F1 Madness

Tag: sochi autodrom

  • F1 2021: Russian Gp Preview – Advantage Merc?

    F1 2021: Russian Gp Preview – Advantage Merc?

    You’re unlikely to find many F1 fans that will sing the praises of the Sochi Autodrom in Russia. While the venue, formerly the host of the Winter Olympics, is a seaside holiday destination the F1 track is not one that will infuse excitement into most races. Nevertheless, the 2021 Formula 1 season makes its next stop in Russia for the 15th round of the season.

    Though it might not be an inspiring venue it does have big points up for grabs for what has been one of the most closely fought and intense championships for quite some time. Both championship protagonists, Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton, arrive into the weekend on the back of yet another contentious incident. The Monza clash has been litigated to within an inch of its life both for and against both drivers. The fact remains however that Verstappen emerged from the weekend with a three-point gain to lead Hamilton by 5 points atop the driver’s championship. But Verstappen also received a penalty after being adjudged, by race stewards, as having caused the Monza collision.

    As it stands wherever Verstappen qualifies in Russia, he will drop down a further three places. Due to its excessively long and flat-out run to turn 1 the Russian Grand Prix circuit is one that allows for overtaking. It is for this reason that the inevitable power unit change, and subsequent grid drop, for Verstappen may have been earmarked for this race. It is believed that at some point in the remaining races that Hamilton too will have to fit a new power unit and incur the same grid penalties. There is a chance however that Mercedes could try to eke out the lifespan of the current power unit components in Hamilton’s pool. But doing so would mean running the risk of suffering a potential mechanical failure. And in a championship as closely contested as this one losing points to the opposition could well tip it in their favour.

    2020 Russian GPThe good news for Merc is that the Sochi Autodrom is a track on which Valtteri Bottas excels. Add to this that the Russian Grand Prix has been somewhat of a stronghold for Merc and it looks like the deck is stacked for a good weekend. But if we know anything about Formula 1 in 2021 it is that it has been nigh on impossible to predict. If Verstappen is to start from the back of the grid Red Bull will look to Sergio Perez to, at least, delay the progress of Mercedes. But the Mexican has struggled of late and doesn’t go into the weekend with the highest of expectations. McLaren too, powered by Merc engines in 2021, could bring themselves into the equation.

    Elsewhere, Kimi Raikkonen has, via Instagram, announced that he will be returning to the cockpit for this weekend’s race. The Finn has been self-isolating since testing positive for COVID-19 at the Dutch Grand Prix. It’s his Alfa Romeo teammate Antonio Giovinazzi though that’s under pressure to keep his seat for 2022. The Italian has shown some moments of real potential in the last few races but it might be too little too late. It is believed that a host of drivers are duking it out for the seat alongside Bottas. Chinese F2 driver Guanyu Zhou is believed to be the front runner for the seat.

    Since its first race in 2014 there haven’t been many memorable moments at the Russian Grand Prix. But surely with the tantalizing battle that is this year’s title fight even Russia has the potential to deliver a race worthy of the 2021 F1 championship.

  • F1 2020: Russian Gp Preview – A reckoning for Bottas

    F1 2020: Russian Gp Preview – A reckoning for Bottas

    In 2014 Russia make its re-entry to the Formula 1 calendar. Unlike previous plans to host a race in Moscow the race instead is situated in the Black Sea resort town of Sochi.

    The Russian grand prix is likely to be the only semi-street circuit on the 2020 calendar as Australia, Monaco, Baku, and Singapore have all been cancelled as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. The Sochi Autdrom is a 5.8 km semi-street circuit built around the Olympic Park, which hosted the 2014 Winter Olympics. It is doubtful that the circuit would rank highly as a favourite amongst drivers. Sector one is dominated by full throttle blast of more than ten seconds and what is likely to be the only ‘straightforward’ overtaking opportunities. Pulling out of the slipstream and under braking for turn two is the first opportunity of the lap to make a move stick but not necessarily the last. The 750m constant radius left-hander that is turn three is taken flat-out before having to get hard on the brakes for the 90 degree turn four where overtaking is certainly possible. The rest of the lap comprises of low to medium speed 90-degree corners without any genuinely obvious spots of overtaking.

    In the championship Lewis Hamilton holds all the cards with a mammoth 55-point gap over Valtteri Bottas in second place. Such is his lead that even if Hamilton were to miss two races, with the assumption that Bottas would win both, he could still return in the lead of the championship. Given how Bottas has performed in 2020 there is nothing to suggest that Hamilton will be beaten or even challenge as he strolls to a record-equaling seventh title. Realistically the only challenge can come from a driver in a car equal to Hamilton’s Mercedes. But Bottas simply isn’t up to the task and wont miraculously come to life. Since joining Mercedes in 2017 this season is most likely Bottas’s most disappointing.

    Valtteri Bottas_Silverstone 2017_Thursday P1 As a fairly young driver catapulted into a championship-winning team he could have been forgiven for trying to find his feet in a new environment. But four years down the line it is abundantly clear that Bottas just hasn’t found what he needs to win a championship. His last two race performances underline this. In Monza he had a golden opportunity to claw back some points with Hamilton down in seventh. Instead he finished a lowly fifth in the quickest car on the grid. And though he was momentarily leading in Mugello he let that win slip through his fingers. He may well rack up a P1 this weekend in Russia where he has always perfomed well. But the championship title is probably further away than it’s ever been.

    While the sharp-end of the driver’s title seems to be all but settled it certainly isn’t the case in the mid-field. Behind third-placed Max Verstappen the next five positions (fourth to eighth) is covered by only sixteen points. The mid-field battle between McLaren, Racing Point, and recently Renault has been an enthralling and unpredictable one in 2020. In addition to Pierre Gasly’s unforgettable win at Monza the fact that Lando Norris, Carlos Sainz, and Lance Stroll have all stood on the podium season is indicative of just how colossal the fight has been in the mid-field. And there is every indication that it wont only linger for this weekend, but will likely go down right the to the season finale in Abu Dhabi.

     

  • F1 2019: Russian Gp Review – Ferrari Hit By Karma

    F1 2019: Russian Gp Review – Ferrari Hit By Karma

    Ferrari arrived in Russia less than seven days after stunning the paddock with a sublime one/two in Singapore. They had turned a corner in the Lion City, no pun intended, and when they hit the track in Russia it seemed it would be more of the same.

    And it was, as Charles Leclerc became the second Ferrari driver, after the great Michael Schumacher, to take four consecutive pole positions of the Italian team. Lewis Hamilton delivered an impressive lap which was good enough for the front row while Seb Vettel was third quickest. Pole position at the Sochi Autodrom though isn’t the be all and end all. In fact, it probably wouldn’t be a driver’s first choice of starting position for the simple reason that this circuit has the longest run to turn 1 of any on the calendar. It means that while the car in front is punching a big F1-sized hole in the air those behind can take advantage of the slipstream and simply sail past.

    But it still requires a driver to make a good start at lights out. This time around neither Leclerc or Hamilton nailed the perfect start but Vettel did. From third on the grid he surged into the lead of the race. And yes he did gain some benefit from the slipstream. Slowly but surely Vettel began to pull away from Leclerc and the pair of Ferrari’s were in turn leaving Hamilton, in third, and Bottas, in fourth, well behind.

    2019 Russian GPSoon though the radio messages from Leclerc started trickling through the airwaves. His tone became increasingly disgruntled and revealed an awfully exasperated driver. It seemed Ferrari had agreed before the start of the race that Leclerc would allow Vettel to pick up his slipstream, tow him to turn 2, and thereby ensure a Ferrari one/two at the start of the race. But what Ferrari, and likely young Leclerc, failed to account for was a lightening start from Vettel that rendered this plan mute. While Leclerc was adamant that he had helped Vettel into the lead of the race. On-board footage and replays clearly show that Vettel’s spectacular launch off the line catapulted him into the lead with little help from his teammate.  A back-and-forth ensued with both drivers and the Ferrari pitwall who eventually instructed Vettel to swop positions with Leclerc as early on as lap 5. But the four-time champion was clearly quicker that Leclerc who at this stage had fallen more than three-seconds behind the leading Ferrari. A swop would have required Vettel to slow significantly and run the risk of falling into the clutches of Hamilton and he was having none of it.

    The first round of pitstops rolled around and Ferrari seized the opportunity to give Leclerc, despite being the second Ferrari on the road, the lead of the race by pitting him first. On fresh tyres he was able to undercut Vettel and take the lead of the Russian grand prix. Ferrari had doctored the running order and in doing so clearly upset the karmic balance of things. A few hundred meters after exiting the pitlane from his own stop Seb Vettel was forced to pull over and out of the race with a MGU-K failure. Ferrari had contrived to manufacture and manipulate the race and Karma kicked them in the teeth for it. One would think, and hope, that Ferrari had learnt by now to leave well enough alone. But instead their ridiculous games took them from a net race win to handing Mercedes an unlikely one/two at the chequered flag.

    A Virtual Safety Car was deployed to recover Vettel’s stricken Ferrari and it allowed Hamilton, effectively, a free pit stop. By staying out longer on his medium tyre Hamilton emerged in the lead of the race. Had Ferrari simply allowed their drivers to race flat out Leclerc likely would have been clear of Hamilton and in P1.

    2019 Russian GPA full Safety-Car was called on a bit later to collect the crashed Williams of George Russell. But Ferrari’s tomfoolery had already caused them to lose the race. Leclerc pitted for fresh tyres and emerged behind Bottas with the hope that with twenty laps to go he could mount a challenge and overtake both Merc drivers. He couldn’t. As it were, and excuse the pun, Ferrari handed Mercedes victory on a silver platter. Hamilton cruised home ahead of Bottas and has now put Mercedes in a position to potentially secure the constructor’s title next time out in Japan. Leclerc, in third, normally the toast of social media was dubbed ‘LeJerk’ for his petulance over team radio. It was desperately unlucky for Vettel who easily looked the class of the field on race day. Fans around the world clearly agreed as he was voted driver of the day despite failing to finish.

    Elsewhere, Max Verstappen recovered to fourth after taking grid drop for engine penalties. The fresh and upgraded engine bits put Red Bull in good stead for Honda’s home race in Japan next time out. Alex Albon completed an impressive afternoon’s racing by going from pitlane to fifth while Carlos Sainz continues to deliver brilliant performances for McLaren in sixth. Sergio Perez finished seventh for Racing Point ahead of Lando Norris eighth. Haas F1’s newly re-signed Kevin Magnussen was ninth ahead of Renault driver Nico Hulkenberg.

    Seb Vettel was certainly the most high profile retirement of the race but not the only one. Earlier a coming together at turn 1 at the start of the race meant the end for Romain Grosjean and Daniel Ricciardo would follow him into retirement a few laps later with floor damage from the same incident. Williams also opted to retire Robert Kubica’s car in order to save parts for the upcoming races. It reveals the desperate state that Williams are currently mired in and one hopes that there is some light at the end of the tunnel for the legendary team.

    Since the Summer-break Ferrari has clearly turned a corner. The two wins in Span and Monza were impressive but somewhat expected. However, victory in Singapore and genuinely superior pace in Russia makes it clear that they have unlocked authentic and indisputable pace in the car. Now, they just need to get out of their own way.

  • 2019 Formula 1 Russian Grand Prix: Post Qualifying Press Conference

    2019 Formula 1 Russian Grand Prix: Post Qualifying Press Conference

    DRIVERS
    1 – Charles LECLERC (Ferrari)
    2 – Lewis HAMILTON (Mercedes)
    3 – Sebastian VETTEL (Ferrari)

    TRACK INTERVIEWS
    (Conducted by Jenson Button)

    Q: Charles, all I can say is, wow! What a dominant performance. All of the way through practice, yesterday, today, qualifying – you really are on a role.
    Charles LECLERC: Yeah, the car felt amazing. It definitely feels great to be back on pole. I don’t know if it’s the best track to start on pole. The straight is very long after the start. Tomorrow the start will be very important as always, but here probably even more, because of the straight length.

    Q: It’s still the best place to be in. The last person to score four [consecutive] pole positions for Ferrari was Michael Schumacher. That must make you feel pretty special?
    CL: Yeah it definitely feels very, very special, but I don’t really want to think about those kind of stats for now. I just want to focus on the job. There’s still a long way to go until tomorrow. It’s definitely a good start, we’ve been competitive all weekend long and the race simulation seems positive too, so it’s looking good for tomorrow.

    Q: Congratulations. Lewis, I must say, all the way through qualifying, obviously the Ferraris have had the upper hand, but as always you pulled the lap out there at the end and got the best out of the car?
    Lewis HAMILTON: I’ll tell you, it was a tough qualifying session, because these guys have some crazy speeds on the straights. They go to another level, you know. That whole party mode you talked about us having, they have something else beyond that – jet mode! Nonetheless, I gave it absolutely everything I had at the end and the team did such a great job to just tinker and push forwards. I’m so glad it came together. I wasn’t expecting to get on the front row for sure, so I’m really, really happy with it nonetheless.

    Q: And the great thing for you guys also is that you have the medium tyres for the start of the race. It looks like you knew they would be quick in qualifying so you’ve gone for a slightly different strategy for the race.
    LH: Yeah, well we know that they are on a slightly lower drag level this weekend plus they have that power, so we’ve got to try something. You’ve seen the last couple of races we’ve been behind all the way, so we’re fortunate enough to opt for another strategy and I think the team have done a really good job with putting us in that position. It’s a long way down to Turn 1, so it’s not always the best for starts on the harder tyre, but I’m going to try to two the hell out of Charles if I get the chance. But it’s going to be hard because they get good starts as well.

    Q: Sebastian, not the easiest qualifying I’m sure. Q1 was pretty tricky: one little mistake and all hell broke loose after that. But, P3, you’ve got the run down to Turn 1 and I’m sure that after the last race, with the strategy and winning that race, there are still a lot of opportunities tomorrow?
    Sebastian VETTEL: Yeah, definitely. Obviously I’m not entirely happy, I think I couldn’t extract the absolute maximum from the car. As you said, it was a bit disruptive in Q1 but by the time we got to Q3 I thought it was OK. You spoke about Turn 1, it’s a long way, obviously we’ll see. We’re on different tyres strategies compared to the Mercs, so I think the race will be decided tomorrow. The speed is there so let’s keep it up.

    Q: As you said, there’s a long straight down to Turn 2. You guys are pretty quick in a straight line too. For us it’s going to be great watching, but it’s going to be pretty crazy for you guys into Turn 2?
    SV: Yeah, first you need a good start; then you worry about the rest, sort of thing. Let’s see. Obviously there’s potentially an advantage if you are behind but I guess if you are behind you always tend to say that, so let’s see what happens.

    PRESS CONFERENCE

    Q: Charles, you got progressively quicker as the session went on. Where were you finding the time?
    CL: I don’t think I had any clean laps before the one of Q3. The first lap of Q3 felt very good. The second lap: very good until Turn 16, where I lost rears, and I lost a little bit of lap time. But overall the car was just coming together. The balance was better and better. I was adjusting a little bit the aero balance and I just felt more and more confident.

    Q: And what about your confidence for tomorrow’s race – the long run pace of your car?
    CL: I believe that the long run pace yesterday was extremely positive, I think probably the most positive of the whole season, so this is looking good. But it’s going to be an interesting race. I mean, Mercedes are starting on the medium, so I think the strategy will play a role. I think we did the right choice to start on the soft, but we will see tomorrow.

    Q: Good luck with that and well done today. Lewis, if we could come on to you. You sounded very happy at the end of the session, happy to split the Ferraris for the second week in a row. How good was your lap?
    LH: Pretty decent. It was a pretty good lap. Honestly, it was a really good lap. Last time, Singapore felt like a really good lap as well, it’s just… I was just saying to Charles out there that already by Turn 1 we were already three tenths down or something like that, so it’s very, very hard. But nonetheless I pushed, we pushed, as hard as we could and I was really, really happy with the lap. It all came together. That last one was the best of the weekend – as it should be – and no mistakes or anything like that, so I really feel like I got everything and maybe a little bit more from the car to split the Ferraris once again, which is not an easy task.

    Q: Charles thinks it’s going to be a strategic battle tomorrow. Do you feel the same way?
    LH: Yeah. Yeah, definitely. I think the team did a great job to put us on the mediums and naturally from the two tyres there’s obviously a delta and the softer the tyre the better the start. So it will be a little bit tough off the start tomorrow. But even if we were in the lead, if we were on pole for example, they are just so fast on the straights by the time we get to Turn 1, which is the little kink, they blast past us with the jet fuel or whatever it is. So, yeah, it is about strategy, which is why we are on a different tyre and I hope that we can utilise that and keep the pressure on. If you’ve seen the couple of races we’ve had we’ve been right with them but I’m hoping tomorrow we can really give them a good fight.

    Q: Sebastian, coming to you, it seemed a good opening lap of Q3 for you but then it seems to slip away on that second lap. Is that a fair assessment?
    SV: Not really. I was quite happy in general. Obviously a bit disruptive with Q1 where we got a bit unfortunate with yellow flags and stuff. I thought by the time we got to Q3 that was fine. I think overall I was pretty happy with the car. I just felt that there was more in the car that, yeah, I couldn’t get to. Nevertheless, I think tomorrow is a long race. I think we have good pace for the race. It will be very interesting with the Mercedes on different tyres to start with, so let’s see what happens.

    QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

    Q: (Frederic Ferret – L’Equipe) Lewis, how important was it to be on the first row for tomorrow’s race? And would it be crucial to be at the second corner first, before the Ferraris to avoid what happened last week in Singapore?
    LH: Time will tell. But, of course, if I’m able to try and somehow keep Seb behind, and there’s only one car ahead, for example, that changes things on top. So, naturally we’re going to push as hard as we can but it’s going to be very, very hard. Down to Turn One it’s a long drag – but I’m sure we’ll have a good battle, one way or another.

    Q: (Christian Menath – motorsport-magazin.com) Question for all three of you. You all sounded pretty confident that you’re on the right tyre, even though you have different ones. Can you explain why you are confident this is the right tyre you’re starting on? Do you think this has to do with the car that the tyre suits better to your car – or is it only strategic reasons?
    CL: On our side I think the start is very important here and we thought that the benefits of starting on Soft was big. And then there was not much difference, in terms of degradation, from the Soft to the Medium. So, yeah, we thought it was worth it to make it our start tyre.
    LH: I just wanted to be on something different.

    Is that what it now takes to beat these guys? You’ve got to roll the dice?
    LH: I don’t know. I haven’t beaten them for a while! So I can’t tell you. I’ll tell you at the end of tomorrow.

    Q: (Scott Mitchell – Autosport) To all three. Charles, this is your fourth pole in a row. You were asked downstairs, you’re the first person to do that for Ferrari since Michael, which is obviously pretty special. Are you on a roll at the moment in qualifying where you feel like you can’t do anything wrong, and everything comes together. And to Lewis and Seb, you’ve both had massive success in Formula One, been on this sort of run – what does it do for you as a driver when you have this sort of succession of poles?
    CL: Of course I felt confident going into qualifying but at the end anything… I mean at one point it’s going to end, so whether it’s now or later, I don’t know. So, the only thing I’m trying to do is focus on myself, try to have exactly the same procedure as I’ve had since the last four races and not… yeah, I definitely don’t come in the car thinking it will be easy and that it will come together alone. I just try to keep working as I did in the last few races, and then hopefully the lap time comes.

    Lewis, how does it feel? The importance of momentum, invincibility when you’re on a roll?
    LH: I don’t know – I’ve never felt invincible. Of course, when you get on a roll, it doesn’t really make… from my experience, it’s nice, for sure but it doesn’t make a difference. So if it’s separated: one pole; one second; one pole, it doesn’t make any difference to me. But he’s stealing all the poles right now, so it’s going to be very, very hard to beat their poles when they’re so fast on the straights but we’re working at it.

    SV: I don’t know – it’s been a while for me! Yeah, I think you take every session separately, so you’re not really trying to look back. I think it’s just about nailing every session.

    Q: (Dzhastina Golopolosova – The Paddock Magazine) Question to Charles. Mercedes dominated here for five years and today you showed that you can break this trend. What do you think about tomorrow?
    CL: For now… I mean the race it tomorrow. It will be very important to stay in front, and they were also strong in the race pace, as they’ve always been since the beginning of the season, so, it obviously feels good to be on pole here. I think Singapore was a big surprise for everyone, for us to be in front and here, I think we felt we had our chances, considering how quick we were in Singapore. Yeah, I mean it feels good to break that but we need to finish the job tomorrow.

    Q: (Andrea Cremonesi – La Gazzetta dello Sport) Charles, Jenson already mentioned the record that you equalled today with Michael Schumacher but I want to consider with you that there was this past 19 years from that and there are some other guys, for example Seb, who are with you that couldn’t do that. So how is your feeling, to think that today is an historical day not only for you but for Ferrari?
    CL: As I said, it feels good but it doesn’t change my approach to the other weekends and as Seb and Lewis said, every time you go into a session, you take it just normally, without thinking about the others, the last poles I’ve had. So yeah, obviously it feels great but I don’t want to think about these things and I just want to focus on the job ahead.

    Q: (Giusto Ferronato – La Gazzetta dello Sport) For both Ferrari drivers: in Italy probably now many people are thinking that you have found the solution to win all the races. Is this correct or they are too optimistic?
    CL: I think we need to keep our feet on the ground. Obviously at the moment we are in a good momentum, we are having really good performances but at the end it doesn’t change… Mercedes are still quite ahead in the overall championship, which at the end is what matters the most. I think we need to keep our heads down, keep working. Of course at the moment it seems that it’s working our way but I will not say it will be like this for the rest of the season, so we need to keep working.
    SV: Not much to add so maybe too optimistic. I think we need to wait until tomorrow. I think at the last race obviously it was difficult to pass. I think Mercedes was faster than us in the race so we will see what happens tomorrow with different strategy.

    Q: Sebastian, is this the best Ferrari you’ve driven?
    SV: I think the car got a lot better since the beginning of the year when we started to really struggle. Obviously we had a bit of a high at winter testing. I think we understood what it takes and I think the step in Singapore in particular seemed to help us and allowed us to make another step forward. But I think the ’17 car out of the box was probably the best so far.

    Q: (Frederic Ferret – L’Equipe) Sebastian, have you looked at all the data with Charles on the exercise of pole and have you found where he is better than you since the return of the summer?
    SV: Well, obviously in qualifying here and there. I think we didn’t have the best sessions on my side. I think obviously today Charles was faster so it’s pretty easy to see where he’s faster but it’s a little bit here and there. I don’t think there’s any pattern standing out, saying that he’s always faster in the same type of corner. As I said, obviously the last couple of races was closer than maybe it looked on the result so we will see what happens tomorrow. Usually come race day I’m getting more and more confident in the car and pace has never been a problem in the race so we will see what happens.

    Q: (Scott Mitchell – Autosport) Lewis, you’ve mentioned the deficit you’ve got at the moment to Ferrari and where you feel that deficit is so how deep are you having to dig inside yourself for a lap like this? You had a big gap to Valtteri today for example and you said your Singapore lap was also very good.
    LH: Yeah. Honestly I feel like that maybe the last couple of laps have felt worthy, like pole-worthy in terms of how this has come together and optimising within the car. Naturally obviously they are faster than us and Charles has done a good job but I mean in terms of being as close to the limit as possible and yeah, I think I’ve just been getting more and more comfortable with the car, I think in this second half of the season, a little bit more comfortable with it, even though we’ve lost a little performance compared to them but there’s still work to do collectively, in all of us, including myself so we just keep working on that. Please don’t write that the wrong way, pole-worthy, I was meaning in terms of what do you… putting the perfect lap together, I feel like each time I’m getting as close to that as possible and then you finish the lap and it’s quite a long way off pole but it feels like quite an achievement to get in between the two Ferraris who have a bit of a delta to us at the moment.

  • 2019 Formula 1 Russian Grand Prix: Thursday Press Conference

    2019 Formula 1 Russian Grand Prix: Thursday Press Conference

    DRIVERS – Daniil KVYAT (Toro Rosso), Lance STROLL (Racing Point), Kimi RÄIKKÖNEN (Alfa Romeo), Valtteri BOTTAS (Mercedes), Kevin MAGNUSSEN (Haas)

     

    PRESS CONFERENCE

     

    Q: Dany, if we could start with you please. Home race, tell us about the build up, how busy have you been?

    Daniil KVYAT: Well, yeah, not too busy. It’s a back-to-back race with Singapore so pretty much arrived to Moscow for one day, got a little break, and then here on Wednesday. Had a bit of an event yesterday evening, you know, the usual stuff at the home grand prix and yeah, today just a bit busier than usual, but it’s always a pleasure for your home grand prix, so it’s OK.

    Q: Tell us about the reception you got from the fans when you arrived here in Sochi?

    DK: Well, I haven’t seen too many fans yet, but we’ll see tonight during the autograph session. Yes, I was doing the track walk and a few people definitely were quite excited. I think people love Formula 1 here and it’s quite good to see for me. I hope to see a lot of people in the grandstands on Sunday and Saturday, it would mean a lot to me. It would mean also that motor sport in Russia is growing a lot and obviously I’m happy to contribute.

    Q: Now, you said after the Singapore Grand Prix that you struggled with the car. What were the issues and how confident are you that you can bounce back here this weekend?

    DK: It was a specific grand prix. I mean I wouldn’t really say I struggled with the car. I skipped FP3, and then in quali, going straight into Q1, I just maybe didn’t put the best lap in because I didn’t have much reference and once you start from there it’s harder on a street circuit. And then the race, yeah, it was a bit messy. Some moves… I was getting a bit stuck behind people when I had fresher tyres. This year it was usually good for me and then in Singapore maybe it wasn’t so good. My mirrors were foggy, so I couldn’t really fight with people properly. The race was just difficult to be honest. We had contact with Kimi, but by that point my race already wasn’t looking very good. But I was still in contention for maybe a point, but yeah, it was a difficult race. Sometimes they happen and sometimes they are necessary.

    Q: Thanks and good luck this weekend. Lance, a big update package for Racing Point in Singapore, how effective was it?

    Lance STROLL: Yeah, it’s still early days. I think on paper they looked quite positive, we were quite competitive throughout the weekend. Qualifying was a struggle on my part, with gaps and stuff in Q1. So we had a bad qualifying on Saturday but then in the race the pace looked better. Yeah, it was just a messy weekend overall for both cars. Sergio had a technical issue in the race and we had to stop him. I was looking good up until I clipped the wall in my second stint and I got a puncture. It was a messy weekend but I think there’s still a lot to come. The early signs are good with the upgrade, things are looking good, but it’s about unlocking it to its full potential.

    Q: You say the early signs are good, but where is the car better with this upgrade?

    LS: It’s just general grip. Rear grip is much better, stability is better, and now it’s just about getting the right balance with this new upgrade and that sometimes takes a weekend and Singapore is a unique circuit, it’s one of a kind, so I’m looking forward to this weekend and the coming events.

    Q: Now, you’ve been involved in some great on-track battles this year. Tremendous last lap in Singapore with Grosjean, Sainz and Ricciardo. How much are you enjoying those battles?

    LS: Yeah, it’s always fun. Unfortunately at that stage in the race we weren’t in a position to score points. It’s always fun though. Wheel-to-wheel racing is always good and this year in the midfield it’s so tight. We’ve seen a lot of good fights and close racing in the midfield, so I’m sure it’s very exciting for the fans. But unfortunately our race was kind of done at that stage. It was really done after I clipped the wall and I got that puncture. It was exciting and I’m sure it was fun to watch from the outside.

    Q: Kevin, you have a great record here – qualified fifth last year and a lot of points finishes at this race track. Can you tell us about the track: what is it like to drive and what do you need from your car to be quick?

    Kevin MAGNUSSEN: I would say it’s a little bit kind of a specific track – lots of medium-speed corners, like 90 degrees. You need a good strong front end here, but as always you need good traction as well, so it’s not that you need much of a different car to usual but it’s, I think, a pretty good track. It’s decent to drive and it offers good opportunities for racing and overtaking. I quite like it.

    Q: On the subject of car performance: are you starting to make progress now and do you understand the car now?

    KM: I think it’s a pretty ongoing process. It’s much more important to understand what’s gone wrong with this car than to try to come up with quick fixes. It’s not lost this year at all, but it’s better to focus for next year and try to get as ready as we can and have as much confidence in correlations and stuff like that to produce a better product for next year, rather than, in a desperate way, to try to fix this year’s car, because that’s going to be a little bit difficult. So the focus is more on different experiments with different packages to try to learn more about correlations and sensitivities and stuff like that. It’s a little but frustrating because obviously we’d all prefer to just be maximum flat out, trying to perform the best we can, which of course we are, but at the same time we are spending a lot of energy on experiments.

    Q: You mention the word package there. What package are you going to be driving this weekend?

    KM: The new one. That’s still part of this whole learning process, so I think Romain will stay on the old-ish one, with a few of the new parts. We’ve gone to a bit of a hybrid car to try to make it possible to swap over and swap between different parts and experiment as much as possible and get as much learning as we can. That part is going well and we are making progress in terms of understanding but we don’t see that understanding in terms of lap time. It’s hard to show in terms of lap time what progress we are making.

    Q: Kimi, frustrating race for you in Singapore, different kind of street track here, with longer straights. How confident are you of having a better weekend?

    Kimi RÄIKKÖNEN: Never know really but I think it should be better for us – hopefully it is. I think Singapore, some points, it felt pretty OK, mainly not, but I think maybe our car is not the best over the bumps and things that you need for Singapore but yeah, let’s see how it comes – but I would expect to be a bit better here.

    …better because of the smooth track surface or better because of the Ferrari power unit? Why do you think it will be better?

    KR: Just track layout and how the surface is and everything. I might be wrong but hopefully not. Hopefully we have a bit more smoother weekend, a bit more speed.

    Q: Now Kimi, this is a bit of a landmark race for you. It’s race number 307, which takes you to third overall in the most-experienced list. You’re surpassing Schumacher and Jenson Button this weekend. When you started out in 2001, did you ever imagine you’d be around for this long?

    KR: Definitely not. I think I was wishing to stop much earlier. I kind of stopped it already but no, for sure not. I don’t think I had any ideas how long. Hopefully at least one or two years. Things have turned out a bit different – but I didn’t really have a plan before, I still don’t. We’ll try to go good things and as long as we enjoy it, obviously we’ll keep racing and see what happens.

    Q: Given the competitive nature of this sport, do you take a lot of pride in your longevity?

    KR: Not really. I mean, to me, as long as I feel myself that I can drive where I expect to be, and I can do things as I, in my head, I feel I should, then I’m happy to keep going, plus, as long as the racing is the bigger part than all the other nonsense. I don’t really think ‘Oh, I’ve done this much racing, and it’s a great thing’. For me, the results are much more important than another other fact. Maybe the day you stop, and after a while when you look backwards, it means something. But right now, no.

    Q: Valtteri, you have a great record here. First win, 2017, pole last year, looking good for the win until that didn’t happen. Why are you so quick here – and how much confidence does your record give you coming into the weekend.

    Valtteri BOTTAS: For sure it gives confidence to come into a weekend when you know previously it’s been one of the good tracks for you, so that’s obviously a nicer way to start the weekend but always, in every case, you start from zero. Every season, every track changes a little bit, every car is always different every year, so setup, everything is different, so you’re starting from zero – but for sure, we have a good mindset coming here, knowing that it’s been good in the past. I don’t know, just since the first year coming here I’ve found a good flow on the track and haven’t really had many problematic corners or anything, so been on the pace. Obviously, there’s always things I can do better this year than last year and that will be the aim.

    Q: You say you’re coming here with a good mindset but there must have been – tell me if I’m wrong – frustrations after being told by the team, to effectively hold station in Singapore last weekend in the race. What’s been said since then?

    VB: Well, first of all, that was last weekend. I’m not thinking about that any more coming to this weekend. But if you want to talk about it I can’t go into details. Obviously we always review everything by the finest detail with the team, and I was at the factory on Tuesday. We had meetings about that and that we’ll keep just for us. Whatever we’ve spoken about it. We have certain rules, both ways, they’re equal. That’s how it goes but I just need to make sure I’m not going to be in that kind of situation again.

     

    QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

     

    Q: (Frederic Ferret – L’Equipe) Daniil, you have, since Spa, a new team-mate. You live the same thing that he lived, being demoted from Red Bull to Toro Rosso. How long did it take for you to get back to competitiveness and how did you work on that special thing?

    DK: I think it’s hard to compare – you know everyone has their own life situations and their own approach to the things, so for me it’s very hard to compare. For me, I’ve turned the page already. I have been through it, I have no problems with that any more. So, I even managed to go out and come back again to Red Bull, so I have no issues regarding that and from my side, I have full focus now on this year and on the future. So for me now it’s a closed chapter.

    Q: (Beatrice Zamuner – motorlat.com) Valtteri, now that Max and Charles are getting closer to you, they are now 31 points behind you, to what extent do you see them as threats for second place?

    VB: For sure, Ferrari has been improving a lot and Red Bull is very close every weekend now, depending on track layout. So, it’s still a big chunk of points to be had for the rest of the year, so for sure I need to keep performing and we need to perform as a team to get those bigger points. I’m still aiming and focussing really ahead. Focussing on short team goals: the next one is this weekend, try to win the race. Then, at the end of the year, we’ll see if there’s still a threat or what’s happening. I’m not really thinking about that too much. I’m thinking about my performance and our performance as a team.

    Q: (Dzhastina Golopolosova – The Paddock Magazine) Next year the racing calendar is expanding and by 2021 they are predicting more races. What do you think of this trend and will this increase the value of the sport?

    KM: I think it’s a difficult question for me. Obviously the biggest problem is probably the team, the mechanics; all those guys are working very hard already, so it would be pretty tough for a lot of people in the team and I don’t know if it’s going to make it, each race, less valuable in terms of viewers and all that sort of stuff. Probably you can see why it would but it’s not an area I’m an expert in so I don’t really know.

    VB: I think if it’s just one more next year it’s not too bad. Obviously it is, like Kevin said, hard work for many of the team members, doing so much work between the races as well. There’s going to be a limit, for sure, at some point but I don’t know in detail after how many races that would come but I think we can still do one more but we will see. It’s OK so far.

    DK: Yeah, I don’t have much to say. I agree with these guys, it’s true. It wasn’t bad when it was 18 races but let’s see how it goes when the championship goes to more races. For sure we will apparently have to find the limit by touching it.

    KR: No comments.

    Q: Do you welcome more races yourself? We understand the pressures on the team but from a driving point of view do you welcome more?

    KR: I don’t know. It depends really where we go. If we raced in Europe I wouldn’t mind but it’s obviously much easier for everybody. It’s nice to race on new tracks, hoping that they’re good ones for racing but we will see. Usually it’s a habit to keep changing races and some come and some go. We never know until we get there.

    LS: Yeah, more than 22 races is probably a lot, it’s a lot for the whole team but from what I understand it’s balanced out with some testing days. It’s nicer to be racing than testing.

    Q: (Vladimir Zayvyy – RussianRt.com) Daniil, according to the Daily Mail, Russian president Vladimir Putin backs a plan for the F1 race to move from Sochi to St Petersburg. What do you think about this?

    DK: Yeah, I think as long as there is a racing in Russia I am up for it. Maybe it’s not a bad idea to have it closer to that region, also, where it’s more accessible to the people from Moscow, from St Petersburg, maybe it will bring more spectators which is cool, and maybe also from Europe, from Finland, let’s say, it’s a very popular sport there, it will be cool. Why not? It’s not a bad idea. Here is very nice but who knows if there it could be even better? Why not?

    Q: Fans coming from Finland, perhaps a comment from one of you guys, Valtteri?

    VB: Yeah, for sure, maybe we could have some more. Obviously a Finnish Grand Prix would be nice as well but maybe more Finns would be there, possibly.

    Q: Kimi, what about a race in St Petersburg from your point of view?

    KR: We go where the race is. I would guess that there’s Finns, I guess there’s Finns watching here, I’m sure. It’s a lot easier, for sure.

    Q: (Daria Panova – Motorlat) At the Singapore Grand Prix, Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel said that reverse grids is not a good idea for Formula One. So what do you guys think about it?

    LS: I think it would be a shame to see the current format disappear. It’s very exciting, the fans love it, especially today’s Formula One.  A short, 25-lap race would be really boring to watch in my opinion. Today’s Formula One races depend on strategy which a 25 lap race wouldn’t really offer so I think it would just be a train from start to finish and that would take away some of the excitement from the sport.

    KR: I think it depends on how they would do it, obviously, but probably qualifying can be more exciting than a short race. Who knows?

    Q: Do you like the current qualifying format?

    KR: Yeah. But if I would change, I would go back to where it was when I started: one hour of time and I think there were three sets of tyres and 12 laps, do it when you want those. Over the years, there have been many different ways of doing it. Honestly I don’t know if it really changed the entries an awful lot so…

    DK: Yeah, it sounds just like a short fix to a bigger problem, which is just that we need to try and bring all the teams closer competition-wise. There’s still a big gap between the top three teams and the rest of the field and if we could have five or six teams competing for podium and a win I think it would be just a lot more exciting racing as well. Now, this year, there have been many exciting races of course but I still think that’s the main issue and if it’s a short term fix, these races, then so be it, we will have to do it of course but I think the bigger picture needs to be sorted, more than that.

    VB: Not a big fan, myself, personally, about the reverse grid idea. I think it would be a real shame to lose proper qualifying. I think all the drivers really enjoy pushing the car to the limit for that one lap in qualifying. I find it really enjoyable so it would be a shame.

    KM: Yeah, I agree. As Dany said, we need to try and fix the problem organically by making the competition closer and I also think qualifying is a fantastic event, so I think it’s a bad idea.

  • 2019 Russian Grand Prix Preview: Ferrari’s Validation

    2019 Russian Grand Prix Preview: Ferrari’s Validation

    It’s safe to say that Ferrari surprised us all at the Singapore Grand Prix. Most of us had them as the third best car on the weekend but that turned out to be Red Bull. The team who was tipped to take the fight to Mercedes.

    But was this just a flash in the pan for Ferrari? The Singapore Grand Prix tends to throw up some rather unconventional races and that may have contributed to Ferrari’s success. Who knows, but the upcoming Russian Grand Prix will be important for Ferrari as more eyes will be on them and they will be expected to carry on their good run of form. The Russian Grand Prix will act as validation to determine if their performance in Singapore was a once off or if they’ve turned a corner with the SF90 and it’s finally coming good.

    This week we move to Sochi for the Russian Grand Prix. A race that Mercedes has dominated since it made an appearance on the F1 Calendar in 2014. A Mercedes outfit on the back-foot tends to be a very dangerous thing for their rivals. Mercedes have demonstrated over the years that they’re a highly focused team and come back into form in very dominant fashion. Both their drivers were hard done by their strategy in the Singapore Grand Prix race and will both be looking to etch their names in the books for this years Russian Grand Prix.

    Ferrari are coming off the back of three victories in a row and will definitely looking to continue on this run to make it four in a row. It seems like they’ve finally solved their front down-force issues and both drivers seem much more comfortable in the car. The race in Russia this weekend will be the test that will determine the rest of the season for Ferrari.

    Another race weekend also means another battle for the mid-field spoils. The layout of the Sochi Autodrom should play towards Renault who are currently sitting in 5th place on the Constructors table with 67 points and who are chasing down Mclaren in fourth with 89 points. Renault will be relentless in this pursuit for fourth place and so will Mclaren. It will be slightly worse for Renault if they were to be beaten by a customer team.

    Russia could’ve been a good race for Red Bull, but Honda have elected to replace the ICE of all the Red Bull teams. This means that Max Verstappen, Alex Albon, and Pierre Gasly will drop 5-places down the grid while home favourite Daniil Kvyat will start from the back of the grid. This clearly shows that Honda are gearing their teams for the Japanese Grand Prix in front of their home crowd.

    We’ve been #blessed with some great racing of late with the past few races. The Russian Grand Prix, however, tends to be one of the unexciting venues on the F1 calendar. Degradation is nearly zero which means teams go for the one stop race and the racing is usually dull, or at least what we see on TV. The mid field battles are great to keep an eye on and with low degradation we could see the over-cut become quite powerful. Holding thumbs that it’s a good one.

  • 2018 Russian GP: Post Qualifying Press Conference

    2018 Russian GP: Post Qualifying Press Conference

    DRIVERS

    1 – Valtteri BOTTAS (Mercedes)

    2 – Lewis HAMILTON (Mercedes)

    3 – Sebastian VETTEL (Ferrari)

    TRACK INTERVIEWS

    (Conducted by Paul Di Resta )

     

    Q: Valtteri, I have to say, an incredible lap. Your team-mate looked in supreme form, but you go the job done and you got pole position on a track where you took your first win last year.

    Valtteri BOTTAS: Thanks, yeah, it was a nice lap. In the end I managed to also improve a little bit. I don’t know what happened, I think he aborted his lap. It feels good. I’ve still got a bit of the shakes. It takes some concentration, but it was fun.

     

    Q: Did it take that much to get pole position? I can see you’re still shaking, the emotion are trying to get on top. Lewis on supreme form at the moment coming up behind you to congratulate you.

    VB: Yeah, maybe I don’t look like it, but I’m really happy, for sure. But it’s only the first step in this weekend. It’s a massively long run from the start line to Turn 1, so it’s going to be important to try to keep that position.

     

    Q: You can be happiest today, you got the job done. Lewis, another front row lock-out by Mercedes. You looked like you did a very good sector, but just lost it out of Turn 7?

    Lewis HAMILTON: Yeah, first of all a big congratulations to Valtteri, he has been driving all weekend and just did the better job. It’s a great track and the weather is fantastic and we have a great crowd. It was intense naturally as it always is. Just my last two laps were not special at all! But you can’t always get it right and at least we are still in the fight for the race tomorrow. But the team are doing an amazing job, so really happy with the 1-2.

     

    Q: You did the good job in Singapore. You got the best qualifying lap of everybody and you managed to control the race. You’ve come here with an upgrade and the car is working very well. How much do you owe to the team to keep that momentum and to keep that carrying on for you to take the fight to Sebastian?

    LH: We rely fully on the team. The guys back at the factory, the guys here do an impeccable job and it’s really motivating to see new upgrades come, just to see the evolution of the car throughout the year, because I’m the one that gets to go out and test it. And as I said, a big thank you to everyone here in Russia for having us, because it’s a beautiful place so far.

     

    Q: Sebastian, P3 today. I think we can say it’s not over, this weekend, but it’s very difficult from Ferrari’s point of view. Mercedes have come here with some upgrades and you just haven’t had the pace, have you?

    Sebastian VETTEL: Not yet. We’ll see, maybe it happens tomorrow. Obviously it was important to get as close as possible to them, and then we’ll see. But it’s true that they have been very quick so we’ll see. Tomorrow is a long race, we’ve seen that the tyres are very important. For today, I think it should have been a bit closer, the gap, but not enough to be a threat. I had a tiny mistake in the last sector. But I knew that I had to improve by half a second, so I had to try. It didn’t work but I’m quite happy. The car felt alright, so that makes me quite positive for Sunday.

     

    Q: It’s a long run down to Turn 2, which is the first braking zone. Do you think you can use the extra power you’ve normally got and equally is it your best chance of getting on top of these two?

    SV: I hope so. I just spoke to Valtteri and reminded him of what happened here last year. Maybe we can turn it around; that would be nice. I think it depends on the start, the initial jump, that’s important. Then I think you know where you are and then we see what we can do for the first corner but after that, as I said, it’s a long race. Tricky one, but for sure if there’s a gap we’ll go for it.

     

    PRESS CONFERENCE

     

    Q: Valtteri, after a fairly tough run of form, you said you wanted a big result, so how sweet does this pole position feel today?

    VB: For sure it feels good. I’ve only once on pole, earlier this year in Austria, so it’s been a bit long since last time, so it is a good feeling. Coming into this weekend I knew that normally this has been a pretty good track for me and again managed to get some good laps in qualifying and the car just felt really, really strong. As the times show, I think the team has done an exceptional job again, bringing new bits again at this race. We’re just step-by-step improving this car, which is going to be really important for the rest of the year with the championship fight

     

    Q: Congratulations. Lewis, fastest in Q1 and fastest in Q2. It’s still a Mercedes one-two, but just talk us through your session, finishing second today?

    LH: Well, big congratulations to Valtteri, he did a great job in Q3. It’s been a really good weekend so far, honestly. I really can’t complain. I don’t know where it really got away from me in Q3 but I struggled a little bit and Valtteri obviously picked up quite a bit of pace. The middle sector was where I was slacking, as I’d call it. Anyway, it’s great to have a one-two and it’s a long way down to Turn 1 so we’ll still have a fight at least tomorrow. It’s going to be a long race, for sure.

    Q: Seb, third place today and with the pace that Mercedes’ showed in FP2, FP3 and then earlier in qualifying as well, do you think Ferrari maximised its potential today?

    SV: Yes.

     

    Q: …and in that case, what’s the potential for tomorrow?

    SV: Well, we go racing. You never know what’s going to happen. I think… I was joking with Valtteri earlier that he should remember what happened last year where he was third, I was on pole. But you never know. It depends on the start. It depends on so many things. So, we will see. As I said, we will go racing and try to do, obviously, our best. It’s been a bit of a tricky one for us. We didn’t have the pace by quite a big gap, which is a surprise but it is like this and we will fight as much as we can tomorrow.

     

    QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

     

    Q: (Scott Mitchell – Autosport) Lewis, question for you. You mentioned the time loss in the middle sector so far. Can you talk us through where you think you’ve been losing that time – and did that have any bearing on the mistake on the second run, just knowing you had a little bit of time to find?

    LH: The middle sector hadn’t been too bad throughout qualifying. Q1 was really good and then Q2 wasn’t so great and just generally throughout the weekend it’s been a bit up and down through that sector but been quick in the first and third. And then, yeah, the first lap in Q3, was down three-tenths in the middle sector but I was quickest in the first and last. So I knew I had to push quite a lot because I knew also he would gain time, so it wasn’t three tenths it has half a second I needed to improve. And so just over-egged it a little bit. I think I picked up a little bit of dirt on my outside tyres and then there was less grip there for the next corner.

     

    Q: (Livio Oricchio – globoesporte.com) To Sebastian. What’s the main problem in your car? Your tyres don’t reach the temperature? They go over temperature? Or they are normal and you have understeer? Oversteer?

    SV: To be honest, I was pretty happy. I think the car was pretty good. The balance was pretty good. I think it peaked in Q3 just the way it should so I think we got everything we could. I had a tiny bit of a mistake because I knew I had half a second to find, not just a couple of hundredths, so should have been two-tenths up on the last lap – but yeah, I was pretty happy with the car. It’s not like there’s a big issue with car balance. I think we reached out full potential today.

     

    Q: (Scott Mitchell – Autosport) Question for all three drivers. We’ve seen that the track’s been resurfaced slightly on the approach to Turn One and that means the first row of the grid will definitely start on the new tarmac. Not sure if the second row of the grid gets it. How much has that come up with your discussions with the teams this weekend? Have you talked about it – and do you think it could make any difference off the start tomorrow?

    VB: I think it’s a little bit unknown, to say exactly how much there is going to be a grip difference, if there is going to be – but usually new tarmac tends to have a bit more grip – but also it depends on the type of tarmac. We’ve been only driving around that part of the track in non grip-limited conditions, so flat-out. We’ll find out tomorrow how it’s going to affect.

     

    Lewis, do you see it affecting the starts?

    LH: I really don’t know. Pretty much the same as what Valtteri said. So, tarmac’s always different but we’ve not done a start out there, so I anticipate it’ll probably be different to the older stuff – but whether it’s better or worse, we’ll find out. Hopefully better.

     

    And Seb, your thoughts on the grid?

    SV: I don’t know. I thought P3 is also just in the range. If not, that’s not good. I think the grip should be a bit higher. I think it’s wrong to resurface just a bit, whether that’s positions one-two-three, or four-five-six, eight-nine-ten, it doesn’t matter. If you resurface something of the grid you should resurface everything. But it is what it is.

     

    Q: (Andrea Cremonesi – La Gazzetta dello Sport) A question for the two (Mercedes) drivers: of course there is a championship on the table. I would like to know about that, from both of you. How is the strategy for tomorrow? Valtteri, are you free to race completely or to look a little bit for your teammate at the start, particularly? And for Sebastian, I would like to know if you can explain what happened after Singapore, just because some new parts didn’t work or there was something else wrong?

    VB: My approach to the race tomorrow is definitely just trying to win the race. You can’t have any other goal, starting from the pole so that’s going to be the aim, for sure, but of course we’re here as a team, we’re fighting for both championships. Obviously Lewis is leading the championship with a bit of a gap to Sebastian and a very big gap to me, so always need to keep those things in mind but yeah, my approach, starting the race, is trying to win and we’ll then see how it goes.

    LH: I think all of our goals is to try and win this race. It’s a difficult track on which to try and overtake so the start will be an interesting one and after that it’s partly about strategy which we’re all pretty much on the same (strategy). We just give it everything we’ve got.

     

    Q: And Seb, your thoughts on Ferrari’s form at Singapore compared to here?

    SV: Well, I don’t think it’s too different. Obviously in Singapore I think we were looking a bit more competitive until qualifying. Then, for various reasons, we didn’t get a very good session but I think also on Sunday it was true that we didn’t have enough pace. I don’t think anything has happened, to be honest. I think the races that we’ve seen so far have been quite close. I don’t think there was a race where we had really that superior pace in the race. I think it was always a match on Sunday, at best for us. On Saturday I think it’s been one way or the other but yeah, for sure, yesterday we didn’t get a very good feeling but I think today the car was really good and I was quite happy in qualifying. I didn’t have much to complain about but we’re still not quick enough so I think it’s just what we saw today but tomorrow is the race and that’s what we focus on now.

     

    Q: (Valery Kartashev – Racing News Agency) My question is not about qualifying. You know the current situation where we have only two seats available in Formula One and much more young drivers who would like to be a Formula One driver but have no opportunity to do this. And yesterday, Lando Norris actually said that the Formula Two car is quite fun to drive, so maybe they would like to continue to do GP3 or Formula Two but there is one problem. There are no more spectators in the grandstands, so what about if you, instead of giving all the interviews on Thursday, have one race in a Formula Two car so we could see you in the same cars and spectators go to the autodrome and the young drivers could use your result as a benchmark.

    SV: Yeah, anything’s better than interviews! I think it would be fun. In the past racing drivers were a lot more all-rounders, they raced in different cars, different categories. Nowadays motor sport has changed, the sport has changed and everything has got more professional, more serious so there’s also not that much time maybe on hand but I think it would be nice to drive more often and talk less.

     

    Q: Lewis, you won the GP2 title but would you go back to race a Formula Two car against some of the current guys?

    LH: I don’t really feel the need to. We’re already racing too much in my opinion, and I don’t want to drive a slower car. GP2, it’s the best thing you’ve ever driven up until you’ve driven a Formula One car. I’m pretty sure there’s not a single driver who’s driven a Formula One car who says I want to go back to a GP2 car. I don’t really see the benefit of it, to be honest. GP2 is not there for spectators, it’s a proving ground for young guys to get to Formula One, so I don’t really have an answer there.

     

    Q: And Valtteri, would you rather race a Formula Two car on a Thursday than do interviews?

    VB: If I could chose, I definitely would drive but I’m not that keen to race there. Like Seb said, it is pretty professional nowadays and there’s not much time and you want to invest more of your time or your thoughts or your commitment to this sport if you want to be at the top really.

  • 2018 Russian GP: Thursday Press Conference

    2018 Russian GP: Thursday Press Conference

    DRIVERS – Valtteri BOTTAS (Mercedes), Marcus Ericsson (Sauber), Sergey SIROTKIN (Williams), Charles LECLERC (Sauber)

    PRESS CONFERENCE

    Q: Marcus, Sauber announced this week that Antonio Giovinazzi will be racing next season but you’re going to be remaining with the team in 2019, so just give us your reaction to the news about what’s happening next year.

    Marcus ERICSSON: Yeah, it’s obviously disappointing to be not racing. It’s all you want to do; you want to race. It’s not good news for me, obviously. Still, I’m happy to be able to continue my relationship with the team but then yeah, let’s see. I want to race still, so I’m looking at different options on how to keep doing that and looking at everything really, what I can do, in what series and what it could be – but it’s still a bit early. It’s quite fresh, this news, so I need to look at my options. Overall, of course, I would like to stay.

     

    Q: You said on social media ‘it’s not the end of the story – just the start of a new chapter’ but does it feel like it’s the end of the Formula One chapter, in your eyes?

    ME: No. My goal is still to come back into Formula One. I think for 2019 that’s not going to happen but hopefully after that there will be possibilities to come back. That’s still the goal, to come back to Formula One.

     

    Q: Sergey, moving onto you next. You raced here in what was GP2 but this will be your first Russian Grand Prix as a Formula One driver – so it must be a special weekend for you.

    Sergey SIROTKIN: It is. It’s going to be special, for sure. Obviously being here almost every year, since F1 came here, I raced here in GP2 but it’s all quite different form being here as a race Formula One Driver. I can feel it already now, it’s a lot of attention, a lot of support, which is very nice to feel as a driver, it’s very nice to feel especially in the situation we are this year. I mean, it’s a lot more activity, it’s a bit of… y’know… I would say it’s a bit more difficult to manage all of that but I mean, I try to get the best from it, I try to get energy from it and keep going. So, it is a pleasure to be here and race in front of the home crowd.

     

    Q: That’s the specifics of this weekend – but more generally, do you know what you’ll be doing in 2019 yet?

    SS: I definitely know what I want to be doing. I’m not sure I can guarantee something right here, right now, but, I mean, I think it’s quite obvious, with the way everything is developing, I think it’s quite obvious what I want and it’s something that should happen quite soon. Yeah, I have no guarantees right now, right here, but at the same time I’m not too much worried about the future, let’s say.

     

    Q: Valtteri, this will be Sergey’s first grand prix here in Formula One and this was the scene of your first Formula One victory for Mercedes last year – so does it bring back special memories, returning to Sochi?

    Valtteri BOTTAS: Definitely. You never forget the first time. It was a good memory and it will be nice to be back here. Strong track normally. I’ve had pretty decent races so in that way it’s a nice approach to the weekend.

     

    Q: You had more wins after this win here during last season but 2017 was the last time you won a grand prix. How do you go about turning that around this weekend?

    VB: No wins for me this year yet but there’s still a bit of the season left and I come here with only one thing on my mind and that is being on the pole and winning the race.

     

    Q: Charles, you’ve a few weeks now to digest where you’ll be racing next year, and you called it a dream come true, to be moving teams. Can we ask, in those dreams, have you started thinking about your first grand prix victory yet?

    Charles LECLERC: No, not yet, it’s still very far away. First of all, I have to finish this season on a high, which is for now the main importance to me. There are still six races to go, so I’ll first try to focus on that. Obviously, it’s a dream come true to be racing for Ferrari next year – but I’m trying to take it out of my mind to focus fully on the end of this season.

     

    Q: Focussing on that then, what is it you want to do with Sauber in these final six races. What are the things you still need to learn and work on ahead of your move?

    CL: I think you can always improve. To learn, I still think I can learn in everything. So there is still a lot to learn. The target for the end of the season is to try to keep our form. It’s not going to be easy, because, as the team already mentioned, we started to focus, or the team started to focus, on next year’s car and I believe some of the other teams are still pushing a little bit to gain some positions in the championship – so it’s not an easy situation to be in, but we will try to keep our form.

     

    QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

     

    Q: (Scott Mitchell – Autosport) Question for Marcus. The confirmation that you would be reserve driver obviously followed pretty immediately after Sauber confirmed its driver lineup. So, it’s not like you had to face speculation in public about what you would be doing or if you would drive for another team. So, how much notice did you get have? How aware were you that was coming? And did you have much opportunity to look at maybe Williams for next year or staying in F1 in a race role?

    ME: I think when Kimi signed, I think that was bad news for me. I was still hoping but then obviously over the past weekend I got the information that Antonio had signed for the other car. And then yeah, my management were looking around a little bit but we decided to continue with Sauber and the relationship there, which we think is important. And then yeah, we go from there basically.

    Q: (Andrey Kirsanov – Sputnik News Agency) My question is to Sergey Sirotkin, to our champion. As you know, the last edition of Formula 1 in Singapore, Lewis Hamilton from Mercedes, he won this edition. So what are your expectations for this edition in Sochi, how are you preparing and who are your main rivals in this time?

    SS: Tricky question because everybody speaks that we are coming here to Sochi and that it should be a special event and so on and so on, but at the end of the day, in terms of preparation, how you build up your weekend, how you prepare yourself and how you do all your work with the team, it doesn’t really change much at all. It doesn’t matter if you go to Sochi or you go wherever else, every time you try to do your job, you try to do it as good as you can. If I could do anything better than I could I would do it a long time ago, I wouldn’t wait for here. So, I wouldn’t say there is anything different. I wouldn’t say anything different in terms of our opponents or whatever. So yeah, again we just try to do the best from where we are and maximise the situation and I’m afraid that’s it.

     

    And your main rivals?

    SS: It’s exactly the same as any other single race. First of all I think we should look at ourselves because I think it’s that type of track where we can have surprises, in both ways, in a good way and in bad way, and depending on that it will put us either closer or further away from the teams we want to be fighting with, so it’s quite difficult to say. But there’s not much movement around the field now anyway, so I would say nothing is going to be much different from what we saw in, let’s say, the recent three, four or five races.

     

    Q: (Valery Kartashev – Racing News Agency) My question is to everybody. In Singapore, Lewis Hamilton said his passion for music and the fashion industry helps him to stay motivated, so my question is: do you have something outside Formula 1 that helps you to stay motivated and recharge the batteries?

    VB: Yeah, I think everyone definitely has some things they have time to do between the races. I think for me personally it’s been always… I love sports. It’s a way of staying healthy and a way of getting rid of stress that we can experience with this sport. If I have free time, which I didn’t really have since the last race, but if I have, it’s nice to see the family, friends that you don’t normally get to see. Personally, I love nature, so sometimes a proper escape to hiking or some mountains or something is nice.

    ME: Yeah, I’m a bit the same like Valtteri. I enjoy sports in general. I recently opened a paddle centre, so I play quite a lot of that with my friend. I enjoy that a lot. And then, I’m an ice hockey freak, so I watch a lot of ice hockey.

    CL: First of all, what motivates me is the results. To me, it’s just trying to work as hard as possible to get the best result possible then on track. Then what relaxes me is just staying with the family and friends in Monaco. Nothing special to be honest.

    SS: I would repeat what Valtteri says. I mean most of my life is anyway dedicated to the cars, so anything related to that – I’m never really going far away from it. Again, some type of training. I do like also to stay with the family, to go to see some nature, to be as switched off as possible at certain points from racing. So nothing really much unusual I would say.

     

    Q: (Livio Oricchio – Globoesporte.com) To all drivers, I start with Valtteri. You started third position and you became first before… at the end of the straight you got a good two from Sebastian, overtook him. And we saw this year also, Sebastian starting behind Lewis in Spa, the same situation; he overtook him after the starting grid and a long straight. Circuits like this, it’s interesting to maybe start from second position or even third rather than pole position?

    VB: Yeah, it is tricky one here. It is an extremely long run into Turn 2. Last year I missed the pole by, I think, less than one tenth, which maybe in the end was good, I got a nice tow. But you also need a good start for that. I think still you would like to be on pole because from pole if you get a good start there is… I think if you look at the past, 2015 and 2016, who started on pole could keep the first place into Turn 2. It is a tricky one. Now I think there is a bit of resurfacing done, which affects position one and two. Normally when there is new tarmac it means there is more grip so potentially you would like to be in the first two places.

     

    Marcus, you’ve raced here before, is this a circuit you can make big gains at into Turn 2?

    ME: Yeah, I think when it’s a long run into the first braking zone, it’s obviously important with a good start but then you need to look for a good tow, especially these days with the heavy downforce cars, it can make a difference. But as Valtteri says, you still need a good start, to get the momentum on the people around you. But it definitely opens up a bit of a mixture of positions, because it’s such a long run, you know. Some other tracks, like Singapore, even if you do it a good start it’s difficult to make up from it, but here it can really make a difference and you can gain quite a lot of positions.

     

    Charles, it will be the first time you race here, so is this something you look at when you come to a new circuit?

    CL: Yeah, you do, but it’s quite difficult to speak when you don’t know the track. Starts haven’t been my strong point this year; I think I struggled quite a bit. But to know there’s a long straight will for sure help overtakes after the start, but apart from that I don’t really know what to say. I don’t know this track so…

     

    Sergey, did you have a similar experience in GP2?

    SS: I don’t really remember how it was in GP2, but for sure this kind of track, the speed you approach Turn 2 for the braking and the speed you actually want to brake down to for the apex, it’s quite a big offset, so you can still do something. But again, it all should start with a good launch initially. Without that, it doesn’t matter how long is the straight you won’t really be able to do much.

     

    Q: (Scott Mitchell – Autosport) In Singapore we had blue flags as a topic in the race and afterwards. It seems to have split opinion on their merit in Formula One. What are your respective thoughts on blue flags? Should they be dropped or do they still have a place? Could it be implemented differently? What do you think?

    SS: Firstly, I don’t think I’ve ever experienced it as the leading car, obviously, so I can imagine that for the leaders it’s as painful as it is for us. It’s one story when you’re just finishing your race and you’re not really fighting but there are some other occasions when we’re still fighting for positions and for us it’s quite painful to find a good safe way for ourselves, first of all, to let the leading cars pass by. Honestly, I don’t think I have the best experienced to comment if I wish to keep that or if I wish to get rid of it but yeah…

    CL: Well, in Singapore first of all, I would like to thank Sergey because if my strategy worked that well it’s thanks to him also.

    SS: It was a pleasure.

    CL: I think if it’s done well, it’s the right thing to have in Formula One but then in Singapore it was a bit of a mess, I think. At one point, the marshals were waving yellow flags at me for several laps but I had nobody behind or more than one second or quite a lot more, actually. If it’s done properly I think it should stay but we just need to fix this issue for next year in Singapore.

    ME: I think it’s always difficult with the blue flags and there are always arguments between the top cars compared to the guys they are lapping and it’s always two opinions there. I think we’ve tried 1.5 seconds, we’ve been down to one second and now I think it’s 1.2s. It’s difficult to find the perfect solution. I think it changes from track to track. In my opinion I think 1.2s is a good compromise. It’s never going to be perfect, but I think it’s just part of the sport, part of the race and I think as it is now I think is the best solution in my opinion, that’s the most fair for both the top and the guys who are getting lapped as well. I can also understand the frustration in the case of Valtteri in Singapore, obviously, because it’s a track where it’s very difficult to get close enough but at the same the guys who they are lapping are also having a race and fighting for points so it is a very difficult subject but I think where it is now is a good compromise.

    VB: Well yes, first of all I’m definitely happy to keep the blue flags. I’ve been on both sides, really. I’ve been blue-flagged many times as well. I think honestly, as Marcus says, it really depends on different tracks. Sometimes this new 1.2s rule is good and sometimes it’s a bit tricky to get close enough to trigger the blue flags, like what happened to me in Singapore but it is also going to be a compromise, it’s never going to be perfect. In the end, for all the lead cars lapping, it is the same. Sometimes you get more luck with it, sometimes more unlucky and that’s how it goes. For now it’s fine.

     

    Q: (Frederic Ferret – L’Equipe) Sergey, what are your thoughts on the recent success of Russian drivers you met before, in two years’ time in the Formula One paddock? Is it a question of growing motor racing culture in your country or the chance to have big companies to support you?

    SS: I think it’s a good question. I think it’s a bit of both generally,  the racing getting more and more popular which obviously gives more chances, initially, for the drivers first of all, more like a base and I think we will see it even more in the future. Same for the companies: there are more and more companies and different organisations and so on starting to be interested in supporting the racing, whatever it could be. It could be drivers’ sponsorship, it could be like that here. Many companies supporting the track activity here in Sochi or other things similar in Moscow or whatever. Yeah, there’s definitely a lot more movement around this sport nowadays than there’s been, even when I started so it’s a good way to keep going and to improve it. I think it’s still just beginning and I think what’s going on on the base what we have today is going to come in quite a few years and I think it will be quite an impressive improvement.

  • F1 2018: Russian Gp Preview – In-form Mercedes Favourites

    F1 2018: Russian Gp Preview – In-form Mercedes Favourites

    If the Singapore grand prix was a must win for Ferrari then the race in Russia this weekend and the twenty-five points on offer are even more critical from Sebastian Vettel’s perspective.

    The 2018 Formula 1 season started with a lot of promise for Ferrari. In Australia they hit the ground running and genuinely seemed to have built a great racecar. It’s true, they did built an extremely quick and perhaps even championship-winning car but they’ve never really hit their stride. Sure, there were a handful of victories in the early part of the season but their inconsistency has always lurked not too far away.  Not inconsistency in speed per say but in executing strategy and clinical decision-making. The irony here is that this is an area in which Ferrari has struggled for a number of years and it may, still, be something they’re not aware of. Instead they diverted and invested all attention and energy into producing a quick car and they have but it isn’t enough to win a world championship against an opposition like Mercedes.

    Though they are imperative Mercedes’s might isn’t only in the car it produces or Lewis Hamilton. Many would have you believe that Vettel throwing away 25 points at the German grand prix was likely the seminal moment of the season but they would be mistaken. The Singapore grand prix weekend was far more pivotal. Not because Ferrari could only manage third but for how Mercedes turned around their fortunes on a circuit where they had been embarrassed previously. For all to see the brilliance of the entire Mercedes operation was put on display. It allowed a for a glimpse of their unyielding tenacity and their relentless drive for success on and, importantly, off the track.

    Russia 2016_Mercedes Pit WallThe result in Singapore will have galvanized the team and infused them with an unshakeable believe that the both 2018 titles are very much within their grasp.

    The next step is the Russian grand prix and the Sochi Autodrom.  Built by F1 architect Herman Tilke the 5.8 km long circuit has several distinguishing features with the most prominent being turn 3, a 750-meter constant radius left-hander. Besides a long fairly straight and flat-out drag to turn 2 the rest of the lap is littered with 90-degree corners that lends the middle sector its fast and flowing nature. Because the track is built around the Olympic Park it utlises some of the internal roads of the park making it, effectively, a street circuit. However, there will be no fear for the durability of the Hypersoft tyre this weekend as the track surface of the Sochi Autodrom is notoriously smooth.

    sirotkinThere is no way to hide the fact that the Williams F1 team has endured one of the most difficult seasons in its storied history. Far from competitive the once championship winning team has been nailed to the back of the grid for most of the 2018 season. But it’s not all doom and gloom as the team recently advanced to the final part of qualifying in Italy and followed it with a double points score in the race. Tenth place in Italy secured Sergey Sirotkin’s first points in F1. As the third Russian driver to compete in the sport, following Vitaly Petrov and Daniil Kvyat, Sirotkin has been, mostly, under the radar. But he’s been quite impressive even if the results don’t reflect it. Besides driving the wheels, figuratively, off his Williams and ekeing out every last milli-second of speed his demeanour outside of the car has been noteworthy. Never one to criticize he’s remained positive and continually looked to boost the morale of the team with what he says. While talk is cheap in F1 and it wont make you go any faster it does boost self-esteem in a moment when Williams needs all it can get.

    Formula 1 often tends towards throwing up contrary results and you predict it at your peril. But on current form Mercedes should see the chequered flag first on Sunday unless Ferrari can get its house in order.

  • F1 2017: Russian Gp Review – Victory For Valtteri

    F1 2017: Russian Gp Review – Victory For Valtteri

    On paper the Sochi Autodrom in Russia is a track that was supposed to play to the strengths of the Mercedes given its power dominated layout. But predictions and form ‘on paper’ are often fickle. Despite this Ferrari stunned the F1 paddock on Saturday to lock out the front row of the grid for the first time since the 2008 French grand prix.

    The catch though was the kilometer long run to the first braking point of the lap. It was here that Valtteri Bottas, starting third, made his move. It was fairly easy to conclude that a big part of the Russian grand prix story would come at the start. This is precisely where Bottas made it happen by acing his pull away.

    As the Finn led Vettel, Raikkonen, and teammate Lewis Hamilton through the first lap the safety car was deployed for a clash between Renault’s Jolyon Palmer and Haas F1’s Romain Grosjean. While the safety car did neutralize the race for a handful of laps it had no real effect on the race. At the resumption of the race Bottas pulled away from Vettel and steadily built a gap of roughly four seconds. It was evident that at least Bottas’ Merc was running well on the Ultra-soft compound tyre.

    43In contrast, Lewis Hamilton was never able to trouble third place man Kimi Raikkonen. Though he did briefly struggle with an overheating car the truth is that Hamilton was off the pace throughout the entire weekend. He did, after all, qualify half a second off Vettel’s pole winning lap. But this is something we’ve seen from Hamilton before Baku in 2016 comes to mind.

    While Vettel could do nothing about Bottas’ pace in the first stint it was the second half of the race where the Ferrari’s finally came alive. Their superior pace on the Super-soft tyre resulted in an easy third place for Raikkonen and a nail-bitingly close fight for the win for Vettel. While Vettel managed to get within six tenths of Bottas he wasn’t able to attempt a pass.

    In the famously unflappable style that has come to exemplify most Finnish racing drivers Bottas held his nerve to take his first grand prix victory. It’s taken 81 starts for Bottas to win his first race but there will hardly be a more popular winner in the paddock.

    21As Bottas, Vettel, and Raikkonen scored the top three positions it was Hamilton who finished in lonely fourth. While Red Bull’s Daniel Ricciardo retired with rear-brake failure his teammate Max Verstappen trundled home in an anonymous fifth place a minute adrift. Sergio Perez and Esteban Ocon scored important points for Force India in sixth and seventh ahead of Nico Hulkenberg’s Renault in eight. A late-race slow puncture forced Felipe Massa into the pits, which dropped the Williams driver down to ninth ahead of Carlos Sainz’s Toro Rosso in tenth.

    It was yet another forgettable day for McLaren as Fernando Alonso failed to start the race with a suspected battery issue. Elsewhere Williams’ rookie driver Lance Stroll finished his first grand prix of the season in eleventh.

    There will be some that will say that the Russian grand prix was a bit of a bore fest, and that there wasn’t a whole lot of overtaking. But what was there in abundance was the sort of tension, at the head of affairs, which hasn’t been seen in quite some time. And the good news is that it involves two teams that are very evenly matched. Two teams that will undoubtedly continue to trade blows right down to the wire.