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A very deep and big move

picture courtesy of Red Bull Media.

The hot and thrilling Bahrain weekend Grand Prix, Things are beginning to become even more interesting, with the pole position of Valtteri Bottas and the increasing fight for the title between Mercedes and Ferrari, the attention focused towards Mclaren Honda’s performance, still poor, but that unexpected announcement from the team that Fernando Alonso will race in the Indy 500! In fact, according to the team announcement, the Woking based team, helped by team Andretti, will be on the Indianapolis circuit grid with Alonso, who obviously will miss the Monaco Grand Prix, held on the same weekend. To the joy of many enthusiastic fans all over the world, he will be replaced for the Monaco race by the comeback kid Jenson Button. For sure this move is an incredible marketing one. Everybody will gain something from that, Indy car will have a double F1 world champion on the grid, which will no doubt attract many of Alonso’s and F1 fans to the world-famous race, the Monaco race will have a refreshing moment seeing Jenson Button on the grid, the 2009 world champion, who is missed by all the paddock,. Both teams but mostly Mclaren will have a very big audience focused on them. So, yes, it’s all so promising. But there are some questions that come to my mind and maybe to yours too? We start with Fernando: will he test the Indycar before the race weekend? If yes, when and where? It’s clear that Indy car is very different from an F1 car and the kind of race too. Not forgetting all the different rules the Indy car series has. Can Fernando learn so many things in only one month? It will be very interesting to follow how Alonso will arrive at the Indy 500, I am curious. What about Jenson Button? You may think he will have an easier job to do. No way!! F1 has changed a lot since he left. A very different car will await him in Monaco. So I may have the same questions for him. Will he test the car before the Grand Prix? if yes, where and when? Anyway, for Jenson it will be a sort of homecoming. (He lives in Monaco!) He won’t have difficulties learning the circuit or the rules. But I really hope he will find a better car. Unfortunately, Mclaren Honda is still struggling with their chronic problems. Alonso will start from 15th place on the grid, an engine change due to a failure didn’t allow to the Spaniard to take part to the Q2. So, Alonso will compare the in best and the worst of a great motorsport brand: Honda. It will be interesting and maybe it will remind many people how strong Honda is in racing, as they showed for many years in the US series. Fernando will race in the elite, in the delta Honda racing. This makes me very happy: giving Honda the right value it deserves. With F1 the world is receiving the wrong message of what Honda is. Anyway, it seems all the world is waiting for the Mclaren Honda renaissance. Maybe the Indy 500 and Monaco Grand Prix could be a turning point for Mclaren Honda, for Alonso and for Button. Each of them has to demonstrate and gain something, Or more simply, all will remain the same, and the most important races of the year on the two sides of the world will be the only two bright stars in a dark night. We’ll see. For now, we keep all the emotions and vibes waiting for those moments and we wait for the answers we need.

Massimo Trapanese, F1 correspondent

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Haas F1 Bahrain Grand Prix Review

Picture courtesy of HAAS F1

The sun dropped, the lights glowed and things were a little windy in the Arabian desert as twilight hours hit for one the aesthetically pleasing but quite soulless and empty atmosphere of the Bahrain Grand Prix. Still, at least the racing is usually good around the 5.412 kilometer (3.363 mile) circuit, and it didn’t let down this time either.
Romain Grosjean, who donned a special golden flaked helmet to replace the usual bright orange accents for the occasion, and Kevin Magnussen both started on the Pirelli P Zero Red supersoft tyres.
Starting in 20th and rising to as high as 15th after the start Magnussen went off at Turn 8 on lap 9 bringing out the caution flags temporarily. Electronic issues cut the cars power supply meaning he had no choice but to stop the car.
Grosjean meanwhile started 9th and held position until a short caution on lap 10 after Lance Stroll was hit by Carlos Sainz. Sainz, who’s been talked about as a possible Ferrari replacement or someone who deserved Bottas’ Mercedes seat, crashed into Stroll coming out of the pits in what was a widely and loudly recognized fault of Sainz by the racing community and stewards who handed him a 3-place penalty for the next round in Sochi, Russia. Shortly thereafter Max Verstappen went off on lap 15 in apparent brake failure, not a huge lock up, we are told. This made for just the 3rd safety car in Bahrain history (I still can’t believe that stat no matter how many times I hear it).
At the restart on lap 16 Grosjean was between the two Force India’s defending from Estaban Ocon while trying to overtake Perez in front. After his second and final stop Grosjean was again on P Zero Red supesofts. On lap 38 Grosjean caught the Toro Rosso of Dannil Kvyat from P9 on the pit straight and overtook him on the inside of Turn 1 getting him into his finishing position of 8th and giving him 4 points in the WDC.
“It was a pretty good race…we had bad luck with the safety car, as we’d pitted just before. I saw Perez come out and I thought, ‘How did he come out in front of me when he’d been 10 seconds behind?’…At the restart I struggled a little bit with top speed. But, eventually we made the right strategy call and pushed on good laps with some great overtaking maneuvers.”
– Romain Grosjean
“Conditions until then [electrical DNF] were pretty good..It would have been a good race. I just look forward now and am happy with the car. It’s running in the points and qualifying in Q3.”
– Kevin Magnussen
It’s a relief the teams arguably #1 driver has gotten points you definitely don’t want your strongest driver to become frustrated which Grosjean is prone to do, but Magnussen is quietly been proving he is a good racer despite the reputation bouncing from team to team has given him. Haas need to make a double points finish quickly to help themselves out later in the season when things may get close. VF17 performance is still obviously very strong but the reliability is a question mark.
Haas will head to Sochi Russia next for the 4th Round of the FIA Formula 1 World Championship starting with FP1 on April 28th.

Jeremiah Doctson

 

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Totally Toro Rosso in Bahrain

Quick recap from the Chinese GP, it started off damp and slippery. It was a mixed weekend for the drivers with Sainz finishing an amazing P7 and Kvyat having a car failure.
Moving on to Bahrain, which is a back to back weekend on the calendar, which is hard for teams as they have FP1 just 5 days after the last GP and have to work quickly on Sunday night to get the equipment packed and ready weekend ahead.
Kvyat said “This is a twilight race, the challenging part is always the start, the sun can sometimes still be too bright for your eyes dazzling. I like hot races like Bahrain, especially for its unusual night atmosphere. Also, I love the hotel we stay at because you can play tennis do jet skiing and some sunbathing, the beach is very clean. Very nice to be here racing at night is exciting”.
Sainz Said “It’s very frustrating to not have finished a race in Bahrain yet. In both cases, I remember doing qualifying very well and good starts but that’s it. We normally like to go karting on the small track next to the circuit, its great fun”. He says “It’s a similar weekend to China as you get very little practice as FP1 and FP3 are run in the day when it very hot and data has nothing to do with what the conditions will be like in qualifying and the race”.
On Thursday the boys joined the Red Bull Racing boys for a little filming clip of them having a typical Bahraini breakfast in a tent at a beachside hotel.
Moving on, Friday and the heat and sunlight of FP1, Kvyat setting 1.34.8 and Sainz a 1.36.0 but these times are not important as the qualifying and FP2 are run at night when the temperature is a lot cooler. FP2 Kvyat got a 1.32.7 while Sainz got a 1.34.0 before breaking down, only completing 5 laps in the most important practice session.
Saturday, as normal, saw FP3 and qualifying. Starting off with FP3 Sainz P9 with a 1.33.6 and Kvyat a 1.33.7 so close between them in that session. Qualifying arrived and it was a mixed session with Sainz getting eliminated in Q1 because of a second car failure of the weekend which meant he would be starting the race in P16. Kvyat managed to get his car to P11 which is not all bad because it makes him the first car with a free tyre choice.
Race day, with not a car starting in the top 10, its the lowest grid slots of the season so far. The race did not go to plan either with Sainz colliding into the Williams of Stroll as he was exiting the pits, which put him out the race and gave him a three-place grid drop for the Russian GP, the other side of the garage was not smiling after finishing in P12, meaning they didn’t score points for the first time in 2017.
After the race, Kvyat said “I thought after lap 1 my race was over, I had no grip and went off track after a misunderstanding with another car. Today was not my day we can’t afford situations like this as the midfield battle is very tight and we lost a bit of ground today. I look forward to the next race in Russia my home GP, in front of my fans hopefully we can get the car working and battle for points”
Sainz said “Today we had to start from p16 but I managed to get up to p11 during lap 1, but the weekend ended up with a DNF, but weekends like this happen we’ve had ours. let’s move on and get back on track for the next one and get back into the points and catch up with our rivals.”

Picture courtesy of Red Bull Media
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F2 Bahrain.

Yesterday we saw one of the best races of the season so far and maybe one of the best races we will see all year.
The race was completely ruled by one man, he appeared to be in a completely different class to the rest of the field. You would expect little else from a Ferrari driver, but this race was exceptional.
At the end of the race as he jumped out of his car, parked in the winner’s spot underneath the podium, you could see exactly what it meant to him.
The win had been hard fought but it was down to pure skill and driver talent. At the post-race press conference, the looks on the faces of the second and third placed drivers told the whole picture. They knew they had been beaten by talent and skill alone. The winner was simply better than them.
Whilst this was indeed the scene at the Bahrain International Circuit, it was not the scene from the Formula 1 race. The race of the season had occurred mere hours before the lights went out and Bottas appeared to squander his best chance yet of a race victory.
It was in the F2 Sprint Race that Charles Leclerc destroyed the competition. It wasn’t a lights-to-flag domination which got everyone talking about it, but a display of over-taking and risk-taking which worked out so well for the young Ferrari driver.
After a competitive start and a safety car period, the front of the race was looking tight. Laps 7 to 14 saw the battle for the lead change hands and Leclerc take control. The sprint race is only 23 laps long, so when you are in the lead after 14 of them, you can feel some sense of the impending victory.
Just hang on for 9 more laps and the win is yours.
Or do as Charles Leclerc and his Prema Racing decided to do and pit for fresh tyres. To the outside it was not the logical choice. Not just to pit from the lead, but to even think about changing tyres in a 23-lap sprint race.
He came out of the pits in 14th and 24-seconds behind the leading car. 24 seconds in 9 laps is just under 3 seconds a lap plus the over-taking. It’s not the best-looking calculation a racing driver could face.
It took no time for Leclerc to be back up in the top three and harrying the leading pair of Rowland and Ghiotto. It took the last two laps and a brave dive up the inside to claim the lead, before extending his margin to 1.5 seconds before crossing the finishing line.
It’s not often that you will see the leading car dropping back to 14th and then over-taking the field for the win. We can remember Jensen in Canada performing such heroics, but it just happens so rarely that when it does it deserves to be applauded.
It doesn’t matter to us that the best race of the weekend was a support race, or that another Ferrari driver won. The racing was what grabbed our attention and we felt truly spoilt by Leclerc’s skill and ability.
If Kimi hangs on for another year and Leclerc keeps his form, there could be an outstanding up-and-coming young driver sitting opposite Vettel in the garage.

Picture courtesy of F2
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Haas F1 Bahrain Grand Prix Preview

Formula 1 travels from the far to Middle East for Round 3 of the FIA World Championship in Bahrain. The tiny Country tucked on the East border of Saudi Arabia will play host at its 5.412 kilometer (3.363 mile), 15 turn circuit. Many heavy braking zones and several long straights, run off areas are plentiful and the circuit itself is very wide which will hopefully lead to great battles. However, sweltering dry heat and conditions which can be quite sandy at times will test the reliability (and grip) of the cars and perseverance of drivers throughout the weekend.

In 2016, the teams first season, Haas made their best finish of 5th place in the Bahrain desert, causing Grosjean to say it was “The American dream!” over team radio at the end of the race. The 5th place finish preceded didn’t translate into similar results for the rest of that season, but Grosjean, and the team are looking to repeat the performance and build on their first points finish last race in China that put them 7th in the Constructors World Championship ahead of Renault, Sauber and McLaren. Grosjean 19-11 Magnussen finished 8.

Adding to the teams best finish of 5th at Bahrain in 2016 Grosjean also has two back to back podium finishes in 2012 & 2013 with Lotus finishing 3rd in each out of his 5 Formula 1 starts in Bahrain. The track seems to suit the Frenchman who is probably nearing frustration with his lack of points after a DNF in Australia and a strong drive from 19th to 11th just outside of the points in China.
“Bahrain is not a circuit that looks very technical from a paper point of view, but I love driving it every year….turns 9 & 10 are pretty tricky. That’s the braking going downhill and there’s a lot of g-forces and front locking, with tricky traction on exit. That’s the place where you really need to focus” Grosjean said.

Magnussen meanwhile has two starts, one with McLaren in 2014 and the other with Renault in 2016 where he made his best finish of 11th coming back from dead last of 22nd on the grid.
“I’d say turns 11, 12, and 13 are cool.” Magnussen said. It’s a track with some good braking zones, fast chicanes and medium speed corners. It’s quite fun.”

Pirelli are brining three tire compounds to the Bahrain circuit this weekend; P Zero White mediums, Yellow softs, and Red supersofts. The P Zero White mediums may be the most suited to Bahrain, from Pirelli; “less grip, less wear (used for long race stints). This is Pirellis most balanced tire, with an ideal compromise between performance and durability. It’s extremely versatile, but often it comes into it’s own on circuits that tend towards high speeds high temperatures, and high-energy loadings. It is a low range working compound.”

I believe Haas are going to preform well this weekend, the VF 17, if it’s predecessor is any indication, will preform well, the circuit may be one of Romain Grosjeans strongest and Magnussen is on form after a confidence building 8th place finish in China. The VF 17 is ready for it’s first performance of the season under the bright lights in the desert

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Haas F1 Chinese Grand Prix Review

Image courtesy of HAAS F1

Haas F1 have gotten their first points in China. After predictions of a chaotic rain filled race the Chinese Grand Prix was would start damp with plenty of dry patches, starting all drivers but one Carlos Sainz on green intermediate tires which would create a forgettable start for the him. Romain Grosjean P17 and Kevin Magnussen P12 opted instead for the green P Zero intermediates. Two laps in after a decent strat for both cars, Lance Stroll was knocked out of the race by Sergio Perez bringing out the Virtual Safety Car. Haas brought both drivers in, Magnussen in front, for Red supersofts. Track conditions remained wet though and another crash on the damp pit straight ended Antonio Giovinazzis forgettable weekend and brought a physical safety car.
Magnussen remained on track in P12 while Grosjean farther back and with less to lose pitted for Yellow softs and returned to track under full green in P17 behind the Renault of Jolyn Palmer. By lap 28 he had passed Palmer and several other cars to gain to P13 putting him one position behind his team mate Magnussen who returned from the pits from his final stop for new P Zero Red supersofts. Grosjean too made his final stop on lap 36 also for a set of Red supersofts and rejoined the track P13 again this time behind Nico Hulkenberg. He passed the German two laps later on lap 38 and to prove the Frenchman’s determination and pace Grosjean hunted down the Williams of Felipe Massa 15 laps later and took P11 from the experienced and on form driver cleanly around the slow turn 2 finishing him just outside of the points.
With a strong VF17 under him Magnussen was able to salvage the teams weekend with an exclamation point overtaking both Mercedes powered Force India cars. First Ocon on lap 40 then and catching Perez at the end of the long back straight for P8 where he finished giving himself and the team 4 points in the World Championship putting them 4 behind 6th place Williams who also had one car DNF. We now have one example (since we will not make any permanent conclusions here yet) that the Ferrari power of the VF17 and its chassis design is on par with if not outperforming the Mercedes power of the Williams and Force India.
It’s unfortunate Grosjean was not in a better position at the start and was so close to a double points finished for the team, but as he said after being forced to lift on the penultimate corner of his qualifying lap due to Giovinazzi’s crash “When it’s not your day, it’s not your day”. Haas F1 will go to Bahrain next, the sight of the team’s best ever finish of P5 with Romain Grosjean in 2016 for Formula 1’s first back to back weekend of the season. Haas are now in 7th in the Constructors Championship and the team need to focus all out on a double points finish for this weekend to remain close in the WCC with Williams and avoid being left behind by the rest of the midfield with the pointless Sauber, McLaren and Renault.

 

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Talking Points: Chinese Grand Prix

 

Shanghai International Circuit, Shanghai, China.
Sunday 09 April 2017.
World Copyright: Andy Hone/LAT Images
ref: Digital Image _ONZ6440

The headlines following Sunday’s Chinese Grand Prix were all about the tie between Sebastian Vettel and Lewis Hamilton at the top of the 2017 World Drivers’ Championship. But what else did we learn from F1’s weekend in Shanghai?

The championship will continue to swing

After the first couple of races we were all hoping to get a clearer picture of whether Mercedes or Ferrari would be the team to beat in 2017. But if the Chinese Grand Prix is anything to go by, the answer to that question looks like it will continue to change from race to race.

According to Shanghai’s long straights and Lewis Hamilton’s two 2017 pole positions, it would appear Mercedes still enjoys enough of an advantage in pure engine power that it should have the edge around the likes of Spa, Suzuka, and the newer Tilkedromes. But when it comes to street and chassis-dependant circuits like Barcelona and Singapore, Ferrari’s better handling will make all the difference in race trim.

Add to that the usual variables of reliability, weather and individual driver performance, and the result should be a title battle that keeps on pitching from one camp to the next.

Shanghai International Circuit, Shanghai, China.
Saturday 08 April 2017.
World Copyright: Andy Hone/LAT Images
ref: Digital Image _ONY5020

The driver market is taking shape

It’s never too early to start talking about silly season. We may have only just finished the second of twenty races, but already certain drivers are coming to the fore as potential linchpins in this year’s contract negotiations.

Carlos Sainz was one of those whose CV enjoyed some added sparkle in Shanghai, as he ran in sixth place and within touching distance of the leading pack for most of the race; likewise, his compatriot Fernando Alonso’s efforts in hauling his MCL32 into the points before retiring looked every bit a sales pitch to the likes of Mercedes in the final year of his McLaren contract.

On the other end of the spectrum, Jolyon Palmer had yet another dismal weekend in China, and was shown up considerably by qualifying eleven places behind teammate Hülkenberg. Nor will Valtteri Bottas be particularly pleased with his Shanghai performance—once again the Finn was too easily muscled out at the start by Vettel, which is a trend he cannot allow to continue if he wants to remain with Mercedes beyond the terms of his current one-year deal.

Albert Park, Melbourne, Australia.
Sunday 26 March 2017.
World Copyright: Sam Bloxham/LAT Images
ref: Digital Image _J6I4837

Ferrari needs new blood

Another driver feeling the pressure after China is surely Kimi Räikkönen. Whilst his teammate was carving through the Red Bulls and chasing down Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari’s Flying Finn spent most of the Chinese Grand Prix cruising some way off the leaders, seemingly unable to affect any of the passes that Vettel made look so easy.

Now that Ferrari is in a position to win races and fight for the championship, Räikkönen’s tailing form is being made painfully clear beside Vettel—and not to mention in the light of burgeoning talents like Sainz and Pérez. As much as the sport will miss him, perhaps the time has finally come for the Iceman to move on.

James Matthews, Editor-at-Larges

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Two-In-A-Row for Mir as Battle Raged in Moto3

After the rain of Saturday’s Qualifying, the riders were greeted with cool but dry conditions for Sunday’s race at the Termas de Rio Hondo Circuit in northwest Argentina.

Everyone all made good clean starts as the lights went out. Britain’s John McPhee (Starting from pole position) initially lost the lead on the run down to turn one, but regained it quickly after profiting from a more than generous slipstream pulling him down the back straight into turn five. The lead would be disputed continuously throughout the race, as no rider has sufficient power to ever fully pull clear. With such small machines, and only around 40bhp, slipstreaming is a crucial element of racing in the ‘cadet class’. When a group of riders finally pulled away at the front, it numbered eleven competitors.

The race-craft that was required and indeed displayed by these young riders was of the highest quality. Particularly for none more so than Qatar winner, Joan Mir. The Spaniard had looked competitive during Friday practice, but was amongst the riders caught out by the weather in Qualifying. As such, he had to fight his way through the field, having started from P16.

He rode through the field and avoided the chaos which unfolded behind him as Niccolo Antonelli and Romano Fenati came to blows on the second lap. The former being forced to retire, and the latter earning an investigation from the stewards. There was also misfortune elsewhere as with just 10 laps to go, the hometown hero – Gabriel Rodrigo crashed out at turn five. Lorenzo Baldassarri and Fabio Di Giannantonio followed suit the very next lap.

The racing was intense all throughout the field, as every position was fiercely contested. With the championship containing a staggering 31 riders, there is desperation everywhere from these youngsters (most of them between 16-19 years old) to be noticed and sought after by teams in Moto2. Riders who are only just starting their grand-prix careers – such as Kaito Toba and Tony Arbolino – were challenging and beating more seasoned competitors such as Niccolo Bulega, Jakub Kornfeil and Jules Danilo.

And it is not just the boys taking the spotlight. 20-year old Maria Herrera fought her way up through the pack on her AGR-Team KTM machine to fifteenth place, and a coveted championship point. It has not been an easy road for the girl from Toledo, Spain. But having signed for a new team during the off-season now seems to be beginning to flourish in the Grand-Prix paddock.

But it was fellow compatriot, Mir, who eventually claimed the spoils. Back-to-back victories and a maximum complement of 50 points from the two opening rounds puts him in early command of the championship. McPhee once again had to settle for the second step on the podium, again still defying much of the pre-weekend expectation. Jorge Martin, on the Del Conca Gresini Racing machine, the front runners more than honest. His podium finish a just reward for his efforts.

Race Results – Top 10: (1) Joan Mir, (2) John McPhee, (3), Jorge Martin, (4) Phillip Oettl, (5) Andrea Migno, (6) Livio Loi, (7) Romano Fenati, (8), Tatsuki Suzuki, (9) Juanfran Guevara, (10), Kaito Toba

Eddie Hocknull @EddieHocknull

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Totally Toro Rosso in China

Firstly lets have quick recap of what happened last time out in Australia, both of our driver had a solid start to the season both finishing in the points with Sainz in P8 and Kvyat in P9 keeping the teams recent record of scoring points in Australia 4 times out of 5. So let’s move 10 days into the future and arrive in China.
Quick words from our drivers asked about the Chinese GP firstly Kvyat “it was a very nice feeling to stand on the podium here last year, I have very good memories of that moment” and secondly “the strangest gift a Chinese fan has given me is a panda with a picture myself on it”. Thirdly “the track has very unusual and unique corners like turns 1 and 2 where you can take many different lines”. And finally “I have a few favourite places to eat in shanghai its European food though im quite traditional in that aspect”
And now a let move on to Sainz “I love duck, it’s actually one of my favorite dishes when I travel to Asia, especially China again this year” and secondly “the only Chinese word I remember is ‘NI HAO’. It’s a useful one to know so I can say hello to everyone.”I have to say that the paddock in China is the biggest one I’ve ever seen its enourmous”. And finally “I have very good memories of the drivers dinner we organised in Shanghai last year, all 22 of us.
And some quick new from the Kvyat side on Tuesday he annouched he was releasing a book about his way into F1. He will be annouching the release day and more details on his twitter on the 26th April 2017. We can’t wait to read it Danill.
On a rainy Thursday Kvyat and a few engineers took for a walk around the track, while Sainz was facing the qusetion’s of the world’s media outlets in the drivers press conference. Saying “it was a tough winter for us only doing more laps than McLaren and to get both cars in the points shows how much potential the car has”. While Kvyat headed back to the paddock to sign some autographs.
Then Friday arrived and so did a load of rain and thick fog which ment only 15 minutes of running all day but both of our drivers took advantage to learn what they could in the small amount of time they had alvalible to them. Sainz getting a 1.52.7 and Kvyat a 1.53.2. All the teams were praying that Saturday would be dry so the could gather as much data as possible in the 1 hour long practice 3 session.
Saturday arrived and it was dry so all the drivers were on the track for most of the session collecting race and qualiflying data that the teams really needed. Sainz finished the session in P10 with a 1.35.2 and Kvyat finished 1.35.8 showing how close the midfield battle really is. Then arrived qualiflying Sainz got knocked out in Q2 and qualified in P11 but had a free tire chocie avalible to him. Kvayt managed to get through to Q3 and qualifly in P9. Meaning he had to start on the red striped super soft if dry. Lets see what the weather will bring us tomorrow as the forecast is wet wet wet.
Here it was race day in China round 2 of the 2017 F1 World Championship and the circuit was damp and very slippery teams and drivers had to choose which tire to start the race on the inter or a slick compound they qualifled on. with Kvyat lining up in P9 he choose the inters but Sainz who was starting in P11 choose the super softs the only driver to do so. Team boss Franz Tost said he was crazy. Then they all lined up on the grid the 5 lights went out it was a good start for Kvyat but Sainz was slow off the line as he had no grip and was at the back of the pack and had a spin at turn 1 and kissed the wall at turn 2 but luckly no damage to the car. But soon can out the virtual saftey car which a lots of drivers pitted under to put the slicks on which helped Sainz claim places. Then a couple of laps later the saftey car was deployed after a sauber crashed on the pit stright. At this stage Sainz strating on the soft was in P7 and Kvyat wa in P9 good call by sainz to start on the soft saved him a pit stop. Lap 18 arrived and their was a problem on Danills car he had to pull over and retire a hyrolic problem it ended up. Which left only 1 Toro Rosso left so it was cruical we got across the finish line with this car. And Sainz just kept on driving brilliantly ended coming home in P7 “best of the rest” scoring the team some crucial championship points and moving them up into P4 in the constcutors world championship, with sainz moving up to P7.
In the interviews after the race Sainz said that he glad his gamble paid off in the end. He was a little worried when he saw the rest of the pack on inters, but after turn 6 the track was dry and he could catch the pack and make his up the field as the rest of the cars pitted for slicks, and he said nows whos the clever one. Also P7 was the best he thought the Red Bulls, Ferraris and Mercedes were 1-2 seconds a lap faster than him. Kvyat said “what a shame we had a hydraulic problem which still needs to be investigated .. on the positive side we’ve shown the perforence is their and we can be strong going forward. We have the pace and I look forward to next weeks race in Bahrain.

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Chinese Grand Prix, It’s Hammer Time

The second Grand Prix of the season was more dramatic than the season premiere in Australia. Mercedes had to respond to Ferrari’s pace and show that they are still in the game.

Hamilton started and finished the race in the same position and claimed his first victory of the season.

The weather played its role, and it was obvious that the key to the victory was the strategy. Almost all the drivers started the race on the intermediates, only Sainz decided to risk it and start on supersofts.

A clean start allowed to Hamilton and Vettel to remain first and second, respectively, while Ricciardo passed Raikkonen and moved up to fourth.

Ferrari took a risk with Vettel’s car, on the second lap, Stroll ran onto the gravel after he punted off by Perez. The Virtual Safety Car deployed and almost everyone pitted and switched to slicks. Ferrari called in Vettel and switched to soft compounds.

At that point, the German had an advantage compared to the other drivers who were in front of him, as he re-joined sixth, all the others were on intermediates, but Giovinazzi wanted to repeat the move which allowed him to move up to Q2. Antonio lost the control of his Sauber on the final corner and crashed into the barriers, the Italian walked out of his car and the safety car was deployed.

The front drivers took advantage of the incident and pitted for a fresher set of tyres. Hamilton switched to softs, whilst the two Red Bulls switched to supersofts. Vettel had to pass his team-mate and the two Red Bulls in order to be placed behind Hamilton. The Brit, had the lead of the race and he managed to remain in control of the race until the end.

Max Verstappen started from the 16h place, and moved up to nine in the first lap, he continued to impress all of us with his skills, when the safety car returned into the pits, Max was fourth behind his team-mate, Daniel Ricciardo, and he was looking for a space to pass him. On the eleventh lap, he passed the Australian, with another excellent move, and was chasing Hamilton for the first position.

Kimi Raikkonen was struggling to pass Daniel Ricciardo and it was then when Vettel decided to take his fate in his own hands. After almost 10 laps behind Raikkonen and Ricciardo, Vettel passed his team-mate in turn 5 and he was after Ricciardo. Two laps later, the German completed on of the most impressing overtakes of the race, he took the outside on turn five, had a wheel to wheel battle with Daniel, they touched a bit and the four time champion managed to remain in front and passed the Australian.

Max Verstappen’s mistake on the 14th turn allowed to Vettel to complete an easy pass and move up to second place on lap 28 and that was his final position.

Valtteri Bottas didn’t have a good race as a spin behind the safety car dropped him to 12th place, which he managed to recover to sixth and finish behind Kimi Raikkonen.

Another disappointing weekend for McLaren, Vandoorne retired due to fuel issues, while Fernando Alonso was seventh for a big part of the race, but he retired as he faced some technical problems.

Very impressive performance by Carlos Sainz, he finished seventh with his Toro Rosso and scored some points for his team. Both Sergio Perez and Esteban Ocon finished in the points, ninth and tenth respectively. Kevin Magnussen, with his Haas completed the top 10 as he finished eighth.

Moment of the Race

Clearly, it was Vettel’s move on Ricciardo. A great fight between the two drivers, both respected each other and Sebastian Vettel understood that DRS was not enough and took the risk to pass the Australian, from the outside of Turn 5.

The next race will take place in seven days in Bahrain, different circuit different set-up for the cars, temperature will also play its role. It will be interesting to see if the battle between the two top drivers, Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel can last until the end of the season.

Victor Arhcakis – @FP_Passion

(Image Courtesy of Pirelli F1 Media)

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