Austin Grand Prix : Race review

With one race to go Sebastian Vettel remains in the driving seat of the world Championship, he  finished 2^nd to McLaren’s Lewis Hamilton, with Fernando Alonso coming  home 3^rd.

Lewis Hamilton enjoying his victory. Image :Robert Galbraith/ Reuter

This is the first time these 3 drivers, who are arguably the most talented drivers of the decade, have shared the same podium.

The State-side spectacle was only available on Sky with highlights on the BBC after the event,  the familiar voice of Martin Brundle took Sky’s viewers through the inaugural Texas Grand Prix.

Drivers love the circuit of the Americas, designer Herman Tilke has taken inspiration from of some of F1’s greatest corners.  The first section includes a blind apex on the first corner and then a “snake section”, where the track veers from side to side, Jenson Button said of the circuit “Turns 2-9 were the best corners I’ve ever driven.”

Vettel performed his usual trick of leading from the front, until with 13 laps to go Lewis Hamilton  soared past  him,  the Red Bull man couldn’t get back past  Hamilton despite  driving the fastest laps of the race on the final lap, leaving the Englishmen to take  his 4^th win of the season and the 21^st of his career.

Watch the moment Hamilton overtook Vettel here

incidently there is a great article on the BBC from chief F1 writer, Andrew Benson, analysing  who is the more worthy recipient of their 3^rd world title, you can read the article here.

Ferrari caused controversy by deliberately breaking the seal on Felipe Massa’s gearbox, in order  to push Alonso further up the grid, it also put  the Spaniard on the clean side of the track, giving him a better chance of catching Vettel and taking points from him.

This weekend,Red Bull  became only the fourth team to win three  constructor titles consecutively, an impressive feat to quote Adrian Newey for a team that came from “ the ashes of Jaguar.”

Looking ahead to what promises to be an absolute gem of a race in Brazil, Alonso needs win with Vettel lower than 4^{th ,}  to come second  with  Vettel lower than 7^th  or  3^rd   with Vettel lower than 9^th .

With rain predicted anything could happen and it probably will,  one thing for sure it’ going to be a fantastic finale.

Championship standings with one race to go are as follows : Vettel 273  Alonso 260 Raikkonen 206 for full standings click here

Abu Dhabi – Race Review

Vettel was demoted to back of the grid after failing to provide a fuel sample in qualifying. Alonso started 7^th in what was arguably the best race of the season.

image courtesy of YMC

They don’t do things by half in Abu Dhabi and the Yas Marina circuit looks resplendent in the dusk, as Sebastian Vettel carved up the field, In what was easily the most entertaining race this year.

He completed a spectacular drive and ensured his advantage in the Championship by clinching the final podium spot, one position behind his nearest challenger Fernando Alonso.

There are hints of Monaco in the Abu Dhabi circuit, the track flows under the 5* Yas Viceroy hotel, and the pit lane exit is similarly unique, the drivers exiting  down a steep hill and coming out onto turn 3 which is a  nice touch.

Mark Webber, surely the unluckiest man in Formula 1, got  tagged by Paul di Resta mid-way through the race and that was his afternoon over through no fault of his own. Though he also touched wheels with Pastor Maldanardo and  Felipe Massa during his brief sojourn on the track.

Most people who know me will tell you that  I’m not Lewis Hamilton’s biggest fan (or even his smallest fan), but  even I have to admit he was very mature  today, shaking the hands of his pit crew after retiring early with a power failure, having dominated pace wise all weekend.

Raikkonen won the race in style, after a strong start he shot up the grid,  all the while  Team Lotus on were on the radio, telling him to keep them updated on his tyre conditions, his response  of “ leave me alone I know what I’m doing”,  bought a smile to many faces.

Quotes wise that was just the start of an eventful weekend, with both Kimi Raikkonen and Sebastian Vettel managing to swear live on BBC television, during the post-race interview.

When David Coulthard attempted to interview Raikkonen, who is a man of few words at the best of times, the Fin gave him the short shrift muttering “you were giving me shit for not smiling enough last time.”

Similarly when asked about keeping his title lead after starting from the back of the grid, Vettel replied “it was chance to fuck it up and we didn’t do that.”

To be honest, though I’m sure much will be made of it on television, It was refreshing to see a bit of colour from the drivers, who are usually so restricted in what they can and can’t say.

Though I’m sure Bernie Ecclestone will be having a few quiet words with all the drivers to ensure that similar slips of tongue don’t happen again.

Championship standings: for full standings click here

Sebastian Vettel   255  Fernando Alonso 245    Kimi Raikkonen 198

Adrian Newey: Designer Extraordinaire

Probably the single most talented designer F1 has ever seen, Adrian Newey has risen from humble beginnings in Stratford-upon-Avon to become the worlds one of the most Famous designers, the 53-year-old Southampton University Graduate has an amazing 8 championship winning cars under his belt.

He is Currently the Chief Technical Officer at Red Bull Racing,(image on left courtesy of Zimbio.com) who are well on their way to winning their 3rd consecutive World Championship with Sebastian Vettel.

His first world title came back in 1990’s after he formed a formidable partnership at Williams with a certain Patrick Head. Nigel Mansell (whose own page is coming late next week) delivered the goods in 1992 followed by Alain Prost in 1993.

He moved to Mclaren in 1997 and had great success with Mika Hakkinen sweeping to 2 consecutive titles ( 1998 and 1999) Newey designed a championship winning car at the first time of asking for the Woking based team. It’s this ability and a talent to design cars that sail incredibly close to the wind in terms of legality( the Red Bull RB7 front wing springs to mind here) that make him one of the most revered technical men in Formula 1.

From 1992 to 2004 Newey, a man who starts every design on paper, engineered an incredible six World Championship winning cars under four different drivers. A feat only beaten by Ferrari’s Rory Byrne who designed the car for all 7 of Michael Schumacher’s Championships.

He then moved to Red Bull whose dominance has been complete for the last 3 years, down in no small notion to Newey’s daring designs.

Quite a short post and probably quite an unexpected one for a lot of people.

The only man ever to win Constructors Championships with 3 different team,s but Newey’s genius often gets overlooked. With Sebastian Vettel poised to become a treble world champion, I though it apt to take a look at the man who brought them to him.

If this interested you have a look at this gem of an article on formulaone.com,  published just after Adrian received his OBE for services to Motersport in April.

The Season So Far

Image :www.f1.com – Vettel celebrates in Bahrain

If you’ve been living on Mars or perhaps the Outer Hebrides since March, here is my handy guide to how the 2012 season has panned out so far.

Australia

Mclaren dominant, Button led from the front, drive of the day from Pastor Maldonado  who was 5^th  until a last lap crash.

Malaysia

Alonso wins in a rain soaked Sepang,  21 year old Mexican Sergio Perez an impressive second, Button crashed into a HRT , Hamilton gets his second pole position of the season and finishes 3^rd.

China

Rosberg wins an entertaining GP by 22 seconds, his Mercedes team mate, Michael Schumacher was also on the pace but had to retire after an error from his pit crew. Vettel qualified 11^th and worked his way up to 5^th , Button and Hamilton were 2^nd and 3^rd respectively.

 Bahrain

There was doubt that this race would even go ahead due to the unstable political position of the country. These doubts were compounded when the Force India team were attacked by petrol bombs. The Red Bulls of Vettel and Webber looked strong while the McLaren’s were way off the pace; tyre strategy looks to be even more crucial than ever this season. Vettel wins and Lotus gain a double podium with Kimi Raikkonen and Romain  Grosjean coming 2^nd  and 3^rd . Schumacher hauled himself up from 10^th to 22^nd and the Williams team see a double retirement after a double points finish in China.

Spain

Lewis Hamilton was at the centre of yet more controversy as his pole sitting car was moved to the back of the grid after it was found to not have enough fuel. Pastor Maldanardo wins on Frank Williams 70^th Birthday. Alonso 2^nd at his home Grand Prix, the Lotus’s of Raikkonen and Grosjean finished 3^rd and 4^th.  So far ,5 races 5 different winners.

 Monaco

Michael Schumacher grabs pole but gets a 5 place grid penalty . Webber wins, being pushed all the way by Rosberg ,Mark Webber backgflips into the Red Bull pool in celebration –  a 3^rd victory here in 3 years for Red Bull.

 Canada

Hamilton makes it 7 winners in 7 in what is becoming the best start to an F1 season in living memory. Grosjean takes 2^nd with Perez climbing from 15^th to clinch 3^rd and the drive of the day.Three  points separate the top 3 drivers.

Lewis Hamilton 88 Fernando Alonso 86 Sebastian Vettel 85

 Valencia

Alonso wins from 11^th after a cut and thrust Grand Prix in the Mediterranean, multiple crashes and punctures provided the  afternoons drama , Pastor Maldanardo  ended up T boning Lewis Hamilton in the penultimate lap after being forced  almost of the track by the McLaren driver. Kimi Raikkonen 2^nd and Schumacher 3^rd after starting 12^th.

Fernando Alonso 111 Mark Webber 91   Lewis Hamilton 88

Silverstone

It was a  rain addled weekend as Ferrari and Red Bull shared the spoils on the podium ( Webber, Alonso , Vettel). With the Lotus Renault of Kimi Raikkonen and Romain Grosjean  scoring a solid 5^th and 6^th position, Mclaren’s lack of pace was evident as Button and Hamilton sunk to 8^th and 10^th respectively.

Fernando Alonso 129  Mark Webber 116 Sebastian  Vettel 100

German Grand Prix

 Alonso takes his 3^rd victory of the season  with Vettel coming second and a rejuvenated Jensen Button  taking 3^rd ( later promoted to 2^nd ) after Sebastian Vettel was penalised for being off the Circuit during an overtaking manoeuvre  while passing Jenson Button. Lewis Hamilton was forced to retire after gearbox damage and veteran Michael Schumacher grabbed the fastest lap of the day  completing  a  1.18 725 lap on his home circuit.

Fernando Alonso 154  Mark Webber 120 Sebastian Vettel 110

Hungarian Grand prix

Hamilton gains his second victory of the season after retiring from his 100^th race in Germany, the Brit held of challenges from both Lotus drivers to take victory at the Hungororing . Alonso finished 5^th  but stretched his  Championship lead to 40 points after Vettel could only manage 8^th.

Fernando Alonso- 164   Mark Webber  124  Sebastian Vettel -110

Belgian Grand Prix

The first race back after the mid season break went off with a  bang as Romain Grosjean caused a huge  shunt at the first corner of the Spa circui, leaving Hamilton and Alonso both out of the race ( the Frenchman was later banned for one race and fined €50,000 after being found to have caused 7 first lap collisions in 12 races .)

There was also a memorable 4 way duel for the final podium position between Schumacher, Raikkonen, Hulkenburg and Webber. Jenson Button qualified on pole for the first time in 5o races and led from the front, while World Champion Sebastian Vettel made his way from 10^th on the grid to 2^nd .

Fernando Alonso-164  Sebastian Vettel -140 Mark Webber 132

Italian Grand Prix

Hamilton led from the  front in an exciting affair in Monza, moving into second in the Championship in the process, Sergio Perez was an impressive 2^nd after qualifying 12^th  for Sauber team that have come a long way this year. Sebastian’ Vettels 2^nd alternator failure of the weekend put him out of contention and dropped him out of the Championships top 3. Tyre choices were the words on everyone’s lips this weekend, as smart tactics from Perez  enabled him to switch to the faster medium tyres in the last six laps of the race.

Fernando Alonso 179  Lewis Hamilton 121 Kimi Raikkonen 141

Singapore grand prix

 World Champion Sebastian Vettel dominated the seasons only night race from start to finish, in what is was also the final street race of the season. Lewis Hamilton’s gearbox failure realistically ended his chances of a second World Title, Button was second and Alonso third, followed by a very impressive 4^th position by Scot Paul Di Resta , who is tipped to move to McLaren next season.  It was another consistent performance from the Lotus team claiming 6^th and 7^th positions and cementing themselves as the fourth team in Formula 1.

Fernando Alonso-  194 Sebastian Vettel -165  Kimi Raikkonen- 149

Japanese Grand Prix

Michael Schumacher announced his retirement for the second time at the beginning of the weekend, the 43 year who has won two world titles at Suzuka could only finish 11^th. It was a dream day for Red Bull as Vettel romped to victory from pole closing the gap on Alonso to just 4 points. The Ferrari driver was forced to retire after the first lap due to a puncture, his teammate Felipe Massa finished 2^nd. Sauber’s Kamui Kobayahsi became the only the third Japanese driver to achieve a podium place, his victory  even sweeter as it came in front of his home fans.

Fernando Alonso 194 Sebastian Vettel 190 Kimi Raikkonen 157

Next Up : The Korean GP: Issues of Eastward Expansion