Tag: qualifying

Breaking News – Qualifying Format Change for Bahrain

The FIA, Formula 1’s governing body, has announced that the qualifying format has undergone further changes.

The trial of the elimination styled qualifying format at the first race of the season in Australia was met with wide-spread criticism. A social media outcry was followed by meetings of the Formula 1 Working Group and several statements panning the format as a concept.

It was then announced that the qualifying format would revert to its 2015 guise in time for the Bahrain grand prix. However, following another meeting, and a vote, the elimination style format was re-instated. F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone was quoted as saying that the plan was always to give the new format two races and then to evaluate its strengths and weaknesses.

In yet another about turn the FIA has issued a statement in which they state the following:

“After careful consideration of all opinions and facts as it pertains to the matter of the official qualifying format a decision has been taken which we believe is best for the sport, its participants, and its numerous fans. We are instituting, with immediate effect, a qualifying format that we believe will satisfy all parties concerned. The qualifying session will run for one hour (60 minutes) in which drivers will have a maximum of twelve laps to set their best possible time.”

This qualifying format was introduced in 1996 and ran up until the 2002 season. In addition, today is April 1st.

April 1, 2016
F1 2016: Australian GP Preview – F1 season of possibility

The question at the forefront of everything is can Ferrari take the fight to Mercedes. All indications are that the Italian team has made strides since last year and has closed the gap to Mercedes. All that remains to be seen is how close they can get.

As F1 2016 gets under way this season will be longest in the sport’s history with 21 races. Germany’s Hockenheim makes a return to the calendar and Azerbaijan hosts its first ever race on the Baku City streets. The confirmation of the US grand prix gives the teams an added bonus. The F1 sporting regulation state that one engine must be used for four race weekends. As the US Gp makes it 21 races the teams will be given a fifth engine thanks to the wording of the rule.

When the change to the qualifying format was announced it left many perplexed. The quali format hadn’t been a bad one so why fix something that isn’t broken? But, let’s give it chance and see how it pans out.

The one hour session will still consist of three parts. Q1 will be 16 minutes, after the first seven the slowest car is eliminated. Thereafter, the slowest car is eliminated every 90 seconds. Seven drivers will be eliminated while 15 advance to Q2.

Q2 will be a 15 minute session with the slowest driver eliminated after 6 minutes. Likewise, every 90 seconds will see the slowest car eliminated. Seven drivers will be eliminated in this session with eight advancing to Q3. The Q3 session will run for fourteen minutes with the slowest driver eliminated after five minutes. The slowest driver will continue to be eliminated every 90 seconds. Two drivers will remain in the final 90 seconds of the session to shoot it out for pole position.

An interesting aspect of this style of qualifying will be that the quickest cars will no longer be able to rely on getting through to the second part of qualifying on the harder of their tyre selection. It’s sure to throw the cat amongst the pigeons when there is rain about, and if it’s a lap longer than 1 minute 30 seconds. And let’s be honest anything that adds a bit of drama and intrigue is never a bad thing. What the new format has in its favour is that it takes the excitement from the final ten minutes of the session and spreads it throughout the entire hour.

The Albert Park circuit is a well known one. But there are many unknowns at the first race of the season. A new qualifying format, new tyre regulations, more driver freedom on strategy calls, to name a few. The clampdown on radio communication from the pitwall carries its own connotation, especially where the start of the race is concerned. Drivers are not allowed any feedback during the formation lap and are only being allowed to use one clutch at the start. This combined with Albert Park’s tight turn one could result in dramatic start to the grand prix. And all of this has the potential to combine into an explosive season-opening race.

Mercedes has chosen to play up Ferrari’s performance so far. Choosing to send both Nico Rosberg and Niki Lauda into the press with statements of Ferrari being a great threat. It could just be some clever psychological play by the champions. Or it could be real and we could in for a F1 season to be remembered. One way or the other the more than 100 day wait is finally over.

March 16, 2016
F1 2016: Elimination style Qualifying for F1
Formula 1 looks set to introduce an elimination style qualifying session in 2016.

A meeting in Geneva between the Strategy Group and the Formula 1 Commission saw a unanimous vote passed to revamp the qualifying session for the 2016 season. The session will still remain as a one hour session split into three segments. However, with the new format all drivers will have to be on circuit until they are eliminated from qualifying.

Teams have agreed to a general outline for how the qualifying hour will run while the finer details are yet to be decided. The decision to change the qualifying format must be ratified by the World Motorsport Council on March 4. For now, here is a breakdown of how the qualifying hour will progress:

Q 1 –
- Session will last 16 minutes;
- After seven minutes have elapsed the slowest driver is eliminated;
- Thereafter, after every 1 minute 30 seconds, until the end of Q1, the slowest driver is eliminated;
- Seven drivers will be eliminated in Q1 and 15 will advance to Q2.
Q 2 –
- Session will last 15 minutes;
- After six minutes have elapsed the slowest driver is eliminated;
- Thereafter, after every 1 minute 30 seconds, until the end of Q2, the slowest driver is eliminated;
- Seven drivers will be eliminated in Q2 and 8 will advance to Q3.
Q3 –
- Session will last 14 minutes;
- After five minutes have elapsed the slowest driver is eliminated;
- Thereafter, after every 1 minute 30 seconds the slowest driver is eliminated;
- 2 driver will remain in the final 1 minute 30 seconds of the session to determine pole position.
In addition, a penalty system was discussed by the F1 Commission. The penalty system proposes for time to be added to a driver’s qualifying lap time based on his championship position. The good news is that the penalty system didn’t gain much support amongst F1 teams at the meeting.

The introduction of a new qualifying format is rather perplexing. The last qualifying format had very little, if anything, wrong with and easily managed to both deliver drama and build excitement throughout the session. If the aim is to ‘improve the show’ with this radical change then F1 should beware of compounding the complexity of the sport for a new viewer/fan.
February 24, 2016
Hamilton tops final Brazil practice session despite issues

Formula One World Champion Lewis Hamilton topped the timesheets ahead of Mercedes team mate Nico Rosberg for the final Brazil practice session ahead of this weekend’s grand prix, despite a few issues with his car.

20 minutes into the Brazil practice session, Hamilton’s car stopped on the Interlagos circuit at Bico de Pato while the Briton complained of a gearbox issue before heading back to the pits. He then spun his Mercedes heading in to Mergulho and was forced to abandon his lap.

Hamilton returned to circuit again on Pirelli Option tyres to set a top Brazil practice time of 1:12.070, 0.123s clear of Rosberg.

The Mercedes duo proved once again to be leagues ahead of the rest of the field with Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel’s Brazil practice session time almost seven-tenths of a second off Hamilton’s pace.

Kimi Raikkonen hit the fourth spot ahead of fellow Finn Valtteri Bottas – albeit over a second off the pace – with Nico Hulkenberg, Romain Grosjean, Sergio Perez and Pastor Maldonado following suit for their Force India and Lotus F1 teams.

Maldonado faced a bit of a scare during the final moments of the final Brazil practice session when his Lotus went wide through the super fast Ferradura corner.

Young Max Verstappen rounded out the top ten in his Scuderia Toro Rosso only 0.024s faster than Daniel Ricciardo. Ricciardo of course faces a 10 place grid penalty for the race, after changing his to the upgraded Renault engine.

Felipe Massa brought his Williams home 12th fastest, just ahead of the second Red Bull driver Daniil Kvyat in thirteenth not too far off Ricciardo’s time, despite not also changing to the upgraded engine.

McLaren Honda’s Fernando Alonso finished 14th with his British team mate finishing down in 18th with the not-so-unusual-or-unexpected complaints of understeer.

Carlos Sainz Jr was 15th behind Alonso with the Sauber duo of Marcus Ericcson and Felipe Nasr lining up behind him.

That leaves us with the two Manor Marussia drivers Will Stevens and Alexander Rossi who rounded out the final Brazil practice runners.

We’ll be back just before 18h00 GMT+2 for the Brazilian Grand Prix qualifying session, hoping for a cracker! Do join us on Twitter @F1_Madness for live chat, news and commentary throughout.

November 14, 2015
F1 2015: Texas GP Qualifying Report – Rosberg On Pole

Mercedes driver Nico Rosberg made the most of the wet conditions around the Circuit of the Americas to secure his third consecutive pole position start.

The session which started under cloudy skies and incessant rain got underway with most of the drivers filing out onto the circuit as soon as possible. The first to fall victim to the treacherous conditions was Toro Rosso driver Carlos Sainz who incurred significant damage on the front suspension of hitting the barrier.

The conditions did provide an opportunity for smaller teams to make the most of it however the driveability of the circuit decreased as the second part of qualifying wore on. Neither McLaren driver was able to advance and Jenson Button was soon quoted as saying that conditions were too dangerous to be driving in.

A delay of ten minutes followed the second part of qualifying as the safety car inspected conditions. It became evident, as the pause in action continued, that further running would be unlikely. As it were, a message from Race Control a short while later confirmed that the third and final part of qualifying had been cancelled.

It means that the times from Q2 will be taken as the starting grid for the US grand prix later on today. Nico Rosberg will head his teammate Lewis Hamilton on the front row while Red Bull’s drivers Daniel Ricciardo and Daniil Kvyat will line up on the second row. Sebastian Vettel set the fifth fastest time but will be demoted ten places on the grid for an engine change. The same will apply to teammate Kimi Raikkonen who set the eighth fastest time in the session.

It promotes Force India’s Sergio Perez into sixth place while Nico Hulkenberg, Felipe Massa, Max Verstappen, and Fernando Alonso will complete the top ten. Weather conditions are expected to improve for the main race.

October 25, 2015
Rosberg claims Suzuka pole after Kvyat crash

Mercedes driver Nico Rosberg claimed pole position for the Japanese Grand Prix at Suzuka in a red flagged qualifying session following a massive crash for Red Bull’s Dany Kvyat.

Rosberg, claiming his second pole position for the 2015 Formula One season, set a time of 1:32.584 – 0.076s clear of team mate Lewis Hamilton.

Hamilton made a mistake at the hairpin, locking up and was denied a final flying lap after Kvyat’s crash.

Kvyat lost control of his Red Bull after dipping two wheels onto the grass coming up to the hairpin and rammed into the barriers, flipping his car along the way.

Thankfully Kvyat was able to get out of his car unaided and was was able to walk away uninjured.

With only a half a minute of the session remaining, it was not restarted handing Rosberg the pole position.

Valtteri Bottas finished third for Williams ever so slightly ahead of Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel. Felipe Massa and Kimi Raikkonen will line up behind them with Daniel Ricciardo starting in seventh place.

Romain Grosjean was eighth for Lotus while Sergio Perez did not manage to set a time in ninth place, ahead of Kvyat in tenth.

Nico Hulkenberg qualified in 11th place for Force India but will drop three places as a result of his penalty for causing a collision with Felipe Massa at the Singapore Grand Prix.

Carlos Sainz Jr. who finished 12th will move up to 11th place, ahead of Pastor Maldonado and Fernando Alonso.

Max Verstappen was 15th after stopping his car on the circuit due to a loss of power and was unable to take any further part in qualifying.

Jenson Button brought his McLaren home in 16th place, qualifying outside the top 10 at Suzuka for the first time in his career. His first run was not satisfactory as his team had not given him the correct engine setting and he felt that the double yellows for Verstappen’s car on the circuit cost him his best lap.

Marcus Ericsson was 17th after spinning off at Spoon early in the session and his team mate Felipe Nasr was also eliminated.

The Manor Marussia pair of Will Stevens and Alexander Rossi will line up on the back row of the Suzuka grid.

Suzuka qualifying photo credits:

Nico Rosberg: Mercedes AMG Petronas

Screengrabs: FOM

September 26, 2015
F1 2015 Singapore GP Qualifying Report – Vettel Storms To Pole

Ferrari driver Sebastian Vettel stormed to a dominant pole position for Sunday’s Singapore grand prix.

The one hour qualifying session started with the expectation of a tight fight for the front row of the grid. Yet, based on pure form and history Mercedes just couldnt be discounted. However, neither Lewis Hamilton nor teammate Nico Rosberg even factored in the final ten minutes of the electrifying session.

Instead it was Sebastian Vettel who obliterated the field with a majestic pole position lap. Red Bull’s Daniel Ricciardo will start alongside his former teammate on the front row of the grid while Kimi Raikkonen will share the second row of the grid with the other Red Bull Daniil Kvyat.

The first of the Mercedes, in the form of Lewis Hamilton, was down in fifth place a staggering 1.4 seconds off Vettel’s pole time. In sixth position Nico Rosberg kept close company with his teammate but set a laptime 1.5 seconds off the ultimate pace.

Valtteri Bottas will start seventh for Williams while Max Verstappen, Felipe Massa and Lotus’ Romain Grosjean round out the top ten. Both Force India driver were unlucky to be caught out by the yellow flag that came out for Carlos Sainz who tapped the wall in Q2 and left some debris on track.

Fernando Alonso’s day at the office wasnt too shabby with twelfth place whilst teammate Jenson Button wasnt unhappy with fifteenth place on the grid.

Final qualifying standings:

September 19, 2015
Hamilton secures pole after both Merc drivers spin off

Lewis Hamilton secured pole position for the Austrian Grand Prix during a pretty dramatic final qualifying shootout session at the Red Bull Ring, after both Mercedes drivers went off track in their final runs.

Hamilton claimed the pole position with a time of 1:08.455, beating team mate Nico Rosberg, who was comfortably quickest in Q1 and Q2.

Rosberg had already claimed provisional pole four tenths of a second clear of Hamilton, but despite improving on his next lap, Hamilton went even quicker and moved two tenths up on his team mate.

Both drivers came out for their final flying laps – Rosberg ahead of Hamilton on track.

Hamilton was first to spin off. He spun under braking for Turn 1 while Rosberg set a personal best in the first sector and went fastest of all in the second sector. But, the German ran a little wide at Turn 8 and slid off at Turn 9, parking his car in the gravel.

That sealed the deal for Hamilton, securing his pole position, ahead of Rosberg and Sebastian Vettel who’s team mate had a horrid session, getting knocked out in Q1.

Kimi Raikkonen was caught out in Q1, ending the session in 18th place. He will however move up to 14th following penalties for both McLaren and Red Bull drivers.

Felipe Massa, who locked out the front row of the grid with team mate Valtteri Bottas last season, will start from fourth place on the grid ahead of 2015 Le Mans winner Nico Hulkenberg and team mate Bottas.

Young Max Verstappen starts in seventh place for Toro Rosso, with Daniil Kvyat qualifying eighth but will drop to 18th after his engine penalty.

Felipe Nasr qualified in 9th place and Romain Grosjean 10th. He however did not register a Q3 lap due to brake issues. His team mate Pastor Maldonado was 11th fastest with Marcus Ericsson and Carlos Sainz Jr behind him.

Daniel Ricciardo managed only 14th after going off at Turn 3. Fernando Alonso registered 15th on the time sheets but both drivers will slip further back due to their engine penalties.

Sergio Perez was 16th quickest and Jenson Button 17th but he’ll start at the back of the grid and also serve a 10 second stop and go penalty as a result of changes to his car.

The two Manor drivers finish up the grid, with Roberto Merhi beating team mate Will Stevens who also headed through the gravel at Turn 7.

June 21, 2015
F1 2015: Monaco Grand Prix Preview – Magical Monaco Is Back

Often words are used to describe things and situations and just as often the true meaning of these over-used words are lost. But if you have ever looked for a true definition of opulence, then look no further than Monte Carlo.

The Monaco grand prix weekend is arguably the most looked forward to race on the F1 calendar. It’s the visual representation of what Formula 1 can and should be. It’s glamorous, drenched in money and diamonds, daringly fast and dramatically out-of-place.

The history of the famous Monte Carlo race alone is enough of a tale to weave the most majestic of Formula 1 stories. For around these famous streets the definitive legends of the sport artfully plied their trade. So rapt was the great Ayrton Senna with the Anthony Noghes circuit that he described it as the most extreme out of body experience he ever had behind the wheel of a Formula 1 car, as if it was a sixth sense driving him around the narrow streets, centimetres from the barriers.

Even in the year 2015 this venue and circuit has lost none of its magnificent charm and remains the jewel in the Formula 1 crown. This means too that qualifying for the Monaco grand prix is as important as ever. It could spell the end before the weekend has even begun considering the definite advantage that Mercedes hold over one lap.

But don’t consign anyone else’s chances to the scrapheap just yet. In 2009, Jenson Button all-dominant Brawn secured the Monaco Grand Prix pole position by a few thousandths of a second over the lacklustre attempt of a car Ferrari slapped together that year.

Then there is the potential undercut on new Pirelli rubber. The supersoft is a choice this weekend and the performance advantage of this particular compound has been nearly two seconds in some circumstances. It has been the case so far this season that Ferrari are lot kinder to their tyres than Mercedes and they will undoubtedly be looking to exploit such an advantage this weekend. However, Ferrari’s advantage isn’t quite as clear-cut as that. Much will depend on the temperatures and it will have to err on the sizzling side of things for Ferrari to have a genuine leg up on Mercedes. Alas, if no one else can stem the Silver Arrows’ dominance this weekend at least the rivalry between Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg should be quite intense.

Last year’s Monaco grand prix was shrouded in controversy thanks mostly to Nico Rosberg’s “mistake” in qualifying. It cost Lewis Hamilton the chance of snapping up the coveted pole position and put the fraying tension between the two on display for the world to see.

In 2015 the story reads a bit differently. Although Hamilton starts the weekend in the lead of the drivers’ championship for the first time this season, he is the one who will have to make the running around these famous streets. Consider Rosberg’s dominant win in Spain and add to the equation that he has quite an affinity for Monaco grand prix and has won on the last two visits to the Principality then it certainly looks like a leg up on his teammate.

The Monaco grand prix is literally the most regal event on the F1 calendar given that the trophies at the end of the race are presented by the Monegasque Royal family. Now all we need to know is who will be crowned maestro of the Monaco streets.

May 20, 2015
F1 2015: Chinese GP Qualifying Report – Hamilton Secures Pole

Mercedes drivers Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg locked out the front row of the grid ahead of the 2015 Chinese grand prix.

The first part of the qualifying session was highlighted by neither McLaren being able to advance to Q2. Jenson Button out-qualified Fernando Alonso who suffered with severe oversteer after having missed the morning’s free practice session.

The second part of qualifying saw Red Bull Racing’s Daniil Kvyat fail to advance along with the Toro Rosso duo of Max Verstappen and Carlos Sainz Jr. Pastor Maldonado also failed to advance to the final shoot-out and will provisionally start the Chinese grand prix in eleventh place.

Lewis Hamilton layed down an early marker in the top ten shoot-out as the double world champion dipped into the 1:35s for the first time this weekend. Nico Rosberg’s second attempt at a flying lap got him agonizingly close to the coveted pole position but the German ultimately missed out be less than half a tenth.

Sebastian Vettel confirmed Ferrari’s best-of-the-rest status be securing third while teammate Kimi Raikkonen endured a scruffy qualifying session to end sixth quickest. Williams’ Felipe Massa and Valtteri Bottas lined up the fourth and fifth quickest times.

April 11, 2015