INDIA in F1

Author: David Bodapati

  • Just one point for Mercedes; Schumy retires

    A tough day for Mercedes saw Michael Schumacher retire and Nico Rosberg grab a solitary point.

    Michael Schumacher at Hungary on Sunday 29 July 2012

    Mercedes struggled in qualifying and could manage no better than 13th for Rosberg, with Schumacher down in 17th. Things would get worse for the seven-times World Champion and four times Hungarian Grand Prix winner when he had to cut his engine on the grid and be wheeled back into the pitlane. As the rest of the grid did another formation lap and finally got underway, Schumacher started from the pitlane – and was promptly given a drive-through penalty for speeding. He caught up with a backmarkers eventually and made some gains, despite having a car that wasn’t fully functional, but ultimately had to retire.

    “Today was obviously one of those races that you will not look back at for very long,” said a wry Schumacher afterwards. “Our engine temperatures were very high before the start, and when the yellow lights came on, I switched the engine off. After I had started from the pit lane, I picked up a penalty and then a puncture. So all in all, the beginning of the race was not very pleasant for us. Everything you do not need came together.

    “We did not have full telemetry before the start and during the period of overheating, and this is why we finally decided to retire so as not risk any damage which might make us suffer in the next race. Now we can now check the car properly before the break and prior to Spa. This weekend is not one to remember, but then there are weekends like this which you can only accept.”

    Rosberg had a more successful Sunday, rising from his grid position to take tenth place early in the race and then hang onto it to take the final point.

    “We’ve had a difficult weekend here in Budapest, and just haven’t been quick enough,” he reflected. “In the race today, I had a good start and was able to gain three positions by the end, so I got the most out of it. Being happy with one point is not an ideal situation though. We need to find out why we are off the pace at the moment.”

  • FIA president meet Euro Commission president

    On Tuesday 24 July, the President of the European Commission, José Manuel Barroso, received a delegation from the FIA which included Jean Todt, President of the FIA, Carlos Barbosa, Vice-President of the FIA and President of the Automovel Club de Portugal (ACP), and the Director General of the FIA bureau in Brussels, Jacob Bangsgaard.

    On the occasion of this cordial meeting, Jean Todt set out to the President of the European Commission the FIA’s objectives with regard to both sport and mobility, mentioning in particular issues relating to road safety, environmental protection, the defence of motorists and the drawing up of a European sports policy.

    José-Manuel Barroso noted the convergence of views on the question of road safety and was pleased to see the FIA so committed on this subject, notably through its ‘Action for Road Safety’ campaign. This initiative complements the European Commission’s undertaking set out in its 2011 communication: “Towards a European road safety area: policy orientations on road safety 2011-2020”.

    It was established that there is a mutual desire to strengthen the links between the European Commission and the FIA. This could come about through the FIA’s taking part in working groups; for example the FIA could be granted the status of observer within the group of experts on European policy in matters relating to sport.

    Lastly, in the medical field, Jean Todt reminded the President of the European Commission that the FIA, through its foundation, supports medical research centres such as the Brain and Spine Institute [Institut du Cerveau et de la Moelle épinière (ICM)] which works on treating among other things degenerative diseases of the brain – a field in which the European Commission also has an active role.

    Standby file

  • I have a special relation with Hockenheim: Sauber

    FIA Friday Press Conference

    TEAM REPRESENTATIVES – Mark SMITH (Caterham), John BOOTH (Marussia), Franz TOST (Toro Rosso), Norbert HAUG (Mercedes), Peter SAUBER (Sauber).

    Mark, if I can start with you. First of all, we’ve seen a certain number of developments over the last couple of races. How promising were those? Are we going to see further upgrades in the coming races as well?

    Mark SMITH: We took an upgrade to Silverstone. We were hoping for some dry running, which obviously was forecast very early on not to happen. That hampered us quite a lot actually. We genuinely believed we’d have the opportunity to have some dry running in Hockenheim and we’ve had very little so far. So really, we’re struggling to develop the car around the updates that we have, predominantly because of the lack of dry running. We know from the running we did at Silverstone we have performance on the car but we probably extracted about 40% of it at most.

    You have a team move coming up: how disruptive is that going to be? Obviously it’s planned to be as least disruptive as possible but it is mid-season.

    MS: It is mid-season, but it is during the two-week shut down, so it’s never going to be ideal but I think it will be fairly painless. One of the biggest challenges is probably the IT infrastructure. Work is already underway with respect to that. Things like CFD clusters represent the biggest challenge in that respect. The rest of it? If you think about the race team, they can live out of an F1 facility and operate anywhere in the world fairly self-sufficiently. So for the race team, post-Hungary, they’ll go back to Leafield and the rest of us will move after the shutdown on August 20th. The majority of us.

    John, you had updates at Silverstone as well, despite a difficult development period leading up to that. Did they show the promise you were hoping for and will they lift Timo back into the peloton as it were?

    John BOOTH: As Mark said, it was pretty difficult at Silverstone and again here to verify where we think we are. The upgrades were substantial and significant in that it was our first upgrade derived from the wind tunnel programme and our partnership with MAT. Some of it looks very promising so we take heart from that and we also have a few more bits here to give Timo that extra boost.

    It’s been 13 days since Maria’s terrible accident and everyone in the press room is very appreciative of the statements you’ve put out, particularly the last one, but in terms of questions still unanswered, there are still one or two. So where does that leave us, the press?

    JB: We had two priorities immediately after the accident, first being Maria’s welfare of course, that was foremost in our minds. The second was to start to investigate the cause and clear the car of any part of that of course, with Silverstone coming up. We established that but then revisited our findings straight after Silverstone and now we’re 100% confident that the car was not to blame in the slightest. As for the wider investigation, that is ongoing and will be a very long process, as in England it has to be, it’s taken very seriously there, as you know. It will be some time before we know the final outcome. It would inappropriate for me to comment any further on that.

    Question for the front row regarding German Grands Prix. We have representatives of Germany, Switzerland and Austria – how important is this German Grand Prix to you?

    FT: For me the German Grand Prix is a classic grand prix. In Europe from the history we have four grands prix which are very important. That’s Silverstone, one grand prix in Germany at the Nürburgring or the Hockenheimring, it’s Monza and Spa… and of course also Monaco. The German Grand Prix has a high level of importance and also, if you think how many German drivers in the meantime in Formula One and also Germany is a very healthy country from the economical side and therefore it’s very, very important that this grand prix takes place here in this country.

    Norbert, obviously very important for Mercedes…

    NH: Yeah, absolutely. It’s very special for us. We have more that one home grand prix: we have the British Grand Prix; we have another home grand prix in Abu Dhabi where our shareholder Aabar is at home but this, just 100km from the main facilities of Mercedes, from Stuttgart… I personally have great memories from when I was a young boy already I was here, looking mainly at motorbike races, so Hockenheim is just home turf – and it’s of course it’s good having a good performance here – we try. I remember winning 2008 with McLaren-Mercedes, Lewis Hamilton, which is a great memory. And yeah, there’s a lot of spectators, a lot of guests, the Mercedes grandstand, a great programme there, a very busy weekend for all of us. It didn’t start in a typically Hockenheim way: normally it’s hot; today it was more the Silverstone way, which we experienced a fortnight ago. So, it seems to be the same tomorrow: rain again, and probably sun on race day – so parallel to what we experienced two weeks ago. But still, a very important race of course.

    Peter, is this as close to a home race as you get?

    PS: Yes, I think it’s a home race – similar to Monza, both grands prix are very close to the factory in Hinwil. But I have a special relationship with Hockenheim. I drove many, many races here. I started I think in 1967 with my first race here, with a Volkswagen Beetle.

    Question then to all of you again, on a similar subject: how important is the Nürburgring? It’s got problems of it’s own at the moment, can they be solved? How important is it that they are solved and it remains one of the homes of the German Grand Prix.

    FT: The Nürburgring as well has a very, very interesting and important history. Everybody in the world knows the Nürburgring who’s involved in motor racing. I just hope that all the politicians find a solution to get the money together that the Nürburgring will survive. Because in the meantime a fantastic infrastructure has been built up around the Nürburgring with all the hotels and, apart from this, there are many workshops where parts for racing cars have been produced. It would be a shame if people would lose their jobs from this. There are many, many races over there: the 24 Hours for example, and a lot of other races, and especially Formula One. I just hope that in future we will also have a race there because the Nürburgring is history for motorsport in general and especially for Formula One.

    And a huge heritage again for Mercedes, Norbert?

    NH: Yes, absolutely. There is a great heritage and I hope and think it will continue. We definitely have a DTM race at the Nürburgring after the summer break, the 19th of August, so that is confirmed. And I think there are good chances for a grand prix in the future – but it’s probably too early to talk about that and to speculate. I think they built great facilities and probably the plan was a good one but it didn’t turn out in the right way. I think what is very important to know is that the Nürburgring is booked in a fantastic way – so the industry has lots of bookings there, not only Nordschleife but also grand prix circuit where the Grand Prix takes place. I think this is a positive development for the Nürburgring: I just think they got in financial problems but hopefully they are solvable.

    Peter, I’m sure Saubers have raced there. Did the Beetle make it that far?

    PS: Not just the Beetle. ’86 we won the first sportscar race, together with Mercedes. I think with Pescarolo and Thackwell on the car. I think it’s important for this very traditional race track that the responsible people find a solution to save the situation.

    QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

    Q: (Edd Straw – Autosport) Franz, we understand that Giorgio Ascanelli is out of the team or should we say on his way out of the team, and is certainly no longer in active service. Can you confirm exactly what his status is and what the reasons are behind this move, please?

    FT: I can only tell you that Giorgio Ascanelli is on holiday and there’s confidentiality between the two parties. That’s all that I can say to this.

    Q: (Edd Straw – Autosport) Can you just, in general terms, make any comment as to whether it’s sensible to let your technical director be on holiday during a Grand Prix? Obviously we can read into this the fact that there is something clearly going on.

    FT: Sorry. I’ve said everything.

    Q:  (Sonya Kreye – Speed News) Norbert, the season is wide open – this is a more general question – is this for you more enjoyable or does it put stress on you?

    NH: Well, I would say it’s positive pressure and you grade your pressure inside the team.  None of the guys you see here on the podium doesn’t like to be in the best possible position, and the best possible position is ultimately P1, but you need to work very hard. This is a very very competitive environment. We’ve seen very very good races this year. We’ve seen surprising results. We saw guys winning who nobody probably thought would win, so it’s very good for the spectator. I think we have seven or eight teams that are in a position to clinch podium positions and as far as I can remember, that was never the case in Formula One. All the teams of course want to finally dominate. This is the plan but first of all you have to score points, then podiums then race wins, and it’s a very very good mixture for the spectator this year and yes, it is demanding but I think we all do what our destiny is, what we want to do and we are not forced to do this but we enjoy it; not every second, not if you have bad results, if you do not achieve what you wanted to achieve, but this is part of the game. Even more, you can enjoy the good part of it if you really got on the podium, if you get a race win, if you get a feeling like China, with Nico, that’s fantastic. I’m sure Peter can describe his feelings from Malaysia, fighting for victory which was a deserved result and a very positive surprise.

    Q: (Dieter Rencken – The Citizen) To the four team principals: during the Silverstone weekend, an article was published in The Daily Mail in London in which Mr Ecclestone was quoted that commercially the Concorde Agreement was all agreed, saying that the commercial terms for the replacement of the present Concorde had been agreed with everybody. Could you four team principals confirm that you have actually signed a document with Mr Ecclestone, which forms part of the replacement for the 2013 Concorde?

    FT: Toro Rosso signed a Concorde agreement.

    NH: I’m not one of the four.

    PS: I think… we have an agreement with Bernie, yes. We have signed an agreement with Bernie.

    JB: We haven’t signed an agreement.

    Q: (Dieter Rencken – The Citizen) Mr Haug, you may not be a team principal but you are here as a Mercedes Benz representative. To the best of your knowledge has Mercedes signed a document with Bernie.

    NH: Well, I can only tell you that we are in constructive discussion still, so that implies that we didn’t sign yet.

    Q: (Matt Coch – pitpass.com) In terms of younger drivers coming up, how actively do you look at the supporting categories and the feeder series and how much interest do you take and how active a part do you play?

    FT: From my side, I only look at Formula Three races, Formula Renault races, the two litre and 3.5 litre, GP3 and GP2 of course and to get an overview of skilled drivers, because, as you know, Toro Rosso is a team which is responsible to Red Bull to provide good, young, skilled drivers.

    NH: Well, I’m looking at it, traditionally, as much as I have time. I’m following it as well as I can, if I’m not busy.

    PS: With Esteban Gutierriez we have a test and spare driver in the GP2 series, but for us, it is not possible to support some drivers and some teams in this series.

    MS: As a team we are obviously involved in the formulae and look closely at potential young drivers. As an individual, I have limited time to do that.

    JB: Yes, we are actively involved in GP3 and GP2 and in fact we gave our GP2 drivers a run out at Silverstone last week in the young drivers’ test, so we watch all categories but particularly GP2 and GP3.

    Q: (Gary Meenaghan – The National) Following on from the young driver testing, I was wondering if the other four guys could talk about where they’re planning their young driver test this year. I understand Mercedes is considering running in France. Is that correct?

    NH: No. It’s probably not finally decided.

    PS: We will test in Abu Dhabi, I think so. I hope we can do the test there with three different drivers and with Esteban Gutierrez of course.

    FT: As it looks now, we will also drive in Abu Dhabi, but it’s not 100 percent decided with which drivers we are running there.

    JB: We had a look at the calendar at the end of the year and Abu Dhabi would have meant that the mechanics were working or travelling for five consecutive weeks and five weeks away from home. We didn’t feel that we had the necessary manpower or human resource or parts for the car to conduct that kind of the test, so we opted to use Silverstone last week.

    MS: We plan to be in Abu Dhabi.

    Q: (Edd Straw – Autosport) Franz, this season has been a little bit disappointing for Toro Rosso. Could you just give an overview of what you think has gone wrong with the team, and where you can maybe improve to get the kind of results that you would expect?

    FT: The season’s not over yet.  So far we started the season quite well. We scored points at the beginning and then we struggled a little bit. For example, in Monaco, Jean-Eric Vergne was in seventh place ten laps from the end but then it started to rain a little bit and di Resta and some others passed him. In Valencia, Daniel had a good chance to score points but then he had a crash with Petrov. I think that we will come up with some new upgrades for the next races and I hope that it’s wet tomorrow here and on Sunday because it looks as if the car and the drivers together are quite competitive in the wet. And I’m quite positive and optimistic for the second half of the season.

    Q: (Stefan Skolik – Mannheimer Morgen) Can you comment on Michael’s accident at the end of practice, Mr Haug?

    NH: He just lost it. He was on the radio and he said ‘not fully concentrated.’ Things like that just happen, it’s not an ideal situation but we can recover, I’m sure.

    Q: (Vanessa Ruiz – ESPN Radio) Norbert and Peter mainly; we’re now reaching the middle of the season; how do you see the development? Do you believe that we already have the top three teams in a situation where it will be difficult for the others to catch up? Or do you understand that it’s still open as many people say, in terms of winning races?

    PS: I think it’s still open. It’s not so easy for us. Maybe it’s easier for Norbert, I don’t know.

    NH: I think it’s still open, and if you look, there were possibilities. I think Peter can tell some stories and has some memories of that. I have some where we didn’t score the points which were possible. Probably other people as well. But I would not say that there is a big gap at the moment. You really need to get your act together, get the set-up right and then, as I said before, we can have quite a few cars that are very competitive and I can see the situation not changing in the short term.

    Q: (Dieter Rencken – The Citizen) Talking about the young driver test – and here I’m talking generally, not a specific, this year situation – but if we have a look at some teams testing at Silverstone, some at Abu Dhabi, I believe that some are going to Magny Cours after Monza, others are looking at Jerez in early December; is it impossible for 12 teams to actually agree on three days out of 365 to go testing?

    FT: We were discussing this for a long time and as John just mentioned before, one of the main arguments against Abu Dhabi for some teams was that the mechanics would have been out for five weeks and then we decided, OK, to split the test with Silverstone, because teams which are situated in England wanted to do the test at Silverstone and OK, now a third race track, Magny Cours, has come into the plan and normally we should say OK, let’s do the test altogether, three days at the end of the season, but you know we are in a democratic world and therefore it was decided to split it.

    Ends

  • Force India aim double finish at Hockenheim

    Hockenheim, 16 July 2012: After a disappointing show at the ninth round of the Formula One World Championship at Silverstone where both the Sahara Force India drivers failed to get points in the British Grand Prix where youngster Nico Hulkenberg missed out on points by a whisker losing in the last few laps because of lack of enough down force. 
    However, Sahara Force India looks forward to round ten of the season, the German Grand Prix at Hockenheim and Team Principal Vijay Mallya sounded optimistic.
    The team has provided a link to the full pdf preview. To watch Nico Hulkenberg’s video preview of Hockenheim click on the following link: 
    After a challenging local race at Silverstone, Dr Vijay Mallya sums up the mood in the team and looks forward to a competitive showing in Hockenheim.
    How would you sum up the British Grand Prix weekend?
    It was certainly frustrating that we didn’t score points at Silverstone. We were really hoping to put on a good performance and were targeting a double points finish. The weather definitely played its part on Friday and Saturday, so we really couldn’t predict accurately what to expect for Sunday. One car was set up for the wet and the other for the dry.
    How disappointing was it to see Paul retire so early from his home race?
    The conditions would have suited Paul, who had the dry set-up. Unfortunately he made contact with Grosjean and that was the end of his right rear tyre. You have to expect things like this in F1, but it’s always disappointing when it happens to you.
    Nico nearly made the points – it must have been very frustrating to see him fall back right at the end…
    Nico did very well, although I wish he could have hung on to ninth. The bottom line is we followed a hard-hard-soft strategy. In the last stint we asked the soft tyres to last 17 laps and Nico was under pressure to defend his position. It was a combination of tyre degradation and Nico making a slight error when he locked up the rears. I guess Alonso lost his lead to Webber because he followed the same strategy and clearly the hard tyres were better at the end of the race. Anyway, there was a lot to learn and once again the unpredictability of the tyres played a very important role. We will come back in Germany with a greater sense of determination.
    You must take encouragement from seeing both car running strongly in the top ten once again?
    It’s satisfying to see that we are consistent top ten performers. We need that little bit of extra luck to get on the podium. Having said that, our immediate competitors didn’t have too much luck either – Perez and Maldonado were both going well, but they didn’t score. Sauber didn’t get any more points to increase their lead over us. We are still only three points adrift of Williams and 16 behind Sauber, so we have reasons to be optimistic going forward.
    F1 has not raced at Hockenheim since 2010, so there’s no Pirelli knowledge and perhaps a bit more uncertainty…
    Yes, it’s wide open in that sense. It’s also Nico’s home race. We have no time to take things easy. We have to take every race very seriously, with the same intensity and do everything we possibly can to earn more points.
    Nico on Hockenheim
    Nico Hulkenberg gets set for his home race.
    Nico, tell us what it means to be racing at home this weekend?
    It’s always a bit more special and it’s nice that I only live one hour away so I don’t have to catch a flight! The fans always support the race and help produce a good atmosphere, especially in the stadium section at the end of the lap. It’s fair to say that Michael and Sebastian are the main attractions, but the fans always show their support for all the German drivers.
    What memories do you have of racing at Hockenheim?
    It’s where I had my very first car race in 2005 when I raced Formula BMW – and I won both races that weekend. Since then I’ve raced there a lot in Formula 3 and I also raced there in Formula One with Williams in 2010. It’s a track I know very well and I enjoy the layout, although it’s a relatively short lap.
    Tell us about the main challenges?
    I think the most challenging corner to get right is turn one. It’s a quick right-hander that we take at well above 200 km/h and there is a tricky curb on the exit. Another important part of the lap is getting the hairpin right. If you get your braking wrong it’s easy to run wide and it’s the main opportunity for overtaking.
    Paul on Hockenheim
    Paul Di Resta reflects on Silverstone and looks ahead to racing in Germany.
    Paul, a short home race for you in Silverstone – how do you feel looking back on the weekend…
    It was a shame to end the race so early, but there’s no point getting frustrated. It could have been such a good race because we had taken an aggressive approach with a dry set-up on Saturday and I’m sure we could have come away with points. The contact with Grosjean was very slight and just one of those racing incidents, but it was enough to cut the tyre and that completely ended my chances.
    You’ve spent a lot of your career racing in Germany – what are your thoughts on Hockenheim?
    I know the track well from my days in the DTM and I am looking forward to getting out there in a Formula One car. It’s a fun circuit with some challenging corners and it’s good for overtaking, especially the slow hairpin at turn six. My favourite part of the lap is the stadium, where you can really feel the energy of the crowd. The double right hander onto the start/finish line is another special corner and it’s difficult to get it right. If you have lots of experience on this track you can gain a little bit of time through this corner.
    ends

  • Ma Qing Hua becomes first Chinese to drive F1 car

    Silverstone Circuit, Northamptonshire
    Thursday, 12th of July 2012
    Weather: Sunny – Air 17ºC, Track 22ºC
    Ma Qing Hua (Shanghai, China, 25/12/1987) – Chassis: F112-03
    Laps: 82 – Track length: 5.891 km
    Distance covered: 483.062 km – Best time: 1:37.829
    Silverstone, 12 July 2012: It was an historic day for Formula 1 and HRT Formula 1 Team today at the Silverstone Circuit where Ma Qing Hua made his debut at the wheel of the F112, becoming the first Chinese driver to drive a Formula 1 car at an official event.
    As opposed to the previous days, the weather permitted the first day of the Young Driver Test to take place without any setbacks and Ma Qing Hua was able to make the most of the test. The morning’s programme included short test stints for the Shanghai-born driver to adapt to the car and build up confidence at the wheel, completing 54 laps (318 km). These tests were carried out with both hard and soft tyres so that he could also experience the difference between both compounds. In the afternoon, Ma Qing Hua covered a further 28 laps (165 km) where he completed two qualifying stints, one with hard tyres and another with softs, start and pit stop practices and a final long distance stint.
    Ma Qing Hua satisfactorily completed the scheduled programme throughout the day, so the team has put an end to these tests and will head towards Germany tomorrow for the tenth Grand Prix of the season which takes place at the Hockenheim circuit from the 20th to the 22nd of July.
    Ma Qing Hua: “It was a fantastic feeling to drive a Formula 1 car for the first time; it’s not easy to put into words what I felt. Yesterday I found it hard to sleep and I tried to calm down by thinking that it was just another test. I think we did a good job and everything went according to plan, with good weather too. By being here during the Grand Prix, I learned a lot from my teammates and also to work as a team, as it is very important to give the right information to the engineers in order to optimize the performance of the car. In the morning we did the maximum amount of running to get used to the car, engineers and mechanics and buttons, and also to gain confidence. I’m very proud to represent China and be a pioneer for my nation in this sport. I’m confident that these tests and the ones that will come in the future will help motorsport to grow in China in the future and will grant more opportun ities for everyone. This is only a first small step but once more I want to express my gratitude to everyone who has supported me and made this possible”.
    Luis Pérez-Sala, Team Principal: “We’re very happy to have given Ma this opportunity and also very satisfied and proud of how it went. We’ve got a lot of trust in him and he has responded by doing a good job. We’ve followed him for a long time and since he joined our programme he’s proven his ability and work capacity. And today he showed it once more with an excellent job. It’s not easy to drive a Formula 1 car and he made no mistakes. We want to take things one step at a time with him and this test was for Ma to have his first real contact with a Formula 1 car at every level. He did a great job and now we have to continue working so that he can continue to progress in his journey towards Formula 1”.

  • Hulkenberg to drop 5 places for gearbox change

    Silverstone (UK), 7 July 2012: Sahara Force India made the most of a wet and delayed qualifying session as Nico Hulkenberg qualified in ninth and Paul Di Resta in 11th for tomorrow’s British Grand Prix. Due to changing a gearbox, Nico will take a five-place grid drop.
    P9*       Nico Hulkenberg (VJM05/03)
    (*starting position still to be confirmed)
    Q1:       1:46.344
    Q2:       1:55.556
    Q3:       1:54.382
    Nico: “It was a very long session with the delay, but I think I made the most of the conditions in Q1 and Q2. It was definitely the right call to stop the session when the rain got really heavy because there was too much standing water on the circuit and the car was beginning to aquaplane. But I don’t understand where the pace went in Q3 when I was on the intermediates because the car felt more tricky to drive and the laptime didn’t come so easy. I was actually hoping for a better position in Q3 than P9, especially with the five-place penalty I have for tomorrow.”
    P11*     Paul Di Resta (VJM05/02)
    (*starting position still to be confirmed)
    Q1:       1:47.582
    Q2:       1:57.009
    Paul: “We actually took a bit of gamble on the qualifying session being dry and that’s the direction we took with the set-up, but it made driving very difficult in today’s wet conditions. I think some other cars went more aggressive with a full wet set-up so hopefully my gamble will come back to me tomorrow in the race. Of course I would like to be starting further towards the front, but we are going into the race with a lot of unknowns in terms of set-up data and tyre performance. Anything is possible in the race and we won’t give up.”
    Dr Vijay Mallya, Team Principal & Managing Director
    “Another very wet day at our local race and I want to pay tribute to the fans who put up with yet more rain showers and delayed track action. Our car looked competitive today, but in such tricky conditions qualifying is always a lottery and so we can’t be too disappointed to have just one car in Q3. Paul just missed the cut, but we have a good race car and we know he will fight hard tomorrow. In Q3 Nico didn’t manage to maximise his final quick lap and he also has to drop five places on the grid due to the gearbox change. I’m looking forward to the race and whatever the weather I’m confident we can be up there fighting for points and challenging the teams ahead of us.”
    ends

  • Our choice of tyres was wrong: Perez

    Silverstone (UK), 7 July 2012: Sauber’s Sergio Pérez admitted his team made the wrong choice on tyres in the rain-hit second qualifying session at Silverstone, a mistake which dumped the Mexican driver from the top of the timesheet to 17th place.

    Both Pérez and team-mate Kobayashi had looked ideally placed to make it through to Q3 after running early in the second session, before heavy rain fell in the latter stages and the track disimproved.

    However, as conditions worsened and with just over six minutes left on the clock, the red flags came out and the session was halted.

    After an hour’s delay, the track was deemed fit for purpose once more, but as the bulk of the field went out on full wet tyres Sauber gambled on intermediates. It proved to be the wrong choice and with just one run left after pitting to take on the blue-banded full wet tyres, both Kobayashi and Pérez failed to improve markedly. Kobayashi slid down to 12th, while Pérez ended up 17th.

    “We made the wrong decision when we went for intermediates instead of rain tyres after the break, but I also had traffic,” he said. “I was driving behind Daniel Ricciardo and could hardly see anything. It is such a shame because we clearly had the pace to fight for a top position here. However, we made a mistake and now have to try hard to recover from that in the race.”

    Pérez does have the small consolation of moving up one place on the grid thanks to Jean-Eric Vergne’s 10-place penalty from Valencia. Kobayashi too will move up a place thanks to Nico Hulkenberg, who qualified ninth, taking a five-place penalty for a gearbox change.

    Like his team-mate, the Japanese driver rued the decision to use intermediate tyres in the re-started second session.

    “We started on intermediate tyres after the break and this proved to be the wrong decision,” said Kobayashi. “I pitted and changed to rain tyres, but then I only had time for one flying lap and in the difficult conditions this wasn’t enough to improve as much as I needed to make it into Q3. Before that we had a very good chance of fighting for a top position. Our pace was really good in the wet. It is a missed opportunity.

    “For tomorrow’s race I don’t really care whether it’s wet or dry,” he added. “I’ll be starting a long way down the grid and will fight as hard as I can.”

  • Alonso on pole; Schumy P3

    Silverstone (UK), 7 July 2012: Fernando Alonso claimed third British Grand Prix pole position as he beat out Red Bull Racing’s Mark Webber with a last-ditch flying lap in a rain-hit qualifying session at Silverstone.

    After an hour-long delay in Q2 dure to heavy rain, race organisers grabbed a small window between the showers to complete the second session and then, as rain began to fall again at the end of the top-10 shoot out, Webber slotted into provisional pole position with a superb time of 1:51.793. Behind him, though, a stream of drivers, including Sebastian Vettel and Michael Schumacher, recorded personal best and session best sector times. Ultimately, however, the two Germans fell short of the mark and the Mercedes man and the defending champion will line up third and fourth respectively tomorrow.

    Alonso, though, wouldn’t be denied and with a final flying effort dragged his Ferrari F2012 in front of Webber’s RB8, to the tune of just five hundredths of a second. It represents the Spaniard’s and Ferrari’s first pole since Singapore 2010 and after the session, Alonso admitted it was unexpected.

    “It’s always a surprise to be on pole position because you know that in these conditions it’s always difficult to beat some of the guys and we maybe feel more confident in dry conditions,” he said, “In wet conditions you never know. You need to be in the right place in the right moment, with the circuit in the best condition possible when you do the lap, and that lap has to be clean without huge mistakes.

    “I’m very happy with this pole position after nearly two years – for Ferrari that’s a long time,” he added. “But tomorrow is the race and with these weather conditions this qualifying session becomes one of the less important ones of the year because everything will mix up after a few laps tomorrow maybe. However, for visibility and things like that it’s always better to start at the front, so I’m very happy.”

    Webber, meanwhile was pleased with his efforts in securing a third front-row start at Silverstone in a row.

    “It was a very tight session,” he said. “Ultimately, you don’t know how you’re going, you’re completely focused on yourself, putting a lap together. Obviously, in a session like this when you’ve got five or 10 seconds [difference in lap time] between one session and the there’s a huge amount down to the driver to get comfortable in the conditions, also with the car. It was nip and tuck with Fernando for the pole. I think ultimately we put a pretty good lap together.”

    Schumacher admitted that his session almost ended in Q2 when a mistake saw him spin.

    “It was a bit of an exciting session today, particularly Q2 where I had the wrong visor on, one that didn’t have anti-fog,” he said. “I didn’t have much visibility and found myself sideways in Becketts. But we recovered well in the delay and got back in our rhythm. I think we look reasonably competitive in wet conditions – either on intermediate or heavy wet – so therefore rain is welcome tomorrow.”

    For Sebastian Vettel, however, the final session was something of a missed opportunity. The defending champion notched the fastest mid-sector on his final lap but couldn’t do likewise in the final part of the lap and had to settle for fourth.

    “A tough day,” he said afterwards. “It was difficult in the end with only one lap where the conditions were best. I think I should have been a bit quicker but that’s life. Probably it will be the same weather tomorrow, so we’ll see what happens. It’s going to be a long race and we are at the front, which is good.”

    ends

     

  • We are competitive in wet conditions: Schumacher

    Silverstone, 7 July 2012:

    DRIVERS who qualified in the top three and attended the FIA Press Conference 3 at the British Grand Prix are;

    1 – Fernando ALONSO (Ferrari)

    2 – Mark WEBBER (Red Bull Racing)

    3 – Michael SCHUMACHER (Mercedes)

    TV UNILATERAL

    Fernando first pole since 2010, very difficult to get it right today, especially with that long delay in Q2. What was the secret though at the end?

    Fernando ALONSO: No secret. I think it’s tricky conditions for everyone. You have to be calm in some difficult moments. In Q2, as you mentioned, we were at the red flag, in position 15 and 16, Felipe and me. It was not easy, so we went through Q2 and in Q3 difficult choice between extreme and intermediate tyres. We chose the intermediates and when we saw everyone planning on those tyres we more or less calmed down a little bit. And then we put a lap together, which is not easy. You make a little mistake here or there and to complete a lap without making a huge mistake is not easy in these conditions. Yeah, happy with pole position after nearly two years, for Ferrari that’s a long time and we’ll see. Tomorrow is the race and with these weather conditions the qualifying becomes one of the less important qualifyings of the year because everything will mix up after a few laps tomorrow maybe, but for visibility and things like that it’s always better to start at the front, so very happy.

    Mark, a great duel between you and Fernando at the end there. You missed out on pole by five one hundredths of a second – it’s always good to compete against this guy [Alonso] yes?

    Mark WEBBER: Yeah, it was a very tight session. Ultimately, you don’t know how you’re going, you’re completely focused on yourself, putting a lap together. As Fernando said it’s very tricky in sections around the lap. Obviously, in a session like this when you’ve got five or 10 seconds sometimes between one session to the next session obviously it’s a huge amount down t

    From left: Schumacher, Alonso and Webber after qualification at the British Grand Prix on Saturday. FIA photo.

    o the driver to get comfortable in the conditions, also with the car. The guys did a great job. Yeah it was nip and tuck with Fernando for the pole. I think ultimately we put a pretty good lap together, our strategy in quali I was pretty happy with it, doing four laps… and race tomorrow.

    Michael, another strong qualifying for you. You used to be known as the rain meister, how do you fancy your chances tomorrow in a wet British Grand Prix?

    Michael SCHUMACHER: I think we look reasonably competitive in wet conditions – either on intermediate or heavy wet – so therefore rain is welcome tomorrow. It was a bit of an exciting session today, particularly Q2 where I had the wrong visor on, that didn’t have anti-fog. I didn’t have much visibility and found myself sideways in Becketts. That didn’t help either. But we recovered well in the delay and got back in our rhythm. Yeah, very happy to be third; good for the team; good for my boys, so thanks to all of the guys.

    PRESS CONFERENCE

    Fernando, first of all well done, is it a surprise or did you feel it was a lottery a little bit out there in the conditions?

    FA: It’s always a surprise to be on pole position because you know that conditions in qualifying… it’s always difficult to beat some of the guys around and we maybe feel more confident in dry conditions. We did some tests today in FP3 and the car felt quite good in the high-speed corners and we were quite happy with the balance – but in wet conditions you never know. You need to be in the right place in the right moment, with the circuit in the best conditions possible when you do the lap and that lap has to be clean with not huge mistakes because a little bit here and there you always lose or you can improve a little bit because you never know exactly the conditions of the next corner when you arrive on a day like today. It can be a little bit drier than the lap before but we saw some drops of rain on the visors so it can be a little bit wetter so it’s a little bit of… gambling what would be the grip at the next corner. To put the lap together was the only thing we had to do today and when you find yourself in pole position, for sure it’s a little bit surprising but, yeah, good to battle like this.

    It was nearly all over in the first part of Q2, wasn’t it – at one point you were facing the wall?

    FA: Yes. I had a spin in Turn 13. It was a lot of aquaplaning there. We changed tyres, we went for the extreme tyres and there was a red flag. It was impossible to run, to be honest it was a good decision. And then also it was a good decision waiting for the time the circuit was in condition to run again. So, sometimes we criticise the decisions when we are not happy with them and today they were doing a really good job. The first priority is safety, the track was not in condition to continue qualifying and we wait the necessary time to do it and we’ve been at the limit for Q3, I think P9, so it was not easy. I had a Toro Rosso for two laps in front of me with no visibility, so the Q2 lap was a little bit like a blind lap: you do whatever time the Toro Rosso will do – more or less.

    How big a moment was it on the grass when you went off in Q2? You got a round of applause in the press room for sorting it out…

    FA: It was very big and you are not in control of the car. You need a bit of luck and we were lucky today. With that moment in Q2, with all the decisions that we make for the tyres that it was the right one – and lucky also that we put the lap together and lucky as well in the distance with Mark because there were some milliseconds. It can be first and second in a very easy way and today it was everything perfect for us. But the race is tomorrow, not today.

    Mark, for you pole last year and you won in 2010, you’ve been on the podium for the last three years. A good circuit for you? You seem to have adapted very well to the British weather…

    MW: It’s been a good track for me since 1995 when I won my first Formula Ford race here – so it goes back quite a while – don’t want to show my age too much! But yeah, it’s a good track, it’s challenging for the drivers and it’s nice to let the car breathe a little bit in some of the quick stuff. Obviously this morning it was nice to feel the car in dry conditions, obviously we didn’t get that in quali – and as Fernando’s touched on, it was a very tricky session for us when the track’s moving around by five, six seconds a go in terms of conditions. Each session is tricky for us. But the guys made all the right decisions. There were a few calls from the cockpit as well to pull things together and ultimately I think we got the maximum out of what we could have done today. As Fernando says, it’s a long lap to put together; there are rivers, you can improve here and there but also if you try to push a bit harder you can have no corners on the car. So it’s better to try to finish the lap and get yourself up there. Risk management was very important today. I’m very happy with my lap and ultimately we’re in a good position to start the race tomorrow. Visibility will be important if it’s wet, and go from there.

    Michael, pole in 2001 of course and three wins here, how difficult was it to get going again after that hour delay? 60 minutes of delay…

    MS: I guess first of all we should give applause to all the fans who remained with us in all these conditions. That’s been pretty special and big applause to them. For us, in the position that some cars had been, you would probably have wished just to finish qualifying there. The ones that would have been out, Fernando and myself, we were happy to get this opportunity under drivable conditions because Q2, when it started, almost from the beginning it was already on the limit, if not slightly over the limit, and therefore thanks to the FIA to take the right decision and abort it and put it into a spot that was probably the only one – and a perfect one – that was available today. For us to get going, it’s not that big a deal. It’s worse hanging around and waiting. It’s more tiring than driving and sitting in the car and being in action, that’s pretty straightforward to me.

    How difficult was the tyre choice?

    MS: I think it was only initially difficult to decide but when you give it a second and watch what others do then it becomes pretty straightforward. By the end it was clear the inter was the tyre to be on. Ideally you would have had more than one lap – because it was the last lap that counted and obviously you’re not allowed to make a mistake so you always somewhere leave some margin, that another lap for sure you could recover and do a much better job. Nevertheless, to then finish third was good for us. I’m pleased with this, it’s a good position to start the race from. It’s a good line and, depending on the condition we have tomorrow, maybe I’m on the lucky side because it might be the slightly drier line compared to the inner side that’s a little bit wet. We’ll find out tomorrow if that’s the case or not the case – but that expedition will be very much appreciated to me.

    QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

    Q: (Mike Doodson – Honorary) Michael, some of your most memorable wins have been in the wet. This circuit has a reputation for holding water. It did take a very long time to drain. Do you have any criticisms either of that or of the fact that the circuit is unpredictable from place to place as you go along, perhaps less predictable where you’ve won in the wet before?

    MS: First of all, a compliment to all the marshals, they managed to get the track in pretty good shape with all the sweeping and drying up. There was almost no standing water when we went back out again. That was a good job, so in case of heavy rain tomorrow, I hope they’re going to be ready, in between the safety car or whatever they have to decide. But I think on some circuits they have that situation and they did the best from what was available today.

    Q: (Manuel Franco – AS) Fernando, you said in Spanish that this pole is dedicated to someone special, is it for Maria de Villota?

    FA: Yes, obviously she’s having some difficult moments, her family as well and I think all of us, this weekend, we are all racing with a little bit of sadness about the news at the beginning of the week from Marussia and from her. Anything we do this weekend hopefully will bring strength to her and her family, and we wish her a very good recovery.

    Q: (Leonid Novozhilov – F1Life) Fernando, first place in qualifying in the rain; was this difficult or not very difficult for you?

    FA: Yes, yes, it is very difficult, always very difficult to be on pole position, but on days like today, it’s difficult for everyone. I think from pole position to 24th, we had a very difficult time in the car, because, as I said, you don’t know how the grip will be in the next corner. We had a lot of rivers on the track, especially in Q2 and it’s not just to find the last tenth or half a tenth of a second; just to complete the lap is difficult. Very stressful qualifying, but it’s the same for everybody and today we have been lucky, as I said.

    Q: (Carlos Miguel – La Gaceta) Fernando, for tomorrow, will it be difficult for you on intermediate tyres and what are you afraid of in the race?

    FA: Well, I think the car should also be competitive on extreme wet tyres, but as I said, in Q2 I did a lap exactly the same as a Toro Rosso whatever the lap. I started the lap one second behind him and I finished the lap around 0.8s behind him, and I was in and he was out, for virtually nothing. So I think with normal visibility, I think we should also be competitive with the extremes. For sure ideally we would like a dry race because you maximise the pole position a little bit and you have a bit of free air, especially in the first stint if you do a good start. If it’s wet or changeable conditions as we’ve the whole weekend, grid positions are not really important, because on lap eight it could start raining or drying up or whatever and someone at the back may have nothing to lose and could maybe change tyres or whatever and finds himself first or second. It’s more difficult but let’s see. I think we felt competitive on the dry, inters and wet so we will see tomorrow what we can do.

    Q: (Frederic Ferret – L’Equipe) How do you prepare yourself for a race which could be very wet? Is there a way of thinking differently, or driving differently for the whole of a wet race?

    MW: Obviously the concentration is a little bit different to a dry Grand Prix, so you’ve got to have that in mind. Some of the straights here are not very straightforward in terms of… like out of turn seven, going through there with compromised visibility, standing water, so dry Grands Prix still obviously require immense concentration and focus to put everything together but in the wet you have more balls in the air and you need to be ready for that and also be flexible and focused and I said before, controlled aggression and stay composed. You know that the grass doesn’t have much grip so best stay away from that if you can and get to the flag.

    Q: (Andrea Cremonesi – La Gazzetta dello Sport) Fernando, we saw you take the P9 position in Q2 when there were yellow flags for Grosjean. Could you explain what happened at that moment, if you feel that you’re safe(from incurring any penalty)?

    FA: Yes. I didn’t set a green sector in that particular lap with the yellow. I backed off in the area where they were taking away the car, so I don’t have any worries.

    Q: I’ve been asked to ask you is if any of you will be following Wimbledon after the race tomorrow?

    FA: No.

    MW: Absolutely. Federer for seven, honestly it’s a great final. Whoever wins it’s a great story. Obviously for Andy, first Grand Slam, first Wimbledon and for Roger, obviously he’s a phenomenal sportsman, to match Pistol Pete (Sampras) on seven. He’s a real inspiration, Federer. He would be good to watch.

    MS: What time is it? I would like to watch it if I have time, but I would prefer not to have time!

    Q: (Marco dell’Ignocenti – La Gazzetta dello Sport) Could you not imagine that if the weather conditions and track conditions were similar tomorrow to today, would you not fear a very boring race behind the safety car?

    MS: In that case we’re going to watch Federer and Murray!

    FA: Hopefully not, not only for us, I think, but for the fans. As Michael said, they’ve been amazing all weekend with these weather conditions and they deserve a normal race tomorrow, so even if it’s wet, not stopping the race or nothing like that, hopefully.

    MW: Charlie (Whiting, race director) has learned a lot in the last few years and has done a very good job in certain conditions, so he know what wet tyres are capable of, the extreme, also factor in the visibility so they are the two main things: standing water and visibility. If they are under control then we race, if they’re not then we don’t. After that, we work through the tyres and the race is OK. Tomorrow is obviously a big day for Charlie tomorrow to communicate with us like he does a good job over the last few years, no problems.

     

    Q: (Silva Arias – Argentina) Fernando, it’s very nice for you as well to get pole position after two years, as you said before. How important is it for your team as well and for your confidence and everything?

    FA: Yeah, yeah, definitely very important. It’s nice to be on pole position. We know that the conditions were not normal. They were very tricky so we are still aiming for pole position one day on a sunny day and no factors around which will prove the level of competitiveness that the car can have and that’s what we want, but until that point arrives, today’s pole position is very welcome and as I said, it’s more for the history of Ferrari etc. Two years is a long time.

    Q: (Michael Schmidt – Auto, Motor und Sport) Michael, you were looking strong yesterday in the wet today as well. This morning, at least from the lap time it was a different picture. Is it just an impression that the Mercedes is better in the wet and if so why?

    MS: The question is how much fuel was in the cars this morning, so I think it is a hypopthetical situation, to judge what you have seen in qualifying with what you have seen this morning.

    Ends

  • Young Driver Test by Ma Qing Hua for HRT on July 12, 13

    Silverstone (United Kingdom), 6 July 2012: An agreement has been finally reached and HRT Formula 1 Team will be able to carry out its Young Driver Test at Silverstone next week after the British Grand Prix. This test will take place on Thursday the 12th and Friday the 13th of July at the legendary Silverstone circuit. 24 year-old Chinese driver Ma Qing Hua will be at the wheel of the F112 and will complete his first tests in a Formula 1 car.
    After competing in international championships such as Formula Renault, A1 Grand Prix, Formula 3 or Superleague Formula, and winning the Chinese touring car championships in 2011, Qing Hua joined HRT Formula 1 Team’s driver development programme un April. This programme has included tests with cars from different categories such as World Series and GP2, besides working with a simulator and specific physical preparation ahead of the demanding challenges of F1. During these tests, the Chinese driver has shown firm evidence of his talent behind the wheel, learning capacity and commitment, and the team is confident that these upcoming tests will be the next step in his journey to Formula 1.
    For those who would be interested, Ma Qing Hua will be available to the media on Sunday the 8th of July at 10.00h in the team’s hospitality unit.
    Ma Qing Hua: “I’m very happy that the day has finally come and I will be able to step into a Formula 1 car for the first time with HRT Formula 1 Team. And I want to thank everyone who made it possible for me to be here today, my compatriots who support me, and the people who made it possible for these tests to take place in Silverstone. The last few months have been intense as I have been doing a lot of tests on the track and off it, which have helped me to improve as a driver and take on this challenge from a better position. I’ve worked hard to make it here but this journey is only getting underway”.
    Luis Pérez-Sala, Team Principal: “The fact that these tests will finally be able to take place at Silverstone is great news for us because it fits perfectly with the next step that we had planned for Ma Qing Hua’s development programme. In the last three months, we’ve been working with Ma on different aspects: testing on track with cars from different categories, carrying out tests on the simulator and working on specific physical preparation to be better prepared for this demanding challenge. We were aware of his ability but, once more, he has shown his professionalism, attitude and sensitivity, so we’re sure that he will continue to progress as a driver in these Formula 1 tests”.