Tag: lewis hamilton

2015 Formula 1 Pirelli Spanish Grand Prix: Sunday Press Conference

DRIVERS

1st Nico ROSBERG (Mercedes)

2nd Lewis HAMILTON (Mercedes)

3rd Sebastian VETTEL (Ferrari)

PODIUM INTERVIEWS

(Conducted by Maria Serrat)

Well, Nico, first win here in Barcelona and first win of the season.

Nico ROSBERG: It was a prefect weekend. Great to be on pole and great to win the race like this. Very, very happy. Also thanks to the team, the car has been awesome, all weekend perfect, so yeah, really great.

You looked very strong, especially strong in the first stint and at the start, where you held onto [the lead].

NR: Yeah, finally I got a great start as well. It’s been a while coming but today it worked out really well.

Congratulations. Lewis, the biggest chance was at the start, what happened there?

Lewis HAMILTON: I just clearly got a bad start. I had lots of wheelspin. But as Nico said, it was a good race, he did a fantastic job and I’m grateful that I could get back up to the podium for the team.

You’re on the podium, your 75^th podium, and also looking at the championship you’re still leading the championship.

LH: Yeah, but there’s a long, long way to go. This was a difficult weekend for me, I’ll definitely take it… looking forward to Monaco. It’s going to be a very tough race for sure but I’m looking forward to it.

Congratulations. Moving on to third. Sebastian, once again on the podium this season. Was the second position and option?

Sebastian VETTEL: I think it was. Obviously we were hanging in there pretty well. We had a good start, we were able to get past Lewis and then we did the right thing, covering him at the first stop. But then unfortunately they switched to a three-stop and they were just too quick. So we couldn’t really keep up with the pace they had today, third is the best we could do and very happy. The car is great and it’s great to see the fans, all the Ferrari flags, so very happy.

You didn’t mirror their strategy and also you were complaining a little bit about traffic. Do you think that maybe a three-stopper would have given you a chance?

SV: I think as a racing driver you always complain about something, especially if you’re German! I think we tried everything we could. Obviously going through traffic is never easy but in the end it’s the same for all of us – sometimes you’re a bit luckier and other times you lose a little bit more.

Thanks and congratulations. Nico, last question for yourself. Now you’re bouncing back. Turning point here in Barcelona and we’re going to Monaco. Home race, pole last year and victory last year.

NR: Yeah, but I’m just enjoying the day today, you know. Winning here in Barcelona was great and just enjoy that with the team tonight and then we look towards the next race.

PRESS CONFERENCE

Nico, many congratulations on this first victory of 2015 and just tell us what this win means to you really and where you go from here?

NR: Just a fantastic weekend. Everything worked out on Saturday and Sunday. It all came together. I’m very happy and that’s it.

Closing in a bit on the points?

NR: Yeah, of course, seven points. At one point I thought maybe, who knows, maybe Sebastian can keep Lewis behind, which on the one side isn’t good for the team, but in terms of my points… it’s always a compromise, for my points that would have been better. But that’s the way it is. Seven points is better than nothing and a fantastic team result today to be first and second, especially after the two-and-a half-week break. Everybody brought upgrades here but still we’re dominating in such a way and that’s fantastic to see and more than at the last race.

A 45-second margin between you and Sebastian at the end there.

Lewis, coming to you, a lot of talking points from your afternoon. Essentially you ended up where you started but the work you had to put in to get back to that second place was pretty phenomenal. Tell us about your race, your start and then the decision to switch to a three-stop strategy.

LH: Yeah, obviously I had quite a poor start. It’s been a long time since I’ve had such a poor start. I tried my best to recover – I nearly dropped back to fourth at the start so I was very fortunate to keep third – and then it was just trying to fight… Unfortunately, this track isn’t very good for overtaking. Actually it’s the worst for overtaking. It’s impossible to follow here, which is a shame. I don’t know how it was further back but for the guys at the front it’s just… it doesn’t matter what you do you cannot get close enough even with the DRS, which is a shame. Nonetheless, I did everything I could behind Sebastian and did enough, I think, in the first stint but then I had a very long pit stop and then had to kind of do it all again. But fortunately towards the end it was enough to get it done on a three-stopper, I was able to get by. Yeah, if I was behind him in traffic I wouldn’t have got past. I’m grateful I could gain those points for the team and it’s kind of damage limitation for me, so it’s not bad.

Very well done. Coming to you Sebastian, obviously the good: you’re on the podium again. The bad: the 45-second margin back to the race winner, which I’m sure you didn’t probably expect through here. Did you think it was on to keep Lewis behind you or did you feel that once he started to gain pace on those harder tyres that it was getting away from you?

SV: To be honest I thought it would be tricky to keep him behind because they were a fair amount quicker, as we saw, at the end of the race. Obviously we were a bit lucky with the first pit stop – Lewis had a problem – so we were able to stay ahead, I think we reacted well and we did everything we could. Then obviously they decided to pit very early, go for a three-stop. I think it was our best chance to stay out, which is what we did. Unfortunately then I came out a bit in traffic after the second stop and lost maybe a couple of second, maybe two or three seconds, which would have been maybe just enough to stay in front but arguably with the speed they had you have to be fair and accept that they deserved to finish in front of us today, so well done to both of them. For us I’m pretty confident we will get closer again pretty soon, so hopefully in two weeks’ time it’s a different picture. I think we have done a step forward as a team in terms of performance. Obviously it doesn’t really show here but I’m quite confident that in the next couple of race we’ll be stepping up our game again and I’m looking forward to that.

QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

Q: (Livio Oricchio – GloboSport.com) Sebastian, you think the big gap you have, for example, to Nico, you have on the same strategy, is it related to the characteristics of the track or maybe the reality now between Ferrari and Mercedes?

SV: I don’t think it’s the reality. If you take the average of the first five races, then you have your reality. I think you have to be fair and except that on some tracks you’re a bit more competitive than on others. It seems that for some reason we were not that competitive here – even though I think we have improved our car. So, not happy with the gap, to be honest. Not happy at all. Obviously they had a pretty easy race at the front, controlling the gaps, controlling the tyres, which then obviously allows you to push when you need to. Whereas for us, we are pushing as hard as we could and that’s where we were at the end. So, not happy with today’s result in terms of the gap to the front – but in terms of points scored and global result, I think we can be very happy. It’s nice to be back on the podium.

Q: (Heikki Kulta – Turun Sanomat) Nico, congratulations. Is this the best Mothers’ Day gift you have given to your mother – and all in all, was this a so-called ‘perfect weekend’ for you?

NR: Well, I hope my Mum is happy – that would be great. And I’m sure she is, and I’m sure they’re having a good time at home now. So that’s nice. And then, perfect weekend? Yeah, it was a perfect weekend. Everything worked out: the car was great, nailed the setup for the race, for qualifying. Everything came together so very happy with that.

Q: (Peter Farkas – Auto Motor) Sebastian, do you think it would have been worth to cover Lewis when he went in for his second stop? It was a bit strange that you went in about seven or eight laps later. And, considering this gap, which is pretty big, do you still think you’re fighting in the championship?

SV: The fact that we stayed seven- or something laps longer is obviously due to the fact we were on a different strategy: we were on two stops, Lewis was on three stops, so I think covering him would have been difficult. Obviously in the first stop, I guess we reacted because Lewis has such a poor stop – I don’t know what happened to him – so we were able to cover him. That was a nice invitation and we took it. After that, as I said earlier, him pulling in so early was clear he’s diverting, or going on a three stop, which was not our plan today, so we stayed out. All in all, they were probably a little bit too quick to really put more pressure on them.

Yes, I think I’m in the fight. We are able to improve our car. I think there’s some good steps coming. Obviously our opponent is the favourite for the whole year and was untouchable last year to be fair, so I think the way you need to look at it is not that Mercedes is so strong, the way you need to look at it is that Ferrari was able to close the gap more than anyone else. I think we can be proud of that and we are very much willing to take our chance. Obviously we need to start turning things around very soon – but we are pushing to our maximum, trying to beat them soon.

Q: (Barna Zsoldos – Nemzeti Sport) Nico, in terms of preparation, is there anything significant that you did otherwise in the past period – because in the whole weekend you were so much more dominant than in the past few weeks.

NR: No, no, nothing different. Sorry. Just the same approach, keep on going, and this weekend it all came good. That’s all.

Q: (Andrea Cremonesi, La Gazzetta dello Sport) Question for Nico. How important is it to break the domination of Lewis until now – and how did you manage the situation after Bahrain? In Bahrain you seemed a little bit upset. And how do you think now in having Monaco next race… you won last year and were quite strong.

NR: So, Bahrain was a long time ago and I’m not really thinking about the past too much. Bahrain was an exciting race, which gave me a boost and the only thing that was wrong as the result – and I wanted to change that for this weekend. Now the result came as well so I’m very happy with that today. We’re just going to enjoy this win as an individual race. It’s great to close up seven points to Lewis, great to go to Monaco next – I really like that track – that’s it. Early days.

Q: (Michael Schmidt – Auto, Motor und Sport) Lewis, what exactly happened at the start? Was it just the worse line you were standing on, that left you out to Sebastian? And then, theoretically, would it have been possible to finish the race on the third set of tyres – the hard one – if you wanted?

LH: Wheelspin off the start – nothing different just wheelspin. I don’t know if the inside line got worse but mine definitely wasn’t good. And it wouldn’t have been good to stay out, no. We choose to do a three stop quite early on.

Q: (Luigi Perna – La Gazzetta dello Sport) Seb, at the end of the weekend, can you judge the updates you’ve had on the car as really a step forward or in your opinion do you have to reconsider them or change them a little bit?
SV: It’s a good question. Obviously, if you look at the gap in the race it was the biggest gap we’ve had so far so your conclusion might be that it’s not so good, but I think we’re quite confident that we’re going in the right direction. For some reason, I don’t think we were so competitive here which explains the gap. Now we’re obviously trying to understand and find the reasons. Either this track didn’t suit us or the conditions really suited Mercedes. I think it’s more likely to be one of the two, because if you take the average, obviously we’ve been closer in the last couple of races, so I’m looking forward to Monaco and looking forward to being closer to them again.

Q: (Chris Eichenberger – Motorsport Aktuell) Nico, what exactly did you change on the clutch?

NR: I just went to a different spec, back to last year’s one.

Q: (Sebastian Scott – racedepartment) To you all: the next race is Monaco – Nico your home race – what do you particularly look forward to for this Grand Prix?

NR: It’s the most legendary race in the calendar and it’s the most exciting track to drive on and the most challenging track. The whole weekend, the atmosphere is very very special, everything very unusual, so all these things come together. And of course, sleeping at home is an awesome thing also, and also very strange to be home and then walking or taking the scooter to the racetrack. It’s very cool. Those are the things

LH: The girls!

SV: He stole my answer, there. Just really the event as a whole, I think, mostly enjoying the track, as Nico says, it’s quite challenging and you have to be quite brave and take low risks to get the reward. I hope that we are able to have a very very good qualifying, otherwise it could be quite a boring race if you’re stuck behind another car, it’s not so exciting, because overtaking is not really… it’s not the best track for overtaking, let’s put it that way.

Q: (Peter Farkas – Auto Motor) Lewis, when did it become clear to you that you were in fact not racing Nico but only Sebastian and did you think in the last stint that it was still possible to catch Nico?

LH: Well actually, I think Nico was quite far up ahead. He was 22 seconds ahead by the time I got onto my last stint and I had 15 laps to go so that was a huge amount of time for me to try and catch up. I pushed very hard to see if I could have the pace on him in order to close it but it was than less than a second really – on occasions sometimes a second so I think I pushed right until there was like six laps to go and I still had 13 seconds to go so after that I kind of realised that I should bring the car home and live to fight another day.

Q: (Peter Farkas – Auto Motor) Nico, did you fear that you had to push or even before Lewis’s last stop, you were just cruising for the victory?

NR: From the team, it was pretty clear that my position was very safe because the gap was so big so it was comfortable but of course you never know, so I still tried to keep my pace up in some way and then I could see the gap, that it was under control so it was good.

Q: (Flavio Vanetti – Corriere della Serra) To both Mercedes drivers: we know you are running a dominant car but in some ways the advantage you had today is surprising you or not?

NR: Well yes, because it’s much more than we’ve seen recently, much more than Bahrain, much more than Shanghai, Malaysia, so it’s really a big step in the right direction for us. That is a bit of a surprise but it just shows that we have an awesome team at the moment, everybody’s doing a fantastic job and in the development race, again we won the development race this weekend, compared to Ferrari so that’s an important indication for the rest of the season.

LH: Nothing to add, really. Good question, good answer.

Q: On that subject, they always say the final sector here is a good indicator for the Monaco Grand Prix. Looking at yesterday’s qualifying, you were half a second faster than the Ferraris. Is that giving you a lot of encouragement, the performance in that final sector?

NR: I don’t know how… well, yeah, for sure it’s not a bad thing definitely. I don’t know if it’s 100 percent representative but it’s definitely looking good, yeah.

Q: (Christopher Joseph – Chicane) Lewis, you spoke yesterday about tinkering quite a lot with the set-up of the car for qualifying. Are you now very conscious that you have to do something like that in qualifying for the rest of the season? Is it something that you approach differently?

LH: Well, you can’t change the car in qualifying but throughout practice I was tinkering, trying to get it ready for qualifying and ultimately it wasn’t ideal. It wasn’t bad in the race but yeah, today was a very very tough day, obviously, because I had to make up from the bad start and perhaps my true pace… I wasn’t really able to show it compared to Nico, as I was further behind.

Q: (Christopher Joseph – Chicane) So are you then, in Monaco, looking at practice to aggressively…

LH: No, I’m just going to do what I did in the previous times. This is just a hiccup, I guess, this weekend.

Q: (Vanessa H Rado – Revista Enki) Hamilton, I wanted to know if you have been able to adapt to all the changes that have been made this year in the regulations?

LH: Well, not very much changed in the regulations. The things that we have… the front nose changed and the rear tyres. What else? Otherwise it’s pretty similar to last year so this year is really trying to improve on last year. We had such an amazing year, kind of record-breaking as a team. For us it was hard to imagine trying to do that again or trying to beat it and that’s our goal this year and I think we’re definitely on the right route to doing that so I’m proud of everyone and very much enjoying the car.

May 10, 2015
2015 Formula 1 Pirelli Spanish Grand Prix: Saturday Press Conference

DRIVERS

1st Nico ROSBERG (Mercedes)

2nd Lewis HAMILTON (Mercedes)

3rd Sebastian VETTEL (Ferrari)

TV UNILATERAL

Nico, first pole of the year. Is it fair to say you needed that?

Nico ROSBERG: Well, of course. Of course I needed it sooner rather than later that’s for sure, that’s for sure because it’s just one step in the right direction to winning the race here this weekend. Yeah, it was a good day in the office for sure.

Well done. Lewis, a little spin this morning and looked like you were slightly on the back foot in the later part of qualifying. Why was that?

Lewis HAMILTON: I don’t think I was on the back foot at any other stage. I generally didn’t have the pace today. Nico did a great job and generally I don’t know if I really had the balance where I like it. I did my best with it and I think tomorrow there’s still a lot to play for.

Thank you for that. Coming to you Sebastian, obviously third place again up amongst it here at the front of the grid. Race pace looks strong but would it be fair to say you’re a bit disappointed with the margin to the Mercedes today after all the development work?

Sebastian VETTEL: Well, I think disappointed is the wrong word. I think it’s great to keep confirming that we are right behind. Obviously we would have loved to be a little bit closer, especially for this race as in a way this is a home for us with one of our main sponsors, Santander, so yeah, I think we should still be in good shape for tomorrow. I hope for a good race. But you have to say that those two guys are doing a good job. They are quick. They have been very quick here in winter and I think they confirmed that so far. So I hope tomorrow, as I said, we can be a bit closer but we will see.

Thank you. Back to you Nico: the three of you were the only drivers that managed to save a new set of medium tyres for tomorrow’s grand prix. The races have been strategic and tactical so far this year. Are we to expect more of the same tomorrow?

NR: Yeah, definitely. Strategy is going to be important and it’s a big advantage to have an extra new set of tyres for tomorrow’s race so it’s good to have that. Of course overtaking is also more difficult at this track so starting in front is a particularly big advantage here.

PRESS CONFERENCE

In Bahrain you were saying you had made a mistake because you had not pushed in Q2 because you were thinking about the race. It was very obvious today that in Q2 you pushed much harder, clearly thinking about pole position. In fact you did two laps that were good enough for pole today.

NR: For sure, yeah, Bahrain was still in my mind and I wanted to make sure that I don’t do that mistake again. I just got myself in the rhythm in Q2 and it worked really well for me today.

Lewis, was it the opposite the case for you. You were sixth tenths behind in Q2, which looked as though you had been thinking perhaps more about the race tyre set you would be using from Q2 to Q3. Did that have any impact on finding the limit in that session that impacted your Q3.

LH: No, I just got some traffic on my lap, I was stuck behind one of the McLarens, so it didn’t really make any difference to my in-lap.

Thank you for that. We mentioned, Sebastian, your long run performance yesterday. What was striking about it was that it was long, on the medium tyre, and consistent, but not massively quick or not quick enough to be able to think you can challenge these guys tomorrow?

SV: Well, being realistic they are quick. They are not on pole and second, the first row, for tomorrow by chance. They showed I think in every single session this weekend that they are very competitive with either tyre. So I expect them to be very strong tomorrow. But, of course I hope that we can be a bit closer. The past races we were a bit closer on race pace but, as I said, being realistic it will be difficult to beat them

QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

Q: (Peter Farkas – Auto Motor) Sebastian, you have a lot of new parts on the car this weekend, as most other teams have. Did you hope to get a bit closer to Mercedes or do you still hope that these are circuit characteristics that don’t really suit your car?

SV: Well, in general, I think our car was fine on any circuit this year so I don’t see a reason why it shouldn’t be the case this weekend. Yes, we would have hoped to be a bit closer but the weekend is not over yet for a start and also in the past… and usually this is quite a good indication of how quick your car is, we know we still have something to do. Obviously everybody has been pushing. I think we made a step forward so I’m looking forward to the race and looking forward to the next races. Maybe one race is not enough to confirm everything but, as I said, happy that we are still where we were for a start and hopefully we can be a bit closer tomorrow.

Q: (Luigi Perna – La Gazzetta dello Sport) Question for Seb. Seb, anyway the difference – the gap – compared to Mercedes seems to be bigger compared to the last races. Are you disappointed for that or you think it can be better in the race?

SV: I hope it’s going to be better in the race. I think we expected them to be very, very strong here because in winter testing they’ve been very, very strong. I’m sure they have improved their car since then – but I think the conditions are completely different so we will see. It’s true that the gap is there, the gap is probably a little bit bigger than it was the last couple of races. I don’t think that’s down to one thing only – I think there’s always a lot of things you throw in the bag and maybe we are struggling a little bit more this weekend. I’m looking forward to seeing where we are tomorrow and then you can ask me again – hopefully.

Q: (Livio Oricchio – GloboSport.com) Sebastian, do you think we can have a repetition of the Malaysian Grand Prix where you had a great advantage in the tyre wear and it also explained your victory there. Here the tyre wear is very high also…

SV: First of all, apologies, it comes with a red suit, those two guys, they haven’t asked me a single question in the last four years! I think it’s a different weekend. We have the same tyres, it’s correct, but it’s a completely different circuit as well. I think potentially the tyres are not working as well as they used to in Malaysia. It looks like Mercedes have a bit of an edge and are more comfortable on both compounds, compared to us. So, we’ll see what we can do in the race. Hopefully, as I said many times, we’ll be a bit closer.

Q: (Laurentzi Garmendia – Berria) To Lewis, Barcelona is a track known to be quite difficult to overtake. Does it make the start for tomorrow especially… to put an effort in at the start?

LH: Probably. Yeah, it’s always one of the opportunities. You have that and some of the pitstops. It’s very, very difficult to overtake I think, as it’s shown and proved over the years. I haven’t even started to think about that yet.

Q: (Luigi Perna – La Gazzetta dello Sport) Could you explain why you and Kimi choose two different configurations – aerodynamic configurations – on the car? You with the new one and Kimi the old one. The reasons and why the different choice.

SV: Very simple. We didn’t have the best day yesterday I believe. We both were not entirely happy with how the car felt. I think, as I mentioned before, it was probably tricky conditions this weekend, quite windy, I think the tyres are not working for us as they maybe used to. So, we were not sure about where we were and we decided to split the cars for today.

Q: (Peter Farkas – Auto Motor) Lewis, could you please explain why did you feel the need to go out again at the end of Q1? Did you try something new with the setup still? And what about your spin in P3. What was behind it?

LH: Touched the Astroturf in P3 and then in Q1, that was the team’s decision.

Q: (Flavio Vanetti – Corriere della Sera) To Nico. How important is the boost from the psychological point of view, having the pole position today?

NR: It’s just important for tomorrow’s race because it’s better to start first than second, that’s obviously. Psychologically, yeah, it’s good. Feels great. I’m happy – so it’s good for tomorrow.

Q: (Christopher Joseph – Chicane) A question for Nico. What mindset will you take into the race tomorrow that’s different from the season so far?

NR: No different. Same thing. Try to go for it. Try to go for the best possible result. Starting first in the car that I have, it’s going to be trying to go for the win, for sure. Take the advantage from the start from being first and that’s it.

Q: (Livio Oricchio – GloboSport.com) Question to Lewis. Consider the advantage that you have in the championship, do you consider to start the race already racing for the championship or do you…

LH: Every race. Every race you do you’re racing for the championship. Every race I do I’m racing for the championship…

The question is if you consider to take more risks or because of the advantage you have, you maybe drive more carefully?

LH: I don’t think so. I think I’ll drive the same as I did last year. Seemed to do me quite well.

May 9, 2015
Video: Lewis Hamilton and Sir Stirling Moss Talk About the Differences Between Modern F1 and Old School F1

Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton compares racing notes with Formula 1 Legend Sir Stirling Moss.

May 8, 2015
Video: Sir Stirling Moss and Lewis Hamilton Drive the Mercedes W196 R Around Monza

Watch Sir Stirling Moss and Lewis Hamilton drive the Mercedes W196 R Silver Arrows around the old Monza Circuit

May 8, 2015
F1 2015: Spanish GP – Free Practice Round-Up

The Mercedes AMG Formula 1 team topped both of the first free practice sessions ahead of Sunday’s Spanish grand prix.

Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg led the field in the two one-and-a-half hour practice sessions ahead of Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen. As the first European round of the season the Spanish grand prix sees the introduction of a raft ofupgrades up and down the pitlane.

Although Ferrari has not introduced an engine upgrade that have brought a plethora of aerodynamic upgrades to the circuit de Catalunya. Sebastian Vettel has marked the Spanish grand prix an important key to Ferrari’s title bid in 2015. Nico Rosberg was given a reprimand by stewards for cutting across the solid white line to the pitentry in FP1.

Williamsslotted reserve and test driver Susie Wolff into its car for the first session. The Scott completed a smooth session and ended her day’s running eight tenths of a second off the quickest time set by Felipe Massa.

The second free practice session is typically characterised by long runs as teams look to settle on a set-up for Sunday’s race. While Mercedes appear to have a solid advantage in one-lap pace both Ferrari’s turned a race pace well on par with that of the Silver Arrows. Jenson Button completed a positive afternoon for McLaren as the former champion set the seventh fastest time.

Red Bull Racing’s woes continued as Daniel Ricciardo managed a paltry four laps. The Australian has switched to his fourth Renault engine of the season and predicts that he will likely face an engine penalty at the next round in Monaco.

The track temperature reached 50 degrees Celcius in FP2 and are expected to get higher as the weekend progresses.

Free Practice Two Times

May 8, 2015
F1 2015: Spanish GP Preview – Formula 1 To Raise Its Game In Spain

The three week wait is over and the battle is ready to resume at this weekend’s Spanish GP. The question is which battle; will it be a battle between Mercedes teammates or will Ferrari ascend to true championship contenders?

The Spanish GP doesn’t necessarily have the definitive answer to these questions but it will be more than indicator for the rest of the season. The first European round of a Formula 1 season coincides with the first major upgrade package of the year. It’s the first point in the season where teams can potentially raise their game.

The Lotus F1 team is planning to up the ante by fitting a major upgrade package to its E23 while Ferrari team Principal Maurizio Arrivebene confirms that the Italian team will be arriving for the Spanish GP with its own bits and pieces. “I heard a lot of teams are coming with new things,” he said.”We are now preparing, as all the others are, some solutions for Barcelona. We are doing all of our development step-by-step but I think in Barcelona, we are going to finally take a good package.”

The three week gap will have helped French manufacturer Renault who has faced serious pressure to produce a better power unit. Since the Bahrain GP Red Bull team principal Christian Horner has made a stop at the Paris factory to urge Renault into speeding up their development plan. “For Barcelona we will be bringing a few bits and pieces, as will all the teams,” said Horner. “The significant thing for us is what specification of engine will we have in Barcelona, because it’s a bit earlier than Renault had in their plan for the next step.”

One of McLaren’s upgrades for the Spanish GP will include a new livery. Sadly, it’s rumoured to be rather dull shades of grey scheme, yes you read that correctly, as described by the team. The new livery is seen more as a move away from the Silver that characterised their latter partnership with Mercedes.

More significant is the team’s progress on track and Ron Dennis’, still steadfast, prediction that they will be winning races … soon. There is something however that has been troubling about the McLaren Honda partnership. The claims that 2015 is a “development year” are complete rubbish. There can be no such thing at the pinnacle of motorsport and it is embarrassing for a company of Honda’s pedigree to say so. What McLaren could have and should have done is hold off on bolting the Honda to the back of their car until 2016 while the Japanese company offered their “development” unit to a smaller team to iron out the kinks. It would have saved McLaren more than a few awkward teething problems.

McLaren has definitely made progress, taken huge steps even, since the opening round of the season. Where they were four seconds a lap off the ultimate pace in qualifying its Honda powered car is now less than two seconds off in quali trim. Here’s hoping that their upward trend continues in Barcelona.

Formula 1 has never been an easy sport topredict. It doesn’t solely depend on a driver’s form or ability but a piece of highly engineered, but fallible, machinery. Given this, Mercedes should, and does, start the weekend as favourites for the Spanish GP win. After all, they have the quickest car with the most in-form driver behind the wheel.

But with an aggressive strategy, a few new upgrades to play with, and higher temperatures Ferrari will be a good deal stronger than they have been at any point in the season. Given the volatility of the sport why not flirt with the forecast of a Ferrari victory?

The three week gap has made for a long wait but the first European round of the season at Spain’s circuit de Catalunya, and all it involves, automatically doubles the keenness to see Formula 1 back in action.

May 6, 2015
F1 2015: Bahrain Grand Prix – Hamilton Brilliant in Bahrain

It’s no secret that several past Bahrain Grand Prix had been a bore fest. However, since the introduction of a night race two years ago the desert circuit has come alive.

Lewis Hamilton’s dominant start to the 2015 season continued with yet another faultless victory at the Bahrain Grand Prix. Pole position by four tenths of a second over Sebastian Vettel was the precursor for an even more authoritative performance in Sunday’s race. Seemingly always in control, Hamilton’s latest victory is his third of the season.

Ferrari would have wished that the Bahrain Grand Prix was a few laps longer than the allotted 57. An alternative strategy had Kimi Raikkonen within three seconds of race leader Hamilton as the chequered flag beckoned. But the second step of the podium was the best result possible for a team who has once again underlined their staggering progress.

For most, the final stint of the on the softer option tyre would’ve been the headline grabber. After all, the Finn closed down a nineteen second gap and took second place from Nico Rosberg. But it was the middle stint of the Bahrain Grand Prix that defined Raikkonen’s race. While Hamilton, Rosberg and Vettel opted for the option tyre at the first stop, Raikkonen fitted the harder medium compound tyre. Logic dictates that top three should’ve been lapping at a quicker pace than Raikkonen given the off-set of tyre performance. Yet, Raikkonen delivered a stunning stint on par and occasionally quicker than those ahead of him.

Lewis Hamilton’s Bahrain Grand Prix drive was faultless and far superior to his teammate who is considered somewhat of a Bahrain-specialist whilst Kimi Raikkonen’s incredible pace on the softer tyre nearly netted him a victory.

It’s difficult to choose a driver of the day between the top two finishers but it bodes well for the rest of the season.

Sebastian Vettel endured an off-colour afternoon as several errors cost him a shot at the podium.

An off track excursion while trying to maintain his position ahead of Rosberg caused the German some front-wing damage and any chance at a podium finish.

A late-race fight with Williams’ Valtteri Bottas added some flavour to an otherwise disappointing race but the German was not able to take fourth place from the Finn.

Timing was everything as Red Bull Racing’s Daniel Ricciardo crossed the line for sixth under an enormous plume of smoke as the Renault engine let go mere meters from the finish line.

The spectacular, and smoky, end of Ricciardo’s engine doesn’t bode well for the remainder of the season as the Aussie has now used his allotted four engine units.

Lotus Romain Grosjean put a fine drive for seventh ahead of Force India’s Sergio Perez in eighth.

Daniil Kvyat recovered from a difficult weekend to finish ninth while Felipe Massa’s race was compromised by a clash with none other than Pastor Maldonado. The Brazilian suffered floor damage which hampered the performance of his Williams and ultimately finished tenth.

Fernando Alonso dragged the McLaren-Honda into eleventh place but it was dreadful weekend for teammate Jenson Button who suffered issues throughout. The calamity came to a head as the 2009 champion was unable to start his 100^th race for McLaren with a suspected electronic issue.

Mercedes motorsport chief Toto Wolff confirmed after the race that Hamilton and Rosberg struggled with brake issues towards the closing stages. While Rosberg blamed the brake issue for losing second place Hamilton dismissed it as “not really a problem.” Rosberg did show some fight with the two Ferrari’s but didn’t threaten Hamilton at any stage of the weekend. The difference in mentality between Rosberg and Hamilton is noteworthy.

The Spanish Grand Prix around the circuit de Catalunya is three weeks away. It is at this the point of the season that the first big upgrade packages are introduced. It could be a significant moment in the 2015 season which turns the championship fight into more than just a Mercedes show.

Photo credits:

Lewis Hamilton, Bahrain Grand Prix first place trophy: Mercedes AMG F1

Kimi Raikkonen, Bahrain Grand Prix second place trophy: Scuderia Ferrari

Lewis Hamilton, Bahrain Grand Prix winner on the podium: Mercedes AMG F1

Sebastian Vettel off the Bahrain Grand Prix track: Screenshot from SkySports F1

Daniel Ricciardo crossing Bahrain Grand Prix finish line: Screenshot from SkySports F1

April 20, 2015
2015 Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix: Sunday Press Conference

DRIVERS

1st Lewis HAMILTON (Mercedes)

2nd Kimi RAIKKONEN (Ferrari)

3rd Nico ROSBERG (Mercedes)

PODIUM INTERVIEWS

(Conducted by Sir Jackie Stewart)

First of all, congratulations to Bahrain for a fantastic grand prix, the 11^th grand prix here in this region. What a crowd we’ve had here, what a wonderful race you’ve had, and the winner is Lewis Hamilton.

Lewis HAMILTON: How you doing man?

Terrific.

LH: How you guys doing? What a great crowd we have tonight.

Fantastic, and what a great race. Three victories this year. There’s something called three world championships, potentially, at the end of this season…

LH: Yeah, I’m gunning for it. Firstly, a big thank you to my team, they did an amazing job this weekend. The Ferraris gave us a real good run for our money and out there it was really difficult to look after the tyres in these conditions, behind backmarkers and all sorts, but fortunately I was able to keep the car together, keep the tyres as healthy as possible and pull it through. But we need to keep pushing as a team, we’ll of course do [that]. Just a massive thanks to everyone and all the people who came out to support me this weekend, I really appreciate it.

What about the brake issue coming into the end there? There was something on the radio suggesting that you had to back off a little bit on the braking.

LH: Yeah, I think my brakes just got a little bit warm when I was behind a few backmarkers. When you get behind them there’s just no cool air coming in the brakes, so they got a bit warm, but it wasn’t really a problem.

Well, congratulations on a fantastic race, you must be very happy and it’s a hell of a season you’re having. Well done. Kimi – terrific. Happy?

Kimi RAIKKONEN: Obviously you’re never happy when you finish second but I think after a difficult start to the year I’m a bit pleased to get some result – a bit better result. Obviously we came through in the end very quickly but we run out of the laps but I think we have to be happy after where we qualified, after we finished, but obviously we’re looking for a bit better results still.

Well, it’s a terrific success for Ferrari to come back as strongly as this. You must be pleased about that?

KR: Yeah, I’m very happy how the team is working and obviously after last year where we are now is a big step and everyone is working very well together. The atmosphere is good now and we have a good direction to keep pushing. It seems to be working well and things are improving, so I’m sure as a team we’ll get there and to be able to be all the time fighting for wins, but it will take a little more time.

Many congratulations. Here’s a man who’s been on the podium an awful lot these days, but today a tough race?

Nico ROSBERG: Yeah, I mean it was OK. The overtaking was enjoyable, to overtake the red cars, I like that a lot. In the end I tried to catch Lewis, but we’re pretty similar so I couldn’t catch him and he even pulled away at the end a little bit, and then I lost my brakes unfortunately, two laps from the end. I just went straight on and that cost me the position to Kimi, which is very disappointing.

Well, it’s been a consistent season for Mercedes-Benz. You must be happy that you’ve got that kind of engineering?

NR: I’m happy about our car, yeah. The team has done a great job again and I’m very thankful for that and I really look forward to all the races that are still to come.

Q: Many congratulations Lewis, your 36^th career victory, two years in a row here in Bahrain and ninth win in the last 11 grands prix. Obviously all weekend a sustained, competitive challenge from Ferrari. Does it mean more to beat Ferrari in a close fight than it does to win an in-house, inter-team battle within Mercedes?

LH: I think winning is winning so it doesn’t particularly matter who it’s against. You’re trying to beat everyone out there. Naturally it’s great to be having a fight with the Ferraris. I think for us as a team, and I think still today that Mercedes are still the best and we are working as hard as we can to keep up with this momentum that we have – but they are pushing very hard to close up. A huge thank-you to all the guys back at the factory and also the guys that are here because the car was really nice to drive this weekend. In the race I was really able to manage it and… yeah… really, really happy, really proud of everyone for all the hard work they put in.

Q: Kimi, fourth on the grid, second at the finish, first podium since Korea 2013. Alternative strategy for you. Obviously the middle stint was the key to your grand prix. Tell us about that and the pace that you were able to maintain against everybody else on the softer tyre. But also, you questioned at the end the decision to go onto the soft tyre – how did that work out, was it the right thing to do in the end?

KR: I think we had a few different plans. How to run the race and obviously this one was one of them. It all really depended where we are after a few laps. But I think we did a very good job out of it and the medium tyres worked very well for me in the second stint and I could pretty much… quite easily keep up with them, even catch them. They were working fine so obviously I was wondering if it’s the right choice to go on the soft at the end – but obviously it was the correct choice, they were much faster still. So, I was able to catch Nico and got past him. We did more or less the maximum that we could do today and obviously if you think that we were ahead of Nico earlier, he got past me on lap two or three or something, so we lost some time but I think we had a pretty good race and hopefully we can have many more.

Q: Nico, you finished where you started but obviously the story is not quite as simple as that. Obviously you were on the attack today, particularly the overtakes with Sebastian. Maybe you could tell us a bit about that and how much you enjoyed those, and also could you just drill down a bit more into the problem with the brakes at the end.

NR: So, started off on a disappointing note for me after the start with losing the position to Kimi. I just did the wrong… well, got caught out. But then immediately I felt that the car was awesome, so went full on the attack straight away and was happy to get by Kimi and Sebastian. Great fight with those, that was very exciting at that point in time. Then always dropped back again behind Sebastian after a pitstop so had to get him over and over again. After that, yeah, trying to catch Lewis but that wasn’t possible. Unfortunately struggling with brakes a little bit throughout the whole race and just lost them. Two laps from the end I lost the brakes, so went straight on and had to carry the car home for the last two laps.

QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

Q: (Kate Walker – motorsport.com) I’ve got a question for both Lewis and Nico. One of the more visually dramatic moments in the race was when you were leaving the pits, Lewis, and coming up behind we had Nico and Sebastian fighting. I wanted to know: could you see that in your mirrors? Was it something you were aware of. And Nico, did you have any seat of your pants moments, wondering how close it was all going to get.

LH: I definitely saw it because I wasn’t expecting… I went in the pits quite far… I think I had a decent gap and then all of a sudden I was coming out of the pits and they were right there. So I think I had a fairly slow pitstop and naturally that’s really why, I guess, the gap closed up. I came out of the pits, braking into Turn One and I saw them in my left mirror and I’m like : “Oh my God, this is close!” But it was so much fun. Really good fun.

Nico – you saw an opportunity there clearly because Sebastian was looking at Lewis coming out of the pits I guess?

NR: Yeah. I just went for the aggressive inside because he didn’t close up the door. He left a bit of a gap and a bit of a possibility and I was hoping Lewis was far enough ahead. It wasn’t obvious but I was hoping he would be out of the way by the time we got to Turn One and it worked out – but for sure it was quite hairy, especially looking from outside I suppose. Inside it was OK.

Q: (Heikki Kulta – Turun Sanomat) Kimi, after being fourth in Malaysia and China and being out of top three for 18 months, how much do you appreciate this comeback to the podium?

KR: Obviously it’s much nicer than being out of it but, you know, you come second and obviously we got quite close to the Mercedes today but it’s a bit disappointing after that always – but I’d rather take this one than something else. You cannot feel happy. We are happy to be second but it’s still disappointing. It’s not what we want to do. Big thanks to the team. I had a pretty hard time last year. This year in the beginning, just some bad luck in the races but, you know, the team has done a great job over the winter and everybody is pushing together, in the same direction and I’m sure we are only going to get stronger and better as a team and improve the car. So, it’s a great place to be.

Q: (Dan Knutson – Auto Action / Speedsport magazines) Lewis, was there ever a time you were concerned the Ferraris could actually challenge you for the win? During the race?

LH: Well, I was only ever… I could only really see Nico most of the time. Obviously at the beginning of the race it wasn’t that easy to drop any of the guys behind – but then it got a bit better towards the end of the stint. And then later on obviously Nico was the one behind. And then I was made aware that Kimi was going long so he was going to be very quick in the last stint – but I think I had it pretty much under control. But I had a very similar situation to Nico, obviously it didn’t cost me anywhere near as much, but brakes were getting quite warm, particularly in traffic. So, the last few laps I had to slow down a little bit – otherwise I don’t think we would have had a problem.

Q: (Khodr Rawi – F1Zone.net) Kimi, do you think the only possibility to beat Mercedes is by trying a different strategy, trying to undercut them because beating them on track seems a bit difficult now?

KR: Well, I don’t think it’s the only way. Obviously on some circuits we can get closer, some not, but I think obviously the first step is to improve our package, that will happen in the future and hopefully get closer. One step is to qualify more higher up, make better starts and go from there. I think we had a pretty decent speed today but obviously if you’re behind any cars and you lose any seconds, you will pay a price for it in the end. I think we just have to keep working and improving the whole package and how we do things. I’m sure we will get there and we can fight for wins every weekend after that.

Q: (Michael Schmidt – Auto, Motor und Sport) Kimi, you were flying in the second and third stints on both type of tyre but you struggled in the first stint. Have you any idea why?

KR: I wasn’t struggling really. I didn’t feel that it was much problem. I got passed by Nico, I passed him at the start and I got passed by him and obviously you lose quite a bit of time and then he passed Seb and we were pretty close to each other. I felt I was faster but obviously it’s pretty hard to pass. I think that we did the maximum, more or less. Yesterday we lost a place to Nico, but after that, once we got the mediums and the new set of softs at the end, the car was very good, so I could keep up good speed and everything was running smoothly, but already at that point we were a bit too far off first place.

Q: (Heikki Kulta – Turun Sanomat) Lewis, are you happy that Kimi took some points away from Nico?

LH: Are you feeling OK today? Normally… Kimi’s right here, you know that, right? Normally you always ask… I wasn’t expecting that question. I don’t know. I think ultimately we’re trying to win both championships so I guess the team won’t be 100 percent happy and we’re not 100 percent happy because we want to finish one-two. And so Kimi’s taken some points away from us as a team which ultimately isn’t the best but then on the positive side, of course, I got good points today, so we’ll take it but we’ll work as hard as we can to kind of rectify that and try and see if we can get some more one-twos moving forwards.

Q: (Matt Youson – Racetech) Kimi, can you tell us how this year’s car is an improvement on last season’s. Everybody talks about the power unit but is it just that or is there a lot more?

KR: Obviously a big chunk of it is the engine itself. It’s a big improvement on horsepower plus reliability but you cannot just give all the credit to them. The car has improved a lot: much more downforce, the car is handling much better because of that, and obviously how the whole package has been done and put together. I think the big key is that all areas have improved quite a bit plus the people have been working more closely, as one team putting it together more nicely, so obviously the end result is what we have now and then as I said earlier, I’m very happy how things are going, very happy with the team and I think not many people expected after last year that we can be in this kind of position this early and now we are going in the right direction, so I’m sure we will get there but we want to start winning races more often and we just have to have some patience and do the work that we’ve done so far and we will get there.

Q: (Khodr Rawi – F1Zone.net) To all three of you: is the challenge of the championship against the rival teams more difficult than against your teammate, because you don’t know what others have or what others are planning in terms of strategy and that sort of thing?

LH: It’s all hard. It’s difficult to say which one is harder. When you’re fighting the guy in your team with the same car you’ve got the data. Sure it’s more on the limit when you’re fighting another team. There’s pros and cons, there are advantages and disadvantages on each side. You just try to do your best job, that’s what motor racing is all about, to be fighting other teams, that’s what we’re here to do.

NR: It’s both different but both tough. It’s difficult to go into the details but it’s tough to battle Lewis last year and this year and it’s tough now to battle the Ferraris now that they’re in the mix.

KR: I think it doesn’t make a lot of difference. Obviously with your teammate you more or less know what he’s doing and in the race when he’s going to stop but you have to beat all of them so it’s really the same end result.

April 19, 2015
Brake Problems for Mercedes Made it Bitter-Sweet

With Lewis Hamilton winning the Bahrain Grand Prix and Nico Rosberg finishing in 3rd, Mercedes say that the brake problems they suffered at the end of the race made it bitter sweet for them.

Rosberg lost P2 in the race a few laps before the end, due to a brake-by-wire problem, to a charging Kimi Raikkonen in his Ferrari who was on the faster option tyre.

“At the end it was very disappointing that Kimi got me,” said Rosberg after the race. “I had no chance to defend my position with a brake-by-wire problem in the last two laps. I just went straight on at Turn One and that allowed him past, which was a shame.”

Hamilton suffered from the same problem as his team mate at the same corner according to Mercedes. Hamilton managed to hold his lead and nurse the car home because of the gap he had opened to Rosberg in the race. In the end, Raikkonen finished just 3s behind Hamilton.

“I think my brakes got a bit warm behind a few backmarkers,” he explained.

“When you are behind you don’t get cool air, so they got a bit warm. But it wasn’t really a problem”

Speaking after the race Executive Director of Business, Toto Wolff admitted that it was not an easy race for the team.

“That was not an easy afternoon for us today but we must be happy with P1 and P3 after we had a number of big challenges during the race, he said”

He lamented the brake failure but maintained that Rosberg would have been able to keep Raikkonen behind him for the Mercedes 1-2.

“just as we were getting to the decisive moment, he suffered a brake-by-wire failure into Turn One on lap 56. That meant he was basically a passenger as he ran wide and Kimi was able to sneak past. Without that, I think he was driving so well that he would have kept the Ferrari behind – but he had no weapons to defend.”

Photo credit: Mercedes AMG Petronas Formula One Team

April 19, 2015
F1 2015: Bahrain Qualifying Report – Hamilton Takes First Bahrain Pole

Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton has secured his first pole position around the Sakhir International circuit ahead of Sunday’s Bahrain grand prix.

The double world champion will share the front row of the grid with Ferrari driver Sebastian Vettel while teammate Nico Rosberg could only manage the third fastest time. Kimi Raikkonen, in the sister Ferrari, will start alongside Rosberg in fourth. Valtteri Bottas and Felipe Massa will line up fifth and sixth respectively for Williams.

The earlier sessions of qualifying had its own drama’s as Jenson Button and McLaren’s miserable weekend continued with yet another stoppage. Nevertheless, teammate Fernando Alonso gave the team some reprieve as he advanced beyond the first part of qualifying. Similarly, Daniil Kvyat was unable to advance to Q2 after having suffered a difficult start to his weekend. Carlos Sainz Jr got the better of Toro Rosso teammate Max Verstappen while Lotus’ Pastor Maldonado fell at the first hurdle after suffering an engine related issue.

Photo credit Mercedes Benz AMG Petronas F1

April 18, 2015