Force India Confident Of Maintaining Pace At Monza
Force India F1 Team’s chiefs are pretty confident that they will be able to maintain the blisteringly fast pace shown in Belgium last weekend in the forthcoming Italian Grand Prix at Monza.
The team shocked the field with the VJM02, along with its new aerodynamic upgrades proving a formindable beast and socring the teams first ever pole position at the hands of Giancarlo Fisichella.
The Italian could well have won the race too, if it were not for a safety car and Ferrari’s blindingly fast Kinetic Energy Recovery System (KERS) working to massive advantage.
“Why not?” team owner Vijay Mallya said when asked if the team would be as strong again in Monza. “We know that the car is quick, blindingly quick I would say. The sector times show it and I think the Monza track will suit us.”
Meanwhile, the teams top tech chief Simon Roberts told Autosport Magazine in an exclusive interview;
“Our car is quick in a straight line. I’d like to say that’s what we intended, but it isn’t.
“What we have tried to do is to put genuine upgrades on the car to create more downforce. The Valencia upgrade was very low on drag and was a good time to deliver that before Spa and Monza.
“We’ve got an aero test next week, so we’ll hit the ground with more data at Monza. That makes it easier for the engineers and we should be able to set into it quicker.”
“Obviously Monza is low drag. We’ve got some more wings to try there. We’ve got an aero test next week so unlike on Friday here, on Friday in Monza we know what the wings do so we should hit the ground strong.”
Button To Target Wins Not Points In Forthcoming Races
Current championship leader Jenson Button has not had a good few races, and indeed it has been some time now since he won a race even.
Button, in his most competitive car to date the Brawn GP 001 has struggled with tyre problems and in the last race in Belgium a first lap incident with Romain Grosjean.
Rubens Barrichello and Sebastian Vettel have made ground to catch him, but with better performances from Kimi Raikkonen and Lewis Hamilton the lead Button holds has not been cut too much.
Therefore the Briton could just make points finishes to limp home to a world championship, his first, but he says he does not want to do that and will be working hard to find the winning formula once again.
“We’ve got to start getting back to being competitive,” he explained. “All I need to do is finish fourth or fifth, but that’s not what I want to do. I want to win races.
“You’ve got say ‘think about the championship’, but I still want to win races. It’s what I’m here to do and it’s what I love doing, competing at the front.
“So I’m going to be aggressive. I’m not going to suddenly back off after qualifying and take it easy in the races because if I’m in fifth I still want to do well, I still want to win races and I still want to be competitive, and that’s exactly what will hopefully happen in Monza.”
Belgian GP 2009: Kimi Raikkonen Takes Ferrari’s First Win Of Season!
Kimi Raikkonen delivered an emphatic first win of the season for Ferrari this afternoon after a highly exciting Belgian Grand Prix.
Suprise pole sitter Giancarlo Fisichella came in 2nd place, Force India’s first ever points and thus podium, while Sebastian Vettel kept his championship hopes alive while others around him faltered with 3rd place.
Race Review
The getaway from the line was mostly noted for Rubens Barrichello’s anti-stall kick in, forcing Kimi Raikkonen around his outside and bunching everyone up into La Source hairpin.
Raikkonen dived onto the astroturf around the outside of the turn and raced down to Eau Rouge with Fisichella in the lead and the BMW’s far up the pack. Further back in the field various cars including Fernando Alonso, Jaime Alguersuari, Adrian Sutil, Timo Glock, Jarno Trulli and Lewis Hamilton were all tangling with bits of bodywork flying everywhere.
The cars were bunched as they headed down the straight to Les Combes, where Romain Grosjean tagged Jenson Button forcing him into a spin. Jaime Alguersuari tried to miss Button and ended up ramming Lewis Hamilton forcing them both out as well as Button and Grosjean. This left us with a Safety Car situation with all these cars hanging off the track.
Some drivers including Rubens Barrichello decided to pit in.
When the safety car finally returned to the pits, Kimi Raikkonen using his KERS system to full effect managed to get ahead of Fisichella and that is where he would stay for the rest of the race. The gap between the two was not very large, and the pitstops [all on the same laps for the pair] didn’t yield a position change. Had Raikkonen not being using the KERS system then he would almost certainly have lost the place to Fisichella, whose Force India car looked frighteningly quick.
Sebastian Vettel had a very quiet drive to 3rd place, managingto make use of accidents and retirements.
Robert Kubica and Nick Heidfeld managed to get a great result for their BMW team, with 4th and 5th places. They stayed out of trouble throughout the race, but were almost certianly helped along by faster rivals being knocked out in the first corner accident.
7th place finisher Rubens Barrichello never looked like troubling those at the front after his poor start. He did well to end up in the points, but in all honesty was lucky to finish with his Brawn GP car pluming smoke for the final 3 laps. The Brazilian’s car then set on fire as he returned to the pitlane after the race!
Just finishing ahead of Rubens was Heikki Kovalainen, the sole finishing McLaren using good strategy to make the position from a poor qualifying start. 8th was Rosberg picking up vital points, but Mark Webber really should have been there but he had a pitlane incident where he was released into the path of Heidfeld, focing the German to nearly crash and got given a drive-through penalty for it.
Timo Glock should also have finished higher than 10th, but a fuel rig failure ruined his chances of points from early good running.
Sutil, Buemi and Nakajima came next in the classifications with fairly average races, and Luca Badoer brings up the rear of the field [again] in what is likely to be his last Ferrari race.
Fernando Alonso retired with a broken front left wheel and suspension, while we do not know Jarno Trulli’s problem possibly a fuel pressure issue.
Classified Results
| Pos | Driver | Team | Time |
| 1 | K. Raikkonen | Ferrari | 1.23.50.995 |
| 2 | G. Fisichella | Force India Mercedes | +0.939 |
| 3 | S. Vettel | Red Bull Renault | +3.875 |
| 4 | R. Kubica | BMW Sauber | +9.966 |
| 5 | N. Heidfeld | BMW Sauber | +11.276 |
| 6 | H. Kovalainen | McLaren Mercedes | +32.763 |
| 7 | R. Barrichello | Brawn Mercedes | +35.461 |
| 8 | N. Rosberg | Williams Toyota | +36.208 |
| 9 | M. Webber | Red Bull Renault | +36.959 |
| 10 | T. Glock | Toyota | +41.490 |
| 11 | A. Sutil | Force India Mercedes | +42.636 |
| 12 | S. Buemi | Toro Rosso Ferrari | +46.106 |
| 13 | K. Nakajima | Williams Toyota | +54.241 |
| 14 | L. Badoer | Ferrari | +1.38.177 |
Fastest Lap: S. Vettel (Red Bull) 1.47.263
Retirements
| Driver | Team | Lap | Reason |
| F. Alonso | Renault | 27 | Tyre/Suspension |
| J. Trulli | Toyota | 21 | Fuel Pressure (Poss.) |
| J. Button | Brawn Mercedes | 1 | Accident |
| R. Grosjean | Renault | 1 | Accident |
| L. Hamilton | McLaren Mercedes | 1 | Accident |
| J. Alguersuari | Toro Rosso Ferrari | 1 | Accident |
Belgian GP 2009: Fisichella Takes Shock Pole Position
Force India’s Giancarlo Fisichella has delivered the small team it’s first ever pole position after a stunning qualifying session in Belgium, where the form book really was turned on it’s head.
Fisichella the flambouyant Italian was amazingly fast throughout the session in the heavily revised Force India car, and the investment has paid dividends to its owner Vijay Mallya.
Although likely to be light on fuel, this must signal the first points of the season for the team based in Silverstone. If not that, it signals to Ferrari that Giancarlo Fisichella could deliver something for them, unlike Luca Badoer who did not help his cause by qualifying last and ending Q1 in the wall.
Jarno Trulli made second place in the significantly faster Toyota, and Nick Heidfeld made a shock return to the top with 3rd position.
Rubens Barrichello will start 4th, the highest qualifying Brawn after Jenson Button faltered and did not get out of Q2. He will start in 14th tomorrow, a big harm to his world championship chances.
Kimi Raikkonen did much better than Badoer and will start 6th, those around him must be concerned about his KERS system.
Vettel and Webber made 8th and 9th for Red Bull, so should make valuable ground tomorrow.
The improving McLaren’s have struggled in Spa this afternoon, with Hamilton making just 12th place and Kovalainen 15th. Another big name between them is Fernando Alonso in 13th.
We thought the Toro Rosso’s looked good, but neither managed to get out of Q1 with Buemi starting 16th and Alguersuari 17th.
Romain Grosjean lines up alongside Badoer at the back, after the young French/Swiss made progress.
Pos Driver Team Q1 Q2 Q3 1. Fisichella Force India-Mercedes (B) 1:45.102 1:44.667 1:46.308 2. Trulli Toyota (B) 1:45.140 1:44.503 1:46.395 3. Heidfeld BMW-Sauber (B) 1:45.566 1:44.709 1:46.500 4. Barrichello Brawn-Mercedes (B) 1:45.237 1:44.834 1:46.513 5. Kubica BMW-Sauber (B) 1:45.655 1:44.557 1:46.586 6. Raikkonen Ferrari (B) 1:45.579 1:44.953 1:46.633 7. Glock Toyota (B) 1:45.450 1:44.877 1:46.677 8. Vettel Red Bull-Renault (B) 1:45.372 1:44.592 1:46.761 9. Webber Red Bull-Renault (B) 1:45.350 1:44.924 1:46.788 10. Rosberg Williams-Toyota (B) 1:45.486 1:45.047 1:47.362 11. Sutil Force India-Mercedes (B) 1:45.486 1:45.119 12. Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes (B) 1:45.239 1:45.122 13. Alonso Renault (B) 1:45.767 1:45.136 14. Button Brawn-Mercedes (B) 1:45.707 1:45.251 15. Kovalainen McLaren-Mercedes (B) 1:45.761 1:45.259 16. Buemi Toro Rosso-Ferrari (B) 1:45.705 17. Alguersuari Toro Rosso-Ferrari (B) 1:45.951 18. Nakajima Williams-Toyota (B) 1:46.032 19. Grosjean Renault (B) 1:46.307 20. Badoer Ferrari (B) 1:46.359
Belgian GP 2009: Hamilton Fastest In Frantic FP2
Weather conditions changed for the better in Fp2 at Spa this afternoon. This led to frantic activity as teams and drivers tried to make up for time lost in the rainy morning session.
Hamilton was fastest, just hundredths of a second ahead of Timo Glock and Kimi Raikkonen.
Raikkonen’s team mate Luca Badoer stuck in last place, and Ferrari seem incredibly disappointed with his performance.
Pos Driver Team Time Laps 1. Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes (B) 1:47.201 29 2. Glock Toyota (B) 1:47.217 + 0.016 29 3. Raikkonen Ferrari (B) 1:47.285 + 0.084 26 4. Webber Red Bull-Renault (B) 1:47.329 + 0.128 31 5. Grosjean Renault (B) 1:47.333 + 0.132 34 6. Fisichella Force India-Mercedes (B) 1:47.506 + 0.305 27 7. Trulli Toyota (B) 1:47.559 + 0.358 33 8. Kubica BMW-Sauber (B) 1:47.578 + 0.377 33 9. Alguersuari Toro Rosso-Ferrari (B) 1:47.579 + 0.378 36 10. Vettel Red Bull-Renault (B) 1:47.602 + 0.401 25 11. Buemi Toro Rosso-Ferrari (B) 1:47.702 + 0.501 38 12. Kovalainen McLaren-Mercedes (B) 1:47.743 + 0.542 33 13. Sutil Force India-Mercedes (B) 1:47.790 + 0.589 29 14. Alonso Renault (B) 1:47.862 + 0.661 30 15. Nakajima Williams-Toyota (B) 1:47.961 + 0.760 32 16. Heidfeld BMW-Sauber (B) 1:48.017 + 0.816 30 17. Button Brawn-Mercedes (B) 1:48.125 + 0.924 34 18. Barrichello Brawn-Mercedes (B) 1:48.130 + 0.929 37 19. Rosberg Williams-Toyota (B) 1:48.360 + 1.159 29 20. Badoer Ferrari (B) 1:49.211 + 2.010 30
Belgian GP 2009: Trulli Fastest In Rain Affected FP1
Jarno Trulli set the fastest time in what was a mostly rain affected first session at Spa Francorchamps for the Belgian Grand Prix.
A lot of cars did slow wet runs, and Lewis Hamilton + Sebastian Vettel failed to set times. That means Luca Badoer isn’t last!
Pos Driver Team Time Laps 1. Trulli Toyota (B) 1:49.675 13 2. Button Brawn-Mercedes (B) 1:50.283 + 0.608 18 3. Alonso Renault (B) 1:50.368 + 0.693 13 4. Buemi Toro Rosso-Ferrari (B) 1:51.045 + 1.370 20 5. Alguersuari Toro Rosso-Ferrari (B) 1:51.529 + 1.854 24 6. Barrichello Brawn-Mercedes (B) 1:52.321 + 2.646 18 7. Raikkonen Ferrari (B) 1:52.930 + 3.255 16 8. Kovalainen McLaren-Mercedes (B) 1:53.383 + 3.708 11 9. Kubica BMW-Sauber (B) 1:53.650 + 3.975 12 10. Badoer Ferrari (B) 1:55.068 + 5.393 20 11. Fisichella Force India-Mercedes (B) 2:03.972 + 14.297 11 12. Rosberg Williams-Toyota (B) 2:04.505 + 14.830 13 13. Grosjean Renault (B) 2:05.513 + 15.838 13 14. Heidfeld BMW-Sauber (B) 2:05.614 + 15.939 14 15. Nakajima Williams-Toyota (B) 2:05.705 + 16.030 15 16. Sutil Force India-Mercedes (B) 2:05.839 + 16.164 10 17. Webber Red Bull-Renault (B) 2:06.181 + 16.506 6 18. Glock Toyota (B) 2:06.331 + 16.656 15 19. Vettel Red Bull-Renault (B) 1 20. Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes (B) 4
Brawn GP Secures Future Funding
The Brawn Gp team, which despite being haistily put together weeks before the start of the 2009 Season has been a massive success have announced to Autosport Magazine that they have funding to see them right through 2010 on a full programme of development.
The team, born out of the wreckage of Honda, is based in Brackley and signed a minor sponsorship deal with Virgin at the start of the season. A full car roll out and sponsorship deal was never reached because of difficulties between both sides and as such the car was left in the white and fluroescent yellow paint scheme for the season.
Although Brawn GP have not confirmed the names of these sponsors yet, they can confirm they are big money and there will be a proper car launch and livery. Suspected candidates for sponsorship including Bwin.com and Emirates Airlines.
For Virgin Group, they have found sponsorship solace with Manor Grand Prix, one of the new teams. We had indications this was true, but in the interview with Autosport Nick Fry confirmed the detail.
“We have zero worries on funding for this year, next year, the year after, and the year after that. I smile when people talk about money, because we’ve always had the finances for this year, and neither Ross nor I would not have taken on the team if we did not have the money for this year.
“We’ve signed some nice contracts, and those will come out into the open when we launch the car next year, but we will see what happens. There is zero worry on our side.”
“We’ve had a great relationship with Virgin.” Fry added
“You have noticed different stickers from Virgin on the car over the year, and that is the result of additional requests from their side, which has increased our income as well, which is nice. I think they have had a great initiation into F1, and we are helping where we can in advice about what they can do with Manor.”
Bortolotti Focusing On F2 Not Ferrari Possiblity
MirkoBortolotti has said he is focusing on his Formula 2 career at the moment rather than the possibility of driving for F1 giants Ferrari.
The Italian yougnster has already achieved success in the newly formed F2 series, and following a very successful test in a Ferrari F2008 last year he is being linked with the Felipe Massa/Luca Badoer seat.
Bortolotti is just 19 years old, and the interest has been sparked after the lack of success test driver Luca Badoer achieved.
Depite the focus, Mirko says he is just focusing on F2.
“All I can say is that I’m racing in F2 and I’m not thinking about anything other than the championship,” he said on Wednesday.
“I want to be higher than sixth, so I have to work hard and apply myself 100%. There is still enough time to improve, so if I can get the best possible results hopefully I can move up the order again.
“There has been quite a lot of speculation in Italy surrounding the Ferrari seat. To be honest I think Luca (Badoer) just needs a bit more time to get a feeling for the car.
“Everything has changed since he last raced, but I’m sure he will be quicker at Spa as the pace is there in the car.
“As for me, I’m just focusing on Formula Two. It’s nice to be linked with the team, but my mentality is just to do a good job for the remaining three rounds – after that, I’ll start thinking about my future.”
Bortolotti in the Ferrari
Hamilton Sceptical About Spa Chances
Lewis Hamilton has started to downplay his chances of victory or even a decent result at the forthcoming Belgian Grand Prix.
The Briton, who finished 2nd in Valencia and nearly won, on the back of a victory at Hungary reckons his McLaren car will not have the outright pace, nor the high speed downforce needed to challenge for victory at Spa Francorchamps.
Hamilton, the current World Champion, believes that Brawn, Ferarri and Red Bull Racing will be the ones to catch.
“I don’t think we’ll be as competitive as we’ve been at the last few races, because Spa is a circuit where you need a lot of downforce,” Hamilton said on his official website on Monday.
“I think Brawn, Red Bull and even Ferrari will be fast there – it’s a high-speed circuit and Ferrari has always been very quick there, so I’m expecting Kimi to be quick. It should also suit the Red Bulls because it’s very high-speed and flowing and they have great downforce.
“But, like most races these days, it’s going to be very competitive. For ourselves, we need to ensure that we are competitive without KERS, so that when we use it, it will give us the advantage that we need.”
Davidson Reckons He Has A Shot At Ferrari Seat
Okay, so in my daily wade through the news and rumours I came across this fantastic interview with Anthony Davidson, who must work as a jester in his spare time.
Davidson, speaking to well known British broadsheet newspaper The Daily Telegraph says he is going to put himself forward for a shot at the Ferrari drive after Luca Badoer’s poor performance last weekend.
Badoer was nowhere near as good as expected and rumours have started about his replacement, including Nelson Piquet Jr, Marc Gene and seemingly now Davidson.
“I will be speaking to Ferrari personally this week to put my name forward,” said the 30-year-old Briton, who was BAR/Honda’s long time test driver and raced for Super Aguri as recently as last year.
“Luca was not anywhere near scoring points and that car is capable of doing that,” Davidson is quoted as saying by the Daily Telegraph newspaper.
“I’m ready and I think I’m better. That’s not being arrogant. It’s just what I believe. I’ve got the necessary experience that I’ll get my chance in Formula One – so why not at Ferrari?”
Im sorry, but I find this rather funny. Davidson mate, you’ve got about as much chance as me at getting the drive. If he gets it, I will be the first to congratulate him but honestly, I think I just saw a pig fly past the window, or maybe just Yuji Ide hitting Christijan Albers…
Ed note: I find it humourous to thought that Davidson reckons he has a chance, only because of Ferrari’s general “internal” driver policy. If Badoer is dropped, and Schumacher cannot race then the drive will almost certainly go to Marc Gene, or one of those Italian F3 drivers who tested last year. I am not disputing Davidson’s driving ability, but he has the same traits and credentials as Badoer – great tester, no F1 points… Thus, I can’t see it happening. In truth, I can’t see Nelson Piquet heading to Ferrari either but his name has been banded around the grapevines. Davidson’s not a bad driver, in F1 and sportscars but he just isn’t Ferrari potential in my opinion.
Ferrari Consider Replacing Badoer After Spa
Scuderia Ferrari’s racing director Stefano Domenicali has suggested that Luca Badoer could be replaced after the Belgian Grand Prix next weekend.
Badoer, 38, is standing in for the injured Felipe Massa. He has been a test driver for many years, and previous to today his last competitive Grand Prix was the 1999 Japanese Grand Prix. Badoer has underperformed all weekend and finished alowly 17th today.
Ferrari cannot afford to finish in that position, nor can they afford the consistent fines and penalties Badoer was recieving. When Badoer crossed the white pitlane line on the track and got a pitlane penalty, Michael Schumacher shook his head slightly and everyone’s hearts dropped. Badoer said this weekend was a wake-up-call, but he must improve massively in Belgium.
“What I said exactly, to be precise, is that for us the first priority is to understand when Felipe Massa will come back,” Domenicali told reporters after the race.
“For sure it is an important race for Luca Badoer next weekend. We are expecting a big jump from him and then we will see.”
“As I have said before, Ferrari cannot be satisfied with a car in last position,” he continued.
“That is pretty clear, but we need to consider all the circumstances and everything that has happened. I think if you look behind it, for sure it was a difficult weekend for him.
“In terms of race pace, if you look to compare to the other young drivers, you can make your opinion.
“He did a great start and then he was touched from behind so he lost a place, and then in terms of rhythm – everyone was worried this morning about his health, worried about that it was not possible for him to get to the finish and that he would have to go to the hospital. But he was very good.”
Brawn Applauds Barrichello On “Great Win”
Ross Brawn has heaped praise on his driver Rubens Barrichello after his victory in the European Grand Prix.
The 37 year old Brazilian has been there or thereabouts all season with racing, but today managed to secure his first win for 5 years.
Brawn, his boss, is in discussions with Barrichello about a contract extension for 2010 for the Brazilian.
“It’s just a sensational performance,” Brawn told the BBC. “We have had these races where Rubens was very good in qualifying and it hasn’t quite come together in the race, but today he was perfect.
“He pushed exactly where he needed to, and kept the gaps exactly what he wanted.
“And then when we got on the radio and said we had to push, then the little red lights came up. So it was just a fantastic performance.”
European GP 2009: Barrichello Takes Emotional Victory
Rubens Barrichello took a highly emotional victory in this afternoon’s European Grand Prix, winning his first race for 5 years – his last victory was at the 2004 Chinese Grand Prix with Ferrari.
It puts Barrichello right back into title contention. Lewis Hamilton will be aggrieved not to have won, having led most of the way he was let down by a pit crew failure. Kimi Raikkonen stormed through to finish in 3rd position.
Race Review
Both McLaren’s made a good start off the grid, as did Kimi Raikkonen and Jenson Button. Button tried to go down the inside of Vettel who made a slow start, but the German forced the Briton into the pitlane exit area where he let off the throttle. The resulting masses of space and the KERS system allowed Raikkonen to easily sweep around the outside and into 4th position.
Button lost multiple places further back, and was forced to rescinde a place to Australian Mark Webber after cutting a corner following Fernando Alonso who at the time was defending against Webber.
Sebastien Buemi was cut up in the first few turns and lost his front wing, having to crawl back to the pit for a new one. He was joined by Romain Grosjean who lost his wing when Timo Glock made a very late overtaking dive at the inexperienced Frecnhamn turned into the Toyota.
These position changes allowed those at the back, including Luca Badoer to make up a few places.
The top order remained relatively unchanged as the drivers hit their pitstops. Lewis Hamilton was pulling out a good lead with fastest lap times.
The next action was when Sebastian Vettel’s engine blew for the second time this weekend. Vettel was angered post race, and indeed we’re pretty sure any continuation of the RBR/Renault deal is now off the cards and the team could be switching to either Ferrari again or perhaps Mercedes Benz.
The Force India’s got themselves in the mix today too, along with the BMW’s but only Robert Kubica would come away with a point.
As the drivers hit their second stops, it was evident that Barrichello was trying to catch Hamilton. The Brit had a good lead and all was good until he pulled into his pitbox and the tyre men were not ready with new tyres. This led to pantomime scenes and lost Hamilton many seconds of time, allowing Rubens through and pretty much ended his chance of winning. Hamilton’s Father was nonchalant smacking his fists together in he back of the garage.
Kimi Raikkonen also made an unseen overtake on Heikki Kovalainen securing the Iceman a quality 3rd position.
The only other DNF of the race was Sebastien Buemi whose brakes gave up late on and led to a huge spin incident.
Kazuki Nakajima suffered a puncture and a delamination of the tyre half way around the lap very late on too. Luca Badoer and Romain Grosjean had pitlane comedy when Badoer was released, he let Grosjean through, side by side, but then as he put the power down Badoer went over the white line and got himself ANOTHER pitlane penalty. Throw in a huge spin for the Italian driver and it has left many questioning whether he will ever race a Ferrari again. (I’m free next weekend if you need me Ferrari?!).
And that was that, another pretty lacklustre European Grand Prix in Valencia, made interesting by pitlane comedy and Luca Badoer. It is good to see Rubens Barrichello win again, and by his tears of joy in the car and parc ferme we know how much it means to him. Wonderful dedication to Felipe Massa at the end also. Could Rubens be the World Champion?
Classified Results
| Pos | Driver | Team | Time |
| 1 | R. Barrichello | Brawn Mercedes | 1.35.51.289 |
| 2 | L. Hamilton | McLaren Mercedes | +2.358 |
| 3 | K. Raikkonen | Ferrari | +15.994 |
| 4 | H. Kovalainen | McLaren Mercedes | +20.023 |
| 5 | N. Rosberg | Williams Toyota | +20.870 |
| 6 | F. Alonso | Renault | +27.744 |
| 7 | J. Button | Brawn Mercedes | +34.913 |
| 8 | R. Kubica | BMW Sauber | +36.667 |
| 9 | M. Webber | Red Bull Renault | +44.910 |
| 10 | A. Sutil | Force India Merc | +47.935 |
| 11 | N. Heidfeld | BMW Sauber | +48.822 |
| 12 | G. Fisichella | Force India Merc | +1.03.614 |
| 13 | J. Trulli | Toyota | +1.04.527 |
| 14 | T. Glock | Toyota | +1.26.519 |
| 15 | R. Grosjean | Renault | +1.31.774 |
| 16 | J. Alguersuari | Toro Rosso Ferrari | + 1 lap |
| 17 | L. Badoer | Ferrari | +1 lap |
| 18 | K. Nakajima | Williams | + 3 laps |
Fastest Lap: T. Glock (Toyota) 1.38.683
Retirements
| Driver | Team | Lap | Reason |
| S. Buemi | Toro Rosso Ferrari | 42 | Brake Failure |
| S. Vettel | Red Bull Renault | 24 | Engine |
European GP 2009: Hamilton Takes Pole In Valencia
Lewis Hamilton slotted his updated McLaren Mp4-24 onto pole position for tomorrow’s European Grand Prix in Valencia.
His team mate Heikki Kovalainen will line up alongside the World Champion, and Rubens Barrichello is just behind in 3rd.
Championship challenger Sebastian Vettel is 4th despite blowing his engine in Free Practice 3. Jenson Button is back in 5th and should be worried about the KERS powered Ferrari of Kimi Raikkonen alongside in 6th.
Kubica and Heidfeld had a better performance in the BMW’s dropping into 10th and 11th. Amazing how the car improves when you’re jobs are on the line?!
New boy Romain Grosjean will line up 13th after a tidy qualifying. Not so good for Luca Badoer, he is so far off the pace it is actually beyond laughable.
Pos Driver Team Q1 Q2 Q3
1. Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes (B) 1:38.649 1:38.182 1:39.498
2. Kovalainen McLaren-Mercedes (B) 1:38.816 1:38.230 1:39.532
3. Barrichello Brawn-Mercedes (B) 1:39.019 1:38.076 1:39.563
4. Vettel Red Bull-Renault (B) 1:39.295 1:38.273 1:39.789
5. Button Brawn-Mercedes (B) 1:38.531 1:38.601 1:39.821
6. Raikkonen Ferrari (B) 1:38.843 1:38.782 1:40.144
7. Rosberg Williams-Toyota (B) 1:39.039 1:38.346 1:40.185
8. Alonso Renault (B) 1:39.155 1:38.717 1:40.236
9. Webber Red Bull-Renault (B) 1:38.983 1:38.625 1:40.239
10. Kubica BMW-Sauber (B) 1:38.806 1:38.747 1:40.512
11. Heidfeld BMW-Sauber (B) 1:39.032 1:38.826
12. Sutil Force India-Mercedes (B) 1:39.145 1:38.846
13. Glock Toyota (B) 1:39.459 1:38.991
14. Grosjean Renault (B) 1:39.322 1:39.040
15. Buemi Toro Rosso-Ferrari (B) 1:38.912 1:39.514
16. Fisichella Force India-Mercedes (B) 1:39.531
17. Nakajima Williams-Toyota (B) 1:39.795
18. Trulli Toyota (B) 1:39.807
19. Alguersuari Toro Rosso-Ferrari (B) 1:39.925
20. Badoer Ferrari (B) 1:41.413
Grosjean Happy With Start In F1, Targetting Q2
Romain Grosjean has declared himself satisfied and happy with his start to Formula One.
The young French driver has taken over from Nelson Piquet Jr at the Renault team and has spent the day acquainting himself with the car and the circuit in Valencia.
He competed plenty of lap times on new, used and option tyres without any major problems and finished the day in 17th position – not great, but not bad either.
“I still have many things to learn, but for sure I feel better than yesterday and I’m looking forward to tomorrow,” said Grosjean. “Fernando showed today that the car is working quite well. For me, it was good to not do any big mistakes and to get as much experience as possible.
“If I manage to get to Q2 it will be a very good personal result, so we’ll see what I can achieve.”
His team mate Fernando Alonso was pretty impressed too as was boss Pat Symonds.
“He did no mistakes and completed many laps today, which was the main priority – getting used to the F1 car,” Alonso said. “It is only his first grand prix, but his learning process is quick and he made no mistakes – so that is the perfect start.
European GP 2009: Alonso Tops Sheets In FP2
Fernando Alonso gave the rather small crowd something to cheer about in FP2 when he put his Renault at the top of the timesheets.
Earlier in the session the Spaniard had been involved in an accident with Nick Heidfeld.
Luca Badoer bettered his time by over 1.5 seconds from session 1 while Lewis Hamilton completed just 3 laps after damaging his car right at the start of the session.
Pos Driver Team Time Laps 1. Alonso Renault (B) 1:39.404 33 2. Button Brawn GP-Mercedes (B) 1:40.178 +0.774 33 3. Barrichello Brawn GP-Mercedes (B) 1:40.209 +0.805 34 4. Rosberg Williams-Toyota (B) 1:40.385 +0.981 39 5. Nakajima Williams-Toyota (B) 1:40.503 +1.099 35 6. Sutil Force India-Mercedes (B) 1:40.596 +1.192 23 7. Kubica BMW Sauber (B) 1:40.643 +1.239 34 8. Fisichella Force India-Mercedes (B) 1:40.681 +1.277 31 9. Vettel Red Bull-Renault (B) 1:40.723 +1.319 33 10. Kovalainen McLaren-Mercedes (B) 1:40.738 +1.334 31 11. Raikkonen Ferrari (B) 1:40.739 +1.335 39 12. Trulli Toyota (B) 1:40.770 +1.366 32 13. Grosjean Renault (B) 1:40.787 +1.383 35 14. Webber Red Bull-Renault (B) 1:40.956 +1.552 37 15. Glock Toyota (B) 1:40.985 +1.581 30 16. Buemi Toro Rosso-Ferrari (B) 1:41.156 +1.752 34 17. Heidfeld BMW Sauber (B) 1:41.350 +1.946 29 18. Badoer Ferrari (B) 1:42.017 +2.613 37 19. Alguersuari Toro Rosso-Ferrari (B) 1:42.089 +2.685 34 20. Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes (B) 1:43.214 +3.810 3
European GP 2009: Barrichello Fastest In FP1
Rubens Barrichello was the fastest man in the first practice session at the Valencia street-circuit this morning.
He was ahead of the usual top suspects of team mate Jenson Button and the McLaren’s. Adrian Sutil made a good effort into 6th for Force India.
New boys Romain Grosjean and Luca Badoer did not fare to well, Grosjean was 17th and Badoer was a lowly 20th some 3 seconds off the pace of the leader.
Pos Driver Team Time Laps 1. Barrichello Brawn GP-Mercedes (B) 1:42.460 19 2. Kovalainen McLaren-Mercedes (B) 1:42.636 +0.176 16 3. Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes (B) 1:42.654 +0.194 18 4. Button Brawn GP-Mercedes (B) 1:43.074 +0.614 19 5. Vettel Red Bull-Renault (B) 1:43.088 +0.628 17 6. Sutil Force India-Mercedes (B) 1:43.209 +0.749 13 7. Nakajima Williams-Toyota (B) 1:43.225 +0.765 25 8. Webber Red Bull-Renault (B) 1:43.243 +0.783 19 9. Alonso Renault (B) 1:43.345 +0.885 18 10. Raikkonen Ferrari (B) 1:43.384 +0.924 23 11. Buemi Toro Rosso-Ferrari (B) 1:43.389 +0.929 30 12. Kubica BMW Sauber (B) 1:43.419 +0.959 20 13. Alguersuari Toro Rosso-Ferrari (B) 1:43.637 +1.177 30 14. Rosberg Williams-Toyota (B) 1:43.746 +1.286 22 15. Heidfeld BMW Sauber (B) 1:44.040 +1.580 23 16. Fisichella Force India-Mercedes (B) 1:44.126 +1.666 17 17. Grosjean Renault (B) 1:44.356 +1.896 23 18. Trulli Toyota (B) 1:44.638 +2.178 26 19. Glock Toyota (B) 1:44.732 +2.272 28 20. Badoer Ferrari (B) 1:45.840 +3.380 25
McLaren Waiting To Decide On 2nd Driver
McLaren have annonuced they will bide their time in the driver market as they make their move for a 2nd driver to partner Lewis Hamilton for 2010.
The team have multiple options, but want to wait until Fernando Alonso is confirmed at Ferrari before making a move on any other drivers.
They are also still considering keeping Finn Heikki Kovalainen, based on his race pace improving and becoming more consistent.
“At the moment we have not, and we are not in any conversations with drivers and we will see in the future,” Whitmarsh told the BBC about his team’s driver plans going forward.
“I think in reality there are some changes probably with Fernando at Ferrari. That frees up the driver market and every year there is a number of pivotal points during the season which determine what is going to happen in the driver market.
“This year I think we all know that the Fernando/Ferrari move has a knock-on and that ripples through the other teams.
“Clearly the BMW withdrawal has also had an impact. I think we don’t see a need at the moment to rush into it, we are concentrating on developing the car and making sure we are more competitive, which I hope we will be this weekend.”
There are many drivers who will be free and available, but out of that list we see these potential candidates:
- Kimi Raikkonen – Dislodged by Alonso, drove for the team previously but would he want to return? Word is that he is leaving Formula One altogether
- Jenson Button – Impressive season thus far, could be world champion. Could McLaren deal with 2 Brits together?
- Nico Rosberg – Talented, and McLaren have resources Williams don’t. His best chance of a title?
- Robert Kubica – No seat now BMW have left, he is being heavily linked with Renault
- Adrian Sutil – Not such a long shot, good friends with Hamilton. He has pace but needs a decent car.
European Grand Prix Preview 2009
The European GP comes after a 4 week break for Formula One and it feels like centuries. With the whole saga of “will he, wont he?2 with Michael Schumacher, I cannot wait for the 11th round of the season to GO!GO!GO!.
The Track
Although Valencia has a permanent racing facility used mostly for motorbike racing and occassional F1 testing, the organisers of this event decided to build a new street circuit around the historic harbour area.
Debuting last season it looked like a very fast track, and indeed was. However the circuit appeared to be in the middle of a building site with high concrete walls, little or no views and a poor turnout.
It’s long sweeping back straight and the preceeding bridge are two of the best bits of what is otherwise a disappointingly dull circuit.
A Lap of the Track
Pre-Event Thoughts
Jenson Button (Brawn) "It’s going to be great to get back racing again after the summer break and everyone at the team is looking forward to Valencia. There’s been a lot of work going on at the factory following our shutdown and with the cars at the front being so close at the moment, it will be an interesting weekend."
Luca Badoer (Ferrari) "I have a good impression and it’s obvious that there’s a difficult task waiting for me at Valencia. The first race will help me to get back into the rhythm of a Formula 1 weekend. I haven’t set myself any goals, just to end the race."
Kimi Raikkonen (Ferrari) "We got a good result in Hungary, which allowed us to climb back on the third place in the Constructors’ Championship. This is the team’s realistic goal for the final part of the season. Last year I didn’t end the race at Valencia caused by an engine failure. So this year I want to return and maybe even gain a place on the podium. This is our realistic goal, although we know that it will be difficult."
Fernando Alonso (Renault) "Racing at home is always special and Valencia is a beautiful city and a great place to have a race. I’ve always enjoyed racing on street circuits as they have a special atmosphere and the whole city gets involved in the race. Also, as it’s a home race for me I know that there will be amazing support from the fans and I really want to reward them with a good result. As I’ve said, I would love to fight for the podium, but the main priority is to score points this weekend."
Pre-Event Photos
Petrov & de La Rosa To Campos For 2010 While Klien Eyes Sauber Seat
The Formula One musical chairs has begun in ernest this week as we head into the second part of the season at the European Grand Prix.
For the new team Campos Cosworth, they are at the centre of rumours that they will announce their drivers at this weekend’s race. This was quite a suprise for their principal Adrian Campos, but he admitted that the drivers would be announced “very soon” to Diario AS.
Meanwhile Radio Marca claims that McLaren test driver Pedro de La Rosa would be returning to a race seat with the team alongside Russian GP2 star Vitaly Petrov.
“I have a few more years of racing ability and would return to be with a team even that is not competitive.” De la Rosa told AS
Also on the musical chairs this week was the suprise announcement from Christian Klien that he would like a race seat with BMW Sauber for 2010. Er, maybe he didn’t get the memo? Anyway we got the idea of what he meant, whatever the team name for 2010 he was committed to Hinwil. He also claimed to have had offers this season but turned them down to support BMW.
With Alonso heading to Ferrari and Kubica to Renault, there would theoretically be one free seat. there have also been claims from Germany that Nick Heidfeld could be off to premier touring car series DTM as BMW look to enter the series as they head out of F1 and WTCC. Therefore 2 free seats at the team.
“There have been enquiries during this season,” said Klien. “The new teams are naturally interested in drivers with experience. But anyway this team (BMW Sauber) remains my first choice.
“With all the human capital and infrastructure at Hinwil I see no reason why we can’t build a successful car for 2010,” he added.
2010 Formula One Rules Announced By FIA
The FIA have published their 2010 sporting regulations and technical regulations today.
The articles, posted on the official FIA website (Sporting: Click Technical: Click ) outline some new rules, most notably qualifying regulation.
Q1 and Q2 will now see 8 cars demoted out of each session, with 10 cars being able to run in the final Q3 portion. These cars in Q3 will run in the low fuel format as seen this season to allow for the fact that no refuelling may take place during the race itself. The 8 car rule comes in as 3 new teams, Campos, Manor and USF1 are joining the sport.
Another important point to note is the lack of change to the point scoring system, meaning that Bernie’s silly medal system is out of the window completely.
Tyre warmers will be allowed despite previous indications from the FIA being that they would be banned. Minimum car weights have been increased to 620KG to allow for the KERS system, despite all teams saying they will run without the power boosting systems for 2010 to allow a level playing field.
Also worth noting is the lack of two tier racing.
Further Cost Reduction Detail Emerge From German Magazine
Highly regarded German car magazine Auto Motor und Sport have revealed some of the future cost reduction methods being outlined by the FIA.
While the overall actual plan of cost reduction is a closely guarded secret, AMuS claim these findings are from the highest sources.
The cost reduction proposals include:
- Reducing the number of staff travelling to races to 45, meaning double-ing up of jobs in a similar way to how driver Physio’s act as their pitboard men.
- Tem expenditure (excluding Driver + management salary and marketing) will be capped to 100m Euro in 2010 and 50m Euro in 2011
- Factory based staff reduction to 350 for 2010 and 280 for 2011. More staff will be allowed if teams make more in-house products like engines, gearboxes etc.
These proposals don’t really fill me with hope here at The F1Fanatics Blog. In truth, the cap on members of staff at races is stupid as people already double up, such as those physio’s being pitboard men, and sometimes you find Chef’s and refuellers who are also truckies and stuff. We dont want too few staff so that corners are cut and safety is hindered. Staff will also have to be fired from teams which is unfair given the current economic problems and the lack of job availability especially for these highly skilled workers.
Indeed, I believe if the FIA wants to save money on personnel at races they should have less races outside of Europe to dramatically cut down on flight and freight costs. More European GP’s should help the staff to be available much more cheaply.
Grosjean Confirmed At Renault
Romain Gorsjean has today been confirmed as Nelson Piquet Jr’s replacement at the Renault F1 Team.
Reanult’s tester had been widely tipped to take the second race seat after Piquet split company with the team and launched a scathing attack on its principal Flavio Briatore.
It was Briatore who today made the announcement.
“We are happy to give Romain the chance to start racing with the team,” he commented. “He is an impressive young talent and we expect him to show his skills driving alongside Fernando as we take an aggressive approach to the second half of the season.
“We would also like to thank Nelson for his contribution during the time he has been with us and wish him all the best for the future.”
Meanwhle Grosjean, the 2007 F3 Euro champion and 2008 GP2 Asia Series champion was delighted.
“I am very proud that the Renault F1 Team has given me the chance to become a race driver,” he said.
“I’m looking forward to driving the R29 and helping the team get the best results possible. It’s also an honour to be Fernando’s team-mate and to make my Formula 1 debut alongside a double world champion is especially motivating.”
Lucas di Grassi has been promoted to team test driver.
Renault WILL Race In Valencia After Appeal Is Won
The Renault F1 Team will be present at the forthcoming European Grand Prix in Valencia after successfully winning an appeal to overturn their suspension from the race weekend.
Renault had been banned for one race weekend after a wheel was attached incorrectly on Fernando Alonso’s car in the Hungarian Grand Prix. Mechanics released the car from the pits with a wobbling wheel which later flew off at some speed, just a matter of days after Formula 2 saw tragedy when Henry Surtees was hit by a loose wheel.
The FIA imposed the ban just hours after the race.
The full reasons for the appeal success will be released in the coming days, but some suggest it is damage limitation from the FIA allowing the Spanish son Fernando Alonso to compete in the faltering European GP, hit recently by the lack of Michael Schumacher.
An FIA statement said:
“Renault admitted to the court that it breached the sporting regulations, in that it failed to ensure that car #7 complied with the conditions for safety throughout practice and the race, and that it released the car after a pitstop when it was unsafe to do so. However, it requested the court to reconsider the severity of the sanction imposed by the stewards.
Having heard the arguments of the parties, the court has decided as follows:
1. to allow the appeal and overturn the sanction imposed by the stewards in the contested decision;
2. to issue a reprimand and impose a fine of $50,000 upon Renault”
