Tag: romain grosjean

F1 2018: Australian Gp Review – Ferrari Score Opportunistic Win

“I was waiting to put a lap in and wipe the smile off your face”. This was the jibe Lewis Hamilton directed at Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel after Saturday’s qualifying session. “What goes around come around” was Vettel’s retort at the time but he also responded on Sunday with an opportunistic win the opening round of the 2018 season.

Hamilton withstood a challenge for the lead of the race from Kimi Raikkonen in the opening lap as Red Bull’s Max Verstappen slipped to fifth behind the Haas of Kevin Magnussen. The Dutchman’s race suffered further when he oddly spun in the middle of turn one.

All who put money on the fact that Mercedes and Hamilton were going to scamper off into the distance wouldn’t have seen a great return on that bet. Not only did the Mercedes not disappear into the distance but also Raikkonen kept him within three seconds for all of the first stint. Elsewhere, Valtteri Bottas was making slow progress from fifteenth after binning the Merc in qualifying a day earlier.

The race seemed to settle slightly just before the forced retirement of both Haas drivers. Kevin Magnussen was the first to pull over with a loose wheel and Romain Grosjean suffered the same fate one lap later. It was desperate situation for the American team who were running comfortably in fourth and fifth at the time. While Magnussen pulled off in a safe area Grosjean’s Haas required the deployment of the Virtual safety-car (VSC) and later the real safety-car.

Raikkonen and Hamilton had made their respective trips through the pitlane while Vettel remained on track for several more laps. As it were his pitstop coincided with VSC period during which all drivers must run to a minimum laptime. Bizarrely, Hamilton ran well below the prescribed laptime and ceded the lead of the race to Vettel.

The bunching up of the field behind the safety-car also allowed Daniel Ricciardo back into the action and onto the gearbox of Raikkonen. However, while the Aussie got within seven tenths of the Ferrari he never looked like making a pass for the final step on the podium.

Further adrift Fernando Alonso emphasized McLaren’s comeback with a fine fifth ahead of Verstappen in sixth. Nico Hulkenberg brought his Renault home in seventh ahead of Bottas in eighth and McLaren’s Stoffel Vandoorne in ninth. Carlos Sainz snapped up the final point on offer in tenth despite fighting off severe nausea in the cockpit due a drinks bottle failure.

Many will term Vettel’s win lucky but opportunistic is better-suited and fairer descriptor of events. Ultimately, it was Vettel’s pace, and Ferrari’s strategic call, that was the determining factor. Though he ran slightly adrift of his teammate and race-leader Hamilton in the opening stint of the race he remained within touching distance. When the VSC, and later the safety-car, was deployed he was close enough to take full advantage of it.

Similarly, he had enough pace to hold off Hamilton and push the reigning world champion into waving the white flag with a handful of laps to go. The VSC and safety-car has been a well-known and accepted variable in F1 for decades. It’s not luck but merely a part of the sport.

Vettel and Ferrari will come away from Australia with a significant boost in confidence and a doff of the cap to the strategists.

March 26, 2018
F1 2018: Haas and Williams Launch New Challengers

As a new season of Formula 1 approaches the period just before testing commences is the most optimistic time of the year. Right now all new cars are aerodynamically flawless, more powerful than anything that’s ever been built, and lighter than a feather. But all too soon a modest stopwatch will humble them.

The first team to launch their 2018 car was the Haas F1 team. The American team chose to forego a typical launch and opted instead for to release a handful of images online. The release of digital images was no doubt a ploy be Haas to keep their competitors, quite literally, in the dark as to the nitty-gritty of their 2018 design.

Nevertheless, what was obvious from the images is that Haas has adopted a strikingly similar side-pod design to what Ferrari pioneered in 2017 and a considerably more intricate front-wing. Additionally, this early version of the Haas is sporting a scaled down version of 2017’s sharkfin and a significant focus on a predominantly white livery. As the technical regulations have remained largely stable and unchanged the changes from 2017 to 2018 cars won’t be as visually obvious. The most noticeable difference is the inclusion of the Halo head protection system. While it is certainly a big adjustment and change to the aesthetic of the car chances are it probably wont take as long as some might think to get used to.

Williams was the second team to introduce its car with a traditional online launch. Chief technical officer Paddy Lowe and head of aerodynamics Dirk de Beer have designed the FW41. Lowe said the car “has many new features, most of which are not all that obvious, but externally the team has pursued a very different aerodynamic concept which has allowed us some significant progress in aerodynamic performance.”

“All Formula One cars are an evolution of what has gone before to some extent, but the FW41 does involve a number of departures from the directions that have been pursued in the past. Overall, the philosophy we are starting to see emerge is a new approach to the collaboration between aerodynamics and design to achieve the optimum working result.”

While only lap times will tell if Williams have built a quick racecar the 2018 challenger undoubtedly looks more aggressive than its predecessor. In addition, the car has been designed with a longer wheelbase, which suggests that Williams have foregone the low-drag design philosophy of the last few years.

Similar to Haas the Williams also sports the Ferrari-style side pods, which you’re likely to see on more of the mid-field cars this season. Naturally, and so as to avoid giving away any design secrets, some areas of the car has been shrouded in black paint.

Beyond the car that has been designed by Williams this season the other big unknown for the team is its driver line up. Nonetheless, de facto team principal Claire Williams has described the driver pairing for Sergey Sirotkin and Lance Stroll as “exciting” while highlighting Sirotkin’s impressive work with the technical team. Paddy Lowe echoed this sentiment by saying that the choice to sign Sirotkin was based purely on his ability.

The Sauber and Renault teams are the next to launch their respective cars on the 20^th of February followed by Ferrari and Mercedes on the 22^nd, McLaren on the 23^rd, and Toro Rosso on the first day of testing, the 26^th of February.

February 20, 2018
F1 2018: Drivers Who Need To Perform in 2018

In the lead up to any new Formula 1 season speculations is rampant as to who has designed and built the quicker car. Beyond what the factories can deliver the expectations for drivers to perform are equally demanding and important.

For some drivers the pressure to perform is exponentially more than others. In fact, their F1 careers depend on it. In 2018 especially there are a handful of drivers that will need to up their game if they’re going to take the next step up in the careers or even remain in the sport.

Romain Grosjean

The Frenchman’s first foray into F1, with Renault, was a baptism of fire and he quickly disappeared back to GP2, now F2. He impressed by winning the GP2 title and found his way back into F1. However, while he was quick at the then Lotus team it was marred by several crashes and a subsequent ban from the Italian grand prix.

He bounced back and refined his race craft, which thrust his undoubted speed to the forefront. His time at the Haas F1 team started brilliantly as he took the American team to heights previously unimaginable for a new team. However, his last season was tarnished by brake issues and painted him as a bit of a moaner. Still, there is little doubt that if Haas can deliver the car Grosjean will deliver the speed and the points.

But if Grosjean has an eye on a seat at any of the front-running teams he needs to deliver in the car this season. Should a Lance Stroll or the newly announced Sergey Sirotkin not perform Grosjean would be a perfect fit for the Williams team.

Kevin Magnussen

It’s rather difficult to be sold on whether Magnussen has the potential to be great. His debut season with McLaren was a forgettable one and he hasn’t been setting the world alight in either a Renault or his current Haas.

In fact, he’s so far under the radar his name is never mentioned in relation to the top teams in the sport. The likelihood is that he’ll probably have a driver in 2019 but unless he blows away teammate Grosjean this season it’s highly unlikely that it’ll be at a top team.

Marcus Ericsson

Swedish driver Ericsson has been far from impressive in his F1 career. There is no denying that his presence on the 2018 grid is due to the fact that the Sauber team is now owned by Longbow Finance who count several Swedish investors amongst their ranks.

It remains to be seen how long the investors will keep backing Ericsson who hasn’t done much to show any sort of potential. He’ll be up against rising star Charles le Clerc too in 2018. If he doesn’t summarily outperform the youngster it could be the end of Ericsson’s F1 career.

Nico Hulkenberg

The German driver has been rated for many season in F1 and has won the 24 hours of Le Mans on his first try. Still a top driver eludes Hulkenberg and for good reason. While he is a solid driver his reputation suffered at Force India as he rarely got the better of teammate Sergio Perez.

In 2018, he’s alongside Carlos Sainz Jr, one of the hottest prospects in the sport. Given that he’s been in F1 for a number of years 2018 is an important season for Hulkenberg if he’s ever going to make his mark in the sport.

Stoffel Vandoorne

The Belgian driver has had a tough go of it with a Honda powered McLaren and the fact that he shares a garage with Fernando Alonso, one of the best in the business. While Vandoorne isn’t as pressed for time as a Nico Hulkenberg he does need to show his capabilities sooner rather than later.

There were glimpses in 2018 of his speed and he’s certainly consistent. And out-performing a driver of Alonso’s caliber will guarantee automatic recognition.

January 31, 2018
F1 2018: What F1 will look like in 2018

2018 is here and it brings with it the prospect of a new Formula 1 season. Though there is no great change in regulations the modifications for the 2018 season could still have a significant impact.

Aesthetically there is good news and bad news for the 2018 cars. The good news is that the T-wings and shark-fins will no longer feature thanks to a tweak of the aero rules. Like it or loathe it the halo head protection system is coming in 2018. There’s little doubt that the halo will make a significant visual impact to F1 but it’s not the only impact it will have. The two other factors that will have been giving several designers prolonged headaches is the effect it will have on aero performance and the weight addition. While the FIA has added 6kgs to the overall weight limit of the cars rumours are that the halo comes in at around 15kgs. This will likely force teams into trimming weight in other areas of the car.

One of the more preposterous rules for 2018 is the limiting to three power units for the entire 21-race season. It means that each engine will now have to last seven races. This, in the name of cost saving, means manufactures will need to balance reliability and performance on a knife-edge. With only three engines its likely inevitable that all teams will incur grid penalties at some point, including the frontrunners. The irony of it all is that money wont be saved on power units. Spare engines, gearboxes, turbos, etc. are manufactured and carted around the world anyway which means that no money is being saved. Instead the manner in which teams and drivers, and fans for that matter, pay is with absurd grid penalties.

Toro Rosso in particular will be hoping that Honda has solved its woeful reliability record as it starts its partnership with the Japanese manufacturer in 2018. While Honda’s performance saw a slight upturn with McLaren in the latter half of the 2017 season they still have a long way to go to catch up to Renault let alone Mercedes and Ferrari. The Honda partnership does make Toro Rosso a de facto works team, which means a plethora of perks, including a more than tidy injection of cash.

Elsewhere, McLaren and Fernando Alonso will be hoping that Renault has solved its own reliability issues that marred the end of the 2017 season. There is great expectation that bolting the Renault into the back of the McLaren will push it up the grid. How far they’ll progress remains to be seen. Sauber too are looking to recover from one of the worst season on record. They’ll be doing so with the signing of F2, formerly GP2, champion and Ferrari Academy driver Charles le Clerc. Despite jumping into the high-pressure cauldron of F1 there is high expectations for le Clerc who is considered one of the best young drivers.

Another boost to Sauber’s 2018 bid is a new technical and commercial partnership with Alfa Romeo. While the car will be decked out in Alfa red the link up also means access to Ferrari’s latest power units.

The Williams team has announced Sergey Sirotkin alongside Lance Stroll in their 2018 car. While Robert Kubica returns to F1 as the reserve and development driver for the team. It’s a big year for Williams as Paddy Lowe can begin to make the sort of impact the team needs to move forward. The question remains whether the team’s inexperienced driver line-up will be equal to the task. If not, someone like Romain Grosjean could well be lined up for 2019.

With all of this there are still many more scenarios, issues, permutations, and speculations for the new season. Will Mercedes be able to hold off Ferrari and perhaps even Red Bull? What of the intra-team battle between Max Verstappen and Daniel Ricciardo? How far can McLaren go with Renault power? What impact will Pirelli’s remodeled tyres have on track?

January 22, 2018
F1 2017: Abu Dhabi Gp Review – Bottas Steps Up

In the blink of an eye the 2017 has flown by and the Abu Dhabi grand prix has brought the curtain down on another Formula 1 season.

The 55 laps around the Yas Marina circuit may not have delivered the most exciting race that’s been seen this year. Still, there were several important things to take away from the season finale. Not least of all was the performance of race winner Valtteri Bottas.

It’s nearly twelve months ago now that Bottas was catapulted into the Mercedes team following Nico Rosberg’s surprise retirement from the sport. The Finn started the season well enough but faded, dramatically, from contention in the second half of the year. His issues centered on the tyres the team said but it was evident that mentally he wasn’t on the level of the championship contenders.

Candidly Bottas revealed that he’d finally found ‘something’ in himself that aided his mental preparation during the grand prix weekend. It came together beautifully for him in Abu Dhabi as he first beat Hamilton to pole and then absorbed everything his four-time champion teammate could throw at him. And he did so on merit too. He won’t only take an enormous amount of confidence from this win but also the knowledge that he can beat his teammate in a straight fight. All that remains now is for him to do over an entire season. No pressure Valtteri.

While the two Mercs cruised up front Sebastian Vettel was confined to third some twenty seconds off the pace. It was a rather lackluster performance from Ferrari who never posed any threat to Mercedes in Abu Dhabi. Nevertheless, Vettel finished a remote third and for what it’s worth takes second place in the driver’s championship standings.

Despite Ferrari’s many mistakes and issues in 2017 they seem intent to commit ridiculous strategy calls to the very end. In a move that probably seemed like a good idea at the time a decision was made to under fuel Kimi Raikkonen’s car. Ultimately, it meant the Finn was reduced to fuel saving for almost the entire race. Besides the obvious time and focus Ferrari will have to invest in solving their reliability issues it’s clear that many other aspects of the team need to be, at the very least, rebuilt.

It wasn’t a great day for Red Bull either as the Austrian team’s season ended with a bit of a fizzle. While Daniel Ricciardo was forced into retirement with a hydraulic failure Max Verstappen could only finished fifth. In sixth place Nico Hulkenberg ensured that Renault leapfrogs Toro Rosso to finish sixth in the constructor’s standings. It’s an especially important result considering that Renault will in the region of R170 million for sixth in the standings.

Elsewhere, the two Force India’s of Sergio Perez and Esteban Ocon finished seventh and eighth ahead of Fernando Alonso’s McLaren in ninth. In the final race of his F1 career Felipe Massa somehow brought his sluggish Williams home in tenth place. While no points are awarded for eleventh place finisher Romain Grosjean the Haas driver delivered a brilliant drive, which a stunning overtake on Lance Stroll. Sauber’s Pascal Wehrlein was equally impressive in fourteenth.

Although the season may have officially drawn to a close attention immediately turned to 2018 with the unveiling of a new F1 logo. The white and red logo, in use for the last 23 years, has been replaced with a more modern and dynamic design that adds some much needed freshness. Roll on 2018.

All images courtesy of Pirelli Motorsport

November 27, 2017
2017 United States Grand Prix: Thursday Press Conference – Part 2

PART TWO – DRIVERS: Fernando ALONSO (McLaren), Kevin MAGNUSSEN (Haas), Romain GROSJEAN (Haas), Nico HÜLKENBERG (Renault)

Q: Let’s start with Fernando Alonso. Two-time Formula One World Champion who’s just announced a new deal with McLaren that I think will take you to 17 seasons in Formula One. Tell us your feelings, and also what remains for you to achieve here?

Fernando ALONSO: Well, the feelings are great, obviously. It’s a good day for me, announcing next year, I will be back here with McLaren and obviously happy and proud to continue this relationship. It has been three difficult seasons for us, we are not as competitive as we wanted and now I think it’s time to change this situation and hopefully next year to be back in the positions that McLaren belongs and hopefully give something to our fans that have kept supporting us for the last three years. That will be the main thing for next year. As I’ve said, happy to arrive to this agreement at the end.

Q: On that topic, obviously you’re switching to the Renault engine for next year which has this season so far won two grands prix and had ten other podiums. Is that the kind of thing you have in mind from McLaren-Renault next season?

FA: We’ll see. I think every years the projects are a little bit different. You never know what you can achieve with the new cars. Sometimes you go to the first winter test and have a nice surprise and are quicker than you expect; sometimes you have bad surprises and you are a little bit slower and something is not according to plan. Let’s see what we can do next year – but definitely very happy again to have a Renault engine on my car. I have a very strong relationship with Renault from many, many years now. I’ve been working with them since then, even on my karting school etcetera, so extremely proud to also drive for a Renault engine.

Q: And a final comment on the colour of your cap, all part of the Susan Komen initiative this weekend.

FA: Yes. Obviously I think the whole of Formula One is given big support to all the women that are fighting constantly with breast cancer. I think we want to pass the message that they are not alone, they have a lot of support. With all the necessary things and controls they can make in advance, I think there are many, many hopes and they are not alone.

Q: Romain Grosjean, on home soil – kind of – with Haas, off the back of a double-points finish in Japan that moved you up in the Constructors’ Championship as well, what’s the mood like in the team at the moment, going into this weekend.

Romain GROSJEAN: The mood is pretty good. It has been since the first day, to be fair, even through the highs and lows. It was really good to have a double-points finish in Japan. Japan and Monaco, which are two very difficult tracks. So, it shows the team is doing great progress. We’re coming here of course very motivated as always. Pretty special grand prix because it’s the home race for the team. We just need to keep our feet on the ground and start from zero every weekend and build up from there but you know it’s only the second year of the team and we are fighting with Renault, Toro Rosso, Williams in the Constructors’ Championship – and they are teams that have been here for a very long time, so you can be very proud of that. We know where are our strengths, we know our weakness and we are working on that for the future – but I think there is a lot of potential in the team to move up the ranks.

Q: On that subject, Fernando’s planning on moving up the grid next year, Nico’s definitely planning on moving up the grid next year. How are Haas and yourself going to move up the grid in the face of that competition?

RG: Well who isn’t? That’s the real question! For sure McLaren is going to be a competitive team next year. We have less experience than others. I think that year was a really good test for us and knowing that we were coming with a change of regulation, to see what we could do. We’ve done pretty well. I’m thinking that, I’m hoping that next year we go up another level, which everyone obviously does – but I think, as I say, we’ve got more potential to unlock and we’re going to try to do that. We know where we’ve been good, we know where we haven’t been good and obviously now the key is to work on where we’ve been weak.

Q: Nico, a new teammate in Carlos this weekend and going forward. Do you expect him to give you a hard time this weekend in Austin, or indeed in the last four races or is that more likely to come next season?

Nico HULKENBERG: No, definitely a harder time probably than so far this year. Obviously he’s got a few challenges on his plate, changing team at the back end of the season is not the easiest situation. There are a lot of new things that he has to get used to: car, team, people but I’m sure he will be on a decent level straight away. I look forward to working alongside him. Obviously four important and intense races now ahead of us so yeah, we need to focus and do a good job.

Q: Do you know him much already?

NH: I’ve known him obviously from this year and last year, the time that he’s been in Formula One but probably get to know him a lot more in the next couple of weeks.

Q: Obviously the Renault’s been quite an interesting story, the way it’s developed this year; pretty much since Silverstone it seems to me you’ve generally been the fourth fastest car in qualifying at most venues; where has that come from?

NH: Well, it’s come from hard work, good development, everybody back at the factory has done a good job during these last couple of months and that’s it pretty much. We’ve brought updates for the car and transformed the car into a much better performing car on all sorts of different tracks so we’re in a good position. As we say, we still obviously have quite a bit to do this year. We want to not finish where we are now, in terms of team championship position, so it’s important for us to do a good job in the last four races.

Q: So based on the growth that you’ve seen this last few months, obviously you think you’re going to be able to race Mercedes, Ferrari, Red Bull in 2018? Is that too much to expect?

NH: I think that’s asking a bit much if you see the gap and the advantages they have at the moment. It’s a pretty difficult task to close that gap. I think if we can halve that gap, we’ve already done a very good job. It’s not that they’re not doing a fantastic job so TBC but obviously we will make up as much as we can.

Q: Kevin, four points finishes in 2017 with a best of seventh, how would you sum up the season so far in terms of your own satisfaction?

Kevin MAGNUSSEN: I think it’s been an up-and-down season with a lot of potential and perhaps also some missed potential at times this year but we’ve still had some good races and the potential seems to be good in the car. When we’re quick, we’re very quick and competitive but our lows have perhaps been a bit too low. That’s something to work on for next year, consistency, and getting the car more regularly at its best. I think we can move towards that; whether we can be constantly fourth best team, I don’t think so. It’s not realistic at least but we will do what we can and see.

Q: Now you and Romain are now noticeably more close together more often, starting to become a bit of a Force India scenario. How much are you enjoying that?

KM: Well, we haven’t crashed into each other this year so it’s not like that but we’re enjoying it and it’s good that we’re both getting the most out of the car and just shows that we’re fighting hard and doing our best.

QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

Q: (Chris Medland – Racer) Fernando, I believe it’s a one year contract extension you’ve signed; is that correct and if so what’s the thinking? Are you looking beyond next year, do you want options open?

FA: We don’t talk too much about the contracts, the inside but no, it’s not one year.

Q: (Andrew Benson – BBC Sport) Fernando, just following that up, I’m told it’s a multi-year contract but presumably that’s got options in it. Do you then foresee potentially at McLaren if things go well next year and then maybe into the future Le Mans, Indy 500? Are these things that you’re talking about with McLaren as well?

FA: We’ll see, I think it’s just talking too much ahead. We have enough to do for next year, to put McLaren again at the top of the grid and that’s the first priority right now. I think on my personal side there are no other priorities than Formula One at the moment but with a door open for different series and different goals that I always believed that you need to win in other series if you want to be a more complete driver, a better driver, because motorsport is not only Formula One. Even if it’s still the priority, we will see what the future brings.

Q: (Ysef Harding – Xiro Xone News) Romain, you and your wife recently worked on a cookbook together, Cuisine and Confidences. Can you tell us a little bit about the book and what went into it, the journey that you take because it covers two things you love aside from Formula One, cooking and your family?

RG: Yeah, it’s been great fun. It was just through meeting people and we met a guy called Patrick Rougereau and he’s been voted best culinary photographer in the world last year and he actually made my plate look pretty nice which it wasn’t always, so it was a good job. And it was basically… it was basically just a way to share my passion for cooking and every recipe has a story behind it for which my wife writes the text, so it’s all cooking that we do back home, either with the kids, with friends and so on. It was just a great thing to do and I thought it could be fun to see that a Formula One driver can actually do something a bit different than an autobiography and having a cookbook that can give a bit of an inside of our lives through recipes.

Q: Do any of the other drivers have a passion for cooking? Nico, do you enjoy cooking?

NH: No.

FA: No

KM: Just eating.

Q: (Lennart Bloemhof – Volkskrant) Fernando, as somebody who now has experience in Indycar and also Formula One, how do you think F1 can win over American fans? Is the passion for racing different around here?

FA: I think here it’s a little bit more relaxed; you know the atmosphere in the race, in the weekend… The races here are much more unpredictable, what the result can be on Sundays so that is quite attractive from a fan point of view. In Formula One, we know the starting grid on Sunday, we can write a paper now and sign and we will maybe miss one or two positions, maximum, and that’s the worst thing that we have and hopefully we can change that.

Q: (Geoff Gluck – Geoff Gluck.com) Fernando, you’ve seen a lot of teams come in over the years but Haas F1 team has had pretty good success in their first couple of seasons. Have you been surprised at how well they’ve been able to do as a start-up team?

FA: Yeah, definitely, it definitely has been a very good thing for the sport. I think what Haas has managed to do in the last two years is quite impressive. I think the first year we could argue that with the help of Ferrari or the agreements that they had, we will see a competitive team already from race one but I think with the changes of regulations this year etc I think they did an amazing job again, so two consecutive years in a very demanding sport like F1, competing at a good level is a great achievement so hopefully we will see more teams coming with this commitment and with this kind of result and also with Haas with better results in the future will be great as well.

Q: (Joey Barnes – Motorsports Tribune) Fernando, five months ago, you running in the Indy 500 got a lot of people’s attention obviously. When you reflect back at that time, what are the biggest moments you take with you and are you looking to potentially doing something like that again in the future?

FA: Well the moment was… it’s difficult to pick up one moment of that month. If I had to chose one, it would be Sunday: the drivers’ presentation, the drivers’ parade ten minutes before the race. That was an amazing moment: 250-300,000 people in one venue was very impressive, the atmosphere there. But I think the whole months was very unique and opened the eyes a little bit of what I said before: Formula One is just one more series in motorsport, probably the most mediatic one, it’s a fantastic show and we all are very proud to be Formula One drivers and we dream from a very early age to become Formula One drivers but there are other motorsport series that are as good as that and you know I’m a fan of this one, so that was a good discovery for me. Obviously now, with the new McLaren deal for next year I can confirm that I will not be at the Indy 500 next year because there is Monaco Grand Prix on the same weekend and priority next year will be to perform well in Formula One but at the same time I can confirm that I will be in the Indy 500 in the future. I don’t if it will be ’19 or 2020 or whenever but it’s a race that I definitely will experience again.

Q: (Louis Dekker – NOS) For all drivers: Austin will stay on the Formula One calendar probably but if there will be a second Grand Prix in the US, what circuit or what city would you like?

NH: I’ll say Miami, because I think it’s a fun, cool town and to host the Grand Prix there woul be quite cool and spectacular I think.

RG: Well, I think there would be many many places to get a great Grand Prix. Laguna Seca is a pretty cool track, I love Long Beach, Miami would be nice. Why not Las Vegas, so I think it’s such a big country that there are opportunities in a lot of cities.

FA: Yes, the same. There are many places that could host a race. Even Indianapolis on the old circuit.

KM: Yeah, Laguna Seca would be awesome, Watkins Glen, a city race in Miami or New York would be cool as well, so more races would be good.

Q: (Jim Virtuno – Associated Press) Romain, you’ve driven for Haas now for two years; what’s your sense of Gene’s patience or impatience of the development of the team and do you sense that he’s in this for the long haul?

RG: I think he’s the best team owner I’ve ever had. He’s passionate about racing and really loves it to a high extent and that makes the whole team just very enjoyable to work with. I think Gene was initially surprised how competitive and how complicated Formula One is but he’s now got it and he knows that what we’re doing is pretty good. Of course we always want more and if Gene is in Formula One it’s not too… I believe in the long term fight for eighth or sixth in the Constructors’ Championship but try to go for podiums or one win. We know the gap is big right now but that’s where the patience is. But again, as I say, he’s super passionate about the team, the racing, the whole Formula One and that love that he’s got for the race just goes through the whole team and makes it, as I say, a very very good team to work with and I believe a very successful team in the future.

Q: (Chris Medland – Racer) Nico, you’ve obviously got used to having Jo in the car next to you throughout the season and knowing your own strengths and weaknesses against his. Does it refocus you at all when you get a new teammate, that sort of fear of the unknown change your approach at all?

NH: You probably would have thought a little bit but then I think then on the other side I’ve done pretty well this season so far so I think I just need to keep doing what I’ve so far this year, that worked pretty well for me and I’m in a good spot, I’m confident, I like where I am so I won’t get distracted too much. I just need to focus, to get the best out of myself and my car and my crew and I think then I will be fine.

October 19, 2017
F12017: Singapore Gp Review – Ferrari Pain, Hamilton Gain

IN 2008 Singapore became part of Formula 1 as the first night race on the calendar. Fast forward a decade and delivered another first by becoming F1’s first ever night race in the rain.

As uncertainty ran rampant the rain wasn’t enough to induce a safety-car start. Sebastian Vettel, after producing a scintillating lap on Saturday, lined up in pole position with Max Verstappen alongside. The Singapore grand prix should’ve been one where Ferrari could inflict serious damage, in terms of points, on Mercedes given that Hamilton and Bottas were fifth and sixth respectively. But yet again Formula 1 has proved itself to be the most unpredictable sport in the world.

Both the front-row starters, Vettel and Verstappen, were solid if unspectacular off the start-line. In contrast, the fourth-place starting Raikkonen hooked up his start perfectly and rocketed to the front. However, Vettel, in trying to cover his position swept across the track to block Verstappen not realizing that Raikkonen was on the other side of the Dutchman. It resulted in an enormous crash which brought an end to all three’s prospects and collected Fernando Alonso for good measure.

After the fact the crash was deemed a racing incident, and rightly so. While many would cast Vettel as the villain for cutting across the circuit this reasoning would be tenuous, at best. Firstly, Vettel wouldn’t have known that Raikkonen had made an amazing start and was on the other side of Verstappen. Some would argue too that Vettel shouldn’t have cut across the circuit in the manner that he did but consider the fact that any driver, in any conditions, in any race, would have done the same. In fact, cast your mind back two weeks to Hamilton cutting across the track in Italy, in exactly the same manner, to cover the Williams of Lance Stroll.

Whatever your opinion on the incident the one thing everyone would agree on is that it was a disastrous day for Vettel and Ferrari. Where he was expected to take back the lead in the driver’s standings Vettel leaves Singapore significantly on the back foot. Because through all the chaos Lewis Hamilton emerged in P1 and was never troubled on his way to the chequered flag. The expectation that Daniel Ricciardo could take the fight to the Merc was nipped in bud early on as the Aussie had to manage an oil leak from as early as lap 15.

Valtteri Bottas may have finished an uninspiring third but with it has ensured a more than one hundred point lead for Mercedes in the constructor’s standings.

In fourth Carlos Sainz delivered the drive of the day while Sergio Perez in the Force India snapped up fifth place. In sixth, and scoring his first points of the season, was Renault’s Jolyon Palmer who is to be replaced by Sainz in 2018.

Stoffel Vandoorne was able to translate his good form to a seventh place finish for McLaren while Lance Stroll, Romain Grosjean, and Esteban Ocon rounded out the top ten.

As Ferrari rue what might have been Hamilton’s victory has gained him a twenty-eight point lead in the driver’s standings with six races remaining.

On such things do world championships turn.

All images courtesy of Pirelli Motorsport

September 18, 2017
Penalty Fiesta at the 2017 Italian Grand Prix
One of the things the 2017 Italian Grand Prix will be remembered for is the number of engine penalties handed down to drivers over course of the weekend.

Some would agree that the situation is quite laughable as only one driver will start in the position that he qualified in and that’s the pole sitter, Lewis Hamilton. It’s so comical that Kevin Magnussen who failed to get out of Q1 in 16th position will start in 10th.

Penalty Round up

Daniel Ricciardo (Car 3) – Red Bull Racing

Total drop of 25-grid position
- 10-place grid drop for 6th MGU-H
- 5-place grid drop for 5th internal combustion engine (ICE)
- 5-place grid drop for 5th Turbo Charger (TC)
- 5-place grid drop for new gearbox
Carlos Sainz (Car 55) – Scuderia Toro Rosso
- 10-place grid drop for 5th MGU-H
Fernando Alonso (Car 14) – McLaren Honda

Total drop of 35-grid places
- 10-place grid drop for 9th TC (1st 9th element used)
- 5-place grid drop for 9th MGU-H (remaining element used)
- 5-place grid drop for 7th ICE
- 5-place grid drop for 7th MGU-K
- 5-place grid drop for 6th energy store (ES)
- 5-place grid drop for 5th control electronics (CE)
Max Verstappen (Car 33) – Red Bull Racing

Total drop of 20-grid places
- 10-place grid drop for 5th ICE (1st 5th element used)
- 5-place grid drop for 5th MGU-H
- 5-place grid drop for 5th TC
Nico Hulkenberg (Car 27) – Renault Sport
- 10-place grid drop for 5th MGU-H (1st 5th element used)
Jolyon Palmer (Car 30) – Renault Sport

Total drop of 15-grid places
- 10-place grid drop for 5th TC (1st 5th element used)
- 5-place grid drop for 5th MGU-H
Stoffel Vandoorne (Car 2) – McLaren Honda

Total drop of 25-grid places for new ICE, MGU-K, MGU-H and TC

Romain Grosjean (Car 8) – Haas
- 5-place grid drop for new gearbox.
Sergio Perez (Car 11) – Force India
- 5-place grid drop for new gearbox
September 3, 2017
2017 Italian Grand Prix: Thursday Press Conference – Part 2

PART TWO: DRIVERS – Romain GROSJEAN (Haas), Nico HULKENBERG (Renault), Carlos SAINZ (Scuderia Toro Rosso)

PRESS CONFERENCE

Q: Romain, strong run in Spa, seventh place finish means that Haas have actually now gone past their 2016 points total with another eight races to go, so does that feel like progress or is it just a case of having two drivers that are scoring points?

Romain GROSJEAN: I think it’s progress. Last year we scored most of our points in the first two races and then we struggled a little bit to get them but this year we’ve been a bit more consistent. We still need to improve that aspect, clearly, because there are a few races where we were fighting at the front like Austria or Belgium but some other races like Budapest where we were really struggling. It’s all part of the learning curve, we have only a year and a half experience but I think we are much stronger in year two than we were in year one.

Q: Can you clear up for us what’s being going on with the brakes in particular because it seems to have been a bit of a running narrative with your car; either it flies like in Spa or you’re on the radio saying these brakes are doing my head in. Can you explain what the problem is, why it’s taking a while to get on top of it?

RG: I think the problem is the media. I haven’t complained – yeah, in Spa we had one set where one brake – the front left – we had an issue with that brake and we only had two sets and one wasn’t working so we tried to make it work, couldn’t better. Since… actually after Baku or Canada we’ve had the parts that we want to run and we’ve been swapping with CI and Brembo, depending on the track layout and it’s been fine.

Q: So what was it, what was the issue?

RG: Inconsistency, some of it was the running temperature that was… it was the way we were operating the brakes, some of the materials of the brake being inconsistent but in between those two factors we’ve struggled a little bit to find the right balance. It’s better, I would say we’ve reached 100 percent but to be fair, we haven’t complained much about it recently.

Q: Nico, you’ve had more top six finishes than Renault managed in the previous three years combined and you’ve started seventh or better on the grid four times this year and that made Cyril Abiteboul – in our press conference in Belgium – say that he believes now you clearly have the fourth fastest car in Formula One. What will it take to make the next step?

Nico HULKENBERG: It will take more hard work and more of the same of what we’re doing. Obviously we had three races in a row where we were the fourth fastest team so that’s pretty good. The team is working extremely hard. Every weekend we have new bits arriving but it’s all in the detail so you can just feel the package coming together, better and better. That allows me to push harder, build my confidence. Just a nice feeling overall. But yeah, obviously the gap to the top three teams is very large. Also I saw Kimi, how he came flying past me in Spa after his penalty; it’s quite amazing to see the pace they have so it will take a lot of hard work from us and all the other teams to try and close that gap.

Q: The seat alongside you next season is now pretty much the most attractive one on the driver market. What’s the right experience profile for your teammate if your team is to move forward, as you’ve just talked about?

NH: You’re asking me that? Why?

Q: I’m just interested!

NH: I think it’s not my decision at all so probably a decision for Cyril and the management. I think they just want a good competitive driver package. I’d be happy to race with anyone, alongside anyone. For me, I’m obviously focused on myself and make sure everything is moving in the right direction there with me.

Q: And Carlos, coming to you, your 23^rd birthday tomorrow, I believe, so happy birthday in advance.

Carlos SAINZ: Thank you very much.

Q: You’ve scored points in every race you’ve finished this season and you reached 100 career points with Toro Rosso which makes you, in points terms, Toro Rosso’s most successful driver ever. So does it feel like a positive year and do you feel that you’re moving forward in your career?

CS: Yeah, many nice statistics coming together there. Thanks for the info, I didn’t really know but yeah, I think we’ve had quite a successful year for us. We’ve been pushing hard all year to get into the points and the result of that is whenever we finish, we finish in the points, so hopefully we can keep that statistic going. I think the team can be extremely proud of that and we will push hard to continue like that.

Q: And intriguingly, you’re one of four teams, including the two alongside, four teams in midfield from fifth place to eighth place which I believe are separated by just I think it’s 11 points, something like that, so does every race feel like a tense battle for points, and does Toro Rosso have enough in the pipeline to finish on the right side of this battle?

CS: It is a very interesting situation, a very tight battle that we’ve been doing… going on the whole year, really, in which every single detail makes a difference. At the moment, I think it’s even more interesting because we have Williams at the front which are maybe struggling a bit but then Renault and McLaren coming from behind, pushing very hard with development, so I expect the second half of the season will be really really exciting. We will do our best to keep ourselves in P5, P6, in that area there but I know it’s going to be tough.

Q: Before we throw it open to the floor, just asking everyone about Ferrari’s seventieth anniversary being celebrated this weekend, just one particularly Ferrari Formula One memory… can be from your childhood or from your racing experience in Formula One. Just pick one in particular. Romain?

RG: Ferrari is… when you’re a kid, one of my first cars must have been red and that’s the Ferrari spirit. Memories in Formula One, I guess every time they went to Monza I could see all the tifosi going crazy and it’s very very special and I guess being a Ferrari driver is one of the best things in the world.

NH: Memories obviously going back to when I was still a teenager and I was a kid, looking at Michael when he was scoring many many world titles with Ferrari. These were the years when I was dreaming about Formula One and obviously working towards it and a lot of history written there and a very special brand.

CS: Yes, probably the same as Nico, watching Michael either win or lose titles when I was starting to follow Formula One, was probably my best and biggest memory at the moment but the thing that really impressed me a lot is when I arrived to Monza in 2015 for my first Formula One race and I saw all the tifosi queueing in the paddock and trying to get an autograph of all the drivers. It’s probably the most special feeling you can have, to see them all queueing, doing half an hour of queues every day just to get a sign and it’s incredible.

QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

Q: (Manuel Franco – Diaros As) Carlos, has there been any change about your future because there are rumours of Honda, Toro Rosso, Renault and a question to Nico, do you like Carlos as teammate for next year?

CS: I’ll go first. Well, one thing I’ve learned this year is to comment in (indistinct) is not the best thing to do in press conferences.

RG: What are you talking about?

CS: Apart from that, I think I was very clear after Austria what I want and I want of my future. I have full trust in Red Bull that they’re going to do the right thing for me. It’s all in their hands. I have full trust in them, they’ve always done the right thing for me in my career and I hope it goes like that.

Q: Nico, you shook your head when he asked the question.

NH: Yeah, to go back to your question, 23 is too young, sorry!

Q: (Alex Combralier – Nextgen-Auto) Romain, we know that in Monza it is one of the toughest braking points of the season and particularly at the first turn so do you now have full confidence in your brakes, in Carbon or Brembo?

RG: I think we are on top of things.

Q: (Peter Farkas – Auto Motor) Nico, it’s been mentioned that the Renault car is now very quick, also in race trim, not only in qualifying. Could you please describe how different the car behaviour feels from the cockpit since the latest big aerodynamic update with the new floor, where it feels quicker especially in quick corners, slow corners, braking things like that?

NH: Well, everywhere pretty much. The updates that we’ve introduced at Silverstone just made the car a lot more competitive so especially the aerodynamics, I think they work a lot better, allows me to brake later, to carry more speed into the corners, to get on the power earlier so overall it’s just a much better (indistinct) scenario, more grip, allows you to go faster, quite simple.

Q: (Louis Dekker – NOS) Carlos and Nico, there’s been a lot of talk in the Dutch press about Max, his problems with the Renault engine and the reliability. Can you tell us what your experience has been in the twelve races?
CS: I think the works driver can answer that better.

NH: Well, what did I have, I think I had the gearbox problem in Monaco. Apart from that, obviously another gearbox penalty in Budapest but engine-wise I think I’ve been pretty OK.

Q: (Silvia Arias – Parabrisas) For all three drivers: which are the new parts or modifications do you have for this race and especially on your cars?

RG: We’ve got a rear wing for here. There’s a front wing flap going with it, that’s mainly what we’ve got here.

NH: Yeah, it’s just the low downforce configuration really for Monza, a few small things to try, to test tomorrow on the floor, that’s it.

CS: Same really: low downforce configuration for the weekend and we will try some bits and bobs for hopefully upcoming races but nothing that we will run.

Q: (Ysef Harding – Xiro Xone News) Romain, with all this good food here in Italy and you love to cook, what is your favourite Italian dish?

RG: That’s a good question, how long have you got in front of you? Italian kitchen cooking is amazing. Between the north and the south it is so different that I cannot really pick up one. From the simple pizza that you can find on the motorway to the three Michelin star chefs that I know in Italy, it’s all amazing.

August 31, 2017
F1 2017: Belgium Gp Preview – Spa Kicks of Second Half of F1 2017

The 2017 Formula 1 season resumes this weekend at the celebrated Spa-Francorchamps circuit in Belgium. As one of the most iconic and beloved circuits in the world the Belgian race weekend is eagerly recommended as one of the great races to attend in your lifetime.

The reason for it isn’t only the grand circuit, which encompasses such memorably brave corners like Eau Rouge, Pouhon, or Blanchimont. Instead it’s the atmosphere created by the fervent supporters, being in the heart of the Ardennes forest, and watching the best driver in the word’s most elite racing series attempt to conquer the most classic circuit of them all.

Often classified as the driver’s track at 7.5 kilometers Spa comprises of everything that makes a circuit great. Several elevation changes, off chamber corners, and a slew of overtaking opportunities should make the 44 laps a must watch.

The high average speed of the circuit, and its layout, calls for a low downforce setup to be coupled with a good amount of power output. It sounds tailor-made for Mercedes and they will start the race weekend as favourites.

Their most likely challengers are unlikely to be either Daniel Ricciardo or Max Verstappen. One of the most disappointing aspects of the 2017 season is the fact that Red Bull didn’t hit the ground running. With the major regulation change it was expected that the Austrian-based team would be challenging for the titles in 2017 but this aspiration is a bridge too far for them now with only nine races remaining in the season.

Nevertheless, team principal Christian Horner believes that his team will “at least” be able to match Ferrari’s pace for the remainder of the season. Their rate of development has been impressive especially since the Spanish gran prix. But it’s a bold statement given that Ferrari will be throwing everything at the remaining races in order to secure the respective drivers and constructors championship titles.

The championship battle between Ferrari and Mercedes is likely, and hopefully, one that will go down to the wire at the season-ending Abu Dhabi grand prix. However, a single misstep in any of the next nine races could put serious pains to gaining the coveted trophies.

For Mercedes, the gains have to come from improving the downforce of their 2017 car especially for the races that follow after the Belgian and Italian grand prix. “We definitely do have work to do, they [Ferrari] are quick through the corners, and we need to work on that. We need to work on our maximum-downforce package, that’s the main thing,” Mercedes driver Valtteri Bottas confirmed.

It’s not straightforward for Ferrari either. They’ve been lacking a bit of pace at certain races, most recently, Silverstone. However, the last race before the summer break was a momentum-building, and important, one-two victory.

It means that Ferrari will arrive in Belgium with confidence and with two drivers who can run right at the sharp-end. What’s more, championship leader Sebastian Vettel firmly believes that the team has identified its areas of weakness and is now more able to set about improving the car.

Arguably, Spa is one of the circuits where Kimi Raikkonen excels most. As a five-time winner and with impressive performances in the last two Raikkonen isn’t too bad a bet for victory this weekend, if Vettel isn’t in second.

August 23, 2017