Abu Dhabi GP 2013 – Preview

What is this? 8 Engine Rule is back! No way!

I am back, and I am bringing you the preview for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. For those who do follow the blog regularly (I hope there is someone), I apologize for the lack of posts, but sometimes life just gets in the way! Anyway back to the Formula One!

Vettel has won the championship, but there are three races left! Next stop is Abu Dhabi!

The Facts

Laps: 55
Circuit length: 5.554 km (3.451 mi)
Race length: 305.470 km (189.810 mi)
Number of times held: 4
First held:2009
Most wins (drivers): Sebastian Vettel (2)
Most wins (constructors): Red Bull (2)

Italian GP 2013 – The Race

The Race

With the anticipation of rain, and it being the last race in the European leg of the 2013 season, the stage was set for what was hoped to be an exciting race. The start certainly didn’t disappoint, with the race to the first corner resulting in carbon fibre flying, and a McLaren taking a swift shortcut, before conceding all those place back. It was a bad weekend of Paul Di Resta, who locked up and went into the back of Romain Grosjean, resulting in the Force India driving having to retire from the race with a lack of a front wing, and a very very loose wheel!

As the race progressed it seemed a foregone conclusion that Vettel would run away with the lead, and that the attention should very much stay in the mid field, were the overtakes were coming thick and fast. Hamilton had been making his way through the pack from his qualifying spot of 12th, but found himself in a spot of bother when his front trye developed a slow puncture. This was further complicated by a radio failure, meaning Hamilton could not hear his team, and his team could not hear him, and it took a couple of laps to get the message across to Hamilton to come into the pits. He managed to fight his way up to 9th place by the end of the race, which could have been much higher if had not had to pit twice.

The big surprise today with the Sauber of Nico Hulkenberg, a true talent and one for the future. After qualifying 3rd it was expected he would fall down the order, and fall out of the points. However, this did not seem to be Hulkenbergs plan, as he only fell two spaces to 5th, and held that position for the rest of the race, being beaten only by the two Red Bulls and the two Ferrari’s . he was able to fend off fellow countryman Nico Rosberg, and secure much-needed point for his team. Could Hulkenberg be the next big German driver? Could he be a future World Champion? Who knows where he will be next year, but the tops teams had better start the bidding now!

The Tifosi were in full force today, and we happy to see one of their Ferrari drivers on the Podium. The chorus of “Alonso! Alonso! Alonso!” rang out around the Monza paddock, and there was no mistaking where we were. Alonso managed to take a selfie with the crowds in the background, and was very grateful for their support. There was some mutterings of a lack of respect after the crowd booed race winner Vettel, but I think every driver but Alonso or Massa would have been booed, so nothing personal!

Overall, it was a good race, and the battles all along the mid field were by far the best part. Hamilton showed off his skills, picking off a driver a lap towards the end, and picking up fastest lap of the race.

My Points

Vettel stretched out his lead in my point system, as the real changes were down the field

Here is the top 5:

1) Vettel – 43
2) Hamilton – 57
3) Alonso – 59
4) Webber – 68
5) Raikkonen – 74

Check out the whole updated table by going to the Point System page.

Fantasy Racers

Team Generalis were the team to beat this week, as they collected 692 points with Ricciardo, Grosjean, Massa and Vettel. Callum’s 2nd Team remained at the top of the leaderboard, scoring 629 this week.

We now have another 2 weeks wait until the Singapore Grand Prix, a race I love! There is just something about this night race which is so appealing! I will also be watching on Austrian TV, here’s hoping my German is good enough to figure out what is going on!

Italian GP 2013 – Qualifying

Q1

It was back to normal service in Q1 after the surprising results of Spa. It was Force India who were on the cusp of being the surprise casualties of Q1, while Bottas and Guiterrez were unable to match their team mates pace

OUT:17) Gutierrez 18) Bottas 19) Van der Garde 20) Pic 21) Bianchi 22) Chilton

Q2

While Q1 was full of surprises in Spa, it was Q2 that was in for a shock at Monza. With the time counting down Hamilton messed up a flying lap by going off the track in the last bend. As he tried to string a lap together he found himself behind his self-confessed “ex-friend” Adrian Sutil, who appeared to impede Hamilton going into Parabolica. No penalty has been given. Hamilton was not the only underperformer, as both Lotus’s failed to make the final session.

OUT: 11) Raikkonen 12) Hamilton 13) Grosjean 14) Sutil 15) Maldonado 16) Di Resta

Q3

Q3 was a Red Bull shoot out, with very few surprises as it was a Vettel/Webber 1-2. However, there was one huge surprise for the Sauber team as Nico Hulkenburg finished qualifying in 3rd place. The Ferrari’s improved on their positions in Spa, but Alonso was not happy after Massa wasn’t helping him as he felt he should, and finished behind his Ferrari team mate. The Toro Rosso boys managed a solid qualifying, as did Mclaren.

OUT: 1) Vettel 2) Webber 3) Hulkenberg 4) Massa 5) Alonso 6) Rosberg 7) Ricciardo 8) Perez 9) Button 10) Vergne

The Grid

1) Vettel
2) Webber
3) Hulkenberg
4) Massa
5) Alonso
6) Rosberg
7) Ricciardo
8) Perez
9) Button
10) Vergne
11) Raikkonen
12) Hamilton
13) Grosjean
14) Sutil
15) Maldonado
16) Di Resta
17) Gutierrez
18) Bottas
19) Van der Garde
20) Pic
21) Bianchi
22) Chilton

With a 70% chance of rain for the race tomorrow it should be very exciting! Everyone had better you set your alarm for 2pm Italian time!

Italian GP 2013 – Preview

2012 Pole Position: Lewis Hamilton (McLaren-Mercedes) 1:24.010
Winner: Lewis Hamilton (McLaren-Mercedes)
First Winner – Jules Goux (Ballot) 1921
First Winner – World Championship race: Giuseppe Farina (Alfa Romeo) 1950

Number of Laps: 53
Circuit length: 5.793 km (3.600 mi)
Race length: 306.720 km (190.596 mi)

Belgium GP 2013 – The Race

The Race

After the ever-changing weather conditions throughout the weekend the race was an extremely dry affair, which cost some drivers who had gone for a wet/dry set up. One such driver was Hamilton, who had a good start off the line, but was taken by Vettel before the end of the first lap. Vettel would go on to lead the rest of the race, in his normal dominant style.

While there wasn’t too much action at the front of the race, there was plenty of it in the midfield. From 4th to 16th there was constant overtaking, and even 3 cars abreast going into Eu Rouge. This risque driving got the better of some drivers, with Di Resta taking the fall. Coming into the bus stop chicane, Maldonado, Sutil, Di Resta and Gutierrez were all vying for the same spot on the track. As the came on to the home straight Maldonado got a slight tap from Sutil, and then took a late decision to dive into the pits, going right into the back of Di Resta. Di Resta retired, while Maldonado got a 10 second stop and go penalty, something I have not seen for a long time.

Elsewhere, Raikkonen’s 38 race finishing spree came to an end, with a brake failure. In the first part of the race Raikkonen’s brakes were sending out black dust at every breaking zone, and glowing an angry red. It was towards the middle of the race that he had what looked like a front brake failure, when trying to overtake Massa he found himself going much deeper into the corner than was normal. He immediately went into the pits to retire, with a call to his team to let them know the issue.

MY POINTS

The big loser in my points this week was Raikkonen, who went from 2nd to 4th due to his retirement. Vettel continued his stay at the top, while Hamilton jumped into 2nd, with no retirements for the season.

Here is the top 5:

1) Vettel – 42 points
2) Hamilton – 48 points
3) Alonso – 57 points
4) Raikkonen – 63 points
5) Webber – 65 points

Check out the whole updated table under the Point System tab.

FANTASY RACERS

In Fantasy Racer it is Callum’s 2nd Team at the top, scoring 628 points this week, the best of the 8 Engine Rule private league. My team 8enginerule could only manage 473 points this week.

We now have 2 weeks until the European part of the season continues. Next race will be in Italy. Can Vettel continue his dominance towards a 4th World Championship, or will someone come up to stop him?

Belguim GP 2013 – Qualifying

It was an exciting qualifying session, with the weather playing a huge part in it.

Q1

Q1 was all about getting a lap together in the wet/dry conditions. The correct tyres was the important part of the puzzle, and there were some surprise drivers making it through to Q2. As the checkered flag fell both Marussia’s had made it through, along with the Catherham of Van der Garde, who had the 3rd fastest time of Q1!

Out: Pastor Maldonado, Jean-Eric Vergne, Daniel Ricciardo, Valtteri Bottas, Esteban Gutierrez and Charles Pic.

Q2

Q2 was again dominated by the weather, and would finish with 3 drivers getting their best ever qualifying result! It was touch and go for a few drivers as they tried to make it through. Both Hamilton and Button left their best lap till late, but eventually made it through to the top 10 shoot out.

Out: Nico Hulkenberg, Adrian Sutil, Sergio Perez, Giedo Van Der Garde, Jules Bianchi and Max Chilton.

Q3

Q3 started with a wet track, although majority of the drivers went out on the slicks. Only Di Resta took his time and went out on Intermediate tyres. His flying lap stood on top on the timesheets for much of the session, and it was looking like he might get his first pole. However, the track began to dry, and Rosberg seemed to be on fire, posting a fast lap in difficult wet conditions, and an even faster lap as it dried. As the checkered flag fell it was Webber, Vettel and Hamilton to finish a lap, and as the track dried they were all fighting for pole. Both Webber and Vettel took provisional pole, but Hamilton came through on a storming lap to take his 4th pole in a row, and his 5th of the season.

The Grid

1) Lewis Hamilton
2) Sebastian Vettel
3) Mark Webber
4) Nico Rosberg
5) Paul Di Resta
6) Jenson Button
7) Romain Grosjean
8) Kimi Raikkonen
9) Fernando Alonso
10) Felipe Massa
11) Nico Hulkenberg
12) Adrian Sutil
13) Sergio Perez
14) Giedo Van Der Garde
15) Jules Bianchi
16) Max Chilton
17) Pastor Maldonado
18) Jean-Eric Vergne
19) Daniel Ricciardo
20) Valtteri Bottas
21) Esteban Gutierrez
22) Charles Pic

Belgium GP 2013 – Preivew

Facts and Figures

2012 Pole Position: Jenson Button (McLaren-Mercedes) 1m47.573
Winner: Jenson Button (McLaren-Mercedes)
First Winner – Antonio Ascari (Alfa Romeo) 1925
First Winner – World Championship race: Juan Manuel Fangio Alfa Romeo 1950

Number of Laps: 44
Circuit length 7.004 km (4.352 mi)
Race length 308.052 km (191.410 mi)

Hungarian GP 2013 – Preview

Here are all the stats you need to know for the Hungarian GP 2013!

Facts and Figures

2012 Pole Position: Lewis Hamilton (Mclaren) 1m20.9532012
Winner: Lewis Hamilton (Mclaren)
First Winner – Tazio Nuvolari (Alfa Romeo) 1936
First Winner – World Championship race: Nelson Piquet (Williams-Honda) 1986

Number of Laps: 70
Circuit Length: 4.381 km (2.722 mi)
Race Length: 306.663 km (190.560 mi)

After a 3 week break, and a quick test at Silverstone, who do you think will win the Hungarian Grand Prix?

Young Driver’s Test – Day 2

After the first day I complained about the lack of commentary for a very well publicised F1 test. Well Day 2 was no different, and I have heard from my official source at the track (Thanks Peter!), who was at Silverstone on Wednesday, that it is even worse for those at the track.

According to my source,

“Yesterday there was not even any live commentary at the circuit so we were not aware of any lap times. A periodic announcement mentioned a few drivers’ names and also stated that lap times would not be released until the day had ended. It also stated that many teams were working on their car behind closed pit garage doors to prevent spying.”

Here are the results and amount of laps from day 2:

1. Daniel Ricciardo, Toro Rosso, 1:32.972, 48 laps.
2. Carlos Sainz, Toro Rosso, 1:33.016, 39 laps.
3. Daniel Ricciardo, Red Bull, 1:33.187, 59 laps.
4. Davide Valsecchi, Lotus, 1:33.554, 91 laps.
5. Oliver Turvey, McLaren, 1:33.864, 97 laps.
6. James Calado, Force India, 1:33.957, 47 laps.
7. Antonio Felix da Costa, Red Bull, 1:33.958, 19 laps
8. Davide Rigon, Ferrari, 1:34.053, 97 laps.
9. Pastor Maldonado, Williams, 1:34.116, 71 laps.
10. Nico Hulkenberg, Sauber, 1:34.224, 52 laps.
11. Daniel Juncadella, Williams, 1:34.631, 33 laps.
12. Robin Frijns, Sauber, 1:34.731, 17 laps,
13. Will Stevens, Caterham, 1:36.082, 98 laps.
14. Paul Di Resta, Force India, 1:36.356, 41 laps.
15. Rodolfo Gonzalez, Marussia, 1:37.949, 92 laps.

The big talk of Day 2 was Ricciardo’s job interview of sorts at Red Bull. After beaching in the gravel he managed to set the 3rd fastest time of the day (as well as the first in his Toro Rosso) and got 59 laps under his belt. We will have to wait and see if he gets the vacant Webber Seat at Red Bull, but I would say it all went pretty well for him.

Friday see’s Susie Wolff in the Williams. I know I will be hoping for a solid day for her as a huge supporter of Women in F1. Come on Susie!!!!

Young Driver’s Test – Day 1

So, I am a terrible terrible blogger! I have posted nothing for days and I apologise and can not give an excuse! (Well I can, work is manic and I have no internet at home!)

Anyway, today saw the first day of the Young Driver’s Test at Silverstone. It wasn’t exactly a Young Driver’s test though, as the sport look to fix their current tyre problems! An extra day has been added, plus current drivers can have up to 1 day in the car over the 3 days.

Here are today’s results and amount of driver laps:

1. Magnussen, McLaren, 1:33.602, 95 laps;
2. Di Resta, Force India, 1:33.774, 58 laps;
3. Da Costa, Red Bull, 1:33.821, 77 laps;
4. Calado, Force India, 1:33.986, 27 laps;
5. Juncadella, Williams, 1:34.098, 46 laps;
6. Cecotto, Toro Rosso, 1:34.193, 61 laps;
7. Frijns, Sauber, 1:34.402, 62 laps;
8. Prost, Lotus, 1:34.810, 62 laps;
9. Rigon, Ferrari, 1:34.979, 62 laps;
10. Rossi, Caterham, 1:35.651, 69 laps;
11. Elinas, Marussia, 1:36.676, 36 laps;
12. Chilton, Marussia, 1:38.347, 10 laps.

It is difficult to take much from these tests as a spectator, especially as the only live updates I found (although I didn’t try that hard to look) was on Sky F1’s website, and it was just relaying the teams tweets with a 5 minute delay. It would have been nice to have a BBC live text feed going to get an idea of who was running what, who and when. I am sure the true results of the test will be more visible come the Hungarian GP, and by who will be brought into the sport next year.

I will try and post again tomorrow with a quick update of the day’s results.