Tag: williams

F1 2016: Japanese Gp Free Practice 1 Report – Rosberg On Top

Nico Rosberg topped the timing sheets at the end of the first free practice session for the Japanese grand prix.

The 90 minute session got underway in brilliant sunshine with a track temperature hovering in the low 30 degrees Celsius range. Championship leader Rosberg set a quickest time of 1:32:431 on the yellow-walled soft tyres as teammate Lewis Hamilton set a 1:32:646 some .292 off first place.

The two Ferrari’s of Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen completed the top four but a scruffy lap from Vettel left him one second off the front-running Mercedes pace. Daniel Ricciardo and Max Verstappen were fifth and sixth quickest while the Force India pairing of Nico Hulkenberg and Sergio Perez ended in the session in seventh and eighth respectively. McLaren’s Fernando Alonso and Williams’ Valtteri Bottas rounded out the top then.

Spaniard Alonso had an off early in the session when he lost the rear-end of his McLaren in the Spoon Curve. The former champion clouted the barrier on the outside of the corner quite hard with the rear of the car and required a rear-wing and floor change. The only other incident came in the form of Romain Grosjean who veered off the circuit at Degner two. The Haas F1 driver complained of brakes over the radio.

Final Free Practice 1 Standings:

October 7, 2016
F1 2016: Japanese Gp Preview – Dazzling Suzuka Awaits

At the 2015 Japanese grand prix the stories were all about Lewis Hamilton. In 2016 the headlines are still about the Mercedes driver but now has a far different context to them.

The triple world champion arrives in Japan 23 points adrift and a little sheepish after some emotionally charged comments after his retirement from the Malaysian grand prix one week ago. It’s an interesting place that Hamilton finds himself occupying. Bar his first championship win in 2008 he hasn’t found himself so far adrift of the championship in the last few seasons. Some will say that his comments suggest that he’s feeling the pressure and they may be right. But it’s only showing out of the car and not on track where it counts most.

Make no mistake despite Hamilton’s off track woe-is-me speech after his engine blow-up it wont have any affect on his driving in Japan or for the rest of the season. He’ll strap into the cockpit of that number 44 Mercedes and drive it fast as it will go. This is precisely the reason why the 2016 driver’s title is far from over. Of course unreliability or a clout from Sebastian Vettel could have an impact on proceedings but, as the illustrious ‘they’ like to say, that’s racing. The thrill for race fans is that we’ll now get to see how Hamilton responds and what Rosberg still has in the bank.

They get put on a show on one of the most challenging and inspiring circuits in the world. Japan’s Suzuka circuit commands respect and the utmost precision from the driver while throwing a technically challenging layout at the car. A firm crowd favourite in Japan Jenson Button explains his love for the famous circuit. “The Suzuka circuit is incredible – almost in a class of its own on the calendar. It’s as close to a ‘perfect’ track as you can get in terms of having all of the different elements you would want as a driver. It’s fast, technical, difficult, rewarding, and really fun to drive, so it’s up there among the best.

It’s not all about the Merc boys this weekend either. Red Bull’s one-two victory in Malaysia landed a big blow in the battle for second place in the constructor’s standings. Ferrari arrive in Japan far less competitive than they were in 2015 and with the layout of Suzuka will have a tough time beating the Red Bull around here. In fact, given their brilliantly performing chassis it’s not unlikely that Red Bull could push or even challenge Mercedes for the top step of the podium if they have track position. The run down the ultra quick first corner in Japan has often been quite spicy and both Mercs will surely approach it with a bit of caution, which could open the door for Red Bull to take advantage. The weather too looks set to play its part with rain forecast during qualifying and the race.

It is impossible to return to Japan without memories of Jules Bianchi drifting into the consciousness. Two years ago the young Frenchman crashed and sustained injuries that would later claim his life. However impossibly painful the lost must be to Jules’ family, friends, and fans at the very least his death was not in vain as Formula 1 and all motorsport continue to make strides in driver safety because of him.RIP Jules.

October 5, 2016
F1 2016: Malaysia Gp: Ricciardo Wins Amidst Drama

At the start of the Malaysian grand prix Mercedes were expected to dominate on a circuit tailor made to emphasize the best aspect of their racing car and they did. However, Formula 1 isn’t called the most unpredictable sport in the world without reason. For as dominant as Lewis Hamilton was from pole position on Sunday the unpredictability of the sport hit hard.

As Hamilton scampered off into the lead of the race disaster struck immediately off the line for his Mercedes teammate Nico Rosberg. In a three-way battle for position into turn one Rosberg found himself pointing the wrong way down the track after being tagged by Sebastian Vettel. The Ferrari driver’s race ended a corner later as he pulled over with a broken left-front suspension. For his too optimistic move Vettel has been given a three-place grid penalty for this weekend’s Japanese grand prix.

While Rosberg began to make his way through the back, with remarkably no damage, Lewis Hamilton was well in control of proceedings. Despite some initial pressure from Max Verstappen and his alternate strategy there was never a true threat on Hamilton’s lead. Such was the pace of the number 44 Mercedes that he could, seemingly at will, lap a second faster than anyone else.

Still, not even the all-dominant Mercedes can ensure a definite victory. On lap 40 Lewis Hamilton aspirations of winning the race literally went up in flames as her Mercedes engine spectacularly expired on the start/finish strait.

After his retirement he made some comments to the media, which certainly fanned the flames. Something or someone, he said, doesn’t want him to win the championship. The team and Hamilton later backpedalled on this comment by saying that the driver was referring to a “higher power.” While Hamilton was rightly devastated with the failure it is inconceivable, and frankly absurd, that he would be sabotaged in any way. If not for any other reason than the fact that Mercedes would never want the image of an engine on fire associated with its brand. But there are many other reasons why this conspiracy theory is baseless. How do engineers ensure that an essentially new engine expire on demand? Sometimes the stars, on this case the cylinders, just don’t align.

Though Hamilton has suffered a number of engine failures in 2016 they’ve all been confined to Friday or Saturday. While still impactful they haven’t hurt as much as this one which is likely what has amplified emotions. In fact Hamilton’s last retirement was eleven races ago in Spain after a collision with Rosberg. His last mechanical failure? The 2015 Singapore grand prix.

The show must go on and it did with a superb and popular victory for Red Bull’s Daniel Ricciardo. The Aussie driver brilliantly held off his teammate Max Verstappen to take the fourth win of his career. Red Bull’s one-two finish is the first for the team since the 2013 Brazilian Gp and snaps a run of 10 victories for Mercedes. In a further show of his class Ricciardo dedicated his win to Jules Bianchi who sadly passed away last year after a horrible crash at the 2014 Japanese Gp.

Despite a ten second penalty for causing a collision with Kimi Raikkonen Nico Rosberg was able to recover to third and takes a 23-point lead to the Japanese Gp. Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen came home in fourth but was down on power for the majority of the race, which implies that the engine has some sort of damage. It could mean an engine penalty at some point perhaps this weekend in Japan or in Texas.

Valterri Bottas finished a solid fifth for Williams ahead of Force India’s Sergio Perez. Fernando Alonso drove a brilliant race from last to finish seventh ahead of Nico Hulkenberg in eighth and teammate Jenson Button in ninth. Renault’s Jolyon Palmer scored the first point of his career with tenth.

A 23-point lead for Rosberg seems a big one but with five race remaining it isn’t a done deal. After the race in Baku he had a similar advantage and it took Hamilton three race to overcome it. If nothing else the Malaysian Gp proved that it’s never over until the chequered flag drops.

(All images courtesy of Pirelli Motorsport)

October 3, 2016
2016 Formula 1 Malaysian Grand Prix: Thursday Press Conference

DRIVERS – Jenson BUTTON (McLaren), Felipe MASSA (Williams), Esteban OCON (Manor), Daniil KVYAT (Toro Rosso), Nico HULKENBERG (Force India), Nico ROSBERG (Mercedes)

PRESS CONFERENCE

Jenson let’s start with you. Your 300^th grand prix, only the third driver to do it, it’s a big number. What does your place in Formula One history mean to you?

Jenson BUTTON: That’s a good question that deserves a very long answer and I’m not going to give it to you here. It means I have been around for a hell of a long time. I remember when Rubens got to 300 – it was unbelievable that he’d reached 300 grands prix. I was like, “I’m never going to race for that long”. I remember when I started in 2000 – I’m not going to give you my life story – but when I started in 2000 I remember speaking to my dad and he said: “How long do you think you’re going to race for?” and I said: “No! I’ll be done by the time I’m 30 years old.” And here I am at 36 and this weekend I’m starting my 300^th grand prix. It definitely sucks you in, Formula One. It doesn’t let go for a long time, as long as you are performing. So it’s been a great ride to 300. Lots of ups and downs, as every career will have, and the important thing is that you stay on top of those bad times and you enjoy the good times as much as you can, because you never know how long they are going to last. A very exciting career to this point, 300 races, and if any of these guys can achieve it around me, fair play to them, because it’s a long time doing the same thing.

Now, Honda have said, going into this weekend, they’re going to review whether to use updated power units, presumably with tokens used, during the weekend at some point. What will be the decisive factors and what would you personally like to do from a strategic point of view looking at this race and at their home grand prix in Suzuka?

JB: Obviously they don’t want to take any penalties in Suzuka, which is completely understandable. It’s basically our second home race. Here – I can’t speak for the other car – but I personally won’t be having a penalty. It will be a normal weekend for me.

OK, that’s very clear, thank you very much for that. Nico Hulkenberg, coming to you, Force India are now fourth in the Constructors’ and have outscored Williams 39 to 19 in the last five races. Is there a belief in the team that you can beat them at the end of the season?

Nico HULKENBERG: Yeah, absolutely, of course. We’re doing well, especially since Barcelona the second half has been quite successful. The scores and the points back that up. But obviously there is still a long way to go. For us we definitely aim for and target that’s fourth place, but Sunday night in Abu Dhabi, that’s when we count everything and that’s when we have to be ahead. Now it’s a tight margin, they’re not going to give it to us for free. We have to work for it and yeah, make it work.

Let’s throw that same question to Felipe. Is that scoring ratio causing concerns internally at Williams and how are you addressing it?

Felipe MASSA: It’s definitely a big fight. So they are doing a very good championship. I think they improved the car a lot during the season. I believe we can fight them to the end and I believe maybe we can finish in front of them. But you don’t know. You will count race to race the amount of points we are doing compared to them, so I would say some of the tracks you have now are a bit better than some of the tracks we did, like maybe Singapore, the road tracks where they really have a very quick and competitive car. The circuits now are a little bit better for us, but the fight will be race by race and I hope we can do it.

And back to Nico Hulkenberg: you’re both using the same engine, so what’s giving your side the added value?

NH: The car hopefully. It is close and I think it will be a battle all the way to the end. I think good clean weekends, consistent from here is very important, maximise the opportunities we get, and yeah, that will determine at the end who will be fourth.

We’ll move on to Dany Kvyat and come back to Felipe in a moment. You said after the Singapore Grand Prix performance that you had rediscovered your love for Formula One after a tough few months. Why? What was so special about that race for you?

Daniil KVYAT: Well, it was an enjoyable race first of all, first time in a while, because we managed to have a good start. We were fighting all the race for quite high positions and it was a bit of a relief for the whole team to find ourselves fighting for the usual positions we used to fight for. Even though maybe the final result left us slightly disappointed, but the race itself was exciting. It was full of good fights. It was always promising pace. Our car was quite kind with the tyres and hopefully it’s a good confidence boost for the whole team, including myself.

It’s no secret that Toro Rosso lost the way a little bit with an update introduced around the time of the German Grand Prix, which seems to have been rectified now, so how confidently do you approach the reaming races of the championship?

DK: Well, like I said, Singapore gave us good indications. Obviously there were a lot of tests carried out by the people in the team and hopefully there was a few things discovered. Obviously we had a good Singapore but now we need a few more confirmations and hopefully they will arrive here in Sepang, even though the track layout is a bit different, maybe not as favourable as Singapore. Probably it won’t be an easy one for us but we will hope to have another confirmation that we are moving in the right direction from Singapore onwards.

Q: You made the announcement in Monza about your retirement at the end of this season, it’ll be your 250^thgrand prix in Abu Dhabi. Do you now arrive at these grands prix between now and the end of the season with a slightly different mindset? Are you determined to enjoy every experience, to take the most out of every grand prix?

FM: Yes, definitely! I’ll just enjoy massively doing what I’m doing – since I always did in my life. In a way you can say I have less pressure now – but we do have a lot of pressure with this fight with Force India. I just want to give everything I can to finish well, to get the fourth place in the Championship and enjoy every race, enjoy every moment. I’m still really happy with my decisions so I’m sure there’s a lot to do in life for this second step so, as Jenson was saying before, it’s a really long career, so even if we are pretty young… y’know you stop pretty young, he’s 36, I’m 35 and you’re like, retired! That’s why there’s still a lot of things to do in life. I’m really ready for that and happy. I’ll have a little bit more time at home as well. So, yeah, just thinking… so many things for the future and enjoying every race, every moment in different countries, different places. Really it’s fantastic to see all the support from the fans. From everybody around the sport. Enjoying the moment.

Q: Esteban, you’ve finished all of your grands prix so far. How do you assess your performance in qualifying and race compared with your team-mate?

EO: Coming into the season with less experience, of course, it’s not an easy thing. We had some ups and downs I think. We are pretty happy with the first grand prix we did. I improved quite a lot during the weekend. Of course it was my first grand prix so the pace was not great but we were pretty happy with that. Then unfortunately in the second qualifying in Monza we had a problem so we couldn’t show our pace, but I think we could have done a great result there. And in Singapore it has been a bit more difficult. So, we have to put all the details together and come back stronger for this race.

Q: If you look back through recent history, Alonso, Ricciardo, they all started out in a similar level team to the one you’re in at the moment, to learn the ropes in Formula One. Do you think another year at that level would be good for your development – especially, as you say, given that you came in, in a difficult situation quite late this year?

EO: For sure. The more you drive, and more you take experience. Any year, any races would help me. For sure. Getting in, after three races, you start to discover everything and start to build up a strong relationship with the team and see how they work. It’s a lot of details that you have to put right and once they are right, you can start to see some performance.

Q: Nico, Mercedes can wrap up its third consecutive Constructors’ Championship this weekend. How does this year compare from the team’s point of view to the two previous ones. What’s stood out for you about this year?

NR: It’s been another incredible year really. Every time we think it can never repeat itself and be as good as that again, and yet we manage to do it again. And this year as well now, so early in the season we have the opportunity to clinch the Constructors’ Championship, which is phenomenal. Everybody’s done an unbelievable job. Very impressive.

Q: It’s an open secret that the Mercedes team feel that your qualifying lap in Singapore is the best that you’ve driven since you’ve been with them – and Toto Wolff said it was the most complete, I think, performance he’d seen from you across the whole race weekend. What can you take out of that Singapore weekend that will make you a consistently strong competitor to the end of the season?

NR: I don’t need to take anything from the Singapore weekend. It was a great result, great weekend and all, so I’m very happy about that, but now it’s in the past. Now I’m here in Sepang and ready to go. Of course I believe that I have a great chance to win here as well. Just going to try to go for that.

QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

Q: (Heikki Kulta – Turun Sanomat) Nico, you are all the time insisting that you are not thinking about the championship. How can you avoid it when you are leading the championship?

NR: It’s not that I don’t think about it – I’m aware of the situation, I’m aware of the points and whatever else – that’s fine but I try and focus on the race weekend I have in front of me because that’s been working really well for me to do that and not think about anything else. That’s it. I want to win here in Sepang and I’m going to go for that.

Q: (Daniel Johnson – The Daily Telegraph) Another one for Nico. You guys leave no stone unturned in trying to beat each other – just out of interest, does that extend to things like the event you and Lewis were doing at the mall the other day? Are there silly little games that go on? Do you try and unsettle each other, nobble each other, anything like that?

NR: It’s not quite that extreme, that we’d be doing stuff at the mall, no. It’s not. But yes, for sure, we’ll be pushing each other very hard on the race track and even off the race track in many different areas, yeah, definitely. It’s a great battle and everything counts.

Q: (Chris Lyons- AP) Felipe, the calendar for next season came out with an asterisk next to Brazil saying it’s to be confirmed. Are you disappointed with the state of things in Brazil and how confident are you that it will stay on the calendar?

FM: Well, to be honest, I think it’s very difficult to answer in a proper way. We are just racing and we don’t know what’s happened behind (the scenes) with the contracts. Sometimes you just see some pressures over a country because maybe something’s not working like Bernie – or who decides – is thinking. We know that you always have pressures around. It’s not nice, definitely. Brazil is part of this sport, it’s part of Formula One since a very long time so it would be really disappointing to lose a race in Brazil even if I will not be there. But I will be supporting my country for new Brazilian drivers, so I know the situation in Brazil is not really easy for the moment economically, so this is maybe some fact around this. But you never know, maybe this is just some pressure but maybe this can happen as we saw it happened last year in Germany. I hope it will not happen to Sao Paulo, Interlagos. It’s also one of the most fun and great races to watch so I hope the best for them, for my country, for Brazil and I hope these guys will still enjoy their race in Brazil.

Q: (Frederic Ferret – L’Equipe) To all of you, how will the new tarmac affect your way of driving during the Grand Prix?

Q: Let’s start with Jenson; have you done your track walk yet?

JB: Er, no, but I’ve seen lots of pictures. It’s dark so that’s a major difference. I think it’s going to… with the temperatures that we see here anyway are very high, so if it’s clear then the temperatures are going to be very high on track, which obviously has quite a big effect on the way the tyres work. It’s very smooth, from what I see. Obviously we’re going to try and watch every practice session that runs today. You get a better understanding. What else? And the last corner is obviously very different with the off-camber but yeah, I don’t know if it’s similar to Sochi or not but it seems like it, the bitumen, the way that the asphalt is. So it might be a completely different circuit, but we won’t know until tomorrow, probably get a bit of an understanding from watching GP2 and GP3.

NR: It will be a big challenge because it will be very different and we all need to adapt to the new asphalt, which we don’t know how it’s going to handle here.

EO: I have been around on a track walk but it will be my first time on this track so I come here as I don’t know how it was before.

NH: Neutral, same for everyone but generally the smooth tarmac… we’ve seen recently we perform quite well on that so hopefully again here.

DK: I think I just copy and paste Jenson’s answer. It was perfect. It’s enough.

Q: (Louis Dekker – NOS.NL) For the five drivers who raced here before: what is your best Sepang memory?

JB: I’m the oldest. Yeah, I won here which was a pretty good memory, back in ’09. It was also quite a strange race. The rain was so severe that we had to red flag the race and it wasn’t restarted. I won the race but I got half points which was a bit of a pain. It’s always been a great circuit to race on, it’s also the place where I scored my first podium in 2004. I was running in third place in 2002 as well. On the last lap my suspension failed and handed the third place to Michael Schumacher. So that would have been my first podium. So this place… I’ve got lots of memories from here.

FM: Well, actually I always love this place, the circuit, the layout. I never won but I twice started on pole position, 2007, 2008. I will keep those memories but I was never on the podium here. Amazing. But I really love the circuit. I’ve had some great races, even if I wasn’t on the podium. Hope this one will be a better one.

NR: Just the track which is a really cool track to drive on. That’s it.

NH: I think my best or favourite memory would be qualifying 2010, coming here in my rookie year. I think it was only my second event, qualifying went pretty well, like full wets. In the conditions it was going pretty well, I think I qualified fifth or something so that was good fun and probably my best memory here.

DK: Yeah, actually quite a special track because I did my first ever race here in Formula BMW and won my first ever race in Formula BMW in single seaters, so it’s quite cool memories.

Q: (Livio Oricchio – GloboEsporte.com) Esteban, you started in the Formula Three European championship when you were very young, you won the championship, you beat future Formula One star Max Verstappen. Then you moved to GP3, in your first season you won the championship. Now you’re in Formula One, the reality is very different. Can you make a comment on the main difficulties you are facing, the challenge is maybe higher than you expected or less?

EO: No, I don’t think it’s harder than I was expecting. I was expecting it to be hard, coming after eleven Grands Prix or twelve Grands Prix. It’s never easy if you come in any championship at halfway through the season, all the drivers have had time to work on everything, on all the points and you arrive, you have to catch up everything again, so of course it’s tough. But at the end, you are working for the same thing and the important thing are the tracks. For sure there is much more things to do in F1 and you work with many more people. But at the end, it’s the same thing and the track is the important bit.

September 29, 2016
F1 2016: Malaysia Gp Preview – Mercedes vs Ferrari?

Usually by this stage of a Formula 1 season the Malaysian grand prix had long since played its part in the championship as the second round of the year. However, in 2016 the dazzling challenge that is the Sepang International circuit hosts the 16^th round of the championship.

The grand prix circuit, just outside of the Kuala Lumpur city centre, was designed by F1’s favourite architect Herman Tilke and made its debut in 1999. Of the current crop of drivers Sebastian Vettel is the most prolific in Malaysia with four wins while Ferrari is the most successful constructor with seven victories.

The 5.5 kilometers of the Sepang circuit is one of the most technical on the calendar, which will highlight or expose aspect of a Formula 1 car. The long straits either side of the enormous main grandstand is a test for the combustion engine and presents genuine overtaking opportunities.

The flowing and twisting complex of corners in sector two will provide the biggest test on a car’s aerodynamic competence. In other words it’s a circuit tailor made to highlight the best of what Mercedes has to offer. Despite this, since the start of the Mercedes era they’ve taken only one victory, in 2014, and have, surprisingly, not dictated proceedings here.

However, in 2016 the Sepang International circuit could be a journey into the unknown. Since last year’s race the track has been significantly resurfaced. Most the work was done to improve drainage but several corners were also smoothed out to “make it easier to drive”. The result is that several of the corners cambers have been adjusted which could lead to a different racing line being adopted.

In 2015 Sebastian Vettel took his first win for Ferrari in Malaysia and underlined an incredible turnaround for the Italian team. 2016 hasn’t been an extension of last year however as the Italian team has failed to build on the solid foundation of 2015. Nevertheless, the team and its drivers have the potential to do deliver this weekend. Ferrari are expected to bring several new aerodynamic parts to Malaysia in the hope of improving on downforce and in the hope of challenging Mercedes this weekend.

The other team in the equation is Red Bull Racing but it is likely, at least initially, to be a weekend of damage limitation for Daniel Ricciardo and Max Verstappen. The Sepang circuit, with its long straits, is not a Red Bull friendly one but it isn’t only pace, which can determine the outcome of the race. The weather, although forecast to be hot, has a tendency to produce random thunderstorms which could impact the result.

Nico Rosberg has forced the momentum in the race for the driver’s title firmly towards himself with several stunning results including a victory two weeks ago in Singapore. In contrast, Lewis Hamilton looked decidedly off-colour in Singapore. For once it is Lewis Hamilton in the unaccustomed position of needing to deliver in order to inject some energy into his bid for a fourth world title.

September 29, 2016
F1 2016: Singapore Gp Review – Nail-biting Victory For Rosberg

There are twenty-three corners crammed into the Marina Bay circuit and the Singapore grand prix delivered nearly as many talking points.

Nico Rosberg dominated Saturday qualifying while Red Bull’s Daniel Ricciardo beat an off-colour Lewis Hamilton to the front row of the grid. It was a weekend in which Hamilton never looked comfortable or close to matching the pace of his teammate. He had no reason for it either, choosing to say that it just didn’t come together at the important moments.

Haas F1’s Romain Grosjean never made it to the start of the race as he suffered a brake-by-wire failure and start-line incident ended Nico Hulkenberg’s race in a shower of carbon fibre before it even began. The Hulkenberg crash demanded a short safety-car period but because it was at the start of the race it had no impact on the race.

Nico Rosberg, who had a clean getaway from the line, re-started the race with Ricciardo, Hamilton and Raikkonen in close attendance. The Red Bull driver was able to keep the Mercedes of Rosberg honest with a gap of four seconds while Hamilton came under increasing pressure from Raikkonen in the Ferrari.

The dominance of Mercedes over the last while often disguises what finely tuned machines they are and just how much they flirt with the edge at most races. In Singapore both Rosberg and Hamilton were required to manage their brakes from early on. This and relenting pressure from Raikkonen forced Hamilton into a mistake that allowed the Finnish Ferrari driver to pull off a great overtake for third.

By the second round of pitstops Rosberg still held an advantage over Ricciardo while Raikkonen was holding off Hamilton for third. However, Mercedes opted to switch Hamilton to Plan B, which meant an extra stop. Ferrari opted to cover Mercedes and Raikkonen dropped to fourth behind Hamilton. The mistake however wasn’t that Ferrari covered the Hamilton pitstop but the fact that they reacted too late. Had the pitted Raikkonen a lap earlier, or even on the same lap as Hamilton, he would’ve emerged in third place. But when a team is reacting rather than pre-empting you end up with a season, which, for Ferrari, has been littered with strategic errors.

While Rosberg stayed out Red Bull brought Ricciardo in for a fresh set of boots. The Aussie closed down a 26 second gap to the race leader but ultimately fell an agonizing 4 tenths of a second short. Behind Hamilton and Raikkonen Sebastian Vettel earned the driver-of-the-day tag by recovering from last to fifth overall. Max Verstappen finished sixth ahead of Fernando Alonso in seventh. Force India’s Sergio Perez finished eighth ahead of Daniil Kvyat in ninth and Renault’s Kevin Magnussen in tenth.

Since being demoted from the Red Bull team Kvyat has been missing in action and has often appeared demoralized after races. But the Singapore Gp felt like a turning point for him as he shone in a feisty battle with Verstappen, the man who took his place at Red Bull. F1 isn’t like other sports where you can glean information from an athlete’s body language or facial expression in the heat of battle. But as Kvyat fought tooth and nail against Verstappen, and kept him behind, the pride and passion were evident and very much welcome.

In the last few weeks Nico Rosberg has accomplished something he’s never done before. He has taken first-time victories in Belgium, Italy, and Singapore. He heads the table by eight points with six race remaining. If he carries his methodical approach through the remainder of the season, and doesn’t slip against Hamilton, he could accomplish something else he’s never done before, the driver’s world title.

September 19, 2016
2016 Formula 1 Singapore Grand Prix: Thursday Press Conference

DRIVERS – Marcus ERICSSON (Sauber), Felipe NASR (Sauber), Jolyon PALMER (Renault), Sergio PEREZ (Force India), Daniel RICCIARDO (Red Bull Racing), Valtteri BOTTAS (Williams)

PRESS CONFERENCE

Congratulations on your marriage last week. While your private life is settled, clearly you will be looking for a new partner in a professional sense next year, as a team-mate at Williams. What kind of driver would suit, a rookie or someone more experienced?

Valtteri BOTTAS: Thank you very much. The one thing is it is a fact that I’m going to have a new team-mate next year and it’s still not obviously confirmed if I will be with Williams or not, but yeah, new team-mate and I’ve always said and that’s how I feel, the quicker team-mate you have, it doesn’t matter who it is, as long as he’s quick it always boosts the performance of both drivers and helps the team, so that’s always good. And a team player would be nice, but obviously I have nothing to do with choosing the team-mate, it’s completely up to the team who I will be racing with so I hope everything’s OK.

The battle with Force India in the championship is very tight: they were ahead on points, you moved back ahead after Monza. Where do you think your relative strengths lie as teams?

VB: I think it’s going to be a great battle between us and Force India, we been have really close the last six races, really depending on the track; some tracks they have their strong points and some places us. So I think overall we are very, very equal in terms of how quick the cars are so it will be just depending race by race and trying to maximise everything, getting the strategy right every time and having a good qualifying, trying to be ahead of them. I’m looking forward to the end of the year and it’s going to be a good fight.

Marcus, coming to you: congratulations, 50th GP start this weekend, only 4th Swede to make that mark. Sauber is now hiring again, some solid signings the last few weeks, how is the team evolving??

Marcus ERICSSON: Thanks a lot. Yeah, 50 sounds like a lot of race, but it’s nice. With the team I think we are definitely moving in the right direction. Like you say, we got some new signings, new personnel in the team, and it’s good, with fresh ideas, it’s positive for everyone I think. Also on the car side we got some updates going in the last couple of races and it’s interesting, we’re trying them out, trying to optimise them, and coming here to Singapore will also be very interesting for us because it will be the first time we really run the full new package we have introduced after the summer break, so it will be a very interesting weekend for us to see how far it gets us really.

What weaknesses were you working on with that update package and what are you expecting this weekend from the sort of test that Singapore provides?

ME: I think for sure it’s just general downforce that we have been lacking and hopefully from the signs we have got so far is that we have gained quite a bit on that side. Like I said, it’s been both Monza and Spa, the last two races that we have had this package; it’s not been high downforce tracks. It’s a bit of an unknown, so hopefully here in Singapore it’s obviously a very high downforce track so we will see then how this update package is working.

Felipe, coming to you: In points here last year. It’s always a complex race strategy wise as Valtteri was alluding to earlier on, but with three different tyre options this season, how do you see the variables playing out, Saturday and Sunday?

Felipe NASR: Well, yes it is, it’s normally a very challenging track, very demanding for both the car and the drivers and I feel the tyres will play a big part on it this weekend, you know having such softer compounds. I will be curious to see how many stops will be going in the race and I think the key really is to understand the tyres, how much you can make them last, understand how the car is reacting on track, with the temperatures here being very high. So it’s always a challenging weekend and Singapore always brings some surprises in terms of the racing always being exciting. A lot of things can happen so hopefully we are in a position to take any profit.

The driver market is in gear now, you’ve been linked with a possible move to Williams, there may be openings at Renault, obviously Sauber has had investment. What’s your personal objective regarding next season??

FN: Well, it’s difficult to say. Right now I don’t have any news. Hopefully soon but right now I don’t have much to say realty. All I can say, at Sauber things are moving forward. I can see the team really stepping up a lot of new people coming in, so as I said, it’s still a very attractive place to be, but it’s still and unknown. Hopefully when I have some news I’ll bring it in.

OK, thank you very much for that. Sergio, 23-race finishing streak, scored points in all five of your appearances here in Singapore. What do you like about Singapore and do you see this as a weekend where you’ll get the edge back over Williams?

Sergio PEREZ: Yeah well, that’s the target coming here. We obviously want to close up the gap. We lost out in the battle last race. We knew they were going to he strong there, so hopefully here we can close up and hopefully beat them. Singapore is a great place, it’s a very unique race, starting from racing at night, the way you get your routine; it’s totally different to any other race, waking up so late, going to bed also. Yesterday I was running at the track at 1am in the morning. Things like that are just not common in any other race. Also, the track is a very big challenge – mentally, physically, it’s just very difficult to finish the race, not having a contact or a crash. So it’s always important to make it until the end of the race. So hopefully I can keep my good score in Singapore with the points on Sunday.

You seem to hold the key to the driver market at present. Force India say you are definitely with them next year, when will we know for sure your plans for 2017?

SP: Well, I tried. I was hoping to be able to be in a position to announce my plans for this weekend. Obviously we got some delays. But I really hope that bef0re the next race we can definitely announce where I’ll be racing.

Any little hints?

SP: Well, I always say I’ll be very happy if I can stay, if everything is fine for me to stay where I am.

Jolyon, you won GP2 feature race here in 2013 and you’ve outqualified your team-mate Magnussen in 3 of the last 4 races, do you feel it’s an important moment to show what you can do with an eye on securing a seat for next season?

Jolyon PALMER: I think so, yeah. Still obviously the seats are in doubt, or up for grabs, so every race from now on is a chance to show what I can do. It’s a track I really like here and I feel like I’m driving the best I’ve driven all season at the moment. The results haven’t really shown in the last couple of races but I feel good within myself. Yeah, it’s a track I really like, I’ve had some good success here before, so hopefully keep on the good form at the moment and I think this one will suit our car a little bit more as well. Hopefully we will be able to challenge a little bit higher and I can show what I can do a bit more.

That leads on to my next question: Renault have been rather erratic in qualifying, between row seven and row 11 of the grid depending on which race track, so is this more of a row seven weekend than a row 11 weekend?

JP: I think it’s more of a row seven. Row 11, Monza was pretty much everything that we don’t want from a track. It was high speeds; Renault has made good steps with the engine but we’re still behind Ferrari and Mercedes, and then slow-speed corners and kerb riding, so it was everything we don’t want. Here, the straight-line speed is not so much; the corners are more suited to us. Even though it’s a street circuit, it’s reasonably smooth, so I think this could be one of our best of the year.

Coming to you Daniel: twice on the podium here, front-row starter last year and Monaco pole sitter this year, that adds up to making you many people’s favourite for this weekend, Do you share that view?

Daniel RICCIARDO: I think I’ve got a pretty good chance of the top 10, absolutely. That’s about it.

Come on, you can do better than that!

DR: I hope so, but top 10 is pretty safe you’d think.

The narrative for this weekend seems to be a chance to put right what went wrong in Monaco, to take the win that was snatched from you in the Principality, do you have a sense of unfinished business and are you asking the team for perfect execution this weekend?

DR: It’s obviously the next closest track to Monaco, so sure we look at it as a good chance to try to get the victory I’ve been after this season. With the team, since Monaco, a lot of things have been working better, in terms of I think we’ve executed a lot more on a Sunday and I’ve left Sundays feeling a lot happier the last handful of races, so that’s been good on both sides. I feel I have executed as well good things on Sunday. Let’s see. I’m not going to put too much pressure on myself or them for this weekend but I think deep down we obviously want to win. I believe we are a group of winners, so if there is a bit of pressure on us to get it done then I think we will thrive off that. Let’s see what happens. I’m definitely prepared and excited. I don’t know what I’m paying for a top 10, but it’s safe money.

QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

Q: (Luis Vasconcelos – Formula Press) Question for Valtteri, Monza was supposed to be a very good circuit for your car – and it was, you could compete with Red Bull. This, on the other hand, shouldn’t be as good, so what are the expectations for this weekend?

VB: Yeah, definitely. Monza was a lot better than what we’ve seen in the few races before that with high speed circuits really suiting our car. Definitely had Red Bull had a bit of an upper hand but definitely we could keep them behind for quite a long time. And yeah, this is a completely different circuit. You need so much more downforce from the car, you need good mechanical grip, you need good tyre life. Last year it wasn’t too bad for us actually, coming to the weekend slightly carefully but then ending up fifth in the race with reasonable pace all weekend. So I think there are still good opportunities here, even though it’s maybe in theory the best – but I always see every weekend as a new opportunity, especially here where with a good qualifying, and if we can get a perfect strategy, very strong points are still possible.

Q: (Wojciech Paprota – Swiatwyscigow.pl) Question to all of the drivers, a simple one. Do you think it’s the hardest race of the calendar?

ME: Definitely. I think it’s for sure the hardest race of the year. It’s probably similar heat and humidity to Malaysia but just the fact it’s a street circuit and not many places to rest makes it the hardest one. But I like it, it’s a good challenge and you need to be really on top of your fitness. For me it’s the toughest – but it’s also one of the most enjoyable.

Jolyon?

JP: I’ve never raced it in Formula One but in GP2 it was hard. It was the hardest of the year in that so I believe these guys – I’m sure they’re all going to say it’s the hardest.

Felipe?

FN: I agree. I think it’s an amazing event. Night race, very demanding as I said, for both car and driver. Really it’s an endless track, you’re just doing corner by corner and to get everything precisely correct, it’s a challenge. The race itself, normally it brings a lot of surprises here so I’m looking forward to the weekend, as I said, we’ve been fighting to get, to sneak into those points, so why not this weekend? Let’s try it again.

Valtteri, you find this the toughest?

VB: It is, at least physically at least it is the toughest. Mentally, I think it feels a bit like Monaco. It’s very intense and needs to be zero mistakes during the race.

Daniel, bit of tiredness, fatigue coming in, affecting concentration towards the end? Always a bit of an enemy there I guess?

DR: Yeah, when you’re a high performance athlete… it is, it’s the toughest, sure. I think they touched on it, it’s similar heat and humidity to Malaysia but you’re surrounded by just the city and a lot of concrete, so it’s the one race I feel where you open your visor to get some air and you’re not getting any reward for that. It’s just heat and stale air. In Malaysia there’s a bit of circulation: even though it’s hot you get a bit of a breeze but here, no. It’s a track that you can’t… if you come here unprepared, then you can’t luck into a good result. You’ve got to come ready to go.

Sergio?

SP: I don’t feel the heat at all! I think it’s just a normal race. No, just kidding. I think it’s a really hard race out there. The last ten laps, twenty laps, you’re really praying for a safety car because it’s just really hard to finish the race, physically. And mentally as well. Mentally it’s a very big challenge because every corner, most of the corners, if you do a mistake you just touch the wall and it’s a puncture or something like that. I would say for me it’s definitely the most demanding race of the year.

Q: (Dan Knutson – Auto Action / Speed Sport) Daniel, the last couple of times on the podium you’ve poured the sparkling wine into your shoe and drank it. What’s the background for all that?

DR: I didn’t start it! Well, as far as I know I started it in Formula One but not worldwide. It was a few loose Aussies, from what I saw, the Mad Hueys, they’re surfies and fisherman and just loose guys, they travel the world fishing, surfing and whatever and they like to drink a bit of beer and whatnot, and that’s where the shoey began. On their travels they’d get people to do it as well and it’s just a bit of a laugh. I know Jack Miller knows a few of the guys from the Mad Hueys, so when he got his win in Assen, I suspected he was going to do it, and he did, so I thought I’d keep the Australian tradition going – and now Valentino’s got in on the mix, I saw he Instagrammed it yesterday and he said “everyone loves a shoey”, and “delicious”, and all that. A few words I used for it. I think it’s just a bit of fun now – everyone’s enjoying it.

VB: How does it taste?

DR: Honestly, if the sparkling wine is cold, then it tastes good. Normally it’s cold on the podium, if it’s warm then sure, you’d get the sweat and that through it – but the cold taste kills the bad stuff, so it’s delicious, as we said!

So we can expect a shoe on Sunday if you win?

DR: If I win, sure! If it’s just a second or third probably not now. For a victory, I’d expect to see a few people do it with me!

Q: (Chris Lines – AP) Question for Dan, bit different tyre strategy between Red Bull and Ferrari this weekend in terms of allocation of super soft and ultra soft. Do you think the tyre strategy will be the key factor here or will there be something else?

DR: I think it can maybe decide a few things, whether it’s on Sunday I’m not sure, obviously we’ve got freedom to use any of those tyres during practice. Maybe us or Ferrari for example, will change our practice runs now and use a different compound to try and have something similar for the race – but yeah, it can, here because it’s so hot, the tyres do normally get a hard time and it’s low speed corners, a lot of traction and the rears can get a hard time for sure so I think if you’ve got too many softer compounds, you might run into a bit of trouble in the race but we’ll see. It’s been quite exciting this year, being able to use three compounds over a weekend and having been forced to choose them months in advance. Sure, if we could have picked the tyres this week, we all probably would have done something different. It’s a bit more of a lottery, makes it exciting and makes our practice runs perhaps a little bit more calculated.

Q: (David Croft – Sky Sports F1) Obviously since Monza, gentlemen, some quite seismic news in Formula One, new commercial rights holders, new owners in Liberty Media. As drivers, you keep saying that you’d quite like to have more of an input in the sport so if the new owners came to you and said what would you like to see in the future, to maybe make the sport better, to put a bigger smile on your faces, what would your advice be to them?

SP: I think I would love to see Formula One a lot closer, the competition a lot closer, closer teams, giving the midfield teams the opportunity to be capable of winning a race, fighting for titles. I think that would be just something great for the fans to see one race Williams on top, another race another team, that would just be very good and for that you need to change the system, how you divide the money because there’s obviously a massive difference, so I think that would be a very good thing for the sport.

DR: Nothing springs to mind; obviously we always talk about bits and pieces but nothing, I guess, that anyone’s heard before. Saturday races, like a Saturday race as opposed to Sunday, just so we can plan a bigger night on Saturday. That would be good fun!

VB: Yeah, I think we need to see first of all how next year is going to be with all the changes already fixed for next year with the new cars, bigger tyres, more grip. I think we need to see how it goes then.

FN: I would say a bit of what they have already said I agree with but I think the most important thing is to see closer competition between the cars, I think that’s what I hear from people or from fans – they always like to see more fighting on track between car, between teams. I think the closing line is what were looking for but also next year we have a big change in terms of the cars being different. I think everything will be a bit more aggressive in terms of the racing itself so let’s wait and see how it goes and we’ll take it from there.

JP: Yeah, I would agree with these guys. I think the main thing is closer competition. At the moment, we turn up for a weekend and we pretty much know maybe it’s two, four, maximum six drivers can win the race but it would be nice to turn up here and think maybe, you know, Williams can win or maybe Force India or maybe someone can put in a big surprise. I think that’s the biggest thing which would change a lot of fan involvement and make it a lot more interesting to watch.

ME: Not much to add, I agree with these guys: closer competition throughout the grid and more teams getting involved in race wins and podiums. I think that will make a big difference for the attraction to fans. That would be the biggest thing for me.

Q: (Luis Vasconcelos – Formula Press) For the three drivers in the back row: not so long ago, you were fighting for championships and winning them and fighting for victories but you get to two thirds of this season and you have no points probably for the first time in your careers. Does that play a little bit on your mind when you go into a race weekend and how do you cope with it?

FN: Well, I guess I’m experienced at this. Last year I had plenty of opportunities to score points and it’s very rewarding when you can come into a weekend knowing that you have something to fight for. As I said, most of it is the reward you get back but coming to this year, you’re facing a lot more difficulties but on the other hand, you try to explore areas that you’re not really giving a hundred percent attention to so I think that as a driver I feel a lot more complete this year. Any opportunity counts so when it comes to a race weekend like this in Singapore, we know that there are a number of facts that happen in the race, you must be ready because they can come any time so let’s see. Three of us here, we don’t have a point so let’s see who gets it first, if we can…

JP: I’m not massively focused on it. Of course I want to score points but if we don’t have the car to score points then there’s nothing we can really do. I’m focused on my own job, basically doing the best job I can with the machinery I’ve got. The last two races have been quite difficult. Hungary was the better chance to score, I think this one will be a better chance to score but I think for me it’s all about improving as a driver, doing the best job I can with the machinery I’ve got and then I’m sure… I know in the future Renault will be fighting for points. If I can do a good job with what I’ve got at the moment, then the points will come further down the line.

ME: Yeah, of course it’s different to when we were in junior categories like I said, fighting for wins every weekend or at least aiming for them. Now it’s different. When you’re in a smaller team and you know you’re going into a weekend when even scoring points is a big challenge – it’s a different mindset but it’s something you have to accept and that’s how it is in Formula One. I think it’s always been like that as well, that different teams have different strengths so you need to accept that and try and maximise the car that you’ve got and that’s all you can do, focusing a lot on your own performance and maybe not look so much at the results because it’s more important to try and maximise what you’ve got. But of course, it’s a lot nicer if you can fight for points.

Q: (Heikki Kulta – Turun Sanomat) Valtteri, you have scored only 26 points from the last seven races since Canada; what number of points would have satisfied you from the last seven races?

VB: Yeah, it’s not quite as many as I was hoping for after being on the podium in Canada but it is what it is at the moment. I can’t say the exact number of points but the absolute maximum we can… I hope as a team we can leave every single race weekend at the end of the year feeling that we maximised the weekend, that we got everything out of it and the same for me personally. As a driver, that’s the main thing and hopefully that way we will be ahead of these guys (Force India).

Q: (S. Dipak Ragav – The Hindu) Sergio, for the last two years, Force India have had a slow start to the season. Do you think it’s a concern for you, going into the next year with the regulations? And the second part of my question is if Force India finishes fourth, do you think it has the ability, in terms of resources and infrastructure, to take the leap to beat the top three like Red Bull did in 2008, 2009?

SP: Yes, I think the team, especially this season, now that the rules are more consistent, I think we started with a competitive car. We just needed to figure out some set-up options on the car to improve the tyre degradation but the car straight away in qualifying was capable of achieving Q3s in the early part of the year so that makes a good difference. And when you look at the past, when we had the massive regulation change for 2014, on my third race I was on the podium for the team, so it shows that Force India is capable of adapting well to new regulations so I think we have the potential to do so. I believe that we are going to be in front of them (Williams) at the end of the year so I really hope that we move up and hopefully next year we can do another step forward which is going to be very tough. Now you’re fighting Ferrari, Red Bull, Mercedes, so it’s going to be very tough but I fully believe in the team and I think if we manage to finish fourth it will be a massive bonus for everyone in the team.

Q: (Phil Duncan – PA) Jolyon, have you been given any indication by Renault when you’ll get a decision for next year?

JP: No, nothing yet, so yeah, nothing changes for me really: just keep doing the job, I’ll know when I know but yeah, if I just keep doing what I’m doing. I know I’m in the mix but we’ll just see how things pan out.

September 15, 2016
F1 2016: Singapore Gp Preview – Spectacular Singapore

The Formula 1 paddock leaves Europe behind as it sets off the final push for the 2016 season. First on the flyaway schedule is the Marina Bay Circuit in Singapore.

As the first ever night race on the calendar the 2008 debut of the Singapore grand prix will forever be shrouded in controversy. It was during this grand prix that the infamous ‘crashgate’ scandal was born as Renault ordered then driver Nelson Piquet Jr. to deliberately crash in aid of teammate Fernando Alonso.

Luckily this incident didn’t mar the reputation of the Singapore Gp which has become a favourite on the calendar for drivers and fans. For fans the spectacular vista of Singapore presents a cosmopolitan destination while the novelty of a night race hasn’t yet worn off. The light skimming across the sculpted bodywork of a Formula 1 car continues to be one of the most visceral experiences of the year.

For the drivers, the Marina Bay Circuit is as a demanding a track as they are likely to face in the entire season. In layman’s terms this circuit would be described as busy. Throughout just five kilometers drivers are bombarded with 23 corners with barriers and walls lying in wait to punish the smallest of errors. The level of concentration required is second to none along with the added factor of weather conditions. Though are supremely fit athletes drivers easily point out that the level of concentration required and the dense humidity make Singapore the most physically demanding race of the year.

It’s not a dawdle for the cars either. The nature of this street circuit demands a high downforce setup and it’s tough on brakes too. Here horsepower isn’t as important as a good chassis, which will bring more teams into the mix for the ultimate prize on Sunday.

Twelve months ago Mercedes arrived at the Singapore grand prix with the expectation of fighting it out for the front row and ultimately the win. This expectation was completely decimated as both Hamilton and Rosberg struggled through the weekend. While Hamilton eventually retired from the race Rosberg could only manage a distant fourth.

At the time several conspiracy theories swirled around Mercedes sudden loss of pace but in reality it was a change in tyre pressures that stumped Hamilton and Rosberg twelve months ago. While the team is likely to have solved this issue for 2016 victory this weekend isn’t a done deal.

The biggest challenge for the top step of the podium is sure to come from Red Bull. The Austrian team should excel this weekend given its aerodynamic prowess. Ferrari too will have an eye on a better performance, as it was Sebastian Vettel who won the 2015 Singapore Gp. However, despite the fact that Vettel is a bit of a Singapore specialist the 2016 Ferrari isn’t quite the car the team delivered last year.

Mercedes has utterly dominated the 2016 season but despite this, and however preposterous it may appear, Red Bull will be the team to beat this weekend.

September 14, 2016
F1 2016: Italian Gp Review – Rosberg Romps to Italian Win

When Lewis Hamilton secured pole position on Saturday by half a second over his Mercedes teammate Nico Rosberg looked a beaten man. But little did he know that he would be gifted the lead of the Italian grand prix mere seconds after the red lights went out.

A mistake from Hamilton on the starting grid dropped him down to sixth and presented Rosberg the perfect opportunity to make it two wins in two weeks. Hamilton’s trouble promoted the Ferrari’s of Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen into second and third but the red cars weren’t a match for Rosberg’s Mercedes.

As Rosberg strolled to career victory number 21 Hamilton recovered to second overall. The two Ferraris ran a two-stop strategy, as opposed to Mercedes’ one-stop, and put on a descent show for the Tifosi. Though they were never in contention their third and fourth place finishes were not as far off Mercedes as many feared it would be. Both drivers reported that the engine upgrade introduced in Italy worked well.

Red Bull’s Daniel Ricciardo pulled off a stunning move into turn one on Williams’ Valtteri Bottas finish fifth. It was a weekend of damage limitation for Red Bull on a circuit where it always going to be difficult for the Renault engine to stand up to the Mercedes and Ferrari. Valtteri Bottas delivered solid points for Williams in sixth while the second Red Bull of Max Verstappen came home in seventh. Force India’s Sergio Perez had a quiet afternoon, which eventually netted him eighth place. Felipe Massa, who announced that he would be retiring at the end of the 2016 season, scored two points in ninth ahead of Nico Hulkenberg’s Force India in tenth.

Though it didn’t deliver a spectacular result the Italian Gp proved vital for Williams. The sixth and ninth place finishes by Bottas and Massa has allowed Williams to take back into fourth in the constructor’s standings from Force India. This battle is likely to endure for the remainder of the season and has serious financial rewards for whichever teams comes out on top. Jenson Button, who will be taking a sabbatical in 2017, finished twelfth while teammate Fernando Alonso was fourteenth.

Rosberg’s first Italian Gp win puts him only two points off the championship lead. Rosberg remarked in a post-race interview that the battle between himself and Hamilton will carry on for the rest of the season. Rosberg has done a perfect job since the summer break and, as it stands the battle has been as close as it’s ever been on points. But it’s on the track where we are still waiting to see that wheel-to-wheel battle between the two championship contenders.

The 2016 Italian grand prix wasn’t the most exciting in recent memory. However, the scene from the podium, which stretches partly onto the start/finish straight, was something to behold. For as far as the eye could see were adoring racing fans waving their flags, cheering their favourites, and sharing their passion for this sport. That is why Monza can never be left off any F1 calendar.

September 5, 2016
F1 2016: Italian Gp Free Practice 3 Report – Hamilton Dominates

Championship leader Lewis Hamilton dominated the field in the final free practice session ahead of the 2016 Italian grand prix.

The number 44 Mercedes set a quickest time of 1:22:008 while teammate Nico Rosberg’s 1:22:401 was some 0.393 adrift in second. The first of the Ferrari’s came in the form of Sebastian Vettel who set a quickest time of 1:22:946. Kimi Raikkonen, in the other Ferrari, set a 1:23:196.

The Williams pair of Valtteri Bottas and Felipe Massa were fifth and sixth respectively. Daniel Ricciardo and Max Verstappen were only quick enough for seventh and eighth while Force India’s Sergio Perez and Haas F1’s Esteban Gutierrez rounded out the top ten.

The session endured a brief interruption earlier when Romain Grosjean’s beached Haas brought out the virtual safety car.

Final Free Practice Three Standings

September 3, 2016