INDIA in F1

Tag: Formula One

  • The car is excellent, so looking forward to the race: Sebastian Vettel at FIA press meet

    The car is excellent, so looking forward to the race: Sebastian Vettel at FIA press meet

    Sakhir (Bahrain), April 7: After taking a brilliant pole, Sebastian Vettel (Ferrari) attended the mandatory FIA Press Conference along with second-placed teammate Kimi Raikkonen and Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes) who took P3. Hamilton will not be defended his last-years win from the first three rows, as a grid penalty will see him line up on P9.

    TRACK INTERVIEWS (conducted by Johnny Herbert)

    Q: Let’s talk to this man, who is on pole position. Nice smiley face. You must be a happy boy?

    Sebastian VETTEL: Yeah, let me breathe! It was quite intense. After the first run in Q3, I was very happy and then tossed it away in the last corner. No, really happy that I got the second run and I got it clean and I knew in the last corner I just knew I had to stay away from that kerb. Then obviously you’re looking around trying to see where the others are. Very happy. The car was excellent all weekend so far, so looking forward to tomorrow.

    Q: We’ve to talk about the car, because these guys, your mechanics, have done a brilliant job for you. But when we look at her, she just seemed to do everything you needed to do day and that seemed to be the comfort factor that you had?

    SV: Yeah, you know best. If the car is responding to what you want it to do it’s a pleasure. Otherwise, it’s a fight. Australia was more of a fight. I think we worked on the balance. I think we looked into it a lot and I think we improved it as well yesterday and today – even though it’s not easy because we do the practice session when the sun is up and qualifying and the race when the sun is down. But yeah, the car is responding, so very pleased.

    Q: Good to see that smile on your face. And Kimi… that was a battle and a half. How are you feeling now? A little bit of disappointment I guess? But that was a good performance for you this weekend?

    Kimi RÄIKKÖNEN: For sure, not ideal. Far from ideal in the last run, with the traffic, but what can you do?

    Q: Yeah, what can you do? But again, everything seems to have started strong for you this season. It was unfortunate for you in Australia but coming here you look more at home than I think we have seen you for a long time. There are millions of people around the world who support you big time and this is maybe the start of something coming good for you.

    KR: Well, we’ll see. It’s one Saturday. Tomorrow is the main thing and tomorrow is the time when we get the points or we don’t get the points, so obviously see what we can do then.

    Q: Valtteri, happy with that performance today? You beat your team-mate, which is great. I know you had pole position last year, but these two guys in red, they were strong today.

    Valtteri BOTTAS: Yeah, it felt OK, the laps were OK and getting better towards the end. In Q3, when you need to put everything together, we got it more or less. I think these guys with the red car they are just a bit too quick. We can’t be happy with this, so we are looking forward to tomorrow.

    Q: But tomorrow is something you can focus on, a totally different scenario because race pace looks a bit better than qualifying?

    VB: Yeah, I think it’s going to be a close race, even with Red Bull and with Lewis and Max coming from behind we’ll see. It should be interesting.

    Q: Well done. Seb, you’re going to be starting right at the front, no one in front of you. You’re going to be feeling pretty good once those lights go out.

    SV: Feeling good now, tomorrow’s a different story. It’s a long, long race and we’ve seen that it’s not easy to make the tyres last so… The car is quick – that usually helps! Let’s see when the lights out, but for now I’m very chuffed and for the team as well. We had some issues this morning but we overcame those, so, yeah, looking forward to tomorrow.

    Press Conference: Q: Seb, your 51st career pole position in Formula One. It didn’t look that likely after FP3. Was it as surprising to you, the way the weekend has panned out?

    SV: I think it’s surprising for us to be, after Australia, that competitive. So, obviously, we, I think, have a good base. The car is working; in Australia, I think we struggled with the feel for the car. Here it’s been better, so we improved a little bit, working the car, you know, the beginning of the season, it’s always difficult because you don’t know yet the car that well. It’s getting better, so obviously,

    Sebastian Vettel flanked by Kimi Raikkonen (left) and Valtteri Bottas, P3, after taking the Bahrain pole on Saturday. An FIA image

    today was quite nice and the car came alive. I didn’t have much session this afternoon, so it was a bit tricky to know what to expect but I felt quite good right from the start and knew that I could make progress throughout the session. Q3, that’s when I wanted it to peak, and I think I peaked in the first run, just before the last corner. I wanted a bit too much. So, I knew I had a bit in me and yeah, basically, it was a bit copy/paste the final lap I had, but the last corner I managed to stay away from the kerbs, so yeah, very happy with both laps in the end and happy obviously with the result, with the car, the way the car was handling and responding, so, yeah. Chuffed.

    Q: Kimi, coming to you, you’ve looked quick all weekend here, and it looked like you were one of the favourites for pole position today. Where do you think that pole just got away from you today, compared to Seb?

    KR: Somewhere around the lap. Far from ideal but with the traffic on the last run. I thought there is a lot we can improve but obviously, it was such a messy thing in the end, I was passing people and doing this and that, so it’s disappointing because it’s been good most of the weekend. Everything. You always want one more but we’ll see tomorrow.

    Q: Valtteri, coming to you. The gap between Mercedes and Ferrari at times looked even bigger this weekend than it is in the final result. Does that give you encouragement for tomorrow’s race?

    VB: Well yeah, of course. First of all, it’s disappointing not to be in the first row. Ferrari was quicker today – but yeah, for sure we made some good progress during the weekend, we tried some things which didn’t work, that’s why the gap was sometimes bigger. So, I think we have the right setup in the car for the race. So, it’s difficult to estimate really, with the race pace. I think it’s still a long race tomorrow so anything can happen. We’ll definitely go for it and hopefully Lewis can also come back to get some good points, and hopefully we can put pressure on these guys.

    QUESTIONS by reporters in bold:

    Q: Seb, do have an idea why you feel the car more here: is it the track characteristics, the updates you’ve got on the car, was it set-up that you made changes?

    SV: Well, we mostly tried to work on the set-up, understanding the car so we tried different things obviously. Across the weekend, you don’t have that much time so in Australia, the first race in Australia, it’s a tricky track, it’s improving a lot throughout the weekend, it’s very bumpy so it’s difficult to change too much in drawing conclusions. I think after the weekend, after the race distance, especially when you have so many laps, I think we had a very good understanding and feel and obviously we’ve been talking about it and looking into it and I think overall I’ve been happier this weekend with how the car has been responding, how the front end was responding so yeah, overall, I think you also see it in the results but I think the good news is that we are a lot closer in all the conditions, if you look at all the sessions across with everyone so I think that’s the only difference. For the rest it’s the same car as in Australia.

    Q: Kimi, P2 in qualifying in Australia and now again.  How difficult is it to start against your teammate compared to Lewis in Australia?

    KR: I don’t think it’s any different, it’s another car. We’re never next to each other at the start because it’s staggered but it’s no different, we’re basically in the same position, just a different way round with the start. Makes no difference.

    Q: Valtteri, in Australia Mercedes was very fast and here on a more normal circuit we expected you to be even faster but we saw exactly the opposite. What is going on with your car? Is it tyre management again like last year?

    VB: I don’t know what’s going on. I agree that we were not having the pace this weekend that we’ve been expecting coming here but we also didn’t have anything new since Melbourne. It’s a very different circuit, very different kind of tarmac, different temperatures, everything so for sure we still needs to understand completely why. For sure we are struggling a little bit with some overheating issues with the tyres. Obviously less so in the evening sessions but still, we have work to do. It’s like we’ve been saying all through the beginning of the season that we are not miles away. Today, Ferrari, this weekend so far has been the quicker car so that’s where we are. We were better in Australia, we need to understand why we were not quickest today but for sure we still have tomorrow to see how the pace is.

    Q: Sebastian, this pole position, is it only up to the better balance of the car or do you have a party mode working as well as the Mercedes one this time?

    SV: No, I think we answered that already in Australia. As I said, I was happier with the balance of the car so obviously, there’s a lot of factors. It’s how comfortable you are in the car, whether the car’s responding or not to what you like it to do. The track, Valtteri has mentioned, the surface, the temperatures, so there are a lot of things but I think we are very very happy that we build another very strong car and we are able to put it on the front row on our own, beating everybody today, so I think that’s a great result and deserves some credit for the team, the effort that everyone is putting in so I think that’s the best thing about today but the race is tomorrow so even if it’s a good day, the main day is coming tomorrow.

    Q: Kimi, you seem a lot more comfortable in the car at the start of this season compared to last year. Do you feel happier in the car and what’s different for you to access that higher level?

    KR: Every car is different, it’s a new car obviously and it’s been OK. Obviously, there are things we need to improve and we can improve but it’s reasonably fine. Like I said, it’s a new car, there are certain designs that have been done but it’s either good or not and there’s not one specific thing that is suddenly better for me than other years.

    Q: Looking at the new halo system, how is it functioning with the three of you and what would hold the key for success tomorrow?

    VB: It doesn’t feel so new any more, the halo. I think we’re used to it and I think it’s all good. I actually missed the second question, what was it?

    Q: What will be the key tomorrow?

    VB: Be quick. I think here tyre management is going to be really important but consistent things, whoever’s having the less drop-off with the tyres is going to be high in the end.

    SV: Just the first time in the weekend you get in the car it’s still a bit weird but as Valtteri said, you get used to it. I think it would be funny now if we take it off, it would feel a bit naked but yeah, it’s fine. I think the most difficult thing is to get in and out. And for the rest, yeah, nothing to add from Valtteri.

    Q: Key to success for you tomorrow? Is it the start against your teammate?

    KR: It’s the whole package, obviously, but I think we should have a good car. Make a good start and go from there.

    Ends

  • Vettel takes 51st career pole; Hami to start 9th after grid penalty: Bahrain GP

    Sakhir (Bahrain), April 7: Sebastian Vettel will make his 200th Grand Prix start from the front of the grid after the Ferrari driver claimed his 51st career pole at the Bahrain International Circuit ahead of team-mate Kimi Raikkonen and Mercedes Valtteri Bottas.

    Defending champion Lewis Hamilton finished in fourth place but the Mercedes driver will drop to P9 on the grid due to an unscheduled gearbox change.

    Räikkönen set the early pace in Q1, his first flying laps, on soft compound Pirelli tyres, yielding a time of 1:29.951. Ferrari team-mate Vettel slotted into P2 a tenth behind the Finn, and Valtteri Bottas took third place with a lap of 1:29.275.

    Fourth place was occupied by Red Bull Racing’s Max Verstappen but after a solid opening flyer, it all went wrong for the Dutchman on his next quick lap. He lost control on the exit of Turn 2 and spun off at the following corner. He went nose first into the barriers, causing major damage to the left front of his car and the red flags were quickly shown.

    When the action resumed the drivers needing improvement to secure passage to Q2 were 16th-placed Haas driver Romain Grosjean, McLaren’s Fernando Alonso in P17, followed by Williams Sergey Sirotkin, Sauber’s Charles Leclerc and the second Williams of Lance Stroll.

    Alonso was the driver to progress, though only by virtue of having set a time of 1:30.530 before Grosjean matched the lap to the thousandth of a second. The Haas driver was left to rue a mistake late in his lap. Had he not erred the Frenchman might have finished the segment closer to seventh-placed team-mate Kevin Magnussen.

    At the top of the order, the top five drivers remained in the garage for the final runs of Q1 and Räikkönen led the way with his sole flying lap of 1:28.951.

    In the first runs of Q2 Vettel got the better of this team-mate for the first time during the weekend, taking P1 with a lap of 1:28.341. Räikkönen slotted into P2 but was dropped down a spot when Hamilton took P2 a tenth off Vettel. Ricciardo found himself fourth ahead of Bottas and surprise package Pierre Gasly continued to shine for Toro Rosso with sixth place, in front of the Renault of Hulkenberg, the Haas of Magnussen, the second Renault of Sainz and tenth-placed Esteban Ocon of Force India.

    In the drop zone ahead of the final runs were Sergio Perez, who had complained of a loss of energy on his first run, while P12 man Alonso was followed by team-mate Vandoorne, Toro Rosso’s Brendon Hartley, and the unfortunate Verstappen.

    And while they shuffled their order, none made it through to Q3 in the end, with Hartley rising to 11th ahead of Perez, Alonso, Vandoorne, and Verstappen.

    Vettel made the first move in Q3 but while he took P1 with a time of 1:29.196 there was a mistake in the final corner as he went marginally wide and kicked up dust. That allowed Räikkönen to sneak past and the Finn took provisional pole by 0.095s. Hamilton slotted into third, a tenth behind the top two, with Bottas fourth ahead of Ricciardo and Gasly.

    There were no errors on Vettel’s second attempt, however, and he rose to the top of the order with a lap of 1:27.958. The German was the only man to dip below the 1m28s mark and he thus took his 51st pole with just over four-hundredths of a second ahead of Räikkönen.

    It might have been assumed that Hamilton would have a say in how the front of the grid was drawn, but in the end, it was team-mate Bottas who took P3 as Hamilton failed to find an improvement.

    With the champion set to drop to P9 on the grid due to his gearbox penalty, Ricciardo backed out of his final run, safe in the knowledge that his time was good enough for P5 in the session and P4 on the grid.

    Behind them, Gasly put in a superb lap to qualify in sixth place ahead of Magnussen, Hulkenberg, Ocon, and Sainz.

  • Raikkonen fastest in FP2 but likely to face grid penalty

    Sakhir (Bahrain), April 6: Kimi Räikkönen went quickest in second practice ahead of the Bahrain Grand Prix but the Ferrari driver may be facing a grid penalty due to a possible unsafe release from the pit lane late in the session. Bahrain GP is the second round of the 21-round Formula One World Championship.

    The Finn was quickly into the action as the session got underway and set an early benchmark of 1:30.689 on soft compound Pirellis that was later passed by team-mate Sebastian Vettel and Mercedes driver Valtteri Bottas.

    Räikkönen then wasted no time in getting his qualifying simulation out of the way, being the first to bolt on a set of supersoft tyres shortly before the half-hour mark.

    And after logging a time of 1:29.817 that was good enough to stand until the end of the session, the Finn then moved on to long runs. However, 15 minutes from the end of the of the session, he pitted for a change of tyres and despite frantic waving from crew members on the front right of his car Räikkönen was released back on track. Realising he had an issue the Ferrari driver quickly pulled over and stopped.

    Race control reported that the incident would be investigated following the session but if it is found to be a case of unsafe release Räikkönen the race stewards hand him a grid drop for Sunday afternoon’s race at the Bahrain International Circuit.

    In the qualifying runs Räikkönen was followed onto supersoft tyres by Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton.

    The champion backed out of a first flying lap due to traffic and then at the end of scrappy effort lost further time when he encountered the slower Haas of Kevin Magnussen. Hamilton thus finished the session in fourth place, behind team-mate Bottas and more than six tenths of a second off the pace.

    It was left to Vettel to take P2 in the session, with the German profiting from a clean run that left him just 0.011s behind Räikkönen.

    The two-by-two nature of the top positions was completed by Red Bull, for whom Max Verstappen was fifth quickest. However, the Dutchman was unhappy with a qualifying run that left him almost a second off top spot.

    Verstappen finished six thousandths of a second clear of team-mate Daniel Ricciardo who had a near miss with Bottas during the session. The Australian was on a quick lap when he came across the Mercedes on a slow lap but on the racing line. Bottas was quick to point out over the radio that his team had given him no information about Ricciardo’s approach. The Red Bull driver was understandably unimpressed, however.

    Best of the rest status was taken by Renault’s Nico Hulkenberg, who finished half a second behind Ricciardo and 1.4s off the top Ferrari.

    Behind the German, Toro Rosso’s Pierre Gasly continued the good form he had shown in claiming seventh spot in the opening session by taking eighth place in the evening and beating the McLaren pairing of Fernando Alonso and Stoffel Vandoorne who finished ninth and tenth respectively.

    2018 Bahrain Grand Prix – Free Practice 2
    1 Kimi Raikkonen Ferrari 1:29.817 32
    2 Sebastian Vettel Ferrari 1:29.828 0.011 37
    3 Valtteri Bottas Mercedes 1:30.380 0.563 31
    4 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 1:30.472 0.655 32
    5 Max Verstappen Red Bull Racing 1:30.745 0.928 32
    6 Daniel Ricciardo Red Bull Racing 1:30.751 0.934 31
    7 Nico Hulkenberg Renault 1:31.220 1.403 34
    8 Pierre Gasly Toro Rosso 1:31.232 1.415 38
    9 Fernando Alonso McLaren 1:31.282 1.465 29
    10 Stoffel Vandoorne McLaren 1:31.422 1.605 35
    11 Romain Grosjean Haas 1:31.591 1.774 33
    12 Carlos Sainz Renault 1:31.601 1.784 34
    13 Esteban Ocon Force India 1:31.809 1.992 31
    14 Sergio Perez Force India 1:31.868 2.051 34
    15 Kevin Magnussen Haas 1:31.969 2.152 35
    16 Charles Leclerc Sauber 1:32.372 2.555 37
    17 Lance Stroll Williams 1:32.382 2.565 30
    18 Sergey Sirotkin Williams 1:32.474 2.657 37
    19 Marcus Ericsson Sauber 1:32.733 2.916 32
    20 Brendon Hartley Toro Rosso 1:32.908 3.091 38.

  • We can still win podium places, says Alonso

    We can still win podium places, says Alonso

    Sakhir (Bahrain), April 5: The second round of the 21-round FIA Formula One World Championship began with the traditional Thursday press conference here with drivers Valtteri Bottas of Mercedes, Kimi Raikkonen of Ferrari and Fernando Alonso of McLaren present. Former World champion Alonso, who is struggling with the pace, is on a mission this season and was just a few places down to the leaders in the first race in Australia. Alonso believes that anything can happen in a race and he is ready to fight for podium places.

    From left: Kimi Raikkonen, Fernando Alonso and Valtteri Bottas at the Thursday press conference. Photo: FIA.Q: Kimi, if we can start with you. It was third place in Australia for the opening and it could have been even better and you said you were happy with the car during the first weekend. Could you just tell us what about this car you like and does it suit you more than last year’s car? 

    Kimi RÄIKKÖNEN: Obviously it’s hard to say. I think it was a pretty straightforward weekend. For sure, we could have done more things and improved always, but it’s the same: it doesn’t matter if you win or are a tenth of something; there are always things to improve or work on. Obviously, we have a very limited amount of time over the weekend to do things, with the practice, and also with the weather, it was a bit tricky. Overall, I think we were quite pleased with how things went. You want more, better positions, but I think we take that happily. As a team, we did a pretty job out of it. Not much to complain about really. We want to win races, but it’s the first race out and we managed to do decent points, so we go forward here, try to make a good practice. So far the car has been working well, even with pretty limited testing over the winter, with some illness and obviously the weather was not ideal on the first test, so I’m pretty OK with how things are running, so let’s just keep doing our normal things and improving.

    Q:     Valtteri, it was a difficult weekend for you in Australia, especially with the crash in qualifying. How much does a weekend like that play on your mind in the gap between races and how eager are you to get out on track this weekend? 

    Valtteri Bottas: Well, not so much been in my mind, because everything was kind of processed during the weekend. It was a bad weekend, that’s it. Now we still have 20 races to go and we’re here in Bahrain, so nothing really to worry about at this point. We have a competitive car. We know we still have a lot of work to do to make it better. Just a bad weekend, so looking forward to this one.

    Q:     Fernando, you said on Saturday evening in Melbourne that hopefully you’d finish higher than P7 or P6 in Australia and you finished in fifth place. So where will you finish this weekend?

    Fernando Alonso: I don’t know, I don’t have the crystal ball anymore! I think definitely the car has some potential. Over the winter we had some ups and downs in testing and then in Australia, it was the same thing – the free practice was affected by the weather and the qualifying was not smooth enough for us to show the potential. It was a good race, a lucky race with the two Haas retirements and the Virtual Safety Car. Nevertheless, I think we take this fifth place and we move on. There is still a lot to improve for us if we want to catch up to the top three teams, but I think we have the potential there and hopefully, we can unlock some performance in the next races.

    QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

    Q: Fernando, following on from that: as you say, ups and downs and still potential to come, but are happy days here again?

    FA: Well, I think there’s still quite a reasonable gap to close with the leaders, but I think it’s up to us now. It’s up to the team to deliver the performance in the next weeks, in the next four or five or six Grands Prix. If we are able to bring the performance to the track and close that gap and, you know, being in a reasonable distance to the pole position and the podium finishes and things like that, then it’s up to us to deliver the result on the weekend. I think the next two months are crucial for our hopes in this year’s championship, but hopefully we can keep improving the car, keep putting more performance and if it’s not a world championship fight, it will hopefully be some podium positions during the year or it can be regular top six or top five positions, not only in Australia P5 because of the Virtual Safety Car and the two Haas retirements. Maybe P5 could become a normality. That’s something we need to discover and to find out and as I said before, it’s probably the first time in the last three years that it’s up to us now to deliver that result, so we will try to do our best.

    Q:     Kimi, you have eight podiums here, but the qualifying results have not been that good – only one P3. Is that the biggest difference you have between racing and qualifying in any circuit, and, if yes, where is that coming from?

    KR: I don’t look too closely what has happened in the past, you probably know better. To be honest we try to do our best. Sometimes it works; sometimes not and obviously, you start where you qualify. If it’s a good place or not that great you try to make the best out of it. To be honest some years it’s been working out well here. You can choose the tyres and do a different race and it worked out well. Could it be better if you started at the front? Who knows? Another weekend where we try to do a good job and be up there and see where we end up. It’s a bit unknown. This is a completely different circuit to the previous two where we’ve been in Barcelona and Australia – so yeah, we have to see how everything plans out and where we are, where others are – but it’s been a pretty decent place in past years.

    Q:     To Kimi and Valtteri, starting with Kimi. Kimi, you were almost seven-tenths slower in qualifying in Australia. Do you think Mercedes can also have such an advantage in qualifying here? And, in race conditions, if you believe Ferrari will be more or less in the same gap to Mercedes – or even smaller due to characteristics of the track, and considering the history of Ferrari in this track?

    KR: Who knows. You can keep guessing as long as you want, we see over the weekend where we are. I have zero interest to start guessing where we are, what’s the difference in qualifying. There are so many things that will change that and you know, we’ll do our best and see where we end up in qualifying and the race – but the most important part is the Sunday after the race where it will be finished. I am finished to be two seconds off if we win every Sunday. I don’t care. It’s pretty irrelevant on Saturday in that way. But yeah, I don’t know. That’s why we come here. To find out.

    VB:     I think pretty much the same. You can always guess but at this point, we can only guess, so yeah… I think historically Ferrari has been good here. They had good race pace in Australia. Last year they had stronger pace here than in Australia, so I think it’s going to be a threat and they’re going to be close to us. Even Red Bull. But more than that, just can’t say. We will see how the weekend develops.

    Q: Interesting day coming up tomorrow where we understand Liberty Media will be presenting their blueprint of the future of Formula One to the teams. I was just wondering, as drivers, what input you’ve had, what consultations you’ve had and where you see any changes necessary from a racing perspective to improve Formula One for the future. It’s a question to you all.

    FA: I don’t think that there is anything thing that we can probably say about that. Definitely, Liberty has been quite open to us from Day One and they’ve been asking us all of last year about opinions and different ideas that we may have. So, they were very productive conversations. So, now I think they have a plan. They will show it tomorrow to the teams and we will agree with whatever their decision is because they have all the power and they have all the knowledge of who to do things. Hopefully, they’ll bring new ideas, new things that can improve the show and that will be welcome from all of us.

    Q:     Kimi, has there been any feedback you’ve been giving to Liberty about the direction of Formula One?

    KR: No, in the end, it’s not our decision, it’s up to them. It’s their business. They make plans and obviously take decisions they feel are correct. I don’t know what they’re doing now. I know very little about it and I’m not interested in it, so we’ll see tomorrow what they say. It’s in many years’ time anyhow. I doubt I’ll be here so it doesn’t really bother me.

    Q:     Valtteri, anything to add?

    VB: Not really. I think Fernando covered well. In the end, it’s their decision and tomorrow we’ll see what they will recommend. It’s difficult to speculate more than that – but it will be interesting to see what they recommend.

    Q: Valtteri, you say it’s been processed –  what happened at the Australian Grand Prix –  but how much pressure do you feel to have a good performance here? 

    VB: I think it’s a normal race weekend, that’s my feeling at the moment, honestly. Sometimes you have bad races and then there’s always the next one and of course, you always want to perform but there is no point in gathering pressure from one mistake in qualifying. Of course, I always hope for a good weekend but yeah, I feel a normal race weekend ahead.

    Q:     Just coming back to the previous question, to all drivers, Fernando said they have the power to change Formula One. If you had the power, what would you change in the Formula One we have today?

    KR: I don’t have it, so…

    Q:     Nothing you’d change at all?

    KR: No, I don’t have the power so what’s the point of wasting… even thinking about it because I don’t understand why you… what’s the point for me, to give you a list, because, in the end, I have zero power? I can’t. You understand? We can’t, we don’t make the rules, that’s my point. What’s the point of even making a story out of it?
    FA:  Well, I think it could be a close battle, that will always be welcome but it has always been like that in F1. I remember watching the TV in the very old days… it was on television last week a race from ’90 or ’89 and apart from the first four cars, everyone was flat. We remember that era like a golden era, with big names etc and they’ve always been a big spread but I think if you see now, other series, if you watch a race of IndyCars or whatever, that unpredictable result until the last ten laps makes you excited in front of the television and now we can put (down) the qualifying order for this race right now, on Thursday and that’s a little bit sad.

    VB: Well, I think, like everyone, all the spectators, all the drivers, we would all love closer racing like Fernando said but how to do that? It’s not in my hands.

    Q:     Fernando, one of the current stated objectives this year is to return to the podium. Now based on what you’ve experienced in testing and the race, what you’ve just said etc, in order to get onto the podium you have to beat both or one or both Ferraris, one or both Mercedes, plus two Red Bulls which have got the same engine. Do you honestly believe that that’s do-able and achievable this year?

    FA: Yes. We were two places from that podium already in Australia. They were very close, the last ten laps, Ricciardo and Kimi fighting together so anything can happen in a race. I won two races in 2008 with that ING Renault. I was on the podium in 2009 with the introduction of KERS and that car that we were, I think, ninth in the World Championship or something like that, and I was on the podium so anything can happen in F1. If you are close to that position, sooner or later that opportunity will come and we will be there to take it. I think it’s very much possible this year.

    FIA press release

  • We made mistakes and did not perform to our maximum: Toto Wolff

    Bahrain, April 4: Torger Christian “Toto” Wolff, Executive Director, Mercedes, AMG Petronas Formula One team, admitted to a few mistakes made during the season-opener Rolex Australian Formula One Grand Prix in Melbourne.

    In his own words, “Toto” explains: “We suspected that the new season would be closely fought and the first race confirmed those suspicions. We made mistakes and did not perform to our maximum – and it reminded us that this is the toughest racing series in the world, where every error is punished. It hurt to leave all those points on the table, especially because we know we had the pace to win in Australia.”

    “Back at base, we did what we always do after a tough weekend. We made sure that we understand what went wrong and put a process in place to make sure that we don’t see a similar issue in the future. These painful moments are the real learning experiences. Mistakes become training,” he added.

    “We expect Bahrain to be another challenging weekend, although the challenges will be of a completely different nature. The race in the desert is tricky because the conditions change drastically between sessions. FP1 and FP3 take place in the heat of the day whereas Qualifying and the race itself take place after sunset so it’s much cooler. That makes it extremely difficult to find the right set-up with the car.

    “Bahrain is also a power-sensitive race with the long straights. We saw in Melbourne that the Ferraris, in particular, were very quick, so I expect it to be a close battle. We’ve seen some great racing in Bahrain in recent years, particularly between our drivers back in 2014, so I think we can look forward to an exciting and competitive weekend.

    Featured this Week: What Are Engine Modes? 

    Over a million working hours have gone into designing, developing and constructing our 2018 Formula One car. While the result of some of that engineering work can easily be spotted by the untrained eye – for example, the complex aerodynamic bodywork – other equally important areas are hidden from sight.

    One of the all-important elements that lie underneath the bodywork is the Power Unit (PU). In this modern, 1.6-litre V6 Turbo era, it’s much more than just an engine. The Power Unit is made up of six different elements – the Internal Combustion Engine (ICE), Turbo, MGU-K, MGU-H, Control Electronics, and Energy Store.

    These elements are combined together to deliver different Power Unit modes, which drivers and teams can utilise throughout a race weekend. Over the course of the 2018 season-opening Australian Grand Prix weekend, these proved to be a particularly hot topic and sparked plenty of debate. So, what are Power Unit modes and why are they necessary?

    PU modes are a combination of settings that adjust the performance of the ICE as well as the flow of electrical energy. The ICE performance is changed, for example, by varying the amount of fuel that is injected into the combustion chamber or by changing the timing of the ignition. For the Hybrid side of the Power Unit, the modes will alter the interaction and scheduling of the electrical energy for both deployment of the 120kW (maximum) MGU-K and recovery of both the MGU-K and MGU-H.

    The main task of PU modes is to balance performance and reliability. Formula One is all about performance, but with just three Power Units per driver in 2018 (and only two of some systems), reliability is increasingly important. This is why the drivers have reduced mileage allocations of the higher power modes.

    At Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport, we use three basic modes over the course of the weekend – one for the majority of the free practice sessions, one for the majority of Qualifying and one for the majority of the race.

    All three can be altered with various sub-settings for different situations, which control whether electrical energy is being net deployed over a lap, recovered or used in a balanced manner (with energy deployment and recovery balancing each other out).

    At the start of the race, for example, performance is particularly important, so drivers will choose full deployment to either defend a good position on the grid or try and gain positions in the opening laps. But F1 is about a blend of ballsy on-track passing and tactical strategy, so the drivers will later switch to a recovery energy management mode and charge the battery – just to make sure they can have more energy available for their next attack.

    Both Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas switched their race mode to lower performance during the Australian GP when they were stuck in traffic and the turbulent air of the cars ahead, in order to cool the engines and prevent them from overheating. A Safety Car presents a similar challenge – drivers want to conserve energy and the Power Unit, so the engine mode is set to reduce the duty and cool the hardware.

    Conserving damage and the reliability of the Power Unit is also important in free practice. Pushing the engines to the limit in practice just doesn’t make sense, as they need to last seven race weekends. There is one session, however, when the Power Unit is pushed to the absolute limit and gives the drivers everything it can: Qualifying.

    In terms of engine modes, the setting for Qualifying will be the most powerful one. This mode is only required for a few laps each race weekend, and usage varies according to the competitive context – sometimes this Qualifying mode will be used throughout Qualifying, sometimes only in the final Q3 session.

    The available mileage is dictated by what is termed the “phase document”, which defines the limits to which the Power Unit may be used during each race weekend, and which is the same for the works cars and the Mercedes customer teams.

    PU modes are defined when the first set of hardware is tested in Brixworth and the mileage limit is determined by the success of the long-run programme. Some of these are circuit-specific, others are more general. Making the call on which mode to use can either be the driver’s decision or through the advice of the engineering team – who will communicate over the radio which settings to adjust and which mode to switch to.

    If you hear some technical-sounding instructions over the team radio, it might well be the Power Unit mode being changed. The drivers will then change the mode through the switches on their steering wheel.

    PU modes are particularly significant at power-sensitive circuits such as Spa-Francorchamps or Monza, which are dominated by long straights and acceleration zones. The first power-sensitive track on the 2018 F1 calendar is Round 4 in Baku.

    It will be interesting to see how the storyline around engine modes develops as the season progresses, particularly when F1 reaches those more power-sensitive venues.

    Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team Release

  • Sahara Force India prepares for the intense mid-field battle: Bahrain GP

    Sahara Force India prepares for the intense mid-field battle: Bahrain GP

    Preview photo by Sahara Force India F1 team.

    Bahrain, April 3: After an unusually poor beginning to the season on the street circuit at Albert Park, Sahara Force India who are now famous for punching above their weight, are preparing for the Bahrain GP.

    Acclaimed Indian racer and rallyist of yesteryears, Harish Samtani of `High Octane’ fame will bring forth his columns live from the Shakir circuit. Watch out for the `High Octane’ logo on the top right-hand corner of the home page.

    In the curtain raiser, team Principal and liquor baron, Vijay Mallya, who is facing a deportation case reiterated from London that the team will continue to work hard and fight for better positions after both the cars finished outside points in the first race of 2018.

    “Melbourne was a clear indicator that the competitiveness of the grid has closed up in 2018. We’ve got to work hard to maintain our fourth place in the championship and there’s going to be an intense development race at the front of the midfield. We are certainly up for the challenge and there are further changes to the car in Bahrain. We are a motivated team, with determined drivers and we will be targeting points this weekend,” said Mallya about the team which got a fighting fourth place for consecutive years by spending budgets that were a fraction of the huge amounts that the top three teams like Ferrari, Mercedes, and Red Bull spend.

    But Chief Operating Officer Otmar Szafnauer retorted saying: “It’s where you end the season that counts.”

    A brief interview with the COO:

    Q: One race down, twenty to go. How is the mood in the camp…
    “Melbourne is always a peculiar race. We came within a whisker of scoring a point with Sergio having caught Carlos Sainz, but overtaking was especially difficult at Albert Park and the tenth place remained out of reach. The race pace was stronger than our qualifying speed, but without track position, we couldn’t really show our true performance. Esteban’s front wing picked up some debris early in the race as well which compromised his pace, especially in the second stint.”

    Sergio Perez says: “Racing in Bahrain is good fun. It’s unusual because you’re in the desert and we also race under the lights. It’s actually one of my favourite tracks of the year and I’ve always gone well there. It’s where I had my first podium with Force India [in 2014] so I have those memories every time we go back there.

    “The Bahrain track often creates good racing. I still remember the battle I had with my old teammate, Jenson Button, in 2013. The layout really allows you to race wheel-to-wheel at times. If you lose a position in turn one, you can fight back through turns two, three and four.

    “It was difficult to overtake in Melbourne, but Bahrain should be a bit easier because it’s a more traditional track. We’ve got to be targeting points this weekend. Melbourne showed just how close all the teams are in the middle of the grid, so it’s especially important to have a clean weekend and maximise every session.

    “The development race will be very intense this year, but I know we have good things coming. We need to do what we have done in the last few years by making improvements to the car at each race. We’ve already made a step forward since pre-season testing so we need to keep working in the same direction.”

    Esteban Ocon, feeling good and ready, says: “When I think about Bahrain I always remember the beautiful paddock, which has so much space and looks amazing at night with all the trees lit up. Every year there’s a barbeque for the paddock and it’s nice that all the teams and media can come together before the racing begins.

    “I love racing at night. It almost feels quicker under the lights and it looks better on television. Hopefully, the fans like it as much as the drivers. The track is good fun and there are a few good overtaking spots, such as turn one and turn four.

    “It’s a track that feels very satisfying when your car is working well. I particularly enjoy turns five, six and seven because they are so quick and then you’re immediately into a big braking zone for turn eight. It’s tricky because you approach at really high speed and it’s easy to make a mistake and run wide.

    “It’s a tough weekend physically because of the heat. The daytime practice sessions are the most difficult, but fortunately, it gets a bit cooler in the evenings for qualifying and the race. You need to drink lots to be hydrated and make sure you don’t lose concentration.”

    Q: What can we expect from the next couple of races in Bahrain and China?
    “It’s business as usual in terms of developing the car. We’ve got a new front wing coming for Bahrain, which will complement the upgrades we introduced in Melbourne. The car we have now is totally different from the spec we used during testing and we’re still on a learning curve. There is huge development potential with this new aerodynamic platform and we have things in the pipeline, which will bring performance steps in the first quarter of the season.”

    Q: How do you see the competitiveness of the 2018 grid? Were there any surprises?
    “Testing showed us that the midfield has closed up considerably, so there were no big shocks in Melbourne. I think the points will be spread among the teams more evenly this year and retaining fourth place is going to be a big task. But we’ve only had one race and things can change very quickly in Formula One. The development race is only just beginning and it’s where you end the season that counts. Last year we out-developed the teams around us and we have to do the same this year. Our goal is to defend our fourth place and we will be fighting hard to get back up there.”

    Q: The pink livery continues to turn heads. It’s surely the most eye-catching car on the grid…
    “The BWT pink identity is even stronger this year. I remember standing in the pit lane in Melbourne and thinking how much better this year’s paint scheme looks. Commercially it’s been another strong winter with Ravenol, DUO and PEMEX coming on board, whilst also developing our existing partnerships with NEC and Hype Energy. It was fantastic to unveil our partnership with Havaianas in Melbourne. The branding on the halo is very powerful and it’s great to see a young lifestyle brand supporting us and recognising the value of F1. We hope to have more news to announce over the coming weeks.”

     

     

  • Stunning win for Vettel; Hamilton overcomes technical glitches to take 2nd: Rolex Aussie GP

    Stunning win for Vettel; Hamilton overcomes technical glitches to take 2nd: Rolex Aussie GP

    Melbourne: Sebastian Vettel took a sensational Rolex

    Vettel celebrates Aussie GP win on Sunday. Photo: Ferrari

    Australian Grand Prix victory, as the Formula One 2018 World Championship began at the traditional street circuit of Albert Park. Taking advantage of a mid-race safety car he beat arch-rival Lewis Hamilton, who suffered soft-ware glitches. The defending champion was forced to settle for second place ahead of the second Ferrari of Kimi “Räikkönen. Local hero Daniel Ricciardo finished fourth.

    Sahara Force India duo of Sergio Perez and Esteban Ocon failed to finish in the points, thus ending a successful run of double points finish at the Rolex Australian GP.

    “There could have been no better start for Ferrari in this Championship. Listening to Italy’s national anthem echo around Melbourne was an emotional moment for us all, and for every fan of the Scuderia. It’s the best possible reward for the team, which built a competitive car and used a perfect strategy to take advantage of the way the race evolved. Congratulations to Sebastian and Kimi, both drove a great race. Of course, there’s still a long way to go in the series, with 20 more Grands Prix. So it would be wrong to celebrate too much. We know that we still have a lot of work ahead of us, but the first step has been taken in the right direction,” said Ferrari Chairman  Sergio Marchionne.

    Hamilton led away comfortably at the start, dismissing a brief challenger from Raikkonen as they made their way through the first corners. Vettel held third place but behind Haas’ Kevin Magnussen got the jump on Verstappen who dropped to fifth ahead of Grosjean, Hulkenberg and Ricciardo.

    At the back of the field, Toro Rosso’s Brendon Hartley had a major lock-up into Turn 1 and pitted at the end of lap one. The New Zealander took on soft tyres in a bid to reach the end of the race on the yellow-banded set.

    Ricciardo was soon past Hulkenberg to take P7, but further ahead team-mate Verstappen was struggling to put pressure on Magnussen. The result was a rapidly degrading set of tyres and on lap 10 the Dutchman lost control into Turn 1 and spun. He dropped to eight behind Hulkenberg.

    At the front Hamilton was attempting to build a gap, but both Raikkonen and Vettel were tenaciously hanging on and by the end of lap 15 Hamilton only had three seconds in hand over the Ferraris.

    On lap 22 Magnussen made his first stop of the race, but almost immediately afterward he pulled over at the side of the track. The Dane reported an engine issue but Race Control later stated that the team had possibly released Magnussen unsafely.

    That boosted team-mate Grosjean to fourth but under pressure from Ricciardo and on fading ultrasofts the Frenchman also pitted. Again though, as soon as he rejoined the circuit, he immediately pulled over and stopped in a mirror image of the Magnussen incident, this time with the front left wheel of Grosjean’s car not being properly attached.

    With Grosjean’s car at the trackside on lap 24, the Virtual Safety Car was deployed. Ferrari seized the opportunity and pitted Vettel for soft tyres. Hamilton, though, lost a huge amount of time under the VSC and when Vettel emerged from the pit lane he swept into the lead.

    The VSC was replaced by the real thing as Grosjean’s car was cleared and when racing resumed Vettel held his lead over Hamilton, with Raikkonen third and Ricciardo fourth. McLaren’s Fernando Alonso had vaulted up to fifth place under the SC and was being shadowed by Verstappen who had also recovered from his early woes.

    The second half of the race became a cat and mouse battle between the Ferrari and Mercedes driver, with Hamilton regularly getting to within DRS range of the leader only for Vettel to drag the gap back out to beyond a second.

    Six seconds further back, Raikkonen kept Ricciardo at bay in the same manner, with the Australian getting to within DRS range and the Finn pulling away as he carefully managed his defence of the final podium position.

    Behind them, in the battle for fifth place, a little under two seconds covered three Renault-powered drivers in the closing stage, with Fernando Alonso leading Verstappen and Hulkenberg.

    With 10 laps remaining Hamilton got on the radio to his team saying that he was going to attack for the lead. The attempt came to nothing, however, as the Briton suffered a heavy lock-up at Turn 9, losing almost two seconds to Vettel.

    He clawed half that back over the next two laps and with seven laps remaining was 1.5s behind Vettel. A lap later and the deficit was just one second.

    But there Hamilton’s charge ended. On the next tour, he was 1.3 slower than Vettel and then drifted to 4.4s off the Ferrari, and having been warned about high engine temperatures, Hamilton voted to save the engine on his car and settled for a safe second place.

    A handful of laps later Vettel crossed the line to take his 48th career win ahead of the Briton. Raikkonen clung on to third place ahead of Ricciardo, while Alonso gave McLaren a positive start to life with Renault power by keeping Verstappen at bay to take fifth place. With the Dutchman sixth, Hulkenberg finished seventh ahead of Mercedes’ Valtteri Bottas, McLaren’s Stoffel Vandoorne. The final points position went to Renault’s Carlos Sainz, who battled to the finish despite suffering from nausea caused by the fluid in his drinks bottle during the race.

    2018 Australian Grand Prix – Race
    1 Sebastian Vettel Ferrari 1h29:33.283
    2 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 5.036
    3 Kimi Raikkonen Ferrari 6.309
    4 Daniel Ricciardo Red Bull 7.069
    5 Fernando Alonso McLaren 27.886
    6 Max Verstappen Red Bull 28.945
    7 Nico Hulkenberg Renault 32.671
    8 Valtteri Bottas Mercedes 34.339
    9 Stoffel Vandoorne McLaren 34.921
    10 Carlos Sainz Jr. Renault 45.722
    11 Sergio Perez Force India 46.817
    12 Esteban Ocon Force India 1’00.278
    13 Charles Leclerc Sauber 1’15.759
    14 Lance Stroll Williams 1’18.288
    15 Brendon Hartley Toro Rosso 1 lap
    16 Romain Grosjean Haas 34 laps
    17 Kevin Magnussen Haas 36 laps
    18 Pierre Gasly Toro Rosso 45 laps
    19 Marcus Ericsson Sauber 53 laps
    20 Sergey Sirotkin Williams 54 laps.

    Source: FIA

  • Halo blocks drivers’ vision, starting lights shifted: Season Opener

    Melbourne: “After the winter debates, pro and against the protective device, all focus shifted away from the halo and on to the cars’ performance,” claimed an F1 release.

    But it had to admit: …“the halo still managed to hold on to a bit of the limelight, as the starting lights were shifted under instruction from FIA Formula 1 Race Director Charlie Whiting. This because the drivers
    could not see through the halo to the lights high above them, this problem being worse for the cars on the front row of the grid.”

    Now one can decide if that is a bit of the limelight. Read the High Octane Column by Harish Samtani here: F1 running out of fresh ideas to breathe life back into racing!

    The 2018 season has finally got underway at Melbourne’s Albert Park circuit as the Friday practice sessions were run under a hot sun and blue skies. Mercedes posted the best times across the two sessions, confirming what was seen in the Barcelona tests a few weeks ago. Lewis Hamilton was the fastest in both practices, with Red Bull’s Max Verstappen managing to split the Mercedes drivers, pushing Valtteri Bottas into 3rd place in the second free practice. Fourth and 5th were the Ferrari, with Kimi Raikkonen ahead of Sebastian Vettel.

    The Melbourne weekend also witnessed the debut of Brendon Hartley’s social media collaboration with Formula 1 as he takes us on a journey with him on his first full season as one of the top drivers in the world. Follow Toro Rosso’s Kiwi here:

    Also, new this weekend is Brian Tyler’s newly-composed music for the Formula 1 starting sequence. Recorded with the London Philharmonic Orchestra, the score reflects the power and the fury of F1 cars as interpreted by one of Hollywood’s most successful film and game music
    composers.

    F1 Release!

  • Formula One running out of fresh ideas to breathe life back into racing

    Yay, it’s 2019 and we are going to get to witness F1 in its new avatar! Idiot! It’s still 2018, I had to remind myself and I wanted to crawl back into bed and continue watching Stranger things on Netflix! Anyway, being a petrol head too, zapped on the telly to watch F1 qualifying in Melbourne today and saw even more Stranger things!
    A new fangled helmet covering a helmet?!!! Hmmm …..From the 70s era to now, the men and racing drivers have become boys in more ways than one! Men crashed and burnt alive during events that were more gladiatorial than it being a sport about ambitious drivers in fast cars. Then, as F1 evolved and Eccelstone, the creator of this magnum opus brought in 30 and 40 million and more as salaries for drivers, the current crop wanted to live a lot longer to enjoy this wealth!
    The changes made in the 70s and 80s simply had to be done because the bloodshed was way too much and turning fans away. But this wussifying the sport by adding further fortification is the giddy limit.
    The two examples of accidental death and disability can be understood from the unfortunate incidents of the two legends – Ayrton Senna and Michael Schumacher. Ayrton had crashed a wall at close to 200kmph and a simple bolt ejected from the damaged front suspension like a bullet and went through his visor that opened up just that half inch. The result was the same as that of a bullet wound. He died on the spot. Schumi is fighting a losing battle after an innocent skiing accident. Just a day out with the family. Both heroes and both with absolutely no reason to be in that situation.
    So, if F1 thinks that they can save lives randomly and take away the no guts, no glory somewhat, should rethink.
    The qualifying today at the Australian GP did prove that the top four teams will remain there. A Ferrari win will improve the telly viewership substantially. In any case, the results of the first few races will not have too much bearing on the championship.
    With limited testing time in hand, teams will need to sort out their machines under competitive duress. The racing really begins once the circus moves to the traditional racing circuits in Europe.

  • Focus is on racing, not setting records: Hamilton

    Focus is on racing, not setting records: Hamilton

    Drivers Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes, centre), Sebastian Vettel (Ferrari, right) and Daniel Ricciardo (Red Bull Racing) at the FIA press conference in Melbourne. Photo: FIA

    Melbourne, March 22: Saying that his thoughts presently were far from breaking or setting any records, reigning champion Lewis Hamilton asserted that he would simply focus on being consistent through the season and race to his potential.

    Excerpts from the FIA press conference here on Thursday, ahead of season opener Australian Grand Prix:

    Let’s start with our world champion and six-time pole sitter here at Albert Park, Lewis Hamilton. Lewis, I think you said over the winter that you felt that last year was the best you’ve driven in your Formula 1 career. Do you anticipate having to go to another level this year in competition these gentlemen?

    Lewis HAMILTON: I plan to. That’s what I’ve been working towards.

    Why did you feel that last year was your best? What had to come together for you?

    Lewis HAMILTON: It was just a combination of things and obviously with the pressure that was on us as drivers, I think it was just the most complete year.

    A simple question for you Sebastian: can you and Ferrari find the speed to beat this guy over a whole season this year?

    Sebastian VETTEL: We don’t have the answer now. We try. It’s a long season. If it was one race it would be a different story, but it is a lot of races.

    To you, Daniel: in the last few years Red Bull have not been competitive at the opening round. This year it looks like you had better winter preparation, so do you think this could be your most effective Australian Grand Prix for a while?

    Daniel RICCIARDO: I believe so. We had a good winter. It’s all there in front of us now. I think we’re still the top three teams – Merc, Ferrari and us. I think we’re still going to be leading the pack for now. So hopefully we’ll be deep in that group and have a chance to stand up on the podium.

    QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

    Q: Lewis, how important is it to you to carry on ahead of Sebastian in terms of stats in your career and end your career ahead of him as well?

    LH: It’s not something I’ve ever really thought about to be honest. I don’t particularly have an opinion towards it. I’m just going to keep working as hard as I can to continue fighting up the front and hopefully with that comes some good results.

    Q: If you won from pole it’s an all-time record, you beat Michael’s record. Something to aim for.

    LH: Ah, OK.

    Q: Lewis, you say you don’t chase stats but you have recognised that you could reach Fangio’s record this season. Have you thought about that some more now that you are at the start of the season?

    LH: I have not, honestly. It’s a long, long season so you don’t really think about those kind of things, you don’t think about what could be in the sense of matching others. In my mind I’m trying to break down new barriers, push the envelope. Trying to see how far I can take, firstly, the opportunity I have and then obviously the ability I have and live to my full potential. I don’t know what that is, and that’s what I’m discovering.

    Q: A question to all of you. As Renault is already considering strategically to have a fourth engine for the year. Assuming you will all stay at that do you put your faith in your team to go on with three. Would consider down the line, in the closing stages of the championship, to go for a fourth engine in order to avoid a DNF and a penalty instead of only a penalty?

    DR: It’s hard to start thinking about that now. I had a few engine penalties last year and we’ve got one less [engine] this year so it’s likely – I don’t want to say it’s definite – but it’s obviously likely that we may encounter something like that or everyone may encounter something like that. I think it depends where you are in the championship. If you try to cut your losses I guess then maybe that’s what you’ll do but it’s for sure too early to start thinking about that. I think we’ll stay optimistic and try to get these three home to Abu Dhabi.

    SV: I’m sure we looked at it. I don’t think it’s the plan but I’m very confident that we’re not using four engines this weekend, so we don’t need to worry now.

    LH: I don’t really have much more to say.

    Q: Daniel, you say the team is the best prepared it’s been in quite a while. Is that more pressure on you? It that more pressure, more fun, less fun? How do you look at it?

    DR: It has to be more fun. Not starting last year wasn’t fun at all. So it has to be more fun. Even little things. Last year we missed the anthem on the grid because I was in the garage trying to get the thing going, or be there for when it got going. I missed a lot of the Sunday build-up, which was not fun. For sure this preparation is going to mean more fun this weekend and we’ll see where that fun takes us?

    Q: Lewis, you said you’re pushing the envelope. Do you think you’ve reached your peak as a driver or are you still learning?

    LH: I hope not.

    Q: Is it a peak age for a driver? Or do you just carry on learning?

    LH: Again I hope not. I’m sure there is a peak when for a driver when their fitness level…. When it gets harder to reach the fitness level that we do today. When your interest starts to decline, when your drive starts to decline, I guess that’s when you’re over your peak. But I definitely don’t feel I’m that. I’m definitely in a good range now and that’s where I need to continue, to extract the most from it.

    Q: How about you two? 

    DR: Not yet, still young.

    SV: I don’t know. I think it’s fine. Lewis is a little bit older and he’s not peaking yet, so I have got plenty to look forward to.

    Q: What is your opinion about the additional DRS zone and is it helpful or not?

    DR: I don’t think it hurts. It’s typically been a pretty hard track to overtake. I think, as well, with the cars, we’re going faster and faster and following a car is getting harder and harder at some circuits, so I think they’ve been proactive and tried to help out a cause here. I don’t know if it will necessarily create overtaking into that corner but it may at least put you into the zone to then have a chance somewhere else.

    LH: I think Daniel answered it well.

    SV: Agree.

    Q: Lewis, one of your former team-mates this week said that inconsistency was your biggest weakness. I’m just wondering whether you think that’s the case. And Seb, what’s your plan to beat Lewis. Have you thought over the winter about the best way to do that?

    LH: I think I proved that’s not the case last year and… yeah… again, I think there’s a lot of people that need to get headlines, and so maybe that’s one way of saying it. No, the goal this year is to be even more consistent that I was last year. I think consistency was the reason that I won the Championship last year.

    Q: Sebastian, do you see any weaknesses in Lewis? How would you describe them, or see them? What are they? If there are any.

    SV: Well, there aren’t many, so I think he’s doing a very, very good job for many years now. So, I think it’s always a bit of a weird question to answer when the person is sitting right next to you. But, as I said, there aren’t many. I’m sure we all have our weaknesses. Maybe some are part of our characters, maybe some are part of our driving – but to be honest I don’t think about those too much. I think about mine quite a lot and try to get better at what I need to improve. But yeah, concerning other people, it’s not in my hands. So, I try to finish my plate.

    LH: I think I share the same weakness with everyone in this room. Everyone loves pancakes. That’s really my only weakness.

    Q: Lewis, are you up for it this year? You seem a little bit jaded here – I don’t know if it’s jetlag or whatnot – but are you up for the fight this year?

    LH: I’m definitely not tired – this is the 12th season of doing the press conference. I’m not the most excited about this section of the season and the race weekend – but I’m looking forward to getting in the car.

    Q: Sebastian, can I take you back to your first answer, you were asked if you could beat Lewis and you said ‘if it was one race it would be a different story but maybe over the season’ or something like that. Does that mean you’re not confident this weekend that Ferrari are…?

    SV: …no but I think the question was whether we… who’s coming out of top, sort of. I think Mercedes is right and I think Lewis is right to be the favourite. But it’s a long season, so I think, you know, obviously, this is one race, Melbourne is particular in many ways. I think we all look forward to kick off the season, to get ready, get in the car and race. I think, you know, we have all the reasons to be confident. Our car is great. There’s stuff to come, so plenty to look forward to, but usually at this point you don’t know where the others are. So, that’s why it’s a bit pointless to come here and say that you’ll blow everyone away. Based on testing, I think we are in good shape. We could be in better shape, but it’s always like that.

    Q: Sebastian, how would it mean for you to go level with Fangio?

    SV: I think it’s a bit of a similar answer to what Lewis gave earlier. Obviously, I’ve had more time to think about it than Lewis had. More than one winter. I’m not setting these things out and planning or looking forward to what could possibly happen. Certainly, if it will happen it would mean a lot – and then I think you start to realise – but now I don’t see the point of thinking ‘what if’. I have a lot on my plate now and I’m happy also to look forward to what’s right in front of me, not what could be at some point in the future. Ideally, it’s less than 12 months away – but it’s a long way. I think we all know how many things need to come together to be able to fight for the championship towards the end of the season. And then to win it. Also, I think nowadays the times are different. I think it’s very different times to when Fangio achieved it, compared to today. So, every era has its own challenges, certainly they were a bit different back then. So yeah, it’s not in my mind now.

    Q: Question for all three drivers: how do you feel about the shift in direction of Formula One since the takeover of Liberty Media?

    LH: I don’t know what to say. I just heard the new anthem. Reminded me of [TV programme] Gladiators. Used to watch that on a Saturday night. We’re going to be the new Gladiators. I think there’s been a lot of good progress over the last year in terms of how we engage with people and how we engage with fans and the openness – but I think it’s still part of a long process of learning where to go. I don’t think anyone in this room knows exactly what is the key to Formula One moving forwards and succeeding. I think it’s a very difficult question to answer but I think they’re doing the best they can and we’re all trying to support them the best way we can.

    DR: I agree with that. I think there’s been some good initiatives as well within the paddock. Especially at a lot of the European races with the fixed team structures. Feels like week-in, week-out you’re just rolling into the same deal and everyone goes straight to their motorhome and that’s kind of it – but there’s generally a lot of friends or fans or VIPs whatever in and amongst the paddock but they’re secluded. They’ve tried to create like a bar and a bit of a common area, got some music going in the paddock, and just create a bit more of an atmosphere. Again, the on-track stuff for us, the racing, that doesn’t change, but at least the fans, spectators for the weekend get a good deal. I think Melbourne’s always done a good job as far as putting things on, as the whole weekend goes, like filling it up with other racing and other activities, so I think they’re learning to adopt some strategies to create more of an event around the race, so everyone’s not just living for that Sunday afternoon: there’s more going on.

    SV: Yeah, from a driving point of view there’s obviously not that much that has changed. The regulations have been set before there was new people taking over. I think it’s great to see and I heard last year continuously around the track people supporting us. There were more things to do, it was a bit more fun, which I think is great. In general, I think I’m a traditionalist and I like to hold on to certain things, so probably there’s a lot of things I’m not a specialist in and I don’t need to understand. So I’m a bit confused why the races start later, a bit sad that there are no more grid girls, but other than that, not many changes yet. I think we need to wait.

    Q: It’s a rare thing in any sport when you have two enduring champions that are both at the peak of their powers so for you, Lewis and Sebastian, how special is it to share your careers in this way and heading into this season where I guess we’re all looking at it as a bit of a decider, how much additionally special does that make it, knowing that the other guy is so good?

    LH: Ultimately it’s a privilege to be in Formula One. It’s a privilege to be racing for the teams that we’re racing for and for me and Mercedes, with the heritage that they have, to be a part of the sport that’s progressing and changing with the times and to be at the forefront of it, competing against the best drivers that you can compete against. I think when you come to the end of your career, you want to know that you competed against the best. There are those that bow out early, there are those that have won championships, maybe that have not been as competitive. The ultimate goal is to be the best. I think you have to go up against the best. It’s been a great experience to be able to race against Sebastian. He’s got the four World titles, the most of any other driver at the time and I think this is an exciting year for Formula One fans, being that we have two four-time World Champions battling it out. But Daniel’s been smiling quite a lot today, so I think you’re going to be surprised this weekend just how competitive Red Bull are. There’s a lot of hype around our team which I think is very difficult to really take much notice of because the last test was a little bit distorted with the track the way it was and everyone was on different fuel loads. So I’m excited to see how we all fare up once we get into practice.

    SV: I agree with Lewis. Obviously first of all it’s a privilege to be able to get a chance to prove yourself in Formula One, then to be able to race in Formula One. Then I think when you get in it’s all about winning. You want to win, you don’t look at anything else. Probably later on, after you’ve won a little bit, you get a bit more perspective and open your horizons as well and then I think it becomes something special to win against the best. In my case, obviously, I think if I look at the people I raced throughout my career. Then I think it’s always been sort of the same people which starting from karting age, even if I didn’t race Lewis in karting, but you were aware. Then you move on. We met a little bit later in Formula Three where he was a lot better than I was and then in Formula One ultimately. But yeah, then you care more about who you race against and what it means to you, it gives you more satisfaction. And now, obviously, I’m searching for the ultimate satisfaction to win with Ferrari which is the greatest team in history, the greatest team in the paddock and that’s my ultimate target now, to win with Ferrari and win against the best which arguably… I’m sure there’s plenty of numbers that you’re all aware of, arguably, and Lewis is one of them.

    Q: Lewis and Sebastian, as Daniel sits here today, he doesn’t have a deal for 2019. What would you like to say to encourage him to join your respective teams next season?

    SV: I don’t know. I’m sure he’ll find a seat. So yeah, I don’t know what he’s up to or what he wants. I don’t know how much he’s asking, but as I said, I’m confident he’ll find a seat. We only shared one year together, I knew him before that and we had one year together which wasn’t great for me, it was great for him. But anyways, I think we get along, so I wouldn’t mind if we get together again in the future. But I don’t know what his plan is. I think he has a couple of options and I don’t think he needs to rush.

    Q: Lewis, do you feel the same way?

    LH: I would just say that an important thing is just really to look at the history of drivers and things that drivers have said in the past and try not to alienate the team that you’re in. It’s all good and while hoping at some stage to experience something new in another team, but there’s a lot of people in our teams and it’s really important to keep them encouraged and focused on you as a driver, to help you achieve your goal and if you look at… there are some drivers of recent years who have made bad decisions in upsetting and rocking the boat and that so yeah, he’s in a great place still. Red Bull, I think, this year can really have a fighting chance to win the championship and the opinion of where you might want to go, if it’s not where he currently is, may shift.

    Q: We have to have your rebuttal  to that, Daniel.

    DR: Well said, well said by both. Yeah, I feel like I’ve answered already so many, like contract talks and we haven’t even got the first race of this year done. So yeah, I’m just going to put all those talks on hold for a while and yes, this year our prep’s been good and I really really hope that Lewis is right that we will have a chance to fight for a title. That will ultimately make me very happy.

    Q: Last year the rules imposed numbers on the car, the name of the driver and so on. And this year, with the halo, it’s even impossible to recognise the helmets of the drivers. Is the drivers’ identification something you care about for the viewers, for the fans, for the TV commentators and do you have any suggestions to improve the situation?

    SV: We should be allowed to design the halo.

    LH: I don’t have a suggestion for it, but I have noticed that it’s almost pointless of us painting the helmets nowadays. So I’m probably going to get rid of my paint on mine. Saves weight, but yeah, I don’t really have a suggestion for it. I’m sure they’ll come up with something.

    FIA transcript