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First real post of this season. Somehow never had time or the motivation to punch in anything. Though I never missed a single qualifying session or race. The Grand Prix of Canada was a historic race for many reasons. This one’s not going to be just another race review. Here in this post I analyse how it all went, the media coverage, driver quotes and how can a few mishaps be avoided.
Prologue
I missed the start of the race and switched on the idiot box when the first lap was almost done. The excitement could not build up in time and the next few laps were fairly uninteresting. Fernando Alonso had slipped back and it was good to see Hamilton right in front leading the rest of the pack. Caught the replay of the start well in time. It was rather funny to see Alonso literally slithering on track.
Disaster – The White Noise
Driver: Robert Kubica
Team: BMW Sauber on Bridgestone soft compound tyres
Its been reported that the F1.07 clipped the back of Schumacher’s Toyota but it doesn’t appear to be the case. Something terribly wrong with the track. Before you read further watch it for yourself.
From the cam of someone in the audience :-
The car took off as it went off the track. Seemed to be stable on track otherwise.
Now where did the tyre wall disappear? You leave concrete walls for the drivers to crash into? And that too that bent in a way that they collide head on. Watch the video again as the chassis hits the wall and tears into bits. The driver had absolutely nowhere to go. The car was hung in the air and braking would have been useless. The only choice was to crash into that deadly concrete wall painted in white. Ridiculous and Insane. And thats FIA. They need atleast a quadruple tyre wall in front of that concrete wall. High speed turns can be disastrous and have proven to be.
My first impression when I saw the crash. Is the guy fine? Kubica would be seriously hurt. I would not rule out the possibility that we have lost the first pole in F1, a very young talented driver. Whatever they may say about the safety of the modern F1 car, I was still in a stupor. It took exceedingly long for the rescue team to arrive. There were no fire marshals near the car and they seemed to watch the car from a safe distance, safer than usual. Whats that? The guy is still sitting still in the car and no attempt was made to get him out. The car could have burst into flames at any moment. Track mashals seemed to be reading the newspaper at that time, though the medical team car arrived within seconds.
F1.07 after the impact
All wheels but the left rear wheel were gone. There was no sign of any aerodynamic equipment left on the car. Front wing and front suspensions (left at the concrete wall), rear wing and right suspension (somewhere on track during the barrel roll), badly damaged left rear suspension still sticking to the chassis. Most importantly the monocoque was still intact.
>> At the heart of the modern Formula One car lies the immensely strong ‘monocoque’ structure, often referred to as the ‘tub’. This incorporates the cockpit and the driver’s ’survival cell’, but also forms the principal component of the car’s chassis, with the engine and front suspension mounted directly to it. Both roles – as structural component and safety device – require it to be as strong as possible. << SOURCE: Formula1.com
Life saver for Robert Kubica. I discovered once again, crashes are not exciting at all, and I don’t derive any pleasure from any on-track or off-track mishaps.
Cry Baby Alonso
He speaks as if he did not put a wheel wrong on the track. First lap slide and subsequently overshooting the corners regularly during the course of the race. Not once or twice, many more times. Reigning world champion complains about his car.
Takuma Sato overtook Fernando’s McLaren with few laps remaining in the race. Good one Taku ! Surely he must have enjoyed it and felt as if he won the Canadian GP.
Quote:
“What an awesome weekend for us. So many things happened during this race ………. During the last few laps I had a great feeling because I was able to race with the front runners and I was able to confidently overtake and take back my position. This was absolutely the most beautiful day in my racing career and is an amazing result. A huge thanks to the guys today and all the people who support us.” – Takuma Sato, Super Aguri (6th)
Thats One.Here is Another story.
What really happened and is not likely to be revealed. Big pressure on Alonso to keep his place in the team with Hamilton improving with every race. Hamilton pipped Alonso for Pole position. Alonso was pushing right from the start in a desperate attempt to overtake team-mate. Made a mistake at the first corner (which is his first one ever since I started watching him drive an F1 car) . Made more mistakes because he was pushing too much throughout the race. Could have possibly scrubbed his tyres in the attempt to do so. Blamed everything on pit stop rules of the FIA and the safety car periods. Later he came up with another excuse, the team favored the british team-mate. Thats reigning world champion’s words who once called Michael Schumacher the most unsporting driver in Formula 1.
Quote:
“I think this was a strange race with the Safety Car being deployed so many times which worked to Lewis’ advantage today and my disadvantage. I came into the pits for the first time on lap 24 as I had no more fuel so basically there was nothing I could do. It was a shame as this resulted in a ten-second penalty but I guess that unfortunately those are the rules but there was no alternative other than to stop on track with no fuel. After that I had to push as hard as possible because I was stuck in the middle of the field and when you push to the maximum you sometimes go off track but at that stage there was nothing to lose. Whilst it was a difficult race for me I’m pleased for the team and Lewis that we were able to secure some important points and Lewis winning his first race and also that Robert is OK. I hope for a bit more luck for the US Grand Prix next week and at least I can leave Montreal with two points more than Massa.” – Fernando Alonso, McLaren (7th):
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How many times has it happened with other drivers when you(they call the donkey Fernando Alonso) won. Possibly 50% of the times. And out of these 50% times of these, it was Kimi Raikonnen who suffered. He needs to recall, take a look back into the last two seasons, HOW he became world champion. Other drivers’ bad luck made his day everytime. He complains because he is on the losing side this time. Where is that sporting spirit that you talk about Fernando? Better grow up.
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You could not follow the rules, thats your and your team’s problem. Don’t blame the FIA for making rules, nothing is concealed from the team or the driver. Even the fans know all the subtle details. Massa and Fisichella are still NOT complaining and have admitted their faults. They were black flagged.
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The spaniard did not have a good race still he is struck with that smugness of scoring 2 more points over Massa. Alonso is one rapacious driver. You lost 8 points on your team-mate, get over that pittance of 2 points. Watch out for your team-mate and not any of the ferrari drivers. He may strip you off the glamour and world championship title very soon.
Another comment came in tuesday’s news report.
Quote:
“From the first moment I arrived at McLaren I wasn’t comfortable with everything,” the Spaniard told Cadena Ser radio. “This is an English team, with an English team-mate. You know that all of the help goes his way. I have understood that from the first moment and I won’t complaint about it.” - Fernando Alonso
You are complaining already by saying that you won’t complain about it. Wouldn’t McLaren want to win the constructors title?
The comment never came before the canadian grand prix finished. You cannot expect the same setups of your car and team-mate’s car to be identical. Different drivers with different driving styles WILL have different kind of setups and configurations. You cannot expect your car to be perfect in every race. It happens a lot more often with other drivers and teams but they don’t complain that their team-mate is favored and they are given an inferior package. And IF you don’t like McLaren nobody would stop you from leaving the team.
Sweet Victory for Hamilton
The Brit never put a wheel wrong. He could have suffered the most during the safety car periods but just in his 6th F1 race he showed tremendous maturity and talent. Soaked up the pressure and built up a comfortable gap right from start and also after each safety car period. Never really looked at ease, was pushing to the right extent and keeping the wheels just far enough from the walls. Perfect pit stop strategy by McLaren for both Hamilton and Alonso. Its a different case though that the latter doesn’t want to acknowledge it.
Sheer class, sobriety and maturity on the podium. Perhaps it was the happiest moment of his life but never lost his cool. Kept it simple and celebrated like a talented young boy he is.
Who’s the tallest of them all? Hamilton or Wurz
Taking nothing away from Heidfeld and Wurz. Best results of their careers for the two drivers. Wurz appeared like a rock star standing tall on the podium. Interesting hand gestures to celebrate his finish. Hamilton should have had his father in podium but sadly thats not allowed. Wonderful result for the team and history made in Montreal. First rookie driver ever to finish on podium in every race and on top in only the sixth race of his career. Lot of racing to come and some wonderful moments ahead in the season. Hamilton is the guy to watch.
The media coverage
HT boast of being the leader in printed press. What all came in HT monday sports section was amazingly stupid and inconsiderate. You state the surprisingly obvious. Not a single alphabet about one of the most horrendous crash in Formula 1 in the recent past. Brainless editors and reporters with no sense of perception.
Kubica does not need any more friends
Read the post race interviews and the selected driver quotes. Everybody wants to tell the people that Kubica is his friend. Alright you were concerned, thats understandable. Perhaps mentioning some of the obvious things is not needed at all. You never want that things to happen to any driver be it your friend or not. Every driver was happy and relieved to hear the news that Kubica was OK. Thats again the spirit of the game. Fernando seemed to blame Kubica for crashing and spoiling his race by an additional/extended safety car period.
More comments to be added on further analysis
Once again (as always) the season kicks off silently in Melbourne.
A number of changes in the season as expected. The same old STAR Sports menu comes up as a bit of a surprise.
Quick Predictions. Most of the top runners seem to be on a similar fuel level. Tyres will not have a great difference this season onwards. Its all on the car setup and the driver. Kimi and Ferrari look good. If the McLaren reliability issues continue, the race could slip away from Alonso. But it seems Alonso has brought some good fortune with him. Watch out for Felipe Massa. Honda seem to be struggling a little bit. The rookies will surely provide some entertainment and add some spice to the race. Super Aguri are up on pace this season. What will the old drivers in the new cars deliver on a 58 lap race. The 2007 season kicks off in style and its LIVE on Star Sports.
More comments to come soon on Qualifying
© 2007 Kamal Agarwal
This post will be edited later.
Michael Schumacher who attracted me to F1. The new season without him will never be the same.
Italian Grand Prix 2006, Qualifying
McLaren. Ferrari. BMW. Honda. Four different teams in the top five runners. Breathtaking qualifying sessions with a couple of tyre failures.
The first session was very much similar to the ones in the previous rounds of championship. Ferrari and Renault needed a single run to make it to the top 16. Most other competitive teams like BMW and McLaren did not find it too hard to get out of the relegation zone. The session was stopped after the tyre failure on the Super Aguri of Sakon Yamamoto. The session stopped and resumed after a notable amount of time. The debris had to be cleared by the special vehicles. The last time I saw this kind of an action was in Montreal last year when Ralf Schumacher spun off the track on a high speed curve and crashed into the sidewalls. The likes of Schumacher, Massa, Alonso, Fisichella, Raikonnen were yet to set a flying lap of the session. The session resumed and finished without any further dramas.
The second session’s start was a bit hilarious. The fifteen minutes session saw the first driver coming out of the pits after a delay of nearly a minute. It was Robert Kubica who started the session in style, setting a lap faster than the lap of previous session leader, Michael Schumacher. The Ferrari looked on a good pace, something expected from the Italian team in their home grand prix. A bit of a surprise came from BMW Sauber. Call it the BMW horsepower on the long straights of Monza or the new technological development, the white cars were matching the pace of Renaults and the Ferraris consistently. McLaren looked pretty quick and was consistently challenging Ferrari for grid position. At the end of the second session, Ferrari and Renault were neck to neck. Ferrari very ahead and Alonso could not match Schumi’s pace, but made another try (probably to gain psychological advantage in the final session). The Spaniard encountered some traffic in the second half of the lap and decided to dive into the pits. At the end of the second session, Ferrari were right on top with Massa and Schumi each having done only 2 flying laps in the two sessions. 10 on 10 for performance and preservation of the engine life. Michael stood 4th at the end of this session but was no reason for Ferrari to start worrying. NIck Heidfeld and Jenson button looked very promising at the end of the session. The drivers who could not make the final cut inspite of their relentless efforts were Nico Rosberg and David Coulthard with both the Toyotas also being relegated.
The final session was led by BMW of Nick Heidfeld. Few laps of burning off the fuel and then was the time to start the real flying lap. Michael was tactically ahead of Alonso. At the first corner, with about 10 minutes remaining, Alonso lost the control of his car and went straight after braking hard. No damage done but a few seconds later he complained about a punctured tyre. Crawling back to the pits while other cars set up laps while still burning off fuel was a loss to Renault. A heavier car would have meant a slower lap time in the next few minutes of the session. With about 7 minutes remaining the cars came in for a new set of rubber. Lap times and grid positions were tumbling. Felipe Massa was at the top of the time sheets when Schumacher set a fastest lap to take provisional pole with chequered flag already out. Kimi Raikonnen, still on his final flying lap took pole after going just 2 thousandths of a second faster than Michaeal Schumacher. Thats how close it was between the two drivers who can possibly be seen in the same team next year. Fernando Alonso was on 9th position when he started his flying lap just moments before the chequered flag came out. the Renault could go only 5th fastest. Massa finished third behind Nick Heidfeld.
The Renault driver, Fernando Alonso was later penalized by the race stewards after they received complaints from Felipe Massa about the spaniard blocking him on his flying lap. The current world champion would be starting from 10 place on sunday.
With very little clear-cut overtaking opportunities on the very narrow track of Monza, the grid positions will play and important role. The fastest race track on the Calendar surely brings some unique displays and events every year, and this one isnt expected to be a lot different. Tyres will play a vital role on this track. Michael will be running a car which has a race old engine while Alonso will be driving a brand new “improved version” of the Renault.
The race is going to be very interesting and competetive. Its impossible to write a script for this one. Its LIVE on Star Sports @17.30 PM IST.
Ferrari are red, Renault are blue
Massa won last time, Schumi lost too
Ferrari can bounce back
If they finish One-Two
(By ‘Colette Wong’, ESPN Star Commentator)
© 2006 Kamal Agarwal
Turkish Grand Prix 2006
Comments to come soon
2006 Grand Prix of Turkey – Qualifying
An all Ferrari front row in Istanbul but with one small difference. Its the other Ferrari at the head of the field. Felipe Massa claimed the first pole of his Formula 1 career on Saturday at the Istanbul Park. The second row was locked by the two Renaults with Fernando Alonso in third spot.
The Qualifying was not exciting in the beginning, but did keep the interest alive. In the closing stages of each of the sessions, there were some interesting changes in the driver standings. It appeared from the start that it was Michael Schumacher who will take the pole.
The first session was pretty dry. After a fairly long break of 3 weeks, the deserted look of the Istanbul Park circuit did not give a feeling of the glamour formula1 otherwise boasts of. Renaults were out on track pretty early trying to record a competetive lap time as early as possible, but the italian team on the other hand were in no hurry. Michael Schumacher set the fastest lap in this session but was shortly beaten by his team-mate. STR Cosworth and Super Aguri were out at the end of the first session and DC and Monteiro joined in. Fernando Alonso was nearly matching the two Ferraris but never went faster. The first session came to a pretty monotonous end.
The second session started with no real dramas. Robert Kubica showed great commitment in attcking the corners and was much talked about as he muscled his car around the Istanbul Park circuit. The Renault looked pretty unstable without the much talked about mass damping system. Vertical vibrations could be very clearly observed as the cars braked at the corners, thanks to the very bumpy nature of the track. The top 16 drivers looked a lot quicker with more rubber being laid on the track. Michael Schumacher set a scorcher of a lap in the 1 min 25 sec bracket. It was a full 1 second faster than Fernando Alonso. Felipe Massa could not match his team-mate’s performance and was 1.2 seconds slower. The dying stages of the second session was very exciting. With the chequered flag out and some of the drivers still on their flying lap, the lap times were still being recorded. Jenson Button sprung up a little surprise by going second fastest in the session. Mark Webber and Robert Kubica made it to the to 10 and consequently knocked Klein and De La Rosa out. Jarno Trulli, Nico Rosberg and Rubens Barrichello looked off pace in this session and could not get out of the relegation zone inspite of their efforts in the dying minutes of the 15 minute stint.
Final session as always started with the cars lined up on the pit lane exit. Neither Michael Schumacher, nor Alonso was to lead. All eyes were on the Scarlet cars. Michael Schumacher set the early pace but this was the period of burning off fuel. With 8 laps remaining in the session Fernando Alonso dived into the pits for new set of rubber. This ensured that he could have two attempts at recording the best lap time, it also left enough time for coming again into the pits for new set of tyres. All teams were thinking the same way. Most other drivers came into the pits separated by merely 10-15 seconds. On the next lap Michael came in and went out of the pits. He came out on a fairly empty piece of track with some traffic on another part of the track. For some strange problem still unknown, the german went back to the pits without recording any time. It very nearly came down to just one attempt with less time remaining for two runs for the best time. Just one chance to post a time, while currently being at 8th position, best lap time of the session came from Schumacher, but only 23 thousandths of a second faster than the previous best of his team-mate. Fernando Alonso had another go, but could not outpace the german driver. Felipe Massa put up a stunning lap time with only a minute remaining in thr session, and like the first session he went faster than his team-mate. It was Ferrari 1-2 but the Renaults were still on another final run after the chequered flag came out. There was no imporvement in the lap times. Schumacher could have easily gone for another flying lap but he decided otherwise. The Ferraris were separated by only 3 tenths of a second, thats how closely they are matched at Istanbul. Fisico showed concern about his car, which could be heard on the team radio. He was complaining of the non responsiveness of the engine. If there is a change in the engine, a ten place penalty is likely to spoil is race. Kimi Raikkonen would be disappointed with his performance. He lines up alongside the Hungarian GP winner Jenson Button on the 4th row. Ralf Schumacher and Nick Heidfeld would be pretty satisfied with their positions on the grid. Felipe Massa was surely elated. He is enjoying every moment with the Ferrari team, no matter what is the future this young, very talented driver.
My Predictions
First corner is going to be the most interesting as always. Michael followed by championship rival closely. Felipe Massa needs a good start and Michael needs to keep the door shut on the Renaults. Without the mass damping system the things would become a little difficult for the Blue Team. All eyes will be at the front of the grid and the first corner. Michael seems to have used one less set of tyres while qualifying and also run the minimum number of laps on saturday. No predictions for this race, yet again. Its going to be a very exciting race. Lot of drivers and teams to be watched on a dusty track with lots of overtaking opportunities. Its LIVE on Sunday on Star Sports @17.30 IST.
© 2006 Kamal Agarwal
Hungarian Grand Prix 2006
Comments and Reviews to come soon
The 2 second Penalty . Who’s playing dirty?
Time now to take a closer look
Time now to take a closer look
| Fernando Alonso recieves qualifying penalty 04 August 2006 Hungarian Grand Prix stewards penalised world champion Fernando Alonso for an incident involving Red Bull’s Robert Doornbos during Friday practice at the Hungaroring. Alonso gesticulated at Doornbos, whom he felt had held him up, and then appeared to deliberately weave and slow his Renault in front of the Dutchman’s car during the afternoon’s session.Stewards Tony Scott Andrews, Antonio Vasconcelos Tavares and Lajos Herczeg decided that Alonso’s actions were “unnecessary, unacceptable and dangerous”, and awarded him a one second time penalty to be applied to his fastest lap time in each of the qualifying sessions, Q1, Q2 and Q3. Additionally, Alonso received a similar penalty for overtaking another car after the session had finished, under waved yellow flags. He will thus get an aggregated cumulative penalty of two seconds in Q1, Q2 and Q3, effectively damning his chances on a circuit on which overtaking is virtually impossible. SOURCE : Official Formula1™ website |
Wow!! I thought there was a single incidence which cost Alonso a 2 second penalty in each of the qualifying sessions. Seems to be a little more complicated. Gestulating at a driver who will not even race with you later in the weekend, and that too in practice? Disgusting. This is not a sign of a driver who deserves to be on top. The sense of maturity has been missing in the Renault camp ever since they came into limelight.
| Schumacher gets two-second penalty
05 August 2006
Michael Schumacher has also been given a two-second penalty to be added to each of his qualifying laps after stewards found that he had passed two cars under red flags in this morning’s practice session.
The practice session was red-flagged when Button’s engine exploded and Schumacher was ruled to have overtaken other cars. The penalty means that both he and fellow championship rival Alonso will suffer the same qualifying penalty this afternoon. SOURCE: F1Racing.NET |
What is Schumi upto?
What has Schumacher done in Hungary? Friday practice saw Fernando Alonso being penalised for his act. Saturday practice brought trouble for the Ferrari driver. Was it deliberate? If this race had brought better result for Schumi with penalty only on Fernando, maybe the critics would have said that the German capitalized on his chance and the Hungarian Grand Prix was the turning point in the season. With a man like Michael Schumacher making a decision, you never know whats going to come up. Has it been like this ever before? Violation of rules from such a mature driver? Well, if he can park his car in the middle of the track in Monaco, he can also invite a penalty similar to the one given to Alonso. He likes to fight, and its better if its on track than behind the scenes. If this move was deliberate, it may cost Schumi the world championship. And if it has been just another chance that both the front runners got penalised in the same race, with exactly the same punishment, there is no luckier guy in Formula 1 than Fernando Alonso.
Well, what I thought changed when I came across this, and this is simply disgusting
| Schumi hints at foul play
05 August 2006
Michael Schumacher was happy with himself after minimising his two-second qualifying penalty to start tomorrow’s race from eleventh while championship rival Alonso will start from fifteenth. However, he seemed to suggest that Alonso played a part in his penalty and that it might not have been entirely fair play. “It was unrealistic for us to get into the top ten, although I wasn’t far off,” Schumacher said. “It’s okay and I guess worked out pretty well. Obviously you approach the session differently knowing you have the penalty but it worked out okay.”
On his penalty Schumacher said, “If you watch the pictures you can see what I did and understand why I did it and Fernando was certainly involved in that incident.” When asked whether he thought Alonso slowed down on purpose so that Schumacher had to pass him under red flags in practice the German replied, “You said that I didn’t.”
SOURCE : F1Racing.NET |
Talk about Renault and Fernando Alonso. To be honest, this isnt a surprise. Whenever the spaniard leads the race, and there is a safety car period, he unnecessarily slows down his car to force others to brake hard. He does this in order to control the pace of the race, when no overtaking is allowed while running behind the safety car. But, what he does in efect is upset the balance of the drivers behind him and force them to brake harder and scrub their tyres. He did exactly the same in Friday practice, the reason for which he was penalised. Its not funny to brake test the driver behind you, maybe he deserved a more severe punishment. When you are at such a high level of sporting you dont play dirty. Knowing that he had a 2 second penalty for every Qualifying session, he probably tried something similar in Saturday Practice. Maybe if the video clip of the incidence is sometime released, things become a little more clear. But I have every reason to believe that Fernando could have done that. He has picked up some traits from the team boss Flavio Braitore who needs to be suspended upside down from a support (wrapped up in a net) and laughed at as the race goes on.
Though the act of overtaking two cars during Red flags cannot be entirely due to Fernando Alonso, but it does appear that the Spaniard played it dirty. Renault will soon become famous for these actions. And it depends on you, how you see it. You can call them ways of gaining popularity or methods of become thoroughly unpopular.
The current track positions do not look good for both the drivers competing for championship, but its going to be interesting to see what strategy they adopt. The fight will be both on and off track. The Hungarian Grand Prix of 2006 is going to be a cracker. And who will watch at the front of the grid, my eyes will be on the drivers in 6th and 7th rows.
© 2006 Kamal Agarwal
Hungarian Grand Prix 2006, Qualifying
Dramas before the qualifying. The most exciting ever Q1 and Q2 sessions in The 2006 Championship. The current and the former world champion, were both penalised. A very strange penalty which is new in Formula 1. Maybe the FIA are trying to be a little more creative and dynamic with the changing times.
Dramas before the qualifying. The most exciting ever Q1 and Q2 sessions in The 2006 Championship. The current and the former world champion, were both penalised. A very strange penalty which is new in Formula 1. Maybe the FIA are trying to be a little more creative and dynamic with the changing times.
Q1 started as usual. This time another new face. A Polish driver in Formula 1™ for the first time, but the 21 year old has really impressed in his first race. The guy is brimmed with confidence and it never looked like he was racing for the first time in Formula 1. Absolutely no lack of commitment on the chicanes and no hesitation in using all the road on the exit. At the start of Q1, Steve Slator was doubtful that the two front runners after being penalised will not be able to make the cut to Q2. Things just dont work out that way with some back markers having technologically inferior machines. The difference of 2 seconds is easily manageable when you are competing against rookies driving a little crude cars (compared to Ferrari, McLaren and Renault…and maybe even the Toyotas, Williams and Hondas). Nico Rosberg was the only disappointment in session 1. Rest of the results were pretty much expected. Sakon Yamamoto has failed to make an impression. Frank Montagny was a much better driver in any race. If Super Aguri believe they can grow by giving chances to the japanese drivers, so be it. Michael was fastest yet again and was closely matched by his team-mate Massa. The Renault of Fernando Alonso seemed to have a lot of understear. The new mass damper system on the R26 doesnt seem to have made a big improvement in the pace.
The lap times were corrected after the offset of 2 seconds being added to the times of Michael Schumacher and Fernando Alonso. Still good enough to keep them into the top 16. Q2 was next and this time it did become clear that this was the last session for Micheal and Fernando. Amazing performance by Schumacher yet again, he recorded a lap time of 1 min 19.4 seconds. On provisional pole, it was still not enough for the team, the 2 second penalty would have decimated any efforts made by the driver and the pit crew. Stunning lap times by Jenson Button, Rubens Barrichello brought some confidence back in the Honda garage. Toyota as always were competitive and did not want to be left unnoticed. One big performer was the debutant Robert Kubica. Consistent lap times in the 1 min 20 sec bracket and no noticeable mistakes on track. Brilliant run. This guy has made a big impression in the first race and seems like he will come close to challenging the top runners very soon. Felipe Massa yet again matched his team-mate’s performance but looked contented with his performance. Kimi Raikkonen and Pedro de la Rosa were consistent with their performance and outperformed the Renault of Fisichella. The game was not over. Schumacher came on track once again, and yes this time with a new strategy. Scorcher of a lap clocking 1.18.875. Thats probably the quickest you can go in a car equipped with a 2.4 liter V8 engine on a 4.3 Km long race track of Hangaroring. It was time now for Fernando Alonso to give the final try. Big improvement in his lap time, but still half a second slower than Michael. Chequered flag was out about a minute before Alonso finished his lap, but no worries (“no worries at all” if you live in australia 
), the times count. P1 for Schumacher and P2 for Alonso.
), the times count. P1 for Schumacher and P2 for Alonso.
Q3 started without M. Schumacher and Fernando Alonso. The lap times were corrected yet again. With the 2 seconds added to the times of each of these two drivers they were sent back to 12th and 15th places respectively, and in the relegation zone, split by DC and Klien in the RBR Ferraris. Kubica was in top 10, what a performance from the test driver. Q3 started with Massa stuck somewhere in the middle of the pack. But the Ferrari was quick on the short straights and very stable while braking, two overtaking moves boosted the confidence of the Brazilian driver aiming for the first pole of his career. It was time to get some frech rubber and put some stunning lap times. Pit-stops were next. Massa came out and fast again. Very quick lap and looked like he will be on P1. More drivers came on and put some amazing lap times. Hondas and the Toyotas were very quick, but ahead of the field were McLaren. Raikkonen was closely matching the pace of Massa. A new set of tyres was needed now to make a further improvement. Massa later complained about cold tyres but the tyre lock-ups at the turns looked like mistakes to me. It was time now for the Ferrari driver to make a further improvement. With just one minute left as he started his flying lap, this was his final chance. Tyre lock-up on a right turn, missing of the apex and overshooting a corner cost him those vital seconds dearly. Still managed to make an improvement and keep the P1. But not for long, the flying Finn was eating up the track in his MP4-21. Nearly 3 tenths of a second faster than the Ferrari, McLaren suddenly looked like they got their maximum performance at the right time. A very smooth drive from the ICE MAN, and boy oh boy was he not delighted. Shy by nature, its not a common sight to see a finn putting both his hands in the air as he comes out of the cockpit after bringing his car to a halt.
In the next post I will take a closer look at some of the specific events. Time now for quick predictions.
Jenson button finshed 4th but will be penalised 10 places for an engine change. What can this do to the starting order at the back of the grid? From 4th to 14th for Button. Schumi moves onto 11th, followed by the two Red Bull racing cars, effectively 14th place will be for Fernando Alonso. But I am expecting that Button will be parking his Honda ahead of Alonso at the starting Grid. This would mean that Michael and Fernando will be separated by 3 cars. Doesnt look like much of a problem for the spaniard, he overtook three cars at Hockenheim before he reached the first corner. As always, the first turn will be very interesting. With the two champions at the back of the order, it becomes an all the more risky business. First corner always has some collisions and mishaps, hopefully it will be a little different at Hangaroring this time around. With the drivers like Klien, DC and Nick Heidfeld around, who have been involved in accidents in the last couple of races, things dont look very promising for the world champions.
Kimi has the best possible chance of the season with Michael and Fernando at the back of the grid. Once again it will be down to the pit stops and reliablity. He won here last year, can he do it again? Felipe Massa can look forward to his first ever grand prix victory and the Honda team can be a little more optimistic. Rest of the teams can hope to finish in points with the two front runners at the back. Running longer and minimising the pit stops will be the key on the track where overtaking is next to impossible. This race will be the most amazing race of the season , IF Schumacher and Alonso can manage to stay in the race till the end. Its LIVE on sunday on Star Sports @17.30 IST.
© 2006 Kamal Agarwal
Mobil 1 German Grand Prix 2006 , Hockenheim
Hat trick in 2006 for Micheal Schumacher, 100th Grand Prix Victory for Bridgestone, 1-2 for Ferrari, 14 finishers and the disqualification of the Midland F1 cars for using flexible rear wings. The Grand Prix of Germany brought more excitement and drama.
The start of the race was once again a near perfect one. Kimi Raikkonen rocketed from the start-finish line in his MP4-21, chased by the two Ferraris. Fernando Alonso carved his way through the traffic from 7th to 5th and nearly overtook his team-mate at the first turn. Yamamoto’s first Grand Prix did not bring a good result for him by any means. The car refused to run at the very start of the race. The Japanese driver managed to somehow complete one lap but not at race pace. Nico Rosberg’s misfortune continued in his home Grand Prix. The Williams driver crashed into the tyre wall on the very first lap. The McLaren of Kimi Raikkonen had already started to run away, but the Ferrari drivers were not going to let it disappear into the distance. The top three runners put some amazing lap times. On the second lap of his second race of 2006, Pedro de la Rosa pulled off the racing line. It was later discovered that the fuel pump failure brought an end to the hopes of the second McLaren. There was a question mark on the race leader Kimi Raikkonen’s car. Reliability has always been an issue with McLaren. Had it not been for the same mistakes the team has made, Kimi could have easily split the two Ferraris at Hockenheim. An expected very early pit stop for the only McLaren left on track handed over the race lead to Ferrari of Michael Schumacher. The right rear wheel nut refused to come off the McLaren of Kimi. One pit stop cost the time of two for the McLaren team.
It was time for the rest of the runners to think about the pit stops. Jenson Button was the first one to make a scheduled pitstop. As always Felipe Massa’s Ferrari was the first to make the pit stops out of the two cars of the team. Schumacher and Alonso stopped on the same lap. The race began to stabalize. Fernando alonso found him out of the championship points at one stage, but things never go wrong for him. The car in front will have some problems if he has some fight to put up, that is how lucky he is. The race progressed with the Honda of Rubens Barrichello breaking down yet again. Jack Villeneuve went onto the dirty side of the track in an attempt to overtake and spun off the track to crash into the tyre wall. It was game over for the BMW Sauber’s only car left on track. Jenson Button looked strong in the 4th position. Ralf Schumacher who was running ahead of both the Renaults, was penalized for speeding in the pit lane. Any drivers’ loss is Alonso’s gain. Later in the race, Fisico who was running well ahead of Alonso went onto the grass and lost his position to his team-mate. The Italian driver came close to overtaking Alonso but did not make a move which was pretty much expected. Had another driver got past Alonso, the current world champion would have lost vital championship points.
The race started to unfold with another pit stop session. The Ferraris stopped for the second time and it looked like they will have to stop once again to make it to the chequered flag. Kimi had to stop three times no matter how hard he tried. The tight and twisty circuit of Hockenheim does not spare the tyres one little bit. Mark Webber who was running very strong and in front of Alonso, retired with a mechanical failure. Bitter disappointment for the Williams driver. One more position gain for Fernando Alonso.
Ferrari sprung up a little surprise while running the last 10 laps on an economy drive. The team decided not to go for another stop, even though they were running slower than the main competitors. McLaren of Raikkonen was a mere 25 seconds behind but this did not seem to bother the Prancing Horse. Both the Ferraris did lap after lap and brought the cars home. A sweet one-two finish. Kimi finished third. Its great to see a driver or McLaren standing on the podium in Germany. Celebrations for Ferrari had just begun and the team really deserved it. The Bridgestones have played a vital role in this victory. The tyre war has been on from the start of the season. And Michelin have not been able to match Bridgestones on more than a couple of occasions. Fernando Alonso finished 5th behind Jenson Button’s Honda. Fisico followed his team-mate.
The Victory is secured
Time to celebrate with team-mate
“Get outta here, I know how to do it”, the ICE MAN is simply great
Enjoyment Matters !!
The numbers say it all
The gap between Schumacher and the reigning world champion has now come down to 11 points. And the constructors championship is becoming more and more interesting with Renault clear of Ferrari by just 10 points. The things can go either way, and it seems the fight will go all the way down to the 18th race of the season. Michael will be on attack again in Hungary. Renault may be able to use a technological tool to their advantage although the decision on the use of mass-dampers in Formula1 is still under discussion. This one race can cause a big difference as far as the championship goes. But yet again, if someone benefits from all the happenings here and there , it has to be Renault and Fernando Alonso. Every race from now on will become more exciting. The fight for the championship is on. And I dont want to see a repeat of the last year’s events with Kimi just failing to clinch the championship. That was a perfect example of how fortunes can turn. The celebrations of Renault after McLaren’s failures were the worst sites to see in 6 years of Formula1 I have been watching.
Its all set for Hangaroring. The rest of the season is surely going to bring some more excitement and drama. Qualifying is LIVE from Budapest on saturday @ 17.30 hours IST on Star Sports.
© 2006 Kamal Agarwal
