INDIA in F1

Tag: FIA

  • F2: Artem Markelov scores stunning victory in feature race; Arjun Maini finishes fifth

    Monte Carlo, 25 May 2018: Artem Markelov produced a masterclass performance in the FIA Formula 2 Championship Feature Race at the Circuit de Monaco, as the RUSSIOAN TIME driver weathered drama and a pair of safety car periods to secure victory by 10.7 seconds over Sean Gelael. The PREMA driver took advantage of the alternate strategy to take second, as Roberto Merhi did likewise to grab the final podium place available.

    Nineteen cars took to the grid after Sergio Sette Camara was ruled unfit to start following his incident in Thursday’s qualifying session. In a hot, humid Monte Carlo, the race was put on ice almost immediately after the start; the safety car was brought out after Luca Ghiotto was helped into the wall by Antonio Fuoco off the line, as polesitter Alexander Albon preserved his lead of the race from Nyck de Vries and Markelov. Once Ghiotto’s stricken Campos Vexatec Racing car was cleared, Albon dictated the restart to remain ahead of de Vries, while Markelov was left to fend off from Arjun Maini after Fuoco was quickly handed a drive-through penalty.

    De Vries began to throw the kitchen sink at Albon, before yellow flags flooded the Rascasse hairpin for George Russell, who hit the wall having botched an overtake on Nirei Fukuzumi. With the threat of a safety car – which remained off-track after the ART Grand Prix car was quickly put out of harm’s way – the supersoft runners began to filter into the pits; Lando Norris, Gelael, Louis Delétraz and Merhi peppering the pitlane with stops for soft tyres.

    Norris then brought out a second safety car on lap 13, attempting an overtake on Ralph Boschung at the Anthony Noghes corner and bundling the Swiss driver into the wall – Norris earning a drive-through as a result. Subsequently, leading pair Albon and de Vries both attempted to pit under the safety car; the two found the pitlane entry too tight for both cars and collided – Albon ending up facing the wrong direction and de Vries sustaining damage.

    The end of the safety car period shuffled Markelov to the front of the field, and he began to fire in a series of hot laps to build a gap over Maini. De Vries, the lead runner to have completed their mandatory stop, lost eighth to teammate Gelael before haemorrhaging a further raft of positions – the Dutchman calling it a day after 20 tours of the circuit. This left Gelael as Markelov’s benchmark as he sought to build a gap ahead of his own pitstop.

    Dropping the hammer, Markelov had preserved sufficient life in his soft tyres to open the gap up to Gelael, eking out as much time as possible to complete his stop. Behind him, Fuoco, Aitken and Fukuzumi all blinked first, pitting while Markelov was setting further hot laps. With his lapped teammate Tadasuke Makino looming larger in his sights, Markelov came in for supersofts at the end of lap 34, crucially emerging ahead of Gelael.

    Gelael had soon slashed the deficit to two seconds as Markelov needed time to bring his tyres up to temperature, but the Russian soon took advantage of his softer-compound rubber to light the timing boards up with best sectors, opening up his advantage to cross the line with a 10.7s advantage over the Indonesian. Having also pit before the safety car on the alternate strategy, Merhi capped off a well-managed drive to clinch third – he and Gelael claiming their first F2 podium finishes.

    Having also benefitted from the option-prime strategy, Louis Delétraz swept home in fourth for his first points of the season, while Maini emerged ahead of Norris after his stop to grab fifth. Jack Aitken was seventh, while Fuoco recovered from his drive-through to eighth. Nicholas Latifi, having stopped the latest of anyone, clinched ninth from the final row of the grid, while Fukuzumi beat BWT Arden teammate Maximilian Günther to 10th.

    Fuoco will start Saturday’s Sprint Race from eighth position and, without mandatory pitstops to make, drivers will undoubtedly have to take more risks to progress through the field. With the streets of Monaco keen to punish the slightest mistake, Saturday’s race promises to be just as exciting.

    Albon handed grid penalty for Sprint Race

    Following today’s FIA Formula 2 Feature Race, Alexander Albon was found guilty of causing a collision. When entering the pit lane for his mandatory pit stop, the DAMS driver collided with Nyck de Vries, who was making his entrance to the pits at the same time. The contact sent Albon into a spin, before he later retired from the race. The Dutchman from PERTAMINA PREMA Theodore Racing also stopped his run a few laps later, his car sustaining damage after the collision.

    As a consequence, Albon was handed a five-place grid drop for tomorrow’s Sprint Race in Monaco. He will henceforth start from last position.

  • Rally de Portugal: Victory gives Thierry Neuville title lead in WRC

    Rally de Portugal: Victory gives Thierry Neuville title lead in WRC

    Thierry Neuville who scored a brilliant win in Rally de Portugal to take lead in WRC. Photo: WRC

    Matosinhos, 20 May 2018: Thierry Neuville won the Vodafone Rally de Portugal on Sunday to swing the FIA World Rally Championship pendulum firmly in his favour. Victory at the gruelling four-day dirt road encounter promoted the Belgian to the top of the standings as the series approaches its midpoint. After starting 10 points behind reigning champion Sébastien Ogier, the Belgian leaves Portugal with a 19-point advantage.

    Neuville steered his Hyundai i20 away from trouble during a weekend of attrition that sidelined many frontrunners to win by 40.0sec from Elfyn Evans’ Ford Fiesta. Fellow title challengers Ogier and Ott Tänak ended pointless after falling foul of Friday’s rock-strewn speed tests and Neuville pressed home his advantage by claiming four extra bonus points in the final Power Stage.

    He moved to the front near the end of Friday’s first leg after the lead changed hands six times in a frantic opening. He doubled his advantage yesterday and eased through Sunday’s finale to secure his second win of the year.

    “It was a clever approach all weekend,” he said. “I had a fantastic car which was working well and I felt comfortable. We can be proud of what we achieved here There are a lot of Portuguese mechanics in the team and I think the party is going to be big tonight!”

    Second for Evans eased the pressure after a disappointing season and team-mate Teemu Suninen helped erase the frustration of Ogier’s blank weekend in the M-Sport Ford squad by claiming his maiden podium. He finished 7.3sec behind the Welshman.

    Suninen held off Esapekka Lappi and Dani Sordo in an intense fight for the final podium place. Lappi was 7.4sec adrift of his fellow Finn in a Toyota Yaris with Spaniard Sordo 6.2sec further back in his i20. Sordo went to bed last night in third but woke up this morning in fourth after receiving a 10sec penalty for dislodging two bales on a Porto street stage roundabout on Friday night.

    Mads Østberg finished sixth on his first gravel rally in a Citroën C3, ahead of team-mate Craig Breen who was handicapped by starting first on the sandy tracks for the final two legs.

    WRC 2 winner Pontus Tidemand was eighth in a Skoda Fabia and fellow support category drivers Lukasz Pieniazek and Stéphane Lefebvre completed the leaderboard.

    Andreas Mikkelsen and Jari-Matti Latvala finished well down the order after retiring on Friday, while Ogier was withdrawn in the final service when lying outside the top 20. Hayden Paddon and Kris Meeke joined Tänak in retiring earlier in the weekend.

    Round seven promises a high-summer shootout on the Mediterranean island of Sardinia. The all-gravel Rally Italia Sardegna is based in Alghero on June 8-10.

    Third WRC 2 title for Pontus Tidemand

    Pontus Tidemand on a charge. Photo: WRC

    Starting the final leg with 1m 19.4sec in hand over fellow Skoda Fabia R5 driver Lukasz Pieniazek, the Swede Tidemand took two stage wins on Sunday to finish more than two minutes ahead of the rest of the field. Pieniazek settled for second on the final day, deciding to manage his advantage over third-placed Stéphane Lefebvre rather than needlessly chasing the commanding Tidemand.

    Lefebvre pushed hard to try and catch his Polish rival and was quickest during the first run through the Fafe test on Sunday. But the Frenchman ran out of stages to complete his attack and finished 17.0sec behind in his Citroën C3 R5.

    “It didn’t look so good on Friday, but we went out and pushed as hard as we could. We went into Saturday with good speed, no problems, and won all the stages,” Tidemand explained. “The conditions were quite hard on the tyres, many people had punctures and many drivers also made a mistake and hit something – it was not an easy rally.”

    Pierre-Louis Loubet finished just off the podium in fourth after a clean run through the final five stages in his Hyundai i20 R5. He was helped when his closest challenger, Hiroki Arai, was handed a 60sec penalty for checking into a time control six minutes late.

    The Japanese Toyota development driver still completed the rally in fifth place in Ford Fiesta R5, albeit only 9.5sec ahead of Juuso Nordgren who went second fastest in the Live TV Power Stage.

    Gus Greensmith was eighth, just behind Benito Guerra. The Briton had led earlier in the weekend but retired before the Amarante 2 test on Saturday with steering arm failure. He rejoined on the final day and salvaged some pride by taking a pair of stage wins in his Fiesta.

     

  • Rally de Portugal: Thierry Neuville takes control, extends lead

    Rally de Portugal: Thierry Neuville takes control, extends lead

    Thierry Neuville….well placed to claim victory in Rally de Portugal. Photo: WRC

    Matosinhos, 19 May 2018: Thierry Neuville gave his World title hopes a major boost after doubling his lead in Saturday’s penultimate leg of the Vodafone Rally de Portugal. He starts Sunday’s short finale with a 39.8sec advantage in his Hyundai i20, and victory would propel him back to the head of the FIA World Rally Championship for the first time since February.

    Conditions were more benign than yesterday when rock-strewn dirt roads caused carnage among the frontrunners, and the Belgian focused on the double pass through the 37.60km Amarante speed test, the longest of this sixth round of the series.

    He protected his Michelin tyres through the two previous stages of the morning and afternoon loops, before attacking in Amarante. He distanced closest rival Elfyn Evans on both occasions to build a comfortable advantage.

    “I was comfortable in the car, especially in the long stage. I tried to make a difference in there and it worked twice. It’s not finished yet but it could be a great weekend,” said Neuville whose conservative mix of hard and soft compound tyres was ideal for the wet final test.

    Evans won two of the day’s six stages in his Ford Fiesta, one more than Neuville, and the Welshman looked increasingly secure in second as the day progressed. He struggled for confidence in both passes through Amarante, but had a 17.4sec margin over Dani Sordo.

    The Spaniard stiffened his i20’s set-up following the morning’s opening test but slipped back into the clutches of Teemu Suninen with a final stage spin. The margin between them narrowed to 4.7sec.

    The young Suninen had a stellar day in his Ford Fiesta, holding off fellow-Finn Esapekka Lappi in a furious fight. Both were on the limit throughout as they traded seconds in every stage and Lappi ended 11.1sec adrift in his Toyota Yaris.

    Mads Østberg was a distant sixth, the Norwegian conceding almost a minute after sliding onto a bank at a muddy corner. The Citroën C3 driver was almost 1min 40sec clear of team-mate Craig Breen.

    Breen endured a tough day opening the roads in the sandy conditions but gained a place following more disappointment for Kris Meeke in the French squad’s third C3. The Ulsterman slid wide on a fast left bend and his C3 rolled heavily down a bank and into trees. Both Meeke and co-driver Paul Nagle were unhurt.

    Pontus Tidemand took the WRC 2 lead and held eighth place, ahead of fellow support category drivers Lukasz Pieniazek and Stéphane Lefebvre.

    Five more stages covering 51.53km lie in wait on Sunday, including two passes through the classic Fafe test and its famous jump. The second pass forms the Power Stage with bonus points on offer to the fastest five drivers.

    Pontus Tidemand recovers to forge ahead

    Pontus Tidemand….grand recovery to lead WRC 2. Photo: WRC

    Tidemand recovered from a disappointing Friday to claim all six Stage victories on Saturday and move into the lead of the WRC 2 category. The Skoda Fabia R5 driver started the day 1m 44.6sec off the lead in fifth place after two a double puncture yesterday, but he combined blistering pace with bad luck befalling his rivals to move his way up the order. By lunch-time service, he was second, with 49.4sec to make up to Stéphane Lefebvre. Another three wins on the afternoon loop sealed his place at the top of the class at the end of the day.
    He was helped by a puncture for Lefebvre on SS14 and then brake and transmission problems cost the C3 R5 driver more than two minutes one stage later. The Frenchman finished the day in third.

    Overnight leader Gus Greensmith had a day to forget in his Ford Fiesta. On the opening Vieira do Minho test, he had a puncture which forced him to use his spare, and then another tyre de-beaded. With no more spares, he had to be cautious through the next two stages. Having slipped to sixth, he was quickly reclaiming the time he lost but had to retire with broken suspension on the road section before the second run of Amarante.

    Benefiting from his retirement was Lukasz Pieniazek in a Fabia R5, who kept his second place despite a puncture of his own on SS14. Fourth place went to Pierre-Louis Loubet. The Hyundai i20 R5 driver had a clean run through the tests to move to within 8.0sec of compatriot Lefebvre.

    Toyota development driver Hiroki Arai grew in confidence as the day went on, with top-five stage times allowing him to claim fifth place before the final stages on Sunday. Juuso Nordgren ended the day sixth in his Fabia, despite a puncture on SS14 slowing his progress.

    Pedro Heller dropped out of the top five after a challenging day of his own. After a puncture this morning, he retired with mechanical issues 6.4km into SS15. His team-mate Nil Solans also hit trouble on the final stage, retiring at the 24.1km mark.

    Finnish ŠKODA junior Juuso Nordgren was delayed by another two punctures and are sixth after the Saturday leg.

  • Rally de Portugal: Neuville makes profit amidst crashes and retirements

    Rally de Portugal: Neuville makes profit amidst crashes and retirements

    Thierry Neuville, who made most of the situation to take early lead on Friday. Photo: WRC

    Porto, 18 May 2018: Thierry Neuville led the Vodafone Rally de Portugal on Friday night after a chaotic opening leg destroyed the hopes of a host of front-runners. The lead changed hands on six occasions on rock-strewn dirt roads near the Spanish border before the Belgian took a 17.7sec advantage in his Hyundai i20 over Elfyn Evans. Dani Sordo was a further 6.6sec adrift in third.
    WRC leader Sébastien Ogier, previous round winner Ott Tänak, Toyota Yaris team-mate Jari-Matti Latvala and Hyundai duo Andreas Mikkelsen and Hayden Paddon were all sidelined as the gruelling roads took a heavy toll.

    Neuville’s gamble to select soft tyres for this afternoon’s second loop of three speed tests appeared to have backfired as temperatures rose and the tracks became rougher than expected. He held his nerve and jumped from sixth to first as bedlam broke out around him, retaining his advantage over two asphalt stages in the streets of central Porto.

    “Today was tough, but we managed to stay out of trouble. It was very rough and there were many, many surprises. So I tried to save the car a bit. It was a risky tyre choice which was maybe not great but we made it work,” he said.

    Evans held second in a Ford Fiesta until a spin dropped him down the order, but the Welshman vaulted from seventh to second in the twists and turns of the final dirt road stage.

    Sordo topped the leaderboard midway through the leg in his i20. Like team-mate Neuville, the Spaniard opted for soft tyres this afternoon, but regretted his decision and had to slow as they became worn.

    Teemu Suninen was fourth in another Fiesta, the Finn avoiding the carnage to trail Sordo by 10.1sec and head Esapekka Lappi in the sole-surviving Toyota Yaris by 11.4sec. Mid-leg set-up changes resolved Lappi’s traction problems.

    Mads Østberg was sixth in a Citroën C3, half-a-minute clear of team-mate Kris Meeke who twice led. Tyre troubles forced Meeke to drive the final Porto stages with just a wheel rim on the rear left of his car and he conceded a minute.

    Craig Breen plunged from third to eighth after stopping to change a puncture, while WRC 2 leader Gus Greensmith and Lukasz Pieniazek completed the leaderboard.

    End of road for Sebsatien Ogier. Photo: WRC

    Ogier was fourth until he broke a steering arm in his Ford Fiesta after hitting a tree root and he crashed at the next bend. Tänak hit a rock and damaged his engine’s cooling system, forcing him to retire from the rally. Toyota’s turmoil continued when Latvala hit a rock and broke his front right suspension.

    Paddon retired from the lead after a heavy impact damaged the front left of his i20 and blocked the stage. The Kiwi was taken to hospital for precautionary checks after complaining of back pain. Broken power steering and engine issues accounted for team-mate Mikkelsen.

    Saturday’s leg is the longest of the event, journeying east of the rally base in Matosinhos to demanding roads in the Cabreira Mountains. Three stages are driven morning and afternoon covering 154.64 Kms.

    Gus Greensmith takes early lead in WRC 2

    Gus Greensmith. Photo: WRC

    Greensmith profited when championship leader Pontus Tidemand (Skoda Fabia R5) suffered a puncture on the very first Stage. Driving a Ford Fiesta R5, Greensmith was battling for the lead with Citroën Racing’s Stéphane Lefebvre from the very start of the day as the pair took a stage win apiece. Tidemand recovered from a right-rear puncture early on Friday to claim a stage victory on the third test of the day, but his time loss on the opener dropped him to seventh after the morning loop.

    The leader going into mid-day service was Lefebvre, as an intercom failure for Greensmith before the 27.54 kms Ponte de Lima stage wiped out his early gains.

    In the afternoon, it was Skoda Motorsport’s Tidemand who was on the pace as he claimed a trio of wins – including a double on the Porto Street Stage – to recover some of the time he lost, ending Friday in fifth.

    Greensmith came out on top after Lefebvre was struck with a right-rear puncture on SS5 with the Brit claiming the category lead one stage later. He will start Saturday’s second leg with a lead of 34.3sec.

    Citroën C3 driver Lefebvre finished the day third, 0.5sec behind Lukasz Pieniazek who kept out of trouble to work his way onto the podium. Fourth was Pedro Heller, the Fiesta driver rewarded for a clean run through the day while others hit trouble.  Sixth was Nil Solans, who couldn’t match the pace of the front-runners, while Pierre-Louis Loubet ended the day’s eight stages seventh in his Hyundai i20 R5.

    Six crews retired from the leg, including Sweden category winner Takamoto Katsuta as well as Simone Tempestini and Max Vatanen – who are both making their first appearance of 2018. Also running into issues was Hyundai Racing’s Jari Huttunen who retired after a mechanical problem on SS6.

  • Ott Tanak sets early pace in Super Special Stage; Suninen, Ogier tied second

    Ott Tanak sets early pace in Super Special Stage; Suninen, Ogier tied second

    Ott Tanak in a Toyota Yaris sets the early pace in Rally de Portugal. Photo: WRC

    Lousada, 17 May 2018: The duo of Ott Tanak and co-driver Martin Jarveoja in a Toyota Yaris WRC was the quickest on the Super Special Stage (3.36 Kms) in the Vodafone Rally de Portugal which commenced here on Thursday evening.

    The Estonian, the recent winner of the Rally of Argentina, beat Finn Teemu Suninen (Ford Fiesta) and five-time champion and World champion Sébastien Ogier (Ford Fiesta) by 0.4 seconds, who set an equal mark to reach second fastest time.

    Kris Meeeke was the fastest in Citroën, as was Andreas Mikkelsen at Hyundai, both finishing the special at 1.4s off Tanak.

    Suninen outpaced Hayden Paddon, returning after missing the last three WRC rounds, while Ogier was more than a second quicker than Thierry Neuville in the evening’s headline heat. Tänak dictated the previous round in Argentina but acknowledged a repeat is unlikely this weekend.

    “It will be tough to dominate here. We know how loose the roads will be tomorrow and there will be a lot more cleaning than in Argentina. It will be a key tomorrow to get a good position so we can fight hard on Saturday,” he said.

    Citroën C3 pilot Kris Meeke and Mikkelsen, driving a Hyundai i20, were fourth, a full second behind the tying Ford pair. Neuville completed the top six.

    Jari-Matti Latvala dropped almost four seconds after stalling his Yaris in a hairpin. “Under braking, the engine cut completely. There’s something strange happening with the engine and we need to investigate that. It doesn’t worry me, but it annoys me,” he said.

    M-Sport Ford mechanics replaced the cooling pack in Elfyn Evans’ Fiesta before this evening’s start at Guimaräes Castle after damage caused by a heavy landing in this morning’s shakedown.

    Friday’s first full day is based close to the Spanish border. Two identical loops of three stages are split by service in Matosinhos, before the leg ends with two short street tests in central Porto. The eight stages cover 148.66 Kms.

    JARI-MATTI LATVALA QUICKEST IN SHAKEDOWN

    Jari-Matti Latvala. Photo: WRC

    Latvala edged Origer and Neuville to win Thursday morning’s shakedown. The Toyota Gazoo driver was fastest by 0.3sec through the 4.60 Kms Baltar speed test. Ogier and the Hyundai i20-mounted Neuville tied in second. Conditions were dry and dusty and the stage, which ended with a loop of Baltar’s rallycross circuit, was closely contested. The top eight drivers were covered by a second.

    Latvala set the pace in the first run, before Kris Meeke went top of the timesheets in a Citroën C3 at his second attempt. The Finn set the benchmark in his third run as most drivers posted their best time in their final pass.

    It has been a disappointing year for Latvala. He is eighth in the points after retiring from the previous two rounds in Corsica and Argentina and views this rally as an opportunity to turn around his fortunes.

    “Springtime has been difficult for me and I would really like to use this rally as a turning point for the season. I want to see the finish line, have a clean rally and find the speed I can do. I believe the car is competitive enough, so I have to stay cool and do my job,” he said.

    “Three runs in a row this morning and no changes. You normally know that when you don’t need to do any changes then the set-up is correct and that’s the way it should be. If you have to start working in the shakedown, it’s normally not a good sign.”

    Meeke, driving a C3, and Andreas Mikkelsen, in an i20, were tied in fourth 0.4sec adrift of Ogier and Neuville. Hayden Paddon, returning to the WRC after a three-rally absence, was another tenth behind in sixth.

  • Rally Portugal: ŠKODA’s Pontus Tidemand aiming for hat-trick victory in WRC 2 category

    Rally Portugal: ŠKODA’s Pontus Tidemand aiming for hat-trick victory in WRC 2 category

    Defending WRC 2 champion Pontus Tidemand seeking a hat-trick of wins. Photos: SKODA Motorsport

    Mladá Boleslav, 15 May 2018: Reigning WRC 2 Champions Pontus Tidemand and co-driver Jonas Andersson (SWE/SWE) are entering the competition at Rally Portugal to be run this weekend leading the WRC 2 championship standings.

    Second placed ŠKODA team-mates Jan Kopecký and co-driver Pavel Dresler (CZE/CZE) will compete at Rallye Český Krumlov at the same weekend instead of travelling to Portugal.

    Meanwhile, promising Finnish juniors Juuso Nordgren and co-driver Tapio Suominen will make their 2018 WRC 2 season debut driving another ŠKODA FABIA R5 run by the factory team of ŠKODA Motorsport.

    Three years ago, the ŠKODA FABIA R5 started its success story with a strong debut on the gravel roads of Rally Portugal. Homologated on 1 April 2015, the brand-new R5 machine proved right from the start that it will be the car to beat in WRC 2 and currently is the most successful car in the category.

    On top of that, Tidemand and Andersson have more good memories of Rally Portugal. “Back in 2015, it was my first rally with the ŠKODA FABIA R5. One year later, we could win there for the first time, and in 2017, we were lucky to be the winners again after a dramatic final on the last stage. I really love to drive the nice gravel stages of Portugal and want to win for a third time in a row,” Tidemand said ahead of the sixth round of the 2018 FIA World Rally Championship (WRC 2).

    Juuso Nordgren and Tapio Suominen…2018 WRC 2 season debutants.

    Nordgren said: “My first rally for ŠKODA Motorsport this year was the second round of Czech Rally Championship, the Rally Šumava Klatovy, where I finished third. It was nearly 100 per cent on tarmac roads with only some small gravel sections. Now I am really looking forward to drive the ŠKODA FABIA R5 on pure gravel roads.”

    ŠKODA Motorsport boss Michal Hrabánek is hoping for another great result for the Czech manufacturer. “The competition will be very tense at Rally Portugal. I am happy to see that among the 35 entries in WRC 2 and RC 2 classes, no fewer than 12 crews are competing with a ŠKODA FABIA R5.

    “With three starts, Tidemand so far won two of the five 2018 rallies. He can further increase his lead in the WRC 2 Championship. For Juuso, it is all about learning. Last year, he already proved, that he is really fast on gravel.”

    After moving back to the north of the country to the region around Porto in 2015, Rally Portugal is one of the most spectator crowded events of the FIA World Rally Championship. The notorious Fafe jump alone every year attracts tens of thousands of spectators.

    The rally starts on Thursday (17 May) with a show stage on the rallycross circuit of Lousada. The first full day of action on Friday (18 May) features eight stages in the far north near the border to Spain, covering nearly 150 Kms. Like in 2017, Saturday (19 May) offers the longest leg, running over nearly 155 Kms divided in six special stages with a mixture of sandy roads, rocks and deep ruts during the second pass of the stages.

    The right tyre choice between soft compounds for more traction and hard compound in order to manage tyre wear on the long stages is one of the keys to success. On Sunday (20 May), the spectacular Fafe loop with five stages on fast and smooth gravel roads, including the famous jump, is the spectator highlight of the event.

    In total, the teams will face 20 special stages of 358.19 Kms before the winner will reach the podium on Sunday in Matosinhos close to the city of Porto.

    A FEW SALIENT FEATURES OF RALLY PORTUGAL

    The Rally Portugal was first held in 1967, and in 1973, it was one of the founding events of the then new World Rally Championship. Until 1994, the rally traditionally started in Estoril close to Lisbon and the first leg was held on tarmac before it became an all-gravel event in 1995.

    In 1996, due to the FIA’s calendar rotating system, Rally Portugal did not count for the World Rally Championship. From 2007 to 2014, the rally was held in the Algarve region before moving back to the north.

    The ŠKODA FABIA R5 made its World Rally Championship debut at Rally Portugal in 2015 and up to now, 200 units of this model have been sold to customer teams worldwide. In 2012, Sébastien Ogier won his class with a ŠKODA FABIA S2000, finishing an impressive 7th overall, and again in 2013, Esapekka Lappi won WRC 2 with a ŠKODA FABIA S2000.

  • Jehan Daruvala opens European Formula 3 season with podium at Pau

    Jehan Daruvala opens European Formula 3 season with podium at Pau

    Photo courtesy Jehan’s twitter handle @DaruvalaJehan

    Pau (France) 14 May 2018: Sahara Force India Academy racer Jehan Daruvala began his 2018 campaign in the FIA Formula 3 European Championship with a podium in Race 3 of the season opener. Jehan created history last year, when he became the first Indian ever to win a race in the FIA F3 European Championship when he dominated and won at Nuremburg in Germany.

    The first round of the 2018 season was held on the famous street circuit of Pau in southern France. Jehan, the 19-year old from Mumbai and driving for Carlin team, qualified just 0.29 seconds off the quickest, but the extremely competitive grid meant that he would start seventh.

    In the next qualifying session, Jehan was supremely quick. He was all set to bag pole position, but a slower car in front of him meant Jehan was blocked and he qualified down in seventh and fifth for the remaining races.

    The highlight of Jehan’s weekend was when he made a brilliant start from fifth on a completely wet circuit in Race 3. The Indian teenager climbed two places before corner 1 and thereafter made no mistakes in the treacherous conditions around the tight street circuit.

    Jehan was comfortable in third, when the race was stopped 13 minutes before schedule due to the un-driveable wet conditions, sealing Jehan’s podium.

    Jehan Daruvala (Carlin) in action at Pau, France

    Jehan said: “At the start, I was able to move up from fifth to third place. Initially, the two drivers in front of me were faster and were able to pull a gap. Later on, I made a mistake: I hit a kerb and from then on, I was afraid that my suspension could break. That had happened to me in the first race already and it was always in the back of my mind. Therefore, perhaps it was good for me that the race was stopped, because nobody was able to take third place away from me.”

    Earlier in the weekend, Jehan had a poor start for Race 1 and lost a couple of places before climbing up to seventh. A mechanical failure with the suspension due to no fault of his own saw Jehan retire from the race. In Race 2, Jehan started seventh and ultimately finished sixth after another racer crashed.

    Jehan’s podium in Race 3, popularly known as the Pau Grand Prix, was the highlight of his weekend which was otherwise compromised due to situations beyond his control. His pace has been right up there in the series which is arguably one of the most important steps to Formula 1 and certainly one of the most competitive.

    “I made a mistake in the first qualifying which cost me pole. In the second qualifying, I was unfortunately held up which again cost me pole position. I am very happy with my pace, especially in the wet. I am now much more confident and up there. After all the things that went wrong, I am relieved with the podium this weekend. It’s time to put this behind me and continue working hard for the rest of the season,” said Jehan.

    The second of the 10-round championship will be held at the Hungaroring F1 circuit in Hungary on June 2-3.

  • Spanish Grand Prix: A statistical perspective

    Spanish Grand Prix: A statistical perspective

    Barcelona, 10 May 2018: This weekend’s race will mark the 28th edition of the Spanish Grand Prix at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya. Michael Schumacher tops the all-time winners list, with an impressive six triumphs here. When the drivers take to the grid on Sunday, there will be five previous victors among them – Kimi Raikkonen, Fernando Alonso, Sebastian Vettel, Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen.

    The Stats That Matter

    • Hamilton is looking to join a small list of F1 legends to win at this circuit for a third time. Should he triumph on Sunday, he’ll be on the same number of wins as Mika Hakkinen and three behind Michael Schumacher.
    • The Briton, who won from pole here in 2014 and 2017, certainly enjoys coming to Spain. He hasn’t been off the front row here since his final year for McLaren in 2012, when he took top spot in qualifying only to be excluded for having insufficient fuel.
    • Despite leading the drivers’ standings, the four-time World champion has been suffering somewhat of a qualifying drought recently. He took pole in Australia, but has been outqualified by team-mate Bottas in four of the last six races.
    • Vettel has surprisingly never been on pole in Catalunya. But the Ferrari man has been in superb qualifying form this season, topping the timesheet at the last three races.
    • Baku ended Raikkonen’s longest run of front-row starts (3) since Spain-Monaco-Europe in 2005, but he still finished on the podium for the sixth time in the last eight races.
    • The Finn has set the theoretical best lap of qualifying at the last two races (adding up the three best sectors from any lap), without having taken pole at either of them. Consistency in Barcelona could see the Ferrari man take P1.
    • Two years ago, Max Verstappen’s triumph saw him become F1’s youngest-ever winner at 18 years 227 days, become the first Dutchman to win in F1 and the first man to win on a mid-season debut for a team since Juan-Manuel Fangio for Mercedes in 1954.
    • Force India will be hoping to spring another surprise. Perez finished fourth in Barcelona last year, his and team’s best-ever finish on this track. The Mexican is attempting to score back-to-back podium finishes for the first time in his and his team’s history this weekend.
    • Nico Hulkenberg has not been eliminated in Q1 since the 2015 Spanish GP, and this is the only circuit at which the German has never qualified higher than 10th in his F1 career (seven previous visits).
    • It’s safe to say Pierre Gasly has endured an action-packed start to his first full season in F1. And there’s no reason he cannot replicate his fourth-placed finish in Bahrain this weekend. He has scored more podium finishes in Catalunya than on any other circuit in his GP2 career, with three podiums in four starts in 2015-16.
    • Not including retirements, Nico Rosberg, who started the 2013 race in P1, is the only pole-sitter to finish outside the top-5 in a Spanish Grand Prix – regardless of venue – in the history of Formula 1.

    The circuit

    This Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya is familiar territory for Formula 1 teams. Not only have they raced there every year since 1991, they also take part in extensive testing at the track.

    But this does not mean they’re in for an easy ride. In fact, the venue’s mix of high and low-speed corners plus its new track surface will once again provide the drivers with a physical and mental challenge.

    Teams often struggle to find and execute an optimum set-up here, when you consider tyre wear is particularly high and the varying winds that cut across the circuit.

    Turn 1 provides spectators with one of the best places to watch given it is one of the track’s few overtaking opportunities. The drivers, however, tend to find the latter stages of the track the more challenging. In particular, the final two turns require a fast exit in order to maximise speed down the start-finish straight into Turn 1.

    Source: Formula1.com

  • Spanish GP: Fernando Alonso, McLaren team hopeful of improved performance

    Spanish GP: Fernando Alonso, McLaren team hopeful of improved performance

    Barcelona, 9 May 2018: The first European race of the 2018 Formula One season starts with a trip to Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, a well-visited and well-loved track by all in the F1 paddock. The 28th running of the Spanish Grand Prix not only sees the return of the McLaren team’s home away from home – the buzzing Brand Centre, but a new-look pit garage, a handful of car parts to test and of course, Fernando Alonso’s home race. Look out for passionate Fernando fans with their Asturian flags, cheering on their homegrown hero and the team!

    Despite having finished on points in all the previous four races this season, Alonso believes there is still a long road ahead for the team and much scope for improvement. Being the home race for him, Alonso said he looked forward to performing well in his home country this weekend.

    Fernando Alonso

    Alonso said: “It’s great to be back in Europe, in Spain, and at home! You can never beat the feeling of racing in front of your home fans. I’m very lucky that we get to race in my country of birth as not all drivers get that opportunity, and every year the support from the Spanish fans gets bigger and better.

    “The Spanish Grand Prix represents the start of a very busy few months leading up to the summer break – both for McLaren and for me with my other racing commitments. I’m more than ready for the challenge and I’m really excited to see what the next few races bring us.

    “I know we have some developments in the pipeline, but we also know there is no magic bullet that will propel us to the front of the grid overnight. There has been a lot of work happening at the factory and there is still a lot of work to do.

    “So in Barcelona, it’s a chance to evaluate some new things, see where we are, and determine the direction that we take with car development as we progress through the season. As always, and especially after the battle we fought in Baku, I’m really looking forward to pushing hard on track again this weekend in front of my home fans.”

    Stoffel Vandoorne

    Alonso’s team-mate Stoffel Vandoorne said: “Heading back to European races always feels very satisfyingly familiar, especially in Barcelona. We all know the track very well and spend a lot of time there. In fact, it doesn’t feel that long ago that we were there during pre-season testing!

    “Thankfully, the weather should be a little bit more reliable this time around. Although we do a lot of testing here and we have a lot of data about the circuit, we weren’t able to do a lot of representative running pre-season due to the weather conditions and the issues we had.

    “However, I’ve spent time back at the factory in the simulator since Baku, so the key will be to translate that information to the track and get a read on our package as soon as possible on Friday. That package will include a few new components that we’ll be working hard to learn about and evaluate on Friday. There’ll be a lot to assess and for sure other teams will be planning the same thing, so as always we’ll need to race hard, ensure good reliability, and optimise our strategy to be able to come home with more points.”

    Eric Boullier

    Eric Boullier, Racing Director, said: “The whole team is looking forward to heading back to Barcelona. It’s a great circuit – one of the classics on the calendar – and it always feels good to start the second chapter of the season as we start racing again in Europe.

    “This also means the return of our much-loved Brand Centre, and having all the teams’ hospitality units back in the Paddock brings a real ‘back-to-school’ feeling. For us, being Fernando’s home race, the support we receive is nothing short of spectacular, and the fans always bring another level of enthusiasm.

    “Like most teams, we’re planning to bring some new parts to the car to test on Friday and decide which of these to take forward into the rest of the weekend, and the coming races. While for logistical reasons Barcelona was the most logical time to implement these, it’s part of a season-long plan to develop the car as we always do until the final race.

    “We’re taking each grand prix weekend step-by-step, and hope we can begin to address the challenges we know we face with our package. We’re all gunning for a positive weekend for both cars in front of Fernando’s home crowd.”

    The essentials

    Focus points: Gaining a quick understanding of the car and the conditions. The teams had eight days of winter testing at the Circuit de Catalunya, but the weather was unrepresentative. Snow, rain and single-digit temperatures resulted in little meaningful performance testing, which gives the teams little relevant data going into this weekend.

    Most demanding section: Turns One, Two and Three. Turns One and Two are deceptively fast, taken at 180km/h (112mph), and many drivers hit the inside kerbs to help rotate the car and aid direction change. Turn Three is a breathtakingly fast right-hander, through which the cars accelerate to 285km/h (177mph) at the exit.

    Unique difficulty: Barcelona has an eclectic mix of corners, and that is the circuit’s unique difficulty. Sectors One and Two are high-speed, through which aerodynamic efficiency is crucial; Sector Three is all about slow-speed mechanical grip. To be fast, a car needs to work in every type of corner.

    Braking: There are eight braking events around the lap, but only two significant stops – into Turns One and 10. Turn One is the most severe corner for the brakes, with the cars scrubbing off 215km/h (134mph) in just 100m/0.0621 miles, which subjects the drivers to 5.6g.

    Power: The cars use 1.7kg of fuel per lap, which is average for the season. It’s quite a demanding race for the ERS as well because there are two long periods of full deployment.

    Aero: After running a low downforce configuration in Baku, it’s back to maximum downforce in Barcelona. The eclectic mix of corners, particularly the slow-speed chicanes in Sector Three, mean the best lap times are achieved by maximising cornering performance.

    Source (text and photos): McLaren F1 team

  • Paddon drives to fourth International Rally of Whangarei win; Sumiyama tops APRC field

    Paddon drives to fourth International Rally of Whangarei win; Sumiyama tops APRC field

    Hayden Paddon, winner of International Rally of Whangarei. Photo: Geoff Ridder

    Whangarei, 6 May 2018: Fastest across all 18 of the weekend’s special stages at the ENEOS International Rally of Whangarei, WRC driver Hayden Paddon and co-driver Mal Peden clinched in their Hyundai i20, here on Sunday. Paddon comfortably won the opening round of the FIA Asia Pacific Rally Championship (APRC) and the second round of the Brian Green Property Group New Zealand Rally Championship (NZRC) by a margin of 7mins, 26.3secs.

    “It’s been a a very good weekend. Everything has gone according to plan and I’ve enjoyed the roads up here. The others have also done a very good job, so the event has been great. I’ve been pretty comfortable with how everything has gone this weekend and it’s paid off,” said a measured Paddon, just before lifting the kauri trophy at the ceremonial finish.

    A total of 29 cars returned to Whangarei for the ceremonial finish at the quayside town basin. Of the four international entrants, only two made to the finish after today’s eight special stages, held south of Whangarei.

    APRC topper Yuya Sumiyama. Photo: Geoff Ridder

    Running second to Paddon after the first three of the weekend stages ex-pat Kiwi Mike Young and co-driver Malcolm Read were unable to resume competition for today’s final leg, after retiring on the Saturday with radiator damage in their Toyota Vitz. Fuyuhiko Takahashi and co-driver Mitsuo Nakamura (Subaru) left the road in the morning’s third test while a mistake in the earlier loop of today’s stages by overnight leader Fabio Frisiero and Simone Scattolin in their Peugeot allowed Yuya Sumiyama and Takahiro Yasui to climb ahead in their Skoda Fabia. Sumiyama finished 11th overall while Italy’s Frisiero finished 15th.

    “I’m very very happy but very very lucky. The roads have been very fast, and I have liked the weekend. Today I just tried to go faster and I am lucky to win,” said Sumiyama.

    Contesting the New Zealand roads for a third time in his career, Frisiero said the level of competition was very high: “I’m feeling a lot better this afternoon and I’ve enjoyed it so much. It’s been the best. We tried to catch Sumiyama this afternoon but it was impossible, he was just too fast and congratulations to him for getting the win.

    “It’s also been a surprise for us to even be here, and in this position so I’m extremely happy. The roads have been very slippery and narrow in some places but very fast. You have to know the roads to be able to drive them fast and my compliments go to the NZ drivers who went very fast.”

    Standing alongside Paddon and Peden on the podium was Auckland’s Ben Hunt and Tony Rawstorn (Subaru) while Australian Rally Champion Nathan Quinn and David Calder (Ford) finished third, a further 1m04.6sec behind Hunt.

    “It’s been a fantastic weekend. To get second at Otago and second here in Whangarei is an awesome result for the team and the car – that’s come a long way. I love the roads up here and the way we hop in and out of them is fantastic – so overall it’s been a great event,” commented Hunt.

    Celebrating 30 years of APRC competition, the internationals ship their cars to Australia for the series second round: 1 – 3 June. The NZRC series heads back to the South Island for the 3 June running of the Lone Star Canterbury Rally.

    ENEOS International Rally of Whangarei Results (Top-10 Overall, provisional): 1. Hayden Paddon / Mal Peden, Hyundai i20; 2. Ben Hunt / Tony Rawstorn, Subaru WRX +04:02.4; 3. Nathan Quinn / David Calder, Ford Fiesta +05:03.3; 4. Emma Gilmour / Anthony McLaughlin, Suzuki Swift +05:08.5; 5. Dylan Turner / Sarah Breenan, Audi S1 +05:16.4; 6. Josh Marston / Andrew Graves, Holden Barina +06:04.2; 7. Eugene Creugnet  / Philippe Delrieu, Mitsubishi Lander +06:12.0; 8. Regan Ross / Samantha Gray, Ford Escort +07:27.5; 9. David Holder / Jason Farmer, Ford Fiesta +08:00.7; 10. Marcus van Klink / Dave Neill, Mazda RX8 +08:07.1.

    FIA Asia Pacific Rally Championship: 1. Yuya Sumiyama / Takahiro Yasui (Skoda Fabia); 2. Fabio Frisiero / Simone Scattolin (Peugeot).