F1 Madness

Tag: mercedes

  • Rosberg Fastest Again in Bahrain Second Practice

    Rosberg Fastest Again in Bahrain Second Practice

    Mercedes’ Nico Rosberg went faster than his team-mate Lewis Hamilton to take the fastest time of Free Practice 2 for the Bahrain Grand Prix.

    Rosberg set a time of 1:31.001 on the super soft tyre edging out his team mate Hamilton by 0.241s. Hamilton managed a best time of 1:31.242. Rosberg’s time is about 1.6s faster than last years pole position time.

    In a rather surprising turn of pace McLaren’s Jenson Button finished 3rd fastest with a 1:32.281 and 1.281s off the pace. After setting his fastest time, Button quipped, “I found the go faster button. I found it!” over the radio. His time on the super soft tyres put him ahead of Toro Rosso’s Max Verstappen who finished 4th fastest.

    The Ferrari pair of Kimi Raikkonen and Sebastian Vettel finished the session 5th and 6th respectively. Both drivers’ were unable to capitalise on their flying laps due to traffic in the middle sector. Towards the end of the session Vettel came to a stop on the track. It was initially thought that he had a gearbox problem. While waiting for his car to be lifted on to the flat bed truck the rear left wheel could be seen hanging off. Vettel was seen tightening the wheel nut. He later radioed his team informing them that the wheel nut had come loose.

    Red Bull’s Daniil Kvyat was 7th fastest with Williams’ Valtteri Bottas in 8th. Kvyat’s team-mate Daniel Ricciardo ended his session 9th fastest with Felipe Massa in the other Williams rounding out the top 10 nearly 2 seconds off the pace.

    On his Formula 1 debut, Stoffel Vandoorne ended his second practice session 11th fastest in the McLaren. Haas F1’s Esteban Gutierrez was 12th fastest. His team mate Romain Grosjean suffered a front wing failure at Turn 13 after running over the bumpy apex of the corner. Haas say that because of the vibration of the car the wing was caught on one of the bumps which caused the failure. “It wasn’t a failure – he went over the kerbs and something broke, it touched the kerb with the vibration,” said Haas F1 Team Boss Gunther Steiner.

    Carlos Sainz finished down in 13th with Grosjean 14th fastest. Sergio Perez finished 15th fastest in the Force India ahead of Renault’s Kevin Magnussen. Nico Hulkenberg in the second Force India ended his session in 17th.

    Finishing in 18th was Jolyon Palmer ahead of 19th placed man Pascal Wehrlein in the Manor. The two Saubers of Marcus Ericsson and Felipe Nasr finished 20th and 21st respectively with Rio Haryanto closing out the grid in 22nd.

    Pos. Driver Team Best Time Gap Laps
    1 Nico Rosberg Mercedes 1:31.001 – 38
    2 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 1:31.242 0.241 32
    3 Jenson Button McLaren 1:32.281 1.280 32
    4 Max Verstappen Toro Rosso 1:32.406 1.405 31
    5 Kimi Raikkonen Ferrari 1:32.452 1.451 38
    6 Sebastian Vettel Ferrari 1:32.650 1.649 26
    7 Daniil Kvyat Red Bull 1:32.703 1.702 34
    8 Valtteri Bottas Williams 1:32.792 1.791 39
    9 Daniel Ricciardo Red Bull 1:32.870 1.869 23
    10 Felipe Massa Williams 1:32.873 1.872 36
    11 Stoffel Vandoorne McLaren 1:32.999 1.998 30
    12 Esteban Gutierrez Haas 1:33.129 2.128 31
    13 Carlos Sainz Toro Rosso 1:33.177 2.176 36
    14 Romain Grosjean Haas 1:33.384 2.383 23
    15 Sergio Perez Force India 1:33.406 2.405 35
    16 Kevin Magnussen Renault 1:33.447 2.446 34
    17 Nico Hulkenberg Force India 1:33.570 2.569 37
    18 Jolyon Palmer Renault 1:33.640 2.639 35
    19 Pascal Wehrlein Manor 1:33.953 2.952 21
    20 Marcus Ericsson Sauber 1:34.224 3.223 31
    21 Felipe Nasr Sauber 1:34.477 3.476 34
    22 Rio Haryanto Manor 1:34.562 3.561 33

     

    Photo by courtesy Pirelli

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

    F1 2016: Bahrain Free Practice 1 Report – Rosberg On Top

    Mercedes driver Nico Rosberg topped the timing sheets in the first free practice session of the Bahrain grand prix.

    The first ninety minutes of practice for the 2016 Bahrain grand prix took place under natural light as opposed to the rest of the weekend which will be run on the floodlights which line the circuit.

    The first of the three free practice session ran without any major incident save for a few drivers locking up their front tyres as they attempt to find the limit of adhesion. With the news that Fernando Alonso is not medically fit to race this weekend came the debut of Belgian driver Stoffel Vandoorne. The highly rated rookie driver finished the first session in 18th place overall.

    Sergio Perez also stood aside for fellow countryman Alfonso Celis who piloted the Force India for the practice session. The 19 year old Mexican driver was twenty-first on the timing sheets. Nico Rosberg completed twenty-four laps and set the a quickest time overall of 1:32:294 on the yellow-walled soft tyre. Teammate Lewis Hamilton was second quickest with a 1:32:799.

    Ferrari split tyre strategy at the end of the session as Kimi Raikkonen set the third fastest time, a 1:34:128, on the soft tyre while Sebastian Vettel persisted with the medium compound tyre. The German ended the session in eleventh place with a quickest time of 1:35:037.

    Red Bull Racing driver Daniel Ricciardo completed twenty-seven laps and set a quickest time of 1:34:461 which was the fourth fastest time overall. Team principal Christian Horner noted that the team might struggle in qualifying trim this weekend but that they have high hopes for Sunday’s race.

     

  • 2016 Formula 1 Bahrain Grand Prix: Thursday Press Conference

    2016 Formula 1 Bahrain Grand Prix: Thursday Press Conference

    DRIVERS:

    Pascal Wehrlein (Manor)

    Max VERSTAPPEN (Toro Rosso)

    Romain GROSJEAN (Haas)

    Felipe MASSA (Williams)

    Nico ROSBERG (Mercedes)

    Fernando ALONSO (McLaren)

     

    PRESS CONFERENCE

    Fernando, we have to start with you: three times a winner here in Bahrain, but clearly we have to deal with the accident in Melbourne and the aftermath. You aren’t racing here this weekend. Tell us the process that led to that decision and how disappointed you feel?

    Fernando ALONSO: Well, yeah, a little bit disappointed obviously. We want to race. We are competitors, drivers and we like competition, and we love the sport. So when you come here and you cannot even try it’s always sad, but it’s understandable and I respect the decision. I try until the last moment to be able to race, at least to try in the practice. There has been some painful days, with some pain at home, but I was ready to go through this pain somehow in the car and make sure I could race, because at the end of the day the pain is manageable if you don’t think too much probably and [with] the adrenaline of driving, but there are some other risks that the doctors they think. So it’s a risk management that I understand, to minimise everything is the logical thing to do, so a little bit sad for that but it’s the only way to go.

    So, looking forward, how optimistic that it will be fixed and that you will be able to race at the next round in China?
    FA: Well, you know, it’s not 100 per cent. There will be another test that I need to do in the next eight or ten days and after that test the FIA will evaluate again, as they did now. First of all is the safety and then the performance, so hopefully everything is OK but it’s something we need to see with the next test.

    Thank you for that. Romain, coming to you, you’ve had some great days in Formula One, some emotional podiums and so on, including two right here in Bahrain, but where does that sixth place on Haas’ debut rank for you?
    Romain GROSJEAN: Well, it was a special race for us. We got a bit lucky with the red flag but we were unlucky on Saturday with the new qualifying format. It was a great debut, better than what we were expecting. It’s been one of those races that I will probably always remember, when I’m getting older and I tell the kids of my kids my stories. But I think it was good for everyone. It was good for Formula One. It was good for the team. I think a brand new team coming and showing that it’s possible to score points at the first venue, it was a very good thing. And for all my guys and everyone that has been working so hard in the last two months, it was just a good morale boost and a confirmation that the car we are driving is probably one of the best I’ve ever driven.

    Really? Because you did seem to have the pace to comfortably stay ahead of the Force, particularly after the restart. Is that about the level you think the team is at or will it fluctuate depending on circuit?
    RG: I think there is a lot we need to learn, there are a lot of things we could do better. We didn’t have any practice in Australia because of the rain and then the crash in the pit lane in FP3, so you know we put the car on track with barely any set-up work and guess where we should be, so I’m sure that whenever we get more running, more time in the car, there is more potential to be coming. I’m not saying we’re going to be in the top five here this weekend, I’m just saying that it’s the beginning for the team. But generally I think we will have up and downs, but the potential is big.

    Thank you. Pascal, welcome. You made your long-awaited Formula One debut in Australia, running as high as 13th for a while. Do you feel this car can get among the points this season?
    Pascal WEHRLEIN: I think so. I think it’s really depending on the track. Australia was great, especially in the race, my first lap was amazing and also the next few laps at the beginning were great. I could follow the other cars easily, so that was good, definitely, yeah.

    It’s interesting looking at the tyre selections for each race weekend from Pirelli, once again you’ve gone for a large quantity of medium tyres. What’s the strategy behind that?
    PW: I think the first things is that we want to drive a lot in free practice because we still have to learn a lot about the car and you know that’s easier with the medium tyres.

    OK, thank you. Felipe, coming to you, fifth place in the opening round in Melbourne, behind Mercedes, Ferrari and Red Bull. Is that about where Williams are at at this stage? Do you think you might get ahead of Red Bull this weekend, on this track?
    Felipe MASSA: Well, I think it was a good start for us. It was more or less where we expected to be. It’s also true that Red Bull was quite strong in the race and even the Toro Rosso; they were pretty strong. It was quite a big fight with them, including qualifying. I really hope here we can be in front. I hope we can be more competitive on this track, because we know that we are going to have a big fight with these two teams and maybe some other teams as well. I think we saw that Mercedes and Ferrari they were pretty strong, as expected. I hope this track can be better for us.

    Like Fernando, you have a good record here, you are a two-time winner on this racetrack. Tell us what you like about it, tell us about the challenge of this place?
    FM: Well, it’s a very nice track. I like to drive here. You have some nice corners but also some very tricky corners that you need a good car in terms of braking, in terms of traction as well. But it’s a nice track. I had some good races. Always when you have good races on a type of track, you enjoy, so this is what I’m looking forward to have another one on Sunday.

    Coming to the championship leader, Nico Rosberg: celebrating the 10th anniversary of your Formula One debut right here in 2006. Melbourne made it four wins in a row, how big a psychological boots was it to get off to such a good start?
    Nico ROSBERG: Yeah, of course it was a great start but it’s one race out of 21, so it’s really early days. But I’m really pleased with the car that we have. The team has done an incredible job to give us such a car again this year. It will be a great couple of races coming up for sure, but of course we are also looking closely at the battle with Ferrari.

    Well, one possible weakness appeared to be the race starts. Once again a problem for both Mercedes cars, the Ferraris got ahead. What steps have you and the team taken to address that?
    NR: Yeah, for sure we’ve worked on it, but it’s a challenge this year, because it’s one clutch lever that we’re only allowed to use due to the rule changes. So it has made it more difficult but it’s definitely an area we are focusing a lot.

    Max, coming to you finally. Positives from Melbourne: you were the first teenager for 55 years to qualify in the top five and also you personally went past the 50 championship points mark. But the negative, obviously, was the dispute over the Toro Rosso pit stop strategy. What lessons did you and the team take from that?
    Max VERSTAPPEN: First of all, I think we had a great qualifying, so we could be very happy with that. But of course the race didn’t pan [out] like we wanted to. But, yeah, we analysed a lot of things and hopefully we can try to come back stronger here even though I think this track hasn’t suited us so far in the history but we try to make the most of it that’s for sure.

    Both the Toro Rossos were right up the front in qualifying in Melbourne. Has the pace of this year’s car exceeded your expectations after testing?
    MV: Well, I wanted to be there, so yeah, we just kept working hard, we saw the improvements during the winter time of course but you still want to see how it goes on track and in winter testing you don’t know exactly where you are. But I think in the end to be P5 in qualifying was definitely a great achievement by the whole team, especially with such a short winter for us.

    QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

    Q: (David Croft – Sky Sports) Fernando, what are the extent of your injuries that have prevented you from driving this weekend and what are the risks that you mentioned that the doctors brought up about keeping out this weekend?
    FA: Well, just to summarise a little bit. Last week I was OK Sunday – some knee pain but not big things. I had the green light from the doctors to leave the track and everything was OK. On Monday, I had a little bit of overall pain but nothing too serious. I flew back. I arrived in Spain and the pain was similar or a little bit more, so we decided to do a proper check – a CT scan. I had a small pneumothorax on the lung. So we took the advice from the doctors to relax at home and make everything come to normal and we repeat the scan last Monday. The pneumothorax is gone more or less but I have some rib fractures, so because of that there are the risks of driving, because Formula One is a very unique sport, a unique position on the car, and the G-Forces that a fracture could move into the lung as well, so yeah, it’s not like a broken leg or broken arm, that you can deal with the pain, this is in the chest where some organs are there and we cannot do much more.

    Q: (Alex Popov – NTV/Match TV) For all the drivers, about the start in Australia. How much it was different to last year considering it’s just one clutch lever and slightly less preparation for a bite point on the starting grid. And for Pascal, if you can compare the start to DTM.

    PW: DTM is completely different. We have the clutch pedal with the left foot, so it’s different, that one. Starting an F1 race, I only know this system. My start in Melbourne was really, really good and I made up seven positions – so I cannot complain about it!

    MV: I think quite similar. I had a good start so I was very happy about it but in general it just asks a bit more practice – but you can deal with it.

    RG: I think I prefer the old-style one. Why? Because it was more about the precision of the reaction time and at the end it didn’t change much of the procedure. I think some teams have done it better than others. We’re a brand new team and still have some work to be done. We didn’t have a great start but at the end it won’t change much.

    FM: I think it’s a little bit more difficult to do but I would say that after one or two, three races it will be similar to before.

    Nico, you spoke about the single clutch in your previous answer. Anything more to add?
    NR: It’s a good challenge. It makes it more difficult, there will be a bit more variability in the starts.

    Fernando?
    FA: The same comments. More challenging, so it’s good. There will be some random performance so it’s good for the show.

    Q: (Abhishek Takle – Mid-Day) Question to Fernando. Fernando, I just want to get your thoughts… every time you step into a Formula One car you take a risk. At what point does the risk outweigh the reward? In terms of the risk you’re taking and the performance you’re getting back for it. If I could have your thoughts on that. Thank you.
    FA: I think we don’t think about the risk at any point. Even you see it now, I have broken ribs and I’m here with some pain, not easy to sleep sometimes, depending which movements. I would like to sit in the car and see how is the pain in the car and how to enjoy driving the car. So, you understand that this is motorsport and anything can happen. Everytime you jump in the car. But yeah, you love it so much it’s completely transparent, the risk, when you jump in the car.

    Q: (Marco Canseco – Marca) For Fernando. You have started last season and this season with two accidents. Are you worried by that?
    FA: No, not really. I’ve been very lucky all my career. This is my sixteenth Formula One year and it’s normal that you have accidents here and there. It happened unfortunately in the last two years, two accidents that I miss one race. The last one in Australia that probably you all saw. It was quite a big impact, so I knew that it was risky, my possibility to race in Bahrain because it was only ten days from the big shunt. I tried my best, as I said, the team did a fantastic job preparing the car for this race, so I wanted to try until the last moment. I flew last night, I arrived this morning, I wanted to at least try to practice but I understand also the position. But now, yeah, I want to stay here for the weekend, help Stoffel because it’s a good opportunity for him and help the team – because I love what I do. I love Formula One and racing and I will miss this race but I want to learn from the outside also, how the team prepare the race and how are the actions around the new qualifying system, the race itself, the strategy, the pitstop moments. I want to get involved in everything from the outside because it could help me on the inside at the next race. It’s a step forward that we need to do together and yeah, hopefully help the team because I’m very thankful for the job they did last week.

    Q: (Ralf Bach – Auto Bild) A question to Fernando, and then a question for Pascal. Fernando, your broken ribs, have they something to do with the g-forces of the accident or maybe with the broken seat?
    FA: Just the g-forces of the accident. The impact.

    And Pascal, you see how quick it can be that a second reserve driver has to make the race. Would you be prepared in the Silver Arrow case to drive in this car at once from the mental side?
    PW: In general. Of course, I’m a member of the team since 2014 and I’ve done many days in the simulator and also a few tests and I was travelling to all the races last year so of course, I’m prepared.

    Q: (Dieter Rencken – Racing Lines) After the Australian Grand Prix the GPDA published a fairly hard-hitting open letter. To all of you, are you members of the GPDA, do you agree with the contents and, if so, what would you like to see changed?

    Fernando?
    FA: I think the letter says everything. We love the sport. We love it so much that maybe we think the last couple of years we’ve been a little bit moving left and right with not a clear direction and we want to help in any of the things the fans want, the drivers want, the sponsors want, that are quite clear in some of the things we’ve been searching in the last couple of years. Yeah, it’s just a letter of… a supporting letter from all of the drivers that we do care about our sport and we would like to get involved in some of the decisions or in some of the things that we could help somehow. It’s a start. It’s the way the sport is moving in the last couple of years, maybe we don’t see it completely right.

    Nico?
    NR: Yes, we’re all united on this opinion because we love the sport and can see the fans are criticising some aspects that we could do better. We could be even more exciting as a sport and we want to question whether or not the F1 governance cannot review the process in which decisions are made in all these things to try to get it to a point where we can get some better decisions done and become a more exciting sport. There’s recent examples, with this qualifying where the fans are just at home and they’re not happy with it. We’re racing for the fans. Mostly for the fans. That’s the examples that are now the recent cases. Even the rules for next year. We’re putting on more downforce although actually we should be trying to help overtaking. More downforce is known for making overtaking and following other cars more difficult. It’s not necessarily the right way. With all of these things we are saying that we would like to be more involved, have more of a say, us drivers – so let’s see where this takes us.

    Felipe?
    FM: The same. I totally agree with both of them. All the drivers are united on this letter that you guys saw. We just want to be part of… changing. To improve the sport.

    Romain?
    RG: I think Fernando resumed it pretty well: he has broken ribs and he wanted to race because we love the sport. We are fans of Formula One. We want it to be the best that it can be with the best drivers, the best car, the best shows. As Nico says, right now the decisions haven’t been so good in terms of fans replies, or media or the sponsors. We just want to help the sport that we love more than anything.

    Max – did you play a part in this?
    MV: I have nothing to add. I think it’s all explained very clear. I’m not a member.

    Pascal?
    PW: I just joined Formula One. I always dreamed of Formula One, then when you join it you want it to be on the best peak it could be. Definitely everyone is not 100 per cent happy today and we just have to improve that.

    Q: (Michael Schmidt – Auto, Motor und Sport) Fernando, it was obvious that after such an accident you wanted to leave the car as soon as possible.  Two questions on that: first of all, in such a moment, do you have the time and the nerves to watch whether the car could be under electrical power, because we saw this totally destroyed car, cables hanging out, hydraulic lines hanging out? Maybe there was still high voltage in the car? And the second thing is, do you think that with the halo fitted, you would have still been able to escape as quickly as you did in Melbourne?
    FA: First question: I didn’t see anything. You just want to get out of the car and at that point you just want to put your feet on the ground and walk away. This is the only thing you are thinking at that moment. The halo system? I don’t know if I could have got out of the car as quickly as I did. I guess so, because I’m sure the system is designed to look at all the scenarios but probably my only concern when I was rolling over was just to avoid hitting the head, because obviously I was very tight from the belts and I was flying but I didn’t feel any risk at all in the middle of the accident, apart from to my head, that I wanted not to crash with anyone, so the halo was probably very welcome in my accident as well. I would avoid that concern, when I’m flying.

    Q: (Daniel Johnson – The Telegraph) Fernando and Nico, just going back to the GPDA letter, you talked about the processes and the governance structure, what about the people at the top, because there’s a structure we work within but there’s also the people trying to bring in new rules? So can I just ask you specifically, do you both have your full confidence in Bernie, Jean to move the sport in the direction that you think it should go in?
    NR: It would be inappropriate now to mention any names or criticise any individuals or even compliment individuals, it’s just that we know that it’s not perfect the way it is, it could be better and so it needs to be reviewed and that’s what we’re trying to encourage.
    FA: Yeah, as Nico said, it’s not a problem of any names. Actually I think Bernie has been looking to protect the sport all the time and to improve the sport and to improve the show. I think Bernie, Jean, everyone is doing their best but the system is somehow a little bit old in terms of decisions. As Nico pointed out before, the new qualifying system, also the new rules, these radio restrictions now that seem very attractive for you guys and from the outside, it’s a little bit contradictory when we have a very complex car, very complex technology with hybrid engines, with everything to manage and now we cannot have any information about the cars. You cannot give us a spaceship and then not tell us anything when we are there. These kind of things are making drivers a little bit confused and a little bit… we need to help in the future for Formula One.

    Q: (Jon McEvoy – Daily Mail) Fernando first, have you re-run the accident in your mind? Do you get nightmares about it?
    FA: No, I don’t have any nightmares, I just have pain sometimes. As you all know, a broken rib is painful when you make some movements but apart from that, zero nightmares and really looking forward to jumping in the car and sad to miss this opportunity. The team told me ‘you will fly back home’ and I said no way. I want to hear the cars, I want to help Stoffel, I want to see the new updates in the car, how they work so this completely fine on that.

    Q: (Jon McEvoy – Daily Mail) And to the three drivers in the front row, not linked to that, do you feel that all the drivers should be members of the GPDA and that there would be a greater solidarity if everyone was a member?
    FA: Yes, it would be nice to have all the drivers inside the GPDA but I have to say also that in all the important decisions that we make in the last couple of years we are all united, it’s not that being part of the GPDA doesn’t make the group united in the important things. Yeah, it would be nice but we will see.
    NR: Yeah, this letter was signed by the GPDA but it is all the drivers, the whole grid, and that’s what counts.
    FM: Yes, I’m not a member but I totally agree with the letter and the help that the drivers can give to Formula One.

    Q: (Dieter Rencken – Racing Lines) Back to the GPDA situation, I’m sorry gentlemen, but on the Friday before Melbourne, Charlie Whiting suggested that the drivers weren’t using every single platform and forum available to them to voice their opinions and he gave examples, for example a visit to Pirelli to which not all the drivers went, to a meeting at testing in Barcelona, not all the drivers went. He also said that on the Friday in drivers’ briefing you have plenty of opportunities to voice your opinions. So what other platforms do you actually need, why aren’t these enough?
    RG: I was in the Barcelona meeting, I couldn’t make it to Pirelli for sponsors’ event. I think that’s unfortunately our lives and it’s going to be very hard to get all the drivers to come to meetings outside the paddock. I think we have been trying to raise our voices through different methods and I think Alex and the directors of the GPDA have been trying different ways before the letter was sent. I think again, all the drivers have been united on that subject and everyone is willing to help things to get better. We’re not saying we’ve got a magic fix, we’re not saying we’ve got the solution but we’re just trying to help the best we can.

    Q: (Ben Hunt – The Sun) Fernando, which side are your broken ribs? On your left side. And I just wondered if there were any concerns whether you would recover from this? There are no worries that you won’t recover from these ribs?
    FA: No, I will recover. I am already recovering from the pneumothorax and the problem is that the rib is just too fresh, it’s still not completely ‘glued’, let’s say. This thing could be a potential problem, very very low risk, also I didn’t have any respiratory issues at any time, so the risks are very very small but I understand that we all want zero risk. It’s just a question of time that the rib goes a little bit together and with that we will be OK. The next ten days should be OK for this but we cannot guarantee;  maybe ten, maybe five, maybe twelve. It’s just a normal rib.

    Q: (Ralf Bach – Auto Bild motorsport) Me Again …Question to all the drivers: normally if you write a letter you want to see a reaction but what will you do when there’s no reaction at all?
    NR: Well, let’s see. It’s a process. It’s a process where we want to try and integrate ourselves a bit more into the whole thing. Let’s see, step by step.
    FA: Yeah, it’s a process and I think it’s very early days and I’m sure that in the next couple of steps or in the next decisions, I’m sure that we will have a part.
    FM: As they say, it’s a process. I was in every meeting that happened before, even with the FIA, with Pirelli, I was everywhere and I think we need to try and give our opinion and this is part of trying to be closer to the decisions in the future. It’s a process. I hope it will work and I believe it will.

    Q: (Christopher Joseph – Chicane) Nico, you mentioned in some of your previous answers the fact that you feel that the decision-making process is flawed. Do you think then that this letter is the first step perhaps in integrating the drivers’ opinions and perhaps giving the drivers more say in the governance of Formula One?
    NR: First of all, I didn’t use those words. I think I just said ‘for sure it can be done better.’ We’re driving those cars, we know, we have a really good opinion on what would be best to make the racing more exciting. It makes sense for us to be more integrated into the whole process.

  • F1 2016: Bahrain GP Preview – Bahrain Battle Between Merc & Ferrari

    F1 2016: Bahrain GP Preview – Bahrain Battle Between Merc & Ferrari

    Formula 1 has long been known as a sport that is both complicated and the technical supreme of motorized sport. This and the allure of speed and victory and glamour is what draw millions of fans to it. But recently the sport, which celebrates more than six decades of existence, has been anything but glorious.

    Of late all of what makes Formula 1 great has been overwhelmed and buried under the awkward mess of the new qualifying format. The elimination style qualifying format was universally slammed by all who tuned into the farcical hour that would determine the starting grid.

    The qualifying change was an idea cooked up by Jean Todt’s FIA, F1’s governing body. It put the choice of the ill-conceived elimination-style quali or a reversed starting grid before the teams.  Rather than choose the preposterous idea of a reversed grid they opted for the lesser of two evils and so elimination-style quali came to pass. Subsequent to scorching criticism a reversion to the previous quali session was called for. However, F1’s strategy group has decided to give the new format another chance in Bahrain. It’s difficult to imagine that the new format will suddenly transform unenthusiastic opinion it’s currently viewed with.

    The qualifying debacle has, unfortunately, dominated headlines for the last two weeks. It’s nearly made us forget that as the opening round of the 2016 season the Oz Gp was a compelling race. The choice of three tyre compounds in the race worked well and produced several different strategies up and down the field which is an exciting precursor for the rest of the season. And although Mercedes were eventual victors with a 1-2 finish they were pushed to the limit of what they could produce.

    Rosberg_Bahrain2014As Formula 1 tracks go the Albert Park circuit is unique. Its street-style layout is not a definitive barometer for car performance and it’s difficult to overtake on. As the second round of the season Bahrain’s Sakhir International circuit presents a bigger test on performance and more chances for overtaking. “The last corner flows quite well and if you can get close for DRS you can get a good run [to overtake] into Turn 1,” said Red Bull driver Daniel Ricciardo. “If you don’t get it into Turn 1, then there’s Turn 4 or the middle sectors where it’s easy to make mistakes. There’s probably four places you can pass on the track which is pretty good.”

    As you might expect tyre strategy will play its role in determining what the final result on Sunday will be. The medium, soft, and supersoft Pirelli tyres are the choices available to drivers. Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen has opted for three sets of medium tyres each while Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg has taken only one set of the medium compound. It indicates that Ferrari hasn’t ruled out an alternative strategy of a long stint on the medium tyre should conditions be suitable. In 2013 Kimi Raikkonen pulled off a two stop strategy to finish second for Lotus.

    Kimi Raikkonen, Ferrari, Bahrain Grand PrixThe Finn has a record of seven podiums at the Desert track and despite being inches away from winning the grand prix in 2015 has never stood on the top step of the podium here. As the Sakhir International circuit is clearly a venue where Raikkonen excels the 2007 champion may not be a bad bet for the spoils this weekend.

    The Bahrain grand prix exploded into life on account of its transformation into a night race.  In 2014 it produced an exhilarating wheel-to-wheel battle between Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg. In this race it was Hamilton who emerged a memorable victor. In 2016, it could produce a battle between Mercedes and Ferrari that you do not want to miss.

  • F1 2016: Australian GP Review – Rosberg Wins Frenetic Season-opener

    F1 2016: Australian GP Review – Rosberg Wins Frenetic Season-opener

    After Saturday’s new qualifying format was unilaterally panned as farcical and anti-climatic F1 needed to bounce back quickly. It did so with an action packed Australian grand prix.

    Naturally, before the start of any race several scenarios run through your mind, all them which include some situation that will spice up the race from the get go. The catalyst was an extra formation lap after Dannil Kvyat’s Red Bull was stranded at the back of the grid.

    The exhilaration is delivered by the two Ferrari’s of Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen who blast past Nico Rosberg and Pole sitter Lewis Hamilton and first and second place. Behind the two Ferraris Rosberg fights to maintain his position and squeezes Hamilton to the edge of the circuit which causes the Brit to fall down to seventh place.

    Immediately Vettel is able to open a two second gap over teammate Raikkonen who in turn keeps the Mercedes of Rosberg at bay. It’s a dream start for the Italian team who is more than able to match the race pace of Mercedes.

    aus3On lap sixteen the race changes. The race is red flagged for a crash between Haas F1 driver Esteban Gutierrez and Fernando Alonso’s McLaren. The Spaniard’s McLaren clipped the left-rear of the Haas, flipped through the air and came to rest, on its side, against a barrier. The damage to Alonso’s car looked horrific but he exited the car and walked away without injury. There is no question that had this accident happened in any other era of the sport it would’ve had a far different outcome. Once more, this proves that the advancement of safety in F1 should never be taken for granted nor rejected because it may not be visually appealing.

    This red flag is where the race changed for Ferrari. As the cars stood in the pitlane teams were able to make changes including which tyre compound to restart the race on. Ferrari opted for the red-walled supersoft tyre while Mercedes fitted the medium compound. It was evident that the Silver Arrow’s aim was to get to the end of the race without another stop.

    austyresFor Raikkonen it didn’t make much difference as he was forced into retirement a few laps after the re-start. With fire and smoke pouring out the Ferrari it looked ominously like the engine had let go however the team later confirmed that it was a turbo failure.

    Ferrari still had Vettel in the lead of the race but the tyre choice meant that the former champion had to pit again. It was a strategic error by Ferrari and it cost them a definite shot at winning the race. The possible reasoning for why Ferrari didn’t go with the medium tyre could be because of a lack of confidence that they could get the tyre up to working temperature in the cooler conditions. Vettel nearly recovered to second place but a slight error at the end sealed his fate in third behind Hamilton and Rosberg, respectively.

    Sebastian Vettel said after the race that he feels that Ferrari can challenge for the title this year and given that he’s not the type to say things just for the sake of talking, it’s a great omen for the rest of the season.

    aus2Nico Rosberg may have taken the big prize but the Haas F1 Team owns the performance of the day. A sixth place finish for Romain Grosjean on the team’s debut is what Formula 1 dreams are made of. Coming into Formula 1 has always been a monumental task and this team is doing it with a staff of only about 170 people. It’s as great debut as we’ve seen in at least three decades.

    If you were to look only at the result of this race another Mercedes 1-2 would make you think it’s pretty much the same story, different season. But they really had to work for it. An overheating right-front brake caliper and critical tyre wear on Rosberg’s car is indicative of just how hard they had to push.  Twenty races remain in this F1 season and we may just have ourselves a real championship.

    (All images courtesy of Pirelli Motorsport)

  • Hamilton secures pole as F1’s new qualifying fails to deliver

    Hamilton secures pole as F1’s new qualifying fails to deliver

    Lewis Hamilton secured pole position for the Australian Grand Prix in the debut of Formula One’s new elimination style qualifying format which has been widely criticised and can be described as nothing short of farcical.

    Hamilton finished 0.360s clear of his Mercedes team mate Nico Rosberg, but the session was decided and all drivers out of their cars with over three minutes left on the clock. There was not a single car on the track for the final 5 minutes of the session and drivers were walking down the pit lane to get weighed in while there was still time left in the session.

    There was no frantic final shootout, no final flurry of lap times, nobody rushing for the line to secure their positions on the grid. Just driver after driver accepting their fate and leaving the final minutes of qualifying to the two Mercedes drivers to decide which of them would start ahead of the other.

    The live elimination format also failed to deliver on the mixed up grid that F1’s decision makers had hoped for and pretty much castrated Q3 of the first qualifying session of the 2016 Formula One season.

    Ferrari, who should’ve been shooting it out at the front with the Mercs opted to complete just one run in what seemed to be a bid to save tyres for the race. The gap between Hamilton on pole and Sebastian Vettel who finished third on the grid stood at 0.838s with Kimi Raikkonen finishing fourth place – 1.196s off Hamilton’s time.

    Australian GP Qualifying - Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari
    Photo: Scuderia Ferrari

    Vettel said he couldn’t see why everyone was surprised. “We all said what is going to happen. It happened,” he said.

    “We were told to wait and see. Now we saw and I don’t think it was very exciting.

    “It was a bit crazy in the beginning with all the cars pushing and trying to do a lap before they get kicked out so managing traffic is busy but for no reason because the time is there in the session to do it.

    “For the people in the grandstands, I don’t feel it is right way to go as there are no cars to watch. They want to see Lewis, Nico, Kimi whoever pushing to limit at the end of the session when the track is supposed to be at its best.

    “I don’t think we need the criticism now, we had the criticism already but surely it is wrong way to go. That is what we said.”

    Max Verstappen secured his best qualifying result finishing fifth on the grid for Toro Rosso after a single Q3 attempt, ahead of Felipe Massa, Carlos Sainz Jr. and Daniel Ricciardo.

    The new rules resulted in the bottom three in Q3 limited to just one lap before the clock caught up with them and they were knocked out. The top eight will all start the race on the super-soft tyres they used to set their fastest time in Q2.

    The majority of the action in qualifying came from the opening stages of each session with the flurry of confusion and excitement in Q1 setting everyone up extreme anticlimactic disappointment. What should have been a thrilling introduction to the 2016 Formula One season – especially after the exciting build-up in FP3 – ended up an absolute disaster, or as Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff called it, “rubbish”.

    Sergio Perez and Nico Hulkenberg were 9th and 10th respectively and opted to return to the pits rather than attempt another lap and get themselves through to Q3. Valterri Bottas’ minor error at the final corner without enough time to finish another lap (instead of only being required to make it over the line to start another one) saw him finish in 11th place.

    Australian GP Qualifying - McLaren
    Photo: McLaren-Honda

    McLaren had impressed in FP3 and there were great expectations that we would see at least one of the two Woking machines in Q3, but seemed to have been caught out by the new format with Fernando Alonso and Jenson Button also being caught out by the 90 second clock and finishing 12th and 13th on the grid.

    Renault made it through to Q2 albeit significantly off the pace. Joylon Palmer and Kevin Magnussen could only manage 14th and 15th respectively.

    The absolute confusion of the Q1 session saw Daniil Kvyat being knocked out while he was in the pits and missing the cut for Q2 along with the Sauber, Haas and Manor drivers.

    The FIA are clearly going to have to rethink the introduction of this format. The majority of the drivers have come out saying that the new qualifying format does not work and team principals are not impressed either.

    It’s important to reminder that these are the folks who voted this new qualifying format in but it would seem they’re ready to eat the humble pie and call for change.

    Australian GP Qualifying - Christian Horner, Red Bull Racing
    Photo: Red Bull / Getty

    Red Bull team boss Christian Horner believes the sport needs to apologise to Formula 1 fans and called for the new qualifing format to be scrapped immediately.

    “It didn’t really work for me,” Horner said. “We have not really put on a show.

    “To have Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen in fast cars not taking part with five minutes to go is wrong.

    “We need to learn from it and address it quickly. I think it needs to be done for Bahrain, personally.”

    Niki Lauda also came out saying that the new qualifying format was “terrible” and added that Bernie Ecclestone and Jean Todt make decisions without discussions with anyone else and then only present them to the teams to vote.

    Australian GP Qualifying - Toto Wolff, Mercedes AMG Petronas
    Photo: Mercedes AMG Petronas

    Toto Wolff didn’t hold back either, “I’m the first person to say that we shouldn’t talk the sport down but when the evidence is there before your eyes, you cannot shut them and deny reality,” he said.

    “The new format is pretty rubbish – much too complicated to follow and a damp squib at the end with nobody running. These were the downsides that we expected to see – and they outweigh the upsides, that much is clear now.

    “We wanted to listen to the promoters who were calling for a change – but my personal opinion is that we have found the wrong solution and we need to think carefully about what we do next.”

    Opinions have been flying around Twitter since the disastrous end to the qualifying session as well.

    Twitter user @GrandPrixDiary drew a very good analogy which summed up the second half of qualifying quite well:

    Adam Cooper raised the issue around Q2 drivers in 9th and 10th not fighting to get through to Q3:

     

    Joe Saward also summed things up pretty well:

     

    At the time of writing, our @F1_Madness poll has a very telling story to tell. Over 75% of voters feel that the new qualifying format is “utter rubbish”.

    Even F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone is unimpressed with qualifying, saying that, “It was pretty crap. But this is what we’ve got, until we can change it.” Let’s hope that happens soon.

     

  • 2016 Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix: Saturday Press Conference

    2016 Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix: Saturday Press Conference

    DRIVERS
    1 – Lewis HAMILTON (Mercedes)
    2 – Nico ROSBERG (Mercedes)
    3 – Sebastian VETTEL (Ferrari)

    TV UNILATERAL
    Lewis, your 50th career pole, only Senna and Schumacher have gone beyond that mark, on top of it all weekend it would seem, through practice and qualifying, you must be delighted?
    Lewis HAMILTON: Absolutely. First, I really have to… I’m not going to take my hat off, but really take my hat off to this team. What they’ve done to raise the bar once more in our third year to be fighting the rest, it’s just… truly for me, it inspires me, it motivates me and I really enjoyed driving the car today in qualifying. We got the set-up just right. There were some sexy laps. They felt so good. Just flowing and no real mistakes and that’s really all you can hope for as a driver is to always improved and that’s what we did today. Really happy.

    Nico, turning to you, the heat was on you, certainly towards the end. A couple of mistakes in Turn One, both on your first run in Q1 and also in Q3, just not your day today?
    Nico ROSBERG: No, the last lap was good, just Lewis did a better job, that’s it. But mainly it’s impressive to see how the team in the third year running now, it seems, of course it’s very early days, so let’s be careful but for sure this weekend we seem to be the quickest out there by a good margin. It’s amazing to see that. Because the risk is always when you’re dominating that you start to become complacent and that’s a big risk always, everybody has experienced that, but it seems that we’re able to push through and so that’s really awesome. Of course, not happy with second place but still a lot of opportunities for tomorrow starting from second.

    So Sebastian, we now have a bit of a picture: it looked close in free practice three, you split the Mercedes after the first run in Q3 but ultimately the margin is still pretty large to Lewis. You used up your tyres earlier on than they did as well, so is your feeling sitting here now one of disappointment?
    Sebastian VETTEL: Not really. I think I said many times that we have done a step forwards, which I think we have. I think especially tomorrow we should be quite a bit closer. We expected them to be strong in qualifying, which they were. I think we had a bit of a rougher start to find a bit the rhythm, certainly I had, and it was just getting better throughout qualifying. Very happy with the lap I had in the end, so we called it there and saved the set of tyres for tomorrow. Surely we’re not on the front row but we still have high hopes for the race and it’s going to be a long year, we know this car has a lot of potential, so I think as a starting out third and fourth, locking out the second row, is a good achievement. The team’s been pushing very hard and as I said we have a long year ahead of us.

    Back to you again Lewis. Obviously the race tomorrow, you’re looking for your third Australian Grand Prix victory. Do you do so with a bit of calmness this evening as you prepare?
    LH: I’m generally, quite often, mostly calm, but there is a lot of work to do tonight. Obviously with these radio changes and less communication there’s a lot more studying that goes on for all of us in terms of remembering the sequence, things like we can’t be told if the strategy is changing throughout the race, so you kind of have to anticipate what happens. If they give us a different tyre we kind of have to guess it – could be a two, three, whatever stops we’re doing. I’m excited. I think it’s a new thing; we’re all in the same boat. I hope that it adds to the spectacle tomorrow, I highly doubt it, but we shall see.

    Q: Lewis, your fifth pole in Australia, you talked a moment ago about having done some sexy laps. What is the key to a really good lap here in qualifying and did the format with the elimination and particularly all the traffic there at the beginning, did any of that put any more pressure on you today?
    LH: Not really, it was very much the same as usual. You have to go out and get your clear laps. Maybe there was a little bit more pressure on us as a team, and the way we operated but generally we just did the normal in terms of getting the laps. What I mean by sexy laps, they were just, when you finished… the car felt good, moved, it was like a beautiful rhythm. Felt like James Brown at the end of the lap.

    Q: Nico, coming to you, obviously we’ve got a bunch of new rule changes this year, Lewis just referred to the radio change in his previous answer. The third one of course is the option of more tyres going into the race. Now, clearly that’s a strategic thing, you’re the guy who needs an extra something to work with. Do you see it giving you an opportunity to do something on strategy tomorrow?
    NR: For sure, because there are going to be more unknowns in the race tomorrow, definitely. If Lewis gets a start, after that, if they have to change his strategy because of traffic behind or something, that he’s going to drop out into, he won’t know about it. So, that’s for sure, there’s scenarios where you can lose out quite a lot. And, of course, starting second, I like that. It increases the chances, y’know?

    Q: Essentially the same question to you Sebastian. You mentioned earlier on about your tactic in terms of the tyres. You’ve got more variability, there is less information coming to you from the team, are you sitting there thinking you have a chance to get among these guys tomorrow?
    SV: I do. Not because of the changes in rules but in general I think in the race you can always creating something. Tomorrow we try obviously to push very hard and create something. Everybody knows roughly what to do. It’s not the first race that we’re going to do. Bottom line is that the regulations haven’t changed so the cars are similar to drive compared to last year. Hope that we can put definitely more pressure than today on both of them in the race tomorrow.

    QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

    Q: (Ralf Bach – Auto Bild motorsport) Question to Matteo, how does it feel to drive a Mercedes car?
    Matteo BONCIANI: Next question

    Q: (Daniel Johnson – The Telegraph) To all three of you: so we had the new qualifying system today and for most of Q3, what we saw on the TV was guys sat in the car and then getting out without going and doing a lap. Nico and Lewis, the two of you went out and did some laps and then with three minutes left, came in the garage and nothing more happened and the chequered flag waved with no one out there. Christian Horner’s already said that he thinks F1 should apologise to the fans for the show it’s put on. Toto, your boss, said it’s rubbish. It’s difficult when you’re in it but I wondered what you thought of it, whether F1 should apologise and whether we should go back to the old system as soon as we can?
    LH: Well, we’ve not seen it so we don’t really know how it worked for the others. We said at the beginning that it wasn’t the right way but it’s like you can’t knock it before you try it. We tried it and all the engineers were right. It doesn’t make no difference to me at the end of the day. I did what I had to do.
    SV: I had time to get changed…
    NR: It’s good that F1 tries but it’s the wrong way so we should go back to the other system, for the fans.
    Q: For the whole three sessions or just the final part?
    NR: For the last one especially, I’m not really able to judge for the previous two, but especially for Q3.
    SV: Well, I think it’s very easy. I don’t see why everybody’s surprised now. We all said what’s going to happen, it happened so obviously we were told to wait and see but now we saw and I don’t think it was very exciting. It was a bit crazy in the beginning with all the cars pushing and trying to do a lap before they get potentially kicked out so managing traffic… it’s quite busy but for no reason because the time is there in the session to do it and in the end, also for the people in the grandstands, I don’t feel it’s the right way to go. There are no cars to watch. In the end they want to see Lewis, Nico, Kimi, whoever, pushing it to the limit at the end of the session when the track’s supposed to be at its best etc. I don’t know we need the criticism now, we had the criticism already but it’s surely the wrong way to go, that’s what we said.
    LH: The good thing is that they tried something new and ultimately that is a good step, that we’re actually trying something new  but it’s trial and error so maybe not just go back to the old way…
    SV: There’s a certain responsibility as well. We can’t just try things that many of us criticise, us included.
    LH: But why can’t you…
    SV: You can’t just turn around and say it was the wrong thing, we need to be sensible and try to do the right changes.
    LH: But that’s what they tried to do even though everyone told them it was the wrong one.
    SV: Yes.
    LH: Let’s leave it there.

    Q: (Michael Schmidt – Auto, Motor und Sport) Sebastian, did you sit in the pits at the end because you didn’t have any more supersoft tyres or because you said you wanted to save a set of tyres? But when we went through the sessions I think you have already consumed three before.
    SV: Yeah, it’s true, we had to go out again in Q2 so I think the fact that we called it off in Q3 was due to the fact that I had a good lap on the first try and we wanted then to save a set of tyres for tomorrow. Obviously, we would have liked to do it with only one run in Q2 but it wasn’t strong enough so I had to go out again, so that’s a fact, it was not due to the new format but I think in general, as I said earlier, it’s just wrong when the clock’s ticking and nobody’s on track.

    Q: (Heikki Kulta – Turun Sanomat) Nico, did it ever cross your mind that the chain of six pole positions was broken today and does it means anything to you?
    NR: No, I hadn’t thought of that but yes, a pity but that’s not on my mind when I’m going out and qualifying for the first race of the season, for sure not.

  • Hamilton makes it a clean sweep in dry Australian GP final practice

    Hamilton makes it a clean sweep in dry Australian GP final practice

    Lewis Hamilton made it a clean sweep by going fastest once again in the final practice session ahead of the Australian GP. The British driver edged out his Mercedes team mate Nico Rosberg, finishing 0.176s ahead of the German to top the final practice session time sheets with a stonking time of 1:25.624s.

    While the Mercedes team are still ahead of the field, it is refreshing to see the dominant gap shrinking – Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel completed the final practice session only two tenths behind the Mercs and the entire field of 22 drivers are seperated by only 3.648.

    The scene is definitely set for a brilliant qualifying session which will take place in a brand new knock-out format. Vettel’s final practice time was set before the two Mercedes drivers who set their times on a rapidly improving track which suggests their could be plenty of action toward the end of qualifying later this today.

    There was no sign of rain throughout the entire final practice session and conditions continued to improve throughout the entire 60 minute run.

    Toro Rosso proved to be very impressive with Carlos Sainz Jr – who is running a 2015-spec Ferrari engine – splitting the two Ferraris to go fourth fastest, two tenths clear of Kimi Raikkonen. Max Verstappen brought his Toro Rosso home 6th fastest ahead of Valterri Bottas and Daniel Ricciardo.

    Felipe Massa finished ninth fastest and Force India’s Sergio Perez rounded out the top 10.

    The two McLaren drivers showed that the team seems to have made some encouraging progress with Fernando Alonso and Jenson Button setting the 11th and 12th quickest times respectively. Red Bull’s Daniil Kvyat was 13th, ahead of the leading Sauber of Marcus Ericsson and Renault’s Kevin Magnussen.

    Force India’s Nico Hulkenberg finished 16th fastest with Renault’s Jolyon Palmer behind him.

    Some action in the pitlane saw F1 rookie driver Rio Haryanto and Romain Grosjean colliding early in the final practice session when they were both released at the same time.

    Haryanto was able to get out shortly after with a new front wing bolted to his car, but Haas chose to change the floor as well as the front wing on Grosjean’s car before getting him back out.

    Haryanto finished the session 22nd and last on the time sheets, but only two tenths adrift of team mate Pascal Wehrlein.

    Grosjean completed the fewest laps of anybody with 11 and ended the session 19th – a 0.008s shave slower than team mate Esteban Gutierrez.

    The new format qualifying format will make its debut just a little later this morning. Will Mercedes continue to dominate? Or could the rest of the field be in it to grab it from them? Join us on Twitter @F1_Madness for live interaction, commentary and chat throughout the session.

    Final Practice FP3 Classification:

    Australian GP Final Practice Classification

    Lewis Hamilton Photo Credit – Mercedes AMG Petronas

  • 2016 Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix: Friday Press Conference

    2016 Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix: Friday Press Conference

    TEAM REPRESENTATIVES:

    Cyril ABITEBOUL (Renault Sport)

    Toto WOLFF (Mercedes)

    Eric BOULLIER (McLaren)

    Maurizio ARRIVABENE (Ferrari)

    Christian HORNER (Red Bull Racing)

    Gene HAAS (Haas F1)

     

    PRESS CONFERENCE

    Cyril, let’s begin with you – welcome back as a Renault works team. Great history, 35 wins, two world championships and 100 podiums. How tough will it be to repeat those records against today’s competition?
    Cyril ABITEBOUL: I think it will be very tough and I know that there were a lot of comments regarding the time that it took us to make our decision last year. It’s not so much the appetite to be in Formula One but to be in a capacity to be successful in Formula One, that was the question mark. So we come in that competition with lots of humility. As you mentioned we have been there fro quite a long period of time, almost 40 years but we equally we know that the level has raised considerably. So we know it’s going to take time; it’s a long journey, a long-term plan but we think we have all the ingredients – financial, technical, the support of a large group – to make that a successful one. We’re going to take it step by step but it’s absolutely possible.

    What’s the plan for the engine this year? You’ve not used so many tokens so far. Do you expect to be close to Ferrari and Mercedes by the end of the season?
    CA: Well, actually, I think that this is a demonstration that we have used little tokens but I hope in connection to the fact that we have made a substantial step in terms of performance will be actual evidence that there is no connection between token use and performance. You can use a lot of tokens and bring absolutely nothing in terms of lap time, which actually is maybe something we did last year. I think the whole debate of tokens should go away and we should focus on performance. There is a plan to use more tokens during the course of the season, that’s the plan and we have made lots of comments about that. Hopefully it will happen, both for the benefit of the Renault works team and also Red Bull.

    Maurizio, coming to you – Sebastian told us here yesterday in the press conference he feels Ferrari has enough to challenge Mercedes this year. Tell us about the effort that has gone on behind the scenes to raise the level?
    Maurizio ARRIVABENE: We are doing our job. We are working very hard during the winter and we know where we are, but where you really are depends on what the other competitors are going to be. During this weekend we will know.

    We’ve got some new rules this year, qualifying rules, team radio rules, tyre rules etc coming into force, what differences do expect these to make, especially in the qualifying we’ll see tomorrow.
    MA: I don’t want to be against any changes, Ferrari don’t want to be against the change, I simply think that maybe giving a bit more time to the team to work on ideas was better. But I can’t say so with a certainty. The only certainty is that more probably tomorrow at the beginning of the qualifying we are going to see a line like on Saturday at the cashier of the supermarket – everybody wants to go out. Then we will see. It’s not fair to criticize before that has happened.

    Eric, your thoughts on that, the new regulations?
    Eric BOULLIER: Well, we’ll see this weekend. There is some upside and downside. The qualifying format we had before, I think we all agree, was a successful format. We were used to it. I think it is true that there will be more traffic at the beginning of each qualifying segment and there should be more unpredictability for the final result, but we will see.

    It was a tough year for McLaren last year to say the least. What’s the winter been like at Woking and what do you expect for 2016?
    EB: Well, I think every year we keep working harder and harder. It was a very, very busy winter for us. We’ll see. Obviously there is a lot of progress. We have been able to work through this Friday this weekend, which is good for both Honda and McLaren. We will see where we are. Obviously we don’t want to overpromise everything. We will go step by step and there is still some more to come.

    Coming to you Gene, a very warm welcome to Formula One. Your start-up has been a few years in the development. How does the reality match up to the expectation?
    Gene HAAS: Well, I’m nervous. I think there are a lot of things going on here that I’m new to and the team is new too. So, putting all of the pieces of the puzzle together along with all the personnel and having it all come together for the first time has been a learning experience. That’s really what we’re here for is to learn how Formula One really operates from the ground floor. Your can watch this racing your whole life but there’s nothing like being a participant to really understand it and I have a lot of respect for the teams that are here and the level of technical competence you have to have to even start one of these races. I’m pretty much in awe. It’s a challenge and I hope it’s a lot of fun.

    You’ve done it before, of course. You built a NASCAR team from scratch, won races, won championships. Formula One is obviously a different ball game from NASCAR but what would success in Formula One on a global scale mean to you?
    GH: I think you have to look at it in terms of years. I have the feeling that if you over-anticipate what you can do in the sport it will humble you very quickly. I think the first year or two just to be able to come to the races, be competitive, not make any major mistakes would be a tremendous achievement. I know a few of our drivers are hoping to score some points and that would certainly be an accomplishment.

    Christian, coming to you – a new season, several new partnerships for the team. It feels, maybe from the outside, a little bit like a team in transition. What’s the plan for the next stage?
    Christian HORNER: I think that it’s exactly that. I think we are in transition and I think we are hopefully getting on an upward curve now. We’ve had a positive winter, a busy winter. All the teams work hard. You know if you come into Formula One everybody works hard and arguably the smaller teams work the hardest as they have the least resource. But it’s about working smartly and I think this winter the team has worked not only hard but creatively and cleverly. We have a good basis of a car to develop throughout the year and with the different partnerships we have introduced, some exciting partnerships, welcoming Tag Heuer to the team not only as a sponsor but as branding on our power unit and also the announcement yesterday with Aston Martin, it’s very exciting for Red Bull Advanced Technologies.

    Coming back to the discussion about the rules, specifically on the team radio I’m interested. What are your thoughts on those restrictions and the repositioning of the driver as very much the man in control, the decision-maker?
    CH: Well I guess like modern technology these days and how people communicate, we’re working by text – maybe to SMS the driver would be an easier way, because we’re not allowed to say much these days. I think it’s going to be a voyage of discovery and I hope we haven’t gone too far on the radio stuff, because that’s taking away an element of dialogue between the engineer and the driver and some of that from behind the scenes can be quite entertaining, some it X-rated, but quite enthralling for the fans. We’ve got quite a few changes to take on board this year, let’s see how it goes.

    Coming to you Toto, obviously the last couple of years some records that pushed the boundaries a bit beyond where they have been before. But nothing lasts forever, as I’m sure Christian will tell you. How nervous do you feel and do you think you have enough this year to hold everyone at bay?
    Toto WOLFF: Before I answer the question, first of all I’d like to welcome the group and if you listen to what he says, that is certainly the right approach to enter Formula One. He’s been successful in NASCAR and obviously with his own company and I have no doubt that you will be successful in what you do here. You have to stay on your toes, that’s clear. You can be caught out quickly, either by regulations or just by not taking the right decisions and we’ve seen that over the last couple of years. There is a constant skepticism whether we have done a good enough job over the winter and we’re going to know more tomorrow.

    Mercedes has some young drivers coming through the system – Pascal Wehrlein racing here with Manor, Esteban Ocon coming through and seconded to Renault as a reserve. Will we see more of this sort of development of drivers coming through from Mercedes in the next couple of years?
    TW: I think it’s a good development. In the past it was only Red Bull holding up young drivers and transitioning them into Formula One on merit and now with Renault coming in and having Esteban Ocon, Kevin Magnussen being back in a car, Pascal Wehrlein in a Manor and an additional team which has financial resource, I think it’s good news and hopefully we will see more good young people come into Formula One based on merit. For us certainly it’s about finding the right places. It doesn’t make a lot of sense to start an inflationary system and just enter many young kids if you don’t have a place in Formula One. With Esteban and Renault I think we found a good solution for our mutual benefit. Equally with Pascal, a completely different challenge for him this year than last and we’ll see how that pans out.

    QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

    Q: (Martin Moravec – DPA) Maurizio, last year you said that if Ferrari would win four races then you would go into the hills of Maranello barefoot. What would you do this year if Ferrari becomes World Champion?
    MA: I’ll let you know when it’s happened.

    Q: (Dieter Rencken – Racing Lines) Last month the Commercial Rights Holder was quoted as saying “this sort of thing is what is commonly known as a cartel and cartels are illegal. We are running something that is illegal. On top of all that it is anti-competitive.” Given the EU laws etcetera and also the complaint that’s also recently been filed, is Formula One really being run as a cartel? How do you feel about this comment? Any comeback on that?

    TW: Hi Dieter! It’s nice to start all over again. First of all, when you’re looking at today’s press conference, there’s a lot of positivity around what’s happening. Red Bull has bought Aston Martin back into the sport, a mega-brand. Renault is back as an official works team, Haas has entered the sport, an American team. But having said that, I don’t think there is any cartel around here, nor is the sport run as a cartel. Bernie is always good for controversy and throwing one in. If that were to run like a cartel we wouldn’t be sitting here. Some of us are part of multi-national global companies and we’re taking compliance very seriously. So… it just causes headlines but nothing else.

    Maurizio?
    MA: I think this talk of a cartel is simply ridiculous. Simply ridiculous. Everybody, they are doing their job, they try to do their best. We are talking here about brands who have a long story. They are not going to throw out of the window their story, their reputation for this comment that they don’t deserve even one word. I have to say, it’s strange because in this world you have to be careful sometimes because, if you are talking a bit more with somebody, if I’m going to go to the dinner with Toto or Cyril, I do a cartel? It’s simply a dinner! We have to learn something from rugby, that when you are in the field, you play very hard, you punch, whatever you have to do. And then afterwards, they go to the dinner and no-one is talking about having a cartel or creating some mismatch during the match. It’s simply ridiculous.

    Cyril?
    CA: No, I would not agree with that definition of cartel for the simply reason that we are all in a competitive environment, so at the end of the day Ferrari wants to win against Mercedes and hopefully one day Renault will want to win, I don’t know, against Ferrari. So, for that simple reason, any sort of unity will not last. So I will not agree with you. I will not concur with that. Plus, you have to accept that only a limited number of manufacturers have the financial capacity to subsidise the cost of the technology in accordance with the current regulation that we have all accepted. So no, I would not concur with that view.

    Christian, you’re on the outside of the manufacturer equation, what’s your perspective?
    CH: Look, I think you can understand that Bernie’s frustrated and his comments are borne out of frustration of being unable to influence change. You’ve got a dynamic in Formula One at the moment where the manufacturers collectively have a lot of strength. That primarily is through the technical regulations and the current situation regarding the power unit. I think Bernie’s frustration as a promoter is that he can’t influence that at this point in time. His comments obviously I think have come off the back of that. Our situation is different to that of a manufacturer team. As an independent team we rely on the manufacturers for the supply of an engine and, of course, there’s been great debate as to what price that engine should be, what format it should be and, of course, you have a divergence of performance as well. So, there’s some key issues that do need to be addressed. Hopefully consensus and agreement can be found on that in the near future.

    Eric, do you have a view on that?
    EB: I think it’s been debated.

    Gene?
    GH: Well, I think the complexity of the engine- turbo-electrical package was maybe underestimated by everybody, including Bernie and the teams of how hard it would be to build. It would seem to me that maybe in hindsight that maybe if there had been a price that had been set initially that said ‘this is what is has to be built for and what you have to sell to the teams for’ maybe the manufacturers would have had to make a compromise, saying “well, we can’t build the current package for that money, we’ll have to compromise.” I think it’s something that just wasn’t anticipated and unfortunately… I can certainly tell you what I know about the Ferraris is that the money they put into their [power unit] is probably well worth what they charge us for those packages but unfortunately that kind of technology doesn’t really make it back to the fan base, which is the people that we rely on. So, going forwards, those sort of things, cost, has certainly to be part of the equation before they make any kind of rulings.

    Q: (Peter Habicht – The Auto Channel) I have to two-part question, Gene, the first is to you and the next is to the team principals. So Gene, all credit to you, Gunther and the team and bringing America back to the sport after nearly 30 years. While there’s been little time for nostalgia, now that you’re here has there been anything more you’d like to share about your experience so far this weekend with American fans back home. And, to the rest of the team principals, do you have any words of advice for Gene?
    GH: Well, I tell you all of a sudden I’m sitting here in awe that I’m sitting among all these team principals from Ferrari, Mercedes and Renault and Honda and Red Bull, that’s pretty awesome for someone who… you look at these things in magazines. To be sitting among this group of elite is humbling, I can say that. It’s been a long journey, I’m not sure how I really got here but here I am. I think, if you probably ask everybody here, how you wind up here is somewhat unique. Things in life, I guess  you have to grab them. This is just part of the process of being able to compete at this level. It’s just awe inspiring. I know there’s some hard times ahead but I’m looking forward to it. Looking forward to the challenge.

    As for words of advice from the other team principals, maybe start with Christian.
    CH: I think it’s fantastic to have Haas join Formula One as an independent team, as a really credible independent team. Formual One’s a big challenge, it’s great to have an American, and a true American presence in Formula One. Words of advice… get a good lawyer!

    Eric?
    EB: Very similar. I think it’s very exciting for Formula One to have, as Christian said, a true American team and an American character like Gene joining us who had a deep understanding of racing, who has also useful experience in America with NASCAR, which he could share and I would be very happy to hear sometime. I don’t have any advice to give. He knows about racing enough and he is serious about what he had built already and I think it is going to be a nice surprise and maybe a difficult but a nice journey in Formula One.

    Cyril, you’re in a Renault shirt now but you were a team principal of a start-up. Any advice for Gene?
    CA: I was expecting that one. No. I think it’s interesting. I understand that you’re following and it’s interesting to see a new model, in particularly a collaboration with Ferrari because I think that there is a whole field of collaboration between teams which is not explored at this point in time by most teams, so I think I’ll be really curious and, to be honest, a bit frightened to see what it gives on Saturday. In terms of pieces of advice, I’ve heard a lot of people come in with big plans, willing to do things completely differently. So, don’t try to do things too differently because the good old recipes, they also work.

    Toto?
    TW: I think Gene doesn’t need any advice. He has done it very successfully in NASCAR and much more successful than all of us with his own company. If there is advice in Formula One it’s to manage expectations – because pressure is going to increase the better the results are and, the way you’ve been doing it, keeping both feet on the ground and staying humble, I think is the right approach.

    And Maurizio, presumably you speak all the time?
    MA: I think that what I have to say, we are talking most of the time about teams that left or want to leave Formula One and not enough about people like Gene. He’s a serious person, financially reliable, committed and with a lot of experience. I don’t have to give him any advice – but I have to congratulate people like Gene Haas, that they want to invest in Formula One and they want to take this sport seriously and not as a kind of speculation. In terms of a lawyer, he got a good lawyer – but he’s using his lawyer properly.

    Q: (Flavio Vanetti – Corriere della Serra) Maurizio, yesterday we read some quotes from president Marchionne. Is he putting too much pressure on the team or is he right to say that Ferrari is ready to win all the time?
    MA: If your editor is asking you to sell more copies, it is putting pressure on you. It’s normal that the president, when you do something, is not asking you, the following year, to do less than what you have done. The role of the president is to push his people to do better, better and better. If he’s going to create pressure this is normal, this is part of our job, this is part of any kind of job. He’s doing his role. He was giving to us what we were asking for and he’s pushing us to strive for the best.

    Q: (Peter Windsor – F1 Racing) Christian, you expressed some misgivings about the radio communication rules, which I’m sure some of us agree with. I personally agree with you but is there not a disconnect here, because we tend to think that nothing happens unless you guys have agreed to make it happen? Or am I wrong there? Can we not blame you for having it in the first place?
    CH: Not me personally, hopefully not. Look, I think out of well intention, sometimes we don’t think through the consequences. The intention of restricting the radio is that the drivers need to drive the car and I don’t think anybody enjoys hearing a driver being told how to operate his car. I think the problem that we have is that the complexity of these cars is so great now and the assistance that is required from the pit wall and behind the scenes is very different to Formula One of even three, four years ago. And it’s finding that line: is it right to help a driver find a bit of clear space in traffic or to pit now and so on? I think it’s going to be a bit of a voyage of discovery with this rule and I think applying it to the operation of the car is one thing; applying it to other sporting measures… we need to find that right balance and I’m not sure we’re going to achieve that immediately in one weekend.
    Q: (Peter Windsor – F1 Racing) Just to come back on that point, if you’re going to take away the radio, surely the logical thing is to replace that with other radio, because the fans do love to hear the radio, it’s part of the show now? And hearing the technology on the radio was actually a good thing, I think.
    CH: Absolutely, I think there’s entertainment through the radio and I think that what’s fascinating is to hear these guys communicating at the speeds that they’re achieving and in the heat of the battle – that radio content can produce good entertainment behind the scenes for the fans and it’s finding that balance. The bit that you should really hear is the intercom because there’s a far more interesting discussion going on on the pit wall on the intercom than there is on the radio and we, for sure, would love to hear the Mercedes intercom.

    Q: (Leon Alepidis – F1Fan.gr) Question to Mr Boullier: we presume that this season McLaren will be fighting with the midfield teams instead of at the front for the title, no title sponsor yet and two expensive drivers. Would you say that for now or with hindsight for the past that there has been a mistake, plans for investment for the development of the car instead of putting all this money into the drivers without having an actual good car to drive from the start of the project?
    EB: Well, definitely we at McLaren had a difficult year last year and we are not where we want to be and definitely we have the ambition to be. If you want to be the winning team you need to have all the best elements and if you have the best drivers before the best chassis or the best engine it’s a risk but it’s also a challenge than for the chassis and the engine to be the best. I think that as far as we are concerned, in terms of money, we have signed three new sponsors this year: Chandon, Richard Mille, Volvo Trucks. We have renewed another three sponsors. We are part of the McLaren Group which is profitable this year so I don’t think we have any issues on this part of the business. After that, it is just to be the best combination to catch Mercedes, Ferrari and Red Bull and others.

    Q: (Dieter Rencken – Racing Lines) Cyril, amongst all the announcements and personnel movements and promotions, one name wasn’t mentioned at all and that’s Rob White. Is he still with the company, what is he doing, is he involved?
    CA: Yes, he’s involved, he’s part of the company. There will be more announcements regarding the exact management structure in Enstone and in Viry but in particular in Viry after the appointment of Remy Taffin as our new technical director, so there will be more coming, so I will invite you to the staff meeting that we will do in that respect.

    Q: (Dan Knutson – Auto Action and Speedsport Magazines) Christian, in this room yesterday, Dan Ricciardo was asked about these rumours of Ferrari and among the things he said was that he’s completely focused on Red Bull and this season and then “not exactly out of contract either.” I realise these things are confidential but can you enlighten us a bit?
    CH: Yeah, he’s under contract, so I think he was pretty accurate with his comment. Red Bull invests in these guys at a young age, they develop them, they give them the opportunity through the Junior team and Toro Rosso. Sebastian Vettel was a prime example of that, Daniel Ricciardo is doing an excellent job, Dany Kvyat and the two exciting talents we obviously have in Toro Rosso. The contractual situation we have with Daniel Ricciardo is extremely clear. How long? That’s confidential.

  • F1 Australian GP FP2: Hamilton fastest, Rosberg crashes

    F1 Australian GP FP2: Hamilton fastest, Rosberg crashes

    The Mercedes F1 team suffered pretty mixed fortunes in another practice session dominated by unpredictable wet weather conditions. Lewis Hamilton finished on top of the time sheets once again in FP2 ahead of the Australian Grand Prix, while his team mate Nico Rosberg suffered a crash into the barriers at turn 6 during a very wet session.

    The wet weather put a real damper on FP2, with conditions only improving ever so marginally during the session. While we got to see some slick running during the first free practice session, drivers were not able to run on anything better than Pirelli’s intermediate rubber during FP2.

    Most teams preferred a cautionary approach with seven drivers failing to set a time and three not venturing on to the track at all for any FP2 running. Nico Rosberg’s turn 7 crash early on in the session caused extensive damage to the front wing of his W07. Rosberg was forced to abandon his Mercedes track side for fear of causing further damage to the car. Team Principal Toto Wolff confirmed that Rosberg had been running one of the team’s new S-duct noses. Mercedes does have spares for later in the weekend but sent Hamilton out with an old spec wing so as not to risk losing another one.

    Nico Rosberg FP2 AustraliaWith Rosberg forced out of FP2, team mate Hamilton was left to head up the field. He posted a time of 1:38.841. The time was nearly 10 seconds slower than his top time posted for FP1. It was good enough though to finish nearly half a second clear of Nico Hulkenberg in his Force India. Force India are looking impressive – Sergio Perez had set the fastest first and second sectors before losing the rear of his car in Turn 12. There was potential for him to better Hamilton’s time but as conditions worsened his chances of taking a time at the top were quickly snuffed.

    Kimi Raikkonen was third quickest for Ferrari, followed by Daniel Ricciardo and Carlos Sainz. The McLaren duo of Fernando Alonso and Jenson Button followed in sixth and seventh places.

    Sebastian Vettel – who had not completed a timed lap in FP1 despite being the first driver out on track – set the eight fastest time with Sergio Perez and Daniil Kvyat rounding out the top 10.

    Esteban Gutierrez ended the FP2 session 11th in the Haas and Pascal Wherlein finished 12th fastest ahead of Romain Grosjean, Rio Haryanto and Rosberg. The remaining seven drivers chose not to set times and Marcus Ericsson, Felipe Nasr and Max Verstappen opted to remain in the dry comfort of their pit garages.

    The weather for tomorrow is currently still rainy at times but more favourable than Friday conditions.

    Photo Credits: FP2 Screenshots from Sky F1.