INDIA in F1

Category: Formula 1

  • Hamilton takes 11th pole of the season: Abu Dhabi

    Hamilton takes 11th pole of the season: Abu Dhabi

    Hamilton takes pole at Yas Marina on Saturday. An FIA image

    Abu Dhabi, 24 Nov 2018: Lewis Hamilton took his 11th pole position of the 2018 FIA Formula 1 World Championship as he headed a Mercedes 1-2 in qualifying for the 21st and final race of the FIA Formula One World Championship at Abu Dhabi’s Yas Marina Circuit on Saturday.

    Hamilton edged team-mate Valtteri Bottas by 0.162s in the final runs of Q3, with the Finn only losing out to the five-time champion due to a small error in the final sector of the 5.554km circuit. Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel will start from third place on the grid, ahead of team-mate Kimi Räikkönen, and Red Bull continued the two-by-two qualifying result as Daniel Ricciardo, competing in his final qualifying for the team, took fifth place ahead of team-mate Max Verstappen.

    In the opening runs of Q1 it was Vettel who went quickest, the German toppling team-mate Kimi Räikkönen from top spot with a lap of 1:36.946 that he then improved by almost two tenths. Räikkönen was followed by Hamilton.

    Bottas jumped to P2 with a late flyer to demote his team-mate to P3 and when the flag fell Racing Point Force India’s Esteban Ocon final flyer netted P4 ahead of Räikkönen and Sauber’s Charles Leclerc who split the Red Bulls by taking P7

    In the drop zone as the final runs approached were 16th-placed Haas’ Kevin Magnussen, followed by Sauber’s Marcus Ericsson, McLaren’s Stoffel Vandoorne and the Williams cars of Sergey Sirotkin and Lance Stroll.

    Both Alonso and Magnussen found more pace to rise to P14 and P15 respectively and that dropped both Toro Rosso cars into the drop zone.

    The Italian team’s Pierre Gasly might have made the jump to safety after impressive opening sectors but in the final section of track he fell back and limped across the line reporting a loss of power and “smoke coming out of the engine”. He pulled over at the side of the track soon after crossing the start/finish line and exited both his car and the session.

    Gasly qualified in P17 behind team-mate Brendon Hartley, though the French driver still managed to outpace Vandoorne, Sirotkin and Stroll.

    Hamilton seized the initiative in the early Q2 runs as the top three teams ran ultrasofts. The five-time champion claimed top spot with a lap of 1:35.693 to sit almost seven tenths of a second clear of second-placed Bottas. The Mercedes pair were followed by Räikkönen, Vettel and Ricciardo.

    Verstappen though struggled on the purple-banded Pirelli tyre and after the first runs found himself in P10 and at risk of elimination.

    That meant a second run on hypersofts to ensure progress and his lap of 1:36.144 on the softest compound on offer vaulted him to P2 behind Hamilton.

    Ricciardo’s ultrasoft gamble paid off, however, and though the Australian dropped down in the order in the closing stages of Q2, his opening time of 1:36.964 was good enough for P10. Like the Mercedes and Ferrari drivers he will start the race on ultrasofts.

    Eliminated at the end of the second segment were 11th placed Renault driver Carlos Sainz, followed by Sauber’s Marcus Ericsson, Haas’ Magnussen, Racing Point Force India’s Sergio Perez and Alonso, competing in his 311th and, for the moment, final F1 qualifying session.

    Hamilton again claimed top spot in the first runs of Q3, though only with 0.057s in hand over Vettel, with Bottas third ahead of Ricciardo. Räikkönen split the Red Bulls in fifth place.

    However, Hamilton found an extra reserve of pace on his final run to eventually edge Bottas by 0.162s and third-placed Vettel by over four tenths of a second.

    Räikkönen improved in the final run to claim fourth with a time of 1:35.365, while the Bulls locked out row three with Daniel sealing fifth place with an improvement to 1:35.401 and Max taking P6 with his opening Q3 time of 1:35.589. Behind them Haas’ Romain Grosjean was seventh ahead of Sauber’s Charles Leclerc, Racing Point Force India’s Esteban Ocon and the Renault’s of Nico Hulkenberg and Carlos Sainz.

    2018 Formula 1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix – Qualifying 
    1 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 1:34.794
    2 Valtteri Bottas Mercedes 1:34.956 0.162
    3 Sebastian Vettel Ferrari 1:35.125 0.331
    4 Kimi Raikkonen Ferrari 1:35.365 0.571
    5 Daniel Ricciardo Red Bull Racing 1:35.401 0.607
    6 Max Verstappen Red Bull Racing 1:35.589 0.795
    7 Romain Grosjean Haas 1:36.192 1.398
    8 Charles Leclerc Sauber 1:36.237 1.443
    9 Esteban Ocon Force India 1:36.540 1.746
    10 Nico Hulkenberg Renault 1:36.542 1.748
    11 Carlos Sainz Jr. Renault 1:36.982 2.188
    12 Marcus Ericsson Sauber 1:37.132 2.338
    13 Kevin Magnussen Haas 1:37.309 2.515
    14 Sergio Perez Force India 1:37.541 2.747
    15 Fernando Alonso McLaren 1:37.743 2.949
    16 Brendon Hartley Toro Rosso 1:37.994 3.200
    17 Pierre Gasly Toro Rosso 1:38.166 3.372
    18 Stoffel Vandoorne McLaren 1:38.577 3.783
    19 Sergey Sirotkin Williams 1:38.635 3.841
    20 Lance Stroll Williams 1:38.682 3.888.

  • It’s quite an emotional qualifying because it’s the last time in this car, says poleman Hamilton

    It’s quite an emotional qualifying because it’s the last time in this car, says poleman Hamilton

    Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes (centre) addressing the press conference after taking pole. An FIA image

    Abu Dhabi: The top-three drivers including poleman attended the FIA post-qualifying press conference on Saturday at the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. Transcript: 

    (Track Interviews conducted by David Coulthard)

    Q: Lewis, absolutely fantastic. Epic qualifying session, you’ve topped and tailed the season with pole positions. The fans are happy, you’re happy…

    Lewis HAMILTON: I’m so grateful for all the support that we have here. It’s quite an emotional qualifying for me because it’s the last time I’m going to be qualifying in this car. I know you guys watch it, but the emotional rollercoaster I’ve gone through with this car… I’m probably the closest to this car than I’ve been in any car, you know, emotionally attached. It’s not always been easy; it’s been a struggle with here.  But it has been a real privilege to work with her this year and I’m just so grateful to the team, to everyone for putting it together, to my guys, these mechanics who have been me for what is it, the last three years or whatever it may be, for their diligence, the guys back at the factory, I’m really just so grateful for everyone. And today it was just so much fun. To go out there and be able to express yourself and to push the car the way you want, there’s no better feeling. And to come back and see the reception from the fans – I really of appreciate it.

    Q: You obviously have an affinity with this car. Will you get to keep one at the end of the season or do they go into the museum? Do you keep a collection?

    LH: That’s confidential. I’d have to kill you if I told you. You know what, I’m just happy… I think this car will be in the history museum of Mercedes-Benz in Stuttgart on the road of evolution where they will have all the greats that have driven with them in the past. I’ll get to see this whenever I want when I go to Germany. I haven’t got enough space for this in my house, anyway, it wouldn’t fit in my apartment.

    Q: Very quickly, of all the poles this year, how did that rate? We saw you, on the second last run, you had a little bit of movement from the car, but on that final lap were you happy, or do you feel you left a little bit behind?

    LH: No, honestly there was… I never say there is a perfect lap. The first lap wasn’t spectacular. There were some excursions and a bit of movement on the rear end. That last one, it started off quite calm and then just got more and more aggressive as I went through. And the last sector, as you see, the last sector was the killer for me. That’s where I really was able to make a difference. So I actually came around, I think, four tenths up. That’s not easy to do from one lap to another, so I’m pretty grateful for that. Valtteri did a great job and I know Seb was pushing really hard, so it’s been a real privilege working with, and racing against, these guys this year.

    Q: Congratulations on your pole position? Valtteri, you pushed him hard, only a couple of tenths in the end in it. Frustrated or happy to start the last grand prix of the season from the front row?

    Valtteri BOTTAS: Well, for sure I was aiming for the pole. I had a good result here last year but couldn’t repeat that. Personally, P2 wasn’t what I was expecting but for us, even though we have secured the Constructors’ title, we can still perform at a very high level as a team. Being one-two for the final race is good.

    Q: You know you were actually up on Lewis at the end of the second sector, so it was that final sector. Where was the time lost in that?

    VB: Yeah, I think I lost a little bit of time in Turn 17-18, it’s just very difficult to get it perfectly right. But he was performing well. It was tough to beat his time. There was a possibility for that but he did a better job on the lap.

    Q: Well done. Sebastian, you’re still smiling, so that’s good. In the end the Mercedes was just too strong a package on this race track. Did you expect it to be a little bit closer or did you have the signs already in free practice?

    Sebastian VETTEL: I don’t know, to be honest. I enjoyed the session. In Q1 I thought it was rally tight, so I thought maybe we would have a word to say. In Q2 I thought Lewis put a really strong lap in on the harder tyres, and I thought ‘whoa, this is going to be difficult’. But then the first run in Q3 I rally had a good lap and it was very close again, but they must have had still some push in for the last run. I did improve, I think the track ramped up, but not enough to be a threat. But for tomorrow I’m quite confident and I think it is going to be a long race, so yeah, it’s going to be a fun race.

    Q: It was great when I was talking with Valtteri, I could see you were talking with Lewis, Lewis has just gone and shaken hands with your mechanics – it’s been a tough rivalry but there has been respect throughout?

    SV: Yeah, obviously one thing happens on track but off track I don’t see the reason why you can’t talk to each other or joke with each other. I enjoyed it, obviously it didn’t go my way; I guess he enjoyed it a little but more. Looking forward to getting in the car for the last time this year and challenging these guys and yeah, we’ll give it everything we have.

    PRESS CONFERENCE

    Q: Starting on pole position for the fourth time here in Abu Dhabi, the 11th pole of 2018, the 83rd pole of his career and his 52nd pole in the last 100 races, Lewis Hamilton. Many congratulations Lewis, how did that one stack up with that long list I’ve just read out?

    LH: Wow! It was a great qualifying session. It was a lot of fun. Obviously, going into it, feeling relatively emotional being that I was going to be stepping into this car for qualifying. It’s just been such a journey this year. So many things have happened, so many trials and tribulations along the way and it’s been a real privilege working with these guys. The actually qualifying session went quite smoothly. I think, collectively, as a team, we’ve done a really good job this weekend in getting the car into the right window – and obviously, it was still quite close at the end – but the difficult thing was trying to improve on… it’s always difficult to improve on your last lap, particularly because your first lap, your banker lap, is pretty good but I managed to increase the gap on that section, knowing these guys would also do the same. I saw Valtteri was obviously quite close. He was improving throughout the qualifying session, so he did a great job – but what a great way to end the season, with a one-two qualifying session. So really proud of everyone at Mercedes and, those numbers that you mentioned, I couldn’t have done that without everyone at Mercedes. The support, since I was 13, has been incredible. So, just proud to be a part of the machine.

    Q: Valtteri, coming on to you. Just quite simply, where do you feel it slipped away, the time?

    VB: I think, first of all, Lewis had quite a nice lap, so congrats for that. My first run, I could feel that there was plenty I could improve, and the gap was smaller between us in the first run. The second run, I think there was definitely some track improvement.  We both managed to find some time but he just got a more complete lap in the end. I think what maybe hurt me a little bit was that there was a couple of runs in the qualifying that I didn’t really get a good lap out of the ultra tyre in Q2, some other runs, I really struggled with some things on the car. But then, yeah, happy to have decent runs in Q3. That way we could secure a well-earned one-two for the team.

    Q: Sebastian, how surprised are you by the pace of the Mercedes around here?

    SV: Not surprised. I think they looked very competitive all weekend, so, I don’t know, qualifying, it’s been a bit up and down. Q1 looked very good for us. Q2 then probably was realistic. I think Lewis had a very strong lap on the ultrasoft. So, I think we tried everything and gave it everything we had. After the first run didn’t look stupid at all. Was very close, half-a-tenth, I thought, was in reach but then the second run, obviously, I crossed the line and… yeah… I was quite happy with the lap but it wasn’t enough and obviously dropped back to third. I guess there first run was probably not as strong as ours. The track did improve but it’s a long lap, so there’s a lot of lap-time to be found if everything works out. As I said, I was happy with our session. I think happy that we were able to get a strong lap in Q2, which is important for tomorrow’s race. Would have liked to have been in the front row. It’s not the case but yeah, I said to the guys after the qualifying that we will fight as hard as we can tomorrow. I think, come race day, anything can happen. We’ve got good speeds in the straights. We are lacking a little bit of downforce in the last sector, I guess, so let’s see what we can do – but surely it’s going to be a long race.

    Questions from the floor:

    Q: (Scott Mitchell – Autosport) Lewis, with pole and victory and Brazil and pole here, it’s very good form after wrapping up the title. When you won the title early in 2015 and 2017 you didn’t have that afterward. Was it important for you at all to maintain that level after winning the title this year? And is anything different, compared to previous seasons to allow you to stay at that level?

    LH: Not really.

    SV: You’re older. Wiser.

    LH: Older. Wiser! I don’t know. I don’t think it ‘cos I couldn’t do it in the past, just didn’t do the job. I think this year it was being in a different place in my life. I do want to continue to push the limits, push the boundaries and I wanted to finish the season on a solid high if I can. So that I can really continue to keep that foundation as strong as it has been this year so I can use that to start on next year. I think in the past it was still good. It was no biggie that I didn’t win after I won the Championship but I’m definitely happy with how it’s going this year and there’s still a long race tomorrow., so still got a lot of work to do but really happy with today.

    Q: (Christian Menath – Motorsport-Magazin.com) Two questions for you Seb. In Q2, you did the second run on the ultrasoft as well, so did you know you can improve somewhere, was it a big risk for you at that time? And the second one, yesterday, you weren’t that confident for the race pace. Today, you look a bit happier with race pace. Is it just the top speed advantage that makes you more confident for tomorrow?

    SV: There’s a lot of questions in there! I think the car felt a bit better today. Probably the track came towards us as well. Usually throughout qualifying the track improves and you start to feel happier with the car. So I think we estimated the right direction and were able to follow the trend. I think yesterday we tried everything and obviously for us the hypersoft didn’t last so long, so we were quite confident that it’s not the race tyre, not the tyre we want to start the race on. Other people obviously had the same opinion and I knew in the second run that I had some lap-time to gain. I was held-up a little bit in traffic on the first lap and I knew it will be tight but I really wanted to start on that tyre. That’s why I was able, or was happy to take that risk.

    Q: (Rene Oudman – RacingNews365.com) Question to all three. The Red Bulls will only start in the third row – but we’ve seen in recent races that their race pace is pretty good. How would you guys rate their chances for tomorrow?

    LH: Yeah, they’ll be strong tomorrow. They always are in the race. We’ve seen a pattern show over the year where they’re quick in early practice and then, when we get to qualifying, they can’t keep up,  or they struggle to keep up with the pace that we end up delivering, and then in the race, they come back. So it’s evident that they’re probably better than all of us at looking after their tyres and operating where they don’t have to manage the same as everyone else, whatever that’s down to, downforce, whatever it may be. So I’m sure they’ll be strong tomorrow – but it’s not that easy a circuit to overtake. And you know the Ferraris are very strong on the straight, so for them to propel past a Ferrari, I’m sure will not be easy but yeah, you’ve seen them up until now, so I hope they have a strong finish to the year and I hope it’s relatively close between us all.

    Valtteri, anything to add?

    VB: Nothing to add, no.

    Sebastian? They’ll be starting closest to you…

    SV: Yeah. Obviously!

    Q: (Ben Hunt – The Sun) Couple of questions; first one’s to Lewis: what is it, 52 poles now in a hundred races; you’ve won 50 races out of 99; phenomenal achievement, what do you put that success down to? Where do you think it’s going to stop and question to the other two, how do you stop him? How do you stop Lewis from steamrollering through these statistics?

    LH: I put it down to teamwork. I think it’s definitely a little bit difficult for all you and everyone watching to see everything that’s going on in the background but just the other day I was sitting in the office here, I think on Friday, sitting just talking to a couple of individuals who are not usually here but are up-to-date with next year’s car. So we sit and have this in-depth conversation and it’s inspiring… they are so smart, incredibly intelligent and they think on a completely different wavelength to the normal person. And the things that they have to take into account when building a car and I think over the years I’ve been getting more and more involved in that as I understand it more and try to… You know ultimately I want to make sure, through our debriefs, they’ve not misinterpreted something. For example, I know what I need in this car to make it faster and I’ve got to make sure that I communicate that with them so that they go and build and find that performance. And for next year’s car, I have an idea, for example, where the weak spot will be with these new rule changes as do they, so just working closely, communication and we’re all of us constantly working so closely together, really elevating each other and I think this year, if you look at the team’s performance on the race weekend, that our mechanics, our engineers, strategists, we’ve all raised our game. We’ve been better than… you know it’s never ever been perfect, neither of us as drivers, but collectively, as a team, I think we’ve really continued to elevate ourselves which is again, inspiring for me and that encourages me to go out there and not want to let them down. So I’m confident; as long as Mercedes don’t change their approach, don’t change their desire to win… some teams decide to veer off and do some other business venture and lose a bit of focus on the main ultimate goal; as long as they don’t do that, I believe that we’ll be able to stay on this path and continue to fight at the top. But Ferrari have been doing an amazing job this year so we cannot take anything for granted, we’ve got to keep the hammer down, keep pushing as they will be. See how close they are right now and look at Valtteri, he’s been driving exceptionally well all year. I know next year again, the third year with the team, he will be even quicker so we will have to rediscover new skills for next year.

    Q: And Valtteri, how are you going to stop him?

    VB: Obviously Lewis has had great numbers in his career. It is really impressive. I think that happens when you’re enjoying it and you always find new skills from yourself and you’re still hungry to develop. It’s for every sport, individual, it’s the same. For me, my target next year is to be better. My target next week is to be better than this week so I will continue my work with the team together and try to be a better driver. Of course I want to be ahead of him many more times than I’ve been in the last two years but it’s going to be hard work, I know but I’m willing to work hard and as Lewis said, we have a great team around us and the team spirit is amazing so the amount of strength I’m getting from the team has been amazing and that’s going to help me also next year.

    SV: Well, I think Lewis summed it up fairly well, I think mentioning the word teamwork, I think that’s what it’s about. Obviously what you look at in terms of when you look in qualifying or the race, then obviously we are the ones driving the car and we are alone driving the car and when we cross the line you look at us first but there’s a lot of people behind to make sure that you do cross the line and if they do their job really really well and work together then you have a high chance of finishing higher up. So I think it’s needless to say that Lewis had an incredible run in the last five years but I think since the day he joined Formula One until now, to be honest… you mentioned that it’s the fifth consecutive front-row lock-out for Mercedes here – did you say that? – so it also proves that they’re doing a really good job as a team. I think for us, it’s not that easy because the challenge to beat such a strong team is difficult but that’s our target. I think we know where we want to go. A lot of work ahead of us, I think a lot of lessons to be learned again this year. Ultimately, I think we have 21 races, with the 21st coming tomorrow and in summary, we haven’t been strong enough this year to take the challenge until the last race, the last lap, so I think we need to look at ourselves. I think we have the people, we have the resources so it’s more getting the maximum out of our package, improving the work inside our team and making sure that we come up with a stronger package, a stronger team for the future.

    Q: (Heikki Kulta – Turun Sanomat) Valtteri, what do you think? Is tomorrow the last chance to have the first ever Finnish one-two as you two are still in the top teams?

    VB: Yeah, for sure it’s… you never know, Sauber might be the best next year. Who knows? I don’t know, time will show, obviously. We’ve seen many many mixed races, conditions in the last few years and it can always happen but I just focus on my race and it can always happen but I just focus on my race, try to win it and then we see.

    Q: (Scott Mitchell – Autosport) Sebastian, you talked this year about the benefit that Ferrari has found Friday to Saturday with the work that the guys have done on the simulator, working through things back at base. Obviously, for next year, both of those main guys, Kvyat and Giovinazzi, step into F1 race seats so need replacing. How important is it to have the right guys on the simulator and do you think that Ferrari have made more of that sort of benefit this season?

    SV: Personally, I’m not a fan of the simulator because it’s just not fun. But you get the point, it is very important, it is an important tool. Based on our findings last night, we changed the car for today, both of us did and it was better and we were happier. It’s not the first time that this has happened so we’re extremely thankful for the guys, taking in the time because it’s not the nicest job on Friday night, especially when you’re young, but it’s important, it all adds up  and again, Lewis summed it up fairly well when he mentioned the word teamwork and that’s what it is. Everybody plays his part and in the end we have the honour to have the steering wheel in our hands and drive the machine that we all try to create and reach out with performance. For next year, it’s true, we take a step but I think we will find people that fit in very well and very quickly so I’m confident we will have a strong team on that front as well next year.

    Ends

  • Valtteri Bottas fastest in FP2; edges out FP1’s topper Max Verstappen

    Valtteri Bottas fastest in FP2; edges out FP1’s topper Max Verstappen

    Bottas tops FP2. An FIA image

    Abu Dhabi, 23 Nov 2018: Last year’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix winner Valtteri Bottas hit the top of the timesheets at the Yas Marina Circuit, edging FP1’s quickest man, Max Verstappen by just four hundredths of a second, with Daniel Ricciardo third in the second Red Bull.

    Bottas set the pace in the opening part of the session, using ultrasoft tyres to hold top spot just over two-tenths of a second ahead of Verstappen, who also ran on ultrasofts.

    Ferrari’s Kimi Räikkönen was the first to make the move to hypersoft tyres for a qualifying simulation and the switch immediately vaulted him to the top of the order with a time of 1:37.461. He was followed by team-mate Sebastian Vettel who took second place behind the Finn.

    Bottas was winding up for his run, however, and the Mercedes man reclaimed top spot with a lap of 1:37.236s. Five-time F1 champion Lewis Hamilton looked like eclipsing his team-mate but an imperfect final sector meant his qualifying sim yielded a time of 1:37.443.

    The two-tenths of a second gap allowed both Red Bulls to slot between the Mercedes cars, with Verstappen beating Ricciardo to P2 by 0.148s.

    With Hamilton ahead of the two Ferraris at the end of the session, best of the rest honours went to Haas’ Romain Grosjean. The Frenchman finished the 90 minutes with the best time of 1:38.060, eight-tenths of a second off Bottas’ pace. Nico Hulkenberg took eighth place for Renault, with the German being the last min within a second of Bottas’ best time.

    Ninth place in the session went to Kevin Magnussen in the second Haas. The Dane finished 1.082 off the pace with Racing Point Force India’s Esteban Ocon just eight-hundredths of a second further back in 10th place.

    2018 Formula 1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix – Free Practice 2
    1 Valtteri Bottas Mercedes 37 1:37.236
    2 Max Verstappen Red Bull 32 1:37.280 0.044
    3 Daniel Ricciardo Red Bull 31 1:37.428 0.192
    4 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 35 1:37.443 0.207
    5 Kimi Raikkonen Ferrari 40 1:37.461 0.225
    6 Sebastian Vettel Ferrari 39 1:37.569 0.333
    7 Romain Grosjean Haas 30 1:38.060 0.824
    8 Nico Hulkenberg Renault 36 1:38.230 0.994
    9 Kevin Magnussen Haas 30 1:38.318 1.082
    10 Esteban Ocon Force India 33 1:38.402 1.166
    11 Pierre Gasly Toro Rosso 32 1:38.506 1.270
    12 Carlos Sainz Jr. Renault 37 1:38.511 1.275
    13 Fernando Alonso McLaren 35 1:38.725 1.489
    14 Sergio Perez Force India 31 1:38.806 1.570
    15 Charles Leclerc Sauber 33 1:38.831 1.595
    16 Brendon Hartley Toro Rosso 35 1:38.957 1.721
    17 Marcus Ericsson Sauber 36 1:39.502 2.266
    18 Stoffel Vandoorne McLaren 18 1:39.938 2.702
    19 Lance Stroll Williams 33 1:40.046 2.810
    20 Sergey Sirotkin Williams 39 1:40.935 3.699

  • Force India will be the 4th quickest: Otmar Szafnauer

    Abu Dhabi, 23 Nov 2018: Following is th transcript of the FIA Fridya pess conference:

    Cyril, if I could start with you please: major news surrounding Carlos Ghosn. As one of the architects of the F1 programme, what impact is this going to have on Renault’s F1 project?

    Cyril ABITEBOUL: Well, I think it’s fair to say that, indeed, Carlos Ghosn was instrumental in the decision to return in late 2015, but obviously it’s not just one man’s decision. It was debated at length in executive committee, at board level, and that was the decision of the company. We have been racing in Formula 1 since more than 40 years. We are part-way on the journey of a long-term plan – six years. Six years to build the team, six years to hopefully challenge these guys. That’s where the focus is at the minute. There is a clear continuity of all the operations with Thierry Bolloré, who is no stranger to Formula 1, as he has been a director of the board of the team since 2016, so obviously this is where we need to focus and support Renault in that overall continuity.

    Q: So, in conclusion, are you saying there will be no impact?

    CA: We have no information that there will be any impact. We don’t see any reason why there would be more impact on this programme than on anything else. For the time being: continuity, focus on what we have to do, which is complete the championship in the best possible way this weekend and then focus on the second phase of our plan in Formula 1, and this is the success that will matter, the success or lack of success, and this is where I need to deliver.

    Q: Thank you. Maurizio, coming to you: Ferrari came close this year, statistically your best season since 2008. What additional resources do you need to bring to the programme to beat the guy sitting next to you in 2019?

    Maurizio ARRIVABENE: The habit to win.

    Q: Is there anything you need to change within Maranello to help you do that?

    MA: Not really, maybe kind of reinforcement but, as I said, but we need to swap our mind and to work a bit more on the habit to win.

    Q: And is there anything you can do to instill that winning mentality?

    MA: I already gave you the answer, OK? Thank you.

    Q: OK, thank you. Christian, if we could come to you please. You’re losing two things after this weekend – Renault and Daniel Ricciardo. Can you reflect on the contributions both of those have made to Red Bull?

    Christian HORNER: Yeah, it’s slightly awkward, because I’m sitting next to Cyril who is taking both elements back after the weekend. I’ll start with Renault. It’s been 12 years… Cyril was making the tea when we first started with Flavio…

    CA: He’s always nice!

    CH: It’s obviously had its ups and down but overall, if you look at the record and what we have been able to achieve – eight constructors’ and drivers’ world championships, 59 victories so far, well in excess of 100 podiums, 60 pole positions – they’ve all come with Renault power. Obviously that chapter comes to a close this weekend and we open a new chapter with Honda in 2019. But despite the turbulence that there has been in recent years, we hope to sign off on a positive note, and as I say, close the chapter on the Renault story. With Daniel, he’s been with us for 100 races, won seven of them. He’s grown up with Red Bull. He was an unknown kid from Australia who arrived in Europe when Red Bull first picked him up, taking him through the junior formulas, into Formula 1 through Toro Rosso and into Red Bull Raving. It’s been great to see his development, his growth, and he’s been a big part of our team for the past five season. All his seven victories, all the points he scored in Formula 1 have come in Red Bull cars. Hopefully we can give him a good sign-off in his final grand prix this weekend and wish him obviously the very best of luck for the future. But again, as one chapter closes another opens, with Pierre Gasly.

    Q: Thank you Christian, hope that goes well. Otmar, your team has been protested by Haas on the eve of this race. How many of a surprise was that?

    Otmar SZAFNAUER: Well, after the protest was lodged it wasn’t a surprise at all. But just before that we weren’t expecting it really, so a bit of a surprise, but in a way it’s good that all of the information can be presented to the stewards and in due course I think they’ll make a very informed decision.

    Q: Just throwing it forward to this weekend, how competitive do you think Force India are going to be?

    OS: Well, looking at our times from FP1, if they are representative, and I think they are, we did a little bit of long running with Esteban at the end and over a lap Esteban looked pretty competitive. We always go well here anyway, so I expect us to be the fourth quickest team.

    Q: Thanks. Toto, first time we’ve seen you in this forum since you won both of your world championships, so congratulations on that, but I wanted to talk to you about drivers and a driver that Otmar has just mentioned. Esteban Ocon was in here yesterday saying that he is going to be working very closely with Mercedes next year, so what are you plans for him?

    Toto WOLFF: The plans are pretty clear. He’s going to be very close to the works team, to Mercedes, he’s going to be our reserve driver, our third driver. We hope to maybe do the odd test with him also. We’re looking at pre-season and in-season, but that is not sorted out yet. He will spend a lot of time in the simulator and be ready for a seat in 2020.

    CH: If you could show him what the flags mean, as well, that would help.

    Q: Tot, just before moving on, talking about Ferrari earlier, can you juts tell us about how you have viewed the threat from Ferrari in 2018?

    TW: Ferrari has ramped up their game over the last years tremendously and I think the performance levels were pretty close to each other. We had a few races where we were doing well and then Ferrari came back and they had the upper hand. I think this fluctuated over the season. In the end we came up with a small advantage, but they have become a formidable competitor. Definitely, if Honda goes with Red Bull next year it might be another team joining the party but with the new regulations anyway it’s up in the air if somebody else could be competitive, but we very much embrace the challenge, we enjoy the fight. It’s why we’re here.

    QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

    Q: (Scott Mitchell – Autosport) Question to all five please. F1’s politics usually exists in its own little world but back in Britain we have a political situation with Brexit and the exit from EU, unravelling, a bit of a mess and no-one knows what the consequences are going to be. All five of your respective teams and companies have links to Britain in some way, shape, or form. How closely are you monitoring the Brexit situation and what do you think the consequences could be at this stage?

    TW: We are monitoring it very closely because as Mercedes we have a large operation in the UK. Our motorsport division, call it 1800 people, with a large percentage of EU citizens working for the team. Personally, I try to stay out of politics but this topic is very close to my heart because we forget why we ended up with the European, 70 years ago there was a war and the European thinking was to prevent that in the future. In times where everything changes in the last two years, nationalism coming up in various countries, new alliances forming, others breaking up. My personal opinion – I’m not speaking for Mercedes – is here that we should be looking very carefully at the situation and not risk the economy of a country. So, it is a factor for us, as I mentioned the EU citizens working for us, we are importing lots of goods from the EU, we have taken steps to make sure they are not stuck on the border. Overall, not a very pleasant development.

    Cyril, have you got anything to add?

    CA: Not much to add. I think we share the same concerns, we share similar footprint, or so from an industrial perspective, Renault and Nissan in particular has important factories in the UK, which is an opportunity for us to have a discussion at a proper level with the public authorities from Great Britain to understand what will be the treatment, in particular for movement of goods and people. Obviously we don’t want logistics or freight to be delayed in any shape or form, as well as people. We’ve gone very quickly in the recent years and it’s been done in particular thanks to the possibilities offered by the UK, bringing in youngsters, people are coming out from school, we don’t want that to change. That would be dramatic for Formula One – but I have full trust in the authorities of Great Britian to understand this is not in their interest to lose what is one of the pillars of British Industry, which is motorsport and Formula One.

    Christian?

    CH: Living in the UK, we’re living and breathing it like some of the rest of you guys and you get a little bit bored with, every time you turn on the news, hearing about Brexit: what the deal is; what it isn’t. Theresa May, she’s obviously doing the best she can with not a great hand – little bit like Chase Carey really! – and it’s a complex situation but I think over the next couple of weeks there should start to become some clarity and I think the bottom line is that people will continue to do business with the UK if we’re competitive and remain good at what we do. Formula One is something that the UK has excelled at in recent years and it’s no coincidence that four of the teams sitting here are based all in the UK. Yeah, there’s obviously some turbulence around at the moment but hopefully, in the coming weeks and months, they’ll be a solution found. There has to be one, ultimately, and it won’t affect how we go about our daily business.

    Otmar?

    OS: We too watch with keen interest because we also hire… we have many employees from the EU and we’re based in Britain and have to cross borders quite a bit into the EU to go racing. So, we’re watching with keen interest but I have faith that the UK and EU governments will come to an equitable solution that’ll be good for all of us.

    And Maurizio, as someone who represents a team not based in the UK, your thoughts on Brexit?

    MA: Of course, the situation is not ideal for Formula One so I have that they will be able, the proper authority, they will be able to find a solution. I mean, looking at the situation into the future, I’m thinking about the solution for the overall Formula One. If I’m looking at the situation from the Ferrari perspective, if everything is going in the direction that is announced at the moment, I suspect that in the near future we will find a lot of people that they’re knocking on the door of Maranello – but it’s not really the best scenario, talking about the overall Formula One, so I hope they find a solution, not only for Formula One in general that could accommodate any kind of historical cooperation, and is going to look forward for the future and think about the best development for all of us.

    Q: (Dieter Rencken – Racing Lines, Racefans.net) To all five. After this race it’s exactly two years before the expiration of the present bilateral agreements, known as the Concord Agreement. Do we have sufficient time to sort out sufficient technical, commercial, sporting etc. matters before it expires?

    MA: The time, it’s quite tight, you know better than me. So we need to move quickly – but in the meantime we need to avoid any move that could damage our company. I’m talking about Ferrari as I think my colleagues, they are talking about the company that they are representing. So, the time is quite tight – but we don’t have any hurry to move forward and maybe to create a mess. Talking about something that is in front of us now. We have regulation for next year, they were supposed to give more possibility to the overtaking, at the moment the first feedback that I got from our driver is that most probably that objective is not achieved. The result is that we are spending a huge amount of money next year to change our car, then we need also to sit together and to understand how could be the situation for the engine cost for 2021 and maybe thinking about that – because we are continuously talking about cost cap but at the moment, I’m going to see the costs, that they are increasing instead of decreasing. So, we need to stop a bit and, instead of rushing, we need to think on what we are doing now, because what we are doing now, it could potentially influence future decisions.

    Toto?

    TW: Maurizio said it all. I would share his opinion.

    Cyril?

    CA: Yeah, I think it’s fair to say that it’s tight. That’s why it’s important that we stay steady and try to be supportive of what FOM’s new management is trying to achieve – because we need visibility. I mean, when you talk to sponsors, new sponsors not in Formula One, they want to have visibility. They need to have at least three years visibility and we can’t offer three years any more. Because, as Dieter was saying, it’s only two years that’s left on the current Concord – so clearly we are really pushing but also helping stakeholders to try to come up with a clear plan, if or what, on each of those aspects which are important aspects.

    Christian?

    CH: As we were talking earlier, it’s a bit like Brexit. We’ve got to find a deal, we’ve got to find a solution. There’s 24 months. There’s a hard stop, which is at the end of 2020 and there’s only the simple factors of money, regulations and commercial plans for the future to sort out. So what could possibly hold that up!

    Otmar?

    OS: Yes. I think we’re running out of time and the sooner, the better, and the later we leave it, the higher the cost to react to whatever changes or differences there are going to be. Hopefully by the end of this year we’ll have some clarity on regulations, governance and financial distribution.

    Q: (Andrew Benson – BBC Sport) Cyril, the press release about the new president of Renault Sport talked about your ambition to win races by 2021 but you’re spending less than the two guys to your right and the one guy to your left. And the budget cap is being pushed back. Are you faced with the question of either spending more money or accepting you can’t win or pulling out?

    CA: It’s a bit early to say that we’ll pull out because we will not manage to succeed. Frankly, I don’t want to be moaning about the situation because when we joined Formula One we knew the situation. What’s quite remarkable is the arms race and the relentless spend in order to win which I fully respect and I think it has afforded a great racing season this year so we just need to see how we can emulate on those guys at some point.  At some point there will be a different deal on money distribution, at some point there will have to be a limitation of spend because in our opinion it’s just not sustainable and I believe – correct me if I’m wrong – but I believe this is a shared feeling from everyone. So then it’s just a timing issue but if the plan is delayed by one year then it’s delayed by one year but I think what matters is the principle and the principle that we must be in a position to win races at reasonable cost, given the value of Formula One. This is the equation that we want to be seen returning to reality in the next few months.

    Q: (Alaric Gomes – Gulf News) Toto, this is something off the beaten trail: Toto you are so much involved in philanthropy and especially the Mary Bendet Foundation and giving to society. Do you feel that you, as a body, as a sport, should get together and have a cause wherein you can all come together and contribute to society or community?

    TW: I believe that philanthropy is something that is very personal. We are here to compete in Formula One. We are representing great brands and each of us will have his thoughts of how to give back to the society. Whatever I do, I don’t do it in public because it’s close to my heart and I wouldn’t want to share any of the reasons why I’m doing it, but I feel in the time where everything is about yourself and the ego is running away with everybody and it’s about self demonstration on social media –  how great you are –  we have an obligation, each of us, to give back a bit, but obviously we have to decide for ourselves how and when.

    Q: (Matt James – Sport 360) Cyril, we’ve already talked about bridging the gap to the other three big teams. You’ve got Daniel coming on board next season, what are your expectations, your hopes for him?

    CA: It’s a bit early to exactly mention or disclose our exact target for next year because first we would like to finish this season in the best possible way but obviously we need to keep on progressing: P9, P6, P4 in the championship in two years, in three years so we would like to see that progression continuing. We know that obviously the further you go the bigger the steps and the more demanding they will be. We would like to see, for instance, bridging the gap closer to the top teams in qualifying, in races, not being lapped, in terms of points scoring, so this is the type of target that we will announce at the start of next season but you need to expect from us that we keep on progressing and completing the construction of the team and we expect Daniel to play a key role in that, just like he played a key role in Red Bull’s drive, in our opinion, on track but also off-track because we also feel that we need someone to embody that charge. Nico’s doing extremely well as a driver so I also look forward to that line-up to really properly represent the efforts and the ambitions of Renault in that new cycle.

    Q: (Beatrice Zamuner – Motorlat.com) Maurizio, could you tell us a bit more about the role of Laurent Mekies who we saw in the paddock? Is he going to work closely with Binotto?

    MA: No, Laurent Mekies is going to be sporting director.

    Q: (Dieter Rencken – Racing Lines, RaceFans.net) Cyril, earlier on you sounded surprisingly optimistic that the Carlos Ghosn affair won’t affect the Formula One operation. But if we have a look at the all the unknown factors, for example, at the moment it’s not even clear he will return to Europe and also the fact that corporate scandals, the effect they’ve had on people like Volkswagen who left WEC, they left rallying etc. Is it really realistic to be so optimistic that it won’t affect the Formula One programme?

    CA: In fairness, I don’t think I was willing to sound optimistic because it’s a substantial piece of development for the whole group. I think my message is simply that there is a continuity plan for all the operations of the Renault Group as well as Nissan and Mitsubishi. Formula One is part of this operation. It’s an object and an activity which is well known, very visible and receiving lots of exposure with clear expectations of return on investment and contribution to the business. I think that the reason why we joined Formula One in the way that we joined Formula One back in late 2015 are still here today: for exposure, for technology development. There is no reason why those factors are suddenly going away in case of any development, for which I don’t want to speculate at this point in time. So if Formula One is still a good value proposition in the past, it has no reason not to be also in the future. But I’m just saying that it will, in my opinion, be in our hands and this is where I will be focusing my efforts rather than in speculation. It’s in our hands to deliver the best possible result also for the best given cost to the company that will then continue to monitor this activity as an any other activity. I have absolutely no indication that for instance, Thierry Bollore is not keen on Formula One. Again, he’s a director of our company, has very good knowledge of what we are doing, so optimism, no scepticism, just focusing on facts and what we need to deliver.

    Q: (Andrew Benson – BBC Sport) Maurizio, you talk about needing a winning habit but Sebastian’s won 52 Grands Prix, you’ve won six this year, and you won five last year. How much more of a winning habit do you need and what exactly does that mean?

    MA: We need to win enough to win the championship, of course. Then it depends on the performance of the other teams, how many. Having said so, the habit to win, it’s very simple. If you are doing one-two it doesn’t have to be an exceptional event. It must be a habit, as I said. In that way you are changing and you swap your mentality from a fighter to a winner. That’s it.

    Q: (Lennart Bloemhof – De Volkskrant) Toto, getting back to Brexit, earlier this year you said you weren’t sure if it would be possible to work in the UK in the near future because of all the uncertainties. Has that feeling changed and does Mercedes already have an emergency plan when it comes to hard Brexit? 

    TW: I think the free movement of EU stuff should be pretty sorted, so I’m not worried in the short term that this is going to affect us but obviously division could have effects that we can’t see yet, beyond free movement of people and goods. And we can’t the see effect yet. As a matter of fact there is nothing on the table yet, we don’t know what the outcome is for the next couple of days, whether there will be a deal or no deal or hard Brexit. Hard Brexit would be terrible for everybody involved, I think. So it’s a moving target at the moment, I would say. But I’m less worried for personnel, to come back to your question, than I was a while ago.

    Q: (Scott Mitchell – Autosport) Maurizio, just to follow up very quickly what you said about Laurent Mekies. You’ve obviously hired him because you see him being an asset to Ferrari; what do you see as his strengths, where do you think he’ll improve what Ferrari does?

    MA: It’s perfectly… Laurent is perfectly matched in all the strengths that are requested in a sporting director. That is the reason why we hired him, this is the reason why he’s going to take this for next year.

    Q: (Andrew Benson – BBC Sport) Maurizio, to follow up on your answer, with respect, you didn’t not take the championship to the wire because you didn’t get enough one-twos, you didn’t take the championship to the wire because the driver in the team made too many mistakes, too many times during the season.

    MA: This is your opinion…

    Q: (Andrew Benson – BBC Sport) No, it’s fact, you can look at the championship and see how it happened. I can go through the races with you afterwards if you want, but, the point…

    MA: What you want me to do?

    Q: (Andrew Benson – BBC Sport) I want you to answer the question as to how you are going to make that not happen.

    MA: I give you an answer, I give you an answer, having said that what you said is not correct because we started the season in very good shape and then as Sebastian said yesterday, he made mistake, then from Monza onwards we were not there with the car and this is a fact, too, if you’re talking about facts. I don’t want to point the finger at the team or on the driver. If we are losing, we are losing together. If we are winning, we are winning together. And that’s it.

    Ends

  • It’s been a privilege to be in an era where Fernando Alonso was racing: Hamilton

    Abu Dabhi: Thursday Press Conference saw two batches of drivers. Transcript follows:

    PART ONE: DRIVERS – Lewis HAMILTON (Mercedes), Fernando ALONSO (McLaren), Lando NORRIS (2019 McLaren Driver), George RUSSELL (2019 Williams Drivers)

    PRESS CONFERENCE

    Fernando, it’s your final grand prix, can you describe your emotions coming into the weekend, please?

    Fernando ALONSO: So far I think it’s a normal weekend. I think on Sunday it’s going to be different, when it gets a little bit more emotions. But right now, I landed like 10 hours ago from Japan. I’ve been racing last weekend in Shanghai and I’m not probably into the mood yet of this final race. It feels OK right now. As I said, it’s going to be special, emotional, and hopefully a good one.

    Q: Lewis, on the subject of this being Fernando’s final grand prix. You’ve raced alongside him and against him. What kind of a rival has he been for you?

    Lewis HAMILTON: He’s been OK. We’ve had good times and bad times. I don’t really know what else to say. We’ve grown… he was obviously here before I was and achieved incredible things before I got here and also partly why I was here. It’s been a privilege to be in an era where he was racing

    Q: Will you miss him?

    LH: Will I miss him? Yeah, I think the sport will miss him.

    Q: Lando, you are going to be driving for McLaren in 2019 and you’ve been working with Fernando this year. What has he taught you?

    Lando NORRIS: He’s taught me quite a few things. One of the biggest things was working with him in Daytona, because I got to see a different side of him, I guess, working together. It’s not just some things. There are quite a few; a lot of stuff I can take through to my first year in Formula 1. And already, things I’ve taken into practice, into FP1s. There have been a lot of things I’ve been able to learn. We’ve had some good times. We get along really well and hopefully can continue in the future.

    Q: And George, just a question for you about Fernando. You haven’t worked with him but was he a driver you followed closely when you were growing up?

    George RUSSELL: Yeah, 100%. Growing up as a young karter you always look towards Formula 1 and Fernando was in his prime at that time and always fighting for championships, so as Lewis said, the sport is going to miss him, but he is a fantastic driver.

    Q: Fernando, you’ve said you’re not in the mood for reflections but what do you feel is your legacy?

    FA: I don’t know really. I think it’s difficult to say in the first person. I think I’ve been trying to do my best all the time here, fighting against anything or circumstance that may put some stress or put other people down. I was trying always to give my best and somehow working with the kids and the karting school, the museum, trying to do a lot of things with the fans and the young generation, trying to help them, if I can, with the knowledge I’ve had all these years and with facilities or something that I probably didn’t have at my time and if they have the dreams and the talent, try to help them.

    Q: Thank you Fernando, good luck this weekend. Lewis, you’ve been a five-time champion for nigh on four weeks now. In terms of the championships you’ve won, where does 2018 rank?

    LH: I don’t know, hopefully somewhere around the top. I’ve not really thought about it too much, to be honest. I’ve been focusing on trying to finish off the season strong. But it does feel… you know me, I don’t have a great memory, but it does feel like one of the best years that I can remember, competition-wise and competitive-wise, in terms of performances.

    Q: Thank you, good luck for the weekend ahead. Lando, coming back to you. As we’ve already said, a McLaren driver in 2019. Can you just paint a little picture for us about the preparations that are going to go on between now and Melbourne in March?

    LN: A lot! I think I’ve got a lot for myself to look forward. A lot of things that I haven’t done yet to prepare for that first race… the first test of course. Things I’m sure the team will be able to help me through, and guide me in many ways. So I look forward to it. I think there are a lot of things for me to be working on, which I’m very excited about. I’m sure I’m going to be busy. It’s not going to be the easiest of winters. But whatever I can do to prepare myself for Australia, the first race… I’ve never been to Australia yet, so there are a lot of things for myself to do.

    Q: And a lot of jetlag. Thank you Lando. George, coming to you, of course you’re going to be racing for Williams next year but you’ve got a championship to win first this weekend, the Formula 2 championship. You’ve got a big lead; just tell us about your approach coming into the weekend.

    GR: I don’t think my approach is going to change, to be honest. We’ve had a fantastic season, so there is no real reason to change the approach. Like you said, we have a very healthy margin, but anything can still happen and I think we’ve seen that throughout the whole season.

    QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

    Q: (David Tremayne  – The Independent, Grand Prix Plus) Fernando, can you share some of you best memories from your time in Formula 1 with us.

    FA: Yeah, the season with Lewis, 2007. I don’t know, I think more than races or memories or victories, the best thing I have from the F1 time is the people that I worked with, the people that I shared half of my life with. I’m 37 and I raced here 18 years, it’s half of my life with a lot of talented engineers, designers, mechanics, you guys, the media, everyone. We shared a lot of days over the seasons and I think that’s the best thing that I will always remember about Formula 1. How you approached this kind of races, the philosophy behind a grand prix, the preparation, and the discipline in all areas of the team. Now, racing in other disciplines, other series, you realise that Formula 1 is a step higher and it’s just trying to find perfection in everything, every weekend, every two weeks, all around the world. This was probably the best memories I will get from here.

    Q: (David Tremayne  – The Independent, Grand Prix Plus) Is there one race where you found that ultimate perfection that stands out for you?

    FA: A few of them I think they were probably a little bit higher than others in terms of performing and executing the race. If one, I would say Valencia 2012, a race that probably in a normal world we would never be able to win again. If we repeated it 100 times, 99 of them we would not have ended up first. It was a good execution of a strategy, good overtakings, a lot of risk, bit everything worked well. The car was not particularly fast that weekend, we were not even in Q3. I think I lapped Felipe 10 laps to the end. It was not that we were in a dominant position that day but we still won it, so probably that race.

    Q: (Dieter Rencken – Racing Lines, Racefans.net) Fernando, everybody speaks about Sunday’s race being your last grand prix, but you haven’t categorically ruled out returning to Formula 1. What would it take to bring you back, like champions such as Prost and Lauda did, they returned after retiring?

    FA: Right now it’s difficult to think about coming back but the door is not closed. The first reason is I don’t know how I will feel next year. I’ve been doing this for my whole life. Maybe next year, by April or May, I am desperate, on the sofa, so you know, maybe I find a way to somehow come back. But it’s not the initial idea. It’s more about myself. If I come back it’s not for any particularly or the line or something that has to happen, it’s more how I feel in the middle of next year.

    Q: (Adrian Rodriguez Huber – Agencia EFE) Fernando, how proud does it make you, not only what you accomplished in this sport, but what you accomplished for Spain and for Asturias?

    FA: Definitely very proud. I think you only realise with time, when you see how many people follow the sport now in Spain, in my region in Asturias, how many people travel to Oviedo to visit the museum, to have the first go in go-karts. A lot of people started following Formula 1 and not Formula 1, motorsports in general, in my country, which definitely was not a tradition. We were not broadcasting the races in 2001, 2002, I think it started in the middle of 2003. Something that is unthinkable now, when Formula 1 is the second or third sport in Spain. That’s something that I feel really proud of, and the same with some of the things I had in Spain, the Premio Príncipe de Asturias is probably the biggest thing I achieved, even more than any Formula 1 championship, because that kind of award is about changing people’s lives and introducing a lot of people into one sport. So, those kinds of things are much bigger than any trophy.

    Q: (Nate Saunders – ESPN) There are going to be a lot for Fernando, so Lewis I’ll give you one. I know you’ve said you don’t like talking too much about the past, but we’re doing something about the German Grand Prix from this year. You’ve said a lot about the conditions and the fortune, and how things came together for you that weekend. What was it you did that weekend that wrestled the initiative back after what happened that Saturday?

    LH: Jeez… Hockenheim… oh, where we had the issue of the failure in qualifying. I think it was really together, as a team… obviously we had the steering column failure on the Saturday, meaning that we would be starting from last, and I think we just pulled together and tried to make sure we could make the best of the Sunday, and all remained focused on getting a good result. I think it was just ultimately a true showing of the strength within the team. Even though we’d had a difficult day like that we pull together and look for other solutions to get us back up the front. That’s really what we worked for. As a driver, it was moving past the stumble, or the fall, and getting straight back up and fighting next day as if I was starting at the front. Obviously certain things came along the way in terms of weather and that was just an opportunity for me to capitalise rather than make mistakes. I just think as a driver, I was able to really maximise on that day, not making any mistakes I was able to pull myself further forward than perhaps I would on another weekend.

    Q: (David Croft – Sky Sports F1) A question to Lewis and Fernando. After eight years away Robert Kubica is back on the grid next year. You’ve both raced against Robert, I just wondered what your thoughts were on his return to the sport as a racing driver?

    LH: Is Robert younger or older than me.

    (General response): He’s older than you.

    LH: Oh, perfect! So, I’m so happy he’s coming back, because Fernando is leaving and I was going to be the second-oldest driver but now I still remain the third. I can’t tell you how happy I am about that. No, I think it’s great. I raced him from karting days so I’ve known him for a long, long time and he was always one of the most talented drivers that I had the pleasure of racing against. I know he has had a really difficult time over the last God knows how many years now, and it’s just great to see he’s got the opportunity back and I hope he works hard on his strength and getting his mind back into gear like he was in the past and I think it’s exciting for the sport to see him back in action.

    Q: Fernando?

    FA: Yeah, not much to add. I think, as Lewis said, he is one the great talents the sport has had and it’s great to see him back to race. It remains to be seen what will be the performance of the car, and his own performance, because we only saw a couple of test days. But if he is at 100% he will be amazing to watch, so happy with him.

    Q: And George, he’s going to be your team-mate next year. Your thoughts on Robert Kubica?

    GR: Yeah, I’m extremely excited to be team-mates with Robert. Obviously Lewis and Fernando have said how talented and fast he is, and there’s absolutely no doubt about that. But on top of that he is extremely intelligent, he’s got so much experience and I think he’s going to be a great addition to Williams and he’ll really help push Williams back to where they deserve and should be.

    Q: (Abhishek Takle – Mid-Day) Question to Fernando. Fernando, in your time in Formula One, you’ve gone up against many great drivers. Who would you say was your greatest rival – and what made them so challenging to beat? Thank you.

    FA: It’s difficult to choose one. Obviously, if I have to say one, it will be Michael. Not because any particular reason it was just because, when I got to Formula One, Michael was dominating the sport and you are in go-karts and you see Michael winning, you are different categories, you see Michael winning, and then eventually you find yourself fighting wheel-to-wheel. So, those battles were definitely special, or more emotional at that time – but yes, as you said, I think we had, and probably have right now, the most talented generation. Because all drivers now, they are more prepared. They get more time in the simulator, in different young driver programmes, so they go to Formula One with a level that was unthinkable a decade, or two decades ago. So, yeah, it was a good journey and I have to choose one, maybe Michael – but just for emotional reasons, not for any technical aspects.

    Q: (René Oudman – Racingnews365.NL) Question to Lewis and Fernando. It was recently announced that George and Lando will make their debut in Formula One next season. Can you recall the levels of excitement you felt – and it seems like ages ago – back when you made your debuts. And do you have certain advice for these guys?

    Lewis let’s start with you.

    LH: Shouldn’t it be elders first?

    FA: Probably my advice wouldn’t be very useful because my start was very different. My debut was in Minardi, 2001, we could not test the car before Australia. The team was disappearing at one point, it was bankrupt, so Paul Stoddart came in at the last moment and flew the car to Australia and we studied the steering wheel on Wednesday and Thursday of Australia, and I remember going out of the pitlane in FP1 and there was a queue of cars at the end of the pitlane, because there was still a red light, and I nearly crashed with them, because I could not find the neutral button. That was not the perfect start! The perfect debut! I think they will have more experience, they will have more preparation. They will be excited, yes – but they will be very well prepared when Australia comes. It’s just a matter of executing the race and follow all the engineering help that we have these days.

    Lewis?

    LH: Yeah, I think I’d second what Fernando said. I think Fernando’s was a time before mine – but also my preparation would have been better than Fernando’s – but their preparation is even further ahead from where I was, you know, simulations. George has been with us in all debriefs – pre-briefs and debriefs –  and he’s been on the simulator, so the preparation is a lot better than it was, I guess back in our time. Even mine was already great. So yeah, I think they just have to arrive and enjoy, which I’m sure… there’s a different confidence level now, I think, from the younger side, being that there is that preparation. I think it’ll be an exciting experience for them. I can’t remember how it was for me, to be honest, in my first race. I was racing against this dude, who was a two-time World Champion, so I think I was very nervous.

    Q: (Phil Duncan – PA) Lewis, your relationship with Fernando got off to a bit of a rocky, shaky start in 2007. Can you just say how you felt about Fernando then, and how your relationship’s improved, for the better obviously, over the years?

    LH: I don’t really recall it too much, to be honest. I don’t feel like I ever had a personal issue with Fernando. I think it was more how the team was run, or the situation we were put in, and how that was managed. Maybe. Probably:

    FA: Definitely.

    LH: I don’t think we ever necessarily had an issue between us, except we were trying to beat each other and murder each other’s laps on the track. Outside, we used to play NBA 2K, or whatever it was together, ever now and then. It was always really quite harmonious outside. I definitely think naturally, we’re older, old men now and the respect between us, I’d like to think, is higher than it’s ever been and I don’t think that’s ever going to change, and I do hope that Fernando’s at least around, or at least I get to see him in the future, as someone I’ve always respected highly as a driver, as I’ve always commented on, and so, I really do wish him all the best for his future endeavours.

    Q: (Walter Koster – Saarbruecker Zeitung) Lewis, I want to remind you politely of your promise you have given two years ago, same place, here in the FIA press conference in Abu Dhabi. Quote: ‘In ten years, you will have to buy my book and can read the explanation for the change of mine and Nico’s mechanics crew.’ It was a good question, it will be an interesting read. Now, I want to know, have you already started writing your book? I am now 69 and have the intention to buy and read it. I hope I will still have the chance in my life. Is it OK so far?

    LH: That’s a good one! I said ten year, two years ago? I’ve got a while now. You’re going to have to wait a little longer. Eight more years to go.

    FA: Don’t make him wait, say it now!

    LH: Eight more years. So I’ve got a little bit of time to prepare. But I haven’t planned to do anything anytime soon. I really don’t have any intentions to do a book. Are you going to do a book?

    FA: yeah, I will, next year. But look at him, you should say something. He deserves it, after the long question.

    LH: I said in ten years right?

    But now, only eight years.

    LH: Yeah! Eight years to go. OK. Every year from now on you have to remind me. Countdown. Sounds good.

    Q: (Zoran Zikov – Topspeed Magazine) Fernando…

    FA: You will need to wait eight years – but ask me whatever you want!

    Simple question. In your Formula One career, journalists always put many questions to you. Is there any question you’ve never been asked by a journalist but you want to give an answer to?

    FA: No. I think I’ve received all the questions in the world. It’s impossible that there’s one missing. So… I’m not missing any questions. Enough.

    Q: (Alexander Tobakowski – Derbi.mk) Fernando, besides the triple crown, what could bring you back in Formula One – maybe becoming the father of a future world champion in F1, like Rosberg and Hill?

    FA: I don’t know. I don’t know what the future will bring. Definitely now I’m concentrating on the personal challenges, the triple crown and some other races that I will add next year. For 2020 I don’t know exactly what I will do, or what will be the plan. Further away, it’s impossible to think – but yeah, who knows? Life is long and beautiful. I like Formula One. I will always love Formula One, so if I will be here in the future as a driver, as a father, as an FIA boss or whatever. I will think.

    LH: You’re not the FIA boss! At least when I retire.

    FA: Maximum penalties.

    Q: (Andrew Benson – BBC Sport) Fernando, what are you going to miss most about Formula One next year? If anything?

    FA: Press conferences.

    Tell me the truth!

    FA: I think driving the cars. The cars are something special. It doesn’t matter if you’re fourteenth, fifth or fighting for victory. Obviously if you can be on the podium and win, definitely it’s an extra celebration and joy – but when you go out of there for qualifying, or even tomorrow for free practice, and you’re drive these cars, they are very special, y’know? The amount of technology behind these cars would be difficult to replicate in any other series – but on the other side there are negative aspects of Formula One, especially if you are 18 years here. You dedicate your entire life to Formula One. You have no friends, no family, no free time, no privacy, no wife, no kids, no nothing. It’s just full dedication if you want to succeed. So, I think, I have other priorities right not.

    Q: (Carlo Miquel Gomez – AutoHebdo Sport) Fernando, what’s your goal for the race? It’s your last race. Q3 and finish the race and make a big party?

    FA: I have to be in Bahrain on Monday morning – so the party is not going to be too long but yes, enjoy the race. I think that will be the first priority. I know we are not competitive enough to fight for big things but, nevertheless, I think we are fighting with Force India for the Constructors’ Championship, so that will be nice to succeed on that and finish in front of them. And in qualifying, even if Q3 is also a dream maybe, too optimistic, we try to do some good laps, some good runs and feel happy with the laps, whatever the position it is. And yeah, that’s the goal.

    Q: (Beatrice Zamuner – Motorlat.com) Lando, what kind of approach are you going to take, considering that McLaren has had a very challenging season?

    LN: Hard to say. I think considering it’s my first season in Formula One, and of course I would like it to be a long career in Formula One, there’s a lot of work to be done from myself and obviously from the team. They are working very hard for next season. A lot of change in the team, to try and progress next season and get further up the grid from where we are now. But I know it’s not going to be easy. Obviously, my whole career I’ve worked hard but I’ve always had good results – so it’s going to be my first season where I’m going in and I’m know I’m not going to be winning races – probably – but yeah, hopefully it’s a longer game. And we can just make improvements. I think that’s the biggest thing I want to be able to do, and the team as well, is improve over time and eventually, maybe mid-season, end of season, two years, whatever, see all of this hard work getting paid off. Getting more points, getting a podium and, eventually, try to win. I think that’s my goal and the whole team’s goal. So, I’ll be just working with them as hard as possible to get that aim done.

    Q: (Dieter Rencken – Racing Lines / racefans.net) George, you’ve worked very closely with Lewis, and Lando, you with Fernando. What’s the single most important aspect you each learned from the World Champion sitting next to you that helped you get into Formula One.

    GR: I think from my side, seeing how Lewis deals with the team behind the scenes, and everything, I think. No matter who you are, you can see how that driver works on track, and at the end of the day, if Lewis gave me any driving advice, what works for him might not work for me, and vice versa, so I think, from my side, the biggest thing I learnt, in the debriefs, how he discusses, and talks with the engineers, and deals with that aspect.

    Lando?

    LN: I don’t think it’s been one thing in particular. There’s been a lot of things that I’ve learnt from Fernando. I guess the biggest thing is to enjoy it. I think that’s one of the biggest and best things I’ve seen from Fernando is how, although it’s his job and he has to work hard and everything, he still has fun at the same time. I think that’s something very important. We probably wouldn’t be here – any of us – if we didn’t enjoy what we’re doing. But yeah, it’s on a kind of different level. Apart from the obvious things, working hard, how he talks to his engineers, how they progress, enjoying it and having fun is probably one of the best things I’ve seen.

    PART TWO: DRIVERS – Esteban OCON (Racing Point Force India), Sebastian VETTEL (Ferrari), Kimi RAIKKONEN (Ferrari), Max VERSTAPPEN (Red Bull Racing)

    Q: Esteban and Max, it’s been two weeks since you guys were involved in a collision at the Brazilian Grand Prix. Max, let’s start with you: is that now water under the bridge?

    Max VERSTAPPEN: You guys like the drama, don’t you? Like two weeks after. Yeah, no, all good, in the sense that you can’t change the result. It’s of course unfortunate. It’s always a bit weird to crash with a backmarker but that’s how it goes.

    Q: Would you do anything differently if the same situation arose?

    MV: No, I wouldn’t, because from my point of view, how I look back on it is that I just passed Lewis for the lead and this season, it has been a lot about tyre management so as soon as I got into the lead, I was basically just cruising to save the tyres and somebody comes out of the pits and has fresh supersoft tyres, I think it was at the time… In general, I think this season Force India has been at least a second to a second and a half behind us. For two laps, maybe, you feel like you have decent pace but the guys in the lead are most of the time not pushing flat out to get somewhere, because once you in the lead, what do you want to do? So maybe you want to try and get past and then try and pull away but within two laps your tyres are gone, or at least, the peak has gone and you end up letting us by again so at the end of that whole process, to try and get by you’re anyway also destroying your tyres in a way so I think it’s always better to just stay behind and follow. Clearly that was not the case.

    Q: Thank you Max, and Esteban, how do you reflect on it?

    Esteban OCON: Yeah, it’s not a great thing, you know, to be involved with a crash with the leader, of course. It’s not a thing you want to see and I’m sorry for Max. It was his race to win, he did a fantastic job during the whole race but yeah, on the other side, I had a slow pit stop so I came out in between Lewis and Max. got the blue flag after a couple of corners. I got away from the blue flag and I was quite fast and behind Max so I was stuck and then the team came onto the radio saying ‘you can unlap yourself if you want and if you are faster’ and as Max said, he was managing the tyres so yeah, I just went for it. It was important for us to get close to the top ten pack. If something happens, you know, a penalty or anything, I could have got in the points. Things that happen, you can’t come back from what has happened but yeah, that’s how it is, we have to move forward.

    Q: Max, coming back to you, this is the team’s final race with Renault engines. Just how excited are you about the future with Honda?

    MV: I’m very excited but the whole team is. You can really feel it. I think it’s good that the whole team is super-motivated for next year. We know that we can build a great car. Of course we are just waiting to have the whole package together but I definitely feel a difference compared to the last years where… the motivation was there, everybody was always trying to do their best but now they’re just so looking forward to next year that I think next year, to have that extra motivation will definitely help us to be more successful next year.

    Q: Esteban, coming back to you; we now know for certain that you won’t be racing in Formula One next season. What does 2019 hold for you?

    EO: Yeah, we’ll see what it holds for me. Definitely I will be around in the F1 paddock and trying to get as much mileage as possible in a Formula One car next year. Me and Mercedes, we see great opportunities for me to come back in 2020 so hopefully that will be the case and hopefully I will be back even stronger than I am now.

    Q: Have you had any assurances from Mercedes about 2020?

    EO: No, assurances, no. You never have but as I said, we seen great opportunities so hopefully there will be.

    Q: Coming to the Ferrari drivers now, you both have good memories of racing here in Yas Marina. Sebastian, if we could start with you, how important is it for you and the team to end 2018 on a high?

    Sebastian VETTEL:  I think it’s what everybody tries to do but certainly after a season with highs but also with lows I think it would great to finish on a high.

    Q: And then looking further ahead, what has Ferrari go to do to present a consistent title challenge in 2019?

    SV: I think we need a stronger package. We certainly have had our moments this year when we had strong races but we also had races which weren’t very strong, we weren’t quick enough, so I think overall it’s the speed that decides and I think more often than not I think we’re lacking a little bit of speed. I think we’re working very hard and I think the motivation is there to do that final step that is still outstanding.

    Q: Kimi, after eight seasons, this is your final race with Ferrari. What does this team mean to you and what will you miss most about it?

    Kimi RAIKKONEN: I don’t know. Obviously I had this leaving them once already so it’s not a new thing. I’m not sad because I don’t see why we need to be sad. We will stay as friends. We’re going to see a lot of us anyhow in the paddock so not an awful lot changes. We’ll both go for new things and I think it’s exciting but we’ve had good times with the team, great people. We’ve had some difficult times, but that’s part of business and I think that’s how it should go: sometimes it needs to be a bit hard. No, obviously I won the championship with them, as a driver. We twice won the team (championship) so I’m very happy to be part of it because there’s not many people who have done it. We will happily go different ways. We’re not that far away from each other and we will keep doing what we do.

    Q: And just looking at this weekend, you’re in a tight battle with Bottas, just 14 points separating you in the championship. How important is that third place for you?

    KR: I don’t think it’s changing my world any way. If I end up third, I think we need to go wherever the prize giving is so it’s a negative thing in the end, you know, more travelling but we’ll see.

    QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

    Q: (Andrew Benson – BBC Sport) Esteban and Max, we all know there’s a bit of history between you two. How do you feel about each other as drivers and as men, and about the prospect of racing together potentially for a long time in Formula One?

    MV: OK, with all the other young drivers? Oh. We’ve done that in go-karting so that’s life.

    EO: Formula Three.

    MV: Formula Three.

    Q: (Andrew Benson – BBC Sport) All I’m asking is how do you feel about each other as drivers and as men?

    SV: Boys.

    MV: Yeah! Well, I don’t know. It’s like a neutral feeling.

    EO: I will respond, if he cannot, I do. We’ve been racing since a long time and it’s been close racing on track. Sometimes there were touches but you know if you’re fighting for championships or stuff it’s always the case. Anyway, it gets close at some points but the important thing is that it stays good racing and good fun for the fans but doesn’t go over it and that’s the important thing, yeah, but it’s been a long time that we know each other and it’s been good so I don’t see why it could change.

    MV: I have the same feeling racing Esteban or Seb or Kimi. It’s not because he’s a lot younger than them that changes my feeling or anything.

    Q: (Dieter Rencken – Racing Lines, Racefans.Net) Max, Will Buxton, the F1 TV reporter has just tweeted: ‘tell you what, Max ain’t over it.  Not one bit. Doubled down on it being intentional on Ocon’s part. Blimey.’ Did you do a TV interview with him where you possibly suggested that Esteban did it intentionally?

    MV: No.

    Q: (Dieter Rencken – Racing Lines, Racefans.Net) This was tweeted in the last ten, fifteen min…

    MV: I don’t care about what’s written on twitter so… no.

    Q: (Jerome Pugmire – Associated Press) Max, at the start, you said you guys like the drama but obviously the drama is heightened by what happened after the race where you pushed Esteban three times. If you could go back again, would you have the same response? Do you regret your response?

    MV: No, not really because I was after an apology and I got a bit of a different response. We are all emotional,  just at the time that I had lost a victory, so I think from my side I was really calm. It could have been much worse. I think pushing, in any sport, it happens. I actually saw it a few days ago in football again. So from my side, I thought it was quite a calm response. What do you expect me to do, like shake his hand, like thank you very much for being second instead of first? I think it’s quite a normal response. OK, I got my two days with the FIA which we will find out what we’re going to do but no, from my side… You guys don’t really hear what’s actually being said at the scales. You just see me pushing. But if you understand the whole conversation, I think it’s a bit different.

    Q: Can I just throw this to the Ferrari drivers? Sebastian and Kimi, what are your thoughts on what happened between these two drivers in Brazil?

    SV: We can go? Now? I don’t know. I have an opinion. I’m not sure I should say what I think.

    KR: Not really. I saw it afterwards. Boys and boys and that’s how it goes. I don’t think anything bad happened in the end it’s probably in many eyes, if you take the whole picture, maybe it’s not the greatest thing in many aspects but it’s not the end of the world. That’s how it goes.

    Q: (Christian Menath – Motorsport-Magazin.com) Two questions, first to Max: you said you would do the same again, you’ve done nothing wrong. I think most of us agree but if you would be in that championship battle, would you do something differently, even if it wasn’t wrong, but drive a bit more safely in this situation? And Seb, just to follow up on what you said: can you give us your opinion?

    MV: I don’t think it really changes if you’re fighting for a championship. It’s easy to say, from other people, yeah, you should have done something differently but I don’t expect to crash with a backmarker. Like I said, if you’re fighting for first or second and you crash like that it’s a different story but if you get hit like that… I honestly don’t understand what I should do differently so, no. For most of the people, also with the emotional side of it, you have not been a racing driver or you have not been in this position where there’s a lot to play for and we are all here to win and then you are in that position and it gets taken from you. It’s not nice and I think emotions can then take over and I think it’s really normal. Like I said, it’s just a normal thing.

    SV: I think in the end, it’s very simple. I think we have emotions, we are human beings and emotions go both ways. They go full of joy when something great happens and you’re happy and they probably swing the other way if you’re not happy or upset. I think it’s clear that we’re here to fight something that means the world to us – I don’t know how much it means to you because for you, most of you… you know, for people watching it’s a show they’re watching. For people reporting about the show it’s a job. For us it’s a job but it’s our lives. I think we all started racing when we were small kids in go-karts and to be in a Formula One car is the dream that we all had, to race a Formula One car and then to fight for a win, so there’s something big at stake. It’s not like… you know, you get a piece of cake when you’ve done well and you don’t when you didn’t. So there’s a lot at stake and I think that explains the emotions and as I said, I think emotions are part of sport. I think they always will be. Obviously you have certain situations that give you the opportunity to talk about it a lot afterwards. I’ve been in that situation as well but I think for us it’s very clear that the pendulum swings both ways.

    Q: (David Croft – Sky Sports F1) Max and Esteban, I think all of us here would like to report the facts so Max, help us out here: what was said on the weighing scales after the race in Brazil?

    MV: Something I didn’t expect to hear. No, it doesn’t matter what it was at the end of the day, because it clearly pissed me off instead of let’s say, straightway an apology but maybe after the race, you’re still with the adrenaline kicki… it’s still in your body, you maybe don’t get the right answer but like I said, we’re not robots. We have emotions. And like Seb said as well, we will always be, unless you puts robots in the car but I don’t think we want that.

    Q: (David Croft – Sky Sports F1) No, none of us want that. Esteban do you feel like you played your part in what happened as well, then?

    EO: Yeah, I think we have to move forwards in what happened. We can’t change the past. I’m sure, even if Max said the opposite, he would like to come back on what he did after the race. Yeah, I think it’s done, we can’t change it and now we have to move forward.

    Q: (Jerome Pugmire – Associated Press) Max, over the last four races, in terms of points, you’ve been neck-and-neck with Lewis Hamilton. There’s one point in it and obviously if the race had gone differently in Brazil you would be ahead by a few points. Does that make you confident that next year you could challenge, we could see a three driver or perhaps more, competition for the title?

    MV: Well, I think I had that last year as well. I don’t think it really matters a lot, we just need to make sure that from the start, from next year, that we are a little bit closer so we can actually start fighting with them a bit sooner, because it seems like that throughout the season our car just keeps progressing in a good way. That definitely helped us out at the end of the season again this year and also last year. We just need to be a little bit sooner than at the end of the season.

    Q: (Marco Privitera – LiveGP.it) Kimi, after your long experience with Ferrari, what will be the next target for next year and the rest of your career?

    KR: I haven’t really thought (about it). We’ll see once we start driving the new cars next year where we are roughly, purely by feeling and then we go from there. Obviously it’s a different challenge but I enjoy also, that’s why I (inaudible). We’ll see. If you ask many people there are lots of different opinions how it’s going to go but we’ll find out next year and we’ll do our best. I think we have a good change to do some great things. Where that’s going to take us, who knows? We’ll find out but we’ll see what happens once we start next year and then after that, I haven’t even thought about it.

    Q: (Alexsandar Tobakowski – Derbi.mk) Sebastian, we tend to believe that you have a very friendly relationship with Kimi during these years at Ferrari, so do you expect to have some more pressure from Charles during next season? If yes, the same level of pressure if it was Max joining Ferrari?

    SV: I think they’re two different things. I think I tried to beat Kimi. Kimi tried to beat me. I think it doesn’t matter who you are racing in the team, you always try to win and that means you also beat whoever is driving with you in the same team, so I don’t think that changes. Obviously Charles is different to Kimi so we will see how it goes but I think he’s a good kid. One thing for sure that I enjoyed a lot in the last years is the mutual respect that we have to each other. I think we never had to deal with any bullshit between ourselves so that made it easier for me, easier for him I guess and easier for the team. But I’m not expecting anything in that direction from Charles. I think he’s a good kid. Obviously the team knows him very well for a while now, since he’s grown in the Ferrari Drivers Academy and yeah, happy for him and then we’ll see how it works out.

    Q: Sebastian, can you name something that you will miss about Kimi next year?

    SV: Silence!

    KR: Short meetings from my side.

    SV: Exactly!

    Q: (Abhishek Takle – Mid-Day) Kimi, just to follow up from what you said earlier: like you said, it will be a new challenge next year at Sauber. What do you think you will enjoy most about driving for Sauber next year?

    KR: Obviously I don’t know yet because… I’m pretty sure it’s a much smaller team than where I’ve been now, at Ferrari, but I’m really looking forward to it. It’s going to be different in many ways but the aim is still the same, do well in the races. I think it’s more pure racing and less the other stuff in there. Hopefully it will turn out to be good for both of us and that’s our aim. I think it’s what we can do, but obviously I might be completely wrong but we’ll find out. I have a good feeling about it and I’m excited to go there. But it’s close to my home which is obviously a bonus.

    SV: Didn’t you tell me that you’re really looking forward to the simulator.

    KR: Yeah, but I have it at home. I told them don’t spend the money on it because I have on at home.

    MV: So you will do the set-up work for them for the Friday, for the first practice?

    KR: Yeah. That’s easy. No worries. Do it once well and it should be fine.

    Q: (Arjan Schouten – AD Sportwereld) Max, you said nothing is clear yet about your public service punishment. What do you expect for punishment? Do you agree with it and do you see it as a real penalty or more something of a warning not to do it again?

    MV: I honestly really don’t know. We’ll discuss, between the team and the FIA, what we’re going to do. If I agree with it, it doesn’t really matter, does it? What can you do about it? I find it a bit harsh but yeah… We’ll find a solution.

  • Torrente takes Championship lead winning the Grand Prix of India in dramatic style

    Torrente takes Championship lead winning the Grand Prix of India in dramatic style

    Amaravati (AP, India), 18 Nov 2018: Team Abu Dhabi’s Shaun Torrente capped a perfect weekend in Amaravati with a faultless drive to win the UIM F1H2O Grand Prix of India and move to the top of the world championship standings.

     Emirates Racing’s Marit Stromoy produced by far her best performance of the season to finish in second with Erik Stark making it an Abu Dhabi one-three.

     There was drama almost immediately when CTIC F1 Shenzhen China’s Philippe Chiappe crashed heavily on the start lap at the first turn, ending his title hopes with defending champion Alex Carella’s race ending almost before it began, retiring on the same lap with technical issues.

     It was disappointing afternoon for the local favourite Jonas Andersson, the Team Amaravati driver retiring after running in fourth place for 33 of the 44 lap race.

    Pole-sitter Torrente made the perfect start but would have to do it all again when the yellow flag was shown for Chiappe’s dramatic exit, the incident benefitting Stromoy who had a poor start and dropped several places but with no laps completed the boats reverted to their starting positions.

    Torrente made no mistake at the restart and took off and opened up an early lead, but for the majority of the race was unable to shake off the challenge of a very persistent Stromoy who would not let him get away, but the Abu Dhabi driver was faultless, absorbed the pressure from behind and maintained his relentless pace to complete the 44 laps and win by 2.17s to record his seventh-career victory and leapfrog his two teammates to hit the front in title race. “Marit did a wonderful job. She pushed so hard and I knew she would,” said Torrente. “I made two great starts and it was all about managing the race. For me it’s about winning the championship not just races. The goal is to be in this position after Sharjah. Our home race is next so we hope we can keep it going.”

    Stromoy’s drive to second sandwiched between the Abu Dhabi duo for the full race distance received high praise from both her rivals and was by far her best outing this year, keeping Torrente in her sights and fending off a relentless challenge from Stark. “I tried and pushed as hard as I could till the bitter end but it was a great race for me,” Stromoy said. “I had a bad start and was a bit lucky with the yellow flag but I could see Shaun was controlling things at the front and I also had to keep my eye on Erik.”

    Despite all his efforts and a near coming together with Stromoy, Stark was unable to get passed. “I was a little unlucky with the yellow because for once I made a really good start,” Stark said. “After the restart I got up beside her but she held on and after that I pushed as hard as I could but it was not enough. The podium is great but the points’ after Sharjah is what matters and we have two races to go.”

    Behind the front three it was a race of attrition with eight of the 18 starters failing to go the distance; F1 Atlantic’s Duarte Benavente retiring on lap 1 after the coming together with Chiappe and teammate Grant Trask going out on lap 13, with Thani Al Qemzi seeing his championship lead disappear with his retirement on lap 5, Cedric Deguisne’s race ending on lap 27.

    Andersson was looking strong in fourth before his exit with Peter Morin taking over the slot and running a solitary race to the chequered flag and some consolation for the CTIC China Team, with Francesco Cantando, the winner in India in 2004, picking up his best result of the year bringing his Blaze home in fifth.

    Team Amaravati’s Erik Edin produced one of the drives of the day, moving up from 18th off the pontoon to finish in sixth ahead of Mad Croc BABA Racing’s Filip Roms and Ahmed Al Hameli who was struggling with technical issues.

     It was a very good afternoon for two championship rookies, Simone Schuft and Sutthiphan Sookbuangbon both picking up there first championship points in ninth and tenth.

     With two races to go Shaun Torrente leads the championship standings on 72 points from Stark on 65 and Al Qemzi slipping to third on 54, with Morin now the closes challenger in fourth on 39 points.

     The penultimate round of the season is the Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi on the 6-8 December.

     For full classifications:

    https://www.f1h2o.com/results/2018/grand-prix-of-india/f1h2o

     For championship standings:

    https://www.f1h2o.com/standings/2018/f1h2o

  • Andhra Pradesh planning to start Water Sports Academy

    Andhra Pradesh planning to start Water Sports Academy

    Nicolo di San Germano, Promoter, H2O at Vijayawada on Saturday 17th Nov 2018. Photo Tony Titus

    Amaravati (AP), 17 Nov 2018: A high-standard powerboat Racing Academy is in the offing in Andhra Pradesh and it is only a matter of time before we see Indian drivers taking part in high-performance water sports, said Nicolo di San Germano, Promoter, H2O.

    Talking on the sidelines after the official Formula One H2O driver inter-action on Saturday, the long-standing promoter allayed fears that the World Championship event on the waters of River Krishna will remain as a one-off event. “Our dream is to come back again for many years to come and if our plans go well, even many times in a year in the future. We had talks with the Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu and he is very keen to develop a sporting culture in Andhra Pradesh which has a huge coastline. It is not just River Krishna, we are looking at similar circuits on the beach front too,’’ added Nicolo, who has 25 years of experience running the sport worldwide. But the current round of the World Championship agreement is for one year and it is likely to enter the calendar for next year. However, it is not confirmed.

    The Academy would be for children in the age group of 8 to 12 years. It would start from basics and help those aspiring a career in this sport to take up high-performance coaching. “The sport is much cheaper organise and run than a normal level Karting championship and with beautiful rivers like Krishna and other water bodies AP is well suited to embrace the sport,’’ the promoter said.

    “Your CM not only wants to see Indian drivers in international events but one-day we want to see boats made in India take part in Indian colours. If the interest generated and the official thinking is any indication, that day is not far off,’’ he concluded.

    As Promoter, Nicolo was instrumental in his ongoing 25-year tenure in bringing stability, a new direction, improved safety and an ever-broadening geographic footprint encompassing Europe, the Americas, the Middle East and Asia and this expansion in India is set to help a growing commercial value. The Andhra Pradesh Government through AP Tourism has pumped in Rs.140 million (Rs.14 crore) into the World Championship Round in Vijayawada, near Amaravati.

  • Anderson qualifies 5th; Shaun takes pole: UIM F1h2o World Championship

    Anderson qualifies 5th; Shaun takes pole: UIM F1h2o World Championship

    Anderson on a flying lap which got him the P5 with one minute to go in Q3. Photo Tony Titus

    Amaravati (AP, India), 17 Nov 2018: Sweden’s Jonas Andersson of Team Amaravati, the Indian team for the F1H2O World Championship was the fifth quickest in the Q3 after just managing to enter the last qualyfying session at the fag end with 6th best time. Torrente Shaun clocked the fastest time in the 2.125km circuit doing the fastest of the two laps in 44.54sec.

    In his 8th season, he got his third pole from 45th start and being third in the championship with 53 points, will be gunning for a victory to take the lead as the Formula 1 H2O goes into the final stages with three more rounds left.

    Anderson of Team Amaravati was 0.68 seconds behind in P5, timing 45.22. Stromoy Merit timed 44.72 to qulify in P2 while Stark Erik did 45 dead for the third place.

    Earlier in the second practice session on Saturday morning. Driving the Powerboat in Yellow and Red Amaravati colours in the #14 livery, Anderson clocked 47.22sec for P5 even as top guns Team Abu Dhabi’s Erik Stark grabbed top spot in the closing stages of an intriguing second practice session with a handful of drivers enjoying a spell at the top of the time sheets.

    Stark’s teammate Shaun Torrente ousted Victory’s Alex Carella from top spot and went quickest with 10 minutes of the 60 remaining but was then eclipsed by Ahmed Al Hameli who looked to have put Victory back on top with a 46.42s lap.

    But with a minute to go Stark produced his best run with a 45.97s lap and was the only driver to go sub 46 seconds.

    Team Amaravati’s Jonas Andersson was again in the mix and on the pace in fifth place, with Marit Stromoy, who topped the session early on, ending the morning in sixth spot.

    SECOND PRACTICE – results (top six):

    1. 35 Erik Stark (swe) – 45.97s
    2. 3 Ahmed Al Hameli (uae) – 46.42s
    3. 6 Shaun Torrente (usa/*uae) – 46.74s
    4. 1 Alex Carella (ita/*uae) – 46.84s
    5. 14 Jonas Andersson (Swe- Team Amaravati) – 47.22s
    6. 50 Marit Stromoy (nor) – 47.29s

    (*denotes international racing super license)

    POS COUNTRY BOAT DRIVER Q1 Q2 Q3
    1 6 Shaun Torrente 0:47.85 0:45.82 0:44.54
    2 50 Marit Stromoy 0:47.63 0:46.38 0:44.72
    3 35 Erik Stark 0:47.50 0:46.04 0:45.00
    4 5 Thani Al Qemzi 0:47.02 0:45.91 0:45.06
    5 14 Jonas Andersson 0:46.81 0:46.58 0:45.22
    6 3 Ahmed Al Hameli 0:48.08 0:46.55 0:45.23
    7 8 Peter Morin 0:47.89 0:47.04
    8 1 Alex Carella 0:47.65 0:47.25
    9 37 Francesco Cantando 0:48.24 0:47.50
    10 7 Philippe Chiappe 0:47.95 0:47.52
    11 10 Duarte Benavente 0:48.56 0:47.91
    12 51 Bartek Marszalek 0:48.09
    13 9 Grant Trask 0:48.82
    14 12 Filip Roms 0:48.98
    15 11 Sami Selio 0:49.37
    16 73 Cédric Deguisne 0:50.84
    17 36 Simone Bianca Schuft 0:54.85
    18 74 Suttiphan Sookbuangbon 0:55.00
    19 15 Erik Edin 0:57.03

    For full classifications:

    https://www.f1h2o.com/results/2018/grand-prix-of-india/f1h2o

  • Abu Dhabi’s Shaun Torrente on pole for Grand Prix of India; Team Amaravati’s Anderson 5th

    Abu Dhabi’s Shaun Torrente on pole for Grand Prix of India; Team Amaravati’s Anderson 5th

    Shaun Torrente of Sweden take pole position for the Grand Prix of India. Photo Tony Titus

    Amaravati (AP, India) 17 Nov 2018: Team Abu Dhabi’s Shaun Torrente produced a stunning final run in today’s top-six shootout to cap a thrilling BRM Official Qualifying session, setting the fastest time with a 44.54s lap around the five-pin 1.125km circuit on the Krishna River and will start tomorrow’s Grand Prix of India from pole position.

    Norway’s Marit Stromoy produced her best qualifying session of the season and went second quickest for Emirates Racing with a 44.72s lap, Abu Dhabi’s Erik Stark sealing third spot with a time of 45.00s.

    Torrente was made to work hard for his seventh career-pole and his third of the season, leaving it late into Q2 and sitting outside the top six before jumping to the top of the time sheets to progress into the shootout on his final lap as the clock timed out the 20 minute session, his Abu Dhabi teammates Thani Al Qemzi and Stark locking out the top three spots.

    Victory Team’s Alex Carella was the big loser in the middle session after having his best lap time of 46.27s deleted for cutting the course, dropping him to eighth and elevating Stromoy to fourth, Victory’s Ahmed Al Hameli to fifth and handing a lifeline and shootout slot to Team Amaravati’s Jonas Andersson.

    Andersson opened the shootout with a best lap of 45.22s which Al Hameli was unable to better, missing out by a mere one hundredths of a second.

    Next out was Stromoy and targeting a first pole position since Portugal in 2011 and immediately posted the fastest time of the day with a staggering 44.72s lap to take the provisional pole. Stark followed and produced his best time on his first run but missed out by 0.26s with Al Thani’s time of 45.06s eventually putting him fourth.

    Torrente was last out and the tension mounted as he pulled out of his first run and was suddenly under massive pressure to deliver the team its fourth pole of the season, but then produced a simply breath taking run to snatch pole position from Stromoy by 0.18s. “The whole day was a series of mistakes by me and then to get it done at the last second is great,” Torrente said. “In Q2 I changed to a bigger propeller which I thought I needed and I did. But with less than 30 seconds to go I was out. But I made a good solid lap and went P1. Then in Q3 having seen Marit’s time which was huge I pressed too hard and made a mistake so I aborted and just had to pull out a near perfect lap, which I did.”

    It was another massively frustrating day for the CTIC Shenzhen China F1 duo who have been struggling with engine issues and ahead of a race that they really need to be running in the top three or four to keep any flickering title hopes alive, but now face a huge mountain to climb with Peter Morin qualifying in seventh and Philippe Chiappe in tenth behind Blaze Performance’s Francesco Cantando, the man who won in Mumbai in 2004.

    Today’s result, with the Abu Dhabi trio starting one-three and four tomorrow, brings the likelihood of them all but closing out the title race a step closer as they bid for an unprecedented third successive Grand Prix podium lockout, the woman standing in their way is Marit Stromoy who is bidding for a second Grand Prix win.

    BRM Official Qualifying – Top Six Shootout

    1. 6 Shaun Torrente (usa/*uae) – 44.54s

    2. 50 Marit Stromoy (nor) – 44.72s

    3. 35 Erik Stark (swe/*uae) – 45.00

    4. 5 Thani Al Qemzi (uae) – 45.06s

    5. 14 Jonas Andersson (swe) – 45.22s

    6. 3 Ahmed Al Hameli (uae) – 45.23s

    (*denotes international racing super license)

    For full classifications:

    https://www.f1h2o.com/results/2018/grand-prix-of-india/f1h2o

  • What is Formula One H2O?

    The UIM F1H2O World Championship is the ‘flagship’ international series of single-seater inshore circuit powerboat racing.

    Highly competitive, intensely challenging, risky and entertaining, the F1H2O World Championship is the ultimate adrenalin rush and regarded as one of the most spectacular and exciting sports in the world.

    The series attracts up to 20 of the world’s leading drivers and is a sport that has to be seen to be believed as these diminutive tunnel-hull catamarans enter hairpin turns at over 90mph and top 140mph on the straights.

    Picture the scene; 18 to 20 sleek, powerful and lightweight catamarans lining up on the start pontoon. Inside each cockpit sits a lone individual peering through a tiny windscreen. One hand grasps the steering wheel, the other poised over the start button. The tension inside the cockpit is intense as the drivers wait for the crucial start. Beyond the cockpit, an eerie silence descends over the entire arena, all attention fixed on the start.

    No sooner does the wait end when 10,000hp of highly tuned brute power bursts into life sending the fleet screaming towards the first corner leaving nothing but a glorious fountain of white spray in its wake.

    Now in its 35th year the four decades of the World Championship have witnessed considerable change and evolution; the seventies and eighties saw multiple promoters and two giant corporations of the sport OMC and Mercury vying for supremacy to be the pinnacle of the sport.

    OMC were touting their 3.5litre V8 package that became known as the OZ class, Mercury pushing their 2.0litre engine and called the ON class, the disparity in power would soon lead to bitter wrangling and infighting amongst competitors.

    The split came in 1981, FONDA was formed running the ON class engine with the OMC backed PRO ONE run series running the OZ class engine, both rival championships claiming the right to use the title World Championship, a dispute settled by the sport’s governing body the UIM later that year awarding the OZ class the accolade.

    1984 saw the beginning of yet another twist as safety became a major concern with engine development and increasing power of the V8s taking its tragic toll and signaled the slow demise of the OZ class internationally, ending in 1986.

    The door was now opening for the existing FONDA World Grand Prix series to reinvent itself. From 1987 to 1989 there was no official UIM World Championship, and with no challenger, the UIM reinstated the World Championship status and in 1990 the FONDA World Grand Prix Series became the UIM F1H2O World Championship, Mercury’s 2.0litre engine the preferred power-plant of the time, the Mercury 2.5litre engine coming in in 2000 and used today.

    Over the last 34 years the sport has played out 273 Grand Prix in 32 countries across five continents, 13 drivers have captured the World title, 47 becoming members of the illustrious Grand Prix winners club.

    Of the 13 World Champions seven are multiple title winners; Italy’s Guido Cappellini is the most decorated winning 10, Italy’s Alex Carella and American Scott Gillman with four, France’s Philippe Chiappe and Italy’s Renato Molinari with three each, Finland’s Sami Selio and Wales’ Jonathan Jones with two apiece.

    While today’s F1H2O catamarans bear a striking resemblance to those in action throughout the 1980’s there is a world of difference in terms of driver protection and general safety.

    The early boats were constructed from thin plywood with drivers sitting in an open, exposed cockpit with the risk of injury a high probability in the case of an accident.

    With safety at the forefront of boat development, British designer and racer Chris Hodges set about improving the situation and constructed a safety cell that was produced from an immensely strong composite material.

    Instead of the cockpit being part of the main structure Hodges’ capsule was separate and was fitted to the hulls and centre section. For the first time drivers were actually strapped into their seats. The idea was that if a boat was involved in an accident, the timber hulls could break up and absorb the impact forces while the driver remained well protected inside his cell.

    In the late 1990’s further developments saw the introduction of an airbag in the cockpit that would inflate in a crash to ensure the capsule wouldn’t sink before rescue crews could attend.

    Over the years boat construction has been developed and today few if any are built of timber, now replaced by modern composites.

    In 2018 nine teams and 19 drivers from 12 countries will compete at Grand Prix in Europe, the Middle East and Asia for the coveted World title, the prestigious number 1 plate will be carried by the defending four-time World Champion, Alex Carella.