Tag: preview

Spanish Grand Prix Preview Quotes: Marussia F1 Team

Spanish Grand Prix Preview Quotes from the Marussia F1 Team who are hoping that Barcelona will confirm the positive development direction they have been following.

Jules Bianchi: “Although my first four races have been quite positive – and a nice adventure for me personally – as a driver in my debut season it is good to be heading into the start of the European season. The tracks are very familiar to me from previous formulas and that just provides a further confidence with interpreting the information we collect and how we roll that back into performance. The Team have spent a lot of time analysing our progress so it will be good to verify our findings with the package so far and of course to explore our new developments for Spain. I’m looking forward to getting busy in the car again.”

Max Chilton: “It will be great to get back down to business in Spain, where there will be a lot to focus our attentions on. We’ve learned a lot in the first four races and quite a lot since, with the technical team having been hard at it in the break. What we bring to the Circuit de Catalunya is the product of four races of evaluation coupled with the next step in our ongoing development path, so it will be interesting to see how we can progress from Bahrain. On a personal level this is a track I enjoy and have raced at plenty of times, and that will also be useful as we work through a busy evaluation programme on Friday in particular. I’m looking forward to it.”

John Booth, Team Principal, Marussia F1 Team: “After a good long break since the Bahrain Grand Prix, we head into Europe feeling refreshed and prepared for the start of the next phase of races. It was a whirlwind start to the season for us in some ways and the past few weeks have allowed the drivers in particular to draw a little more breath. Barcelona is always an interesting race as it provides a very good barometer of car performance up and down the grid and also the benefit of the new upgrades most teams will bring to their cars. We are no exception and having tested here over two weeks pre-season, we’ll be taking the opportunity to use that baseline data to further analyse our progress to date, conducting some back to back work with our Bahrain package prior to fielding our new developments for this race. Bahrain has always been a race that we have struggled at so we are hoping that the Circuit de Catalunya will provide further confirmation of the positive development direction we have been following.”

May 4, 2013
Spanish F1 Grand Prix Preview Quotes: Sauber F1 team

Spanish F1 Grand Prix Preview Quotes from the Sauber F1 team.

Nico Hulkenberg: “I’m looking forward to the Spanish Grand Prix because it kicks off this season’s European races. Barcelona is a nice city where you can get a real feel for the Spanish life style. We know the Circuit de Catalunya well, of course, from the winter tests. However, since winter testing many things have changed and also the climate will be different from the one we had in February, which you have to take into consideration. The circuit is diverse. The first two sectors are fast with fast, long corners, which require good down force and a well-balanced car, whereas the third sector is quite technical. The aero updates we bring to this race will show how well our car is suited to this track.”

Esteban Gutierrez: “The first time I raced in Barcelona was in 2008. I know the track and during the winter tests I was also able to experience driving a Formula One car there. As the first of a series of European races, I think it is going to be an exciting event and I’m looking forward to that. The track is quite demanding, especially the last sector. Tyre management will be crucial here, and, especially during a qualifying lap, you need to nurse your tyres in the first two sectors in order to get a clean third sector. You must make sure the tyres still have good grip when you approach the final corners of the lap, including the chicane. We have to wait and see if the updates will help us to catch up with the guys further up the field.”

Tom McCullough, Head of Track Engineering: “Although Barcelona is a track we know well from winter testing, the higher temperatures do change how the tyres perform, so we have to adapt to that. The first two sectors are biased towards higher speed corners, whereas the third sector is dominated by a technical sequence of lower speed corners, hence the set-up is always a compromise. The option tyre will be the medium compound and for the prime Pirelli are re-introducing the 2012 hard compound for this event. We have some further aero updates, including a modified rear wing, and we will be evaluating these during Friday practice. Qualifying is particularly important here as overtaking can be difficult in the race. Our target for the race is to finish with both cars in the points.”

May 3, 2013
Spanish F1 Grand Prix Preview Quotes: Mercedes F1 team

Here are the Spanish F1 Grand Prix Preview quotes from the Mercedes F1 team:

Nico Rosberg: I’m looking forward to traveling to Spain next weekend. We know that the car went very well at the Circuit de Catalunya in pre-season testing so I am hopeful that we can have a strong weekend. We will have to wait and see how our pace compares however. I’ve been in the factory for a couple of days this week, on the simulator and meeting with the team, and everyone has been working hard to make progress on our race day performance. It will be an interesting weekend and once we see how everyone performs in Barcelona, it should give a good idea of how the rest of the season will look.

Lewis Hamilton: It feels like a long time since Bahrain so we’re all looking forward to getting to Barcelona next weekend and starting to get into the routine of the European season. The short break has been good however, and I’ve had the chance to catch up with family and friends, and also spend some time at the factory with the guys, working on our efforts to improve. We’ve been boosted by the results that we’ve had at the start of the season and to come away from the first four races with two third and two fifth places feels like a real achievement. I’m feeling very comfortable in the car now and we know the areas that we need to improve so a lot of effort is being put in to close that gap to the front-runners. Barcelona should be a good test as we know the circuit so well having completed most of the pre-season test programme there. The weekend should be a good benchmark of the progress we have made since then.

Ross Brawn: In the two weeks since we returned from Bahrain, there has been a lot of hard work taking place in Brackley and Brixworth to prepare for the start of the European season in Barcelona next weekend. We have focused our efforts in two key areas; finalising our upgrade package for Spain and understanding our comparative lack of race pace in Bahrain. We have made progress in the latter area and will evaluate some developments over the upcoming race weekends to help improve the situation. We’re not there yet but we are making progress and of course, performing in the race is what really counts. The Circuit de Catalunya is a circuit that we know well and we have a lot of data from the two pre-season tests to help prepare for the weekend. However in the late spring conditions, we can expect the track to be of a very different nature to what we experienced earlier this year. Overtaking is more difficult there than at some of the early season tracks and, of course, every team will be bringing new developments so the weekend should provide an interesting challenge.

Toto Wolff: The three-week break between the Bahrain and Spanish Grands Prix was welcome, as it gave us extra time to analyse in detail what happened at the last race. We have built a good picture of our varying levels of race performance and why we under-performed overall in Bahrain. In Barcelona, we will test some solutions aimed at improving our tyre management in addition to our planned upgrade package. The circuit itself is well known as a benchmark for aerodynamic performance and we performed strongly there at the end of winter testing. The track conditions and temperatures will be very different on the race weekend, though, so we must dial the car in to those circumstances. Our target is to improve our Sunday afternoon performance to match what we have delivered on Saturday in the past two races. It will certainly be interesting to see what gains everybody has made since the last time we were at the circuit and how the planned upgrade packages work from car to car.

May 3, 2013
Virtual lap preview – Bahrain, Sakhir circuit

April 19, 2013
Virtual lap preview – China, Shanghai International circuit

April 10, 2013
Chinese Grand Prix Preview – Controlling China

Most all of the headlines since the Malaysian grand prix have included team orders, Sebastian Vettel or both. On whichever side you sit of this controversial piece of Formula 1 theatre it has kept tongues wagging for a good while.

But finally the attention is set to be focused on the most important thing – racing. Whatever has been said, however the statements have played out, on the track is where the real talking needs to be done. As the third round of the season the Chinese GP seems as good a place as any to do just that.

Three thousand workers took just eighteen months to convert a section of swampland into an international spec racetrack. Designed by F1 architect Herman Tilke the Shanghai circuit, situated in the Jiading district, combines a highly technical complex of corners with a kilometre long back-straight. Inspired by the Chinese character Shang sectors one and two contain ten of the track’s fifteen corners; emphasizing the technical make-up and demand for good braking stability and traction.

Since its debut in 2004 the Chinese GP has dished up some pretty decent racing. This 5.451 km Shanghai circuit is where Renault clinched a constructor’s title in 2005; the pitlane entrance is where Lewis Hamilton beached his McLaren in 2007 an event that would have a monumental impact on the driver’s world title that year. Despite being seen as one of the ‘new’ F1 circuits 2013 will be the tenth running of the Chinese GP. McLaren and Ferrari share the majority of the spoils with three victories each but no driver, with the exception of Lewis Hamilton, has been able to win this race on more than one occasion.

Current championship leaders Red Bull Racing don’t have a stellar record either. Since rising to prominence the Milton Keynes team has only taken one victory in the last five Chinese grand prix. If they are to better this record they will have to do it against their run of form at this venue and with clever tactics.

The Shanghai International circuit is one very demanding on tyres and strategy. In 2012 it was Lotus who rolled the dice on Raikkonen’s strategy; although the Finn was running second towards the closing stages of the race his tyres soon ran out of life and he was summarily relegated to fourteenth place in matter of laps. Bear in mind that the 2012 Pirelli tyres were a lot more conservative than what the Italian company has supplied in 2013 which will make the tyre wear a more precarious balancing act than ever.

Only two races of the races on the 2013 calendar have been run and in those two races the slightest appearance of a pecking order has started to emerge. Red Bull seem to have carried their qualifying pace from last season but the chasing pack in the form of Lotus and Ferrari are able to match if not beat the reigning champions on race pace. The Mercedes of Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg does appear to be a bit greedy on rear tyre wear but in the cooler conditions of Shanghai this won’t be a particular difficulty.

The weather forecast, tentative at best, predicts much cooler temperature than have been experienced in the first two races. The threat of rain, sure to materialize at some stage, will almost certainly linger throughout the week.

Fifty-six will be the amount of laps for Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber to settle their differences on the track. But Mercedes, looking to replicate its 2012 glory, could be the menace or a fast starting Fernando, Ferrari-clad, may well unleash the pace that has been simmering just beneath the surface.

April 9, 2013
Virtual lap preview – Malaysia, Sepang International circuit

March 20, 2013
2013 Australian F1 Grand Prix Preview: So it Begins

The Albert Park circuit is not the most prodigious or even the most memorable race track you’re ever likely to come across. But there are few more welcome sites than twenty-two race cars lining up on the grid for the much anticipated start of the 2013 Formula 1 season.

Formula 1 is arguably the most unpredictable sport on the planet and thousands of testing miles have done nothing to change that. The truth is any one of ten drivers could walk away with the spoils on Sunday afternoon. But who of the possible pretenders will be the likeliest amongst the mob?

Sure to be the most nervous of the lot will be the five rookies making their Formula 1 debuts this weekend. Marussia have gone with an all new line-up and both Max Chilton and Jules Bianchi will get their first grand prix start this weekend. Giedo van der Garde will step in at Caterham while Esteban Gutierrez will start his first race for Sauber. Williams’ will be hoping that Finn Valtteri Bottas can transfer his potential and talent to the track.

The Albert Park circuit continues to be a stronghold on the Formula 1 calendar and in addition to coaxing their new cars around the 5.303 km long circuit drivers will want to get an understanding of the 2013 Pirelli tyres. Whatever information teams gathered from pre-season testing won’t be of much use as the high ambient temperatures Down Under will present a completely different read. The FIA has also tweaked the rules regarding the use of DRS. Drivers will only be permitted to use DRS, for all session, in the demarcated zones; most circuits are expected to have two DRS zones.

Hardly any alterations have been made to the technical rules for 2013; leading most teams to follow an evolutionary path in the design and development process of their cars. It also means that, in a season of few changes, the field will be closer than ever.

There is little doubt that Infiniti Red Bull Racing will be up the sharp end of the grid. However, the Red Bull is severely lacking in straight line speed; in fact, it’s the slowest of the lot. But this is a team that have played their cards extremely close to their chest throughout pre-season testing and there is no apparent concern within the team.

An impressive conclusion of the final pre-season test in Barcelona for Mercedes has elevated the team to a serious threat. Hamilton will unquestionably take the team to a new level and good or bad his performance in Australia is destined to draw attention. This team has the potential to cause the biggest upset this weekend.

McLaren will be effectively led by the debonair Jenson Button but its Sergio Perez and the MP4-28 that the uncertainty lingers over. As the car has both dazzled and perplexed the team through testing. A man with no qualms is Fernando Alonso. The Ferrari driver was able to find something special to drag a sub-par Ferrari to second place at the end of 2012. This year his Ferrari already appears to be in better shape which will make the Spaniard a definite and extremely dangerous factor.

Kimi Raikkonen and Romain Grosjean are equally satisfied with what the Lotus E21 has delivered so far. Whereas the team didn’t exploit their chances early on in 2012 they should be ready to just that this season; with an in-form Raikkonen Lotus will be F1 2013’s darkhorse.

How is it possible that all of these teams could win this weekend? The fact remains that throughout the thousands of laps completed in winter testing every single one of these were fastest at some stage. Provided that everything goes to plan, and the weather plays along, Australia should be a cracker.

March 13, 2013
Formula One 2013 Season Preview: The Test of Time

The ‘waiting game’ is a funny phenomenon. Firstly, as die-hard F1 fans, enduring the break between seasons is no fun and games. It is a tedious and lengthy process that tests even the most patient.

Logic suggests that as the start of the season draws closer the restlessness should begin to ebb away and be replaced by a growing anticipation. This is an attractive thought but it doesn’t have much truth to it. What does happen is that the closer that first free practice session in Australia gets the more the levels of anxious excitement seem to amplify. And with less than one week to go the expectation and sheer excitement will surely reach fever pitch.

All that happened in Barcelona is not an absolute predictor of things to come. Nevertheless, the final pre-season test at last gave some indication about what to expect in Australia. Lewis Hamilton’s impression after the first test at Jerez was that his new team would struggle to win a race this season. Since then some things have changed, for the better. A real sense of optimism has replaced the doubt in Hamilton’s mind and the Brit now believes that the Silver Arrows has a real shot at winning some races. The change of heart came after Hamilton ended one Saturday’s running on top of the timing sheets seven tenths clear of second-placed Felipe Massa. LH may have been up to some good old mind games in Jerez but he seems genuinely excited about the Mercedes’ ‘turnaround.’ “I think we definitely will be able to win a race at some point during the season,” said Hamilton.

After signing with Marussia just one month ago Luiz Razia would have been dreaming of sitting on the grid in Australia among twenty-one of the world’s best drivers. However the Brazilian racer lost his drive after a sponsor failed to make scheduled payment to the team. In his place Marussia opted for Ferrari Academy driver Jules Bianchi. The Frenchman is untried but has potential and his link to Ferrari as Formula 1 stands on the cusp of massive engine changes could see Marussia aligning itself to be a customer of the Italian team in 2014.

With Bianchi climbing into the Marussia cockpit, Adrian Sutil will partner Paul di Resta at Force India for the 2013 season. The German left the F1 paddock under controversial circumstances at the end of 2011 and will have to step up his performances if he wants a future in the sport beyond this season. Sutil, who snatched the drive from Jules Bianchi, will be seen as a conservative choice but the team know exactly what they are getting in the German -a proven record of scoring minor points relatively consistently, meaning solid but unspectacular.

The general feeling in the paddock is that Sebastian Vettel and Red Bull should be favourites to win in Australia but the defending champion doesn’t share the same view. “We didn’t tick all the boxes that we would have liked to and the last two days were not as good as we would have expected,” said Vettel.

As the paddock leans toward favouring Red Bull, Ferrari thinks that there will be some shocks in Australia. The reason for Ferrari’s prediction has to do with several teams’ difficulty in managing the tyres and the high rate of degradation that has already been experienced by a variety of drivers. It is interesting and telling that Ferrari is the first team to deliberately raise the issue of tyre wear.

The final day of testing concluded with Nico Rosberg heading the log as most other teams focused on high fuel running. The next time the cars fire up will be in Australia. The wait is nearly over.

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March 11, 2013