Yeongam circuit. © Creative Commons / noieraieri
Newly crowned Drivers Champion, Sebastian Vettel, helped Red Bull secure their second consecutive Constructor’s trophy with a victory in Yeongam last Sunday.
On a grey, overcast afternoon in Yeongam, the 24-year-old took a first lap lead from poleman Lewis Hamilton, ensuring any remaining action happened in his mirrors.
With a level of calm worthy of a champion, Vettel drove peerlessly into the distance, untroubled and untouchable.
Why Hang Around?
The move was certainly decisive. Despite a good start, Vettel could not overcome Hamilton in the first turn, instead picking the McLaren pilot off as the pair approached the longing turn four.
It was clean, decisive and effectively won Vettel the race. Indeed had the German pilot not made the move early on, he may never have been able to capitalise as the race aged.
Hamilton’s higher top speed would have easily seen off any Red Bull led challenges on Yeongam’s longing straights – DRS or no DRS. Once demoted, Hamilton would spend several laps lingering in the background, but within fifteen laps, the gap was stretching beyond five seconds.
Hamilton wasn’t the sole McLaren to lose out on the opening lap – Jenson Button also fell backwards, albeit in a more dramatic fashion.
Despite a good start initially, Button lost 3rd to Ferrari’s Felipe Massa at the third corner, becoming 6th place as both Mark Webber (Red Bull) and Fernando Alonso (Ferrari) pushed their way past.
Webber, meanwhile, would not be content with 4th place – noticing a gap, the Australian somehow found grip around the outside of Massa and Alonso into turn five, giving the Renault-powered machine the inside line into the following bend.
As the sextet circulated over the start / finish line for the first time, Vettel led from Hamilton, Webber, Massa and Alonso, with Button several car lengths adrift.
The front running pack would quickly split into two. With Hamilton just about keeping sight of Vettel, Webber fell away as the intentions of those from behind became clear. Indeed, as Button closed back up to Alonso in 5th, Mercedes’ Nico Rosberg latched onto the tail of the battle.
A solid qualifying performance for Rosberg, led to an equally solid race start for the Mercedes man. Lining up 7th on the grid, Rosberg held position in what is quickly becoming Mercedes’ very own limbo.
Quicker than the Renault’s and their contemporaries, but not as fast as the leading three teams, means the turquoise and silver cars often find themselves fighting for… 7th; however front wing updates had seen the Brackley-based team claw some of the gap to the leaders.
Stopping in their Tracks
Come the first stops, there was little fanfare in the Red Bull and McLaren garages, with Webber (lap 14), Hamilton (lap 15) and Vettel (lap 16) being serviced with little fuss, yet behind Webber the face of the group was to change drastically.
Button led Rosberg into the pits as they stopped on lap thirteen, yet it was Mercedes who turned their man over quickest; however it would be nothing. As Rosberg exited the pit lane, the Mercedes pilot stumbled, running wide, letting Button back through.
Rosberg used the DRS zone to claim the position back, only to lose the place again to the McLaren the following lap around, lining the pair up in 4th and 5th.
Both Ferrari’s stayed out a short while longer, with Massa stopping first (lap 14) and Alonso coming one tour later. Emerging from their respective tyre changes, both Massa and Alonso dropped to 8th and 12th, some distance behind the Button / Rosberg battle.
There would be further punishment for Alonso – exiting from the pits, the Spaniard found himself in the midst of a battle between Michael Schumacher (Mercedes) and Vitaly Petrov (Renault) for 9th place.
It was a frustrating time for Alonso. Feeling he was stronger than Massa in the opening stint, the Spaniard was not allowed to swap positions with his teammate, dropping Alonso into a precarious midpack position.
As the yet to stop midfielders fell toward the pits, the Scuderia machines climbed steadily back up the order; however before Alonso could latch onto the rear of Massa, he would still need to negotiate the Mercedes and Renault dogfight.
The Silver Arrows March
Mercedes’ Michael Schumacher’s start was somewhat more assured. Starting from the outside of the sixth row, the veteran jumped two spots on the opening tour, climbing to 9th five laps in with a pass on Force India’s Paul di Resta, allowing Schumacher the space to catch Vitaly Petrov’s Renault.
Following their stops on lap 14, Schumacher would take Petrov in the pits after the pair stopped on lap fourteen, although that action would soon count for little.
Soon split by Alonso on lap 16, Petrov DRS’d his way past the Ferrari – and into the back of Schumacher. Such was Petrov’s excess speed; the Renault pilot crumpled the back of the Mercedes, destroying its rear wing in the process.
The Renault, too, was damaged beyond repair, with Petrov’s front left suspension taking the brunt of the blow. In the melee, Alonso narrowly avoided being speared by the Renault man, surviving to live another day.
Such was the scale of the destruction; the safety car would be instantly deployed. With the field neutralised, those who had run long in the opening stint benefited from the slowed field. Petrov, meanwhile, garnered a grid penalty for the next race for his troubles.
One of those beneficiaries was Toro Rosso’s Jaime Alguersuari. Starting 11th, the Spaniard drove a steady early pace, maintaining his super-soft tyres ably, although Alguersuari would lose a place to Adrian Sutil off the line.
Swift moves on Sutil and his fellow Force India pilot, Paul di Resta would bring the Toro Rosso racer into the top ten, before climbing as high as 3rd while those around him stopped for tyres.
Taking his first tyre change under safety car would drop Alguersuari into 8th, just behind the lucky / luckless (take your pick) Alonso.
Further down the order, Sebastien Buemi suffered a less than stellar opening tour of the Grand Prix. Lining up 13th, the Toro Rosso man was stabbed in the rear by Sauber’s Kamui Kobayashi while filtering through the opening corner, dropping the Swiss pilot to 17th.
Buemi would quickly realign the positions – moves on Lotus’ Heikki Kovalainen (lap 1), Rubens Barrichello and Pastor Maldonado (both Williams, laps 3 and 4) brought the Toro Rosso man to 14th, before retaking Kobayashi for 13th seven laps in.
The Swiss man would reach 9th before he made his first stop on lap fourteen, emerging on the soft Pirelli rubber in 12th place. This was becoming a good day for the little Italian squad.
Limbo
Like Mercedes, the Force India pairing found themselves in something of a doldrums at Yeongam.
Indeed, after starting 9th (di Resta) and 10th (Sutil), there was little either could do to climb up the order; such is the Force India inferiority to the top four squads at the moment.
Lumbered with fast degrading rubber, di Resta struggled in the initial stages, while Sutil’s almost apathetic opening stint was governed by difficult softs. Their stops, five laps apart, saw both take on new sets of super-softs, leaving the duo exactly where they started in 9th and 10th.
In this instance, the Force India’s had little to worry about from either of the Sauber or Williams entries. Even Bruno Senna in the second Renault was a very distant threat – if one could even call him that. Starting 15th, Senna struggled from the off, not helped by a poor start, dropping the Brazilian to 19th.
The Renault man spent several laps in 18th trailing Sergio Perez, following a pass on Kovalainen (lap 4), although the pair were still ready to deliver action, swapping places twice from turn one through to the exit of turn three eleven laps in.
One tour later, the Brazilian came close to wiping the pair, as he outbraked himself in turn one. Irrespective of the fight, this was becoming a day to forget for Senna.
Admittedly, for Perez, the Korean Grand Prix was not proving a positive endeavour. Lacking tyre temperature, the Mexican was a mere extra, playing uncertain storyline outside the top ten.
Following the long battle with Senna, Perez stayed out until the safety car – his late stop propelling the Mexican up to 13th ahead of teammate Kobayashi. Strategy for the Japanese pilot proved to be less patient, moving from softs to super-soft rubber after only ten tours.
It was a case of status quo for Kobayashi – after an opening stint trapped in 14th, the next stage of the race would prove to be no better.
The Rise and Fall
Williams, too, were suffering in Yeongam; although Maldonado’s early run gave the impression the situation was otherwise poised.
A long opening stint left the Venezuelan 11th, just behind the Force India’s – apposition solidified due in part to a safety car stop. For all his worth, Maldonado’s early race runs in 2011 have been commendable and Korea was no different.
Starting 16th, the rookie ran 15th behind Buemi early on until both eventually pitted. Going two laps longer gave Maldonado the advantage over Buemi for 11th and 12th places; however it was all for nothing. A minor pitlane violation garnered Maldonado a drive through penalty, dropping the Williams pilot to 21st on lap 22.
Come the 28th tour, Maldonado had risen to 17th, only for his for engine to expire three laps later.
Meanwhile, Barrichello could do little with his FW33. From 18th on the grid, the Brazilian veteran ran as high as 15th (!) following his decision to change to softs ten laps in. It was as much as he could manage – the 2011 Williams machine once again proved uncooperative in race trim.
Lotus continue to improve ever so slightly as they approach the end of their second year back in Formula 1.
Once again Kovalainen was leading the green and yellow charge, running 17th come the end of his first stint, where the Finn consistently ran laptimes to match the Williams’ and Sauber’s.
Kovalainen’s Lotus teammate, Jarno Trulli, was having a slightly more difficult day – a faulty DRS left the veteran shy when close to Kovalainen in the early running.
Neither Lotus had much to worry about from the HRT / Virgin Racing grouping. As per usual, the foursome ran at the rear of the order, with Vitantonio Liuzzi creating a bit of unnecessary excitement at HRT by losing his front wing on the second lap.
Running Away Under Green
It is unlikely Vettel knew much about the HRT / Virgin fight. He was far too busy running ahead of Hamilton once the safety car left the circuit at the start of lap 21.
If anything, Hamilton appeared to be unaware of Vettel’s launch – the German establishing a 1.2 second lead within a tour of restarting. Beyond that gap, Vettel was not exactly sailing off into the distance, but it was enough to keep Hamilton out of the DRS range – and both of them knew it.
For every time Hamilton closed the gap, Vettel responded immediately. The champion was in complete control.
Webber was not enjoying such an easy time. Closely trailed by Button, the Red Bull pilot felt the pressure from behind, as the McLaren racer ran wheel-to-wheel with Webber through the turn 4-5 sequence, before dropping back to 4th place.
Now free from Button’s grip, Webber closed in on Hamilton to fight for 2nd spot – Hamilton, distracted by Webber’s intentions, would quickly begin losing sight of Vettel.
Come lap 32, Vettel’s lead had grown to 2.6 seconds, expanding to over ten seconds following the completion of the second round of pitstops seven laps later.
Like Hamilton, Rosberg was also facing a rear guard attack, this time by a pair of Ferrari’s. With the Scuderia duo pressing, Rosberg began locking up his front Pirelli’s, eventually giving Massa and Alonso the space to take 5th and 6th on lap 27.
His tyres shot, the Mercedes man took an early final stop at the beginning of lap 28 to change to the soft compound rubber, emerging 14th behind Senna’s lethargic looking Renault.
Senna also came close to losing out badly following the safety car period. Barrichello and Kobayashi quickly passed the Brazilian as soon as the race restarted; however the Sauber racer clipped Senna’s rear in the process, damaging his front wing.
Kobayashi battled on for an extra two laps, but it was clear the lack of downforce was harming his race, leaving Sauber no choice but to pit the Japanese driver on the 25th lap, dropping him to 21st.
Unchallenged to the Flag
Sebastian Vettel, however, left all the battles a long way behind. A smooth final stop on lap 34, dropped him to a comfortable 2nd as Alonso ran long, yet as soon as the Ferrari removed itself from the front running action, the World Champion sailed on.
Vettel no longer needed to push it too hard, but on the final lap, the German set the fastest lap – just because he could.
On the other hand, Mark Webber was left rueing a missed opportunity. Running under the rear wing of Lewis Hamilton for the second half of the race, it was clear the Red Bull did not have the top end speed to make the pass on circuit.
Even through the DRS zone, Hamilton maintained a narrow gap over the Australian, despite Webber having full use of the DRS. A mistake by Hamilton after they exited the pits together on lap 34 could not allow Webber enough of an advantage to finalise the move.
Webber did surge by Hamilton once – at turn one with eight laps remaining; however it was shortlived, as Hamilton simply drove by Webber on the following straight.
The Red Bull racer wasn’t leaving at just that. On numerous occasions, Webber attempted to use he RB7’s better traction to force his way by Hamilton’s MP4-26, but the 2008 World Champion wasn’t having any of it.
One can only theorise that had Vettel not made that first lap lunge by Hamilton, the Englishman may have been in a better position to win…
The frantic battle for 2nd was enough to bring Jenson Button and Fernando Alonso back into the mix in the final few laps.
Despite a difficult early part to his second stint on super-softs, Button’s Pirelli’s came back to him, allowing the former champion to catch Webber’s tail, yet Button would also struggle to get close to overtake.
Noting the futility of his surge, Button found himself in a fight of his own, as Alonso drew to the rear of the McLaren – but just like the Hamilton / Webber battle, Alonso simply could not get close enough to overtake the McLaren.
Just Not Enough
Felipe Massa was the big loser in the top six. After running ahead of Alonso for much of the race, the Brazilian fell behind his teammate after the final stops.
Indeed, Massa pitting on lap 34 gave the Spaniard three laps in free air before he made his final tyre change – despite being on fresher rubber, Massa could not garner the pace to overcome Alonso, allowing the Spaniard to chase the fight for 2nd place.
From that point on, Massa – unable to match Alonso – fell ten seconds behind his teammate, knowing full well that he faced no threat from behind.
Nico Rosberg could not say the same. Following his early second stop, Rosberg had the task of trying to make the soft Pirelli’s last twenty-eight laps – sadly for the Mercedes, it was not to be. With degradation proving high, Rosberg began to lose time to the charging Jaime Alguersuari during the final tours.
On fresher tyres and eyeing further points, Alguersuari drew to within two seconds of the Mercedes in the final fifteen laps; for a time Rosberg proved resilient.
Yet as Rosberg stripped his Pirelli’s of grip, Alguersuari closed in, taking 7th on the penultimate lap as they rushed down the long straight into turn three. Such was Alguersuari’s momentum, the Toro Rosso driver ran wide, allowing Rosberg back through; however the Spaniard made sure of the overtake on the final tour – this time Rosberg had no chance.
Sebastien Buemi continued his charge in the other Toro Rosso. The Swiss pilot made a quick improvement from his 12th position just after the safety car, due to a move on Maldonado’s Williams.
Buemi ran a twenty-two lap second stint on the soft Pirelli’s, finally pitting at the end of the 36th tour from 8th place. He would emerge in 10th, taking the struggling tyre shot Paul di Resta with five laps remaining.
On the Outside Looking In
For Adrian Sutil in the other Force India, there was little he could do hold onto a points paying place.
The German – potentially coming to the end of his time with the squad – did climb to 8th as those around him pitted, but the extra laps on ageing Pirelli’s was enough to drop Sutil to 11th.
Sutil ended the day with a twenty-two second lead over Williams’ man Rubens Barrichello. After passing Senna for 13th, the Williams driver made the best of his position, while the Renault driver tussled with Kobayashi.
Barrichello’s 31st lap stop dropped him to 16th behind the Lotus’, Senna and Perez; however a culmination of late stops and a 50th lap re-pass on the Renault was enough to give the Williams driver 12th.
Bruno Senna assumed 13th for Renault, a long way adrift of Barrichello, but only two seconds ahead of the impressive Heikki Kovalainen. The Lotus driver had spent the second-half of the race shadowing the midfield cars, beating both Sauber’s to the chequered flag to come home 14th.
Indeed, Kovalainen even fought with the Force India pairing in the mid-part of the race amidst the tangling of strategy, showing that while Lotus is not with the midpack, yet, the team are closing.
Kamui Kobayashi led the Swiss team to the flag in 15th, despite his extra stop early in the race. Moves on the newer teams brought Kobayashi up to 16th assuming an extra position when teammate Perez stopped with one lap remaining.
Sergio Perez could not penetrate the top ten in the second half of the race, but the Mexican damaged his tyres as he tried. Demoted to 16th following a late, late stop for super-soft tyres, Perez finished a mere three-tenths adrift of Kobayashi.
Jarno Trulli took 17th position ahead the Virgin Racing’s Timo Glock (18th) and HRT’s Daniel Ricciardo (19th).
Both beat their respective teammates Jerome d’Ambrosio (Virgin 20th) and Vitantonio Liuzzi (HRT, 21st) once again, as the fight for 10th in the Constructor’s Championship rages on.
At the other end of the scale, the Constructor’s title was realistically won long ago, even if it were only confirmed at Yeongam and although Red Bull only needed a few points to be certain of it, the Anglo-Austrian squad nailed it with a certain victory.
Next up, New Delhi and the unknown treasures it may bring as Formula 1 enters yet another territory for the first time.
Race Rating: 2.5 out of 5
2011 Korean Grand Prix (Rd 16,, Yeongam; 55 laps) Pos Driver Team Time 1. Vettel Red Bull-Renault 1h30:01.994 2. Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes + 12.019 3. Webber Red Bull-Renault + 12.477 4. Button McLaren-Mercedes + 14.694 5. Alonso Ferrari + 15.689 6. Massa Ferrari + 25.133 7. Alguersuari Toro Rosso-Ferrari + 49.538 8. Rosberg Mercedes + 54.053 9. Buemi Toro Rosso-Ferrari + 1:02.762 10. Di Resta Force India-Mercedes + 1:08.602 11. Sutil Force India-Mercedes + 1:11.229 12. Barrichello Williams-Cosworth + 1:33.068 13. Senna Renault + 1 lap 14. Kovalainen Lotus-Renault + 1 lap 15. Kobayashi Sauber-Ferrari + 1 lap 16. Perez Sauber-Ferrari + 1 lap 17. Trulli Lotus-Renault + 1 lap 18. Glock Virgin-Cosworth + 1 lap 19. Ricciardo HRT-Cosworth + 1 lap 20. D'Ambrosio Virgin-Cosworth + 1 lap 21. Liuzzi HRT-Cosworth + 3 laps Fastest lap: Vettel, 1:39.605 Not classified/retirements: Driver Team On lap Maldonado Williams-Cosworth 31 Petrov Renault 17 Schumacher Mercedes 16 World Championship standings, (Round 16: Drivers) 1. Vettel 349 2. Button 222 3. Alonso 212 4. Webber 209 5. Hamilton 196 6. Massa 98 7. Rosberg 67 8. Schumacher 60 9. Petrov 36 10. Heidfeld 34 11. Sutil 28 12. Kobayashi 27 13. Alguersuari 22 14. Di Resta 21 15. Buemi 15 16. Perez 13 17. Barrichello 4 18. Senna 2 19. Maldonado 1 World Championship standings, (Round 16: Constructors) 1. Red Bull-Renault 558 2. McLaren-Mercedes 418 3. Ferrari 310 4. Mercedes 127 5. Renault 72 6. Force India-Mercedes 49 7. Sauber-Ferrari 40 8. Toro Rosso-Ferrari 37 9. Williams-Cosworth 5
Ben Bowlby. © Anne Proffit.
In episode 5 of the Parc Ferme Podcast, I’ll be talking about cars with two guests.
First up will be Ben Bowlby from the DeltaWing project. Following an unsuccessful to become the 2012 IndyCar, the DeltaWing has been invited to race in next years Le Mans 24 Hour Race, under the header “Project 56”.
The Project 56 group includes Dan Gurney’s All American Racers, Dr. Don Panoz and Highcroft Racing and will see the two-seater DeltaWing focusing its performance achieving ultra energy efficiency during the famed 24-hour endurance race.
With this entry, the Automobile Club de l’Ouest (ACO) is creating an opportunity for an innovative and experimental vehicle to participate “outside the classifications” in this famous event.
Also in the show will be Dallara’s Jos Claes to talk about the new-for-2012 Dallara Formula 3 chassis, the F312.
With updated technical regulations from the FIA, Dallara’s development program resulted in quite a different and entirely new car.
© Dallara Automobili
Upgrades include increased side-protection for the monocoque, as well as heightened cockpit sides to help protect the drivers head, taking the new generation of Formula 3 cars to a new level of safety.
The F312 is due to début in the British Formula 3 series next year, with several entries from the Formula 3 Euroseries also potentially running the chassis.
Finally, the show will also have a (very) brief overview of some of the junior formulae from UK, Europe and the US.
- Episode 4 — with Bart Hylkema (British Formula 3)
- Episode 3 — with Alexander Rossi (World Series by Renault) and John Hindhaugh (Radio Le Mans)
- Episode 2 — with Pippa Mann (IZOD IndyCar Series)
- Episode 1 — with Harry Tincknell (British Formula 3)
DeltaWing Le Mans simulation lap
© Creative Commons / Will Pittenger
Fabio Leimer and Stefano Coletti made it four different drivers quickest across all four GP2 post-season test session in Barcelona on Thursday.
Leimer (Racing Engineering) would prove to the quickest of all on day two of the test (a best of 1:29.324), with Coletti taking the honours in his Scuderia Coloni machine following the slower afternoon running.
Cool conditions were the order of the morning, but it wasn’t going to stop Leimer showing his pace. Although quickest early on, Leimer was soon to be pipped by Esteban Gutierrez (Lotus-Art), before Leimer grabbed the top spot again.
Trident’s Sam Bird also beat Gutierrez to 2nd before the chequered flag flew, while Carlin’s Kevin Magnussen settled for 4th, one-tenth behind the Mexican. Coletti claimed 5th in his Scuderia Coloni machine, some two-hundredths quicker than teammate Kevin Ceccon.
Red flags stopped the morning action three times – the first for Magnussen (spin), then later for rookie Albert Costa (mechanical), before Rio Haryanto (mechanical) halted proceedings one final time.
Coletti collected the top spot, despite only running twenty-one laps in the afternoon with quickest tour of 1:30.607.
It would be a session that saw none of the testers improve on their morning times, although many opted to concentrate on race simulations rather than qualifying runs.
Coletti’s best was enough to beat Caterham Team Air Asia’s Alexander Rossi to the top of the timings. The American was quickest early on, ahead of Brendon Hartley (Ocean Racing Technology), although the pair would later be split by Nathanaël Berthon in the second Racing Engineering machine.
Jake Rosenzweig (Barwa Addax) assumed 5th with a sterling effort in the final hour. The American closed the session a mere 0.005 seconds ahead of Antonio Felix da Costa in his Ocean Racing Technology car.
A single red flag period stopped the afternoon running, when James Calado’s Lotus Art car stopped at turn six.
The Barcelona tests have certainly proved positive for Leimer. The Swiss pilot recently signed up to drive the rookie test for Sauber’s Formula 1 squad – something that may put him in a direct competition with Gutierrez next year.
Combined Times: Pos Driver Team Time Laps 1. Fabio Leimer Racing Engineering 1:29.324 65 2. Sam Bird Trident Racing 1:29.549 52 3. Esteban Gutierrez Lotus ART 1:29.588 70 4. Kevin Magnussen Carlin 1:29.697 41 5. Stefano Coletti Scuderia Coloni 1:29.736 46 6. Kevin Ceccon Scuderia Coloni 1:29.753 57 7. Antonio Felix Da Costa Ocean Racing Technology 1:29.758 64 8. Alexander Rossi Caterham Team AirAsia 1:29.808 73 9. Rio Haryanto Dams 1:29.827 78 10. Julian Leal Rapax 1:29.851 49 11. Jolyon Palmer Carlin 1:29.916 72 12. Nathanaël Berthon Racing Engineering 1:29.931 36 13. Josef Kral Barwa Addax Team 1:30.024 65 14. Stéphane Richelmi Trident Racing 1:30.025 73 15. Simon Trummer Arden International 1:30.219 76 16. Brendon Hartley Ocean Racing Technology 1:30.268 59 17. Nigel Melker iSport International 1:30.276 61 18. James Calado Lotus ART 1:30.308 73 19. Craig Dolby Arden International 1:30.374 51 20. Adrian Quaife-Hobbs Dams 1:30.446 70 21. Jakes Rosenzweig Barwa Addax Team 1:30.603 68 22. Albert Costa Super Nova Racing 1:30.604 56 23. Rodolfo Gonzalez Caterham Team AirAsia 1:30.944 67 24. Fabio Onidi Rapax 1:30.998 66 25. Giacomo Ricci Super Nova Racing 1:31.031 47 26. Kuba Giermaziak iSport International 1:31.043 58
Circuit de Catalunya. © Creative Commons / Will Pittenger
iSport racer Marcus Ericsson made his intentions for the 2012 GP2 title clear after topping day one of the post-season test in Barcelona.
The Swede topped twenty-six runners over the course of the day, although Ericsson was helped somewhat by generally slower afternoon showing.
The pack ran a set of 2012 Pirelli hard compound tyres throughout the day, although it was Ericsson’s iSport teammate, Tom Dillmann, who set the early pace.
From his thirty-four laps, Ericsson’s best of 1:29.705 was enough to give the Swede a one-tenth advantage over GP2 veteran Dani Clos (Scuderia Coloni), with Sauber F1-reserve pilot Esteban Gutierrez (Lotus-ART) a further tenth behind in 3rd.
Both Clos and Gutierrez led the standings at different periods of the test, progressively bedding their tyres with each tour of the Catalunya circuit.
Kevin Ceccon (Scuderia Coloni) and Nigel Melker (Ocean Racing Technology) set identical times (1:29.978) come the chequered flag to secure 4th and 5th respectively.
Melker’s quick lap made him the fastest rookie of the entire day. Dillmann, meanwhile, eventually finished up 6th, three-tenths adrift of the top spot.
GP3 graduate Dillmann would later be the quickest in the afternoon session. The Frenchman kicked Antonio Felix da Costa off the top with thirty minutes remaining.
In the cooler conditions of the approaching evening, da Costa would fall to 6th, jumped by Gutierrez (2nd), Melker (3rd), Alexander Rossi (4th, Caterham Team AirAsia) and Ceccon (5th).
Red flags interrupted the session late on as Rio Haryanto beached his DAMS machine into the gravel.
Combined times: Pos Driver Team Time Laps 1. Marcus Ericsson iSport International 1:29.705 54 2. Dani Clos Scuderia Coloni 1:29.810 52 3. Esteban Gutierrez Lotus ART 1:29.911 47 4. Kevin Ceccon Scuderia Coloni 1:29.978 56 5. Nigel Melker Ocean Racing Technology 1:29.978 48 6. Tom Dillmann iSport International 1:30.025 61 7. Julian Leal Barwa Addax Team 1:30.084 48 8. Alexander Rossi Caterham Team AirAsia 1:30.140 49 9. Kevin Magnussen Carlin 1:30.158 42 10. Jolyon Palmer Barwa Addax Team 1:30.299 60 11. Max Chilton Carlin 1:30.399 44 12. Fabio Leimer Racing Engineering 1:30.416 50 13. Roberto Merhi Arden International 1:30.446 51 14. Josef Kral Trident Racing 1:30.453 45 15. Brendon Hartley Ocean Racing Technology 1:30.526 46 16. Rio Haryanto Dams 1:30.536 53 17. Antonio Felix Da Costa Lotus ART 1:30.798 53 18. Stefano Coletti Dams 1:30.880 52 19. Stéphane Richelmi Trident Racing 1:30.993 63 20. Craig Dolby Arden International 1:31.042 43 21. Adrian Quaife-Hobbs Super Nova Racing 1:31.137 51 22. Luiz Razia Caterham Team AirAsia 1:31.176 50 23. Pal Varhaug Rapax 1:31.197 63 24. Fabio Onidi Rapax 1:31.257 40 25. Nathanaël Berthon Racing Engineering 1:31.259 45 26. Jake Rosenzweig Scuderia Coloni 1:31.342 55
Malvern tests the new Formula Ford chassis. © Jakob Ebrey
Following its unveiling at Zandvoort recently, the new-for-2012 Formula Ford machine publicly hit the track for the first time last weekend.
Newly crowned British Formula Ford champion, Scott Malvern, tested the new chassis during the annual Formula Ford Festival at Brands Hatch, revealing afterwards that:
“…the new car is really very good. It’s nicely balanced and feels good to drive straight out of the box, with loads of potential. I’m looking forward to helping with the development and fine-tuning the details.”
The first order for the new chassis has already been accepted, with Dutch squad Geva Racing stepping up to the plate, while existing teams are still discussing the possibility of running the chassis.
After only running a partial schedule this year, Geva Racing will run at least one machine full-time next year, with the potential for further expansion at a later time. Should the new machine prove to be significantly quicker than the older model, it would be prudent to expect orders to increase very soon.
While events in 2011 saw on average sixteen entries per race, the numbers remain far lower than witnessed in recent years; how the introduction of a new chassis affects the numbers in the field is a pertinent thought.
It is more than conceivable that it may be some time before the grid swells up once again.
It will also be interesting to see which team / driver combination gets to grips with the new car first, for whoever does could potentially dominate in a manner akin to Malvern this year.
As the motor racing world feels the pain of Dan Wheldon’s passing during the 2011 IZOD IndyCar finale in Las Vegas, calm reflection must be a priority.
The crash, triggered on lap eleven of a two-hundred lap event, saw fifteen cars involved, as one bounced into another, spewing carbon fibre debris across the circuit.
Several cars caught fire momentarily until the flame flash blew over; however the more serious incidents occurred to Will Power – and Dan Wheldon, both of whom became airborne.
Whereas Power, his Penske Dallara chassis destroyed, came to rest, Wheldon’s continued top side up into the catch fencing, clawing off the rollover hoop, before spitting the Sam Schmidt machine back to the floor. It would be enough to kill the 33-year-old.
Any investigation must be both respectful and sensible, as any ill-advised or rash alterations may introduce dangerous consequences further afield. Thankfully, the new car may address a number of the safety limitations that the current Dallara possesses, but that is still too late for Wheldon.
Until this accident is fully and properly investigated, we have absolutely no idea of the forces that tore through Wheldon’s car and it would be grossly irresponsible at this stage to claim that various safety features may have saved him.
We must come to expect several numerous self-proclaimed experts ramble on about the dangers of motorsport and what / who / where should be banned over the next few days.
Unfortunate knee-jerk reactions may see the mainstream media go into overdrive, until eventually they find something else to froth over.
They are headline seekers; they will not find the solution, nor will they try too hard to look.
The sad truth is motorsport is a very dangerous occupation. Those within do not take the margins lightly, but sometimes – sadly – accidents do happen and when they do, the consequences can be tragic.
When one takes into account the circuit, this form of car, the speed and the number of competitors involved, then one can easily see how this accident may have been amplified; however that is not to say it would not have happened.
All of these are simply maybe’s and probable’s – none of which will bring Dan back.
Let us not fall into the trap of placing blame or vilifying drivers for any part in this tragic accident, because it is just that – an accident.
As noted previously, my thoughts are with Dan’s family, friends and colleagues. Let’s hope the series takes action to prevent this from happening again.
**Edit
With little to do this afternoon, I found myself flicking through my iTunes collection, before chancing upon Myaskosky’s 27th Symphony in C Minor as performed by Evgeny Svetlanov and the State Academic Orchestra.
It’s been a while I since I last sat back and really listened to it, but today, this just felt right. I hope you enjoy it too.
Oh Dan. Twice Indianapolis 500 winner and 2005 Indy Racing League Champion. They say in Las Vegas that the stakes are always high, but the stakes should never reach that high.
Life can touch moments that bring only joy and happiness, until fate waves its silent hand.
You will be truly, sorely, painfully missed.
May you rest in peace.
Dan Wheldon (R.I.P; 1978 - 2011) © The Indy Star
Yeongam circuit. © Creative Commons / noieraieri
In one one of the most frantic qualifying sessions of the season, Lewis Hamilton secured his – and McLaren’s – first pole position of the season.
The Englishman secured the top spot, following a determined final run, giving him a two-tenths advantage over Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel.
It was Hamilton’s first pole since June of last year, but his best of 1:35.820 was enough to stop Red Bull from claiming the sixteenth top spot of 2011.
Vettel found some luck post-qualifying though. The champion escaped a penalty after it was determined he had not gained an advantage.
Jenson Button led another McLaren / Red Bull fight for the second row, as he beat Mark Webber to 3rd by three-tenths of a second.
Yet whereas Button improved in the last seconds of qualifying, Webber’s pace tailed off badly on his second run, giving the Australian little choice but to abandon his run.
Ferrari assumed the third row, with Felipe Massa out-qualifying Fernando Alonso for the fourth time this year. Like Button and Webber, Massa improved on his last moment dash, while Alonso proved to be slower; however Scuderia machines were over one second shy of Hamilton’s pace.
As per usual, a Mercedes – this time Nico Rosberg – claimed 7th. The German made only one run to garner the fourth row position, nudging Renault’s Vitaly Petrov in the process.
Paul di Resta beat his Force India teammate, Adrian Sutil to 9th, due to setting a sector time; however neither Force India completed a lap, opting instead to save tyres.
A last minute dash from Di Resta was enough to boot Jaime Alguersuari out at the end of Q2. The Spaniard only just lost out to the Scot after going quicker himself moments earlier.
It would leave the Toro Rosso man in 11th, two-tenths and two spots ahead of teammate Sebastien Buemi.
In doing so, the Toro Rosso pair sandwiched Mercedes’ Michael Schumacher in 12th. The veteran set set his quickest run in the middle section of Q2, pitting with a vibration from his tyres with minutes still on the clock.
It left the German vulnerable near the edge of the top ten, before improvements from Sutil, di Resta and Alguersuari dropped Schumacher onto the sixth row.
Kamui Kobayashi led the Sauber pairing in 14th place. Neither of the Swiss cars enjoyed top half pace in the dry running, with Sergio Perez especially weak in 17th.
Bruno Senna managed a single run in his Renault, securing a disappointing 15th, while the Williams of Pastor Maldonado came four-tenths shy to claim 16th.
Rubens Barrichello was the big loser in the first stint of qualifying. The Brazilian abandoned his final run after catching traffic on the far side of the Yeongam circuit; however with Maldonado improving his time at the death, Barrichello dropped to 18th.
Heikki Kovalainen proved to be the quickest of the Lotus runner once again. The Finn’s best of 1:40.522 was a clear six-tenths up on teammate Jarno Trulli, who took 20th.
Timo Glock led the Virgin Racing charge in 21st, with Jerome d’Ambrosio lining up next to him on the eleventh row.
Vitantonio Liuzzi was the only HRT to run, as Daniel Ricciardo’s weekend went from bad to worse – a mechanical issue denying the Australian opportunity to set a timed lap.
Pos Driver Team Time Gap 1. Lewis Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes 1m35.820s 2. Sebastian Vettel Red Bull-Renault 1m36.042s + 0.222 3. Jenson Button McLaren-Mercedes 1m36.126s + 0.306 4. Mark Webber Red Bull-Renault 1m36.468s + 0.648 5. Felipe Massa Ferrari 1m36.831s + 1.011 6. Fernando Alonso Ferrari 1m36.980s + 1.160 7. Nico Rosberg Mercedes 1m37.754s + 1.934 8. Vitaly Petrov Renault 1m38.124s + 2.304 9. Paul di Resta Force India-Mercedes no time 10. Adrian Sutil Force India-Mercedes no time Q2 cut-off time: 1m38.254s Gap ** 11. Jaime Alguersuari Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1m38.315s + 1.789 12. Michael Schumacher Mercedes 1m38.354s + 1.828 13. Sebastien Buemi Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1m38.508s + 1.982 14. Kamui Kobayashi Sauber-Ferrari 1m38.775s + 2.249 15. Bruno Senna Renault 1m38.791s + 2.265 16. Pastor Maldonado Williams-Cosworth 1m39.189s + 2.663 17. Sergio Perez Sauber-Ferrari 1m39.443s + 2.917 Q1 cut-off time: 1m39.464s Gap * 18. Rubens Barrichello Williams-Cosworth 1m39.538s + 2.013 19. Heikki Kovalainen Lotus-Renault 1m40.522s + 2.997 20. Jarno Trulli Lotus-Renault 1m41.101s + 3.576 21. Timo Glock Virgin-Cosworth 1m42.091s + 4.566 22. Jerome D'Ambrosio Virgin-Cosworth 1m43.483s + 5.958 23. Tonio Liuzzi HRT-Cosworth 1m43.758s + 6.233 24. Daniel Ricciardo HRT-Cosworth no time 107% time: 1m44.351s * Gap to quickest in Q1 ** Gap to quickest in Q2
Yeongam circuit. © Creative Commons / noieraieri
Jenson Button topped the third free practice for the Korean Grand Prix on Saturday.
In a misty, but dry setting, the McLaren driver set a quickest lap of 1:36.910 in the final moments of the session, aided somewhat by a clear track.
For the Button, the session proved to be a sign of confidence after having his chassis changed overnight, following the discovery of a damaged engine mount.
Button nudged teammate Lewis Hamilton off the summit by three-tenths; however Hamilton found his route blocked by Mercedes’ Michael Schumacher on his final run.
Mark Webber led the Red Bull charge, albeit eight-tenths off of Button’s ultimate pace. The Australian completed twenty-three laps of the Yeongam circuit, although for fellow Red Bull pilot Sebastian Vettel, the session was less profitable.
The newly re-champion champion ran twenty-two laps, setting a best of 1:39.695 – good enough for 9th spot – however Vettel’s qualifying simulation was ruined when he found himself tucked behind the Toro Rosso of Jaime Alguersuari.
For Red Bull’s sister team, Toro Rosso arrived in Korea with a modified version of their new exhausts. The best they could manage was 12th (Alguersuari, 20 laps) and 13th (Sebastien Buemi, 21 laps).
Saturday also provided Ferrari to run their new front wing, albeit only one version was available.
Naturally, the component went to Fernando Alonso, who set the 4th quickest time, one place and four-tenths up on teammate Felipe Massa.
In 6th spot, Schumacher led the Mercedes charge. The veteran was the first to switch to the super-soft tyres, but even that could not topple the soft-tyre shod McLaren’s. Nico Rosberg could only manage 10th in the second Mercedes.
Renault enjoyed a mixed morning. Vitaly Petrov continued his up-and-down form with a clean run to 7th; however teammate Bruno Senna ran wide at turn 4 in the early part of the session, lightly touch the wall.
Senna would rejoin the circuit shortly afterward to set the 16th best lap.
At the back, it was another tough day for Daniel Ricciardo at HRT. The Australian only managed 11 laps, after a water leak left him stranded in the pit lane. His time – 1:45.958 – was only good enough for last spot.
With circuit time curtailed due to wet conditions on Friday, the Yeongam circuit bore witness to a packed track for much of the sixty minutes.
Indeed at times, it seemed as if there were more drivers on circuit than people in the grandstands.
Pos Driver Team Time Laps 1. Jenson Button McLaren-Mercedes 1m36.910s 18 2. Lewis Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes 1m37.199s + 0.289 18 3. Mark Webber Red Bull-Renault 1m37.723s + 0.813 23 4. Fernando Alonso Ferrari 1m38.029s + 1.119 21 5. Felipe Massa Ferrari 1m38.434s + 1.524 18 6. Michael Schumacher Mercedes 1m39.559s + 2.649 23 7. Vitaly Petrov Renault 1m39.612s + 2.702 20 8. Adrian Sutil Force India-Mercedes 1m39.660s + 2.750 22 9. Sebastian Vettel Red Bull-Renault 1m39.695s + 2.785 22 10. Nico Rosberg Mercedes 1m39.743s + 2.833 25 11. Paul di Resta Force India-Mercedes 1m39.847s + 2.937 22 12. Jaime Alguersuari Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1m39.851s + 2.941 20 13. Sebastien Buemi Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1m39.964s + 3.054 21 14. Kamui Kobayashi Sauber-Ferrari 1m40.005s + 3.095 17 15. Sergio Perez Sauber-Ferrari 1m40.030s + 3.120 18 16. Bruno Senna Renault 1m40.451s + 3.541 28 17. Pastor Maldonado Williams-Cosworth 1m40.529s + 3.619 20 18. Rubens Barrichello Williams-Cosworth 1m40.711s + 3.801 22 19. Heikki Kovalainen Lotus-Renault 1m41.909s + 4.999 18 20. Jarno Trulli Lotus-Renault 1m41.945s + 5.035 13 21. Timo Glock Virgin-Cosworth 1m43.275s + 6.365 19 22. Jerome D'Ambrosio Virgin-Cosworth 1m44.377s + 7.467 16 23. Vitantonio Liuzzi HRT-Cosworth 1m44.421s + 7.511 22 24. Daniel Ricciardo HRT-Cosworth 1m45.958s + 8.233 11
Yeongam circuit. © Creative Commons / noieraieri
Lewis Hamilton topped a greasy second practice for the Korean Grand Prix in Yeongam on Friday.
The McLaren ace set his quickest run (1:50.828) in the opening thirty minutes, with only teammate Jenson Button getting close.
Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel was 3rd, albeit 1.8 seconds slower than Hamilton, with Fernando Alonso (Ferrari, 4th) a further tenth adrift.
Although the rain veered from light to stopped, the circuit refused to dry, as noted by several drivers who attempted short-lived slick-shod stints.
As such, much of the running centred on the Pirelli intermediate tyres, with several drivers spinning helplessly in the conditions.
Mercedes’ Nico Rosberg session ended early. The German pilot outbraked himself on the approach to turn 1, sliding hard into the Toro Rosso of Jaime Alguersuari. Rather than blame Rosberg, Alguersuari saw fit to lambaste the pitlane exit layout, for creating the potential for first turn accidents.
The afternoon was something of a struggle for Mercedes, whose other driver – Michael Schumacher – missed part of the session while his gearbox was changed.
Pos Driver Team Time Laps 1. Lewis Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes 1m50.828s 26 2. Jenson Button McLaren-Mercedes 1m50.932s + 0.104 19 3. Sebastian Vettel Red Bull-Renault 1m52.646s + 1.818 30 4. Fernando Alonso Ferrari 1m52.774s + 1.946 25 5. Mark Webber Red Bull-Renault 1m53.049s + 2.221 27 6. Jaime Alguersuari Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1m53.402s + 2.574 25 7. Felipe Massa Ferrari 1m53.707s + 2.879 24 8. Nico Rosberg Mercedes 1m53.914s + 3.086 18 9. Sebastien Buemi Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1m53.948s + 3.120 27 10. Paul di Resta Force India-Mercedes 1m53.957s + 3.129 32 11. Vitaly Petrov Renault 1m54.200s + 3.372 26 12. Adrian Sutil Force India-Mercedes 1m54.392s + 3.564 26 13. Rubens Barrichello Williams-Cosworth 1m54.831s + 4.003 30 14. Michael Schumacher Mercedes 1m54.965s + 4.137 21 15. Bruno Senna Renault 1m55.187s + 4.359 28 16. Sergio Perez Sauber-Ferrari 1m55.203s + 4.375 24 17. Kamui Kobayashi Sauber-Ferrari 1m55.544s + 4.716 23 18. Pastor Maldonado Williams-Cosworth 1m56.067s + 5.239 22 19. Heikki Kovalainen Lotus-Renault 1m56.669s + 5.841 20 20. Jarno Trulli Lotus-Renault 1m57.173s + 6.345 19 21. Timo Glock Virgin-Cosworth 1m58.269s + 7.441 25 22. Jerome D'Ambrosio Virgin-Cosworth 1m59.458s + 8.630 26 23. Daniel Ricciardo HRT-Cosworth 1m59.958s + 9.130 19 24. Tonio Liuzzi HRT-Cosworth 2m00.165s + 9.337 20
Yeongam circuit. © Creative Commons / noieraieri
Michael Schumacher topped a sodden first practice session in Korea on Friday.
The German veteran set his best late in very wet conditions that saw several drivers suffer offs and spins.
Schumacher too, very nearly crashed his Mercedes into the inner pit wall after traipsing across a damp patch. Despite the persistent mishaps, no damage was inflicted to any machinery.
Schumacher’s best lap of 2:02.784 just edged out champion Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull) by a mere 0.056 seconds. It could have been a much worse session for Vettel.
The Red Bull man very nearly collected a slow Virgin on a run through the second second, after being blinded by shooting spray.
It was a decent morning for Force India with Paul di Resta 3rd, just over a tenth off the pace and Adrian Sutil 4th. Sebastien Buemi led the Toro Rosso charge in 5th ahead of Kamui Kobayashi 6th on the leaderboard.
Buemi’s teammate for the morning was third driver Jean-Eric Vergne. The Frenchman set the 13th best time, nearly five seconds off the pace – a worthwhile effort considering the conditions.
Lewis Hamilton set the 7th quickest time, although the McLaren pilot finished his programme early. The Briton was the first to set a time (after 55 minutes), completing six laps to evaluate some aerodynamic of mechanical parts.
Ferrari brought a new front wing, but neither driver ran any timed laps.
Pos Driver Team Time Laps 1. Michael Schumacher Mercedes 2m02.784s 10 2. Sebastian Vettel Red Bull-Renault 2m02.840s + 0.056 8 3. Paul di Resta Force India-Mercedes 2m02.912s + 0.128 12 4. Adrian Sutil Force India-Mercedes 2m03.141s + 0.357 12 5. Sebastien Buemi Toro Rosso-Ferrari 2m03.182s + 0.398 9 6. Kamui Kobayashi Sauber-Ferrari 2m03.292s + 0.508 13 7. Lewis Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes 2m03.391s + 0.607 6 8. Nico Rosberg Mercedes 2m04.311s + 1.527 12 9. Sergio Perez Sauber-Ferrari 2m04.797s + 2.013 8 10. Mark Webber Red Bull-Renault 2m05.183s + 2.399 5 11. Karun Chandhok Lotus-Renault 2m06.350s + 3.566 11 12. Pastor Maldonado Williams-Cosworth 2m06.852s + 4.068 11 13. Jean-Eric Vergne Toro Rosso-Ferrari 2m07.541s + 4.757 9 14. Rubens Barrichello Williams-Cosworth 2m08.218s + 5.434 5 15. Narian Karthikeyan HRT-Cosworth 2m08.832s + 6.048 14 16. Daniel Ricciardo HRT-Cosworth 2m09.232s + 6.448 14 17. Jerome D'Ambrosio Virgin-Cosworth 2m12.658s + 9.874 7 18. Timo Glock Virgin-Cosworth 2m14.508s + 11.724 4 19. Felipe Massa Ferrari no time 1 20. Fernando Alonso Ferrari no time 5 21. Bruno Senna Renault no time 1 22. Vitaly Petrov Renault no time 1 23. Heikki Kovalainen Lotus-Renault no time 1 24. Jenson Button McLaren-Mercedes no time 1
After much chopping and changing this year, Superleague Formula has closed its doors on 2011 following the cancellation of its final rounds.
For the cars to make the rounds in China scheduled for early next month, the chassis’ would have had to leave today; however yesterday competitions director Robin Webb stated that:
“…it was simply not possible to travel to China with certain details still to be agreed. That this announcement has come so close to the first scheduled event is testament to the championship’s tireless attempts to stage the races as planned, especially after the warm welcome we received in China last season.
Naturally I am as frustrated as anyone that the championship will not be visiting Asia this year. I would like to reassure fans however that plans are already well advanced in putting together a much-improved package for 2012, announcements on which will be made in due course.”
In what has been a disastrous year for Superleague Formula, the series also cancelled several European rounds, as well as ventures to South America, the Middle East and New Zealand.
With only two rounds having taken place this year, the future of Superleague Formula is in doubt, despite the series’ mutterings of a potential new car for 2013.
However if Superleague cannot manage a steady season this year, it is more than like that 2013 will carry on without them. At this stage, there are also no plans for Superleague in 2012.
Superleague Formula has been one of those odd little championships that turns up every so often as a potential alternative to Formula 1, but rarely ever lasts beyond four to five years in what is an already heavily saturated single-seater market.
Although Superleague Formula has not officially been given the last rites, it is certain to join the likes of A1GP, British Formula 1 (the AFX Aurora Series) and others as another championship that tried… but ultimately failed.
For what its worth, the 2011 series was won by Team Australia’s John Martin.
Much like that second cousin-twice removed that you barely ever speak to at family functions, will anyone actually notice that Superleague Formula has actually left the room?
Suzuka. © Creative Commons / Will Pittenger.
Jenson Button may have won the Japanese Grand Prix on Sunday, but it was Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel who garnered all the headlines.
The young German only needed a single point to become World Champion for a second time; however the Red Bull pilot did it in style by taking a podium.
Yet if one were to watch the first portion of the race, you would be forgiven for thinking it might have been a Vettel walkover, but then there was Button…
A Fighting Start
Button’s first challenge came straight from the line – while Vettel’s start from pole was solid, Button’s launch from 2nd was supreme.
Seeing a gap down the inside of turn one, Button threw his McLaren into the free space, only for Vettel to close the door hard, shoving the furious Button partially onto the grass.
“Sebastian [Vettel] came across at me on the start – he kept coming and didn’t stop, so I got on the grass and had to back out of the throttle, otherwise there would’ve been an almighty shunt into Turn One. He said he didn’t see me until he saw me backing out, so that lost me a place.”
His momentum in check, Lewis Hamilton in the second McLaren assumed 2nd place, with Button now 3rd.
Hamilton, already in the midst of a difficult weekend, stayed close to the rear of the Red Bull throughout the opening tours, but as Button began to recover – bedding his tyres in the process – he drew to the back of Hamilton, with the latter giving Button 2nd on the eighth lap.
Realistically, it was much less a give and rather destabilising offer – Hamilton, his tyres the victim of a slow puncture, could do nothing to hold Button off. A pitstop a short distance later would see the 2008 Champion on another used set of softs.
Button, meanwhile, had just under five-seconds to pull back to the leading Vettel.
With Hamilton emerging in 11th, Ferrari’s presence became apparent. Led by Fernando Alonso, the Spaniard actually qualified behind teammate Felipe Massa in Japan; however five laps behind the Brazilian was enough for Alonso.
A swift order from the pitwall and an imaginary wave of the hand and Alonso had passed Massa for 3rd. It would not be long before Alonso would close on the leading pair.
Crucially Mark Webber in the second Red Bull was struggling to make a way passed Massa – not a positive start when considering Vettel’s lead. With Ferrari quickest on the straights, Webber would need to take advantage in the stops, but it wasn’t to come just yet.
Leading the Change
Once Hamilton fed into the pits, the rest of the lead group began to spill toward their garages.
Vettel was next in on lap nine, with Button, Alonso and Webber following one tour later, yet crucially as they fed into several long-stinting mid-fielders, playing the traffic game would be vital.
By the twelfth lap, Hamilton had already climbed to 4th, (thanks to others stopping and a pass on Sauber’s Kamui Kobayashi) having used a single lap undercut to jump Massa (now 5th).
Yet within three tours, the Briton was once again in tyre trouble – and falling back toward the Ferrari. The more Hamilton struggled, the larger Massa grew in the McLaren’s silver-tinted mirrors.
Also on the tail of the Scuderia machine was Webber, his Red Bull looking more and more ominous with each circulation of Suzuka.
Webber, too, utilised his second set of softs to cut through the midfield runners – moves on Sebastien Buemi (Toro Rosso) and Vitaly Petrov (Renault) brought the Australian to Massa’s tail, ready to pounce should the moment arise.
Both Button and Alonso were also making use of their Pirelli rubber. With Vettel pushing hard, his softs once again began to wear beyond reasonable use, allowing his followers back into the picture.
With eighteen laps in the bag, Vettel’s lead over his McLaren opponent was a mere six-tenths, with Alonso keeping a watchful eye.
Loose Wheels and Slow Getaways
Unfortunately, not all the pit strategies were plain sailing affairs, as Buemi can attest. The Swiss pilot, having stopped on lap eleven, made a grand total of four corners, before his right front wheel dislodged itself. It was a great shame for Buemi, who after starting 15th, ran 11th in the early laps, soaring as high as 7th during the stops.
“I came out of the pits and already at the first corner, I felt some vibration and I saw that the right front wheel was beginning to move. It had not been properly fitted at the pit stop, I’m not sure why and then it came off at Turn 4. There was no way I could drive back to the pits, so my race was over.”
Bruno Senna also fell down the order in the order after sluggish stop. In fact, the race had already been something of a tough prospect for the Brazilian, having been forced off the road on the opening lap.
From starting 9th, Senna fell to 13th, before being passed by both Williams’ on lap five. A slow getaway from his stall on lap fifteen saw Senna plummet further, rejoining the field in a lowly 18th place.
Senna’s Renault teammate, Petrov, was having a slightly better go of it. Lining up 10th on the grid, the Russian played a riskless game as he fought to make his medium tyres last until lap eighteen.
Job done, Petrov rose to 7th, before dropping to 14th for another set of mediums, full in the knowledge that he would stopping fewer times.
Road Block
Williams, on the other hand, split their strategies, with Rubens Barrichello starting on softs (pitting on lap 12) and Pastor Maldonado on mediums, with a stop for lap 16.
Starting on the seventh row, the pair fought amongst themselves for a time, with Barrichello coming out on top, as Maldonado played the long game. However, their lack of race pace apparent, Suzuka was looking like yet another point-less day for the Grove squad.
Further up the pack, Mercedes were far more confident of points on Japanese soil. Lining up 8th (Michael Schumacher) and 23rd (Nico Rosberg, due to a car failure), Schumacher held his place in the early running, until his first stop on the ninth lap, while Rosberg elected for a tyre change three laps later, after a quick climb to 18th.
A move on Petrov made that 7th for Schumacher come lap fourteen, with Rosberg rising to 15th three tours later to scour the rear of the Williams duo and the sole remaining Toro Rosso of Jaime Alguersuari.
For Alguersuari, a tough day was not about to get better. Starting 16th, the Spaniard suffered a dreadful launch off the grid, falling to 19th after the first tour.
With medium tyres the order of his first run, Alguersuari man stayed out until the seventeenth lap, bringing himself up to 13th, until his stop demoted the Toro Rosso to 18th.
Mixing it Up
It was a slightly more mixed affair for both Force India and Sauber in the early stint. Inhabiting the sixth row, both Force India drivers (Adrian Sutil and Paul di Resta) jumped to 8th and 9th respective on the first lap, with di Resta leading the pair.
An early stop for Sutil saw the German relegated to 18th temporarily, but the quick German was back in the top ten by the fifteenth tour and 9th three laps later after pushing past Petrov.
Di Resta, meanwhile unable to draw away from his teammate, dropped behind Sutil following the Scot’s stop on lap ten, leaving the rookie 10th once Petrov pitted for new tyres.
Hoping Kobayashi could bring some home cheer to Sauber, the Japanese pilot started 7th; only suffer a slippy clutch at the start. The slow getaway lost Kobayashi five spots, dropping to 13th after the initial tyre changes played out.
Sergio Perez was unable to make much progress from his 17th place on the grid, but the Mexican – playing the long game – stayed out on his medium compound tyres until lap twenty. Perez reached as high as 9th when he was finally called in to change to softs, leaving him plenty of room to play with strategy.
Familiar Faces
Those at the front, however, were still engaged in their own personal battles. Still leading by the narrowest of margins, Red Bull brought in Vettel for his second stop on lap twenty, servicing Webber just as Vettel pulled away. It was an example of synchronised pit work, but for Vettel it would not be enough.
Still on track, Button flew in clear air, whereas Vettel rejoined with a so-so outlap. As the McLaren crew serviced Button one lap later, the significance of Jenson’s pace on older tyres became apparent.
His Pirelli’s changed to another set of used softs, Button left the pitlane, with Vettel in his mirrors. In just over three-and-a-half miles, the face of the Grand Prix changed beyond recognition.
Alonso too came in for used softs on lap twenty-two, maintaining his position in 3rd, but he was also sensing Red Bull blood.
Unlike Button, Hamilton’s strategy was getting more askew as the day went on. Massa, keen to jump the Briton, stalked the Briton, edging closer and closer to his rear with every turn – it would be soon.
With the rubbers on his Pirelli tyres ebbing away, each corner became more of a chore for the McLaren pilot, especially through the quicker turns – and on lap twenty-one, Massa chose his moment.
Struggling through the famous 130R left-hand bend, Massa positioned his Ferrari – but then mysteriously attempted to go around the outside lane of Hamilton on the approach to the tight Casino chicane. It was a move that was unlikely to ever be successful.
Hamilton, unsighted, moved over to take his line, clashing lightly with the Ferrari, breaking Massa’s front wing endplate and picking up another puncture. The McLaren crew received Hamilton straight away, while Massa continued for an extra lap, before stopping at the Ferrari garage.
Safety Car
Without losing much time on his extra lap, Massa jumped Hamilton, but as the pair rejoined the race, both lost out to Webber, who must have witnessed the incident from the cockpit of his RB7 with glee.
The Massa / Hamilton fight was complicated further by an out-of-position Schumacher splitting the pair. The German veteran dropped into 6th amongst the melee after a long second stint, however his strategy – and everyone else’s – was about to be altered dramatically.
Noting a clump of Massa’s front wing lingering the chicane, race control issued the safety car, neutralising the race and pulling the rest of the field to the pits like magnets.
Indeed, only Perez, Petrov, Alguersuari and Senna opted to stay on track, keeping their respective two-stop strategies on track. Schumacher, his stop times to perfection, lost a place only to Hamilton, emerging 7th.
For a single piece of debris, the safety car remained on track for quite a length – four laps in this case. As it eventually slithered back to the pits at the end of lap twenty-seven, Button shot into an untouchable lead from Vettel, Alonso and Webber, while Massa, Hamilton and Schumacher readied themselves for another fight.
Behind the Mercedes, the long running Petrov (8th) and Perez looked on, while di Resta, Sutil and Rosberg waited for an opportunity to pounce. And pounce they did.
Petrov – his Renault suffering – dropped backward like a stone, as first Perez and di Resta (lap 28), and then Sutil and Rosberg (both lap 31) forced their way by the Russian.
Leading Wisely
Unlike Petrov, Jenson Button made it look easy out front. Extending his lead by 0.4 seconds per lap, the Briton was over two seconds ahead come the end of lap thirty-two.
Indeed, the McLaren crew had a position in mind and it was 8th – as long as Button could clear the long running Perez in his final stop, then the rest would play out smoothly – and that is exactly what happened.
Extending his lead sufficiently, Button was called in on lap thirty-six to receive the medium compound Pirelli’s. With his tyres changed for the final time, the Englishman rejoined the race for what would soon be victory at Suzuka, yet the remaining tours were far from simple.
Vettel, meanwhile, was finding life difficult. His mirrors, now full of Alonso’s red Ferrari, the reigning champion, was struggling to keep the feisty Spaniard at bay.
Realising the fight was ripping his tyres apart, Vettel pitted on lap thirty-four, emerging behind a tight battle between Sutil and Rosberg – disaster. It would take the German two laps to clear them, only to find he was not behind Perez. More lost time…
His Ferrari far more stable in race conditions, Fernando Alonso stayed out in relatively clean air until lap thirty-seven, before feeling the need to take on his final set of tyres.
It was a successful stratagem, as Alonso rejoined the race, he could see only clear air ahead and a Red Bull to the rear – 2nd place was his.
As the laps ticked down, Alonso pulled himself close to the leading McLaren, attempting to force a mistake from the wily Englishman, but it was not to come. On the penultimate lap, Button hammered home his advantage with the fastest lap of the race, ensuring the win was his.
“This was a hard race – the last five or six laps were extremely tough, I had to really look after the tyres and try to save a bit of fuel to get the car home, but it was an amazing victory. It’s such an emotional victory for me: there’s so much history at this circuit, and the crowd here has been amazing, this is second only to a home victory for me.”
While disappointed not to claim the win, Alonso still appeared happy with the Ferrari’s race pace:
“Today, we did our best and we came close to winning the race. Here, the others were very strong for the first five or six laps and then we closed up to them a lot. Unlike recent races, today we had a pace that was good enough to fight for the win.”
Champion Again
For Sebastian Vettel, 3rd place would have to do. The Red Bull man found pace on his mediums as the race drew to its conclusion, but with the World Championship waiting, team boss Christian Horner ordered is young charger to settle for the podium… and the title.
“A lot of people have been quite confident about the title, but one of the important things was that we didn’t allow ourselves to drift away with the thought too much. Instead we concentrated on every single step and everything we have done this year and everything we have achieved.
It’s phenomenal what’s happened – we set ourselves the target to win the Championship this year and so, to win it by Japan with four more races to go, is difficult to put into words – it’s as confusing as the first one. I never imagined I would win one Championship and so to win this second one is amazing. I have a lot of good memories from Formula One, from watching it when I was young, to now and I feel fortunate and blessed to experience today.
There were so many excited people when we did the drivers’ parade today and that was my last thought when I put my helmet on. For drivers, it doesn’t get much better than this, a sunny day and all the fans excited to see what you do – I think that’s what life is about.”
More Points For…
Meanwhile, Mark Webber, running 4th, stopped a lap after Vettel emerging behind the German, solidifying his place for the rest of the race. Although unable to attack the current champion, the Australian had little to fear from those behind…
Once Webber had negotiated the like of Sutil, his race was effectively run, needed only to bring it to the flag.
Felipe Massa was having a fight on his hands, as Hamilton’s image fed his rearward view.
Taking his final set of tyres on lap thirty-seven, Massa moved to the medium compound and immediately began to feel the ill-effects of rubber not agreeing with the philosophy of car.
Lewis Hamilton, his Pirelli’s up to temperature having stopped a lap earlier, once again drew to the back of the Ferrari, but this time made easy work of Massa, blasting past the Brazilian on the start / finish straight.
The result would deteriorate further for Massa. Playing a long third stint, Michael Schumacher did not change to mediums until lap forty-one, garnering a few laps at the head of the pack in the process.
Several solid laps from the veteran in this spell played a massive part in the final result – his stop done, Schumacher emerged ahead of the still struggling Massa to claim 6th.
Sergio Perez made his long game work pay off, with a run to 8th. The Mexican once again held solid speed on aging tyres to pick up four more points for the Sauber team.
Fighting to the Last
Behind Perez, the battle for the final two points spots was a confused one – indeed the final six laps saw a mammoth five way squabble to settle 9th through 13th. The group, initially headed by Kamui Kobayashi, also featured Paul di Resta, Adrian Sutil, Vitaly Petrov and Nico Rosberg.
Having made his final stop on lap twenty-four, Kobayashi was the first to feel the ill-effects of dying rubber. Unable to manage the Pirelli’s for such a long period, the home driver began to drop backwards with first Sutil taking 8th, before di Resta and Petrov forced their way through.
His tyres now finished, Kobayashi was defenceless against the pressing group, dropping to 13th within a couple of tours.
Unfortunately for Force India, they too would feel the wrath of destroyed rubber. What looked like being a solid points finish five laps from the end, became a weak epilogue in the following few tours as first di Resta’s rubber gave up, with Sutil’s following suit moments later.
As the Force India’s struggled, Petrov ad Rosberg took advantage – and the final points paying positions. Despite struggling on the mediums immediately after his stop, Petrov regained his pace to peg the group, retaking 9th with lap 49 move on Sutil.
It nearly didn’t happen for Petrov who came close to a late clash with di Resta at Dunlop Curve. The incident forced the gripless Scot wide, allowing Rosberg to sail passed.
Under the power of his works Mercedes engine, Rosberg made easy work of Sutil with three remaining to claim the final point of the day.
Final Finishers
Jaime Alguersuari took 14th in the sole Toro Rosso, following a rather anonymous outing.
The Spaniard came home with a two-second lead over Pastor Maldonado (15th), while Rubens Barrichello finished 17th in the other Williams. Bruno Senna split the Grove cars in 16th, following a dreadful race, where little went his way.
Heikki Kovalainen brought his Lotus home 18th, only 13 seconds shy of Barrichello. It was a very good drive by the Finn, who ran much of the race in 16th, ahead of Senna and Barrichello. Jarno Trulli brought the second Lotus to the flag several seconds later, down in 19th spot.
Both Virgin Racing and HRT’s finished, albeit two laps down. It was a day of the uneventful for the foursome, whose only thrill was Vitantonio Liuzzi going off in the early laps in the Esses.
For the record, Timo Glock took 18th ahead of Jerome d’Ambrosio (19th), Daniel Ricciardo (20th) and Vitantonio Liuzzi (21st).
And then he was Champion. And with four races to spare. Cue worried looks amongst the grid as to what Sebastian Vettel might do in 2012…
Race Rating: 3.5 out of 5
2011 Japanese Grand Prix (Rd 15, 53 laps) Pos Driver Team Time 1. Button McLaren-Mercedes 1h30:53.427 2. Alonso Ferrari + 1.160 3. Vettel Red Bull-Renault + 2.006 4. Webber Red Bull-Renault + 8.071 5. Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes + 24.268 6. Schumacher Mercedes + 27.120 7. Massa Ferrari + 28.240 8. Perez Sauber-Ferrari + 39.377 9. Petrov Renault + 42.607 10. Rosberg Mercedes + 44.322 11. Sutil Force India-Mercedes + 54.447 12. Di Resta Force India-Mercedes + 1:02.326 13. Kobayashi Sauber-Ferrari + 1:03.705 14. Alguersuari Toro Rosso-Ferrari + 1:04.194 15. Maldonado Williams-Cosworth + 1:06.623 16. Senna Renault + 1:12.628 17. Barrichello Williams-Cosworth + 1:14.191 18. Kovalainen Lotus-Renault + 1:27.824 19. Trulli Lotus-Renault + 1:36.140 20. Glock Virgin-Cosworth + 2 laps 21. D'Ambrosio Virgin-Cosworth + 2 laps 22. Ricciardo HRT-Cosworth + 2 laps 23. Liuzzi HRT-Cosworth + 2 laps Fastest lap: Button, 1:36.568 Not classified/retirements: Driver Team On lap Buemi Toro Rosso-Ferrari 35 World Championship, (Round 15: Drivers) 1. Vettel 324 2. Button 210 3. Alonso 202 4. Webber 194 5. Hamilton 178 6. Massa 90 7. Rosberg 63 8. Schumacher 60 9. Petrov 36 10. Heidfeld 34 11. Sutil 28 12. Kobayashi 27 13. Di Resta 20 14. Alguersuari 16 15. Buemi 13 16. Perez 13 17. Barrichello 4 18. Senna 2 19. Maldonado 1 World Championship, (Round 15: Constructors) 1. Red Bull-Renault 518 2. McLaren-Mercedes 388 3. Ferrari 292 4. Mercedes 123 5. Renault 72 6. Force India-Mercedes 48 7. Sauber-Ferrari 40 8. Toro Rosso-Ferrari 29 9. Williams-Cosworth 5
This weekend in Yeongam, McLaren will be celebrating their 700th Grand Prix in Formula 1.
Since their début at Monaco in 1966, the Woking based squad has taken a mammoth 174 Grand Prix, as well twelve Driver’s and eight Constructor’s Championships.
This week the team are running several posts on their website remembering their respective centennial races; however while this celebration is thoroughly deserved, a minor element of the celebration left me slightly dismayed.
On McLaren’s site, the team represent each centennial with a side-on graphic of the car at the time.
For example, the team’s 300th Grand Prix came at the 1988 San Marino Grand Prix – a race won by the late Ayrton Senna – and while the presentation looks very nice, something is missing – all signs of cigarette sponsorship appears to have been omitted.
And this is where I may come across an utterly foolish bastard.
While understanding completely that cigarette advertising has long since been banned in numerous territories, I have great difficulty accepting what appears to be a subtle erasure of history, irrespective of society’s current view of cigarettes.
The fact is, for twenty-two years, Marlboro sponsored McLaren, with West following on for a time thereafter. Throughout the period, the colours of red and white became synonymous with the team, in the same way silver has become McLaren’s signature colour since 1997. All of this is slightly opposed to their initial colours of Kiwi orange.
That McLaren considers itself a very modern corporation is all well and good; however if it wants its society to be a truly modern and politically liberal one, it needs to accept its past actions and not sweep them under the carpet.
Yes, I do consider smoking to be a disgusting habit and no, I have never smoked in my life, but I have never ignored its existence – that, from a societal point of view, is simply another poison.
On the other hand, I am probably blowing this completely out of proportion; because that is something I do from time to time.
© McLaren Automotive.
It can be very easy at times to forget that not all forms of motor racing come neatly packaged.
Lurk through the wider world of motorsport and it is not too difficult to source small localised events where not every driver is a slick machine, trying to push their career forward.
Believe it or not, there are people in the real world that actually like to have fun… (or so I’m told.)
Last week at the 2nd Annual Stock Car Nationals at Oklahoma Sports Park, drivers Terry Muskratt, Brian Wolfe and Steve Little collided during the feature event, with Muskratt taking the brunt of carnage.
Pinballing hard between the out of control machinery and the concrete retaining wall, the trio came to a stop in the middle of the dirt track, with Muskratt’s stock car upside down and in flames. While fire marshal’s – minus fire protective clothing – attempted to tend to the burning car, reigning Nationals Champion, Kip Hughes, pulled over to lend assistance.
The 27-year-old Hughes ripped off the inner netting that lines the window space and then at the door of Muskratt’s car, eventually pulling the driver out of the wreck and to safety.
It was a remarkable feat by the exhausted Hughes, whose own father suffered serious burns in a similar accident twenty years ago.
So used to the clinical features presented by modern state-of-the-art circuits, the accident went some way to displaying how far behind local circuits can be in terms of safety measures.
Irrespective of the current state of the economy, there is no excuse for marshal’s not wearing firesuits – that kind of occurrence belongs back in the 1970’s.
[Not for the squeamish]
When Sebastian Vettel lay claim to his second consecutive World Championship title on Sunday, it opened the doors to proclamations of future dominance of the sport.
Now while that is indeed a possibility, it is perhaps a touch too soon to write off the next ten years of Formula 1, let alone impose ridiculous sporting regulations in an attempt to kerb Vettel’s success.
Alas, the sport has bore witness to long spells of domination before – whether it be Michael Schumacher in the last decade or Juan Manuel Fangio in the mid-1950’s, these things happen.
The question here is, who does Formula 1 wish to serve more readily – the modern casual fan, surrounded by pillars of alternative entertainment, all waiting to steal the briefest spell waning attention?
Or does the sport wish to keep the hardcore fan on board, already sporting a love for the sport, dipped in (lots of) hard (spent) cash?
Both types of fan bring numerous attitudinal positives to the sport of motor racing; however those elements tend to reside on opposite ends of the spectrum.
Admittedly, as much as the Schumacher-era of tens years ago drove many of the less tentative fans away from the sport, I still feel privileged to have witness his brilliance, both on television and in the grandstands. Supreme talent is something to behold, not stand on.
Of course, Adrian Newey does play his part – as does Christian Horner (et al) – that is what Formula 1 is all about.
Should Vettel dominate again next year, one wonders if whispers of altering the points system will resurface once again – anything to stop the title being won early.
From a UK standpoint, the final few races may not suffer too much in terms of dropped television figures. Despite Vettel’s charge to the title, the BBC have reported the highest figures for Formula 1 broadcasts since Damon Hill’s charge to the title in 1996 – figures that Sky will, no doubt, not come close to matching.
However, Formula 1 must also understand that it is not the only form of motorsport to be hit by single player dominance at the moment.
With six races remaining, Hendrick Motorsports’ Jimmie Johnson is lining himself up to take his sixth consecutive NASCAR Sprint Cup Title.
Standing 3rd overall, only four points shy of current leader Carl Edwards, the Californian has carved out an astonishing record since 2006 and Johnson continues to embed his name into the annals of NASCAR history with some startling performances. Johnson came close to adding two further championships when he finished runner-up to Matt Kenseth in 2003 and Kurt Busch one year later.
Admittedly, the past several seasons have on occasion felt rather contrived, due mainly to NASCAR’s Chase for the Cup format, whereby the top ten drivers (plus two wildcards) have their points nullified after the twenty-sixth round.
From there, the twelve chosen drivers battle for the title over the final ten events, ending at Miami’s Homestead Motor Speedway in the third weekend In November.
IndyCar is also in the midst of a single driver / team domination. Scotland’s Dario Franchitti has claimed three of the last four IndyCar championships – indeed, the only one he missed out on (2008); the thirty-eight year old wasn’t even in the series to compete.
Franchitti took his first IndyCar title with Andretti-Green in 2007, but left for a Ganassi seat in NASCAR at the end of the year. An unsuccessful foray into stock cars saw the Scot return to IndyCar in the final race of 2008, where his charge to continued success started in earnest.
Target Chip Ganassi have taken the last three championships (winning with Scott Dixon in 2008) and are leading Penske’s Will Power by 18 points as they head into the final round at Las Vegas this weekend.
With his skill on 1.5 mile ovals apparent, Franchitti is very much the favourite to make it four titles on Sunday evening.
The World Rally Championship is also under the thumb of a single driver; Frenchman Sebastien Loeb.
The Citroen driver is currently on a roll of seven consecutive driver titles and is currently the joint-leader with Peugeot’s Mikko Hirvonen as the series closes in on its penultimate round in Spain. Not far behind is Loeb’s young teammate, Sebastien Ogier, lingering three points off the top spot.
In the lower categories, Josef Newgarden claimed the 2011 Indy Lights Series by starting engine at the penultimate race at Kentucky Motor Speedway; Felipe Nasr secured British Formula 3 crown six races early and Scott Malvern won eighteen of twenty-four British Formula Ford races over the course of 2011.
Even the GP2 Series was claimed early by DAMS pilot Romain Grosjean, five months after the French / Swiss pilot grabbed the GP2 Asia Championship.
Dominance happens in sport from time to time, it is the nature of the beast. How far one goes to manipulate that sport for the sake of the media is a different discussion altogether.
One hopes Formula 1 and others don’t go too far to rob motorsport of its respective genius’, just to keep the easily distracted and the shamelessly fickle smiling. That would be a far greater detraction than sporting dominance.
Following the last British Formula 3 race of the season today, I had to bolt it out of the circuit shortly afterward to make the train.
Thankfully, I was able to get a quick chat to the podium drivers Carlos Huertas and Kevin Magnussen, while shivering somewhat outside the media centre. Sometimes the podiums celebrations can take a while to unfold – today was no different and after a few brief words, we bid our goodbyes and moved on.
Roaming down the inside of the centre, 3rd place man Rupert Svendsen-Cook was the last to leave, seemingly happy with his result, but a little downhearted with his final Championship position of 5th.
There is the possibility that these three will be moving onto pastures a new next season, whether that be World Series by Renault or GP2 and I wish them all the best in their endeavours.
After a speedy session posting the race report, there was little time to transcribe the interviews – alas, the trip from Northampton to London gave me an opportunity to relax and type some more bits and bobs that were missed earlier on.
But for now, some tea and toast is required, followed by a long, long sleep.
Carlos Huertas:
Qualified P2; Race Winner
“I had a good start and I think in the last few laps, Kevin and I were a bit conservative, just trying not to make any mistakes and was just pushing every lap. I did a race run on the test here last week, so I kind of knew what to expect. The pace was really good and it is a great way to finish the season.
I would’ve wanted the win and 2nd place, but unfortunately yesterday wasn’t such a good day for me and next year we’ll see.”
Kevin Magnussen:
Qualified Pole; Race P2
“It was about just trying to keep as close as possible, to try and get a mistake from him, but unfortunately it didn’t come. I’m happy for [Huertas] to end three years without winning and happy that he finally got it.
There weren’t any possibilities. I was quite a bit quicker than him, but was always in his tow, but it made it difficult, because my tyres wore out more than his. I had fastest lap as well, I had that over the three races and I finished 2nd in the championship, so I’m pretty satisfied.”
Rupert Svendsen-Cook:
Qualified P4; Race P3
“I qualified well, but when I had the brake failure in yesterday’s first race, it really ruined my weekend. It was gutting really, because what chance is there to fight when I have no rear brakes. That race was ruined and I had to start from the back this morning, which ruined that race as well, so today I knew I had to maximise the main race and to finish on the podium shows that I was pushing.
I had to drop [Foresti]. I was a lot quicker than him, but it’s hard to follow close in the fast corners, as with Kevin and Carlos, but Lucas made a mistake when pushing hard. He locked up a bit and I showed my nose and he went wide and I was able to get past. Once I was past, it was about catching the group in front and I think I was, but not enough to make up the gap.”
“I’m not too happy with where I finished in the Championship, because it doesn’t really reflect the pace I have. The engine misfires, the brake failure yesterday – without all these problems, then I’m sure we would have had a great championship result, but this is what happens and when everything has worked, I think I’ve shown my true potential.
I tested [a GP2 car] last week, which went really well. I was really comfortable in the car and really confident, but it’s a big financial step, so to be honest, I do not know where I go from here.”
Silverstone. © Creative Commons / Junafani
After three years, Carlos Huertas claimed his first British Formula 3 victory in his final race at Silverstone.
The Colombian beat Carlin teammate Kevin Magnussen off the line to claim the lead, victory and the twenty points to go with it.
In doing so, Huertas assumed 3rd in the 2011 British Formula 3 Championship, fifteen points shy of his race three rival, Magnussen.
It was a stellar drive by Huertas, although Magnussen was rarely far from his rear wing, the race was eventually decided by only 0.5 seconds – the shortest gap of the forty-minute run.
Magnussen, however, could not make the final move on Huertas, despite filling the mirrors of his teammate, but this result was enough to guarantee the Championship runner-up spot for the Dane.
Rupert Svendsen-Cook took 3rd with an excellent drive from 4th on the grid, making it an all-Carlin podium. The Briton fought hard with Fortec’s Lucas Foresti in the early laps, forcing a way through on the fifth tour. It was just reward for Svendsen-Cook, whose first two races were hindered by brake failure during Saturday’s opening event.
A mistake by Foresti on lap six allowed both Mitch Evans and Will Buller through to take 4th and 5th respectively.
That might still change, as the Australian Evans failed to take a drive through penalty for exceeding the track limits – as the sun dips at Silverstone, the penalty is still being argued.
Foresti stayed on track to finish 6th, although the Brazilian will no doubt be disappointed following an excellent start that propelled him up to 3rd by the first turn.
Foresti led home a trio of cars with Alexander Sims (7th, Motopark), Pietro Fantin (8th, Hitech) and Jazeman Jaafar (9th, Carlin) all coming home within 1.1 seconds of the Brazilian.
Sims initially trailed Fantin in the early laps, before a mis-stepped Fantin allowed the GP3-regular through for 7th.
Jaafar meanwhile, turned his 10th place on the grid to 9th on the opening tour with a hard move on Scott Pye (Double R). Pye’s race took another hit on the sixteenth lap, as the Australian found himself with a drive through penalty for exceeding track limits.
Hywel Lloyd grabbed the final points position of the season with a steady drive to 10th from 11th on the grid.
The race was littered with drive through penalties, with competitors exceeding track limits repeatedly. Penalties were also handed to Guilherme Silva, Jack Harvey and Kotaro Sakurai.
It left Harvey struggling at the rear of the field, with the Racing Steps Foundation driver crossing the finish line 18th, while Sakurai was 20th and last. Silva retired soon after his penalty, burying his Hitech-prepared Dallara in the gravel at Club.
Both Max Snegirev and Felipe Nasr lost out at the start. A poor start by Nasr saw his tumble toward the pack, receiving a punctured right rear as others flew either side of him.
As Nasr dropped down the pack, Snegirev clipped the rear of the Brazilian in Club, deranging his own car too much to continue. Nasr pitted, but stopped on lap eight.
2011 British F3 Rnd of Silverstone (Rd 10, Race 3) Pos Driver Team Time/Gap 1. Carlos Huertas Carlin-Volkswagen 38.36.042 2. Kevin Magnussen Carlin-Volkswagen +0.510 3. Rupert Svendsen-Cook Carlin-Volkswagen +5.613 4. Mitch Evans Double R-Mercedes +10.015 5. William Buller Fortec-Mercedes +15.790 6. Lucas Foresti Fortec-Mercedes +23.039 7. Alexander Sims Motopark-Volkswagen +23.314 8. Pietro Fantin Hitech-Volkswagen +23.685 9. Jazeman Jaafar Carlin-Volkswagen +24.149 10. Hywel Lloyd Sino Vision-Mercedes +29.758 11. Harry Ticknell Fortec-Mercedes +33.805 12. Pipo Derani Double R-Mercedes +37.669 13. Menasheh Idafar T-Sport-Volkswagen +41.913 14. Bart Hylkema T-Sport-Volkswagen +43.193 15. Yann Cunha T-Sport-Volkswagen +46.518 16. Adderly Fong Sino Vision-Mercedes +47.493 17. Scott Pye Double R-Mercedes +47822 18. Jack Harvey Carlin-Volkswagen +48.466 19. Fahmi Ilyas Fortec-Mercedes +1:12.577 20. Kotaro Sakurai Hitech-Mugen Honda +1:54.772 R. Guilherme Silva Hitech-Volkswagen +8 laps R. Felipe Nasr Carlin-Volkswagen +12 laps R. Max Snaegirev Hitech-Volkswagen +20 laps 2011 British F3 Championship (Rd 10, Race 3) Pos Driver Points International Class 1. Felipe Nasr 318 2. Kevin Magnussen 237 3. Carlos Huertas 222 4. William Buller 197 5. Rupert Svendsen-Cook 191 6. Jazeman Jaafar 187 7. Lucas Foresti 170 8. Pietro Fantin 119 9. Jack Harvey 112 10. Scott Pye 81 11. Harry Tincknell 78 12. Riki Christodoulou 51 Rookie Class 1. Kotaro Sakurai 378 2. Bart Hylkema 214 3. Luca Orlandi 45
Congratulations to Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel, who this morning claimed his second world title at the fabulous Suzuka circuit in Japan.
At 24 years and 98 days, the German racer became the youngest double world champion, pipping Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso in the process.
Vettel’s success means he also becomes only the ninth driver to achieve the feat, alongside Alberto Ascari, Juan-Manuel Fangio, Jack Brabham, Alain Prost, Michael Schumacher, Mika Hakkinen and the aforementioned Alonso.
In today’s Grand Prix, Vettel edged fellow front row man Jenson Button on to the grass approaching turn one, before being jumped later in the pitstops.
A mid-race safety car to clear debris left by another collision between Felipe Massa and Lewis Hamilton brought the field together once again. Vettel, in traffic, pitted early, allowing Alonso the opportunity to grab 2nd place – a position he would not give up for the duration.
From there, Button took the victory, holding only a narrow margin ahead of the Alonso / Vettel pairing.
More later…
Silverstone. © Creative Commons / Junafani
2011 GP3 regular Alexander Sims claimed his first British Formula 3 victory at a damp and breezy Silverstone this morning.
The 23-year-old made a late decision to change to wet tyres on the grid – a choice that proved to be a masterstroke for the victorious Sims.
Sims did not lead the distance though. Fortec’s Lucas Foresti led off the line from his second-row starting position, with Sims following through into 2nd.
Pietro Fantin was the loser off the line, dropping into the 3rd as the leading trio battled hard in the opening few turns.
While Fantin dropped back, Sims clung tight to the rear of Foresti, before engaging in a wheel-to-wheel battle with the Brazilian on the fourth tour, eventually cementing the lead in the new section.
Once ahead, Sims charged away from the Fortec, crossing the flag after ten laps with a lead of 7.89 seconds ahead of runner up Foresti. Sims was calmly delighted with the win:
“There were dry patches on the circuit, but I had been monitoring the circuit for the last hour or so before the race and it didn’t seem to be drying massively and couldn’t get any temperature in the slicks. It was going to take too long for the slicks to work, so I went to wets and every lap we were faster than the guys on slicks.
It [the fight with Foresti] was fun, down at Vale, the chicane. I went for a move and he started to close straight away and I had kind of half committed, so backed out it, but still touched wheels. I tried not to screw his race – I’m not here to do that – and let him take the lead back again and then into Brooklands, I got him into there.
The car felt good behind the other guys and also in free air. It all went according to plan. Every time, we are second-guessing the conditions, but we can pressure the guys ahead.”
Foresti, while pleased to be on the podium, was disappointed to not have taken another top spot, but was comfortable with his early tyre choice:
“There was a little too much spray on the warm-up, so I decided on wets for the race – I did that in Brands Hatch and thought I would try that again. [Sims] has more experience than me, he overbraked me and doesn’t have any fight in the championship. ”
Fantin held his head in 3rd, but could not keep up to the leading pair. With little behind to worry the Hitech runner, Fantin closed in on the finish to claim his fourth podium of the season.
“The track was still damp [at the start] and really slippy. We made a good choice on the grid for wets and it was the best choice after two laps to the grid. The start was good itself, but Foresti still got passed me. After that, I maintained my speed and drove for the podium.”
Without doubt, the star drive of the day goes to T-Sport’s Menasheh Idafar. The Bahraini started 19th on the grid, but was already 5th come the end of the opening circulation.
A second lap overtake on Carlin’s Carlos Huertas brought Idafar to 4th, garnering the T-Sport man seven precious points.
Pipo Derani also made a stellar start, jumping from 14th to 8th after the first lap. The Double-R pilot claimed three more places on the second tour as the field sorted itself out; however the Brazilian had to fight for it late on.
On his tail, quite literally, were Carlin duo Jack Harvey and Felipe Nasr. As Derani’s wet Cooper tyres wore late in the race, both Harvey and Nasr caught the Double R man, with Derani holding 5th by 0.5 of-a-second at the line.
It was closer still between Harvey and Nasr. The pair finished the race with wheels almost interlocked, split by one-hundredth of a second in a startling climax for 6th.
A boost from Nasr late in the race brought him to 7th. Having started on dries, the Brazilian struggled initially for grip, but pulled himself back up the order
A late charge from Kevin Magnussen rewarded the Dane with 8th; however the Dane had been expecting more.
Assuming the track might dry out, Magnussen started on the slick Cooper tyres, but while Magnussen did not lose any positions, he struggled to make a move in the early stages.
For a time, Magnussen tracked Nasr and later Huertas, before taking the Colombian with three laps to go, earning the Dane 8th position.
For Huertas, a promising result turned disastrous with each lap. A poor start for the Carlin man dropped him from 3rd to 5th off the line, with the Colombian loses spots to Derani, Harvey, Nasr and Magnussen by the seventh lap as he struggled on the dry Cooper rubber.
Yann Cunha was closing in on Huertas as the race came to a close, eventually scoring 10th position. It was a solid performance by the T-Sport man to take only his third points scoring result of the season.
As expected in the damp conditions, the opening lap saw a clash of carbon fibre. Racing through the opening turn at Copse, Hywel Lloyd spun on his slick tyres, clipping Scott Pye in the process.
Bart Hylkema, attempting to avoid the spinning Lloyd, clipped his right front wheel of another machine, destroying the suspension in the process. Both Lloyd and Hylkema retired on the spot, while Pye pitted for new tyres, dropping the Australian to last.
Fahmi Ilyas was another non-finisher. The Fortec pilot spun his Mercedes-powered Dallara into the gravel, retiring him on the spot.
2011 British F3 Rnd of Silverstone Pos Driver Team Time/Gap 1. Alexander Sims Motopark-Volkswagen 21:39.508 2. Lucas Foresti Fortec-Mercedes +7.897 3. Pietro Fantin Hitech-Volkswagen +14.187 4. Menasheh Idafar T-Sport-Volkswagen +18.593 5. Pipo Derani Double R-Mercedes +28.037 6. Jack Harvey Carlin-Volkswagen +28.597 7. Felipe Nasr Carlin-Volkswagen +28.609 8. Kevin Magnussen Carlin-Volkswagen +29.948 9. Carlos Huertas Carlin-Volkswagen +38.211 10. Yann Cunha T-Sport-Volkswagen +40.214 11. Mitch Evans Double R-Mercedes +41.811 12. William Buller Fortec-Mercedes +44.270 13. Max Snegirev Hitech-Volkswagen +44.377 14. Guilherme Silva Hitech-Volkswagen +53.041 15. Rupert Svendsen-Cook Carlin-Volkswagen +53.332 16. Harry Tincknell Fortec-Mercedes +1:01.151 17. Adderly Fong Sino Vision-Mercedes +1:03.419 18. Kotaro Sakurai Hitech-Mugen Honda +1:09.040 19. Jazeman Jaafar Carlin-Volkswagen +1:15.127 20. Scott Pye Double R-Mercedes +1:42.334 R. Fahmi Ilyas Fortec-Mercedes +8 laps R. Hywel Lloyd Sino Vision-Mercedes +10 laps R. bart Hylkema T-Sport-Volkswagen +10 laps 2011 British F3 Championship (Rd 10, Race 2) Pos Driver Points International Class 1. Felipe Nasr 318 2. Kevin Magnussen 221 3. Carlos Huertas 202 4. William Buller 189 5. Jazeman Jaafar 185 6. Rupert Svendsen-Cook 179 7. Lucas Foresti 164 8. Pietro Fantin 116 9. Jack Harvey 112 10. Scott Pye 81 11. Harry Tincknell 78 12. Riki Christodoulou 51 Rookie Class 1. Kotaro Sakurai 357 2. Bart Hylkema 214 3. Luca Orlandi 45
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