fact but we weren’t horrible. It’s not like we were tenth and eleventh on the grid so we still qualified well. We outqualified one of them on Saturday so I think we are at the right track, but it’s normal that some tracks maybe you struggle a bit more, some a bit less, then you can draw conclusions of the car which might not be wrong, so it’s fair to say that we were very competitive here and Monaco; Mercedes was less so but equally if you pick the races out, it wasn’t like we were miles ahead and lapping them so… It also depends how your race goes. I think the most important thing is that we were always there so far, we always had good pace so I don’t think there’s anything to be afraid of in the next couple of races.

    Q: Kimi, you have a great record at Spa; do you think Ferrari can challenge Mercedes there? 

    KR: For sure there are some circuits that fit us better because there are areas that we have to improve, probably especially for qualifying, the Mercedes has better horsepower but it depends on so many things. It’s not just purely that you look at the layout of the circuit – ah this is going to be good for us and this is going to be… The tyres… We can’t have it which conditions there are going to be and a lot of small things which will make a difference. Let’s have a holiday first and see what happens at Spa but obviously if you purely look now, you would say it’s not going to be as easy for us as here but obviously we try to improve and we are going to do our best.

    Q: (Zsolt Godina – F1vilag) Kimi, do you feel that you could have done a better job with the strategy with the pit stop with a possible longer first stint to win this race? 

    KR: I wondered it but obviously I had no idea what was happening behind us when Mercedes stopped before us and then Valtteri went a lot faster with the fresh tyres so the team asked me to come in. I had good speed on the in lap so I wanted to stay longer but I have to trust what the team is telling me and obviously they see the big picture so… We got close but it’s OK

  • 2017 Hungarian GP: Post Qualifying Press Conference

    2017 Hungarian GP: Post Qualifying Press Conference

    DRIVERS

    1 – Sebastian VETTEL (Ferrari)

    2 – Kimi RÄIKKÖNEN (Ferrari)

    3 – Valtteri BOTTAS (Mercedes)

     

    GRID INTERVIEWS (Conducted by Will Buxton)

    First question inaudible.

    Sebastian VETTEL: … to have the car in the right window, to have the sun shining, to have people around, that’s what it is about, so it was really big fun. Obviously a front row for us, which is incredible and now we are looking forward to tomorrow.

    Q: Yeah, no, front row in front of all the Ferrari fans, the flags waving in the grandstands. What changed overnight, between yesterday and today?

    SV: Nothing. We are working hard. Obviously the last race wasn’t great for us, but it doesn’t matter now. We are here and try to do the best and that’s what matters. Really step by step and I am very happy with where we are as a team. Again, we need to remember where we were 12 months ago and where we are now. Also thanks to the support, people believing in us. It’s great to get the result also on Saturday, but as I said, the main task comes tomorrow so nothing won today but sure we are very happy and take it to move forward.

    Q: Kimi, that was a superb lap, absolutely sensational. Listen to all you fans, massive fan base in from Finland. How good did that lap feel? 

    Kimi RÄIKKÖNEN: Actually not too good. The start was good and the end was not too bad but in the chicane I braked on the outside kerb and got loose and really threw it away there but you know, it was decent enough for second place but it is disappointing. I felt I had it quite comfortably but you know I couldn’t really finish.

    Q: Is it too easy to say that this is a track naturally should have suited Ferrari?

    KR: If you purely looked at lap times, yes, but then if you look from yesterday it wasn’t the easiest day and today we have definitely been pretty happy with things. I managed to improve my car for the qualifying and I must say we are happy with how they are handling now. So far, so good but tomorrow is going to be a long race and a hard battle, so we have to keep it going.

    Q: Valtteri, lots of Finnish flags. A great lap, phenomenal job. How hard has it been for you guys to take the fight to Ferrari today? 

    Valtteri BOTTAS: They’ve been quick all weekend and coming into qualifying we knew it should be close and they will be tough to beat and they really had the upper hand today. They had a quicker car, so they have clearly got everything right for this track and we still have work to do on circuits like this, but you know, let’s see tomorrow.

    Q: Are you guys on the back foot a little bit this weekend? 

    VB: This weekend, yes, clearly. We can see that we are not performing as we should, as we want, so that just highlights that we still have work to do with the car. But now we are focusing for the race tomorrow, because it’s going to a long one and still anything is possible.

    Q: Seb, you lead the championship by one point, summer break starts tomorrow. Is it going to be, well, 25 points tomorrow? How big is that gap going to be? 

    SV: Not by my count: summer break starts on Monday. Not even that, we have the test next week. Numbers… I was decent I would say in maths in school but yeah it’s way too early. We go racing; we go flat out. That’s what we have been doing for the first races and that’s what we keep doing. I think that’s the only way to succeed. Certainly we have a lot of boost from people here, at home and in Italy, you know, it can’t be better than that and the main thing is to enjoy.

     

    PRESS CONFERENCE

    Q: Sebastian, your 48th pole. It looked a pretty seamless session from where we were sitting, how was it for you? 

    SV: Seamless? Well, it was seamless in terms of we didn’t have any problems. I felt quite good straight away from Q1 onwards, we did the laps that we had to do and then come Q3 I was fairly confident… you always debate about small things you can do with the car. I was very happy with the first run. I knew there was still a little bit, so I went flat out on the second attempt and I was a little bit faster, it felt like I was faster, but then I arrived in the last sector and I think I asked a bit too much of the tyres beforehand and lost it, sort of, all in three corners and did the same time. So then I didn’t know. I looked up and I didn’t know who was coming behind me because there was a bit of time. I was very happy with the first lap. I think the second could have been a little bit better. The car was phenomenal. And then when I saw it was two red in the first two positions then obviously… the same time, simultaneously the radio opened and there was a big scream. So, really nice. Obviously it is only Saturday, so nothing to get from today other than the best position but we did that and it’s great I think, especially after… there’s always a lot of talk but the talk after the last race was a bit too much so it’s good to give the answer on the track. I’m just happy, as I said. I really like the track. The car was fantastic today and it was really a pleasure to just go round.

    Q: Kimi, it is a Ferrari front-row lock-out. You came on the radio at one point and said you were unhappy with your braking, so was there more to come from you? Had you been happier with the car?

    KR: No, in the end it was OK. Obviously when you lock the front, it’s not ideal but there is nothing wrong with anything, it’s just you try to always find a better way of driving and doing things, so it’s a very normal thing to discuss stuff like that. I was pretty happy with the last apart from going into the chicane, I dropped the wheels on the left kerb and got sideways. I lost an awful lot of lap time. I really felt I had a good chance to put it in first place but anyhow it was decent enough for second place, so obviously great for the team. But it is only Saturday. We have a long way to go tomorrow, both cars, and we try to keep the positions and see what happens.

    Q: Valtteri, Mercedes were seeking their third consecutive front row lock-out here in Hungary. It hasn’t happened. How surprised have you and the team been by the pace of the guys sat alongside you?

    VB: I definitely think today, all-day, Ferrari has been just too quick for us. We saw in the practice the times they were doing: after that we were expecting a tricky qualifying but I think, y’know, it felt like we got most out of it, more or less but just they were quicker today and yesterday it was looking a bit better for us, so, yeah, today was a little bit surprising but it just shows that we definitely have work to do. Tracks like that that requires the maximum downforce of the car, we seem to be struggling a bit more, for one reason or another. So, just need to keep working.

    QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

    Q: (Peter Farkas – Auto Motor) Sebastian, of course from here the aim must be victory – but you haven’t had a clean race since the Monaco Grand Prix. So which is more important: having victory tomorrow or having a clean race at last before the summer break?

    SV: Well, if you say the last clean race was Monaco, it ended in a victory so… I don’t know. Chances are good, we start at the front, they couldn’t be any better but tomorrow is a long day. It’s hot, it’s always hot here. It’s tough for tyres. We saved a set compared to the others. We’ll see. I think the race is long and a lot of things to look out for so… yeah. A clean race is a good race and then we’ll see which result we get.

    Q: (Péter Vámosi – Vas Népe) Question to all drivers. Since 2005 there is a tendency here, if you win the Hungarian Grand Prix, you will be not the champion at the end of the year. What do you think about this?

    SV: I don’t know what happened in 2004?

    Michael Schumacher won here…

    SV: 2003? I don’t know. Statistics! I think if you ask us, we all want to win tomorrow. That’s it.

    Kimi, Valtteri, anything to add?

    VB: No. Nothing to add, we all want to win tomorrow.

    KR: I’ll happily take it. See what happens.

    Q: (Dan Knutson – Auto Action / Speed Sport) Valtteri, the car was lacking a little bit here in the supersoft tyres but how was it on the soft tyres in the long runs?

    VB: I think long runs seemed OK but it seemed OK also for Ferrari and actually Red Bull, so at least what we could see from the practice long runs, all three teams were really consistent actually. So, yeah, that’s why today in Budapest is always important but yeah, I’m sure we can still fight for… trying to gain position, trying to win the race. That’s still the goal although it’s not going to be easy because it’s consistent pace between the teams.

    Q: (Ysef Harding – Xiro Xone News) This question’s for Valtteri and Kimi. Both of you have had some interesting interactions with some young fans. What does it feel like having that kind of support from the smallest of F1 fans?

    VB: yeah, so y’know, I saw the picture of this guy. I’ve never had that kind of fan: face painted, hair painted blue. Just wanted to cheer him up. The boy was in the wheelchair as well. The team managed to find his parents and that was really cool. I’ve never seen the reaction of a fan like that, so it made my day really, also meeting him.

    Kimi, you remember back to the Spanish Grand Prix?

    KR: Yeah, obviously it was a sad moment at first, so not very happy memories of the first part but then the second part cheered me up and cheered up the little guy and his family up a lot, so obviously it was great. Can’t expect to happen every time, just by luck it all went like that, I guess. It’s great if we can please somebody. Had quite a hard time with me going out so, yeah, it turned out to be OK and that’s the main thing.

    Q: (Livio Oricchio – GloboEsporte) Question to all drivers. The qualifying, we were in 56°C in the asphalt. It seems to be it will be a challenge to keep the tyres for tomorrow. Ferrari at the beginning of the season had an advantage on that. Comment of all drivers, Mercedes and Ferrari.

    SV: Yeah, I think your question is also a good summary. I have not that much to add. It’s been really close. Tomorrow will be largely unknown because we didn’t get much yesterday. We got a glimpse but there was a lot of red flags so nobody could really do what they wanted to do. So we’ll see. We’ll see how it works. Obviously first we focus on the start and then we see how the race goes – but really happy with the car today. The balance was better than yesterday. I don’t see why it should change for tomorrow. It was hotter today than yesterday and yeah, I think we were coping quite well with that. Should be OK – but yeah, for sure it will be the main challenge tomorrow to survive longer than the others in better shape.

    Kimi, anything to add about the balance of your car and the track temperature?

    KR: No, that’s perfect.

    OK, Valtteri, how about the Mercedes?

    VB: Well, can’t say it was absolutely perfect but for sure it’s going to be more tricky tomorrow than the long runs we did yesterday – but that’s going to be the same for everyone. I think us, as a team, we have improved since some of the struggles we’ve had in hotter temperatures, it’s gone in a bit better direction. Tomorrow will be a good test for that.

    Q: (Zsolt Godina – F1vilag) Kimi and Sebastian: F1 teams will have two days of testing at the Hungaroring next week. So how important will those days be for Ferrari in terms of upgrades and in terms of fighting with Mercedes during the second half or the season? 

    KR: Obviously it’s important. We don’t get an awful lot of track time so you can do simulations and stuff like that but when you get track time, it’s definitely the best option and obviously we have two days so we will see what we come up with and what we try and find out but it’s definitely helpful and we can obviously have a bit more freedom and time to try things and learn about certain things.

    Q: (Luis Vasconcelos – Formula Press) To all three: given how difficult it is to overtake here and recent history at starts, how much risks are you all prepared to take in the first few moments of the race? 

    VB: Yeah, it is one of the most difficult circuits to overtake, that’s for sure. So yeah, the start will be important. It’s quite a slow speed corner, turn one, high braking so normally you can see places being exchanged so for sure, trying to gain if there’s any possibility.

    KR: Obviously, if you could chose, you would take the left hand side but I don’t think it’s really going to destroy your day, it’s more about making a good start rather than which side you are and try to do that and see what happens in the first few corners.

    SV: Well, it’s not the first start for us. I think we’ve been there… I think we all focus on the start and then you have to react from there, it’s impossible to predict. I think we’ve had good starts, especially this weekend so let’s see tomorrow.

    Q: (Peter Farkas – Auto Motor) To all three of you: all of you have been doing spectacular lap times today, in fact Sebastian broke the lap record from 2004 by more than two seconds, so could you please describe how much more spectacular it feels from the car to drive on a twisty circuit like this so much quicker than before? And in which corners is the most spectacular compared to last year?

    SV: Well, it feels great, I think we always want to go faster so… we always want more so it’s good to know and to feel that the cars are fast, certainly faster than they’ve ever been so that’s great, also in terms of power, I think we’re getting there so it’s quite nice. Biggest differences I would say is that you tend to gain everywhere but braking, I think, is a big difference and then talking specifically about corners, obviously you’ve got the high speed (turns) four and eleven and I think also the fact that they resurfaced for last year helps, especially in turn five. Eight and nine are less bumpy so you can extract the grip a little bit more. Yeah, it’s always nice to go fast.

    Kimi, you were in Formula One back in those… the halcyon era of 2004; how does this compare?

    KR: Obviously very difficult to compare. I think the biggest improvement comes from resurfacing the circuit and it improved the grip like in Austria. It’s very smooth and a lot of grip. Obviously the cars are faster this year than last year but no way to compare. It feels very normal for us because we get used to it. Done it for a lot of races that are actually a lot faster circuits so it’s not suddenly like… even if the lap time is a lot faster, it doesn’t feel like… it just feels normal.

    VB: Yeah, definitely it is quick like all the circuits; all the corners this year are pretty much quicker so you always enjoy it more, especially turn four and eleven here is impressively quick and I like it.