It had been coming for some time. Prior to today, Sebastian Vettel had won 5 races in a row and was looking for his 10th victory of the season. More importantly, he was aiming to secure his fourth successive championship, and Red Bull were also looking to secure their fourth consecutive Constructor's title. To do this, Vettel would only have to finish 5th or higher if Alonso won the race, but it turns out Vettel planned to do it in style.
After qualifying on pole on Saturday, Vettel's main threat was believed to be team-mate Mark Webber. Webber had qualified in 4th, but on the medium tyres and these were the tyres to be on in the race because of the low degradation. Vettel had qualified on the soft tyres, meaning that he would be making an early stop and then working his way back through the field.
When the lights went out and the race started, Vettel maintained his record of being the only person to see the first corner of the Indian GP first, no other driver has ever lead the Indian GP going into the first corner. There were also excellent starts from Lewis Hamilton, with aside from some wheel spin could have seriously challenged Vettel for the lead at beginning of the race. However, the excitement of the thought of Webber challenging for the win today was affected when the driver made contact firstly with Raikkonen and then with Alonso during the first few corners. In addition to this, any doubts that Vettel wouldn't secure his championship were reduced when because of the contact between Webber and Alonso, Alonso was forced to pit for a new nose cone. After this the Spaniard had a rather quiet afternoon, eventually finishing in 11th place, but pulling a spectacular move on Gutierrez during lap 22, but he never looked to challenge the top 10.
Another driver that suffered from early problems was Jenson Button. He suffered a puncture to his medium tyres in the early part of the race and so this massively affected his strategy for the entire race, as he had to put on the soft tyre for a short amount of time before going back to the mediums. This resulted in a disappointing 14th place, especially when you compare the result to that of Perez. The Mexican had a supreme drive today, battling from 9th to finish in 5th, equalling McLaren's best finish of the season. Considering this, I think that if Button didn't have the problems from the first lap, McLaren could have left India today with a decent haul of points.
Although he may be driving a multiple championship car, Mark Webber has had more than his fair share of reliability problems in his Red Bull. Today we saw yet another problem which forced him to retire around lap 40, because of an alternator problem. Any hope of breaking down Vettel's 12 second lead at that time was destroyed, and it left a very nervous Red Bull pit wall. For the remainder of the race the team carefully managed Seb's car, ensuring that they were able to nurse it home. Luckily with the advantage that Vettel had, they made it look very easy indeed. When Vettel saw the chequered flag 29 seconds before his nearest competitor Nico Rosberg, it confirmed that both Red Bull and Vettel had won their fourth consecutive Constructor's and Driver's titles, and that mathematically the season was over. All the hard work and the dominance finally paid off and it was lovely for fans to see the raw emotion from Vettel in the room post race before the podium. For the fans at home we could see what it meant to the young 26 year old, as his success was slowly sinking in. Whether or not you like the driver, support the team or the dominance that he has brought, you cannot help acknowledge that he is now considered one of the greats of the sport and an ambassador and role model for younger fans watching and trying to get involved with the sport. You do not become a multiple champion by accident, but it is important to remember that without the hard work from the entire team alongside the people we see on our tv screens such as Vettel, Horner and Newey, none of these championships would have been possible.
The driver of the day for me was Romain Grosjean. After a mistake in qualifying yesterday leaving him starting 17th on the grid, it was interesting to see where he ended up. If this time last year you told someone within the F1 world that this driver would make up 14 places and finish on the podium, you wouldn't believe them. He is a completely different driver from the one we saw last season, especially in Belgium and now we are really beginning to appreciate his speed and talent. He stayed out of trouble today and has left me wondering what he could have done if he had qualified within the top 10 like his team-mate did.
With the world of Formula One not returning to India next season, what better way to say goodbye to the track than to watch newly crowned four times world champion Sebastian Vettel perform donuts and bow to his car after winning supremely his 10th win of the season.
Showing posts with label alonso. Show all posts
Showing posts with label alonso. Show all posts
Sunday, 27 October 2013
Friday, 27 September 2013
F1 Team Review 2013: Ferrari
Sebastian Vettel has just secured his third consecutive win of the season in Singapore. However, Fernando Alonso has also secured his third consecutive 2nd place finish, but even that may not be enough to reduce the 60 point championship lead that Vettel holds.
In comparison to 2012, Ferrari started the season with a better understanding of their car and with noticeable improvements compared to the relatively uncompetitive car in 2012. At the first race of the season in Australia the team walked away a 2nd place from Alonso and a 4th place from Massa, showing their developed understanding of the car and to send a big message out to their rivals, confirming that they intended to be title contenders this season.
The next Grand Prix in Malaysia brought mixed fortunes for the two Ferrari drivers. After a retirement from Alonso and a 5th place finish from Massa it meant that they left the event with only 10 points. At this stage, with Mercedes having problems with their tyres and McLaren being extremely uncompetitive, it looked as though Ferrari would be Red Bull's main rivals.
Similarly to 2012, there was speculation regarding whether or not Massa's contract would be extended and the pressure started to build for the Brazilian especially around the Monaco Grand Prix after he crashed into the barriers both during practise and the actual race. He reacted with a 8th place finish in the next race at Canada though and after 13 races he is sitting with 87 points, 36 points better off than last season at the same point. However, this still wasn't enough to secure his race seat for 2014, with the former World Champion Kimi Raikkonen taking his place from next season. Massa had announced first that he would not be continuing his drive with Ferrari and his replacement was announced soon afterwards which was good on Ferrari's part as then they could focus on the rest of this season and not be amid speculation about who would be partnering Alonso.
During the Singapore GP there was speculation that McLaren wanted to secure Alonso for a seat in 2014, yet this rumour was quickly laid to rest when Alonso committed himself to seeing out the rest of his Ferrari contract. So with driver line-ups secured and confirmed, Ferrari can now look to trying to overhaul the 60 point lead Vettel has in the driver's championship.
Massa is definitely out of the title race this season, and whilst Fernando will continue to push, it looks to be a near impossible task. Although he is better off this season in terms of points, with 187 compared to 169 at the same time last season, the difference between himself and Vettel is much greater. Last season Alonso was leading the Driver's Championship after the same amount of races by 4 points from Vettel and even then it wasn't enough to deny Vettel his third consecutive title. Looking at this, it further suggests that maybe, just maybe the title has already been decided this season.
Whilst it is still mathematically possible, Ferrari will have to continue to develop and fight for the title. In terms of the Constructor's Championship, Ferrari are the closest rivals to leaders Red Bull. Ferrari are also better off than last season with 274 points compared to the 220 of last season. However, this is still 103 points behind Red Bull. We've seen over the past few races that the Red Bull cars seem to have technical problems yet still manage to finish races, especially in the case of Vettel. Mark Webber has been suffering with a less reliable Red Bull, but if Alonso has any chance of the title it kind of needs to be Vettel who suffers from reliability issues, which let's be honest, doesn't seem likely.
It is still clear that the Ferrari doesn't have the performance to be challenging for the front row during qualifying and this is the main area in which the team need to improve. Alonso has often proved through his blistering starts and over-takes that he is capable of outperforming the car on race day and is able to somehow drag it onto the podium. Alonso's performance, like last season, may be concealing how uncompetitive the car really is. It is certainly a huge improvement from last seasons car, yet it still has a long way to go until it can be considered on par with the Red Bull.
If they do not manage to win either championship this year, it will be vital that they secure second place in the Constructor's Championship as this will put them in a better position for next season. They haven't had a bad season so far, but with only a few races left of a season that ends in 9 weeks, the championships are looking further and further out of their reach.
In comparison to 2012, Ferrari started the season with a better understanding of their car and with noticeable improvements compared to the relatively uncompetitive car in 2012. At the first race of the season in Australia the team walked away a 2nd place from Alonso and a 4th place from Massa, showing their developed understanding of the car and to send a big message out to their rivals, confirming that they intended to be title contenders this season.
The next Grand Prix in Malaysia brought mixed fortunes for the two Ferrari drivers. After a retirement from Alonso and a 5th place finish from Massa it meant that they left the event with only 10 points. At this stage, with Mercedes having problems with their tyres and McLaren being extremely uncompetitive, it looked as though Ferrari would be Red Bull's main rivals.
Similarly to 2012, there was speculation regarding whether or not Massa's contract would be extended and the pressure started to build for the Brazilian especially around the Monaco Grand Prix after he crashed into the barriers both during practise and the actual race. He reacted with a 8th place finish in the next race at Canada though and after 13 races he is sitting with 87 points, 36 points better off than last season at the same point. However, this still wasn't enough to secure his race seat for 2014, with the former World Champion Kimi Raikkonen taking his place from next season. Massa had announced first that he would not be continuing his drive with Ferrari and his replacement was announced soon afterwards which was good on Ferrari's part as then they could focus on the rest of this season and not be amid speculation about who would be partnering Alonso.
During the Singapore GP there was speculation that McLaren wanted to secure Alonso for a seat in 2014, yet this rumour was quickly laid to rest when Alonso committed himself to seeing out the rest of his Ferrari contract. So with driver line-ups secured and confirmed, Ferrari can now look to trying to overhaul the 60 point lead Vettel has in the driver's championship.
Massa is definitely out of the title race this season, and whilst Fernando will continue to push, it looks to be a near impossible task. Although he is better off this season in terms of points, with 187 compared to 169 at the same time last season, the difference between himself and Vettel is much greater. Last season Alonso was leading the Driver's Championship after the same amount of races by 4 points from Vettel and even then it wasn't enough to deny Vettel his third consecutive title. Looking at this, it further suggests that maybe, just maybe the title has already been decided this season.
Whilst it is still mathematically possible, Ferrari will have to continue to develop and fight for the title. In terms of the Constructor's Championship, Ferrari are the closest rivals to leaders Red Bull. Ferrari are also better off than last season with 274 points compared to the 220 of last season. However, this is still 103 points behind Red Bull. We've seen over the past few races that the Red Bull cars seem to have technical problems yet still manage to finish races, especially in the case of Vettel. Mark Webber has been suffering with a less reliable Red Bull, but if Alonso has any chance of the title it kind of needs to be Vettel who suffers from reliability issues, which let's be honest, doesn't seem likely.
It is still clear that the Ferrari doesn't have the performance to be challenging for the front row during qualifying and this is the main area in which the team need to improve. Alonso has often proved through his blistering starts and over-takes that he is capable of outperforming the car on race day and is able to somehow drag it onto the podium. Alonso's performance, like last season, may be concealing how uncompetitive the car really is. It is certainly a huge improvement from last seasons car, yet it still has a long way to go until it can be considered on par with the Red Bull.
If they do not manage to win either championship this year, it will be vital that they secure second place in the Constructor's Championship as this will put them in a better position for next season. They haven't had a bad season so far, but with only a few races left of a season that ends in 9 weeks, the championships are looking further and further out of their reach.
Monday, 23 September 2013
Singapore GP 2013: Race Reaction
Over the past few seasons, the Singapore Grand Prix has been dominated by Sebastian Vettel and today was no different. At the end of the long and punishing two hour race Vettel secured his third successive win and was the 33rd time he had seen the chequered flag first, surpassing Alonso's tally.
From looking at the 32.627 second lead Vettel had when he passed the chequered flag, it seemed as though he had been controlling and dominating the race, and he had. Apart from the start of the race where he was challenged by Nico Rosberg, nobody could get near him. It looked as though Rosberg would be leading the race after a better start than Vettel, but he ran wide which allowed Vettel to regain the lead almost as quickly as he lost it.
Vettel continued to dominate the race, and by lap 21 he was ahead of Rosberg by 8.838 seconds. Even the introduction of the safety car at lap 25 wasn't going to ruin Vettel's day as when it returned to the pits he re-built an even bigger lead, allowing them to also make a free pit stop, and after around 30 seconds in the pits he still led the race.
However it wasn't smiles all round in the Red Bull camp. Webber looked set for a fourth place finish until around lap 59 of the 61 lap race. Over the team radio we heard that Webber was nursing a problem, which came to a climax on the last lap of the race when his Red Bull starting emitting flames. It was later confirmed that it was a water pressure problem which ended Webber's race. Luckily Fernando Alonso was on hand to give him a lift back to the pits, which only brought more bad luck for Webber. Rules were broken: Webber went onto the track without permission and Alonso illegally picked Webber up on the way back to the pits. Both drivers received a reprimand for their actions, but Webber's day went from bad to worse when the accumulation of his three reprimands means that he will suffer a 10 place grid penalty at the next race in Korea. Personally I think Alonso giving a lift to Webber was a nice sight for fans to see, and yes Mercedes had to take 'evading action' to avoid crashing into the pair, but it isn't something we see at every race and it was a nice touch to end the race.
Speaking of Alonso, he was a strong contender for driver of the day for me. He made a trademark storming start to the race and made the tyres last from lap 25 to the end of the race and still managed to get the Ferrari on the podium in 2nd place. The fact that the Ferrari could be considered less competitive than other cars around it such as the Mercedes and Lotus yet is still able to be dragged into the podium places by Alonso just shows what an amazing job Alonso is doing. It's not as though he has just done it at this race either, he has been consistently out performing the Ferrari, pushing it to the absolute limit and is doing everything he can to keep the championship alive. If he can't beat Vettel, he is doing the next best thing and secured 2nd today like he did in Monza a few weeks ago.
The Singapore GP kept up it's 100% record of using a safety car during the race after Daniel Ricciardo locked up and hit the barriers on lap 25. Romain Grosjean joined him in retirement after a problem with air consumption on lap 34. The final retirement of the day came from the unlucky Paul Di Resta, who on lap 56 ran into the barriers to retire for the third consecutive race. Up until that point he was another contender for driver of the day because of the way he had battled up the field from 17th place, and was in a steady 7th I think before the incident. A pressured man at the moment, but still a hugely talented driver worthy of a top drive in my own opinion, he is just having a bad spell at the wrong time at the moment. His pass on Gutierrez on lap 50 demonstrated some of the great over-taking he is capable of and yes points today would have taken some of the pressure off him.
I thought I was dreaming when Button was running in 3rd on lap 51 and with 10 laps to go, scoring their first podium of the season was McLaren's aim. To be honest they had nothing to lose with trying to get the podium, with them being miles off 4th in the Constructor's Championship and with a lead over Force India. It was great to see Button up there and it would have been amazing if the tyres could have held on, but Raikkonen, Webber, Hamilton, Rosberg and Massa all managed to pass the poor McLaren, which had done the same amount of laps as Fernando Alonso who was in 2nd position. It ended up that Button and Perez finished in 7th and 8th after Webber's problem and this secured a steady amount of points for the team. The search for a podium continues for them and I really do hope they can achieve it this season, after the tough season that they've had.
The driver of the day for me was Kimi Raikkonen. After suffering from a back problem and qualifying outside the top ten, nobody expected him to be on the podium. He battled through the field though, got the strategy right and gave Lotus something to smile about. Lotus will definitely miss him next season, and Ferrari will hopefully be glad that they've got him.
So from the Singapore Grand Prix Vettel has extended his championship lead to 60 points, McLaren's search for a podium finish continues and Mark Webber's last Singapore GP ends in a penalty after a lift from Alonso. Who will be able to challenge Vettel when F1 arrives in Korea and just how long will it be until he secures the championship?
From looking at the 32.627 second lead Vettel had when he passed the chequered flag, it seemed as though he had been controlling and dominating the race, and he had. Apart from the start of the race where he was challenged by Nico Rosberg, nobody could get near him. It looked as though Rosberg would be leading the race after a better start than Vettel, but he ran wide which allowed Vettel to regain the lead almost as quickly as he lost it.
Vettel continued to dominate the race, and by lap 21 he was ahead of Rosberg by 8.838 seconds. Even the introduction of the safety car at lap 25 wasn't going to ruin Vettel's day as when it returned to the pits he re-built an even bigger lead, allowing them to also make a free pit stop, and after around 30 seconds in the pits he still led the race.
However it wasn't smiles all round in the Red Bull camp. Webber looked set for a fourth place finish until around lap 59 of the 61 lap race. Over the team radio we heard that Webber was nursing a problem, which came to a climax on the last lap of the race when his Red Bull starting emitting flames. It was later confirmed that it was a water pressure problem which ended Webber's race. Luckily Fernando Alonso was on hand to give him a lift back to the pits, which only brought more bad luck for Webber. Rules were broken: Webber went onto the track without permission and Alonso illegally picked Webber up on the way back to the pits. Both drivers received a reprimand for their actions, but Webber's day went from bad to worse when the accumulation of his three reprimands means that he will suffer a 10 place grid penalty at the next race in Korea. Personally I think Alonso giving a lift to Webber was a nice sight for fans to see, and yes Mercedes had to take 'evading action' to avoid crashing into the pair, but it isn't something we see at every race and it was a nice touch to end the race.
Speaking of Alonso, he was a strong contender for driver of the day for me. He made a trademark storming start to the race and made the tyres last from lap 25 to the end of the race and still managed to get the Ferrari on the podium in 2nd place. The fact that the Ferrari could be considered less competitive than other cars around it such as the Mercedes and Lotus yet is still able to be dragged into the podium places by Alonso just shows what an amazing job Alonso is doing. It's not as though he has just done it at this race either, he has been consistently out performing the Ferrari, pushing it to the absolute limit and is doing everything he can to keep the championship alive. If he can't beat Vettel, he is doing the next best thing and secured 2nd today like he did in Monza a few weeks ago.
The Singapore GP kept up it's 100% record of using a safety car during the race after Daniel Ricciardo locked up and hit the barriers on lap 25. Romain Grosjean joined him in retirement after a problem with air consumption on lap 34. The final retirement of the day came from the unlucky Paul Di Resta, who on lap 56 ran into the barriers to retire for the third consecutive race. Up until that point he was another contender for driver of the day because of the way he had battled up the field from 17th place, and was in a steady 7th I think before the incident. A pressured man at the moment, but still a hugely talented driver worthy of a top drive in my own opinion, he is just having a bad spell at the wrong time at the moment. His pass on Gutierrez on lap 50 demonstrated some of the great over-taking he is capable of and yes points today would have taken some of the pressure off him.
I thought I was dreaming when Button was running in 3rd on lap 51 and with 10 laps to go, scoring their first podium of the season was McLaren's aim. To be honest they had nothing to lose with trying to get the podium, with them being miles off 4th in the Constructor's Championship and with a lead over Force India. It was great to see Button up there and it would have been amazing if the tyres could have held on, but Raikkonen, Webber, Hamilton, Rosberg and Massa all managed to pass the poor McLaren, which had done the same amount of laps as Fernando Alonso who was in 2nd position. It ended up that Button and Perez finished in 7th and 8th after Webber's problem and this secured a steady amount of points for the team. The search for a podium continues for them and I really do hope they can achieve it this season, after the tough season that they've had.
The driver of the day for me was Kimi Raikkonen. After suffering from a back problem and qualifying outside the top ten, nobody expected him to be on the podium. He battled through the field though, got the strategy right and gave Lotus something to smile about. Lotus will definitely miss him next season, and Ferrari will hopefully be glad that they've got him.
So from the Singapore Grand Prix Vettel has extended his championship lead to 60 points, McLaren's search for a podium finish continues and Mark Webber's last Singapore GP ends in a penalty after a lift from Alonso. Who will be able to challenge Vettel when F1 arrives in Korea and just how long will it be until he secures the championship?
Monday, 16 September 2013
Focus on F1: A return to red and an angry McLaren fan
With 7 races left of the 2013 season, there are still many changes and confirmations regarding driver line-ups to be made.
Red Bull have now officially confirmed that the young Australian driver Daniel Ricciardo will be replacing Mark Webber and this now means that Red Bull have finished their business regarding drivers and can now focus on the championship as well as their development of next season's car. This takes a lot of focus off them as there is no longer speculation as to who will be driving alongside Sebastian Vettel and now we can focus on looking forward to seeing Ricciardo stepping up.
Another team which has recently confirmed their 2014 driver line-up is Ferrari. The confirmation of Ricciardo eliminated the chances of Raikkonen joining Red Bull and from there the rumours started to spread that Raikkonen was going to be re-joining the team he left in 2009. At the time it was just speculation, but the strongest indication that Raikkonen would be re-joining Ferrari was last week was when current Ferrari driver Massa confirmed that he would no longer be racing for the team from 2014. Although Raikkonen was then favourite to take the Ferrari seat, after an impressive display at the recent Italian GP, Hulkenberg was another contender. However, as soon as the next day, it was confirmed that Raikkonen would be partnering Fernando Alonso from the 2014 season.
Since the announcement last week, there have been mixed opinions on the effect Kimi Raikkonen's arrival will have on the team and Alonso. Some suggest that this is the strongest partnership on the grid, some think it will make Alonso raise his game and others think it will have a negative effect on Alonso as he will lose his status as 'number one driver' within Ferrari.
Admittedly, I think the partnership could be an amazing choice from Ferrari. For one thing you have two incredibly quick drivers, who are both capable of qualifying and racing well. Also, you also have two extremely consistent drivers, essential for if Ferrari want to challenge for the Constructor's Championship, with both drivers regularly scoring points and rarely being involved in on track incidents.
The competitiveness of both drivers could either end up being a negative or positive for the team. I think next season Ferrari will need to be on top of their drivers and will need to be able to manage them effectively in order for the partnership to work. They definitely do not want to be in the same situation as Red Bull in Malaysia this season and I'm sure that they will work hard to keep both drivers happy.
However the one thing that is casting a massive doubt over the team for next season has nothing to do with the drivers. There are huge regulation changes for the 2014 season, including the use of completely new engines. It may be that a particular supplier produces a better engine and this could see dominance from the teams which use that engine, and this may or may not include Ferrari.
To get the most out of their exciting new driver line-up Ferrari will need to build a very competitive car. This season Alonso has shown his disappointment and the need for the team to develop the car, and it would be even worse next season if both drivers are still complaining of an uncompetitive car. If Ferrari have a competitive car from the start of the season, I can see them being strong title contenders for both the Driver's and Constructor's championships. Overall I can see the return of Kimi being a very good bit of business for Ferrari and this confirms their 2014 driver line-up.
One team which has been put under extreme pressure this season is McLaren. They have not been able to score a podium finish this season let alone a win and it has been extremely disappointing for fans and the formula one world to see.
To add to the pressure of not having a competitive car, there are now more distractions surrounding the team, with them not confirming that Jenson Button will be driving for them next season. At the Italian GP it emerged that Button has yet to be confirmed by the team for next season. In my own opinion, at some point during that weekend McLaren should have dealt with the issue, either confirming that Button would be staying or leaving. This is just another unnecessary distraction when they should be focusing on doing a better job than they are already.
For me, I cannot see why they would want to replace Jenson Button for 2014. It isn't his fault that McLaren have produced a rubbish and uncompetitive car this season and he has given them their best finish of 5th this season too. It would be harsh and unfair to replace him and I think he deserves a chance to drive for them next season for the effort he has put in. He has also won more points than his team-mate this season and although this may be because Perez is still in his first season at McLaren, Jenson I believe still gets the best out of the car. He is often criticised for complaining about the car, but who wouldn't be if they had gone from winning races to battling for 8th or 9th place in the space of a season? I'm sure that even the best drivers such as Vettel, Alonso or Hamilton would struggle to get that car on the podium.
Perez is almost certain to stay, as he could potentially bring a lot of money to the team. With Vodafone likely to abandon McLaren at the end of the season, it is rumoured the Mexican telecommunications company Telmex will be the replacement, thus cementing Perez' seat at McLaren.
The problem with McLaren is that because of their terrible form this season, sponsors are less likely to want to be on their car and this has really frustrated me because I believe that if they had actually made a good car then bigger sponsors would have come forward and they wouldn't have to rely on their Mexican driver to help bring money to the team.
There has been speculation that Nico Hulkenberg would replace Jenson Button, which I would not be in favour of. As a strong supporter of Button, I just can't understand why he would be replaced. Fair enough if the car had been strong and he was complaining and not winning races but this is far from the truth. I think McLaren are forgetting that he is a World Champion, a master in changing conditions and an unbelievable racing driver. Just think back to Canada 2011.
Maybe I am still bitter about the incident between Hulkenberg and Hamilton in Brazil last season, but I still do not rate Hulkenberg as a McLaren driver. Perhaps his move to Sauber was not the best decision he has ever made. At the time, it looked as though he had made a sideways move but even worse, now it has looked to be a backwards move. I still think he should have stayed at Force India, as they gave him the chance to revive his career and I think he would have been more impressive with Force India as opposed to Sauber this season.
So what if this is Jenson Button's last season at McLaren? I really hope it isn't.
Red Bull have now officially confirmed that the young Australian driver Daniel Ricciardo will be replacing Mark Webber and this now means that Red Bull have finished their business regarding drivers and can now focus on the championship as well as their development of next season's car. This takes a lot of focus off them as there is no longer speculation as to who will be driving alongside Sebastian Vettel and now we can focus on looking forward to seeing Ricciardo stepping up.
Another team which has recently confirmed their 2014 driver line-up is Ferrari. The confirmation of Ricciardo eliminated the chances of Raikkonen joining Red Bull and from there the rumours started to spread that Raikkonen was going to be re-joining the team he left in 2009. At the time it was just speculation, but the strongest indication that Raikkonen would be re-joining Ferrari was last week was when current Ferrari driver Massa confirmed that he would no longer be racing for the team from 2014. Although Raikkonen was then favourite to take the Ferrari seat, after an impressive display at the recent Italian GP, Hulkenberg was another contender. However, as soon as the next day, it was confirmed that Raikkonen would be partnering Fernando Alonso from the 2014 season.
Since the announcement last week, there have been mixed opinions on the effect Kimi Raikkonen's arrival will have on the team and Alonso. Some suggest that this is the strongest partnership on the grid, some think it will make Alonso raise his game and others think it will have a negative effect on Alonso as he will lose his status as 'number one driver' within Ferrari.
Admittedly, I think the partnership could be an amazing choice from Ferrari. For one thing you have two incredibly quick drivers, who are both capable of qualifying and racing well. Also, you also have two extremely consistent drivers, essential for if Ferrari want to challenge for the Constructor's Championship, with both drivers regularly scoring points and rarely being involved in on track incidents.
The competitiveness of both drivers could either end up being a negative or positive for the team. I think next season Ferrari will need to be on top of their drivers and will need to be able to manage them effectively in order for the partnership to work. They definitely do not want to be in the same situation as Red Bull in Malaysia this season and I'm sure that they will work hard to keep both drivers happy.
However the one thing that is casting a massive doubt over the team for next season has nothing to do with the drivers. There are huge regulation changes for the 2014 season, including the use of completely new engines. It may be that a particular supplier produces a better engine and this could see dominance from the teams which use that engine, and this may or may not include Ferrari.
To get the most out of their exciting new driver line-up Ferrari will need to build a very competitive car. This season Alonso has shown his disappointment and the need for the team to develop the car, and it would be even worse next season if both drivers are still complaining of an uncompetitive car. If Ferrari have a competitive car from the start of the season, I can see them being strong title contenders for both the Driver's and Constructor's championships. Overall I can see the return of Kimi being a very good bit of business for Ferrari and this confirms their 2014 driver line-up.
One team which has been put under extreme pressure this season is McLaren. They have not been able to score a podium finish this season let alone a win and it has been extremely disappointing for fans and the formula one world to see.
To add to the pressure of not having a competitive car, there are now more distractions surrounding the team, with them not confirming that Jenson Button will be driving for them next season. At the Italian GP it emerged that Button has yet to be confirmed by the team for next season. In my own opinion, at some point during that weekend McLaren should have dealt with the issue, either confirming that Button would be staying or leaving. This is just another unnecessary distraction when they should be focusing on doing a better job than they are already.
For me, I cannot see why they would want to replace Jenson Button for 2014. It isn't his fault that McLaren have produced a rubbish and uncompetitive car this season and he has given them their best finish of 5th this season too. It would be harsh and unfair to replace him and I think he deserves a chance to drive for them next season for the effort he has put in. He has also won more points than his team-mate this season and although this may be because Perez is still in his first season at McLaren, Jenson I believe still gets the best out of the car. He is often criticised for complaining about the car, but who wouldn't be if they had gone from winning races to battling for 8th or 9th place in the space of a season? I'm sure that even the best drivers such as Vettel, Alonso or Hamilton would struggle to get that car on the podium.
Perez is almost certain to stay, as he could potentially bring a lot of money to the team. With Vodafone likely to abandon McLaren at the end of the season, it is rumoured the Mexican telecommunications company Telmex will be the replacement, thus cementing Perez' seat at McLaren.
The problem with McLaren is that because of their terrible form this season, sponsors are less likely to want to be on their car and this has really frustrated me because I believe that if they had actually made a good car then bigger sponsors would have come forward and they wouldn't have to rely on their Mexican driver to help bring money to the team.
There has been speculation that Nico Hulkenberg would replace Jenson Button, which I would not be in favour of. As a strong supporter of Button, I just can't understand why he would be replaced. Fair enough if the car had been strong and he was complaining and not winning races but this is far from the truth. I think McLaren are forgetting that he is a World Champion, a master in changing conditions and an unbelievable racing driver. Just think back to Canada 2011.
Maybe I am still bitter about the incident between Hulkenberg and Hamilton in Brazil last season, but I still do not rate Hulkenberg as a McLaren driver. Perhaps his move to Sauber was not the best decision he has ever made. At the time, it looked as though he had made a sideways move but even worse, now it has looked to be a backwards move. I still think he should have stayed at Force India, as they gave him the chance to revive his career and I think he would have been more impressive with Force India as opposed to Sauber this season.
So what if this is Jenson Button's last season at McLaren? I really hope it isn't.
Sunday, 8 September 2013
Italian GP 2013: Race Reaction
As the German National Anthem is played out from Monza, it is a great day for Red Bull fans. Sebastian Vettel has just won his 6th race of the season and Mark Webber has achieved his first and last podium finish at the Italian GP in his F1 career. Today pundits and commentators confirm the feeling I've had for the past couple of races, that Vettel has pretty much won his fourth World Driver's Championship, with a staggering lead of 53 points.
After a poor qualifying session yesterday from Hamilton and Raikkonen, it left Alonso to challenge Vettel for victory. Not that it panned out that way at all. Alonso got a brilliant start from 5th on the grid and was quickly up to 2nd within the first few laps and drove a well measured race to hold off Webber in the closing stages and maintain his record of finishing within the podium places with Ferrari at the Italian grand prix. Looking back on the race, perhaps Ferrari should have pitted Alonso after Vettel made his first stop, but I don't think Alonso would have closed the gap to Vettel anyway, because after Vettel had got rid of the damaged tyres from locking up on the first corner of the first lap, he was able to manage the gap to Alonso and by a considerable margin. After both Vettel and Alonso had pitted, the gap from Sebastian to Fernando was 10.010 seconds, which was only reduced to 5.4 seconds by the end of the race.
By Mercedes recent form, Hamilton had a pretty tough race today. After qualifying in 12th place it was always going to be a struggle, especially because you are more likely to be involved in first corner incidents in the middle of the pack. Fortunately, Hamilton avoided any incidents and as he was on the hard tyre as opposed to the medium at the start of the race in the early stages he was one to watch out for alongside Raikkonen. However, the race was effectively ruined for both drivers when they were both forced in a two pit stop strategy because Hamilton suffered from a slow puncture on lap 12 and Raikkonen suffered front wing damage on the first lap after running into the back of the McLaren of Sergio Perez.
To add to Hamilton's woes, he suffered him radio problems throughout the race, making communication extremely difficult and almost impossible. At the end of the race he even is said that it was like 'driving blind', but even after the problems he had a brilliant ending to the race, managing to take 9th, with 8th or even 7th in sight before he went wide on the penultimate lap.
We lost Di Resta on the first lap of the 53 lap race, after he locked his own wheels and drove into the unsuspecting Romain Grosjean, which was the first time in his career that he has retired on the first lap of a race. However, I'm sure that he can bounce back from this in Singapore, and hopefully we will get back to seeing the Di Resta running in the top 10.
After a surprising qualifying result of 3rd on the grid, Hulkenberg was expected to go backwards during the race in his Sauber. Indeed he did drop back, but not by the margains expected. He drove a clean and mature race and was rewarded with 5th place, making him in many people's eyes the driver of the day. One thing to consider though is if Raikkonen and Hamilton had qualified higher up the grid, would they have beaten the young German? The Sauber seems to really like this track, shown both this season and last season when Perez drove from 12th to finish 2nd when he was racing for the team.
This weekend we've seen some new camera angles on the tv coverage and one which I have been particularly enjoying is the thermal imaging camera mounted onto Di Resta's car. Unfortunately because of his retirement we were not able to see it in full action across the entire race, but from what I've seen from qualifying and practise, it is a really interesting angle to see.
I've also loved the camera view which looks down onto the pit box, and I noticed this at the Red Bull garage during the race. I just love the angle and it's amazing to see how quickly the car arrives and departs and how all the mechanics appear to work symmetrically together. Not necessarily a new camera angle, but one which I've loved to see this weekend.
With new engines coming in for the 2014 season, I've also been making the most of listening to the sound of the engines. After hearing a prototype for the new V6 engines, I am going to appreciate the sound of the V8's before they disappear, as there is a significant difference between the two.
Personally, the driver of the day for me was Sebastian Vettel. He had a perfect weekend; qualified on pole, won the race and extended his race lead. He was able to look after a damaged tyre whilst leading the race and maintaining a gap and he drove a race without incident even when Red Bull had 'enough problems.'
Looking forward to the Singapore GP in two weeks time, I am looking forward to seeing how Hamilton will respond to a disappointing weekend, what McLaren can achieve in terms of improvement and whether or not Vettel can continue to dominate this track as he has done over the past few seasons.
After a poor qualifying session yesterday from Hamilton and Raikkonen, it left Alonso to challenge Vettel for victory. Not that it panned out that way at all. Alonso got a brilliant start from 5th on the grid and was quickly up to 2nd within the first few laps and drove a well measured race to hold off Webber in the closing stages and maintain his record of finishing within the podium places with Ferrari at the Italian grand prix. Looking back on the race, perhaps Ferrari should have pitted Alonso after Vettel made his first stop, but I don't think Alonso would have closed the gap to Vettel anyway, because after Vettel had got rid of the damaged tyres from locking up on the first corner of the first lap, he was able to manage the gap to Alonso and by a considerable margin. After both Vettel and Alonso had pitted, the gap from Sebastian to Fernando was 10.010 seconds, which was only reduced to 5.4 seconds by the end of the race.
By Mercedes recent form, Hamilton had a pretty tough race today. After qualifying in 12th place it was always going to be a struggle, especially because you are more likely to be involved in first corner incidents in the middle of the pack. Fortunately, Hamilton avoided any incidents and as he was on the hard tyre as opposed to the medium at the start of the race in the early stages he was one to watch out for alongside Raikkonen. However, the race was effectively ruined for both drivers when they were both forced in a two pit stop strategy because Hamilton suffered from a slow puncture on lap 12 and Raikkonen suffered front wing damage on the first lap after running into the back of the McLaren of Sergio Perez.
To add to Hamilton's woes, he suffered him radio problems throughout the race, making communication extremely difficult and almost impossible. At the end of the race he even is said that it was like 'driving blind', but even after the problems he had a brilliant ending to the race, managing to take 9th, with 8th or even 7th in sight before he went wide on the penultimate lap.
We lost Di Resta on the first lap of the 53 lap race, after he locked his own wheels and drove into the unsuspecting Romain Grosjean, which was the first time in his career that he has retired on the first lap of a race. However, I'm sure that he can bounce back from this in Singapore, and hopefully we will get back to seeing the Di Resta running in the top 10.
After a surprising qualifying result of 3rd on the grid, Hulkenberg was expected to go backwards during the race in his Sauber. Indeed he did drop back, but not by the margains expected. He drove a clean and mature race and was rewarded with 5th place, making him in many people's eyes the driver of the day. One thing to consider though is if Raikkonen and Hamilton had qualified higher up the grid, would they have beaten the young German? The Sauber seems to really like this track, shown both this season and last season when Perez drove from 12th to finish 2nd when he was racing for the team.
This weekend we've seen some new camera angles on the tv coverage and one which I have been particularly enjoying is the thermal imaging camera mounted onto Di Resta's car. Unfortunately because of his retirement we were not able to see it in full action across the entire race, but from what I've seen from qualifying and practise, it is a really interesting angle to see.
I've also loved the camera view which looks down onto the pit box, and I noticed this at the Red Bull garage during the race. I just love the angle and it's amazing to see how quickly the car arrives and departs and how all the mechanics appear to work symmetrically together. Not necessarily a new camera angle, but one which I've loved to see this weekend.
With new engines coming in for the 2014 season, I've also been making the most of listening to the sound of the engines. After hearing a prototype for the new V6 engines, I am going to appreciate the sound of the V8's before they disappear, as there is a significant difference between the two.
Personally, the driver of the day for me was Sebastian Vettel. He had a perfect weekend; qualified on pole, won the race and extended his race lead. He was able to look after a damaged tyre whilst leading the race and maintaining a gap and he drove a race without incident even when Red Bull had 'enough problems.'
Looking forward to the Singapore GP in two weeks time, I am looking forward to seeing how Hamilton will respond to a disappointing weekend, what McLaren can achieve in terms of improvement and whether or not Vettel can continue to dominate this track as he has done over the past few seasons.
Friday, 23 August 2013
Belgium GP 2013: FP1 & FP2
This weekend, the world of Formula One visits one of the most iconic and oldest tracks in its history. Although it has been changed since motor racing first visited the circuit in 1925, the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps is still a favourite racing circuit for both drivers and fans.
I particularly love the high speed, flowing corners of the track and it is one of my favourite tracks to watch to watch Formula One drivers attack each corner and fly down the straights. Although I've never personally been to the track, it is one which I would love to visit in the future, especially to see Eau Rouge in its full glory.
Whilst I am watching coverage of the F1 weekend, I do not usually write posts relating to them specifically. Most of my previous posts have focused on drivers or rumours or the overall performance of a team so this weekend I thought that it was time to try something different. I've decided to write posts both regarding Free Practice 1 & 2, which took place today (Friday) and I will be writing another post on Sunday afternoon giving my race reaction. What better place than the Belgium GP to start my posts regarding a race weekend?!
I decided to watch the Sky Sports F1 coverage of Free Practice 1 and 2 and found immediately that there was a lot of focus on Mark Webber's replacement. As of yet Red Bull have not announced who has inherited the race seat and so even after the F1 summer break, this topic is still being constantly brought up. With no new developments in the story aside from a few rumours that Daniel Ricciardo has already signed the contract, it seems as though Sky have gone far enough with the story now. Granted, FP1 this morning was damp so there was not a lot of action on the track to discuss, but I think there should be less focus on this now. Apart from this and the annoying advertisement breaks throughout the programme, I enjoyed FP1 this morning.
It was good to see the cars back on the track for the 90 minute session albeit with the intermediate tyres on in the damp conditions. Damp conditions unsurprisingly caught some drivers out, as they explored the limits of the race track and we saw a lot of lock ups and run offs at the bus stop chicane, from Raikkonen to Bottas to Gutierrez to Vettel.
Alongside these excursions, teams were also testing new development parts for their cars. Most notably, Lotus and Sauber were testing their own versions of the 'double drs' system, which when operated dumps drag and can gain up to 3 tenths of a second per lap. Lotus had already trialled this system last season, but it has yet to feature in any of the races, either last season or during this one.
Red Bull had also made changes to their nose cone on the car, as it is slightly flatter than previous versions of the part and Ferrari had also made changes to their brake ducts alongside Lotus. Ferrari had also been running two rear wings, one with lower downforce on Massa's car and one with higher downforce on Alonso's car.
With around 45 minutes to go, Mark Webber was the first to put slick tyres onto his Red Bull, which was interesting to see as each driver had a dilemma. In some parts the track was dry and therefore needed the slick tyres, however around the pit lane the track was still clearly too damp for the slick tyres. In the dry section of the track, sector 2, Webber set a time of 50.8 seconds with 40 minutes to go, which was 4 seconds off Jenson Button's 46.6 he set in the same sector during qualifying in 2012 which gave him his first pole position for McLaren.
At 24 minutes to go, Alonso and Perez were swapping the quickest times at the top of the board, after most runners had also put on a set of slick tyres. Compared to a 2:00.500 set by Button at the beginning of the session, Perez' 1:55.518 illustrated that the track was drying out and drivers were finding their confidence.
However, with around 19 minutes left of the session, the rain started to fall again and so it was hard for drivers to get in any quicker times. At the end of the session the top ten looked like this:
1. Alonso 1:55.198
2. Di Resta +0.026
3. Sutil +0.175
2. Di Resta +0.026
3. Sutil +0.175
4. Perez
5. Rosberg
6. Vettel
7. Gutierrez
8. Hulkenberg
9. Ricciardo
10. Bottas
With the damp conditions and limited running during FP1 it is impossible to know if this data is representative of what the cars are actually capable of. It will depend on the weather during qualifying and the race, and at this early part of the weekend I wouldn't look too much into the times.
FP2 gave us totally different weather conditions. Instead of a damp track and the threat of rain, it was sunny and dry at the circuit and this meant that the teams and drivers were able to complete more running. This weekend the tyres available are the hard and medium compounds, and we saw both of these being run during the session.
There was a busy start to the session, with most cars getting out on track to make up for the limited running in the first session and with this we also saw some more development parts on the cars.
McLaren were running a new rear wing n plate on their car, Mercedes had a new rear wing and Lotus had taken off their 'double drs' system, which they ran earlier in FP1.
With 30 minutes gone of the session, Webber had set the fastest time of 1:49.390, considerably faster than in FP1. Red Bull were looking competitive during the session, and finished with Vettel topping the session with a 1:49.331 and Mark Webber close behind. The only downside of the session as far as they were concerned was that Vettel suffered from a right rear puncture near the end of the session, which signalled the end of his session.
Caterham driver Van Der Garde suffered from a setback at the end of the session after crashing into the barriers after turn 14 after losing the rear of the car which brought out yellow flags and the end of his session.
The top ten at the end of FP2 were:
1. Vettel
2. Webber
3. Grosjean
4. Massa
5. Vergne
6. Raikkonen
7. Alonso
8. Perez
9. Rosberg
10. Di Resta
With the Friday sessions now over, the drivers have one session left tomorrow before qualifying. As usual the Red Bulls seem competitive, in both racing and qualifying pace. Lewis Hamilton has had a few set up issues and has not been entirely happy within the car, but it would be foolish to write him off for pole position just yet. He always seems to get it right for Saturday.
I still think it is too early to see the improvements that Ferrari and McLaren have been trying to make and we will get a better idea of that tomorrow perhaps after FP3. My prediction however as it stands now is that it will be Red Bull and Mercedes going head to head for pole position.
Predictions:
Pole: Hamilton
Pole: Hamilton
Win: Hamilton
Monday, 12 August 2013
The F1 Title Battle
Aside from all the rumours flying around in the world of Formula One, there is still the small matter of the World Driver's Championship. We are over the half way point of the season, and it is usually at this time where we can determine how well each team has performed.
However, instead the main focus will be on the title battle and the chances of each contender ultimately winning the WDC at the end of the season in Brazil.
Currently there are four drivers which stand out in terms of being in contention for the title as they have amassed the most amount of points and there is a fair gap in points between the 4th and 5th placed drivers, illustrating a clear group which have stood out from the rest. These four drivers are reigning triple World Champion Sebastian Vettel, former double World Champion Fernando Alonso and former champions Kimi Raikkonen and Lewis Hamilton. Each driver represents a different team, consisting of Red Bull, Ferrari, Lotus and Mercedes and this illustrates how competitive this season is becoming and how close each car is to each other in terms of performance.
Leading the standings with 172 points from 10 races is Vettel. With his worst result this season being a retirement in the British GP from a technical problem, and an impressive record of four wins and three additional podium finishes so far, it is clear to see why he is at the top of the standings. Aside from the retirement, his worst results have been fourth place at the Chinese and Spanish Grand Prix.
Leading the standings with 172 points from 10 races is Vettel. With his worst result this season being a retirement in the British GP from a technical problem, and an impressive record of four wins and three additional podium finishes so far, it is clear to see why he is at the top of the standings. Aside from the retirement, his worst results have been fourth place at the Chinese and Spanish Grand Prix.
A further 38 points behind in the championship is the Finn Kimi Raikkonen. After scoring points in 19 out of the 20 races last season, Kimi has contiuned his consistent form in 2013. So far he has finished and scored points in every race and alongside his win in Australia, his consistency has been rewarded with 2nd place in the standings. Not only is Raikkonen consistent, but he is also consistently good, with 5 2nd place finishes this season.
A single point behind Raikkonen is the Spaniard Fernando Alonso, driving for Ferrari. Like Vettel, Alonso has only had one non point scoring race this season, but what has stopped him from being higher in the standings is the lack of race wins and podiums. From the nine races Alonso has had 5 non podium finishes, which illustrates that the Ferrari is not as competitive as the other cars surrounding it. Alonso takes the most out of the car at each race, which is evident when you look at Alonso's performance against his team mate Massa.
Finally, 48 points adrift from the top of the standings, but still in with a chance, is Lewis Hamilton driving in his first season for Mercedes. Like Vettel and Alonso, Hamilton has also had one non points finish and has only so far managed to pick up a single win. However, this season's Mercedes is a huge improvement from the one we saw last season and after seemingly putting their tyre trouble behind them they are now starting to pull in some good results with Hamilton. With Hamilton so far this season it has quite consistent like Raikkonen, but instead of consistent 2nd place finishes, they have been consistent 3rd, 4th or 5th place finishes.
Sebastian Vettel now has over a race win between himself and his closest rival. This means that as it stands, even if Vettel wasn't to finish the Belgium GP and Raikkonen was to win, he would still be leading the WDC, by 13 points. Even if Raikkonen then went on to win the next GP as well, Vettel would only need to finish 4th to keep them on the same amount of points. A 3rd place would mean that he would still be leading the championship. However, with a fairly reliable and extremely quick race car, if Vettel can just keep doing what he has already done this season, a fourth successive championship is surely inevitable. The Red Bull has the pace to win races, which also massively improves his chances. Some believe that he has already done enough to secure another championship, in terms of securing enough early points and only needing to remain consistent for the rest of the season.
Although Vettel has won the previous three championships, the 2012 season was not as dominent as the previous. The title went down to the final race, which was something he has not experienced in 2011. This illustrates that it is getting harder and more competitive to win the WDC, although many were not shocked when he won it last season.
Another factor which plays into Vettel's hands is the fact that he has three close contenders. Although this may not seem as though it is an advantage, in the coming races we will see Hamilton, Raikkonen and Alonso all taking points off each other, which will allow Vettel to further extend his lead.
With only 9 races left of the 2013 season, it is now that we usually see the bigger teams pull away from the smaller because of their budgets and rates of development. Some teams will now also put more focus into their 2014 car, especially because of the new regulations coming in. However, I still expect to see these four compete for the title, with it hopefully going down to the last race in Brazil. I still also hope McLaren can spring a surprise, although their title hopes went nearly as quickly as the season started. Will Raikkonen be able to continue his consistent form? Will Hamilton win more races during his first season with Mercedes? Will Vettel suffer with any problems with the car? And will Alonso have a more competitive car for the remainder of the season?
Only time will tell, and with the Belgium GP under two weeks away, it's nearly time to start the speculation again.
Sebastian Vettel: 172
Kimi Raikkonen: 134 (-38)
Fernando Alonso: 133 (-39)
Lewis Hamilton: 124 (-48)
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