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Sawan Satyanarayanan, Ashi Hanspal, and Jashmehar Jubbal hog limelight: Sodi Kart Sprint
Girls Class- 1st Aashi Hanspal (centre), 2nd Muskaan Jubbal (left) and 3rd Kadambari at Hyderabad on Sunday. Hyderabad, 18 Nov 2019: Bengaluru’s Sawan Satyanarayanan, Mumbai’s Ashi Hanspal and Delhi’s Jashmehar Jubbal stole the honours in Round 2 of the Sodi Kart Sprint of the JK Tyre FMSCI Naional Karting Championship 2019, winning their respective categories in Hyderabad late on Sunday.
Sawan Satyanarayanan came up with a power-packed performance to claim the Senior Category title, taking just 9:13.764 minutes to complete the 12 laps. Adheet Prashar of Hyderabad finished second (9:16.366) while Ashwin M Nair of Cochin clocked 9:17.070 to take the last place on the podium.
All three have qualifies for the final round of the championship to be held in Chennai in the third week of December.
Senior Class winners: 1st Sawan Satyanarayanan (centre), 2nd Adheet Prashar and 3rd Ashwin M Nair (right). Akshay Hoover, Hari Gopal Nayak and Pramil Singh, who finished with fourth, fifth and sixth, were also handed drives in the finals.
In the Girls’ Class, Ashi Hanspal reigned supreme, posting a time of 10:57.406 minutes to finish the race. Muskan Jubbal finished second (10:57.839) while the third place went to Kadambari of Nagpur (11:04.767).
Delhi’s Jashmehar Jubbal took the top honours in the Junior Category, with a time of 9:29.538 minutes while Agnishwar Verma of Chennai took the second place (9:32.888) and Vulli Gopal of Hyderabad the third (9:35.136). Apart from these three (Jubbal had qualified in the opening round itself, Rahul Reddy, Aadithya Raja, Jasmeh Singh Dingra and Muskan Jubbal booked a ticket for the finals.
Junior Class winners: 1st Jasmehar Jubbal (centre) flanked by 2nd placed Agnishwar Verma (left) and 3rd placed Vulli Gopal. -
Max Verstappen wins Brazilian Grand Prix; Gasly, Sainz on podium; Hamilton loses P3 to penalty
Max Verstappen celebrates after winning the Brazilian GP on Sunday. An FIA image Sao Paulo, 17 Nov 2019: Max Verstappen won the Formula 1 Heineken Grande Premio Do Brasil 2019 having started from pole. But his victory did not come as easily as that simple sentence might sound, at the end of a race that can truly be described as crazy and was without doubt the most exciting Grand Prix of the season.
For the Aston Martin Red Bull Racing driver this was the third win of the year and for a while it looked as though it might have been a Red Bull one-two. It was not, although it was a one-two for Honda because in an incredible final lap, Pierre Gasly finished second for Red Bull Toro Rosso Honda. Joining them on the podium at the end of the 71 laps of Interlagos was Lewis Hamilton for Mercedes AMG Petronas Motorsport, however, after the race, the Englishman was given a 5 second penalty for causing a collision with Alex Albon, thus delivering the most unexpected podium of the season, as Carlos Sainz stepped up to third place for McLaren.
Verstappen never really looked under threat, having started from pole, and a well executed strategy and brilliant work from his pit crew with tyre changes taking less than two seconds all helped him to control the race. But it was no stroll in the park and with Hamilton attempting the undercut, the Dutchman had to pass the six times world champion on track, not just once, but twice!
As for Gasly, he inherited second place when Hamilton and Albon collided on the penultimate lap, robbing the Thai rookie of his first F1 podium. The French driver kept his cool, placing his Toro Rosso in just the right part of the track coming out of the final corner to win the drag race to the line.
At the start, Verstappen kept the lead and Hamilton got ahead of Sebastian Vettel going into Turn 1 to go second. The Mercedes man was the first to pit on lap 20 of 71, attempting the undercut and committing to a two stop strategy as he again fitted Soft tyres. Red Bull covered the move, bringing Max in on the next lap. The Dutchman nearly got pushed into the pit wall by Robert Kubica in the ROKiT Williams and the delay ensured that Hamilton took the lead. However, the Mercedes man was also delayed, as he was caught behind the Scuderia Ferrari Mission Winnow of Charles Leclerc. That allowed Verstappen to catch up and eventually pass Hamilton going into the Senna S first corner.
The pit stop dance for the leaders resumed on lap 43, when Hamilton again came in trying for an undercut and again Verstappen covered the move next time round to keep the lead. With 18 laps remaining, fifth place Bottas retired his Mercedes with a mechanical failure and that brought out the Safety Car. Verstappen pitted for fresh rubber, but Hamilton chose to keep the lead and stayed out on older tyres. Hamilton backed up the field, hoping to prevent Verstappen getting by, but again the Dutchman retook the lead in the bottom of the Senna S. This was incredibly exciting but there was plenty more to come.
Alex Albon produced an aggressive move to pass Vettel and go third and began to challenge Hamilton for second, but instead the Red Bull man had to defend from a returning Vettel. With five laps remaining, Leclerc passed Vettel at the first corner, but the German fought back and they were side by side on the run down to Descida de Lago. The two Ferraris collided and both had to retire, Leclerc with suspension damage, Vettel with a puncture.
That triggered a safety car under which Hamilton dived into the pits yet again, dropping him to fourth behind Albon and Gasly. The Mercedes and the Red Bull collided forcing Albon into a spin, which allowed Gasly past into an amazing second, although it looked more like a dead heat. Hamilton admitted his mistake, which resulted in Carlos Sainz’s promotion to the podium.
For the Woking team today’s result marks an extraordinary achievement, considering that Sainz, who sealed the first podium of his career, started at the very back of the grid after the technical problem that effectively prevented him from taking part in yesterday’s qualifying. The team’s haul of points was also added to by Lando Norris with an excellent eighth place. This was the first time since the 2014 Australian Grand Prix that a McLaren driver had finished in the top three: that time in fact it was two of them – Kevin Magnussen and Jenson Button – who finished behind the winner Nico Rosberg.
Behind Sainz came the two Alfa Romeo drivers, with Kimi Raikkonen fifth and Antonio Giovinazzi sixth. This was the best result of the season for the Hinwil team – while for their Italian driver fifth place marked the best finish of his career.
Completing the top ten were Sergio Perez, taking his sixth straight points finish, and Daniil Kvyat. The Russian, who saw his points disappear due to penalties after the chequered flag both in Mexico City and Austin, this time didn’t have any unpleasant surprises!
There was so much on track action this afternoon – to the joy of the spectators who filled out the grandstands as ever (an attendance of 150,307 over the weekend) – it felt like a grand finale to the year. But that is yet to come, when racing resumes in a fortnight for the 21st and last time in the FORMULA 1 ETIHAD AIRWAYS ABU DHABI GRAND PRIX 2019.
2019 FIA Formula One Brazilian Grand Prix – Race
1 Max Verstappen Red Bull/Honda 71 1:33’14.678
2 Pierre Gasly Toro Rosso/Honda 71 1:33’20.755 6.077
3 Carlos Sainz McLaren/Renault 71 1:33’23.574 8.896
4 Kimi Räikkönen Alfa Romeo/Ferrari 71 1:33’24.130 9.452
5 Antonio Giovinazzi Alfa Romeo/Ferrari 71 1:33’24.879 10.201
6 Daniel Ricciardo Renault 71 1:33’25.219 10.541
7 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 71 1:33’25.817 11.139
8 Lando Norris McLaren/Renault 71 1:33’25.882 11.204
9 Sergio Pérez Racing Point/Mercedes 71 1:33’26.207 11.529
10 Daniil Kvyat Toro Rosso/Honda 71 1:33’26.609 11.931
11 Kevin Magnussen Haas/Ferrari 71 1:33’27.410 12.732
12 George Russell Williams/Mercedes 71 1:33’28.277 13.599
13 Romain Grosjean Haas/Ferrari 71 1:33’28.925 14.247
14 Alexander Albon Red Bull/Honda 71 1:33’29.605 14.927
15 Nico Hülkenberg Renault 71 1:33’32.737 18.059
16 Robert Kubica Williams/Mercedes 70 1:33’32.670 1 Lap
17 Sebastian Vettel Ferrari 65 1:23’25.347 Collision
18 Charles Leclerc Ferrari 65 1:23’25.801 Collision
19 Lance Stroll Racing Point/Mercedes 65 1:23’44.211
(5) Valtteri Bottas Mercedes 51 1:03’20.179 Power Unit -
Marquez makes it the triple crown for Honda, Quartararo and Miller follow him home
Some familiar faces were on the podium in Valencia, with the final glory of the season decided
Quartararo, left, vs Marquez marked the final race again. A MotoGP image Valencia, 17 Nov 2019: Marc Marquez claimed victory number 12 of the season at the Gran Premio Motul de la Comunitat Valenciana, making the Repsol Honda Team Team Champions to add to his rider title and the constructors’ Championship – the triple crown. Teammate Jorge Lorenzo also scored points in his final MotoGP™ rider, with the five-time World Champion bidding an emotional farewell to the sport. Fabio Quartararo (Petronas Yamaha SRT), meanwhile, signed off with another impressive podium in second, and he pipped Jack Miller (Pramac Racing) to the title of top Independent Team rider as the Aussie followed him home in third.
Miller launched his Pramac Racing machine into the holeshot, with Marquez getting a sluggish getaway from the middle of the front row to drop down to P6, having run slightly wide at Turn 1. Polesitter Quartararo then grabbed the lead from Miller as the Australian ran wide at Turn 2, with the Frenchman quickly creating a small gap to his rivals. Heading into Turn 1 on Lap 2, Marquez was into P3 past the fast-starting duo of Alex Rins (Team Suzuki Ecstar) and Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati Team), however, and it wouldn’t take the 2019 Champion long to pick off Miller as he locked his radar onto Quartararo.
The Rookie of the Year’s lead was 0.7 over Marquez, with the latter racing to an eight-tenths advantage over Miller. Marquez was creeping up to the back of the leading M1 slowly but surely, and on Lap 8 a surprise, late but super fine move at Turn 11 saw the number 93 lead. Suddenly third place Miller – with Dovizioso and Rins in tow – had closed the gap to less than half a second, the top five covered by 1.7. However, Marquez was in the groove and the eight-time Champion had pulled to over half a second clear of Quartararo, with the gap hovering between 0.6 and 0.8 for a number of laps after. Miller wasn’t letting Quartararo have P2 all his own way either, that margin was remaining at a second – enough to keep the number 20 on his toes.
The big two fight… Everyone held firm before a tenth here and a tenth there saw Marquez stretch his advantage to one and a half seconds with six laps remaining, with Miller cutting the gap to Quartararo down by four tenths. It was 0.6, but was there a late twist for P2 inbound? Not quite, Miller didn’t have enough speed to catch the back of the M1 by the time the chequered flag was waved, with Marquez taking another 25-point haul to land Repsol Honda Team the 2019 triple crown, Quartararo taking another podium and beating Miller to top Independent Team rider.
Dovizioso and Ducati’s aims of picking up the Teams title didn’t materialise in Valencia, but P4 was a solid result for the Italian who was comfortably best of the rest in 2019. Rins capped off a fine season by claiming P5 at his home Grand Prix, however it wasn’t enough to grab P3 in the Championship from sixth place finisher Maverick Viñales (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) – the Malaysian GP winner having a quiet final round of the season before jumping onto the 2020 Yamaha on Tuesday.
Joan Mir (Team Suzuki Ecstar) in seventh was a great way to round off a very solid rookie MotoGP™ campaign, the Spaniard ending 2019 with five consecutive top 10s after an impressive comeback from his testing crash at Brno. Valentino Rossi’s (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) P8 sees the nine-time World Champion end the season P7 in the overall standings, with Aleix coming out on top in the battle of the Espargaro brothers – P9 for Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini), P10 for Pol Espargaro (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing). That makes it all factories in the top ten.
Danilo Petrucci (Ducati Team), Johann Zarco (LCR Honda Idemitsu) and Iker Lecuona (Red Bull KTM Tech 3) all crashed at Turn 6, on Lap 14, in separate incidents, although Lecuona was close behind Zarco and the Frenchman got flipped by the KTM. Cal Crutchlow (LCR Honda Castrol), Franco Morbidelli (Petronas Yamaha SRT) and Andrea Iannone (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini) also crashed – all riders ok.
On his final ever MotoGP™ ride, five-time World Champion and future MotoGP™ Legend Jorge Lorenzo finished P13. It was an emotional day for the Spaniard who arrived back into pitlane to rapturous applause, with the Valencia fans paying their full respects to one of the sport’s greatest ever riders on his cool-down lap. #ThankYouJorge!
So, 2019 draws to a close. But don’t worry, 2020 is just around the corner! Testing begins in Valencia on Tuesday 19 and Wednesday 20 November – so stay tuned! Rookies, new bikes, old rivalries and another season of awesome competition is just around the corner.
Marc Marquez: “The perfect season. So difficult to improve this season because the way we rode all season, the consistency and everything, has been amazing. Finishing the season with a victory, riding with a gold helmet – which is always extra pressure because if you ride with a gold helmet you need to be smart and clever – is special too but also for all the Repsol Honda Team it was important too. The Teams Championship. We achieved it, the triple crown. An amazing, amazing season and all the team deserve it.”
MotoGP Top-3: Results:
1 – Marc Marquez (SPA – Honda) 41’21.469
2 – Fabio Quartararo* (FRA – Yamaha) +1.026
3 – Jack Miller* (AUS – Ducati) +2.409*Independent Team riders
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I will try to finish to the plan, says poleman Max Verstappen
Saturday Press Conference in progess. An FIA image Sao Paulo, 16 Nov 2019: The following drivers who qualified on the top attended the FIA post-qualification press conference on Saturday: Max VERSTAPPEN (Red Bull Racing), Sebastian VETTEL (Ferrari) and Lewis HAMILTON (Mercedes).
Track Interviews (Conducted by Paul Di Resta)
Q: Max, congratulations – pole position. It looked like the perfect driver/car combination today; nothing was going to stop you?
Max VERSTAPPEN: Yeah, our car was really good. I think throughout qualifying the track temperature was changing a bit so we had to adjust for that, but yeah, straight away from Q1 the car was flying and it was really enjoyable to drive, so very happy with this pole position.
Q: How nerve-racking was it? We saw you make a small mistake in the middle sector on your first run. It still put you quickest but you had to put the final touches on that to try to improve.
MV: Yeah, I tried a different line, but also the track was a bit warmer and that gave me a bit more oversteer and then of course I went a bit wide. The second lap, luckily, was a bit better, so yeah, all; good.
Q: And this track owes you something from last year.
MV: I will of course try to finish to the plan.
Q: Sebastian, second again, narrowly missing out on pole, but I guess you’ve got to be satisfied that you’re on the front row?
Sebastian VETTEL: Yeah, I had a bit of a wobble in the exit of the last corner on the first run but I think Max improved his time, so fair play and I think it’s his pole position. Yeah, happy with the front row. Now we will see what we can do tomorrow. The car has been good. I think it got better throughout qualifying, which was the target. I think we improved it and I hope that we can keep that momentum for the race.
Q: How do you see the race panning out? Do you think you are in the mix to race Red Bull, or do you think they’re too quick?
SV: It will be difficult. Both Red Bull and Mercedes look a bit stronger managing tyres, but we are there for a reason: we’ve got the speed and we’ve got the power, so let’s see what the race brings. I am carefully optimistic. I think it should be a good race.
Q: Great, have fun. Lewis, it was a great battle at the top between three of the big teams. You must be happy where you are, at the same time that you’re in the mix for tomorrow?
Lewis HAMILTON: Yeah, definitely. Congrats to Max, a great lap by him. We seemed quite competitive in P3 and then we seemed to lose going into qualifying, or they gained. But no, nonetheless, I’m very happy that I was able to divide the Ferraris, that’s always a tough challenge. We’ve been down on power, I guess, compared to the others particularly, that’s where we lose most of our time. But nonetheless, I guess it absolutely everything that I had and I’m glad at the end, my best lap of the session was my last run – awesome.
Q: On the back of your sixth world title, Lewis, I know this is a pretty special place for you to come. You embrace Ayrton Senna and see the Brazilian fans. What’s it going to mean tomorrow?
LH: Yeah, I mean, this is such a tough race to win. The track is very, very challenging and there’s so much history here, so every time we come, of course for me… I’m often putting Senna’s helmet design on my helmet, just reminiscent… I remember watching him winning here and how crazy the crowd went. But I seem to have a lot of support here, so obrigado to everyone here.
PRESS CONFERENCE
Q: Taking the second pole position of his Formula 1 career, Max Verstappen. Max you couldn’t…
MV: You said two; I have three. I consider myself this is my third.
SV: Mexico?
MV: Yeah.
SV: Ah, yeah.
MV: And then Hungary. So this is my third. He said second. This is my third.
Q: We can discuss this afterwards, Max! You couldn’t have been more dominant throughout qualifying. Just how good was that final lap of Q3 and how surprised have you been at the dominance of the Red Bull car around this Interlagos track?
MV: I think the last few races have already been quite strong. I think from today we changed the car a but from yesterday and it seemed to work really well and especially in qualifying it really came alive. It had really good balance. Already in Q2 it felt really good.
LH: You turned more power up?
MV: You don’t do that through qualifying? And then Q3 I think also the track got a bit warmer, so it was a bit more tricky to get the lap time out of it…
SV: Go ahead…
MV: Why are you laughing?
SV: I’m in a world of my own. You go ahead.
Q: How good was that last lap though?
MV: The last lap was pretty decent. It was alright. There are always things you can do better, but it was good enough.
Q: And you’ve already touched on the track temperature. Is that how you explain how you were a tiny bit quicker in Q2 than in Q3?
MV: Like I just explained to them, I didn’t tuck in on my last run, but I did that in Q2, which gave me two tenths or a one tenth advantage. That’s why we had such good top speed.
Q: And Max, are you confident for tomorrow? Do you feel that you have a good race car under you?
MV: Yeah, I guess so. The car already yesterday was not bad. I think today it improved, so normally it should also be better in the race but I guess we have to find out.
Q: Sebastian, just a tiny bit off pole today. Were you pleased with the balance of your car?
SV: Yeah, I was actually. It was getting better. I think we were a bit shy yesterday, more aggressive this morning, which was a step forward, and in quali it seemed to go up and get better – but I think also the track ramped-up, so yeah, obviously it’s good to, y’know, get in the front row. I was having a very good first attempt in Q3, went a little bit wide in the final turn – I don’t think I was the only one – but yeah, I think Max’s second time was a bit far away so I think we have to admit that we got beaten fair and square today. It was a bit of a surprise… not to see them that quick but to see them that quick on the straights. So, a little bit suspicious…
MV: For once it’s you then!
Q: And Sebastian, looking ahead to tomorrow, do you think you’ve got a competitive race car under you?
SV: Yeah, I think so. Obviously we know the race for us is maybe not as strong as quali but I was quite pleased with the balance and we therefore did another long run this morning in practice and it felt much better than yesterday. So that gives me hope for tomorrow.
Q: Lewis, coming on to you, didn’t look like an easy session for you – only time in the top three was right at the end of Q3. Could you just give us your thoughts on your car and how the session went?
LH: It’s not too often it always goes particularly easy but it was definitely a challenging session. I think P3 was really strong for us and obviously once we got to qualifying, these guys had great pace and we were losing out to Max on the straights by quite a chunk, which is where the majority of the time was coming from but just kept chipping away at it. The last lap was as really as good as it could get really for us. The car actually felt really good, we were just lacking a little bit of pace on the straights but hopefully tomorrow that’ll put us in a good position in terms of longevity on the stints. Maybe. Who knows? But otherwise I’m happy to be able to split the Ferraris. It always puts a smile on my face.
Q: Lewis, looking ahead to the race, now that the Championship’s in the bag, can we expect any different approach from you or anything different from you?
LH: My approach is pretty much the same all year long but maybe we can try to be a bit more aggressive tomorrow, we can have some fun with these guys – but yeah, I don’t particularly see that there’s any reason to make any changes. That’s ultimately what’s got me to where I am today, so I’ll just continue with that.
QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR
Q: (Livio Oricchio – liviooricchioF1.com) The question is to Max and I ask also Sebastian and Lewis to comment. Max, you were really fast in the last sector, which is 1,200m full throttle. Can you make a comment about the development of the Honda engine? Also, Lewis, Mercedes power unit and Sebastian, Ferrari, comment about development of Honda please.
MV: Well, I was not the fastest in the last sector but we were the fastest in the second sector, which is where the most corners are. I think throughout the whole year, both from the chassis side and the engine side, we’ve made good gains and yeah, we just continue to work like that. And also experiment for next year. So yeah, very happy of course with the progress throughout the season.
SV: Well, obviously there’s no progress from one race to another because it’s the same engine I support. I don’t know, I haven’t checked but I don’t think they have introduced a new spec. I think it was a bit of a surprise, usually we’ve seen a lot of qualifying sessions and we were always a bit faster than everyone on the straights, losing a bit in the corners but today we were as quick, or Max and Alex were as fast on the straights as us, so… that’s about it. I don’t know why. I don’t think, I mean I know we didn’t do anything different, so…
Q: Lewis, Honda’s progress this year?
LH: It’s obviously great for the sport that we have another manufacturer that’s starting to produce good engines and helping the third team get up there. I don’t fully understand it because we’ve only had the few engines that we’ve had. I don’t know if you can bring upgrades to the engine, I don’t know. Anyway, they’re very, very quick and we’ve got work to do, that’s for sure but my boys back home are working as hard as they can for next year.
Q: (Ben Hunt – The Sun) Lewis, there seems to be a growing support for you to be knighted back at home, given your achievements. Just your thoughts please? Obviously a massive privilege. Motorsport is often overlooked in the Queen’s Honours List but obviously you’ve done something which only two people have done, winning the title six times, so your thoughts on that?
LH: Honestly, I don’t really like to think too much about it. Just the fact that people have mentioned it, it’s already an honour, but it’s not been something that I’ve been chasing in my life. If, at any point, that was to happen, I don’t particularly know how I would handle it. I have stood in front of Her Majesty The Queen before and it was pretty incredible and I think she’s just awesome. Again, I don’t think it’s going to happen, and again, it doesn’t bother me if it doesn’t. It doesn’t mean I’m not British. It doesn’t mean I’m not continuing to try and raise the flag as well as I can but I do appreciate all the support I’ve had from my fans and also from the British media.
Q: (Ben Hunt – The Sun) Why don’t you think you’ll get it?
LH: I don’t know, I just don’t think about it. I don’t know.
SV: Do you get a sword? That would be cool if you get to keep the sword.
LH: It’s just not something that you grow up thinking of. I’m really grateful just to be… I’ve got the MBE next Monday. It’s cool.
MV: Is it going to be MBE, OBE, what else?
Q: (Ben Hunt – The Sun) He will be Sir Lewis. You’ll have to call him Sir Lewis.
MV: You don’t have to, do you?
SV: We are so much older than Max, he has to call us mister, at least, and then you’ve got to call Lewis Sir.
Q: (Gianfranco Papini – Momento GP) Sebastian, what do you think is going to be the key to defeat Max in the race tomorrow?
SV: Well, we know that they are very quick in the race as well so I think… yeah, we did improve our car. The key will be to have a good start, I think, ideally get ahead and then I think we manage the tyres, we make the right call on strategy so we will see what happens tomorrow. I think in the end, we are racing here in Interlagos and for some reason there is always something crazy happening, so it might rain tomorrow, even though they say it’s sunshine but here you never know.
Q: (Scott Mitchell – Autosport) Max, including the pole in Mexico, this is the first time that Red Bull have had three poles in the V6 turbo hybrid era so how significant is it for the team and for Honda to have a milestone like that in the first year? And to Lewis, Seb mentioned that he’s a bit surprised to see their performance here, especially in a straight line. Are you surprised as well?
MV: Yeah, of course it’s good. Like I said before, we’ve been continuously improving throughout the season. Of course some tracks have been a bit better for us than others. Already last year I think here we were quite good but yeah, I think again we made a step forward this year, we learned from our mistakes in some recent races and we came back stronger and everything is working well so yeah, of course very happy with three poles but at the end of the day there are more races than that and we want more pole positions.
LH: I don’t really know what to say. Yeah, of course, didn’t expect to come here and see… because I don’t think in the last race they had a speed deficit to us so… On top of that, they were quickest in the middle sector so they’ve obviously still got the same amount of downforce but obviously more power this weekend and considering we are at higher altitude, I have no idea where that stuff comes from.
Q: (Livio Oricchio – liviooricchiof1.com) Lewis, yesterday with the asphalt at 23 degrees, you and Valtteri were a little faster in the simulation of the race with the medium tyres and also hard. Do you think now, with the new conditions and the asphalt more hot you can keep this small advantage you have from both these guys in race conditions?
LH: I really have no idea. I think in general our race trim has often been quite good. I think the cars… these guys seem to continue to step it up a little bit more in terms of their performances have been improving, improving through the year. I think it’s definitely going to be a close race tomorrow, it’s not an easy track to overtake on but tyre durability has been a strength of ours or at least, I’ve found for me, so if that’s the same tomorrow then hopefully yeah, I can utilise that.
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Max Verstappen takes second pole position of his F1 career; Vettel P2, ahead of Hamilton
Max Verstappen (centre) takes pole in Brazil. An FIA image Sao Paulo, 16 Nov 2019: Red Bull Racing’s Max Verstappen scored the second pole position of his Formula 1 career after beating Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel to top spot in qualifying for the Brazilian Grand Prix by just over a tenth of a second, with Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton third. The top three in the session were covered by just 0.137s.
At the start of Q1 Ferrari were the first of the likely frontrunners on track and when their drivers crossed the line Vettel led the way with a lap of 1:08.556. His time was a little under four hundredths of a second ahead of team-mate Charles Leclerc.
They were soon eclipsed by Alex Albon, with the Thai driver beating Vettel’s time by five hundredths of a second and giving the first indication that Red Bull were right in the mix.
Albon’s hold on P1 didn’t last long, however. Team-mate Verstappen was also on track, and despite encountering traffic towards the end of his lap, the Dutchman took P1, 0.254s clear of his team-mate. Leclerc then went for a second run and he managed to split the Red Bulls, running just 0.007s quicker than Albon. Mercedes’ Valtteri Bottas also improved to claim fourth place ahead of Vettel and Hamilton after the opening batch of runs.
The order at the top remained static thereafter, and though both Ferrari drivers went out on track at the end of the session there were no improvements.
At the other end of the table, Toro Rosso’s Daniil Kvyat was eliminated in P16 ahead of Racing Point’s Lance Stroll, the Williams cars of George Russell and Robert Kubica and the McLaren of Carlos Sainz, who failed to set a time in the session after experiencing an engine problem on his out lap at the start of Q1.
Verstappen was again to the fore in the opening runs of Q2. Hamilton established an early lead, with Albon slotting into P2, but after Leclerc and Vettel moved ahead of both, Verstappen powered through to claim top spot. His impressive time of 1:07.503, put him almost four tenths of a second clear of Leclerc.
The Ferrari driver had set his time on medium tyres, however, and though he would go out on softs in the final runs, his quickest time was set on the yellow-banded compound, however. That allows him to start tomorrow’s race on that compound, a bonus given the 10-place grid drop he will take due to an engine change.
Behind Leclerc, Vettel took third in the segment, on soft tyres, with Hamilton fourth ahead of Albion and Bottas. Haas’ Romain Grosjean progressed to Q3 in P7 ahead of the sole remaining Toro Rosso of Pierre Gasly and the second Haas of Kevin Magnussen. The last man through to the final segment was Alfa Romeo’s Kimi Räikkönen.
Eliminated at the end of Q2 was 11th-placed Lando Norris – who had been edged out to P11 by Räikkönen by just one hundredth of a second – Renault’s Daniel Ricciardo, the second Alfa of Antonio Giovinazzi, the second Renault of Nico Hulkenberg and Racing Point’s Sergio Pérez.
In Q3 Verstappen completed his dominance of the session. The Dutchman took provisional pole in the first runs with a lap of 1:07.623 – just eight thousandths of a second ahead of Vettel.
Verstappen erased any lingering threat in the final runs, though, with a final lap of 1:07.508 that edged Vettel by 0.123s. Hamilton took third place a further 0.068s back.
Fourth place in the session went to Leclerc, with Bottas fifth and Albon sixth. Behind the top three teams, Toro Rosso’s Pierre Gasly will start in seventh place ahead of Haas’ Romain Grosjean, Alfa Romeo’s Kimi Räikkönen and the second Haas of Kevin Magnussen.
2019 FIA Formula One Brazilian Grand Prix – Qualifying
1 Max Verstappen Red Bull Racing 1:07.508 6 229.786
2 Sebastian Vettel Ferrari 1:07.631 0.123 6 229.368
3 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 1:07.699 0.191 6 229.137
4 Charles Leclerc Ferrari 1:07.728 0.220 6 229.039
5 Valtteri Bottas Mercedes 1:07.874 0.366 6 228.547
6 Alexander Albon Red Bull Racing 1:07.935 0.427 6 228.341
7 Pierre Gasly Toro Rosso 1:08.837 1.329 6 225.349
8 Romain Grosjean Haas 1:08.854 1.346 6 225.294
9 Kimi Räikkönen Alfa Romeo 1:08.984 1.476 6 224.869
10 Kevin Magnussen Haas 1:09.037 1.529 3 224.696
11 Lando Norris McLaren 1:08.868 1.365 6 225.248
12 Daniel Ricciardo Renault 1:08.903 1.400 6 225.133
13 Antonio Giovinazzi Alfa Romeo 1:08.919 1.416 5 225.081
14 Nico Hülkenberg Renault 1:08.921 1.418 6 225.075
15 Sergio Pérez Racing Point 1:09.035 1.532 6 224.703
16 Daniil Kvyat Toro Rosso 1:09.320 1.078 10 223.779
17 Lance Stroll Racing Point 1:09.536 1.294 9 223.084
18 George Russell Williams 1:10.126 1.884 9 221.207
19 Robert Kubica Williams 1:10.614 2.372 9 219.678
– 55 Carlos Sainz McLaren/Renault 2. -
Quartararo draws first to deny Marquez the final pole of 2019 at Valencia
The rookie once again topples the reigning Champion in qualifying – but it’s as close as ever
Miller p3, locks out the front row in Valencia on Saturday. A MotoGP image Valencia, 16 Nov 2019: On Friday at the Gran Premio Motul de la Comunitat Valenciana, it was all about one man: Fabio Quartararo (Petronas Yamaha SRT). A day later and the headlines don’t need too much adjusting, with the French rookie putting in another superlative performance in qualifying to take the final pole position of the season – his sixth in his rookie year. It was a close run duel with reigning Champion Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team), however, with the number 93 losing out by just 0.032 despite a crash in FP4. Jack Miller (Pramac Racing), another man with some serious pace so far, converted that into a front row start and he’ll start third.
The chill had been taken out the day by the time qualifying came around, and in Q1 it was Alex Rins (Team Suzuki Ecstar) vs Pol Espargaro (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) in a duel for supremacy – with the former coming out on top, but by just 0.005. Johann Zarco (LCR Honda Idemitsu) was the man who just lost out in P13, with the 12 men ahead of him then heading out to fight for pole.
Given his performances in qualifying so far this season, it was no surprise to see Quartararo on provisional pole after the first run, but Miller was coming. The Australian was able to take over at the top as the riders headed back out, but it didn’t take too long for Quartararo to strike back. Provisionally fastest once again and Marquez taking over in second, there remained one more shot at it for most. Could the reigning Champion ruin the rookie party?
As the clock ticked down, many were still pushing but the timing screens remained resolutely free of red. Quartararo couldn’t better himself, and Marquez and Miller had no answer for the Frenchman. So a sixth pole of the season is the number 20’s sign off from rookie Saturdays, and he’ll be aiming, as ever, for a maiden win on Sunday. But Marquez will doubtless be keen to stand in his way as he homes in on 400 points, with Miller with his own high stakes as he aims to stop Quartararo taking the title of top Independent Team rider too.
On the second row it’s Sepang winner Maverick Viñales (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) in fourth, with Franco Morbidelli (Petronas Yamaha SRT) in a solid fifth. Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati Team) slotted into sixth as the only man who improved on his final lap, aiming to stop Marquez from giving Repsol Honda the teams’ Championship.
Joan Mir (Team Suzuki Ecstar) got the better of Q1 graduate and teammate Alex Rins to take seventh, with Cal Crutchlow (LCR Honda Castrol) completing the third row alongside the two Suzukis. Ducati Team’s Danilo Petrucci rounds out the top 10 in Valencia.
Pol Espargaro managed to beat Valentino Rossi (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) to P11, with the KTM man aiming even higher on race day. But on that race day, Rossi will be eager to hit back and move a good way forward – with Saturday sessions largely having seen ‘The Doctor’ further forward, despite a tough Friday.
Jorge Lorenzo (Repsol Honda Team), meanwhile, will begin an emotionally-charged final race of his career from 16th.
Can Quartararo grab that first MotoGP™ win before the 2019 season comes to a close? The scrap for the final 25 points of the year looks set to be a cracker, with plenty on the table and history guaranteed to be made. Tune in for the Valencia GP at 14:00 local time (GMT+1).
Qualifying Result Top-3:
1 – Fabio Quartararo* (FRA – Yamaha) 1’29.978
2 – Marc Marquez (SPA – Honda) +0.032
3 – Jack Miller* (AUS – Ducati) +0.108*Independent Team rider
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Lewis Hamilton quickest ahead of Verstappen in FP3: Brazilian GP
Hamilton tops FP3. An FIA image Sao Paulo, 16 Nov 2019: Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton edged Red Bull’s Max Verstappen by just two hundredths of a second to take top spot in a tight final free practice session for the Brazilian Grand Prix, the penultimate round of the FIA Formula 1 World Championship here on Saturday morning. Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc was third fastest, three tenths of a second further back.
Verstappen led the way in the opening half of the session with the Dutchman posting a time of 1:09.063 to sit almost four tenths of a second clear of Hamilton with Valtteri Bottas third.
With just under 20 minutes to go in the session Verstappen shaved four thousandths of a second off his best time but the Ferraris of Sebastian Vettel and Charles Leclerc were already on track for their qualifying simulations and both brushed past the Red Bull driver’s first period benchmark with Leclerc taking over in P1 on a time of 1:08.611 with Vettel just five hundredths of second behind in P2.
However, three minutes later Hamilton and Bottas took to the track and Hamilton powered to the top of the order with a lap of 1:08.320 improving on his earlier time by over a second. Bottas, however, couldn’t find a similar improvement and his time of 1:09.224 was just three tenths better than his earlier time.
It was then the turn of the Red Bulls to do their qualifying simulations and Verstappen pumped in a fastest first sector to put pressure on Hamilton’s benchmark. The Red Bull driver lost out in the twisting middle sector however and he had to settle for P2 with a lap of 1:08.346, just 0.026s behind Hamilton.
Verstappen’s team-mate, Alex Albon, claimed P5 in the session with the Thai driver profiting from Bottas’ lack of significant improvement.
Albon endured a difficult Friday on his first outing at Interlagos, crashing out in FP1 and the failing to make the most of his qualifying simulation in FP2. And he again looked uncomfortable in FP3, complaining of trouble with his front tyres as he finished the session almost eight tenths of a second off his team-mate.
With Bottas sixth, best-of-the-rest honours were taken by Toro Rosso’s Daniil Kvyat, with the Russian finishing 1.095 off Hamilton, though he was just five hundredths of a second ahead of Alfa Romeo’s Antonio Giovinazzi.
Ninth place in the session went to McLaren’s Lando Norris, with the rookie finishing just three thousandths of a second ahead of 10th-placed team-mate Carlos Sainz.
2019 FIA Formula One Brazilian Grand Prix – Free Practice 3
1 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 1:08.320 17 227.055
2 Max Verstappen Red Bull Racing 1:08.346 0.026 18 226.968
3 Charles Leclerc Ferrari 1:08.611 0.291 20 226.092
4 Sebastian Vettel Ferrari 1:08.664 0.344 22 225.917
5 Alexander Albon Red Bull Racing 1:09.136 0.816 17 224.375
6 Valtteri Bottas Mercedes 1:09.201 0.881 20 224.164
7 Daniil Kvyat Toro Rosso 1:09.415 1.095 22 223.473
8 A.Giovinazzi Alfa Romeo 1:09.462 1.142 20 223.322
9 Lando Norris McLaren 1:09.585 1.265 18 222.927
10 Carlos Sainz Jr. McLaren 1:09.588 1.268 21 222.917
11 Kimi Räikkönen Alfa Romeo 1:09.619 1.299 21 222.818
12 Pierre Gasly Toro Rosso 1:09.625 1.305 19 222.799
13 Nico Hülkenberg Renault 1:09.650 1.330 17 222.719
14 Kevin Magnussen Haas 1:09.713 1.393 18 222.518
15 Daniel Ricciardo Renault 1:09.761 1.441 17 222.364
16 Romain Grosjean Haas 1:09.798 1.478 20 222.247
17 Sergio Pérez Racing Point 1:09.995 1.675 19 221.621
18 Lance Stroll Racing Point 1:10.312 1.992 16 220.622
19 George Russell Williams 1:10.843 2.523 19 218.968
20 Robert Kubica Williams 1:11.205 2.885 23 217.855 -
AndrewZh takes stunning Championship victory in a dramatic season finale
The three title contenders delivered the drama in a thrilling finale that went all the way to the final corner of the final race!
AndreqZH wins MotoGP eSport World title on Saturday. A MotoGP image Valencia, 16 Nov 2019: Ducati Team’s AndrewZh is the new MotoGP eSport World Champion thanks to two faultless performances in a thrilling Global Series finale at the #ValenciaGP that went all the way to the final lap of the final race to cap off a vintage season of competition here on Saturday.
The Circuit Ricardo Tormo in Valencia, Spain played host to a star-studded final round, which featured appearances from three MotoGP™ riders, a roster of glitzy prizes and high drama that had all in attendance on the very edge.
In the end just five points covered the first three riders – AndrewZh, Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP’s trastevere73 and Cristianmm17, representing Team Suzuki Ecstar – in the Championship after three action-packed rounds in the Global Series. All three contested the podium places in the final race, with the victory fight going right the way to the final corner.
Before the lights went out for Race 1, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Pol Espargaro took to the stage to offer the finalists tips on how to attack the Phillip Island Circuit, the scene of the first of the evening’s two races. Having dominated the intermediate class outing there in 2012, the Spaniard was better placed than most do so.
Podium celebrations on Saturday. Photo MotoGP From the first lap, trastevere73 heeded Espargaro’s advice, storming into an early lead from pole position ahead of adrianDP26 (Team Suzuki Ecstar). The early exchanges were akin to the recent Australian Grand Prix, with as many as ten riders contesting the leading positions. But reigning champion trastevere73 eventually broke clear, demonstrating his trademark consistency from the first lap to the end to win by 2.033s.
The drama came thick and fast behind. A mistake on the fifth lap demoted AndrewZh from second to fourth. But the Championship’s form man fought back to put maximum pressure on adrianDP26 for second. And the Team Suzuki Ecstar rider would crack, crashing at turn one on the final lap, handing a crucial second to the Ducati Team man with Cristianmm17 close behind in third.
The double points on offer in the final round meant trastevere73 led AndrewZh by just six points going of the final race. Cristianmm17 ensured it was a three-way fight until the end, 21 points back.
Prior to the evening’s second encounter, five-time World Champion Jorge Lorenzo (Repsol Honda Team) was on hand to present the Tissot Pole of Poles Award to AndrewZh after the Italian gamer took the highest number of pole positions in this year’s series. And the celebrity appearances didn’t end there: Danilo Petrucci (Ducati Team) joined commentary duo Matt Dunn and Jack Appleyard for the second race, with the entertaining Italian offering his unique wit and insight to proceedings.
The season finale would prove to be a lights-to-flag triumph for Cristianmm17. Shadowed by AndrewZh and trastevere73 in the early laps, the Team Suzuki Ecstar gamer remained calm in the face of relentless pressure from AndrewZh, who knew second place enough to secure his maiden MotoGP™ eSport crown. A trastevere73 mistake on the seventh lap ultimately decided the contest.
A tearful AndrewZh accepted the brilliant first prize of a rapid BMW M135i xDrive before Dorna CEO Carmelo Ezpeleta handed out the silverware in the final podium ceremony. While disappointed on missing the chance to win his third successive eSports title, trastevere73 picked up a new Yamaha YZF-R3 for finishing second overall. Cristianmm17 received a Lenovo Legion™ Y730 high-speed computer as reward for third.
After a brilliant finale, all three contestants will no doubt be back for more in an expanded eSports Championship that returns for a fourth instalment in 2020!
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Vips secures lights-to-flag qualification race victory in Macau: F3
Vips wins qualification race at Macau on Saturday. An FIA image Macau, 16 Nov 2019: Juri Vips claimed a commanding victory in the Macau Grand Prix Qualification Race ahead of tomorrow’s FIA F3 World Cup.
The Hitech Grand Prix driver sped away from pole position and never looked back, despite coming under race-long pressure from SJM Prema Theodore Racing rival Robert Shwartzman, as the duo went on to secure a relatively comfortable one-two finish.
Third place went to the impressive Christian Lundgaard, who admitted yesterday that his fourth place qualifying position was ‘unexpected’, but the Dane went one better during Saturday’s race.
ART Grand Prix driver Lundgaard got the jump by third placed Callum Ilott off the line and was seemingly bringing Jenzer Motorsport’s Arjun Maini along with him, before his striking blue machine was tipped into a spin at Lisboa on the first lap.
A number of cars were caught up in the typical Macau incident and a brief Safety Car period was called for to remove Maini’s stricken machine.
When the dust eventually settled, Lundgaard surged on to complete the podium positions, whilst MP Motorsport’s Richard Verschoor also got the better of Ilott to take fourth.
Logan Sargeant took sixth for Carlin Buzz Racing, despite being part of the lap one incident, whilst Alessio Lorandi (Trident Motorsport) and Ferdinand Habsburg (ART Grand Prix) completed the next two positions.
Trident’s David Beckmann and Campos Racing’s Leonardo Pulcini rounded out the top ten.
The FIA F3 World Cup at the 66th running of the Macau Grand Prix will take place at 15:30 (local time).
Juri Vips said: “I didn’t want to take full risk at the beginning and I guess that is the same for everyone. The track changes overnight so it’s never really perfect or the same as the previous day, but I made no mistakes and it was a good race. To be honest, I expected pole position to not be such a good thing but today I really got a mega start and I don’t think Robert got the best one. I think that’s the reason I led into the third corner. I think if people around me get good starts tomorrow it will be harder, but I will of course try my best.”
Robert Shwartzman said: “It wasn’t the best start. It was okay, but for sure it wasn’t as good as Juri’s start and I lost a bit of pace. Also, Christian was right behind me coming to Lisboa and it was really close on the outside. We were taking it safe as there is no point of risking the first lap and with the DRS there is still time to get close. Then after the restart Juri made a good getaway. Juri was good at the beginning and he built up the gap, but then towards the end I was able to catch him a bit. Pace wise we are really close so tomorrow is going to be interesting.”
Christian Lundgaard said: “The race itself was pretty safe for me in comparison to the pace we have had in both practice sessions and the first qualifying. To come away with P3 today was certainly something we never saw coming so for me I can only be happy. It is my first time coming here I can’t really describe it. You need to be sure and confident that you can do it. After today I am quite confident that we can win if everything is in place.”
You can watch LIVE streaming of every session of the FIA F3 World Cup and FIA GT World Cup via the FIA website and on the official FIA Facebook page.
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Double trouble: Quartararo takes top honours on Day 1; MotoGP final round
Frenchman fastest in FP1 and FP2, with Viñales the closest man on the chase
Quartararo in action on Friday. A MotoGP image Valencia, 15 Nov 2019: FP1 pacesetter Fabio Quartararo (Petronas Yamaha SRT) made it double trouble for his rivals on Friday at the Gran Premio Motul de la Comunitat Valenciana, topping the timesheets again in the afternoon for dominion on Day 1. He has a tenth and a half in hand over fellow Yamaha rider Maverick Viñales (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP), with World Champion Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) placing P3 so far.
After a chillier start, conditions were slightly warmer in the afternoon and allowed some riders to head out and post their best times of the day early in FP2, one of whom was Marquez as he sat on top of the standings in the opening exchanges. He and Viñales had got the better of Quartararo’s FP1 time fairly early on and leapfrogged the Rookie of the Year on the combined times, with Joan Mir (Team Suzuki Ecstar) putting in some impressive laps to claw his way up to P2 overall with around 10 minutes left to play as well. But the clock was ticking down and that meant a shuffle on the way.
Cal Crutchlow (LCR Honda Castrol) moved himself into the top 10, Jack Miller (Pramac Racing) and Franco Morbidelli (Petronas Yamaha SRT) took P2 and P3 on the combined times respectively and at this stage, FP1 leader Quartararo hadn’t improved. So it was instead Viñales who first displaced Marquez from P1, but the Frenchman was on a charge and made his first gains to get up into second and then go top with an even better effort.
That sees him top so far from Sepang winner Viñales and Champion Marquez, with Miller in fourth at the end of the day despite a crash – and the Australian was second in FP1. Morbidelli takes P5, ahead of Alex Rins (Team Suzuki Ecstar). The two-time premier class race winner got the better of rookie teammate Mir in the end, but not by much as the number 36 ends Friday in seventh.
Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini) impressed in P8, with late times from Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati Team) and Johann Zarco (LCR Honda Idemitsu) seeing them grab a top 10 place in ninth and tenth respectively. Zarco’s temporary teammate Crutchlow was the man to lose out as he ended the day in 11th.
He’ll be a big name hoping to improve in FP3, and perhaps the biggest name has the same task ahead of him on Saturday: after crashing in FP1 at Turn 4, Valentino Rossi (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) was unfortunately in the gravel again in FP2. This time it was the fast right-hand Turn 10 that caught ‘The Doctor’ out and thankfully the nine-time World Champion was ok, but the same couldn’t be said for his YZR-M1. He was 14th and will be aiming to leapfrog Michele Pirro (Ducati Team), Danilo Petrucci (Ducati Team) and Crutchlow as a minimum before qualifying…
Jorge Lorenzo (Repsol Honda Team) ended his final Friday in the sport in 16th, but just 0.012 off Francesco Bagnaia (Pramac Racing) ahead of him. What will Saturday bring? The final fight for automatic entry into Q2 begins at 9:55 (GMT +1) local time, before qualifying starts at 14:10. Will Quartararo keep his dominion on Day 2? Tune in to find out.
MotoGP: Friday’s Fastest:
1 – Fabio Quartararo* (FRA – Yamaha) 1’30.735
2 – Maverick Viñales (SPA – Yamaha) +0.148
3 – Marc Marquez (SPA – Honda) +0.239
4 – Jack Miller* (AUS – Ducati) +0.265
5 – Franco Morbidelli* (ITA – Yamaha) +0.464*Independent Team rider
