INDIA in F1

Author: David Bodapati

  • Rain master Rossi claims brilliant British GP victory to take 4th win of the season: A Bridgestone view

    Silverstone, 30 Aug 2015: A late change in the weather set the scene for a dramatic British Grand Prix and in the first wet race of the MotoGP™ season it was Movistar Yamaha MotoGP’s Valentino Rossi who took a brilliant victory ahead of the Ducati duo of Danilo Petrucci and Andrea Dovizioso.
    The race waValentino-Rossi---Movistar-Yamaha-MotoGP---British-MotoGP-race-winner (1)s red flagged before a single lap was completed as the rain arrived just as the race was scheduled to start, with all riders swapping from slick tyres to wet tyres as the race was restarted. Having finished quickest in the wet Warm Up session earlier in the day, Rossi once again thrived in the wet conditions and after a good start took the race lead on the second lap and despite being challenged by a few riders over the course of the race, held on to take his fourth victory of the season. Finishing three seconds behind Rossi in second place was Octo Pramac Racing’s Danilo Petrucci who produced an impressive display of wet weather riding to secure his first ever MotoGP podium. The final podium place went to Ducati Team’s Andrea Dovizoso who made a good recovery after a slow start to take his fourth rostrum finish of the year.
    The fine weather that graced Silverstone for the first two days of the race weekend gave way to rain today with both the race and the morning Warm Up session being subjected to wet conditions. The cloud cover also kept track temperatures at a low level, with the peak reading during the race being just 20°C. The cool and wet tarmac made the requirement for good grip and warm-up performance a priority and as a result, all twenty-five riders opted for the soft compound wet tyres front and rear, the hard compound wet tyres remaining unused during the twenty-lap race.
    Rossi’s fourth Grand Prix victory of the campaign means he re-takes the lead in the MotoGP championship and he sits on 236 points, twelve ahead of his teammate Jorge Lorenzo who finished in fourth place today at Silverstone. Repsol Honda Team’s Marc Marquez had a DNF after crashing out of second place, but he holds onto third place in the championshop, 77 points adrift of Rossi.
    Shinji Aoki – Manager, Bridgestone Motorcycle Tyre Development Department
    “The rain finally arrived today but thankfully the Warm Up session this morning was wet which at least allowed the riders to work on a wet setting for their bike and get some track time on our wet tyres at this circuit. Some riders did consider using the alternative, hard compound wet tyre for the race but due to the cool track temperature and the rain becoming heavier, all riders finally decided on the soft compound wet tyres front and rear. Considering the cold, wet conditions and the bumpy track surface the performance of our wet tyres was quite consistent, with the majority of riders setting their quickest lap in the second half of the race. It was a very challenging race so well done to Valentino and Yamaha as they managed the difficult conditions very well on their way to victory today.”
                                                                                                                            
    Valentino Rossi, Movistar Yamaha MotoGP – Race Winner
    “When I saw that Marc had crashed I slowed down a little bit but in the end, this is MotoGP and you can’t relax as everyone wants to beat you. I saw Danilo was getting close to me so I had to keep my concentration, especially at the end of the race as it was difficult when the rain became heavier. My bike was working great and I enjoyed this victory very much.”
    British MotoGP™ Top Ten Race Classification
    Pos
    Rider
    Team
    Race Time
    Gap
    Front spec
    Rear spec
    Tyres
    1
    		 Valentino ROSSI Movistar Yamaha MotoGP 46’15.617 Soft Wet Soft Wet
    Bridgestone
    2
    		 Danilo PETRUCCI Octo Pramac Racing 46’18.627 3.010 Soft Wet Soft Wet
    Bridgestone
    3
    		 Andrea DOVIZIOSO Ducati Team 46’19.734 4.117 Soft Wet Soft Wet
    Bridgestone
    4
    		 Jorge LORENZO Movistar Yamaha MotoGP 46’21.343 5.726 Soft Wet Soft Wet
    Bridgestone
    5
    		 Dani PEDROSA Repsol Honda Team 46’26.749 11.132 Soft Wet Soft Wet
    Bridgestone
    6
    		 Scott REDDING EG 0,0 Marc VDS 46’41.084 25.467 Soft Wet Soft Wet
    Bridgestone
    7
    		 Bradley SMITH Monster Yamaha Tech 3 46’42.334 26.717 Soft Wet Soft Wet
    Bridgestone
    8
    		 Andrea IANNONE Ducati Team 46’45.010 29.393 Soft Wet Soft Wet
    Bridgestone
    9
    		 Aleix ESPARGARO Team SUZUKI ECSTAR 46’54.432 38.815 Soft Wet Soft Wet
    Bridgestone
    10
    		 Alvaro BAUTISTA Aprilia Racing Team Gresini 46’57.329 41.712 Soft Wet Soft Wet
    Bridgestone
     

  • Marquez smashes Silverstone lap record to seize British Grand Prix pole position; Rossi starts on P4

    Repsol Honda Team’s Marc Marquez smashed his own Silverstone Circuit Best Lap record to claim his sixth pole position of the MotoGP season ahead of Movistar Yamaha MotoGP’s Jorge Lorenzo and his Honda teammate Dani Pedrosa.
    On his first flying lap in Qualifying Practice 2, Marquez set the quickest ever lap at Silverstone to take provisional pole position, but after fitting a new medium compound rear slick for this second time attack went even quicker, settinBritish Grand Prix, 30th August 2015g a 2’00.234 to slice 0.457 off the existing Circuit Best Lap record. Lorenzo’s best lap time of 2’00.522 was also under the previous Silverstone lap record and secured second place on the grid for the British Grand Prix, while Pedrosa claimed the third qualifying position by virtue of being the only other rider to set a time within half a second of Marquez, his 2’00.716 being 0.482 seconds off the pace. All three riders that qualified on the front row of the grid used the combination of the soft compound front and medium compound rear to set their quickest times.
    Silverstone was blessed again with fine and mild conditions throughout the day, with a peak track temperature of 35°C reached this afternoon during Free Practice 4; 5 degrees higher than yesterday’s peak. The fine weather allowed the riders to test a variety of tyre combinations and although race tyre choice will be determined by tomorrow’s weather, two tyre options emerged as the most likely race options. The soft compound front slick provides the best balance of cornering and braking performance at Silverstone and it is expected that it will be used by the vast majority of riders for the race. For the rear tyre, the medium compound slick is the most popular option although the soft compound rear slick is working very well for the Aprilia, Suzuki and open class riders and the hard compound option could feature on some Factory Honda and Yamaha machinery after Marc Marquez set some fast, consistent laps on this option during FP4.
    The twenty-lap British Grand Prix will start at 1300 local time tomorrow (GMT +1) with the next MotoGP™ session, morning Warm Up starting at 0930.
    Shinji Aoki – Manager, Bridgestone Motorcycle Tyre Development Department
    “It was very good that today’s weather conditions were the same as yesterday as it enabled the riders to do some comparison work with different front and rear tyres. The feedback from today shows that the soft compound front tyre will be the most popular race choice as it provides the best balance of cornering & braking performance and reaches its ideal operating temperature quickly. For the rear tyre, the medium compound rear slick – which is a different specification to the medium rear slick we brought to Silverstone last year – proved to be very popular, but the soft and hard compound rear slicks are also working well with some different machine and rider combinations. I think we will have to wait and see what the weather brings tomorrow before the riders will confirm their race tyre choice, but the positive aspect for Bridgestone is that all of our slick tyre specifications are working well so the riders have many viable options for the race.”
    British MotoGP QP2 times – Riders that qualified from QP1 shaded in grey
    Pos Rider Team QP2 Time Gap
    1
    		 Marc MARQUEZ Repsol Honda Team 2’00.234
    2
    		 Jorge LORENZO Movistar Yamaha MotoGP 2’00.522 0.288
    3
    		 Dani PEDROSA Repsol Honda Team 2’00.716 0.482
    4
    		 Valentino ROSSI Movistar Yamaha MotoGP 2’00.947 0.713
    5
    		 Pol ESPARGARO Monster Yamaha Tech 3 2’01.031 0.797
    6
    		 Bradley SMITH Monster Yamaha Tech 3 2’01.140 0.906
    7
    		 Scott REDDING EG 0,0 Marc VDS 2’01.329 1.095
    8
    		 Cal CRUTCHLOW LCR Honda 2’01.376 1.142
    9
    		 Andrea IANNONE Ducati Team 2’01.874 1.640
    10
    		 Aleix ESPARGARO Team SUZUKI ECSTAR 2’01.880 1.646
    11
    		 Yonny HERNANDEZ Octo Pramac Racing 2’01.894 1.660
    12
    		 Andrea DOVIZIOSO Ducati Team 2’01.979 1.745
     

  • Hamilton wins at Spa to claim his 6th win of the season; Rosberg 2nd, Gorsjean 3rd

    Lewis Hamilton claimed his sixth win of the 2015 FIA Formula One World Championship with a controlled drive to the chequered flag at the Belgian Grand Prix ahead of team-mate Nico Rosberg and Lotus’ Romain Grosjean who claimed his first podium place for two years when Sebastian Vettel’s gamble on a one-stop strategy failed when the right-rear tyre of his Ferrari exploded two laps from home.

    Fourth place went to Red Bull Racing’s Daniil Kvyat, with Force India’s Sergio Perez fifth.

    The start of the race was aborted as Nico Hulkenberg had a problem. On the first formation lap the German reported that he had no power and he was initially told by his engineer to return to the pit lane. However, as he cruised towards the end of the lap he was then told the boost was coming back to his power unit and he should take the start. He formed up on the grid but was soon waving his hands to indicate the problems had persisted.

    A second formation lap was ordered and Hulkenberg this time made his way to the pit lane. He was joined there by Toro Rosso’s Carlos Sainz who also reported a loss of power.

    When the start finally took place Nico Rosberg was the big loser. Second on the grid behind team-mate Lewis Hamilton, he made a poor start and was swamped as the cars powered away he dropped to fifth place.

    Hamilton, meanwhile, made a solid getaway to take the lead while Force India’s Sergio Perez and Red Bull Racing’s Daniel Ricciardo made excellent starts to slot into second and third respectively ahead of Williams’ Valtteri Bottas.

    Rosberg managed to get past Bottas at the Bus Stop to reclaim fourth place. Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel was a decent sixth up from eighth, with Lotus’ Pastor Maldonado seventh.

    The Venezuelan would not remain there for long, however. On lap two he reported that had “lost the engine” and he joined Hulkenberg in retirement. Sainz, though, had managed to get away, although he was two laps down on the pack.

    Kimi Räikkönen was on a charge and in the first few laps made his way forward to 12th place from 16th on the grid.

    At the front Hamilton was already building a lead and by lap five he was 2.6s ahead of Perez, with Ricciardo a further second back. Rosberg was already six seconds adrift of his title rival.

    Ricciardo was the first to pit, on lap eight, and in a 2.4s stop the Red Bull driver shed his starting soft tyres and taking on medium compound Pirelli tyres.

    Force India responded by pitting Perez on the next lap, for a second set of soft tyres, but Ricciardo made the undercut work and passed Perez as the Mexican was stationary in the pit lane. The pit stops for both meant Rosberg swept through to second and began to utilise his Mercedes’ power to build a gap that might allow him to pass Ricciardo and Perez when he made his stop.

    Williams erred during the stops, however. The team brought Bottas in but somehow managed to fit medium tyres on three corners but a soft compound tyre on the front-right side. He was soon under investigation for the mistake and he was handed a drive-through penalty.

    When the first stops were complete Hamilton was still out in front on lap 16. Second now was Rosberg, who had emerged from his stop ahead of Perez, who had used his soft tyre pace to re-pass Ricciardo. Grosjean was now fifth, with Vettel in sixth place ahead of Kvyat and Massa. Räikönnen moved to ninth as Bottas served his penalty and Verstappen was 10th.

    Grosjean passed Ricciardo for fourth on lap 18 and the Frenchman began to close on Perez, who was now almost 13 seconds behind Rosberg, who was 3.4 seconds adrift of Hamilton.

    Grosjean came up on the back of Perez’s Force India on lap 20 and under DRS swept past the Mexican along the Kemmel Straight to stake a claim to a podium place.

    Ricciardo’s race was drawing to an end, however. The Australian’s sector times plummeted and on lap 21 his RB11 ground to a halt on the inside on the pit straight just after the exit of the Bus Stop. The Virtual Safety Car was deployed and the failure promoted Vettel to fourth ahead of Kvyat. A number of drivers chose to pit under the VSC, including Grosjean, Massa, Räikönnen, Perez and Verstappen.

    The front three of Hamilton, Rosberg and Vettel elected to stay out, however, and on the restart Hamilton lost time to Rosberg with the gap closing to just 2.6s, with Vettel in third. The leader was also heading towards backmarkers. Grosjean was fourth ahead of Kvyat who would need another stop, while Perez was now sixth ahead of Massa, Räikönnen, Verstappen and Bottas.

    Hamilton quickly responded to the threat from Rosberg and over the next handful of laps he powered away from his team-mate, carving out a 4.8s gap by lap 27.

    Kvyat made his final stop from fifth place on lap 27 and took on a set of soft tyre, with which he hoped to attack in the final laps. He emerged behind Bottas but was soon past the Finn. Grosjean, meanwhile, was closing on Vettel, cutting the Ferrari man’s advantage to 3.5s in lap 28.

    Hamilton made his final stop on lap 31, taking on a set of soft tyres in a 2.9s stop. He was followed a lap later by Rosberg, who also took on soft tyres and rejoined in second place, though he was now seven seconds behind his team-mate.

    The question was what would Vettel do? The Ferrari driver was 3.7s ahead of Grosjean but had only made one pit stop, on lap 15, for medium tyres. His race engineer came on the radio and told the German that from the data going to the end looked possible and Vettel settled in for a final 14 laps of careful tyre management.

    On lap 34 Perez was now fifth, just 0.7s ahead of Massa who was 1.3s clear of Räikönnen. Kvyat was now eighth ahead of Bottas and Verstappen.

    Three laps from the flag Kvyat, who had been battling hard with Massa, eventually got past the Brazilian. As Massa was forced to defend he lost the DRS tow from Perez ahead and as he did so, Kvyat reeled the Williams in and the passed Massa with a brave late-braking move into Les Combes.

    The Russian set off after Perez and on lap 41 passed the Mexican under DRS on the Kemmel straight to steal fifth.

    It soon became fourth as Vettel’s hopes of a podium exploded on lap 42. With Grosjean close behind Vettel was pushing hard but as he crested the hill at Raidillon his aged right-rear tyre let failed, leaving the Lotus driver to power past into third.

    At the front Hamilton took the flag with two seconds to spare over Rosberg. Grosjean took his first podium finish since the US Grand Prix of 2013 with third place. Kvyat was an excellent fourth ahead of Perez and Massa. Räikönnen was seventh ahead of Verstappen and Bottas and the final point on offer was claimed by Sauber’s Marcus Ericsson.

    2015 Belgian Grand Prix – Race
    1 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 1:23:40.387
    2 Nico Rosberg Mercedes 00:02.058
    3 Romain Grosjean Lotus 00:37.988
    4 Daniil Kvyat Red Bull Racing 00:45.692
    5 Sergio Perez Force India 00:53.997
    6 Felipe Massa Williams 00:55.283
    7 Kimi Raikkonen Ferrari 00:55.703
    8 Max Verstappen Toro Rosso 00:56.076
    9 Valtteri Bottas Williams 01:01.040
    10 Marcus Ericsson Sauber 01:31.234
    11 Felipe Nasr Sauber 01:42.311
    12 Sebastian Vettel Ferrari 1 lap
    13 Fernando Alonso McLaren 1 lap
    14 Jenson Button McLaren 1 lap
    15 Roberto Merhi Marussia 1 lap
    16 Will Stevens Marussia 1 lap
      Carlos Sainz Jr. Toro Rosso  
      Daniel Ricciardo Red Bull   
      Pastor Maldonado Lotus   
      Nico Hulkenberg Force India

    eom/FIA press release

    Hamilton greets the crowd after winning the Belgian GP on Sunday. An FIA image
    Hamilton greets the crowd after winning the Belgian GP on Sunday. An FIA image

  • Prayer meeting held for late Bharath Raj

    Bengaluru, 23 August 2015: The passing of Federation of Motor Sports Clubs of India President R Bharath Raj on August 15 has left a void in Indian motorsport. 

    In order to remember his contribution to the sport and pay respects, the Karnataka Motor Sports Club organised a prayer meeting at the Hockey Stadium here on Sunday. 

    He was a popular figure and his heart and soul were for motorsport. He was also the Chairman and past president of the Karnataka Motor Sports Club, an organisation that was very close to his heart and he has given it the attention it needed.


    Raj had taken it upon himself to work for the betterment of motorsport and the KMSC, which he supported and sponsored for many years. He was also the past president of the KMSC.

    Though he loved all forms of motorsport, it would not be untrue to say that he was particularly fond of rallying. The K-1000 Rally was a festive and hectic time as far as he and the KMSC team were concerned. His company, IMG Sports, has been sponsoring the K-1000 for some time now.

    The 40th edition of the K-1000 Rally was held in November last year. Raj, with support from the KMSC members, went all out to ensure that it was a roaring success. In fact, he would personally supervise all preparations for the famed rally. Thanks to all the efforts, it was an event to cherish.

    Raj’s biggest contribution to motorsport was that IMG Sports was the promoter of the Indian National Rally Championship for the 2008, 2009 and 2010 seasons. This had never happened in India before and this sponsorship ensured that the championship was conducted in style.

    He dreamt of seeing the Asia-Pacific Rally Championship and World Rally Championship coming to India. In fact, he was keenly looking forward to the Asia Cup in Chikmagalur in December but sadly, fate had other plans.

    KMSC President Shivu Shivappa remembered: “He would sign off as India in his emails and that is how much he loved the country. He wanted to see motorsport grow to great heights and he put down the money to help it.

    “During the K-1000 he would tell us not to get scared of anybody but to try and put in our best efforts to conduct a successful event.

    “The KMSC is deeply saddened by his passing. May his soul rest in peace and we will always remember his contribution to KMSC and Indian motorsport,” he added.

    Several veteran KMSC members spoke and remembered Raj’s contribution to the sport and his fine personality. A few rally drivers also expressed their condolences. 

    A few family members also attended the meeting. 

    He was 56 and is survived by his wife, mother, brothers and sisters.

  • Hamilton takes sixth consecutive pole to equal Schumacher’s record

    Spa-Francorchamps, August 22, 2015 – Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton has equalled Michael Schumacher’s run of six consecutive pole positions, after going fastest in qualifying at Spa on the Pirelli P Zero Yellow soft tyre. This was also the ninth Mercedes one-two of the season, with Hamilton’s pole time of 1m47.197s.

    Hamilton and his team mate Nico Rosberg were the only drivers to get through Q1 on the medium tyre. Not only that, but they were first and second fastest respectively, during their second run on the medium compound.

    From Q2 onwards, the drivers all used the soft compound, which is currently around 1.4/1.5 seconds per lap faster than the medium tyre. Once again, the two Mercedes were fastest: a pattern that was repeated in Q3.

    The final top 10 shootout was clinched by Hamilton after the second of two runs on the soft tyre, with Rosberg just under half a second behind. However, historically Spa is not a circuit where starting on pole is crucial for race victory, meaning that an unpredictable battle is still likely tomorrow.

    Unusually for Spa, the weather remained warm and dry all day, with track temperatures exceeding 40 degrees centigrade. Dry conditions are expected to continue tomorrow, but the microclimate around the Ardennes region means that nothing can be taken for granted.

    Hamilton’s stunning form was also reflected in the final free practice session this morning, during which he again topped the times, using the medium tyre.

    Paul Hembery, Pirelli motorsport director: “The battle for pole between the two Mercedes drivers was stunning, with very little to choose between them right up to the end of qualifying on this amazing track. With a significant performance gap between the medium and soft compounds, and quite high degradation expected, there is plenty of scope for strategy here at Spa, with at least two pit stops anticipated for the majority of competitors. We’ve got a few drivers starting out of position due to penalties or other problems, so it’s going to be interesting to see how they tailor their strategies and use the tyres they have saved to move up through the field.”

    The Pirelli strategy predictor:

    The fastest strategy on paper for the 44-lap race is theoretically a two-stopper (start on soft, soft again on lap 15, medium on lap 30). However, some drivers might try a three-stop S/S/S/M sprint strategy to limit tyre degradation and gain track position – but this depends on individual patterns of tyre usage and traffic.

    Fastest compounds in FP3:
    1 Hamilton 1m48.984s Soft new
    2 Rosberg 1m49.482s Soft new
    3 Vettel 1m49.629s Soft new
    Top 10 tyre use:
    Hamilton 1m47.197s Soft new
    Rosberg 1m47.655s Soft new
    Bottas 1m48.537s Soft new
    Grosjean 1m48.561s Soft new
    Perez 1m48.599s Soft new
    Ricciardo 1m48.639s Soft new
    Massa 1m48.685s Soft new
    Maldonado 1m48.754s Soft new
    Vettel 1m48.825s Soft new
    Sainz 1m49.771s Soft new

    Hamilton on way to clinch another pole at Spa on Saturday. A Bridgestone image
    Hamilton on way to clinch another pole at Spa on Saturday. A Bridgestone image

  • Deepak Chinnapa pulls off a dramatic win: MRF MMSC Indian Racing Nationals

    Chennai, 22 Aug 2015; Deepak Paul Chinnapa of Race Concepts team, Bengaluru, pulled off a dramatic win in the top-end Indian Touring Cars race which witnessed several on-track incidents leading to an investigation in the fifth and concluding round of the MMSC-Fmsci Indian National Racing Championship, at the MMRT track on Saturday.

    Also tasting success was Mohit Aryan of Anish Racing in the Formula LGB 1300 category who started from pole position and saw off early challenge for his fifth win in nine starts to increase his championship tally to 113 for a 13-point lead over Chetan Korada who came in third in the race behind his Wallace Racing team-mate Raghul Rangasamy.

    Deepak Paul, son of yesteryear two-wheeler legend CK Chinnapa, started third on the grid, but squeezed out a win after pole-sitter Arjun Narendran (Red Rooster Racing), who has already sealed the championship, went off the track soon after the start following a contact with Ashish Ramaswamy, and later retired with mechanical problems.

    Chinnapa subsequently eased past race leader Sivaramakrishnan whose car lost power with two of the eight laps remaining to notch a deserving win. The two were involved in a close dog-fight that saw the cars making contact when Sivaramakrishnan’s car lost the drive exiting the Bridge Complex and Chinnapa pulled ahead.

    Meanwhile, the battle for the championship in the MRF Formula Ford 1600 heated up as Karthik Tharanisingh, second on the leaderboard behind Goutham Parekh, grabbed the pole position for the first of two races to be run on Sunday.

    Parekh, who enjoys a 12-point lead in the championship standings, will start second on the grid ahead of CS Tejasram.

    Fahad Kutty of Team Game Over and Varun Anekar (Race Concepts) also qualified for pole position in the Indian Junior Touring Cars and Super Stock categories.

    Provisional results:

    Indian Touring Cars (8 Laps): Deepak Paul Chinnapa (Race Concepts) 1 (15 min. 38.170 seconds); C Rajaram (Prime Racing) 2 (15:41.295); B Vijay Kumar (Prime Racing) 3 (15:51.890).

    Formula LGB 1300 (10 Laps): Mohit Aryan (Anish Racing) 1 (19:42.841); Raghul Rangasamy (Wallace Sports) 2 (19:46.841); Chetan Korada (Wallace Racing) 3 (19:49.748).

    Qualifying – MRF FF1600: Karthik Tharanisingh (Chennai) 1 (1:41.301); Goutham Parekh (Chennai) 2 (1:41.876); CS Tejasram  (Chennai) 3 (1: 43.065).

    Indian Junior Touring Cars: Fahad Kutty (Team Game Over) 1 (2:04.926); Anant Pithawalla (Team N1) 2 (2:05.313); Sidharth B (Red Rooster Racing) 3 (2:05.335).

    Super Stock: Varun Anekar (Race Concepts) 1 (2:07.154); Kashif Kapadia (Team Game Over) 2 (2:07.701); Sudanand Daniel (Performance Racing) 3 (2:07.773).

    ===eom

     

     

    Finishing second behind Chinnapa was veteran C Rajaram (Prime Racing) ahead of team-mate B Vijay Kumar who was elevated from fourth to third. KE Kumar, also of Prime Racing, had originally finished third, but received a 20-second penalty for jump start, pushing him to sixth spot.

    “I am happy that I took my second win of the season. We worked very hard on the car and everything fell into place, though it was a bit of a mess at the start. However, I will take this win,” said Chinnapa who moved to second spot in the championship.

    The LGB race too was marred by on-track incidents with Sudanand Daniel (Anish Racing) suffering the most. Daniel, who was third in the championship going into the final round, finished eighth from where he had started.

  • Rosberg tops timesheets as Formula One action resumes at Spa

    Nico Rosberg went quickest at Belgium’s Spa-Francorchamps circuit as Formula One action got underway once again following the championships traditional summer break.

    Rosberg made a slow start to the weekend, heading out for just three untimed laps during the opening 30-minute phase when drivers have access to an extra set of prime tyres.

    He only set his first timed lap an hour into the session but with that lap he jumped straight into P1 with a time of 1:51.200.

    In his absence, proceedings were largely controlled by his Mercedes team-mate Lewis Hamilton. Hamilton slotted into top spot early with a time of 1:52.192, more than a second clear of the rest of the field. The champion then lowered the benchmark further, climbing to a best time of 1:51.340, which kep the gap to his rivals at over a second as the opening half-hour elapsed.

    Ferrari’s Kimi Räikkonen was closest to the Briton during the opening hour of the session, with the Finn lapping to within a tenth of a second of the Mercedes man.

    However, the action was halted 50 minutes into the session when Pastor Maldonado lost control of his Lotus on the exit of Malmedy, hitting the barriers and damaging his car.

    On the resumption Rosberg finally emerged to set a time and eventually eclipsed Hamilton by 0.242 seconds.

    The gap to their rivals was narrowing, however, and by the end of the session, Red Bull Racing’s Daniel Ricciardo kept the Mercedes pair honest by getting to within three tenths of Rosberg’s best time.

    Räikkönen claimed the morning’s fourth fastest time, less than four tenths adrift of P1, while his teammate Sebastian Vettel was fifth, though the German was some eight tenths down on Rosberg’s session-best time. Daniil Kvyat, fresh from a career-best result of second place in Hungary, made a solid start to the Belgian Grand Prix weekend, taking sixth place.

    He was the last driver to get within a second of Rosberg’s time, with Verstappen seventh and 1.07s down on the Mercedes man and team-mate Carlos Sainz eighth, a further three tenths back.

    Sergio Perez in the Force India and Valtteri Bottas in the Williams completed the top 10.
    2015 Belgian Grand Prix – Free Practice 1
    1 N. Rosberg Mercedes 1:51.082 19
    2 L. Hamilton Mercedes 1:51.324 +0.242 24
    3 D. Ricciardo Red Bull Racing 1:51.373 +0.291 18
    4 K. Raikkonen Ferrari 1:51.478 +0.396 23
    5 S. Vettel Ferrari 1:51.866 +0.784 21
    6 D. Kvyat Red Bull Racing 1:51.960 +0.878 18
    7 M. Verstappen Toro Rosso 1:52.158 +1.076 27
    8 C. Sainz Toro Rosso 1:52.421 +1.339 26
    9 S. Perez Force India 1:52.423 +1.341 20
    10 V. Bottas Williams 1:52.511 +1.429 19
    11 P. Maldonado Lotus 1:52.539 +1.457 15
    12 N. Hulkenberg Force India 1:52.614 +1.532 20
    13 F. Nasr Sauber 1:52.640 +1.558 16
    14 F. Massa Williams 1:52.653 +1.571 22
    15 M. Ericsson Sauber 1:53.426 +2.344 16
    16 F. Alonso McLaren 1:53.502 +2.420 15
    17 J. Palmer Lotus 1:53.799 +2.717 23
    18 J. Button McLaren 1:54.225 +3.143 14
    19 W. Stevens Manor 1:55.501 +4.419 16
    20 R. Merhi Manor 1:56.086 +5.004 17

     

    eom/FIA release

    Roseberg in acdtion at Spa on Friday. An FIA image
    Roseberg in acdtion at Spa on Friday. An FIA image

  • I am happy to stay back with Ferrari, but we have to try to do a good second part of the year: Kimi

    DRIVERS – Max VERSTAPPEN (Toro Rosso), Daniil KVYAT (Red Bull Racing), Will STEVENS (Manor), Fernando ALONSO (McLaren), Kimi RAIKKONEN (Ferrari), Lewis HAMILTON (Mercedes)

    PRESS CONFERENCE

    Kimi, we have to start with you. Obviously Spa has been very good to you over the years – four wins – but your drive for 2016 confirmed yesterday. What do you hope to achieve given the way the team is developing at the moment and your own performance level at this stage of your career?

    Kimi RAIKKONEN: Well, obviously it the same as every year – we want to do as well as we can and hopefully challenge for championships for next year and I’m sure we can produce even a quite bit better car than this year next year. Obviously the team is all working well together and we all feel very good and obviously I’m happy to stay there but we have to try to do a good second part of the year and maximise what we have and then prepare for next year.

    You will have seen that after he won Sebastian gave you a lot of support with his words in Hungary before the break. What did that support mean to you?

    KR: I know him well and we have a very good relationship and it’s nice… I don’t know exactly what you mean, I mean I haven’t read so much things lately, but he tells me and I tell him if he does well and I do well, we have a very good feeling of respect in the team. It’s always nice to hear from him also. We try to beat each other in the races but we still can be friends as before, so I think that is also very good for us as a team that we can work very closely.

    OK, thank you for that. Lewis, coming to you: twice on pole here, you’ve got a win, of course, at this circuit as well. You said that your performance in Hungary was short of your own expectations, but you still managed to increase your championship lead. Does that kind of thing make you feel that this might be your year?

    Lewis HAMILTON: Definitely not, definitely not. I think the team effort that goes in; seeing how hard my team is working, seeing the progress we’re making I think encourages me to believe that it’s going to be our year. You know you just have to keep your head down and you can’t win them all.

    Sebastian Vettel is just 42 behind you at this stage; 225 points maximum up for grabs. Any concerns there about the threat from him or does your qualifying superiority underpin confidence for the second half of the season in particular?

    LH: Well naturally we’re here to win and we’re focused on making sure we stay up front but we’re conscious… we’re fully aware that other teams are pushing very hard and Ferrari are looking great. So we don’t arrive at any race thinking that we are superior to anyone. We know that we have a fight on our hands and so we’re doing to work at trying to make sure we work harder than them.

    OK, thanks for that. Fernando, coming to you, amazingly you’ve never won at Spa in Formula One. You’ve won in plenty of other categories but not in Formula One. Looking back a remarkable Hungary; fifth place for you, both cars in the points. Does that represent real progress or does it just represent and opportunity taken?

    Fernando ALONSO: Well, I think half and half; a little bit of both. There was a better performance from us in Hungary. I think the circuit layout helped us a little bit in terms of the characteristics of our car and then secondly, I think we have been lucky with some of the retirements and some of the incidents that happened in Hungary, [they] helped us to get some places. I think 12 or 13 cars had some issues during the race in terms of penalties or in terms of mechanical failures, so I think that was definitely a help.

    Now, you’ve experienced many different situations, technical situations and rules around grand prix starts during your long career, could you give us an insight into how much these new rules, starting this weekend in Spa, will change things for the drivers?

    FA: I think not much. It will not be a significant change. I know that there is some talk about this but maybe for next year or the following years will be more different. What we will have here is just some restrictions in communications with the drivers and the team etc but I think… at least in our team we were not doing any specific communication or strategy during the formation laps etc so it will not change much.

    Q: Coming to you Will, on podium here I believe here in World Series, first time here racing in Formula One. What are your thoughts on racing at this historic venue, what it means to a driver in his first full season in F1 to race here. Is this one that, when you looked at the calendar on your kitchen wall you looked at and really thought ‘I’m looking forward to racing at F1 car at Spa.’

    Will STEVENS: Yeah, I think Spa is always a special circuit. I think all the drivers always like coming here a lot. Every car you come in goes quicker and quicker and the track gets better so really excited to get out to see what an F1 car feels like ‘round here. It’s always been a good track for me and looking forward to getting out there.

    Q: Tell us about the match-up with your team-mate. It seems to have been in his favour a little bit in the last couple of races. What’s the story behind that.

    WS: I think our pace has been really strong throughout the year. Just the last few grands prix haven’t really fallen my way to be honest but I know that I’ve got good pace in the car and I think coming back to a circuit like this it should really suit what I like. I’m confident to kick on for the rest of the season and finish strongly.

    Q: Coming to you Daniil. Obviously your best-ever Formula One result last time out in Hungary, second place, also, the best result for a Russian in Formula One. What was the reaction like back home?

    Daniil KVYAT: It was a good race for me in Hungary. Hard to say what was the reaction – I didn’t count any reactions or stuff like that but I think it was good for myself, good for the team generally to achieve that in this hard season. Now there’s been the summer break and we are back to our basic work. We hope to keep working hard to achieve similar results – even though we know it’s not going to be easy because also in Hungary we had to take some opportunities. Nevertheless, when they come, you have to take them.

    Q: It’s very clear that Red Bull has made significant steps, particularly on the chassis side since Silverstone. How do you fancy your chances of repeating that kind of result in the second half of the year? Which races are you looking at in particular?

    DK: Once it happened I think it’s possible to do second time as well. We should never give up on that. I think you know in theory Singapore is looking good for us but I wouldn’t limit… I wouldn’t say that we would just work on one particular race. We have to take any chances in every race – and this will be one of them. Anything can happen in any other race and we have to keep pushing for any opportunity because every race is a new chance.

    Q: And talking of best-ever career Formula One results, Max Verstappen, you won three times here in F3 at Spa but you got your best-ever Formula One result, fourth place in Hungary, a real breakthrough for you. What does that say about you and your challenge this year?

    Max VERSTAPPEN: I think it was also a bit unexpected result there but, I mean, you still need to be there when people make mistakes or have problems so, at the end, I was very happy to finish fourth especially after the beginning of the race which was a bit difficult for me. But I think the first half of the season went quite well. I think if I new this before I would have signed off – I would have liked it like this but now it’s time to focus again on this weekend. On my home grand prix. Won’t be as good, I think, as Hungary but you never know. We can get some good chances here again. We just have to optimise everything.

    Q: You’re about to race a Formula One car around this daunting F1 track – but can you give us an update on how you’re going with getting a road car licence?

    MV: I still don’t have it. Still not 18. But yeah, I don’t have so much time – so I’ll do it a bit later.

    QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

    Q: (Heikki Kulta – Turun Sanomat) Kimi, fighting for your fifth victory here, does it help you that all the pressure of the new contract is now put behind and you don’t have to prove yourself that much any more?

    KR: It doesn’t change anything. I mean we still try to do the same as every other race. S

    FIA Thursday Press conference image by FIA.
    FIA Thursday Press conference image by FIA.

    o, that contract thing, it’s not going to change our approach for the weekend or the end result. Hopefully the end result will be good but no, we will do the same things as in all the other races. So, hopefully we can have a good weekend, no problems and see where we end up.

    Q: (Dan Knutson – Auto Action, Speedsport Magazines) Next year, the engineers will not be able to coach the drivers over the radio on things like tyre degradation and fuel saving, so I would like to ask an experienced driver, Fernando, and a new guy, Max, if you welcome this because it’s more in the driver’s hands or do you prefer to have as many tools and inputs to optimise your driving?

    FA: Well, I don’t think it will make a huge change because… yeah, we are receiving some information now on the radio about tyres, about fuel or other things on the car but we are perfectly aware of what is happening in the car and what is the best solution for the specific issues that we are facing during the race so if that information is not coming, it will come anyway by instinct and by the reactions of the car. So yeah, we will have to pay a little bit more attention to a few things that now we rely a little bit on the radio but it’s not a big change and probably it’s welcome, all those changes, to have a little bit more to do in the car and feeling a little bit more important.

    MV: For me, I don’t think it will change a lot. You always drive on your instincts. You feel when the tyres are dropping off so the engineer doesn’t need to tell you that. I think you learn that already from a very young age so yeah, I don’t mind, to be honest, to talk a little bit less on the radio.

    Q: (Flavio Vanetti – Corriere della Serra) Kimi, you are approaching your sixth season with the red car. You have won a title, some races, you’ve got some podiums. What are you still missing in your experience with Ferrari?

    KR: Obviously we want more wins, me and the team, but I’ve had good years, difficult years, some up and downs but I always enjoy it, always enjoy it more when things are going more nicely when you get results but as a team, I’ve had a great time there and I’m very pleased that we can be working together next year again. As a team, as they are now, I really feel that we are going in the right direction and we can do great things in the future. No, if I miss something… like I said, people more happy, we are more happy when we can do better results. Obviously you write less negative things after that. We keep working and believe in what we’re doing so I’m sure we will get there and we will have many happy days in front of us and a lot of good results.

    Q: (Thomas Bastin – La Derniere Heure) Max, I remember your wins last year in Formula Three very well. It seems that when you arrive at this track you were immediately very much at ease. Does it give you more confidence before your first attempt in Formula One?

    MV: I’m always confident but I’m racing against very competitive and experienced guys so we will see. I always try to do my best and from there on we always go into the weekend.

    Q: (Angelique Belokopytov – Autodigest) Lots of drivers just love Spa for its legendary corners, for opportunities to overtake and so on so my question is for all drivers: what do you dislike in Spa, what would you optimise or improve? So let’s start with Kimi as he has the record for the most wins of any driver here?

    KR: What would I change? I think I would go back to how the last chicane was, coming into the chicane and I guess it was called the Bus Stop at that time, it was nicer than how it is now. It was just better, kind of more like it should be. Now one part is a bit different to the others, the new one doesn’t feel like it fits exactly there. I think it was a nicer corner, there was a bit more speed, over the kerbs more. I guess that not much else has changed really, a little bit the first corner.

    LH: I think I would agree but I never drove that circuit, I just watched and played it on the computer game but it was definitely even more fun on computer games so I would imagine it would be better in real life.

    Q: Is this one of your favourite tracks?

    LH: No

    Q: Anybody else like to make any changes?

    MV: There are quite a lot of wasps. I don’t like them. That’s the only thing. I think the track is great.

    Q: (Livio Oricchio – Globosport.com) Lewis, you have been seen in the social media, many pictures of your maybe new way of life. What do you think, do you think you can arrive at the races more relaxed, it helps you to develop even better work? Or in the future, you can charge some price?

    LH: I don’t really have a new way of life. This is what I’ve sort of been doing… it’s just more visible to you, that’s about it. It’s been working quite well the last couple of years.

    eom/FIA press release

     

     

     

     

     

  • Le Mans winner and F1 star Nico Hülkenberg to race at ROC 2015 in London

      • 2015 Le Mans 24 Hours winner Nico Hülkenberg has signed up for the Race Of Champions at London’s former Olympic Stadium on November 20-21
      • Hülkenberg, who races in Formula 1 for Sahara Force India, became the first current F1 driver to win Le Mans for over 20 years with victory for Porsche in June
      • The German will now make his ROC debut and partner four-time Formula 1 world champion Sebastian Vettel for Team Germany
      • The ROC 2015 field also features ‘Mr Le Mans’ Tom Kristensen, rallycross ace Petter Solberg, F1’s Daniel Ricciardo, MotoGP greats Mick Doohan and Jorge Lorenzo plus reigning Champion of Champions David Coulthard

    • File photo by raceofchampions.com
      File photo by raceofchampions.com

      Even more of the world’s greatest drivers will join the line-up ahead of the November event, with tickets now available from www.raceofchampions.com

     

    2015 Le Mans 24 Hours winner Nico Hülkenberg has signed up for this year’s Race Of Champions on November 20-21 at the Stadium at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, the iconic home of the 2012 London Olympic and Paralympic Games.

    Hülkenberg became the first current Formula 1 driver in over 20 years to win the Le Mans 24 Hours with his 2015 victory on his debut for Porsche alongside team-mates Nick Tandy and Earl Bamber. The win has earned Hülkenberg the wider recognition he earned long ago in motor racing circles with a collection of titles in Formula BMW, A1 Grand Prix, the F3 Euro Series and GP2 on his way up through the ranks.

    Since his Formula 1 debut in 2010 the German has shown consistently fine racecraft, not least his outstanding pole position by a full second for Williams in Brazil. He now races for Sahara Force India, for whom he scored 15 points finishes last year. Ever since June’s Le Mans win, Hülkenberg has been consistently in the points yet again.

    Now Hülkenberg will make his Race Of Champions debut this November at London’s former Olympic Stadium. He will also partner four-time F1 world champion Sebastian Vettel for Team Germany in the ROC Nations Cup. Vettel is also a six-time winner of the event in partnership with F1 legend Michael Schumacher, who is recovering from his serious skiing accident. Hülkenberg knows that’s a hard act for anyone to follow.

    Hülkenberg said: “I’ve had a very good year so far and I’m very excited to be making my Race Of Champions debut. I’ve always wanted to take part but it never worked out so now I’m really happy to be a part of it and looking forward to it. I’m obviously stepping into big shoes to replace Michael Schumacher, which is a huge honour as well. I feel very happy and positive about that and it will be fun to team up with Seb and race and fight for Team Germany.

    “The ROC track is very narrow and tight, a bit like racing on a street circuit. But it’s still quick and dynamic and entertaining to watch. There’s going to be quite a bit of car-hopping, adapting and adjusting from one machine to another. They’re all quite different so I don’t really know what to expect. But I guess I’ll get dumped into the cold water and then I’ll have to figure out how to swim…”

    Hülkenberg’s new team-mate Sebastian Vettel added: “It’s obviously very sad that Michael can’t join us again but in his absence it’s great to have Nico as a partner on Team Germany this year. I have massive respect for what he did in the Le Mans 24 Hours – to win it on his first attempt is very impressive. That’s a great race to watch because the race is long yet they race flat out from the first lap for the whole of the race. The Race Of Champions is at the other end of the scale in terms of distance but I can assure Nico we push just as hard!”

    The Race Of Champions is an annual end-of-season contest which has been held for over 25 years. It brings together some of the world’s greatest drivers from motor sport’s major disciplines – including Formula 1, World Rally, Le Mans, MotoGP and the X-Games – and sets them free to battle head-to-head in identical machinery.

    The event is run over two days: first comes the ROC Nations Cup (on the evening of Friday November 20) when drivers pair up in teams based on nationality to bid for the title of ‘World’s Fastest Nation’. Then on the afternoon of Saturday November 21 it’s time for the Race Of Champions itself, when teamwork goes out of the window and it’s a flat-out battle for individual glory.

    Along with Hülkenberg and Vettel, drivers already confirmed for ROC 2015 include fellow F1 star Daniel Ricciardo, nine-time Le Mans 24 Hours winner Tom Kristensen, reigning FIA World Rallycross Champion Petter Solberg, current ROC Champion of Champions David Coulthard plus MotoGP greats Mick Doohan and Jorge Lorenzo.

    ROC president Fredrik Johnsson said: “Nico’s win on his Le Mans debut shows what an outstanding driver he is, but Formula 1 fans have known that for years. He has a winning record going back throughout his career and he consistently makes the most of whatever equipment he has. Now we are delighted to offer Nico a chance to show what he can really do in ROC’s range of identical machinery.

    “If Nico was from any other country he would have made his ROC debut long before now, but of course Team Germany has long been about Michael and Seb. Everyone at ROC is sad that Michael will be missing as he continues his recuperation from his skiing accident but Nico is a first-rate replacement. Now we hope to fill out London’s former Olympic Stadium so as many race fans as possible can enjoy all the action as we find out if Nico and Seb can take their country back to the top.”

    In recent years ROC has visited the Stade de France in Paris (2004-2006), London’s Wembley Stadium (2007-2008), the ‘Bird’s Nest’ Olympic Stadium in Beijing (2009), Düsseldorf’s Esprit Arena (2010-2011), the Rajamangala Stadium in Bangkok (2012) and Bushy Park Barbados (2014). Now the contest is returning to its European roots at the iconic home of the 2012 London Olympic and Paralympic Games.

    The former Olympic Stadium at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park was the backdrop to some of the most memorable action of London 2012, plus the opening and closing ceremonies. Now it is being transformed into a year-round multi-use venue that will deliver a lasting sporting, cultural and community legacy in east London. The works will be paused this autumn for a range of international sporting events – including its fastest ever race as ROC comes to town – before it closes for further refurbishment ahead of its full re-opening in 2016.

    Tickets for ROC 2015 in London are now available via www.raceofchampions.com. For access to rights-free high-resolution imagery and to keep up with all the latest news ahead of this year’s event please visitwww.raceofchampions.com, Race Of Champions on Facebook plus @raceofchampions and #ROCLondon on Twitter.

    Drivers already announced for the 2015 Race Of Champions:

    • Sebastian VETTEL, four-time Formula 1 World Champion
    • Tom KRISTENSEN, nine-time Le Mans 24 Hours winner
    • Petter SOLBERG, World Rallycross Champion 2014, World Rally Champion 2003
    • David COULTHARD, reigning ROC Champion of Champions
    • Mick DOOHAN, five-time 500cc MotoGP World Champion
    • Daniel RICCIARDO, three-time Formula 1 grand prix winner
    • Jorge LORENZO, double MotoGP World Champion
    • Nico HÜLKENBERG, F1 star and 2015 Le Mans 24 Hours winner

  • Sahara Force India looks forward for a strong second half, says team chief Vijay Mallya

    Sahara Force India Team Principal Vijay Mallya looks forward to a strong second half of the season as speaks ahead of the Shell Belgian Grand Prix this week-end.

    After the summer break all the Formula One teams come back to racing at the famous Spa Francorchamps circuit this week-end.

    Mallya says: “The summer break has given us a chance to regroup following a challenging race in Budapest. The whole team has worked extremely hard to repair the cars and solve the problems that we encountered in Hungary, and we’re ready to bounce back this weekend in Spa.

    “Although the Hungarian Grand Prix was disappointing, I prefer to focus on the positives, especially the strong pace we showed in the first half of the race. We saw that the VJM08 is capable of running comfortably inside the top ten, which gives us confidence for the secMotor Racing - Formula One World Championship - Hungarian Grand Prix - Qualifying Day - Budapest, Hungaryond half of the season. There remains an upbeat feeling in the team and I think we can look forward to some competitive races to come.

    “Returning to Spa is always special because it’s one of those tracks that truly captures the imagination. The drivers love to race here and it’s a favourite with the fans too. We expect to be in good shape this weekend and we will be aiming for Q3 on Saturday and good points on Sunday.”

    Nico Hülkenberg feels refreshed and ready to race this weekend in Belgium.

    Hulkenberg says: “The summer break was very relaxing for me. My schedule has been extra busy this year so it was nice to stay at home for a few weeks and just switch off and relax. Even though it’s only been a month since the last race, you miss being in the car and the buzz of racing, so I’m definitely ready to begin the second half of the season.

    “Spa is a favourite for all the drivers. When I think of driving there it just makes me smile because it’s got so many special high-speed corners – the corners you want to experience in a Formula One car. You’ve also got the history of the place and the unpredictable weather which often helps spice up the racing.

    “We go there hoping to bounce back from a tough race in Hungary. The improvements we’ve made to the car will really help us in Spa, especially through the high-speed corners. The engine also plays a big part around the lap. We are competitive and I am confident we can start the second part of the season strongly.”

    Sergio Perez looks forward to racing in Spa.

    Sergio says: “The break was a good opportunity to recharge my batteries and spend some time at home with my family. The calendar is pretty busy and we don’t often get the chance to have some time for ourselves. However, I am really looking forward to getting back behind the wheel and doing what I really love.

    “Spa is an amazing track and I enjoy racing there. The first sector and the run through Eau Rouge feel very special in a Formula One car and it’s definitely a highlight of the year. The track can also produce really good racing because there are a few corners where you have a good chance to overtake.

    “I think the characteristics of the track and its emphasis on power and top speed should suit our car. You also have to expect wet weather at some point during the weekend so it could be quite unpredictable. We have shown some good pace in the last few races and we should be in a position to get a good result.”

    ends/Force India release