F1 Madness

Tag: sebastian vettel

  • F1 2019: French Gp Review – Mercedes Dominate…Again

    F1 2019: French Gp Review – Mercedes Dominate…Again

    A cursory scroll through social media comments would easily lead you to the conclusion that the 2019 French grand prix is not one that will down in history as a great race. Heck, it’s likely to be remembered for the exact opposite.

    Unlike Canada’s Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, with several pitfalls mere centimeters away, the acres of run-off area at the Paul Ricard circuit doesn’t offer anywhere close to the same on-the-edge challenge. Here the vast asphalt run-offs do nothing more than take away the challenge of driving an F1 car.

    But sanitized racetracks are hardly F1’s biggest issue. The teams, Liberty Media, and the FIA are currently in discussion about regulations for 2021 and they would do well to use the French grand prix, and the fans’ response to it, as a case study for what needs to change in the sport.

    Before then there is still a season, or two, to run and the latest race in France was little more than a Sunday afternoon drive for Lewis Hamilton. The Mercedes driver led every one of the 53 laps and seemingly had more pace to unleash if he felt like it. As it were Valtteri Bottas could mount no serious challenge and Hamilton won the race by 18 seconds. A late race VSC and Bottas’ difficulty in getting his tyres switched on afterwards nearly gave Charles Leclerc a run at second but the Ferrari driver ultimately finished third. Max Verstappen maintained fourth in a rather lonely race as Sebastian Vettel recovered from seventh on the grid to finish fifth.

    Perez penalty

    While most of the drivers kept their noses clean into the first few corners after lights out Sergio Perez quick decision to take to the run-off area netted him a five-second penalty. The Racing Point driver followed the letter of the law by rejoining the track at the stipulated point. But his trip through the run-off gained him a position and therefore a lasting advantage warranting the penalty.

    lecatselletsunday45-797703Ricciardo penalties

    The only bit of excitement surrounded the fight for seventh between Lando Norris, Daniel Ricciardo, Kimi Raikkonen, and Nico Hulkenberg. Norris well in control of his seventh place was hit with hydraulic issues that meant not only an inability to use DRS but also the gradual loss of power steering. Nevertheless, the impressive rookie soldiered on until the very last lap when he fell victim to Ricciardo, Raikkonen, and Hulkenberg.

    Ricciardo’s move on Norris saw the McLaren driver forced off the track which he followed up with a pass, with all four wheels off the circuit, on Raikkonen moments later. The three drivers were summoned to the stewards after the race which resulted in Ricciardo receiving two five-second penalties. Unfortunately for the Aussie driver the rules are rather black and white and clearly state that a penalty must be awarded for, first, crowding another driver off the track, and second, for completing a pass with all four wheel off the track. The Renault driver dropped out of the points to 11th overall but wasn’t apologetic about providing “some entertainment” for the fans.

    Carlos Sainz finished a remarkable sixth in what has been McLaren’s best race to date in 2019. The rejig of the results, following Ricciardo’s penalties, means that Raikkonen finished an impressive seventh with Nico Hulkenberg in eighth for Renault. Despite his issues Norris was ninth ahead of Pierre Gasly in tenth.

    Pierre Gasly

    One of the things that are almost always a certainty is that when a driver gets to his home race he ups his game. But this wasn’t the case for Frenchman Pierre Gasly whose weekend was nothing short of embarrassing. While teammate Verstappen was solidly in fourth Gasly trundled around behind both McLarens, both Renaults and an Alfa Romeo.

    lecatselletsunday13-640986Riccardo’s penalties meant that Gasly was classified as tenth but in reality the Red Bull driver finished 11th on the track. As a Toro Rosso driver Gasly impressed Red Bull enough to earn the call-up to the big team but he has come nowhere near to proving that he deserves to be in the seat. While Verstappen has scored 100 points in 2019 Gasly’s tally is a mere 36.

    Christian Horner’s demeanour after the race was one of barely-concealed irritation at Gasly’s performance. History reminds that Red Bull, in the form of Horner and Dr. Helmut Marko, can be ruthless when it comes to driver demotions, just ask Dannil Kvyat. If Gasly continues in the same vein he may well be replaced, ironically, by Kvyat before the year is out.

    No such issues exist at Mercedes who roll on in 2019 with yet another victory. There are those who would point out that the Ferrari and Red Bull eras were as dominating as this era’s seemingly unconquerable Mercedes. But even the heyday of Michael Schumacher and Sebastian Vettel doesn’t quite stack up to the utter command that Mercedes has over Formula 1.

    Lewis Hamilton’s latest win in France takes Mercedes’ tally to ten consecutive race win if you include the last two races of 2018. Of the 107 races, so far, in the Hybrid era Mercedes have won a staggering 80 of which 50 have been one-two victories. It is difficult to imagine that this number wont increase to 81 victories at this weekend’s Austrian Gp.

  • F1 2019: Race Preview – The French Connection

    F1 2019: Race Preview – The French Connection

    With the Canadian grand prix and all its accouterments consigned the history books Formula 1 turns the page to the eighth round of the season and France’s Paul Ricard circuit.

     Renault progress

    The season so far for the French works team has been well below par. Team principal Cyril Abiteboul and others in charge of the F1 project are likely to admit that the team has not achieved its projections, so far, in 2019.

    The big money signing of Daniel Ricciardo from Red Bull would have been a morale boosting shot in the arm for most at Renault. The highly rated Australian has won several grand prix and is expected to excel no matter the car he drives. But there have, expectedly, been some teething issues in joining a completely new environment. So much so that apart from a standout Canadian grand prix weekend Ricciardo has been somewhat anonymous in 2019.

    Nevertheless, Renault and Abiteboul appear to be committed to Formula 1 and making their way back to the front of the sport. A repeat performance of sixth and seventh this weekend for Renault would go down well on home soil.

     gaslyPierre Gasly

    As Ricciardo’s replacement at Red Bull Pierre Gasly hasn’t had any easy time of it. The Frenchman has struggled to find his feet at the team and has been emphatically out-performed by teammate Max Verstappen. Yes, Verstappen, with his heaps of talent, isn’t your average teammate but Gasly is in a top-flight team where he is expected to turn in performances befitting the equipment at his disposal.

    There is every chance that Gasly could come good in the Red Bull but for his sake it has to be sooner rather than later. Rumours linking Reanult’s Nico Hulkenberg to the Red Bull seat are already making the rounds and given Gasly’s run of results this season it isn’t unfathomable to imagine Hulkenberg in the Red Bull cockpit.

     Romain Grosjean

    Although he was born in Switzerland Romain Grosjean is very much a Frenchman and will be keen to do well in his home race. It hasn’t been an easy season for Grosjean as Haas F1 has struggled to unearth their tyre issues on race day. So far, Grosjean has contributed only two points to the team’s tally of sixteen points in 2019.

    grosjeanOnce a teammate to Fernando Alonso at Renault Grosjean’s career has been somewhat of an anomaly. As a bonafide winner in the GP2 series he came into F1 with a good reputation. His speed though never materialized. His second go at F1 at Lotus alongside Kimi Raikkonen finally began to reveal his talents. A slew of podium finishes in 2013 upped his stock in F1 but it was followed by a miserable two years in which Lotus produced an equally miserable car. Still, he secured a hard-earned podium at Spa in 2015 but his career was blotted by several outrageous first-lap crashes.

    His move to Haas F1 came on the eve of Renault’s announcement that they would return to F1. Nevertheless, he seemed to slot into the newly formed American team with ease. But despite again slowing flashes of real talent and speed he simply hasn’t been consistent enough to catch the eye of any of the top teams. At the age of 33 Grosjean could be one of the unfilled talents in F1.

     Paul Ricard

    The Paul Ricard circuit’s 15-turn layout comprises a variance of corners that dictates a compromise on set-up. The first sector of the lap consists of lower speed corners where traction and good braking performance is most rewarded. Quicker corners characterize the middle sector of the circuit while the medium-downforce track also features three long straights that demand a lot from the power units.

    The higher speed sections of the track will mean that lateral grip is increased and therefore the tyres are put under more stress. It might place enough strain and wear on the tyres to open up some intriguing strategies for Sunday’s race.

  • F1 2019: Canadian Gp Review – Hamilton Wins…Sort of

    F1 2019: Canadian Gp Review – Hamilton Wins…Sort of

    There are several points, performances, and moments from the 2019 Canadian grand prix that are worth mentioning in the customary post-race review.

    Elsewhere, Daniil Kvyat held onto the final point in tenth for Toro Rosso while Lance Stroll finished an impressive ninth for Racing Point on home soil. Pierre Gasly brought his Red Bull home in eighth behind the two Renault’s of Nico Hulkenberg and Daniel Ricciardo in seventh and sixth. Ricciardo’s brilliant fourth place in qualifying netted his best start since joining Renault at the start of the season. He would’ve had designs in getting in amongst the podium positions, at least early on in the race, but they proved a touch too quick for the Aussie driver. Nevertheless, after an under-performing start to the season Renault will be delighted with their performance.

    Apart from a few overtakes down the back straight fifth place finisher Max Verstappen ran a fairly anonymous race unable to make an impression on either Ferrari or Mercedes. In comparison to what he had delivered so far in 2019 Valtteri Bottas endured a poor weekend with a difficult qualifying followed by a lowly fourth place finish in the race. Charles Leclerc showed flashes of speed but though it was never enough to trouble the front of the race he did finish third on the day.

    McLaren’s Lando Norris was running well in the points before overheating rear brakes caused a suspension failure and his subsequent retirement from the race. Haas F1’s struggle on race pace continued with a lowly showing of fourteenth and seventeenth for Grosjean and Magnussen. Though Williams still has a mountain to climb the team showed a slight improvement in pace with George Russell.

    At the end of seventy laps at the chequered flag came out Sebastian Vettel crossed the line first with Lewis Hamilton following less than two seconds behind. Vettel had put together the perfect weekend which included pole position and leading all but two laps of the grand prix. A seriously underperforming Ferrari team had finally put everything together and taken their first victory of the season. But they didn’t.

    montreacutealsunday2-600630For the first time in 2019 Vettel and Hamilton were engaged in a race-long battle for the lead of the race. It was enthralling and what fans had been yearning for all season. From on-board footage on lap 48 it was clear that the rear of Vettel’s car stepped out. It sent him wide and onto the grass run-off of the Turn ¾ chicane. From several replays it was abundantly clear that Vettel was not fully in control of his car as he slid back onto the track in front of Hamilton.

    The Mercedes was immediately on the radio to decry Vettel’s rejoining of the track as “dangerous”. There is little doubt that Hamilton wanted the incident investigated by stewards and any other driver in his position would have done the same thing. The stewards awarded a five-second penalty to Vettel for rejoining the track in an unsafe manner and for forcing Hamilton off the track.

    First, it is clear that the FIA race stewards showed a complete lack of understanding of what Vettel did. Several replays clearly show Vettel with opposite lock on the steering wheel as he rejoins the track which is clearly an indication that he was not under full control. Second, every single driver has consistently navigated the exit of the Turn 3/4 chicane with all four wheels beyond the white line. Seeing as this was not noted by the FIA as exceeding track limits at any point during the weekend it is then presumed to be a part of the circuit. By this logic, and the Stewards own allowance, Hamilton could not have been “forced off track”.

    From Jenson Button, to Mario Andretti, to Mark Webber there is hardly any former driver that views the penalty as fair. Social media polls too are overwhelmingly slanted towards the penalty being unjust. The Stewards have, at their misguided discretion, robbed fans of what was otherwise a fascinating race that had all the makings of a memorable. While it will still be remembered it certainly wont be for the right reasons. On days like these and with decision as blatantly wrong as this it is difficult to defend this sport and truthfully one should not even try do so.

  • F1 2019: Canadian Gp Preview – Ferrari to the Fore?

    F1 2019: Canadian Gp Preview – Ferrari to the Fore?

    Formula 1 travels from Monaco to Montreal for the seventh round of the 2019 championship this weekend. The Canadian grand prix track is a relatively short one with a lap time below seventy seconds highly likely in 2019. But the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, seemingly innocuous, has quirks and nuances that have caught out many drivers. From barriers just beyond the edge of the rumble strips to the famed Wall of Champions together with a number of big braking points combine to produce a fast, low downforce circuit.

    Seven races into the 2019 season and Ferrari’s best result is Seb Vettel’s second place finish at the Monaco grand prix. On merit the Ferrari was the third quickest car at the last race which is a far cry from pre-season expectations. But for several mechanical and driver errors in 2018 the Scuderia could well have won the championship and it seemed as if they were on the path towards maintaining the challenge in 2019. While their engine is currently the class of the field Ferrari’s biggest problem with the SF90 is that it lacks downforce. This means that while they may be the quickest on the straight they fall painfully shy of Mercedes, and even Red Bull, in cornering.

    It stands to reason then that in Canada Ferrari should fare better. In Spain they introduced an upgraded engine but because of the layout of Catalunya and Monaco the gains were masked by the circuit layouts. However, a fresh, upgraded engine will aid them on the power sensitive Canadian circuit. While it may not be outright domination by Ferrari the expectation is that they could be significantly closer to Mercedes but only if they check all the boxes, including a seamless strategic and organizational weekend.

    M193406Mercedes are likely to bring an upgraded engine to Canada as will have to manage their own inter-team battle given the manner in which Bottas 2.0 has stepped up in 2019. While he has never taken victory on this circuit Valtteri Bottas has been somewhat of a Canadian Gp specialist. In 2013, his debut year with Williams, he secured an impressive third on the starting grid before taking his first podium, still as a Williams driver, at the same circuit in 2015 and 2016.

    If Bottas could be classed as somewhat of a specialist around these parts then Lewis Hamilton must be the master. His first career win came here in 2007 and he’s followed it with five more victories for a grand total of six wins in Canada and only one adrift of the great Michael Schumacher. Hamilton has recently been quoted as saying that he hasn’t been driving particularly good this year. If he is to be believed this weekend’s Canadian grand prix, where he has exceled brilliantly in the past, could well spur him into stepping up his game.

    If it is to be battle between Mercedes and Ferrari the expectation is that Red Bull would be the third quickest team. But on a circuit layout like this which rewards engine prowess they too will have to tick all the boxes if they are to have a solid weekend. There is the added element of unpredictability of this grand prix which has turned many races here on its head. And it is this randomness that has made the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve and the Canadian grand prix one of the most anticipated races of the year.

  • F1 2019: Monaco Gp Review – Hamilton’s Fortitude Ensures Win

    F1 2019: Monaco Gp Review – Hamilton’s Fortitude Ensures Win

    In 1974 it was his performance at the Monaco grand prix that prompted Enzo Ferrari into signing up a Niki Lauda. Not only would he become a three-time world champion but also complete the greatest comeback in sporting history following a near-fatal crash in 1976 at the Nordschleife. As drivers, teams, and fans paid tribute to the great champion who passed away on May 20 one thing became crystal clear Niki Lauda is an unmistakable and an unequaled part of Formula 1 lore who will never be forgotten.

    On the face of it Lewis Hamilton’s pole-to-flag victory may seem like yet another Mercedes domination. But looking a bit closer reveals a far different story and a race performance that Hamilton will remember for some time to come. It started in Saturday qualifying where the Brit had to “dig far deeper than ever” to pip teammate Valtteri Bottas to the coveted pole position by a mere margin of 0.086.

    Hamilton led off the line easily enough as Max Verstappen nearly snatched second from Bottas. Nevertheless, Bottas 2.0 was never going to yield into turn one and held his position around the outside of Sainte Devote (Turn one). Behind the first three Sebastian Vettel made a clean start to maintain fourth on the road. Charles Leclerc, following a strategy blunder in qualifying by Ferrari, didn’t have the same luxury and was forced into taking major risks to advance through the field after starting fifteenth. He pulled off a move on Lando Norris for thirteenth before, on lap seven, sending his car up the inside of Rascasse and past the Haas of Romain Grosjean. It proved one lunge too many though for the Monegasque driver who tagged the wall while attempting to put the same move on Renault’s Nico Hulkenberg. While he did get going again a right-rear puncture caused his tyre to delaminate and destroy the floor of the car which eventually put him out of the race. As pieces of Leclerc’s floor littered the circuit it prompted the appearance of the Safety Car on lap eleven.

    The top four, Hamilton, Bottas, Verstappen, and Vettel, all took the pitlane for fresh tyres but it was Bottas who would pay the biggest price. The Finn was slow into the pitbox to allow service to Hamilton first, which allowed Verstappen to be released perilously close to the Mercedes. So close in fact that he nudged Bottas into the pitwall and caused a puncture. Verstappen netted second on the road but it was clearly an unsafe release for which the stewards awarded an especially light penalty of five seconds. It was especially lenient when considering that it not only compromised Bottas’ race but also caused a collision in the pitlane amongst a plethora of mechanics.

    With 67 more laps to go Verstappen, Vettel and Bottas had fitted the hard compound tyre with the clear intention of making it to the chequered flag without making further trips to the pitlane. Hamilton however was fitted with the medium compound tyre with the same intention of not pitting again. As the race continued Hamilton became more and more worried about the state of his tyres. At one point, on lap 50, he deemed them completely “dead” and said there was no way he could hold of Verstappen who was harassing the rear of the Mercedes.

    But true to Monaco track position is king and despite a late lunge up the inside of the Nouvelle chicane Verstappen was never able to overtake the race leader. Despite the near impossibility of overtaking in Monaco Hamilton’s drive shouldn’t be undervalued. The sheer amount of mental strength required for Hamilton to maintain his position despite driving on treacherously worn down tyres is off the charts. “That was probably the hardest race I’ve had, but nonetheless I really was fighting with the spirit of Niki.”Said Hamilton.

    monacosunday3-210734Verstappen finished second on the road but due to his five-second penalty was demoted to fourth on the timing sheets. Sebastian Vettel salvaged second in yet another difficult weekend for Ferrari while Valtteri Bottas took the final step on the podium.

    Pierre Gasly took fifth and the fastest lap in his Red Bull while Carlos Sainz scored a brilliant sixth place finish for McLaren. Toro Rosso teammates Dannil Kvyat and Alex Albon were seventh and eighth as Daniel Ricciardo was ninth after a penalty for crossing the pit-exit line dropped Romain Grosjean to tenth. It was forgettable day for Alfa Romeo Racing as Kimi Raikkonen finished a lowly 17thin his 300thgrand prix weekend. Though overtaking is at a premium here there appears to be some light at the end of the tunnel, no pun intended, for Williams as George Russell finished an encouraging fifteenth on merit.

    As it turns out Hamilton confirmed after the race that despite the multitude of radio messages pitting was never on the cards. I wasn’t going to come in – I was either going to crash or finish. Honestly, I was driving around on nothing.” Hamilton’s drive to win the Monaco grand prix was a master-class of precision and mental strength that must be rightfully lauded. And to boot he extend his championship to seventeen points over teammate Bottas heading to the Canadian grand prix in two weeks time.

    All images courtesy of Pirelli Motorsport
  • F1 2019: Monaco Gp Preview – Win or Bust for Ferrari

    F1 2019: Monaco Gp Preview – Win or Bust for Ferrari

    Formula 1 cars have raced through the sun-kissed streets of Monte Carlo every year since 1950. Decade after decade it the Monaco grand prix stood proud as the jewel in F1’s crown. All the legends have won here from Juan-Manuel Fangio to Sir Jackie Stewart to Ayrton Senna to the great Michael Schumacher. And it is unquestionably the grand prix victory that drivers want in their CV.

    More recently it hasn’t done must to endear itself to modern-day F1 fans. And it isn’t because these fans are a lot of whingers either. It isn’t even that in an over-saturated world that they are easily bored, as some would have you believe. Most, if not all, of these fans appreciate and laud the sport’s venerated history and speak in awe of decades gone by.

    The utter precision and bravery that it demands to fling these marvels of design and engineering through the barrier-lined streets is a feat so outrageous it shouldn’t be possible. But it is. And year after year Formula 1 shows up and proves it possible. As gloriously insane a spectacle as that is it simply isn’t conducive anymore to what modern F1 fans yearn for. There is a great hunger for wheel-to-wheel racing, for overtaking, for edge-of-the-seat racing that leaves you, simultaneously, stunned and exhilarated. And this is nothing something that the Monaco grand prix can deliver anymore.

    Monaco F1 Grand Prix - RaceSeveral decades ago the story was different but with modern F1 cars it just isn’t feasible. The width of the cars alone makes overtaking in Monaco, already at a premium, nearly impossible. This means that Saturday qualifying dictates Sunday’s race, barring unreliability. In the recent past, 2016 to be precise, leader Nico Rosberg drove deliberately slowly and still no one was able to overtake the then Mercedes driver. Off the track, for which the action starts on Thursday, it is the place to be seen. Here you can rub shoulders with the rich and famous provided you have the right invite or the ability to cough up an exorbitant amount of money to make it into the paddock or onto one of the luxury yachts.

    The reality is though that most F1 save for months, even years, to make it to a racetrack somewhere in the world and hardly entertain the thought of being able to attend a grand prix on the French Riviera. It seems nearly unthinkable to imagine an F1 calendar with the Monaco grand prix. But what it even more inconceivable is that those who tend to the sport do not take into account what the fans want and can afford.

    Monaco Grand Prix 2014 Safety CarFor the foreseeable future there is a Monaco grand prix and this weekend someone will again loft the famous first place trophy into the air as the winner. In recent years Mercedes have struggled with equal tyre warm-up across both axles of their car. However, recent form in Singapore, also a street-track, suggests that they have begun to get on top of the issue. Valtteri Bottas will be interesting to watch here, as Monaco has never been a strong circuit for the Finn. It’s a good place then to show that new-for-2019 Bottas is not only a force to be reckoned with but also a bonafide championship contender.

    Red Bull won here in 2018 with Daniel Ricciardo despite a loss of power. It could well be Max Verstappen’s chance to shine on the famous streets provided he can keep his Red Bull out of the barrier – a feat he didn’t accomplish in 2018.

    For Ferrari, as in Spain, it’s win or bust. Anything other than the top step of the podium will be devastating to their championship aspirations that are already hanging by a catastrophically thin thread.

  • 2019 Spanish Grand Prix: Saturday Press Conference

    2019 Spanish Grand Prix: Saturday Press Conference

    DRIVERS

    1– Valtteri BOTTAS (Mercedes), 2 – Lewis HAMILTON (Mercedes), 3 – Sebastian VETTEL (Ferrari)

    TRACK INTERVIEWS
    (Conducted by Jenson Button)

    Q: Valtteri, that was a fantastic qualifying effort, outstanding. And to beat this guy around here. I know how difficult that is. The car is obviously feeling pretty awesome underneath you?
    Valtteri Bottas: Yeah, by the time of Quali 3 it was just really getting better and better. Really enjoyed that and enjoyed the adrenaline rush we get from those laps. I’m very pleased. Practice 3 was difficult obviously with the spin, but I just forgot that and moved on.

    Q: But it wasn’t just that, it was a massive margin. And now that makes it three in a row. That must give you a massive boost for the race tomorrow and for the rest of the season?
    VB: It does, yeah. It’s started well, the season, and the way I’d hoped for. I feel better and better in the car, so I look forward to tomorrow.

    Q: Good man. Lewis, watching that it looked like you really needed to get the lap in the first run in Q3. The second run, I don’t know if it was the temperature or what, but you needed to get it done then, and it seemed like the last sector was a bit loose?
    Lewis Hamilton: Yeah, I mean, firstly Valtteri did a fantastic job, he’s been quick all weekend. I think on my side I just didn’t put the laps together. The last couple of laps in Q3 particularly just weren’t strong. I had to go out early, because I had come in too early and I had a low battery pack and so I had to go out first, ahead of everyone and ultimately it just wasn’t a good enough job.

    Q: But the thing here, starting P2, you get that massive tow down the straight, so looking forward to a great race tomorrow?
    LH: Yeah, I’ll be giving it everything. We’ve always got great weather here. It’s great for the team to have this one-two. We’ll try to convert that into a one-two and if I can reverse it I’ll be happy.

    Q: Sebastian, I think that’s probably as good as you could have expected. Looking at the last sector that seems to be a massive deficit for you guys here.
    Sebastian Vettel: Yeah, it seems to be more than an Achilles’ heel at the moment. I just spoke to Valtteri and they were both very happy with the car, especially last sector. For us it was a bit more tricky. I think we got everything out of the car in the first run. In the second run I had to try something different and it didn’t work, but yeah, happy but not happy, if you know what I mean.

    Q: I totally know what you mean. But it’s weird in the last sector, because it looks like the car is planted. It looks like the rear end is planted and you just have understeer. But maybe that’s an aerodynamic deficit, so you balance the car like that. Is that the case?
    SV: The car doesn’t feel bad, but obviously we are not quick enough. In terms of balance we got it more or less right. I had a bit more understeer; what you saw is right. Probably more than they have but I think overall in those sort of corners, you know yourself, you just need the grip and I think we might be down on that.

    PRESS CONFERENCE

    Q: Valtteri, congratulations, it was a stunning lap from you there in Q3. The only man to break into the 1 minute 15s all afternoon, just talk us through that final segment of qualifying in particular.
    VB: Yeah, thanks, it was really enjoyable and to get a nice lap like that is a nice feeling and a nice adrenaline rush. What makes it enjoyable is when the car is behaving, when the car is doing what you want it to do and what you ask it to do. I think as a team we have done an incredible job with the upgrades we brought here and with the set-up direction we’ve taken. But I was really building up to the qualifying after a difficult Practice 3 with the spin and each run I always knew ‘OK, here I can improve’ and so on and I managed to put it together for Q3.

    Q: How good was that lap in Q3 and are you surprised by the gap to Lewis?
    VB: For sure the gap is big. I never would expect that but I don’t know how Lewis’ lap was but this time I got everything pretty well right in the lap.

    Q: Mika Häkkinen has the Finnish record of six consecutive pole positions, just something for you to think about?
    VB: I’m not really a big fan of numbers. Obviously I respect Mika a lot, but at this point of the season there’s no point counting numbers, the point is focusing on the moment.

    Q: Congratulations. Well, Lewis, coming to you, Valtteri made the point ‘how was Lewis’ lap’, well how was Lewis’ lap?
    LH: It was OK; it could have been better for sure. Valtteri did a fantastic job particularly once he got to Q3. It was a bit of a tacky Q3 for me, which is kind of rare for me, but it happens. Otherwise, I’m just really happy and proud of the team for the upgrades we were able to bring this weekend to eke the gap to the Ferraris. It is an amazing track to drive, especially as we come from Barcelona testing, it’s transformed so much since then, so really proud of everyone.

    Q: Surprising gap between you and Valtteri. What do you put that down to? It looked like a very aggressive lap from you that first lap in Q3.
    LH: They just weren’t very good laps. Simple as that, and Valtteri was just quicker today and rightly deserved the pole.

    Q: Sebastian, coming on to you, looks like it was quite a tough afternoon for you – but it’s been a hard weekend for Ferrari, as well, relative to the performance of the Mercedes. Just talk us through the handling of your car.
    SV: Well, it’s been a busy weekend, obviously. Happy to be in P3. I think it gives us a good chance for tomorrow and we look forward to the race. I think we brought some new bits, a new engine, everything seems to work but clearly we are not yet where we want to be but I think in terms of team effort, everybody was doing their utmost. We tried a lot of stuff yesterday, and again today. Different directions. I think we ended up getting the best out of the car for today, which, as I say, wasn’t enough and we’re certainly not satisfied – but I’m very happy with the approach, with the chance that we took, in terms of trying something daring, something I think ultimately will pay off. Not yet – not today at least! But hopefully it helps us in terms of pace tomorrow. Hopefully sets of the right direction for the next couple of weeks.

    Q: Happy with the approach of the team – but were you surprised by the gap to Mercedes?
    SV: I think yes. Of course. Coming here we did not expect… but also we seemed to lose a quite big amount of time in the last sector. I think it’s quite clear we seem to be faster down the straights, so probably carrying a little bit less wing than them, but then obviously in the last sector there are no straights and yeah, struggling a little bit to bring it together, so it’s not a very long sector but they’re quite some corners, and mostly lower speed, and that’s where we seem to be losing the most time. So, definitely some homework. We know this track very well, everybody does, but the conditions today, etcetera, we were not able to match them

    QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

    Q: (Heikki Kulta – Turun Sanomat) Valtteri, your first-ever hat-trick of poles. Is the speed in qualifying your strongest weapon in this World Championship fight right now?
    VB: Well, for sure, in terms of qualifying performance, it has been so far my best start of the year in Formula One – but it’s not only about Saturdays. For sure, it’s super-important and, depending on the track, but also the race performance, start performance. I think it’s going to be key – one of the key things for sure.

    Q: (Livio Oricchio – Globoesporte.com) To Sebastian. You said the last sector was very slow. 1500m – eight-tenths. Can you describe for us if you lose when you brake, the speed in the middle of the corner, the traction? Because it’s really a lot in a very short space.
    SV: Yes, it’s a lot of time – but as I said, obviously we gain down the straights and we lose in the corners. Obviously the first in the first two sectors we have straights to compensate, so maybe you don’t see the loses in the corners but, I think it’s pretty transparent: I think you have access as much as we have to the GPS data. We lose time in the last sector in the corners in pretty much every corner. So, from 10 to 15 there’s not one corner that stands out. Obviously eight-tenths sounds a lot but if you then divide it by the amount of corners, it’s a bit less – but it’s still a lot. In the end of the day, it doesn’t change anything. For us, it’s a lot of homework. The car, I think, certainly didn’t feel perfect, so there’s something we can improve but overall, obviously, yeah, overall we seem to be a bit down in terms of grip and not being able to carry as much speed through the corner, not go on throttle as easy as them, so it’s a loss not necessarily in braking, I think it’s more the speed carried around the corner. It’s not the first time. Obviously here it bites you in the last sector because there are many corners and no straights – but that’s what it is. For tomorrow, we’ll see what we can do. Certainly the straight-line speed will help us to put pressure on the first straight and then go from there.

    Q: (Christian Menath – Motorsportmagazin.com) Two questions for Seb: did you feel that problem during the winter tests as well, the problem in the slow corners and secondly, you always said the potential is there; did you have this feeling this weekend as well?
    SV: Well, I think, starting with the second question, I think we didn’t start off well in Australia, we certainly weren’t extracting the maximum from the car. I think we probably, with hindsight, didn’t carry the best set-up but from then onwards we gradually improved, we certainly were not where we wanted to be. To return to your first question, I think winter testing is now quite a while ago and I think the cars have progressed quite a lot – our car as much as other cars. Obviously conditions were different and so on. We had a very good feeling the first week. The second week things were a lot closer but obviously there was a lot of – how can I say? – positivity after the first week which we carried over and we sort of wanted to carry into the season but so far we haven’t managed to extract that. I think overall the car is good, we have the performance, we need to put it together, we know we can do better so we need to dig deep. Obviously now is not the first time we’re losing out and not the second time and not the third time, so there’s a consistent trend that we seem to lose in some places, independent of conditions: sunshine, clouds, tyres, compounds and so on. Yeah, a bit more fast to understand but if we had the solution surely it would be on the car already.

    Q: (Scott Mitchell – Autosport) To the two Mercedes drivers: are you surprised by the gap? I know you’ve brought upgrades this weekend but are you surprised by the gap that you’ve got over Ferrari? I know the cars have changed from last year, the aero rules are different but how much better does this car feel to 2018?
    LH: Well, we didn’t expect to have the gap, for sure and in terms of whether it’s better than last year, for sure it’s better. I don’t really know what else to say. VB: I have to say that when I saw the times, definitely we expected Ferrari to be closer. Everything based on winter testing, this seemed to be a track that really suits them and since the practice, we saw yesterday that we were in good form. Obviously we have been doing a good job as a team with the direction we’ve been taking the car in, in terms of where to find the performance and how and so on, so we’ve done a really good job on that and I think we’re all impressed. Obviously race pace is going to be important tomorrow and for sure the car feels better. With the new aero regs, everyone thought it’s going to be a bit slower but with the technology nowadays that the team has it’s incredible how (inaudible) can still improve. The amount of downforce the amount of stability the cars have now is enjoyable.

    Q: (Luis Vasconcelos – Formula Press) Also for Valtteri and Lewis: you had a very clean and exciting fight in the first few corners in Baku but there you can overtake later in the race. Here, given how difficult it is to pass, how crucial are those first six, seven hundred meters going to be and how are you planning to play it?
    VB: For sure it’s going to be important. It’s one of the longer runs into turn one from the start so definitely the start performance is important and there’s also a bit of a tow effect for the cars behind so on track, it’s difficult to overtake, for sure the start is going to be important and turn one but yeah, it’s pretty normal and (I shall) look forward to the fight. LH: Yeah, pretty much the same. Just approach it as we always do.

    Q: (Laurence Edmonson – ESPN) To both Mercedes drivers: there’s obviously a few changes to the car this weekend. Valtteri, do you feel that’s brought it a little more closer to what you were looking for and has that helped you? And Lewis, has it upset your balance and where you have the car?
    VB: I think we’ve just been able to improve the general stability and provide a bit more grip from the aero of the car. There’s no different kind of behaviour from the car than any races before, I feel. It does feel a bit different from winter testing though, in a big way, but if it really suits me or not – I really can’t say but definitely the car feels better and that’s always – when you have the grip – it’s always a good feeling. LH: The upgrades always feel good so sometimes they’re transparent – this one’s quite transparent for me and obviously I was not able to utilise the performance of the car or extract the performance of the car so I will just continue to work on that.

    Q: (Livio Oricchio – GloboEsporte.com) Lewis, we always used to see you in the middle (in the press conference) with the phenomenal numbers you have but now for the third time in a row you are on the left side. Is this a sign of something? Do you start to re-think your approach to Q3, to analyse more, because you have lost out to your teammate with the same car for the last three times?
    LH: I don’t think it’s about Q3, I think it’s about the whole weekend and it’s the feel that I have in the car, I just need to work on it so I don’t think it’s really about my approach in qualifying particularly. But of course I’m looking at all solutions and I’ll get there eventually.

  • 2019 Spanish Grand Prix: Thursday Press Conference

    2019 Spanish Grand Prix: Thursday Press Conference

    DRIVERS – Carlos SAINZ (McLaren), Sebastian VETTEL (Ferrari), Pierre GASLY (Red Bull Racing), George RUSSELL (Williams), Valtteri BOTTAS (Mercedes) 

    Q: Carlos, welcome home. You’ve said that this is the most important race of the year, just tell us why that is and tell us what you’ve been up to in the build-up?
    Carlos SAINZ: Thank you and welcome to Spain, beinvenidos. Yeah, a special race for everyone I guess, but for me in particular because it’s my home race. I’m one of those lucky drivers on the grid to have a home race to enjoy with the fans and the Spanish people. It’s my fifth now and it’s incredible how time goes by so quickly. I remember my first time here in 2015 like it was yesterday. Yeah, looking forward to enjoying it, spending some extra time with the fans and the media of course and that’s it.

    Q: Have you had more attention now that you are the only Spanish driver on the grid?
    CS: Honestly I don’t feel it. I don’t feel like I get more or less attention. Probably this weekend I’ll be quite busy. But it’s not something that really affects me much or it’s not something I’m noticing in particular, but if it does happen I guess it’s not a bad thing.

    Q: You’ve finished in the points every time you’ve raced here in Barcelona. How confident are you of continuing that trend this weekend?
    CS: Well, I think one of the main reasons for that is that this track has always suited the car I’ve been racing with. I think I’ve struggled in the past with top speeds and long straights in the cars that I’ve been racing with and in Barcelona that deficit was always reduced. So it meant my cars that I was racing here were a bit better. But also I think I’ve always been comfortable in this track. I’ve had some success also in lower categories. I like the track, I like the challenge, I like racing with the fans behind me. I think after this week, what happened to Liverpool, you can also see that having a crowd behind you also helps and at least to me it always helps.

    Q: Good luck for this weekend, thank you for that. George, coming to you. It’s been a difficult start for you and the team this year. How important is this race in establishing a development path for the car? Are you aware of anything new?
    George RUSSELL: Well, there were a few things on the plan but unfortunately, after the incidents in Baku, they sort of shuffled things back a bit. But it’s normal that every race that we have some things to test. At the moment we’re probably slightly different to other teams because we’re trying to test to understand our limitations and to try to bring something greater a bit further down the line, because obviously we are quite far behind at the moment and we need to find a sizeable chunk.

    Q: What about from a driving point of view, how are you developing as a driver?
    GR: I think very well to be honest. I think it’s a great opportunity for me, being slightly under the radar, slightly less pressure off my shoulders. Really I’m only fighting with Robert let’s say. I’m not really interested in that. I want to be fighting with the guys further up the grid and I’m working really closely with the team and with Robert actually because, as I said, we’re not interested in fighting for 19th place.

    Q: You’re working closely with the team, but what about with Patrick Head? He’s back as a consultant with Williams. How have those discussions gone with him?
    GR: yeah, Patrick’s a great guy. He’s going to bring some motivation and some great spirit to the team, with obviously all of his knowledge. So much history with Williams as well, so I think it will be a positive step.

    Q: Thank you very much. Pierre, coming on to you. We’ve seen progress with you at every grand prix this year; you’ve been chipping away at it. I wonder if you could give us a little bit more detail on what have been the issues with the car, and is it now more to your liking? 
    Pierre GASLY: Yeah, quite a lot of things happened since the beginning of the season I think, overall. Things don’t really come our way so far, but we can see progress. I can feel I’m getting more comfortable inside the car and the direction we are taking is working and making me feel better. I think we saw some progress in Baku. We had penalties and unfortunately I had to retire in the race, but we are going in the right direction.

    Q: You say you had progress in Baku. A lot has been made of Ferrari’s power unit upgrade this weekend, but Honda brought an upgrade to Baku. What can you tell us about it?
    PG: As we said in Baku, I think it was mainly on the reliability side. So I think everything is going as expected on the PU side. I think Honda is pushing massively into bringing new upgrades this season as well. But I think we are really pleased with what they have achieved since the beginning of the season in terms of performance and reliability. Of course we always want more, and we know Ferrari and Mercedes are also pushing and are still a bit faster than we are. But I think with the development we will catch progressively.

    Q: Now, you’ve raced Max Verstappen for many years. How would you assess the job he’s doing this year? Has he surprised you?
    PG: I mean I’ve always known he’s one of the most talented guys, but yeah, I must say he is really good at extracting the maximum from the package at the moment. For me it’s really good to be next to him at the moment, use his experience with the team, with Red Bull Racing, with the car, to see a bit what he does to extract the maximum from the package that we have. He has been driving really well, really consistently, so it’s definitely a good benchmark to me.

    Q: Thank you Pierre, best of luck this weekend. Valtteri, coming to you: world championship leader, best ever start to a season, double the number of points as this time last year. People look for a reason why things happen. Do you have an explanation for why things are going better this year than last year?
    Valtteri BOTTAS: There are many things in this sport that can affect things for sure. Sometimes you’re more lucky for sure, sometime very much less so, but I honestly think why I’ve been able to improve year by year is work. Work with the team; work with my ability; focus on all the single details, and if you work hard it’s only a matter of time before things start to go right. Obviously I’m pleased with season, how it has been started compared to recent ones, that’s very positive. But also one of the things is as a team – the level we have been able to perform at in these first four races has been really impressive. It’s not only me, it’s the team, but it’s a good battle with Lewis at the moment.

    Q: You have a new race engineer this year. How has that shaken things up on your side of the garage? 
    VB: Yeah, I have a new engineering team completely, race and performance engineer, and whenever you have new people around it makes you think about some things differently. It can open up some new routes on the set-up and the direction. It has started really well. We have been learning a lot as an engineering team all the time and it’s getting better and better. So far, so good.

    Q: Now your boss Toto Wolff says Mercedes have been lucky at some races this season. Would you agree with that? 
    VB: Well, I think we have done a great job as a team and at the level we’ve been performing we deserve these results at the moment. Sometimes we might get lucky, like Bahrain, where obviously it was due to other teams failures that we got the one-two, but it meant that we were the most reliable car at that race. So it’s not about luck, I think it’s mostly how the team is performing.

    Q: Thank you. Sebastian, we’re heading into race five, what’s the mood in the Ferrari camp?
    Sebastian VETTEL: Good.

    Q: You’ve got a lot of upgrades coming this weekend. Do you need a faster car or a more driveable car? What are you hoping for from these upgrades? 
    SV: Well, we hope to improve the car obviously. We introduced some bits in Baku already last race and another set of new parts here. Obviously we want to make the car faster here and there. I think we were reasonably quick but not quick enough overall to put the cars on the front row at every event. We’re lacking a little bit, but I think overall the package is promising. We know that we have a strong car; we’ve struggle a bit to put it together, so to answer your question, probably a bit of both.

    Q: It’s clear that you have a big fight on your hands, particularly with Mercedes. How is the team reacting to that compared with previous seasons, from an internal perspective?
    SV: Well, every year is different. As I said, the spirit is good, the team is in good shape, so we’re looking forward to come here, we’re confident about the parts we’ve brought here, we are introducing a new engine as well, so we’ve got some stuff that wee think should help us to be stronger than the last races. And as I said, the spirit is good. Comparing to previous years, at this point last year we were in a better place, we had won some races and overall we’d been more competitive, but nevertheless I think the spirit is as good or better than last year.

    Q: Before I open this up to the floor, it’s the UN’s global road safety week, something that all of you guys contributed to earlier on in the year when you helped produce a video. I’ve got a question to each of you, which is: what can everyday road users learn from Formula One drivers. 

    SV: Obviously we try to go as fast as we can, which is not a good idea on the roads, so my initial response would be ‘not that much!’ But we are very professional, we try to obviously control every situation that we are in, and I think we are very lucky that we can push ourselves to the limit on the race track, so there’s no need to try to do something funny or odd outside the track. I think, as much as we respect ourselves on the track, you should respect other people that are participating and trying to get from one place to another. The road, or the track, you’re not on your own. That’s something that you hear many times from racing drivers at any time they raced in Formula One or other categories, that they respect the other people that raced with them. In the same way, you should respect other drivers that share the road with you.

    CS: Basically, what Seb has said. You must not behave like an idiot on the road on the road. Respect everyone – and wear your seatbelt. I think those two things are the most important.

    VB: We never have mobile phones in the cars – so that’s something everyone can learn not to use them.

    PG: Yeah, I agree with all the comments. I think most of us have been also involved in some loss from road car accidents. In my case, I have been, and I think safety is the most important thing. Respecting others, and yeah, just be responsible when you’re on the road. You’re not by yourself, you have other people around and yeah, I think it’s important to take care of the lives of other people around, and also of your own life. As Seb says, we don’t give a great example on track because hopefully we have the chance to drive really fast on track, but when we get to the road, we must be really responsible and be careful of others.

    GR: I think it’s important to respect the road. On a race track, you know what’s around the corner, whereas on the road, anything could be there: could be a small child crossing the road or whatever. You have to respect the road: it’s not a racetrack.

    QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

    Q: (Livio Oricchio – Globoesporte.com) To Sebastian. You said in February your feeling about the new car was very good since the first moment. You got the fastest time after eight days here. What happened that you didn’t get in the races the same good performances – and do you believe you can repeat this weekend what you experienced here in February and March?
    SV: The honest answer is we don’t know entirely. Obviously the car was really good in testing. We arrived in Australia and we struggled a little bit to feel the same. I think the first four races for us have been a little bit up-and-down. There were stretches where the cars felt really good and other parts where the car hasn’t – but deep down we know that the car is strong. So, we are trying to put the bits together and trying to understand. We haven’t found the silver bullet – but in the last ten years I never found the silver bullet so I don’t think it exists. It’s really getting down to the detail, trying to understand more and more, trying to understand the conditions that we face, and trying to obviously improve and make sure it doesn’t happen again. Now, this weekend will be interesting for us because obviously we had such a good feeling and it’s not so long ago. I’m pretty sure I remember how the car felt and it will be interesting to see how it behaves the next couple of days. But I’m quite confident if we can get to that level then we should be very competitive. As I said, on top of that, we have some new stuff, so let’s see. I can’t give you an exact answer.

    Q: (Scott Mitchell – Autosport) Question to all five please. It seems very possible this could be the last time we have the Spanish Grand Prix at Barcelona. It seems a race at Zandvoort, a Dutch Grand Prix, could replace it in the future. I’d just like to know what you think about the prospect of an F1 race at Zandvoort and what you would miss about this place?
    PG: I think it would be quite a shock to lose the Spanish Grand Prix because Barcelona is probably the track we have all driven on the most since Formula 4, Formula Renault, all the categories. So, hopefully an agreement can be found. I don’t mind having more races, I like races, I like racing and hopefully we can get the two in the calendar. And Zandvoort is pretty exciting if it happens. It’s a really narrow track. I’ve been there only once but it’s really challenging on the driving side. So, I think to put some F1 cars there will be pretty cool and exciting.

    VB: I’ve no information on the details and the politics of what’s going on, but obviously it would be a shame. It’s been in Formula One a long time, this track, and there’s so many fans in Spain and around Barcelona. It’s a nice grand prix for all the fans to come to, also from elsewhere. So, that would be a shame. On the other hand, I’ve raced with F3 in Zandvoort and it’s a pretty cool circuit. There’s a lot of of culture now, especially with Max  being in Formula One for a few years now, so for sure that will be a nice one – but the two combined would be obviously ideal for everyone.

    CS: Obviously for me it would be a big loss in the calendar – but as far as I know, negotiations are still on-going. I think that’s been confined. From me, wishing that all the institutions are going to do their job, they’re going to agree on something. I think it’s in the benefit of Barcelona, of Spain, of Formula One. I think a Spanish Grand Prix has a lot of history in Formula One; I think this track has a lot of history in Formula One, and it would be a shame to lose it. So, hopefully they can agree on something. Maybe not next year because it’s too late, or hopefully yes, just agree on something for the future.

    SV: It would be a shame for Carlos. For the rest of us, we’ve been here many times and I think we’d still do the testing but it’s a nice venue, it’s a nice time of year to come here, so it would be a shame. Maybe we could go somewhere else in Spain. Maybe they could build him a race track close to Madrid. Easy for you as well…

    CS: Maybe in the future I can build one myself!

    GR: I think it would be a shame to lose this circuit because it’s a great one – but on the other hand, Zandvoort is probably in my top five favourite circuits. I think it’s a really incredible circuit, it’s got so much character. Obviously safety is incredibly important these days in Formula One but I just truly hope we don’t get rid of the gravel runoffs in Zandvoort in the two high-speed corners because that’s what makes the circuit so daunting and so incredible to drive. Like I said, it would be a shame to lose Barcelona but equally I’d be very excited to race in Zandvoort.

    Q: (Heikki Kulta – Turun Sanomat) Valtteri, on Sunday it will be Mothers’ Day, at least in Finland. Would victory be a perfect present for your mother?
    VB: Of course it would! Traditionally this grand prix is the Mothers’ Day grand prix and normally my mum comes here. She’s coming this year as well, and that would be a nice gift for her. Also nice for me, to win another one.

    Q: (Phil Duncan – PA) Sebastian, you’re already 35 points behind in the championship race. How imperative is it you win on Sunday. Question to Valtteri as well: do you think Lewis views you as a genuine rival for the championship?
    SV: Yeah, I wasn’t aware but I knew we were behind. At this point of the year, it doesn’t really matter by how much. I think it’s quite straightforward, we need to start scoring more points. The later we start doing that, the worse it looks. The sooner, the better. It’s pretty straightforward to be honest.

    VB: I think that’s something you’re better to ask Lewis – but I would guess so.

    Q: (Lorenzo de Linares Alvarez – momentogp.com) Carlos, as Sebastian said earlier and with the rumours of not having Barcelona next year, you won the Formula Renault at Jerez; would you like to race there in Formula One? 
    CS: What I would like the most is to have Barcelona. I think this city, this track, deserves to be in Formula One. If you could add Jerez, then even better because I (would) have two (Grands Prix in my country). And if you don’t get Barcelona, I wouldn’t mind having Jerez back. That’s pretty much my order of priorities if you ask me now. But this city and Spain, I think, deserves to be Barcelona in the F1 calendar.

    Q: (Ian Parkes – New York Times) Seb and Valtteri, after pre-season testing, as drivers, you guys generally say that you won’t know where you are as a driver, where the car is at, the team as a whole until after the first few Grands Prix of the season. We’ve had those first few Grands Prix now so could you kindly provide an assessment of where you feel you’re at at the moment on the back of those first few races, what you feel your chances are of winning the world title? 
    VB: Well, I think that obviously if you look at the results, it looks like we’ve been dominating as a team, four one-twos in a row but I think on the pure pace of the car, I think there’s not that much difference between us and Ferrari. It’s really been depending on the race weekend. For sure Melbourne we were stronger. I think on pure pace in Bahrain they were better and after that it’s been pretty close and all about fine details in qualifying and what’s been happening in the race. I would see us as not far from par with Ferrari and depending on tracks, it’s going to change and obviously this weekend with the upgrades – from my understanding, Ferrari is bringing a new power unit – see how that works and we have some new parts as well so see how those work. Can’t really count off Red Bull on this type of track and also Monaco in two weeks. It is early on in the season and as always with some regulation changes it’s going to be about the development, how much we can improve from Melbourne to Abu Dhabi.
    SV: I think that first when we were testing we were ahead. Second we were going testing I think we were a match. First race we were behind, second race slightly ahead, third, fourth race behind both in qualifying and race so at the moment we are slightly behind but we also know that it’s not a long way and then things could come our way so that’s why I said it before, the spirit is good, everybody is fired up and willing to fight and therefore I believe our chances also are as good as anybody else’s.

    Q: (Luis Vasconcelos – Formula Press) Traditionally this is not a Grand Prix where we see a lot of overtaking but this year DRS is a lot more powerful than before. Can we look forward to quite a bit of overtaking this year on Sunday? 
    GR: Yeah, probably obvious that we haven’t done much overtaking this year so I can’t really comment on that.
    SV: Yeah, I think we will see some. It depends on the race, obviously, but I think we should see some, we should definitely see more here than if we go to Zandvoort. It’s just true, no? It’s like Monaco isn’t it?
    CS: Overtaking? Yeah. Tiny bit easier this year with the DRS effect and maybe the cars being a tiny bit better to follow but overtaking in Barcelona is always difficult. You need a big tyre delta here to overtake. I think the races are one-stop and if everyone is on a one-stop unless there’s a big pace delta you are not able to overtake. If there is a race of two or three stops, one-stop, a mix, then you have a big tyre delta and that tyre delta helps you to overtake. It depends a bit on the strategy, on the tyres, but for sure the DRS is helping.
    VB: I think it’s going to be difficult still, on this type of track, but it is the nature of the track and that makes qualifying more valuable and like Carlos said, it’s a lot about strategy. If we see one stop, two stops then it could be more interesting but we’ll see.
    PG: Yeah, I agree. Barcelona is always difficult but from one year to another it can always be different so we will see this year but maybe with all the cars being slightly closer, slightly bigger, the DRS effect could make things a bit more exciting.

    Q: (Michael Doodson – Michael Doodson) Carlos, you’ve done your best to be optimistic about the future of Formula One in Spain but we’ve lost Fernando, we’re about to lose this place and worst of all, there seems to be no free-to-air television Formula One in Spain. I’ve lived here and I know how difficult it is to find it. Do you think that there’s anything that can be done, like for example you or your team bringing pressure on Liberty to make sure that Formula One gets a good deal and can be seen by ordinary Spanish people on free-to-air television? 
    CS: Well, you have me, which hopefully helps, to keep this thing going and keep the momentum that Fernando built with his success in Spain. Free-to-air television is none of my business, that’s purely Liberty and Formula One deals with the TVs which I have absolutely no access to, where I cannot put pressure. Spain normally hasn’t had a big culture for paying for watching sports like maybe now they have in the UK or in other countries but yeah, let’s see how that develops. And for the rest, yeah, just keep hoping, no? For myself, I’m going to try and do everything I can, maybe a podium this weekend  helps but I think it will not happen. I don’t know, I don’t know what I can do apart from just talking with the institutions and maybe ask and pray to keep this thing going.

    Q: (Lennart Wermke – Bild) Seb, Frankfurt’s playing in the Europe League semi-finals tonight. Will you watch the game and could it provide some extra motivation for you if Frankfurt makes it to the final? 
    SV: Yes, yes. Yeah, I will be watching, of course. Yeah. Obviously for Frankfurt it’s a huge achievement already to be in the semi-final. Anything can happen. Obviously it’s not easy but yeah, I’m rooting for them as many others will so…

    Q: (Roksana Cwik – SwiatWyscigow.pl) We had a question about Zandvoort and I would like to ask about Rio and if we lose Interlagos. What is your opinion about it? 

    (Q: It’s been reported in the media about the future of the Brazilian Grand Prix and it’s been speculated that maybe a move to Rio is on the cards).
    PG: Yeah, I saw some news about it but I don’t know exactly what’s going to happen. I love Brazil in general. Sao Paulo is a really cool track, quite challenging. I’ve been there only twice, drove twice there. I’ll be happy to continue to go there. I don’t know what’s the plan with Rio but I think I will need to wait a bit longer and see what’s going to happen.
    VB: I think the same thing. In Sao Paulo there is obviously a lot of history in Formula One, many great races have been done there. Many I remember seeing as a kid and so on but Rio would be nice. I have been there once and it’s a beautiful place. No idea for me either what’s happening behind the scenes but I’d be there for sure.
    CS: I like Sao Paulo, I like its track, this old school layout, the history it has from the nineties and also the famous title fight there in 2007. I think it brings great memories. I don’t know, I think it depends on the track they build in Rio. If they build a cool track with cool racing, I think the city’s great, from what I’ve heard. Just ask for a cool track with cool racing, good overtaking and a fun track for the drivers then I think we wouldn’t miss Sao Paulo as much as we will if it doesn’t go so well.
    SV: Yeah, I wasn’t aware that it’s going to happen. I heard some rumours but I think it’s a shock. I think Interlagos is a great place, a lot of history. I think the old track at Interlagos is even better than the current one but I couldn’t think of anything other than maybe the track being a little bit short that Interlagos is almost missing. Yeah, I’m really looking forward to the last race we have there. Who knows, in the future, if we go back? It’s a great place, so it’s a real shame. I’m sort of a fan of hanging on to old things. It would be nice to go back very soon. Maybe have two races in Brazil, since the crowd is usually quite amazing.
    GR: Sao Paulo was where I made my FP1 debut in 2017 so I have some fond memories there. I think it’s an amazing circuit but I think Rio’s a really cool place. It’s somewhere I’ve always wanted to go so if the rumours are true, I would be looking forward to it.

    Q: (Oliver Reuter – Express, Cologne) Seb, you compared your Ferrari with a Rubik Cube. Are you confident that the Ferrari guys are so clever that you can fit all the parts in the right direction? Did you try it yourself and are you confident that they can fix it this weekend? 
    SV: You mean the Rubik Cube or the car? The car I’ve tried, the Rubik Cube, yeah, I’ve tried as well. Easy, sub-two minutes. Yeah, I think we have a lot of clever people on board. As I’ve said before, I think this track will be interesting for us because the car was really working well pre-season so we will see how it works this weekend and how it feels in comparison but yeah, we’re working flat out, trying to make sure that we have the fastest car on the grid and we win all the races that are left.

  • F1 2019: Baku Gp Review – Bottas 2.0 Wins Again

    F1 2019: Baku Gp Review – Bottas 2.0 Wins Again

    Since joining the Mercedes team at the start of the 2017 season Valtteri Bottas has had impressive races. But there was recognition by all other drivers that if you show him a front wheel he’d, embarrassingly, give way. But the Valtteri Bottas that has been unleashed at the start of the 2019 season is far removed from the driver of the last two seasons.

    Finns are notoriously measured in how much they say and at the start of Sunday’s Baku grand prix Bottas let his peerless driving do all the talking. The manner in which he held his car inches from teammate Hamilton made it clear that he wasn’t going to budge nor was going to simply give up the lead of the race if he could help it. His statement was clear – you’re going to have to go through me. That tenacity kept him the lead of the race off the start line and he backed it up with a faultless drive to secure the fifth win of his F1 career.

    Mercedes, quite literally, could not have started the season in a more perfect manner than scoring a one-two victory in all four of the races so far in 2019. Operationally, there are no teams on the grid that can touch the might of Mercedes. They arrived on Friday genuinely unsure of their pace. It appeared that Ferrari easily had the measure of the circuit and a pace advantage that seemed insurmountable. But if nothing else Mercedes must be respected and lauded for the stunning work they do behind the scenes.

    2019 Azerbaijan GPIf it’s organizational brilliance at Mercedes then at Ferrari it is the calamitous opposite. The dubious decision to put both cars out on the medium compound tyre for the second session of qualifying was the beginning of Ferrari’s unraveling this weekend. Not only was the track temperature not conducive to the medium tyre but also strategically it made little sense for Sunday’s race, more on that later.

    It resulted in both drivers hitting the turn 8 wall with Leclerc coming off worst with a wrecked front suspension. Vettel was able to carry on but only managed third on the grid after failing to cash in on the slipstream benefit. Ferrari had gone from a near guaranteed front-row locked out to third and eighth on grid.

    But still they had a chance; At least until it came time to make their strategy call. Leclerc made decent headway on the more durable medium tyre in the opening stint of the race and looked set for good result, perhaps even a podium. But Ferrari has become rather infamous for mad strategic calls and it was no different in Baku. They left Leclerc out on track despite the fact that he was losing, often, more than a second per lap to the chasing pack of Bottas, Hamilton, Vettel, and Verstappen. Eventually Bottas and Hamilton made their pitstops, closed down Leclerc and passed him on track. Leclerc eventually finished fifth with a strategy only Ferrari would be able to explain. A late pitstop for fresh tyres earned the Ferrari driver the consolation of an extra point for fastest lap.

    2019 Azerbaijan GPAhead Bottas had the race firmly in control despite a late VSC (Virtual Safety Car) deployed for the stricken Red Bull of Pierre Gasly. Elsewhere the other biggest incident of the race was a misjudgment on the brakes from Renault’s Daniel Ricciardo who took out himself and Toro Rosso’s Daniil Kvyat. To add to his blushes Ricciardo strangely reversed into side of Kvyat when trying to rejoin the track and has been given a three-place grid penalty for the next race in Spain.

    While Bottas and Hamilton secured yet another one-two victory for Mercedes Vettel trundled home third in the Ferrari. Though the German driver was only a handful of second adrift of the Silver Arrows it will be scant comfort on a weekend where Ferrari brought several updates to their car. Max Verstappen finished a solid fourth for Red Bull ahead of Leclerc in fifth.

    Twice a podium finisher in Baku Sergio Perez was sixth for Racing Point ahead of the McLaren duo of Carlos Sainz and Lando Norris. Lance Stroll made it a double-points finish for Racing Point in ninth ahead of Kimi Raikkonen in tenth who started the race from the pitlane in his Alfa Romeo.

    At the start of the season Valtteri Bottas noted that, during the off season, he’d spent a lot of time hiking in the Finnish woods and eating porridge. Whatever he discovered in those woods and whatever is in that porridge it has transformed Valtteri Bottas into an uncompromising and unapologetic racing machine. Long may it continue.

    All images courtesy of Pirelli Motorsport 
  • 2019 Azerbaijan Grand Prix: Post Race Press Conference

    2019 Azerbaijan Grand Prix: Post Race Press Conference

    DRIVERS

    1 – Valtteri BOTTAS (Mercedes)

     2 – Lewis HAMILTON (Mercedes)

    3 – Sebastian VETTEL (Ferrari)

     

    TRACK INTERVIEWS

    (Conducted by Paul Di Resta)

     

    Q: Valtteri, an absolutely perfect day you’ve had. Lights out to flag, a bit of pressure from Lewis, but controlled and payback from last year and that win that went away?

    Valtteri BOTTAS: Yeah, indeed. It was actually a tough race, even though maybe not much happening at the front Obviously Lewis was putting pressure all the time, so I could not do any mistake. But honestly, everything was under control so I’m happy to see the chequered flag and get this first place.

     

    Q: You’re the calmest person I’ve seen. Back in control of this championship as well. You’ve had a very good start to the year. It’s all about keeping the momentum up. There’s no better guy than Lewis putting the pressure on, but to get that job done, what does that mean going away from this grand prix, back to Europe?

    VB: It obviously means a lot. It’s incredible as a team on which kind of level we are performing now. I already said to the guys I’m so proud to be part of that. We’re all performing really, really well. For me as well, it’s only my fifth win, so of course it feels good and it carries on well.

     

    Q: I hope you can enjoy your Sunday night; you certainly deserve it after this weekend. Lewis, your team-mate did a solid job all weekend, he just pipped you in qualifying but you never let him out of your sights today and you were fighting all the way to the end.

    Lewis HAMILTON: Yeah, congratulations to Valtteri, he drove a fantastic race. He made no mistakes and truly deserved the win. It was all lost in qualifying, so there’s really not much more for me to say. But it’s a great result for the team. Honestly, this is the best start to a season we’ve ever had.

     

    Q: I want to pick up on the team. Four one-two finishes. How much credit do you owe to these guys year after year after year to give you a car to do a solid job like that?

    LH: It’s a team effort. Everyone back at the factory has been working non-stop every year. Every year they come back more hungry for success and it’s a true testament to strength and depth within the team. So really proud of everyone and really great to be a part of it. It was a really great race. For once we’ve been able to push the whole way. It’s pretty cool.

     

    Q: Sebastian, P3 at the end after qualifying. It looked like you struggled in the first stint, regained a lot of strength mid-race and you were able to put the pressure on Mercedes.

    Sebastian VETTEL: I don’t know. You’re right. The first stint was really poor. I really struggled to initially get the tyres to work. I think they were too cold and I damaged them, and by the time they were hot they were damaged, so it was never really working. I was really uncomfortable, inconsistent, just couldn’t get a feel and confidence with the car, so that’s not usually so good around here. After that, I was surprised. I was already looking forward to a difficult stint on the medium tyres, but no problem to switch them on and they lasted until the end no problem. So much happier, much more confidence and I think we had some pace to at least go with them, sometimes put a bit of pressure. We obviously had to keep and eye on Max behind. With some of the overtaken, lapped cars he was getting a bit closer but in the end we had enough pace on the medium tyre to react, to keep him behind. It was crucial to keep that third, good for Charles to get that fastest lap at the end, to snatch it away from the Mercedes boys. Still plenty of work for us to do, obviously we are not quite where we want to be. But at this point we just need to maximise what we can.

     

    Q: And I guess looking forward to a more familiar track, Barcelona, where you had such a strong winter and it looked like you guys were going to be the benchmark this year?

    SV: I hope so. Obviously the last four races, on average, we were not quite there, so I think we are not the favourites going to Barcelona. But the team is in good spirits. We have another couple of stuff getting on the car, so we need to chase them down. We are looking to hopefully a smooth weekend. Our first four weekends haven’t been that smooth. But it will be crucial to catch them and turn things around.

     

    PRESS CONFERENCE

     

    Q: Valtteri, you said in China that the start of the race cost you the race there, but you looked determined to make sure that didn’t happen today?

    VB: Yeah, honestly I could have done a better job at the start today. I think I was a little bit on the cautious side. I didn’t want to get the wheel spin started, so I was rather smooth on getting on power, not to kind of mess it up. But Lewis had a good start, so that’s why he was on the inside and we were pretty much side by side actually through Turn 1, so I was just carrying the speed on the outside, and same thing in Turn 2, leaving enough space. It was nice and fair and I was obviously pleased to keep the first place.

     

    Q: That was the start, but then at the end you also came under pressure from Lewis as well. How tough was that pressure and were you two racing right to the flag?

    VB: Yeah, you know, it was a pretty long stint, the second one. So you can sometimes play a little bit, when you push more, when sometimes you try to save the tyres a bit more, because it’s always a bit unknown how the tyres are going to behave when they are coming towards the end of their life. At times I could really notice Lewis trying really hard to catch me and he was really close at times, like in the end. So I had to really respond and push as well. The main thing for I was focusing on was just purely my own driving, not falling for the silly mistakes. I managed to keep it together, so for this I’m really happy.

     

    Q: Well done today. Lewis, we’ll start at the start as well. Just how close was it between you and Valtteri and how tough is it to judge how hard to push against your team-mate?

    LH: It’s always difficult to judge. But Valtteri did an exceptional job all weekend and today he was very fair in giving space and after that he was faultless. So today he truly deserved the win. It was a great race. It was really cool that we could push as hard as we could all the way to the end. It was great that the team allowed us to do that. Also just the team’s performance throughout the whole weekend, the engineers, everyone back at the factory who are just constantly delivering 100%. This is truly the strongest season we’ve ever started with but really deservingly in the sense of just how hard everyone has worked in the delivery, so really proud to be a part of it and this is a really great result for everyone.

     

    Q: You mentioned the start to the season. That’s four straight 1-2s. Is this also the best form as a team you’ve produced in the time that you’ve been there?

    LH: I think so, yeah, definitely. Valtteri’s really, clearly stepped up this year and is really happy in the car and really delivering and driving fantastically, so it’s going to take some really great performances from both of us to out-perform each other. And that’s how it should be. Hopefully at some stage Ferrari will be in the mix with us. I think this weekend, I do think they had the performance to be on the front row with both of their cars. From our data we saw that Seb didn’t get a tow, for example, which is worth four or five tenths or something, so he probably would have been on pole had he got that tow and the race would have been maybe more exciting. So, again, it takes one hundred per cent deliver throughout the weekend, which we, I think, were as close to that as possible. They’re going to have to pick it up if they want to fight us.

     

    Q: Seb, moving on to you, Lewis says that Ferrari will have to pick it up if they want to fight Mercedes. How well did your race go today and how close to the maximum did you get out of your car?

    SV: Well, he’s right. We need to pick it up obviously. We saw in the first stint that we really struggled to follow. I was really quite… yeah it was difficult to find a rhythm, difficult to extract grip from the tyres. After the stop it was a lot better. I expected it to be a tough and long afternoon but after that the car was quite good and I was able to push and I think we stayed with them, and with the blue flags maybe in the end we weren’t particularly lucky, the places around the track, I saw Lewis had some quite good tows with lapped cars here and there – but what goes around, comes around. I think overall the second stint was better for us than the first one. We lost, I think, all the potential to put pressure at the beginning of the race. But they were very strong and did absolutely right be pulling a gap. After that for us I think it was just to try and put them under some sort of pressure and bring it home.

     

    Q: You’re clearly close to Mercedes, based on the finishing positions here. What do you think is going to be key to breaking this run of form that Mercedes has shown?

    SV: Well, we need stronger pace, simple as that. We need to be faster. I’m convinced we’ve been, partly this weekend, looking very strong but overall not strong enough. So, it seems that for us it’s more of a conscious effort to get the car in the right window, whereas maybe for them it seems to click a little bit easier. Especially a place like around here, you need the confidence in the car. I’m not yet there. I can feel that I’m not driving at my best because simply the car does not answer or does not respond the way I like. And then I think it’s unnatural. I think everybody’s been there. I think all drivers know that sort of feeling: when it’s not there, then your judgement is normally right, to not go there because you end-up losing the car. So, yeah, I seem to be more sensitive at the first races than at the test. The test was really good but that’s a long time ago now. We need to look forward and improve the way we handle things, the way we work to just get faster. That’s it.

     

    Q: Valtteri, returning to you, Championship leader heading back for the European season – just how much confidence do you take from this start to the season?

    VB: Confidence is good. I’m happy to just carry on. Obviously, yeah, it’s been a good start personally for me for the season, it’s a long season ahead. I do realise that. But something I’m really proud of is the level at which the team is performing. It’s, for me, incredible. We need to be really, really proud of that – but not think about it too much. Just keep doing what we’re doing and the list of things that we can do better as a team is still long. So we need to focus on that. So let’s keep going.

     

    QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

     

    Q: (Scott Mitchell – Autosport) Lewis, it was fine margins between you and Valtteri today. I think you lost a bit of time the way the VSC ended and then Valtteri got the tow just as you were closing in on the last lap from the Williams. Do you think it was fine margins that made the difference today? And Valtteri, what was the feeling when you saw you had a slower car up ahead to get DRS from on that last lap?

    LH: Yeah, I think ultimately Valtteri did a better job in qualifying on that last lap, which put him in the position to be able to fight and then fine margin at the start, which… yeah, I’ll have to work on. And then I lost two-and-a-half seconds, or whatever it is, under the VSC, so had to regain that and, with only nine laps to go, that was not so easy. So, that was my fault and something I’ll work on. There’s somethings I can fix on the dash to make sure that doesn’t happen again. But, nonetheless, it was a great result for the team.

     

    And Valtteri, your thoughts when you got traffic towards the end of the race.

    VB: Yeah, there was some traffic, obviously you lose time mostly – but sometimes actually you can gain from it, like here if you can get a nice tow on the straight and get the DRS. It’s always a very welcome bonus when Lewis is putting pressure behind! It’s not always it works for you. Sometimes he gains from it. So that’s how it goes. Yeah.

     

    Q: (Phil Duncan – PA) Just to the two Mercedes drivers — we saw Toto deliver a radio message in the final laps. I was just wondering what the rules of engagement were for you two in the closing laps of today’s race.

    LH: It wasn’t a message to us. We were allowed to fight to the end.

    VB: Yup.

     

    Q: (Christian Nimmervoll – motorsport-total.com) Lewis, with hindsight probably that first lap fight with Valtteri was the defining moment of that race. Do you think you could have pushed a bit harder or been a bit more aggressive if it was another driver than Valtteri, your teammate?

    LH: Definitely. Most definitely. It’s very very difficult — ultimately you always have to remember when you’re in a team as big as this that you are only one, and there are so many people that depend on us, so selfishly I could have for sure pushed a lot harder and Valtteri would have lost position, maybe I would have gained position, most likely he would have got overtaken by a Ferrari or something like that, so we have to work together. So whilst I wanted to overtake him, I had to be cautious at the same time, to give him space so that we would block the front row and stay there. Ultimately I lost out in that, but that’s a sacrifice you have to sometimes make in order for the team to win. I think if it was a Ferrari there it would have been a lot different. And that will be how it continues for the rest of the year — I think Valtteri and I have always had a lot of respect for each other, and we continue to do so. I think you can see that. That’s how we deal with it — we discuss it before the race, we agree as gentlemen, and we stick to it.

     

    Q: (Luis Vasconselos – Formula Press) For Valtteri, when you were speaking to di Resta before the podium you said it was tough but you had it under control all the way. Did it get too close for comfort on the two laps that Lewis had DRS?

    VB: Yeah, sure, I didn’t want him to get DRS, that was not planned. He had a very good middle sector that lap and managed to close and here even if you’re like 1.2, 1.3 behind exiting from Turn 16 then you’re gaining time before the DRS detection. I wanted to keep him out from DRS, so it was my bad. But he was pushing hard, so that’s how it goes.

     

    Q: (Scott Mitchell – Autosport) Seb, the feeling for you and Charles earlier in the weekend was that the team had made a step here, that the upgrades were working as you liked, and it just seemed like the circumstances of the weekend just sort of went away from you. Do you still retain that positivity from earlier in the weekend or do you feel like there is a sort of similar amount of work to do as before?

    SV: Well, absolutely I think it was a step forward with our car, but I think more of a dominating factor is just the way we seem to be able to get on top of or into these tyres. I think there’s a lot of performance in that. The struggle we had here in those low speed corners is less of an aero problem, more of a mechanical grip issue. So a lot of homework for us, obviously, in the last couple of weeks, but I’m sure that once we get everything together the car is strong, and then we will be much more in the fight. At this stage, obviously, averaging the first four races we were just not quick enough.

     

    Q: (Luis Vasconselos – Formula Press) For the two Mercedes drivers — in the last two years your cars were called ‘divas’, but you’ve won on the first four very different tracks. Is this car the most complete one?

    LH: I mean, it’s an evolution of the last couple of years cars, so it should be better, and it is in many ways. I would say it’s more our understanding of the procedures that we have to implement that allow us to deliver more from it. I think we’re able to extract a bit more from the car itself, and that’s just from diligence, due diligence we’ve done so much better through testing in our understanding and analysis. Everyone’s just taken a step forward and it’s great to see.

    VB: It always can be better! For sure it’s maybe not still the easiest car to get to work, but once it works it’s quick, so something similar we’ve seen before and in the end, like Lewis said, it is an evolution from years before. There’s obviously work to do, but I think this year so far, the four races we’ve had, it’s not only the car. It’s all the areas the team is working on, how well we are performing in all the other areas than just the car. I think that’s maybe been the biggest thing so far this year.