From the fans… For the fans
Check out the newest video from Mobil 1 The Grid in which Red Bull’s drivers are talking about the preparation before the race.
Make sure that you follow Mobil 1 The Grid:
Website: mobil1thegrid.com
Twitter: twitter.com/mobil1thegrid
Instagram: instagram.com/mobil1thegrid
Google+: google.com/+Mobil1TheGrid
Lewis Hamilton won the Japanese Grand Prix, and extended his championship lead to 59 points from Sebastian Vettel. The British Samurai, led the race from the pole till the end, without any problem and no pressure. Red Bull was the only team which tried to put some pressure on Hamilton, especially after the second Virtual Safety Car, but still the champion remained first and took the chequered flag at the Japanese Grand Prix.
An engine problem cost the race to Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari’s engineers were working on Vettel’s car just a few minutes before the formation lap, the team thought that they solved the issue but there prays didn’t work out and Vettel retired on the fourth lap. After lights out, the German lost the second position from Max Verstappen and soon dropped down to sixth, the safety car, which deployed due to Sainz’s retirement, allowed him to remain on track for a couple of laps, but at the re-start Ferrari informed Vettel to return to the pits and retire his car.
Vettel said on Sky “It’s normal you’re critical, especially if things go wrong, so it’s part of our job. I think I need to protect them. We’ve done an incredible job so far. Bitter the past two races with the reliability issues – but you know, it’s like that sometimes. Of course it hurts and we’re all disappointed, but now we need to get back, get some rest and then go flat out for the last four races and see what happens.”
Daniel Ricciardo scored another podium this season and set a new personal-best with nine podiums in one season. The Australian had a quiet evening behind his team-mate compering to Max Verstappen who started fourth but moved up to second place and was trying to stay close to Hamilton during the Japanese Grand Prix. The Dutch, knew that Lewis will not defend his position in case of a battle between them, but Max didn’t have the pace to match and challenge Hamilton.
An interesting battle for the tenth position took place during the final laps of the race, Felipe Massa was the leader of this battle from the 10th position, challenged by Magnussen and Grosjean. The Brazilian was struggling and didn’t had the pace to stay ahead of the two drivers, both passed him and moved up to the eighth and ninth place respectively. Massa defended his position from Fernando Alonso, who started the race from the back of the gird. The VSC which deployed due to Stroll’s retirement, helped him to keep a distance from the Spaniard and score one point for Williams in Suzuka.
Jolyon Palmer raced for the last time for the Renault and finished 12th, whilst his team-mate, Nico Hulkenberg was unlucky as he forced to retire due to an issue with the DRS.
Next stop is at the Circuit of the Americas, a circuit which suits better to Mercedes and they are expected to be more competitive. Sebastian Vettel was leading by seven points after the Belgian Grand Prix and he was only three points behind Hamilton in Italy, but the next three races were a disaster for him and Ferrari. A start-line crash in Singapore, followed by engine problems in Malaysia and Japan dropped him 59 points behind Lewis. The Brit three-time champion, is on his way for his fourth title which he can celebrate it in COTA.
Formula One, is heading to Malaysia for the last time this weekend, as the government decided that the race is not profitable any more. Sepang International joined F1 in 1999, it was a part of Bernie Ecclestone’s plan to expand Formula 1 in countries around the world. Bernie’s idea has not worked very well so far Turkey and South Korea had the same fate with Malaysia and maybe more countries will follow.
Sebastian Vettel would like to say goodbye to the Malaysian Grand Prix with a victory, if the German wins it will be his fifth victory in Malaysia. Michael Schumacher and Fernando Alonso have won three times in Malaysia, whilst Kimi Raikkonen celebrated two victories in Sepang Circuit.
The leader in the drivers’ championship, Lewis Hamilton, has won only once, in 2014, since the track re-joined Formula 1 in 2007. Lewis is facing difficulties in Malaysia, but the Brit has the advantage of the 28 point gap, a finish ahead or close to Vettel will be positive for him.
This weekend a new driver will make his appearance on the grid, the French Pierre Gasly will replace Daniil Kvyat and he will be racing for Toro Rosso in the Malaysian Grand Prix.
Sepang International Circuit
Laps: 56
Circuit Length: 5.543 km
Race Length: 310.408 km
Lap Record: 1:34.223 (Juan Pablo Montoya – 2004)
Sepang is one of the most technical circuits in the calendar, designed by the German architect Hermann Tilke, it combines long high speed straights and tight twisting turns like turn number five and six.
High temperatures are the biggest challenge for the drivers, the average air temperature during the race is about 30 C which means that the temperature in the cockpit is around 50C and the drivers must race under these conditions for one hour and thirty-five minutes. Rain is expected in all sessions this weekend, which will be an extra challenge for the drivers.
Pierre Gasly (Toro Rosso) – “I am not worried, I am excited about making my debut in Sepang this weekend. I have worked hard to prepare for this and to get to F1. I am very happy to have this opportunity. I know it will be different to anything I’ve done before and the other drivers have been racing all season, so I will have a lot of things to get used to and learn about. It’s a super challenge and I can’t wait for it to start. I have raced in Sepang. It was last year, when I took pole position for the GP2 race, so clearly it’s a track I like. It is very tough with the high level of humidity but I am well prepared physically.”
Esteban Ocon (Force India) – “Sepang is such a beautiful track. I really love it. I enjoy chicanes and there are quite a few in Malaysia, with some nice combinations of fast and medium-speed corners. When you have a good car in qualifying, you can just feel the grip; it’s very enjoyable. On the other hand, it’s a very tough race because of the heat and humidity. The rain can play a big part – at least I am told! Last year everyone kept telling me that, but it was just mega sunny and warm all weekend. It’s sad we will be racing here for the last time because it’s such a cool track. I am going to miss it.”
Watch Max Verstappen talking about the fitness in Formula One, by Mobil 1 the Grid
Victor Archakis
Twitter @FP_Passion
Check out the newest video from Mobil 1 The Grid in which Daniel Ricciardo talks about his teammate, Max Verstappen, and how he (Daniel) doesn’t see Sebastian or Lewis as better than him.
Make sure that you follow Mobil 1 The Grid:
Website: mobil1thegrid.com
Twitter: twitter.com/mobil1thegrid
Instagram: instagram.com/mobil1thegrid
Google+: google.com/+Mobil1TheGrid
Discipline is the key to the success, is what every athlete must have, even if we are talking about a team sport like football and basketball or even if we are talking about a one man show sport like tennis.
In Formula One if a driver is willing to win a world title must be able to control himself and his reactions, must be able to know when he must attack and when to hold off in order to secure his position and score points and must have the luck to his side.
A few days ago, in Singapore, Sebastian Vettel set the fastest lap in the Saturday’s qualification session and took the pole-position, but the next day he ruined everything. Kimi Raikkonen had a good start, squeezed Max Verstappen they collided with Sebastian Vettel, who moved aggressively left, and a few seconds later, Raikkonen, tagged Alonso’s car, who retired a few laps later due to heavy damage on his McLaren.
Four of the best drivers on the grid retired in the first meters of the race, Lewis Hamilton, as a smart and an experienced driver, took advantage of that incident, lead the race from the start to the end and won the Singapore GP. A victory which even Mercedes’ most ambition fan couldn’t imagine. Now Hamilton is enjoying his loneliness at the top of the drivers’ standings, 28 points ahead of Sebastian Vettel.
I am not willing to blame some of the three drivers (Verstappen, Raikkonen, and Vettel), but my question is why Vettel had to close Raikkonen and Verstappen instead of letting them go or even let them pass him and catch up later in the race. Here comes today’s key word, discipline. The German has won four world titles in his Formula One career, this year has the chance to win his fifth title, but decided to ruin everything in a few meters.
Let’s assume that Vettel couldn’t think clearly, not an easy thing to do especially under this conditions, Ferrari’s team principal Maurizio Arrivabene had to inform and advice his driver to take it easy, as it was a very good chance for Vettel to re-take the lead on the drivers’ championship and put some pressure on Hamilton for the following races. When Lewis took the lead of the race, Mercedes said to the Brit, through the team-radio, to deliver the car home in one piece, that is what Ferrari had to say to Vettel before the race.
Both Vettel and Arrivabene are on pressure now, Ferrari had/have the chance to return to trophies after nine years, but now the chances to achieve that is very low. Six races are remaining to complete this season, and most of these races suit more to Mercedes’ car set-up, that means that Ferrari must make the ‘break’ and Sebastian Vettel must win more than two races, hoping that at the same time Hamilton will finish third or even a lower position.
The next race will take place in Malaysia, Ferrari must win at least once in the two following races if they want to close the gap or even pass Lewis Hamilton in the drivers’ championship. The ‘second’ drivers will play a crucial in this year’s title.
Victor Archakis
Twitter @FP_Passion
Lewis Hamilton is on cruise control mode, his steering wheel seems to have an extra hidden button, and the British found it and pressed it with his thumb. At the Italian Grand Prix, Hamilton took his 69th pole-position, he is now the driver with the most pole positions in Formula One, he also became the first driver, in 2017, who won two consecutive races and now he is leading the drivers’ championship by three points from Sebastian Vettel.
In Belgium, Lewis looked comfortable and unbeatable, even at the re-start, after the safety car, when Vettel made his move, the Britt managed to defend his first position and a couple of laps later he increased the gap between him and Sebastian Vettel. By seeing the final gap between the two drivers, after 44 laps, someone might assume that Vettel was pushing and was very close to Lewis, but the reality was totally different. The German, was close but still that was not enough for him to make his move and attack for the first place.
At Monza, the Tifosi were expecting to see a fast and competitive Scuderia Ferrari, but instead of that, Ferrari was not even close to Mercedes. The Silver Arrows, were not stopped by the rain and the hours of delay which took place in the FP3 and during the qualifying session. Lewis Hamilton claimed his 69th pole position, followed by Max Verstappen and Daniel Ricciardo. Lance Stroll and Esteban Ocon qualified fourth and fifth respectively, but after the grid penalties which applied almost to every driver on the grid, Stroll promoted to the second position and became the youngest driver who started from the front row.
The two Ferraris qualified seventh (Kimi Raikkonen) and eighth (Sebastian Vettel), both drivers promoted to fifth and sixth respectively. Max Verstappen dropped down to 13th position, while his team-mate started the race from the 16 position.
Lights out
Lewis Hamilton had a clean start and remained first after lights out, Lance Stroll lost his second position by Esteban Ocon and dropped down to third place. A few laps later Max Verstappen had a collision with Felipe Massa, Max suffered a puncture which cost him time and dropped him at the back of the grid. The stewards decided to take no further action for the incident between the two drivers. Verstappen managed to recover at the end of the race, the Dutch finished 10th ahead of Kevin Magnussen.
Valtteri Bottas, who qualified sixth, had a good start and gained two positions on the first lap of the race. He was behind Hamilton, Ocon and Stroll and it was a matter of time until he was able to attack the two drivers in front of him. The Finn, had a good pace during the race, he completed Mercedes’ 1-2 as he finished second behind his team-mate.
Daniel Ricciardo started the race from the 16th place and finished fourth, a few seconds, behind Sebastian Vettel. The Australian had an amazing race, he passed the slower cars on the first part of the race, while he was on softs. He had the advantage of fresher and faster tyres during the final laps of the Italian Grand Prix. Twelve laps before the chequered flag, the Australian made his move on Kimi Raikkonen, the Finn was unable to defend his fourth position, Daniel took the inside at the first chicane and with an incredible move, he promoted to fourth place. Ricciardo, was gaining on Vettel lap by lap, but he didn’t have enough laps to close the gap with the German, and finished fourth, about four seconds, behind Vettel.
Both McLaren’s drivers watched the end of the race from the garage. Vandoorne and Alonso retired on 33th and 50th lap respectively. Stoffel had electrical issues, whilst Fernando had problems with his McLaren’s clutch.
The next race will take in Singapore, a circuit which suits more to the Ferrari than to Mercedes, Sebastian Vettel is looking to win his fifth race in 2017 and retake the lead in the drivers’ championship. Lewis Hamilton from the other hand, has the momentum. The British driver, looks very strong, he will have to fight hard to keep his lead and his aim will be to expand his winning streak in Singapore.
Victor Archakis
Twitter – @FP_Passion
Nikolas Tombazis born in Greece on April 22nd in 1968, his father, Alexandros Tombazis was an architect. In 1989, Nikolas graduated from the Trinity College in Cambridge as an engineer, a few years later (1992) he completed his PhD in aeronautical engineering at the Imperial College London.
Tombazis, entered to the Formula One world on November 1992, he became aerodynamicist at the Benetton Formula 1 team, a couple of years later he promoted to Head of Aerodynamics. In 1994, he was a member of the team, which celebrated Michael Schumacher’s world title. The following season Benetton won both the constructors’ and the drivers’ championships.
In 1997, Tombazis followed Michael Schumacher and moved from Benetton to Ferrari. One year later he became Ferrari’s Chief Aerodynamicist and he was responsible for Ferrari’s dominance from 1998 to 2003, Nikolas celebrated six constructors’ titles and five drivers’ championships with the Scuderia Ferrari.
In 2004, the Greek designer, moved to McLaren, he remained in Woking for two years and then returned to Ferrari as Chief Designer. At that period Ferrari, won two constructors’ titles and Kimi Raikkonen won the drivers’ championship in 2007.
Manor, was Tombazi’s final team in Formula One. Nikolas, joined Manor as Chief Aerodynamicist but he was unlucky as the team didn’t take part to the 2017 championship, due to financial problems.
I have the honour to host an interview with one of the best Greek engineers, and the person who played a major role to Ferrari’s dominance.
When did you realise that you wanted to interact with Formula One and what influenced you?
I was hooked to this sport as a kid, when I was around 10 years old. In those days the TV did not show that many races, and of course there was no Internet, so finding all the information required quite a lot of research. These were also the years of the start of ground effect (Lotus 78 and Lotus 79) and the subsequent heavy emphasis on aerodynamics. So I guess that also influenced quite a lot the direction that I followed subsequently.
What were your worst and your best memory during your years in F1?
Best memories: championship wins… 2000 with Schumacher, 2007 with Raikkonen (my first car as Chief Designer), stand out. Most wins were very special, but these championships had something extra.
For sure the worse moments were when a driver was killed. Senna’s death (which was very early in my career) shocked me even though I never had the luck to meet him. But there have been other difficult moments: periods when the car was uncompetitive, losing championships in the last race, retiring from races while leading…
How much role plays the physical characteristics of a driver in the designing of a car?
Depends exactly what you mean. If you mean his actual body dimensions (height, width, etc.) we do need to package the bigger / taller driver in our cars, and to make them comfortable. This is not a major exercise, but it has to be done.
If you mean the driving characteristics, some times drivers have a particular sensitivity to a certain aspect of the car and we try to make sure that we do not design something that they will be uncomfortable driving. But this is not perhaps as frequent as it used to be: nowadays we rely a lot more on telemetry and measurements.
In 1998 you became Ferrari’s Chief aerodynamicist, Scuderιa had not celebrated a title since 1983, how much pressure did you have and how easy was for you to keep “producing” a winning car for six consecutive years?
The pressure was always high in Ferrari. The constructors’ championship in 1999 was bitter-sweet, because we had also lost the drivers’. The real special moment came in 2000, and I still remember the feeling when I saw Michael come out of his final pit stop in Suzuka ahead of Hakkinen.
Who was the best driver that you have worked with and why?
Schumacher and Alonso. Difficult to compare them, but their understanding of the car and their speed was on another planet. There were numerous other drivers I enjoyed working with (and most were very good) but these two were something special.
What is your opinion about Halo and how much can affect the aerodynamics of a Formula One car?
The aerodynamic effect is not massive, and the teams will do what they can to keep it to a minimum. Every time a driver has been killed or seriously hurt we wonder why we did not do certain things earlier. So while the aesthetics are clearly not its strong point, we need to do what we can to keep the drivers safe.
They are saying that to be an aerodynamicist in Formula 1 is one of the most challenging jobs because you have to combine downforce with low drag. Which part of an F1 car is the most important and how long does it takes to design a car?
The design of the car never really finishes, it is a continuous process of development. All the areas close to the ground are difficult, the front wing and the area between the diffuser and the rear wheels are particularly complicated.
Being an aerodynamicist is very challenging (and also satisfying when things go well), but there are many jobs in Formula 1 which are very difficult and important for the final result.
Many kids and students are dreaming to work in Formula One, what would you advise them?
Work hard, take your studies at university seriously, participate in a Formula SAE or some other minor category, learn a lot of skills (CAD, CFD, simulations, etc.)
At the beginning of the year, Manor’s staff posted a 50 percent scale model of the MRT07 as a goodbye to F1, how hard was that for you, and do you believe that Liberty Media should offer more funds to smaller teams in order to avoid situations like Manor’s?
It was a shame that Manor collapsed, and that we did not see the fruit of our effort. There were a couple of hundred people who suffered this big disappointment, and all the difficulties being left without a job caused them.
Formula 1 should become more sustainable both for the small teams but also for the big ones. How this will happen we just have to wait and see.
With what are you working now?
I am currently consulting a number of clients, and I find the varying range of problems very enjoyable. For reasons of confidentiality I cannot say who my clients are.
Victor Archakis
Twitter – @FP_Passion
After a short break for the drivers and long for the fans, Formula One is back at our lives. The action returns to one of the most thrilling circuits on the calendar, at Spa in Belgium. Everyone is looking forward to watch a battle between Sebastian Vettel and Lewis Hamilton for the drivers’ championship.
Ferrari is willing to keep their driver line-up same for the next year, they started with Raikkonen’s contract. The Finn, extended his contract for one more season and he will remain with Scuderia Ferrari until 2018. Next on the schedule is Sebastian Vettel.
Mercedes will try to respond to Ferrari’s 1-2 in Hungary. The Silver Arrows, are aiming to gain points in order to extend their lead in the constructors’ championship which is currently at 40 points. Lewis Hamilton, has to win at least one of the two upcoming races (Spa, Monza) in order to stay close or even pass Sebastian Vettel. Valtteri Bottas looks confident and able to challenge the two contenders and win his first title in his Formula One career.
Toto Wolff – “The summer shutdown came at the perfect time for us to make a step back and take stock of our season so far. It has been a good one – and has shown a lot of the qualities of our team. On paper, people will assume that Spa should suit our car because it is a circuit where aerodynamic efficiency is extremely important. But assumptions are dangerous – we have seen too many times already this season that the form book can be rewritten from one weekend to the next. So we will be making no assumptions; we have to tick off the items on our work list and make sure we do the best job to maximise our potential points score. The motivation and determination in the factory are greater than ever. Hungary showed the strength of our team – and we intend to use the second half of this season to prove that strength.”
CIRCUIT DE SPA-FRANCORCHAMPS
Laps: 44
Circuit Length: 7.004 km
Race Length: 308.052 km
Lap Record: 1:47.263 (Sebastian Vettel – 2009)
Tyre sets available: Soft (Yellow), Supersoft (Red), Ultrasoft (Purple)
Spa-Francorchamps is one of the most historic circuits on the Formula One calendar, hosted a non-championship race in 1924. Spa it is also one of the longest circuits (7.004 km), it combines a mix of long straight and fast corners which makes it an attractive and challenging track for the drivers. The most famous corner is known as “Eau Rouge” and it is one of the most technically demanding corners, because of the evaluation change and the high speed.
Fernando Alonso – “I love the first race after the summer break! It’s a great feeling to come back feeling rested, relaxed and recharged, and ready to go again for the second half of the season. I’ve enjoyed time away with family and friends, worked hard on my training and now I’m really looking forward to getting back in the car. Spa is incredible – for many of us it’s one of our favourite tracks. It’s got a legendary reputation and it’s totally deserved. The feeling when you drive Eau Rouge is completely different to any other corner on the calendar. You’re so low in the car and the gradient is so steep that as you go up it you can only see the sky – it’s completely surreal. As the season goes on we’re getting stronger and stronger, and I hope the second half of the year will bring us some more points-earning finishes. This race is a difficult challenge for the whole team – the engineers and the mechanics – as you’re on the throttle for almost three-quarters of the lap, which makes it’s a tough circuit for both the car and the driver. We know we’ll have to work hard to get any kind of result there, but it’s a long lap and there are plenty of overtaking opportunities, so we’ll keep pushing to get everything we can from the weekend.”
McLaren will try to repeat their success and score more points in Belgium, Fernando Alonso and Stoffel Vandoorne finished sixth and tenth respectively in Hungary.
I am expecting a close battle between Ferrari and Mercedes, but the Silver Arrows might have a small advantage at the Spa.
Don’t miss our live race coverage on Sunday!
Twitter- @FP_Passion