Tag: lewis hamilton

F1 2014: Bahrain Free Practice 1 Results – Hamilton On Top

Lewis Hamilton led a Mercedes one-two at the first free practice session for the 2014 Bahrain grand prix.

The Bahrain GP celebrates its tenth appearance on the Formula 1 calendar this weekend and will host its first ever night race. The first one and a half hour practice session remained fairly uneventful throughout. There was encouraging signs from the Lotus F1 Team who managed to rack up a substantial number of laps without any issues. However, it was the Mercedes team that once again dominated the timing sheets ahead of Sunday’s third round of the 2014 F1 season.

Fernando Alonso in the Ferrari held the fastest time for a short period of time before being pushed down to third overall. Several teams ended there practice sessions before the chequered flag came out. The suggestion was that the most valuable information would be gained in the second practice session; as the condition will be more akin to what qualifying and race conditions are likely to be.

A peculiar lapse of concentration by the Ferrari team saw Fernando Alonso leave the pitlane with three medium and one soft compound tyre on his car. The Spaniard stopped his car in the pitlane and was wheeled back into the garage by his mechanics. Some familiar faces graced the paddock during FP1 from Jean Alesi to Rod Smedley who has joined the Williams team from Ferrari.

Several reserve drivers also got some track time in Bahrain. Amongst them were Felipe Nasr for Williams, Robin Frijns for Caterham and Giedo van der Garde for Sauber.

April 4, 2014
F1 2014: Malaysia GP Review – Mercedes Asserts Dominance

Not a lot of people were delighted when news broke towards the end of 2012 that Lewis Hamilton would become a Mercedes driver. The gutsy decision went a long way towards being justified as Hamilton dominated the 2014 Malaysian grand prix.

A single victory in Hungary was all Hamilton had to show for his first season with the Silver Arrows. He remained patient in the building of this new relationship and when the all silver Mercedes hit the track in Jerez on the first day of testing it was starting to pay off.

After retiring from the Australian grand prix two weeks ago Lewis Hamilton showed up in Malaysia with the single goal of scoring twenty-five points on Sunday. A second consecutive pole ensured the best possible starting position for Hamilton who shared the front-row of the grid with Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel. Nico Rosberg rounded out the top three with Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso in fourth place on the grid.

Lewis Hamilton comfortably maintained the lead of the race over teammate Rosberg and ran untroubled for the rest of the afternoon. One of the few battles during the Malaysian GP transpired at the start of the race as Rosberg and the two Red Bulls jockeyed for position.

Sebastian Vettel finished in third place overall after getting within one second of Rosberg’s Mercedes. It has been a tremendous recovery for the Red Bull team who looked in dire straits two months ago. A podium finish proves that the RB10 is a fundamentally quick car and that should Renault get on top of their issues that Red Bull will be a serious factor in this championship battle.

Daniel Ricciardo was supposed to follow Vettel home in fourth place but a disastrous final pit stop totalled the Australian’s race. An improperly secured front-left tyre forced Ricciardo to stop in the pitlane before being pushed back to his pit box. Eventually released, he was given a ten second stop/go penalty for an unsafe release. As if to add insult to injury the Aussie was forced back into the pits with a damaged front-wing which appeared to have been caused by the front-jack during his stop.

Ricciardo failed to finish the race and was subsequently handed a ten-place grid penalty for this weekend’s Bahrain GP. It is rather extreme to double up on the punishment but the 2014 rule concerning unsafe releases is clear-cut in the application of two penalties. Clearly, Ricciardo has taken over Mark Webber’s rotten luck as well as his race seat at Red Bull.

Nico Hulkenberg and Fernando Alonso battled for fourth place on the road with the Ferrari driver winning the close contest. Hulkenberg underlined his class with a solid performance on a tricky two-stop strategy. The Ferrari of Kimi Raikkonen showed a marked improvement throughout the practice sessions but an overzealous Kevin Magnussen left the Finn with a right-rear puncture at the start of lap two. After limping around the circuit Raikkonen made it to the pits but had lost seventy seconds to the frontrunners.

Jenson Button confirmed post-race that his McLaren struggled in the high-speed corners but still salvaged sixth place. A spicy fight for seventh between Felipe Massa and Valterri Bottas resulted in some inter-team controversy. In the closing stages of the race Massa was given the instruction to let his teammate past. However, amongst several messages to the Brazilian was “Felipe, Valtteri is faster than you.” This message was a near exact carbon-copy of the one given to Massa during the infamous 2010 German GP. For a split second the former Ferrari driver must have felt like he never left the Italian squad. Massa’s engineer will do well in the future to pick his words more carefully. Team boss Claire Williams diffused the situation by claiming that no team orders were imposed on either driver. Rookies Kevin Magnussen and Daniil Kvyat rounded out the top ten.

It’s bad enough not seeing the chequered flag at the end of the race but it’s exponentially worse when a driver does not even make it onto the starting grid. Force India’s Sergio Perez, struck with software issues, was such a driver. Lotus retired the car of Pastor Maldonado as the turbo was in the process of failing while Sauber suffered a double retirement. Seven cars in total failed to see the chequered flag.

In seven previous attempts Hamilton had never won the Malaysian GP but Sunday’s dominant display resulted in his first victory around the Sepang circuit. The absence of significant pressure from behind allowed Hamilton to set a modest pace. It is clear that underneath him he has a Mercedes that is the class of the field at the moment and, if needed, has quite a lot more speed to call on.

It isn’t a case of if but rather when Red Bull, Ferrari and perhaps McLaren will catch up. The gap will be closed. However, Mercedes is making some serious hay while the others are scrambling – and this is ominous. Trust that this team will be working as hard to maintain their pace advantage. And they’re already ahead there too. While others struggle with their power units Mercedes already has the strongest and most reliable engine. At this stage other teams are trying to solve problems and combat issues that Mercedes have long since overcome. The mindset of the Mercedes team isn’t how to fix problems it’s how to go even faster.

March 31, 2014
2014 Formula 1 Petronas Malaysian Grand Prix: Sunday Press Conference

DRIVERS

1st Lewis HAMILTON (Mercedes)

2nd Nico ROSBERG (Mercedes)

3rd Sebastian VETTEL (Red Bull Racing)

PODIUM INTERVIEWS

(Conducted by Benedict Cumberbatch)

Well Lewis, congratulations, your first win this year and you got the hat trick – pole position, the best lap time, on lap 54 I think, and now you’re here. How does it feel?

Lewis HAMILTON: Incredible, incredible. After such a difficult weekend and such a long winter. We have a great crowd here today. For Petronas, who worked so hard with Mercedes to give us this win, I just feel so grateful, particularly after such a tragedy three weeks ago. I’d really like to dedicate this to those people and their families.

Quite right. Tell us a bit about what it’s like to drive in Malaysia. You’re covered in Champagne now rather than sweat but as one wily commentator pointed out to me on the grid earlier it’s incredibly hot here. It’s in the mid-50s in terms of humidity and we hit 35 degrees Celsius on the track. What do you have to consider when you’re driving?

LH: Yeah, you’re sweating even before you get in the car. It’s trying to keep you body as cool as possible and then just keep you focus. Fortunately, the team were just spot on with all the pit stops and the calling, the timing. Also the info I was getting was just spot on.

It seems much clearer these days. You can hear the radio a bit more. Is that to do with the cars being a little bit quieter?

LH: It is. The cars are quieter. The most noise is the wind, the buffeting. Otherwise, what a great car, what a great job from everyone.

You did a fantastic job, congratulations once again. Now, Nico, congratulations to you too, well done, sir. That was a fantastically exciting moment just there [at the start]. Did you feel Sebastian on your shoulder? Because you took such a hard line on the right, you were like less than a foot away from the side.

Nico ROSBERG: Thanks to my engineer we worked together well and we got a great start and that allowed me to go into second place. It was a bit ‘iffy’, Turn Three I got a bit sideways, saw plenty of action there but it worked out well and from then on I was trying to chase Lewis but he was a bit too quick today.

Well, you did fantastically well, it was a superb run.

NR: Just one more thing. Malaysia you can be proud because your company Petronas has taken us to the front of F1, so you can be really proud of that. Petronas has given us the best oil and fuel in F1, it’s brilliant.

Sebastian, congratulations, your first time on the podium this year. You won here last year in the rain and that was an interesting race to say the least. How did it work this time being in the dry and the heat rather than the wet?

Sebastian VETTEL: It was dry last year as well.

It was dry; there you go.

SV: It was a really good race. The start was not very good. I was quite surprised when I saw Nico on my right.

Tell us about that.

SV: I don’t know. I though I had a good start but then I focused on getting in the tow of Lewis to maybe attack him going into the first corner. Then Nico was there on the right and it was quite tight. Daniel was coming as well as I was trying to get past Nico. So I lost a place but fortunately I got it back and then later on I was trying to get as close as I could to Nico. At some stage it looked like we are pretty similar, pretty evenly matched but then it’s like he found another gear, he was pulling away. In the end I was just trying to get the car home. Obviously Daniel didn’t make it for a couple of reasons. All in all it’s good to get another podium after Daniel has been on the podium in Australia. But we still have a long way [to go] these guys are bloody quick, congratulations to them, they did a good but we are trying to catch-up.

PRESS CONFERENCE

Q: Lewis, congratulations, the 23^rd win of your career. The first 1-2 for Mercedes of the modern era, your first win in Malaysia. You weren’t wanting to celebrate yesterday after that pole but I guess you will allow yourself a celebration tonight.

LH: Yeah. Definitely. Incredibly happy. My first time. It’s my eighth year here and finally got that win. I really just owe it all to the team. Did a fantastic job, the guys back at the factory pushing non-stop to get the car to where it is, and of course to do it on Petronas… on our home ground… almost, to get a one-two, I mean it’s quite special when you get a one-two. I’ve not had many in my career and so that makes it even more special. I’m really grateful for all the work that’s done and… yeah, great day.

Q: Nico, I guess you’re looking on your mobile there at the points position because you’re not only leading the World Championship but you’ve extended your lead today in the World Championship. But to take you back to earlier in the race, you seemed to have a few problems with the rear tyres, we were hearing over the radio, maybe you could tell us a bit about that – and also maybe a bit about the start as well.…

NR: First of all the start, I had a really good start, so I was happy about that because it’s not so easy this year. The rear tyres are harder and we have more torque. So it’s very difficult to get it right – but it felt great and got away well and then Sebastian, I thought he was going to put me right into the wall, but he stopped just before – so thank you for that!

SV: I had a similar experience last year…

NR: …that doesn’t make it right to do it again! My heartbeat skipped a beat a little bit but I kept right on it, it was OK anyway, it wasn’t that bad. Then I had a bit of a moment in Turn Three, a bit of a tail, tank-slapper and that allowed them all to get another run on me, but it all worked out. And then I was just trying to chase Lewis but he was a bit too quick today. It was a bit difficult out there because the track was really poor, it seemed, sliding so much, and just struggling with the rear tyres especially. That made it a bit difficult out there.

Q: Sebastian, coming to you, you said over the radio at the end there that you’re pretty pleased, that you’ve got some work to do still but you were on the whole pleased with the outcome – but you were 24.5s behind Lewis at the finish, and that’s a pretty big number still, isn’t it?

SV: Yes, it is – but I don’t think that’s… probably Lewis could have gone faster, I think we could have gone faster at the end of the race but our priority at the end was to make sure we secure the podium. So, I think probably to see the reality, I don’t know where the gaps were, probably 10, 15 laps to the end but no doubt, congratulations to them, they did a very good job, they looked nearly seamless already in winter testing, they are bloody quick, the package they have is very, very strong, we know that but I think, y’know, for us there’s mostly positives that remain. After Australia, Daniel did a fantastic job here again. I think the car was very competitive, it’s a completely different track, different conditions but yeah, we are there and that’s the most important… I think it’s much better than what we expected at some stage during the winter. We know that there’s a lot we can do better – because it doesn’t feel great when we are out there racing. Just if you go out on track and listen and look at how the cars behave, on power I think there’s a big difference, so yeah, we know that. I think it’s a question of time, how soon we manage to catch up. And then we try to give them a harder time.

QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

Q: (Frederic Ferret – L’Equipe) Lewis, was there any difficulty during the race for you or was it an easy trip?

LH: I don’t think any race is ever easy. Obviously there are opportunities that are presented in front of you and obviously you have to take them with both hands and today that’s what I did but no, looking after the car, looking after fuel, not making any mistakes, it was a massive challenge in that sense. The time… I would hear that Nico had stepped up the speed, reacting to those things without damaging your tyres, so without doubt it was still a great challenge, but one that I was able to do well because the car was spectacular this weekend, so really really happy with just a great performance by the team.

Q: (Frederic Ferret – L’Equipe) For the three of you, do you think that the three contenders for the title are sitting up there today?

LH: I would like to think that us, as Mercedes, are the title… at least, at the moment, but there’s such a long way to go. We’ve got a lot of competition out there so I’m sure everyone’s going to be pushing and so we need to stay on it.

Q: And the championship leader?

NR: That sounds very good already as it is but there’s a long way to go. I’m not thinking about that at the moment, I’m really just taking it race by race, just enjoying the moment, making the most of it, keeping on it, keeping to push. The best example is now Red Bull. The last day of testing was four weeks ago or something or three weeks ago and they were absolutely nowhere and now he (Vettel) was right in the back of me, pushing me. OK, I had some pace in hand so I could beat him in the end clearly but still, the way they’ve ramped up their pace, very impressive, so we need to keep on it to keep our advantage.

SV: Well, I think Fernando is missing, Daniel, Kimi and probably one other guy that we don’t know yet. Still early days, but that’s what I would say.

Q: (Kate Walker – Crash.net) For all three of you: we’ve heard an awful lot about some extreme measures that drivers have taken to stay below weight this season with the car. Now Malaysia is always a punishing race because of the heat. Was it more difficult this year, especially as we had no rain, just the physical challenge?

LH: It’s always a great challenge here and today wasn’t as hot as it has been in the past, i would say. Generally, this year, with a lot less downforce, it’s a lot less physical – still really physical but it’s not as much as years and years ago when we had so much downforce and particularly last year when we had a lot of downforce, but it’s still a serious workout. Fortunately I’m just grateful my drink machine worked, even though it’s like drinking hot tea, it did the job. I think the team has done a great job in terms of weight this year. We know we’re not having to cut things off to get to the weight.

NR: Yeah, it’s not nice that everything weight-wise is on the edge but that’s the way it is. It’s always a compromise between being light but still being able to perform at the highest of my abilities and I found my compromise and so I felt absolutely fine today. But of course, it is tough out there always. Malaysia is very very hot.

SV: It’s always hot, it’s not a walk in the park but I think we’re going slower, tyres are harder, cars are slower, less downforce as Lewis touched on, so it’s probably a little less hard than it was. The fact that we all try to save weight for this year… next year the weight goes up anyway which is good for the heavy drivers but for this year it’s a pain for them. Doesn’t help, because you’re a bit more on the edge but this is probably one of the worst races. I think the most difficult one is probably Singapore later this year.

Q: (Michael Schmidt – Auto, Motor und Sport) Sebastian, Red Bull made big progress between Bahrain and Melbourne, again progress between Melbourne and here. Are you happy with the speed of development, is that the speed you need in order to catch the Mercedes, let’s say, when the European season starts?

SV: Yeah, we need to make big steps because they are quite far ahead but I’m quite happy with the steps we’re currently making. It’s the first race distance I’ve done this year, since Brazil, it’s the first race distance I’ve done so that’s a big step. Obviously, at some stage during testing, we didn’t expect to finish the first couple of races so well done to all the guys in the team on the reliability front. It’s not a big secret, we know there’s still a lot to do. In terms of driveability we’re not yet there where we want to be. In terms of power, it’s not a big secret without giving a hammering but the guys at Viry are flat out to work on that front. Renault is pushing very very hard but at this stage we have to summarise and say that Mercedes did a better job, they’re quicker than us so we know that there’s a lot of things we have to do better but it’s still a bloody good result today, finishing on the podium, right behind them. That’s what we need to do, as long as we can, up to the point where we’re even and we can challenge them and give them a harder time.

Q: (Ajit Devadason – Sify.com) Lewis, this is to do with your helmet design: the words that you have chosen for this season on the back of your helmet, Still I Rise, are you thrilled that it’s working your way and it’s matching belief?

LH: It’s what I have tattooed on my back so I just added it to the helmet design and I think the metaphor is just that regardless of what difficulties you go through, you still rise above it. That’s really something my Dad has always enforced in me. We’ve had so many ups and downs throughout our lives and our careers, as everyone has, but he would always ‘say just rise above it’ and do your talking on track. I had a difficult time in the last race and that’s what I did today, so I feel quite good about it.

March 30, 2014
Malaysian GP Qualifying report: Hamilton makes it 2 in a row

Lewis Hamilton clinched his second pole in a row during a very wet and rainy Malaysian Grand Prix qualifying session this afternoon. He edged out Red Bull’s Sebastian by just 0.055 seconds.

Nico Rosberg took the third place away from Fernando Alonso in his final flying lap and Daniel Ricciardo got the second Red Bull into the Top 5.

The start of qualifying was delayed by 50 mins today with heavy rains hitting the Sepang circuit after three days of dry practice sessions. Many felt it should have started sooner, since all teams except McLaren started the qualifying session on intermediate tyres. After starting late, the Q1 session also ended early following a crash by Caterham’s Marus Ericcson after the rookie lost control of his car exiting Turn 3.

Kimi Raikkonen finished in 6th place ahead of Nico Hulkenberg and Kevin Magnussen.

Q2 also never went off without incident. The session was stopped shortly after it had started after contact between Daniil Kvyat and Alonso. Kvyat tried to dive up the inside of Alonso into turn nine but made contact with the Ferrari, damaging the front suspension on the F14T. The Ferrari mechanics put on a real show by fixing the F14T in no time a all and sending Alonso back out immediately after the red flag was lifted.

Valterri Bottas has had to take a penalty though. The driver will lose three grid places as well as two penalty points for impeding Daniel Ricciardo.

Below are the full results of the session. Follow us @F1_Madness on Twitter for live race commentary and F1 chit chat during the race tomorrow.

March 30, 2014
F1 2014: Malaysia – Free Practice 2 – Rosberg Tops The Times

Mercedes driver Nico Rosberg topped the timing sheets for the second free practice session in Malaysia.

As the Malaysian heat intensified Nico Rosberg set the fastest time on the white-walled medium compound tyres in the second free practice session for Sunday’s Malaysian grand prix.

Track temperatures reached nearly 50 degrees Celsius during the ninety minute session which reveal a much closer pecking order. In particular, Red Bull’s Sebastain Vettel looked solid in both qualifying simulation and long run pace. Both Mercedes drivers were able to lap consistently on both compounds of tyre while Fernando Alonso and Kimi Raikkonen appeared far more comfortable with the F14T.

Rosberg’s fastest time of 1:39:909 was a whisker faster than Raikkonen who set a 1:39:944. Likewise the top ten was separated roughly six tenths of a second. Granted the level of fuel being carried by the respective teams are unknown at this stage.

The woes continued for Lotus as Pastor Maldonado failed to emerge from his garage for the entire session. Romain Grosjean managed fourteen laps before again pulling off the circuit. This time his issue was allegedly gearbox related.

The level of tyre degradation on the medium compound tyres appeared quite high as expected on the abrasive surface of the Sepang circuit. Nevertheless, it appeared to last for about seven laps before dropping off. However, the track will continue to rubber in throughout the weekend, barring no rain, which will see the tyres life extended slightly. Pirelli have reported that the difference between the two compounds are around 1 to 1.2 seconds per lap.

The laptimes on the board suggest that Mercedes are still favourites but the chasing pack, in the form of Ferrari and Red Bull, seem a lot closer than two weeks ago.

March 28, 2014
F1 2014 – Malaysia GP Preview: F1 2014’s Acid Test

Roughly a year ago Red Bull’s biggest worry was the unrest between its two drivers. In a ruthless move Sebastian Vettel ignored the now infamous ‘multi-21’call to hold position and pinched victory from Mark Webber.

Twelve months later the second round of the championship again brings Red Bull and the paddock to Malaysia. The reigning champions arrive at the Sepang International circuit with no points on the board and lingering questions about reliability. Despite having nothing to show for the Australian GP definite progress had been made. The RB10 looked settled and quick with a good aerodynamic base. Their issues have been confined, mainly, the Renault power unit and Christian Horner believes that “massive progress” can be made if the French manufacturer gets on top of its problems.

The tropical climate of Kuala Lumpur requires a unique approach from drivers and teams. Unlike in Melbourne the Sepang International circuit, with a length of 5.542 km and a total of 56 laps, will test the mettle of the 2014 F1 cars. Several high speed corners will put aerodynamics under the microscope while a taxing 65% of the lap is spent on full throttle. The Malaysian GP is additionally notorious for its stiflingly hot and humid conditions which puts serious physical demands on the driver.

Pirelli has brought its medium and hard compound tyres to combat the relatively abrasive track surface. Tyre degradation hasn’t featured yet in 2014 but Malaysia presents, as the first permanent race track of the year, a substantial demand on tyre performance. When the weather pendulum has tended towards extreme heat track temperatures have reached as high as 52 degrees Celsius. Issues with overheating will be a key area of focus, especially during the long-runs.

The demands on the hybrid power unit are no less stressful. Twelve seconds is spent on full throttle during the 920 meter long back straight and with only four slow corners Sepang was built with one thing in mind – speed. Several teams were down on power and straight-line speed in the season opener and if those issues have not been solved for this weekend they’ll be nothing more than mobile chicanes.

Mercedes have the speed, reliability, performance and the drivers. The Silver Arrows team start the weekend as overwhelming favourites but under a veil of mystery. Lewis Hamilton was set fair with pole position and the fastest car on the grid in Australia. But one vital element was missing – reliability. Reliability is a word that fans will grow weary of in the initial part of the season but it is the most important commodity in the sport. With it, it ensures the capacity for consistency and crucial points. Without it, success is unattainable.

Ironically, a lot of noise has been made about the new sound of Formula 1. No longer does the V8 engine scream down the straights and rattle the fillings in your teeth and it’s a shame. It’s a shame because for countless years Formula 1 has been synonymous with bone jarring racket so loud it could cause permanent ear damage. It’s a shame but it isn’t as dreadful as some would suggest. Sound isn’t what makes this Formula 1. Mika Hakkinen’s inspired simultaneous pass on Michael Schumacher and Ricardo Zonta at the 2000 Belgium GP, Schumi’s unbelievable 4 pit-stop strategy at the 2004 French GP, Kimi Raikkonen’s sensational drive through the field of the 2005 Japanese GP – these and many more moments and races are what define the soul of this gut-wrenchingly passionate sport. They are revered because of the brilliance of men, in the cockpits and in the factories. While the distinctive sound of Formula 1 may have gone it is true still that the absurd talent and passion never will.

March 26, 2014
F1 2014: Australia GP Review – Rosberg Romps To Melbourne Victory

It was at the completion of the 2013 Abu Dhabi grand prix when Sebastian Vettel, on his way to a nine race winning streak, reminded his team to savour their victorious memories. How spot-on he was.

The free practice session made it quite clear that Mercedes’ favourites tag was no gaffe. For the 35^th time Lewis Hamilton ensured that he would start in the best position possible on Sunday while Red Bull driver Daniel Ricciardo split the Silver Arrows for his first front row start.

It was somewhat surprising that Hamilton didn’t appear more enthused by his pole position. Somewhere in the back of his mind the fear about reliability must still have been lingering. It wasn’t unfounded as the 2008 champion was forced to retire on lap three after dropping a cylinder.

It was apparent that Red Bull Racing had made tremendous strides in Australia as Daniel Ricciardo easily maintained second place throughout the race. However, disaster struck the Milton Keyes based team with the retirement of Sebastian Vettel. The four time champion struggled throughout the weekend with software issues which proved his ultimate demise in the race. After three laps the German reported a lack of power which spelled the end of his Australian Grand Prix.

Daniel Ricciardo became the first Australian driver to occupy a step on the podium of an Australian GP. However his joy was short lived as the Red Bull team were called into the stewards’ office as celebrations were no doubt in full swing. The outcome was exclusion from the final standings for Daniel Ricciardo as a result of the fuel flow rate on his car being too high during the race. The fuel flow rate for 2014 is set at 100 kgs per hour. What’s more, during the race, a technical representative from the FIA warned the team that the flow rate was too high. However, Red Bull elected not to change the flow rate. The team has stated their intention to appeal the disqualification. It seems unlikely that the decision will be overturned given that Red Bull chose to ignore the FIA’s helping hand during the race.

Bad news for Red Bull meant an even better day at the office for McLaren. Kevin Magnussen’s drive belied the fact that the Danish youngster was in his first grand prix. It serves as the perfect example of a 21^st century rookie – light years removed from being thrown in the deep-end of a cutthroat motor racing series and having to fend for yourself. ‘Young drivers’ who form part of a team’s driving program are groomed to the hilt with exposure to the team long before they become, officially, a part of it. Just like Kevin Magnussen. But mixing it in the deep-end still requires great composure and skill both of which K-Mag seems to have in abundance.

McLaren will leave Australian shores as the happiest team in the paddock. After suffering their worst season ever in 2013, the Woking based team has delivered immediate results. Not only does Magnussen become the first Dane on the podium but the ever-smooth Jenson Button’s third place secures McLaren the lead of the constructors’ championship after round one.

A total of fourteen cars crossed the finish line in Australia implying that reliability didn’t appear to be as catastrophic as initially predicted. However, several teams will have been working quite hard to mask or manage a range of issues.

Ferrari was such a team. It was a far from spectacular day at the office but both cars saw the chequered flag. It was confirmed that neither of the two Ferrari were able to run at ultimate power due to electrical problem believed to be related to the energy recovery system. Both drivers suffered with graining on their Pirelli tyres and spent most of the afternoon tucked up in traffic. A combination of these issues had a significant impact on their pace. Fernando Alonso finished in his qualifying position of fifth, which later became fourth, while Raikkonen finished seventh overall. However, both drivers appeared frustrated with their F14T Ferrari. A short clip has been making the rounds online in which the usually unemotional Kimi Raikkonen can be heard informing his engineer to tell the team that “it doesn’t work, so ask them to change it.”

As the red lights extinguished, Nico Rosberg grabbed the lead of the race and was never challenged on his way to victory. Rosberg cleared off from the head of pack at the blistering pace that Mercedes had promised throughout the winter testing season. Despite it only being the first round of the season Mercedes has proven to be the team to beat in terms of pace. Where reliability is concerned the Brackley based team are still facing the same questions as most other throughout the field.

It was a memorable day for Russian rookie Daniil Kvyat too. Many doubted his readiness for Formula 1 and questioned whether he deserved a place in the sport. It wasn’t very long ago that the Russian driver obtained his superlicence either and with it he has already broken a record. By finishing ninth overall Kvyat becomes the youngest points scorer in Formula 1 history. He snatches the record from SebastianVettel by a mere 27 days.

In reality, the first race of the 2014 season was far more intriguing than exciting. It is hardly surprising that neither Lotus made the end of the race nor that teams are still striving to understand exactly how their cars work. It will take some time to get on top of this new era of fully hybrid Formula 1. But already the status quo seems to have been thrown out the window.

March 17, 2014
Hamilton snatches Australian pole from Ricciardo in wet Qualifying

Lewis Hamilton claimed the pole position, snatching it from home favourite Daniel Ricciardo, in the final moments of the season opening Australian qualifying session.

The F1 weather gods thought it would be a good idea to spice things up a little – as if they weren’t already complicated enough with all the 2014 regulation changes. The session started in dry conditions but the heavens opened before the end of the first 18 minute phase of qualifying. The weather deteriorated to the point that full wet tyres were required in the final shootout.

With very little wet running during the winter testing, it was a whole new challenge for the drivers. Despite it being his first time driving on the limit in the wet, Lewis Hamilton brought home the pole, snatching it by a solid 0.3s! Ricciardo so nearly had it in the bag, but the Australian will be more than happy with starting on his first ever front row on his first outing for the Red Bull team. Nico Rosberg rounded off the top 3.

Ricciardo’s team mate, four time world champion Sebastian Vettel, did not make it through to the final part of qualifying – despite a valiant effort after his final lap was affected by Kimi Raikkonen crashing his Ferrari into the wall. A little too much throttle and the Finn’s Ferrari headed off the track, bringing out yellow flags in the first sector to compromise Vettel’s lap. Raikkonen will start from 11th, and Vettel from 12th.

McLaren rookie Kevin Magnussen put in a very impressive performance and will be starting from 4th place. His team mate Jenson Button was another surprise casualty of the Q2 session and will only start in 10th place (promoted from 11th due to a grid penalty for Valterri Bottas).

Fernando Alonso will start in 5th position, only just making it ahead of Jean-Eric Vergne. Toro Rosso team mate, rookie Daniel Kvyat, also made it through to Q1 and will be starting in 8th place.

Here’s a look at your full time sheet for the session. Join us tomorrow morning on Twitter (@F1_Madness) for live coverage of the Australian Grand Prix! If the final stages of today’s qualifying session are anything to go by, we’re in for a VERY exciting race!

March 15, 2014
F1 2014: Australia Free Practice 2: Merc Sets The Pace

The Mercedes duo of Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg topped the timing sheets for the second free practice session in Australia.

A significant amount of laps were completed by most teams as they set out discovering and fine-tuning their race set-ups for Sunday. The early part of the session was dedicated to a few laps on the yellow side-walled softer tyres. Lewis Hamilton set the fastest time of the session on his soft tyre run, roughly one and a half tenths clear of his teammate Nico Rosberg.

Red Bull enjoyed a much easier start to the session as the team was able to complete its programme without any issues. Sebastian Vettel and Daniel Ricciardo set the fourth and sixth fastest times respectively. Fernando Alonso slotted into third place overall with a time half a second slower than Hamilton.

The struggle continued for Lotus who was able to get only Romain Grosjean out of the garage. The Frenchman completed twelve laps before hitting the wall and breaking the left-rear suspension of his car towards the end of the session. However, on-board shots revealed that the Lotus was not running at full revs – surely a sign that the team is not yet comfortable in pushing its car. Pastor Maldonado did not make it onto circuit at all. Likewise, Caterham failed to get either car out on track.

If it is to be taken at face value the long run pace painted quite an ominous picture. The Mercedes pairing were by far the quickest with Hamilton setting lap times in the mid 33 second range during his long run. Several other teams, including Ferrari, McLaren and Red Bull were clocking times in the mid 34 second range. The two Ferrari drivers were reportedly on different programmes during the long run as Kimi Raikkonen lapped in the mid 36 range. Unfortunately, there is no way of telling the various fuel loads run by the teams during their long run stints. However, tyre degradation appeared to be less of a factor than it was in 2013. At least at this stage.

Final Standings from Free Practice 2:

March 14, 2014
F1 2014: Australia Free Practice 1: Alonso Quickest for Ferrari

The 2014 Formula 1 season officially got underway with the first free practice session from Australia.

It was quite a sizeable crowd that gathered to finally see the 2014 challengers and, more importantly, hear what they sound like. Some may not be a fan of the new V6 Turbo engine but it wasn’t unpleasant at all. Fernando Alonso was the first driver on circuit and the distinctive whistle of the Turbo, as he lifted off for the corners, was quite pleasing.

The season sputtered into life with several laps from McLaren’s Jenson Button and Mercedes’ Nico Rosberg. However, Lewis Hamilton’s session was completely scrapped as his Mercedes stopped out on circuit during his out-lap. The team later confirmed that a sensor problem caused the stoppage and that it was in no way engine/power unit related.

Local favourite Daniel Ricciardo set the first flying lap of the session in the Red Bull while teammate Sebastian Vettel’s steed was stationary in the garage for quite some time. Felipe Massa and Valtteri Bottas looked comfortable in the Williams who did not experience any issues during the session.

Ferrari’s returned world champion Kimi Raikkonen was struck by an ERS problem which kept him the box for some time. Nevertheless, it was the Finn’s former team who seemed to struggle the most. Lotus managed only one installation lap with new signing Pastor Maldonado while Romain Grosjean was confined to the garage for the entire session. Despite getting Maldonado out on track the Venezuelan returned to the pitlane with smoke billowing out of the cockpit and requiring the assistance of the marshals to get back to his box.

A few lock-ups for several drivers ensured some nervy moments but none sustained any significant damage in their off track excursions. Sebastian Vettel’s eventual venture out onto the circuit resulted in the seventh quickest time overall but ended with the champion stranded at the end of the pitlane.

Noticeably, radio messages between pitwall and driver were significantly clearer thanks to the much quieter power units. The first free practice session proved somewhat different than the catastrophe that was expected. Granted, some teams struggled throughout the session, especially Lotus, but the signs were quite encouraging.

Fernando Alonso ended the session quickest overall and as the only driver to dip below the 1 minute 32 mark. The Ferrari driver set a fastest time of 1:31:840 with a total of twenty laps.

Final Standings from Free Practice 1:

March 14, 2014