Category: Formula One

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Summer break analysis Part 2

GP AUSTRIA F1/2016 – SPIELBERG (AUSTRIA) 03/07/2016
© FOTO STUDIO COLOMBO PER PIRELLI MEDIA (© COPYRIGHT FREE)

Instructions:

-Go at the bottom of the article

-Click play on the video (new summer hit)

– Return to the top

-Read and enjoy!

Toro Rosso

An interesting season for Scuderia Toro Rosso so far, before the Spanish Grand Prix Max Verstappen was swapped with Daniil Kvyat, a move which cost points to Toro Rosso.

Toro Rosso is currently sixth, behind Force India, but it will be difficult for the team to score points and finish higher than that position.

Carlos Sainz Jr.

Points: 30

Position: 11th

Best Result: 6th

Carlos Sainz is trying to finish in the points in every race, but he struggles as he doesn’t have a very competitive car. Carlos best finish position was the 6th place in the home race in Spain, he started the race from the eighth position. Sainz is eleventh in the drivers’ standings, only three points behind Nico Hulkenberg.

Daniil Kvyat

Points: 23

Position: 14th

Best Result: 3rd

Daniil Kvyat had to change teams, before Spain. Daniil swapped his seat in Red Bull with Max Verstappen. A move which he didn’t like, but he had to accept it. Kvyat needed some time to get used the new car and the new settings. His best result was the 3rd place in China with Red Bull Racing.

McLaren

A dream season for McLaren so far. Compared to their last season’s results, McLaren-Honda shows a totally different face. Jenson Button and Fernando Alonso scored 41 points for the British team. Despite some reliability issues, McLaren has made a significant improvement and makes me think that next season they might be very close to the top team. In Hungary, both drivers entered the final stage of the qualifying session, for the first time since 2014.

Fernando Alonso

Points: 24

Position: 13th

Best Result: 5th

Fernando Alonso has finished only six of the twelve races, due to reliability issues. The Spaniard looks satisfied with the MP4-31 and he has scored 24 points so far. Fernando is in the 13th position, just four points behind Grosjean and six points behind Sainz.

Jenson Button

Points: 17

Position: 15th

Best Result: 6th

Jenson Button looks calm and he enjoys his moments in the sport. Jenson scored fewer points than his team-mate, but their results are almost similar. Button’s contract ends this season and McLaren might replace him with Vandoorne who scored McLaren’s first point this season in Bahrain.

Haas

Haas couldn’t imagine a better debut season, the team has 28 points so far and they look very competitive to the low budget teams. They managed to finish in the top six and in the top fifth in the first two races of the season, since then they finished only two times in the top 10, but still, it’s a great achievement for them.

Romain Grosjean

Points: 28

Position: 12th

Best Result: 5th

Romain Grosjean is the driver who has scored all the points for Haas. The French, finished four times in the points, in the first two races he finished sixth and fifth respectively. Generally, it’s a positive season for Romain who has out-raced and outscored his team-mate.

Esteban Gutierrez

Points: 0

Position: 19th

Best Result: 11th

No points for Gutierrez so far this season, but the Mexican finished four times eleventh and also Esteban finished in front of his team-mate in the last two races. Luck is not with him so far, but I believe that he will get his chance and he will score his first point with Haas.

Renault

Renault returned to Formula 1 after six years of absence. It was known that it will be a difficult season for Renault. They didn’t have the required time to build a proper car, but despite their issues, they managed to score six points. Renault hasn’t announced their driver line-up for 2017 and it will be interesting to see if they will keep Kevin Magnussen and Jolyon Palmer.

Kevin Magnussen

Points: 6

Position: 16th

Best Result: 7th

Kevin Magnussen decided to join Renault and try his luck for the second time in Formula 1. The Danish driver is the one who scored the first points for Renault so far, he finished 7th in Russia. His future in Formula 1 is not clear yet.

Jolyon Palmer

Points: 0

Position: 20th

Best Result: 11th

Palmer is on the of the rookie drivers this season, the British showed some good driving skills at the start of the season and he almost scored his first point in Formula 1 in Australia, but Jolyon finished 11th behind Max Verstappen.

Manor

Manor scored their first point of the season in Austria, and that was the second time where the team finishes in the points in their Formula 1 history. Manor decided to replace Rio Haryanto with Esteban Oco for the second half of the season.

Pascal Wehrlein

Points: 1

Position: 17th

Best Result: 10th

Pascal scored his first point in his Formula 1 career in Austria, his results are better than Rio Haryanto’s and the German has high chances to remain in Formula 1, and maybe sign a contract with a bigger team in the future.

Rio Haryanto

Points: 0

Position: 23rd

Best Result: 15th

Bad season for Rio Haryanto, Manor’s driver struggles to finish above the 15th position and the team will replace him with Esteban Oco. Haryanto will remain in Manor as a reverse driver.

Sauber

Sauber is the only team who hasn’t score a point far. Financial problems keep the team behind. Good news is that new owners were announced and will be revealed in July. That allows for the team to upgrade the existing car. A new front wing will be available for Marcus Ericsson and Felipe Nasr in Belgium.

Marcus Ericsson

Points: 0

Position: 21st

Best Result: 12th

Marcus Ericsson hasn’t scored a point in this season and his results are similar with Felipe Nasr. Marcus finished twice in the 12th position, the first one was in Bahrain and the second one was in Barcelona.

Felipe Nasr

Points: 0

Position: 22nd

Best Result: 12th

The Brazilian, had some nice highlights during the season with wheel to wheel battles, but Sauber lack of power didn’t allow him to challenge his opponents. Nasr’s best result was in Baku circuits where he finished 12th.

Next race will take place in Belgium, Spa at the end of the month. Take a deep breath, Formula 1 is almost back!

Victor

Follow me on Twitter @FP_Passion

 

 

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Summer Break, Team by Team Analysis

Click play and Enjoy

The ideal way to spend your summer break is to be on the beach, with friends and drink cocktails. But if you are a motorsport fan you will not be satisfied until your read an article about Formula 1.

Now you can relax, put your sunglasses on and enjoy the fresh summer mood article.

It’s the best time of the season to analyse how good each time and driver was during the first half of the season.

Mercedes

Another great season for Mercedes so far, Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg collected 415 combined and they are the first two drivers in the championship standings. Mercedes won 11 of the 12 races, Max Verstappen with Red Bull Racing was the only driver who managed to beat Mercedes and win the Spanish Grand Prix.

Lewis Hamilton

Points: 217

Position: 1st

Best Result: 1st (6 wins)

Lewis Hamilton had a bad start this seasons, in Australia, he finished second behind his team-mate Nico Rosberg and in Bahrain Hamilton finished third. Everyone had high expectations from the three times world champion, but the Brit needed some time to return to his top form.

After the Spanish Grand Prix, Hamilton, realised that if he wants to win this season’s title he must beat his team-mate. Lewis won his first Grand Prix of the season in Monaco, it was the begging of his dominance. After Spain, Hamilton won six of the seven races and now he is on the top of the drivers’ standings.

Nico Rosberg

Points: 198

Position: 2nd

Best Result: 1st (5 wins)

Nico Rosberg started the season with the ideal way. The German won the first four races and showed that this year he will stop Hamilton’s dominance and win the title. After the collision he had with his team-mate in Spain, Nico’s performance wasn’t as good as it was before Spain. Rosberg managed to win only one of the seven races. Nico couldn’t follow his team-mate form and dropped to the second position, 19 points behind Lewis Hamilton.

Red Bull Racing

Red Bull decided to swap Daniil Kvyat with the young Max Verstappen during the season, a move which proved to be right for the team. Max Verstappen’s abilities gave more points to the team and improve their position in the constructors’ standings. Daniel Ricciardo and Max Verstappen scored 256 points so far.

Daniel Ricciardo

Points: 133

Position: 3rd

Best Result: 2nd

A very positive season for Daniel Ricciardo so far, the Australian finished on the podium the last two races, and he almost won in Monaco. Daniel finished twice in the second place, the first time was in Monaco and the second time was in Germany. He is the only driver who managed to get the pole from Mercedes and he achieved that in Monaco.

Max Verstappen

Points: 115

Position: 6th

Best Result: 1st

No words can describe Max Verstappen’s season. The Dutch won in his debut with Red Bull in Spain and he became the youngest driver who wins a race in Formula 1. After Spain, Max has scored more points than any other driver (except Lewis Hamilton). In every race, he shows how skilful driver he is and why he deserves a seat in Formula 1.

Scuderia Ferrari

Ferrari started the season with high expectations, in the first races, Ferrari was close to Mercedes and they always had a driver on the podium. In Canada, Sebastian Vettel finished second, almost five seconds behind Lewis Hamilton, but after that race, Ferrari’s performance dropped dramatically. The Italians couldn’t follow Mercedes’s pace and they lost the second position from Red Bull.

Ferrari collected 242 points so far.

Sebastian Vettel

Points: 120

Position: 5th

Best Result: 2nd

The four-time world champion finished five times on the podium, three of the five times Sebastian finished second. Vettel hasn’t finished on the podium in the last four races. The German struggles to beat his team-mate have dropped to the fifth position. Hopefully, Vettel will be better after the summer break and he will manage to challenge Kimi Raikkonen and Red Bull.

Kimi Raikkonen

Points: 122

Position: 4th

Best Result: 2nd

Kimi Raikkonen forced Ferrari, with his results, to renew his contract for another season, and secured a seat in Formula 1 for 2017. The Finn has a good season and despite Ferrari’s issues, he managed to score 122 points and be ahead of his team-mate. Kimi is enjoying every moment in Formula 1. Raikkonen finished four times on the podium, his best result was the second place in Bahrain and the second place in Spain. A few days ago, Kimi Raikkonen married Minttu Virtanen in Italy (F1 Gossip).

Williams

It was clear before the season premiere that this season will be tough for Williams. Despite the parts on the FW38 Williams still, struggles to find the required speed in order to finish in the top 4. Valtteri Bottas managed to finish on the podium once and that was in Canada. Not the best season for Williams so far, Bottas and Felipe Massa collected 96 points combined.

Valtteri Bottas

Points: 58

Position: 7th

Best Result: 3rd

Bottas is trying to keep Williams in the game, has scored more points than his team-mate and managed to finish on the podium in Montreal. It is clear that Bottas can’t challenge Max Verstappen for the sixth position, as the gap between them is 57 points.

Felipe Massa

Points: 38

Position: 9th

Best Result: 5th

Felipe Massa started impressively the season, he finished in the points in the first six races, but that was not enough to secure him enough points in order to be close to his team-mate. The Brazilian cannot find the speed he used to have as a Formula 1 and shows that it will be difficult for him to have a seat in the sport the next season.

Sahara Force India

Force India has a positive season so far, despite the first disappointing results, scored eight points in the first four races, they managed to improve their performance and scored 73 extra points. Team’s aim is to catch and pass Williams in the constructors’ standings.

Sergio Perez

Points: 48

Position: 8th

Best Result: 3rd

Checo has finished twice on the podium (3rd place) so far, the first time was in Monaco and the second one was in Baku. The Mexican scored 48 points and he is only ten behind Valtteri Bottas.

Nico Hulkenberg

Points: 33

Position: 10th

Best Result: 6th

Hulkenberg is not as good as his team-mate, he has scored fewer points, but still, his role is important for the team and his last results show that he is becoming better. The summer break might affect him positively and might help him to score points in Spa and Monza.

This is the first part of the summer break analysis, more to follow the next days. Enjoy the summer.

GP GERMANIA F1/2016 – HOCKENHEIM (GERMANIA) 31/07/2016
© FOTO STUDIO COLOMBO PER PIRELLI MEDIA (© COPYRIGHT FREE)
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Q&A with Tony Rudlin

 

We managed to get hold of a Team Lotus member from the 1960s – Tony Rudlin, himself a racing driver at one time, who was team manager for the Formula 2 effort at Lotus, and got to see the very best and worst of ​the great marque during changing times for the team! We asked him a few questions about his time there and the team itself.

​Q: How much of a revelation to the team was the Cosworth engine?

Tony Rudlin (TR): Cosworth was God. Well Mike Costin and Keith Duckworth were. Keith was more stay at home and get on with the job while Mike liked to get into the factory and work alongside mechanics and Team Managers. My best moment? A flight in Mike’s Bell Helicopter.

Q: Do you think that Colin Chapman would have approved of the technological leaps in modern F1?

TR: I think CC would have been bemused by the way Grand Prix is run these days. His idea of racing was you got a driver who showed promise, Peterson, Fittipaldi etc, and build a car calculated to win races and fall to pieces on the finishing line. He had very little time for politics and, until Jimmy Clark hit the tree, even less time for the safety aspects of racing. And he would have gone potty about all the stupid in-car instruction from non-drivers in the pits.

Q: Which driver for Team Lotus did you most enjoy working alongside?

TR: What do you mean by who was the most accessible? Jack Oliver was OK but a bit obsessive, Clark was quiet and friendly and Graham Hill could be a bit gritty if things weren’t going right. For instance, Montjuich 1968. Race Control had forgotten to order a little thing like fuel. Jack was stressed, Clark didn’t even seem to notice, Graham made arrangements to siphon fuel from road cars. And Chapman? He was obsessed by why his cars weren’t the fastest in practice.

​

​Q: What do you think was the biggest leap forward you saw for Grand Prix racing during your time as manager?

​TR: Painting the cars in sponsors colours instead of colours associated with their home country? I think I’m right in saying that Player’s (the tobacco company which produced Gold Leaf) gave Lotus £50,000 for the first year’s sponsorship and they didn’t know what to do with it. But I think the sexiest car to ever exit the pits was the Lotus 72E.

Q: Is it true that Graham Hill held the best post race parties?

TR: Graham Hill was always a party waiting to happen. I remember one party, from my fading memory I pluck Enna as the  venue, after Graham, slightly smashed, jumped on a long table and shimmied along it. Half way along he went down on one knee for dramatic effect. When he stood up the stem of a wine glass was jutting from his knee. It didn’t faze him until I pointed it out. He simply pulled it out and went on with the dance. (Read MR MONACO. Graham Hill Remembered By Tony Rudlin. Often cited as the worst book ever written about Motor Racing.)

Q: ​Did you prefer the British Racing Green or Gold Leaf colours?

​TR: I’m afraid – neither. The green and yellow was a mite old fashion and the red and white too garish. I plump for the Black and Gold of the 72. 

We’d like to thank Tony for taking the time to answer our questions  for Lotus Week!

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The Day a Legend Was Made –The Story Of The 1968 German Grand Prix

GP GERMANIA F1/2016 – HOCKENHEIM (GERMANIA) 31/07/2016
© FOTO STUDIO COLOMBO PER PIRELLI MEDIA (© COPYRIGHT FREE)
GP GERMANIA F1/2016 – HOCKENHEIM (GERMANIA) 30/07/2016
© FOTO STUDIO COLOMBO PER PIRELLI MEDIA (© COPYRIGHT FREE)

There has been much talk recently about the opening laps of this year’s British Grand Prix. A little while before the start of the race, the heavens opened. By the time of the start, conditions had improved somewhat, with the sun trying to break through, but there was still much standing water. So the decision was taken to start the race under the safety car, something that not only the spectators, but also some of the drivers, did not like. Lewis Hamilton pointed out that starting the race without the safety car would have been tricky, “but that’s what racing’s about”. These men are meant to be the best in the world, and there is a lot of opinion that they should have raced from the start, and adjust their speed accordingly…go too fast, and end up spinning off, drive within the limits of the car in those conditions, and truly show the skill that sometimes gets all too masked in modern technology. The safety car staying out for five laps was, for most, the final straw.

Well, let me take you back to a very different time, “In days of old when knights were bold” …and all that.

The scene is the Nurburgring; not the modern day short version, but the full,14.2 mile circuit in the mountains, “The Green Hell”. The German Grand Prix August 4th 1968. Not only is this wonderful circuit the most challenging and dangerous in the world, but low cloud descended on to the Ardenne mountains. Race day bought thick, dense fog, and driving rain, with visibility no more than 100 yards, less in places. No safety car in those days, of course, and the race went ahead, the 20 car grid setting off as the flag dropped, in a ball of spray. That such an event was being held in such conditions was unbelievable even back then, let alone now! If I hadn’t been a fan already that year, and listened in on the radio reports, I may well have thought the whole tale had been made up! But that day, undoubtedly, a legend was born. Just look at this:

At the end of the first lap, Jackie Stewart led from Graham Hill by 8.5s, after the second lap 34.6s, I have no record of the third lap gap but it must have continued at a similar rate because by the end of the fourth lap the gap was 59.7s, 68.5 after the fifth, and, well by now you get the idea! Hill and Amon were battling for second place, leading the rest of the field who were all in a different race altogether. Amon eventually slid off onto the sodden grass, and, unable to restart, was out of the race. Then Hill spun! The car stalled and was broadside across the road, and Hill quite expected Anon to hit it, not realising that he was out. Graham eventually had to get out and push the car down the hill to restart, jump back in, and continue in second place as the next up, Jochen Rindt, had been too far back to capitalise on the situation.

By the end of the race, Stewart took the chequered flag no less than just over four minutes! Jackie had completely mastered the race. I believe that was the day that he became a true great. You had to be somebody very special to win on this most arduous of circuits, and, in these conditions, bordering on superhuman. That day, anyone who took part in the race all became heroes in my book. As for the winner, a certain JYS, he went on to, in effect, save a great many lives through his resolute and unwavering safety campaign over the years that followed. For that, we should all be grateful.

By Max Scott

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McLaren German GP Review

McLaren are heading in to the summer break with a points scoring finish in Germany. This was the team’s 7th points scoring finish this season. Both Jenson and Fernando ran inside the top 10 for most parts of the race, but due to some fuel saving needed for both drivers it ended up where Jenson would remain in the top 10 at the end finishing 8th. Fernando sadly fell back in the closing stages to 12th place. The team are showing clear signs of progress at the half way point of the season now. The Hockenheim circuit was felt like it was going to be a tricky race for the team but a points finished ended up being well deserved.

 

FERNANDO ALONSO, MP4-31-02

Started:    13th
Finished:    12th
Fastest Lap:    1m20.132s on lap 50 (+1.690s, 13th)
Pitstops:    Three: laps 14 (2.58s), 28 (2.95s) and 47 (2.65s) [Option-Prime-Option-Option] 

“It was a very tough race, possibly one of the toughest so far this season, especially towards the end, when my tyres were finished and I had to do a lot of fuel-saving.

“We knew before we came here that it might be a tough weekend. Ultimately, I lost 10th position at the end of the race, so we didn’t score that last point that we were hoping for. But we just didn’t have the pace throughout the entire race.

“Getting ready for the Belgian Grand Prix is our priority now – hopefully we’ll come back stronger after the summer break.”


JENSON BUTTON, MP4-31-03

Started:    12th
Finished:    8th
Fastest Lap:    1m19.781s on lap 48 (+1.339s, 9th)
Pitstops:    Three: laps 13 (2.54s), 31 (2.40s) and 46 (2.74s) [Option-Prime-Option-Option]

“I made a very good start and made up most of the places there. After that, it was just about looking after the tyres, which were degrading faster than we’d expected. We also had to do a fair amount of fuel-saving, too, particularly in the last 10 laps. In fact, I went off the circuit towards the end, just because I was doing so much fuel-saving that I hit the brakes and they were just stone cold. I hadn’t even been braking hard.

“At the end, I was able to pick off Valtteri, who was struggling on his tyres. It feels satisfying to have beaten both Williams, but eighth was as good as it was going to get today – we were 20 seconds behind the car in front, and there’s still quite a bit to go before we catch those guys.

“Still, we’ve made good progress: we’re consistently fighting in the points, and the team are doing a great job this year, bringing something new to pretty much every single race. I want to say thank-you and well done to the whole team for their efforts.

“I’m looking forward to coming back and fighting after the summer break – but, right now, I’m looking forward to a holiday!”

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Haas F1:German Grand Prix Review

Hockenheim, Germany.
Sunday 31 July 2016.
World Copyright: Glenn Dunbar/LAT Photographic
ref: Digital Image _V2I7307

Haas F1 Team drivers Esteban Gutiérrez and Romain Grosjean drove to hard-fought 11th- and 13th-place finishes, respectively, in the German Grand Prix Sunday at the Hockenheimring.

While the effort did not yield a point-paying result, it was still a strong showing from the American team as both drivers had to rally from deep within the 22-car field. Gutiérrez got bottlenecked at the start and dropped to 18th while Grosjean started the 67-race from 20th after incurring a five-place grid penalty for a gearbox change on Saturday.

The duo employed a two-stop strategy, but with differing tire selections. Gutiérrez started the race using the Pirelli P Zero Yellow soft tire and Grosjean started with the Red supersoft. Pit stops began on lap eight, but the Haas F1 Team drivers stayed out for as long as they could before making their first stops, allowing each to gain considerable track position.

Grosjean came in for his first stop at the end of lap 17 after climbing to eighth. Gutiérrez was the last driver to make his first stop, hitting pit lane at the end of lap 25 after rising to 12th. Grosjean went with a new set of Yellow softs while Gutiérrez switched to Red supersofts.

The team’s final round of pit stops began on lap 43 when Grosjean came in for a switch to Red supersofts. Gutiérrez followed at the end of lap 47, also taking Red supersofts.

While both drivers were a lap down after their pit cycles, they remained on the cusp of the top-10, with Gutiérrez 14th and Grosjean 15th with 16 laps remaining. Each driver made separate, masterful passes to get around the Renault of Kevin Magnussen, with Gutiérrez overtaking him on lap 52 and Grosjean doing the same on lap 55.

The moves, along with Carlos Sainz Jr. bringing his Toro Rosso to pit lane for his final stop, allowed Gutiérrez and Grosjean to climb to 12th and 13th, respectively.

Twelve rounds into the 21-race Formula One schedule, Haas F1 Team remains eighth in the constructor standings with 28 points. However, seventh-place McLaren widened the gap over the American team to 14 points via Jensen Button’s eighth-place finish. Haas F1 Team’s 22-point advantage over ninth-place Renault went unchanged as neither Magnussen nor Jolyon Palmer finished in the points.

Lewis Hamilton won the German Grand Prix by 6.996 seconds over Red Bull’s Daniel Ricciardo. It was Hamilton’s 49th career Formula One victory, leaving him but 2 wins from typing Alain Prost for second place on the all times win list.

Nine races remain on the 2016 Formula One schedule, with the next event coming in three weeks with the Belgian Grand Prix in Spa-Francorchamps.

Romain Grosjean – Driver #8

“It wasn’t too bad. I think we had a good pace, but the middle stint behind the Renault saw my brakes massively overheat, and I lost them completely for a few laps. That clearly put us on the back foot. I couldn’t get by, and that cost us having a shot at points. We need to understand that, but generally the car behaved in the race. I’m happier this afternoon than I was yesterday. Overall, it’s been an awesome first half of the season. I want us to be able to come back and score regularly in the top-10. There are a few things we need to unlock. We’ve got the potential in the car. We just need to put it all together.”

Esteban Gutiérrez – Driver #21

“It wasn’t an easy start. I had too much wheel spin and I was passed by quite a few cars. We were the only ones on soft tires, which was an aggressive strategy, so we were expecting to struggle for the first stint. After that I started to hold as much as I could and then began to fight back in the second stint. I was pushing all the way, trying to recover as much as I could, as well as trying to handle fuel saving. We’re not satisfied where we ended up, as we didn’t get the points we were aiming for. Now we head into the summer break, which will be good for the team after four races in five weeks. We’re all going to recharge our batteries and come back stronger, fighting for points at Spa.”

Guenther Steiner – Team Principal

“In general, we had a good race, though Esteban had a bad start. We need to look into that, and do better there, because we finished 11th again, one position out of the points. We basically started 18th and 20th and not 11th and 20th. Romain went from 20th to 13th. There wasn’t a lot more to do there, and obviously Esteban finished 11th. The car showed the pace and we had no mistakes, but when you start in those positions, sometimes that’s the best you can achieve. We know the pace is there. We can do it, we just have to pull it all together and get it done. We’ve showed that we can do that, which is ultimately a positive for the team moving forward.”

Next up – – VACATION!

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Force India: German Grand Prix Review

 It was a double point’s finish for Force India in Hockenheim as they closed the gap on fourth placed Williams to just 15 points.

Sergio Perez recovered from a horror start to take tenth while Nico Hulkenberg ran well at his home race to bring home seventh place, with Williams only gaining two points to Force India’s seven.

With a fantastic qualifying performance, which saw both cars in Q3, albeit at the tail end. Hulkenberg qualified seventh but started eighth after an issue saw him drop a place. While Perez rounded up the top ten.

Nico started well but Sergio dropped as low as 16th after a poor start off the line. While the race was bereft of any real action, the Force India team silently and effectively ran their race to the points. Perez was in the action right up until the end as on the penultimate lap, he passed the McLaren of Fernando Alonso to take a point.

The summer break is now upon us and Force India are in a strong position, with two races showing they have more than enough ability to take fourth place from Williams and make it their own.

Meanwhile the struggle appears to be off track as again Perez continues to be linked with a move away from the team. However his wish to drive for a better team appears to be fading as vacant seats remain at a premium.

If Perez does leave however, can he provide the ultimate parting gift in sealing fourth place for Force India and the lucrative rewards that come with it.

Tags:

Force India

Germany

Hockenheim

Formula 1

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Williams, German Grand Prix Preview

GP UNGHERIA F1/2016 – BUDAPEST (UNGHERIA) 24/07/2016
© FOTO STUDIO COLOMBO PER PIRELLI MEDIA (© COPYRIGHT FREE)

After skipping a year in 2015, Formula One returns to Germany and to one of its most fabled locations, Hockenhiem. The circuit has seen much change since it first hosted F1 in 1970, the long straights which blasted through the forests are gone, replaced with a shorter but still relatively fast circuit. Sector one is the quickest on the track, featuring the best overtaking spot on the track, the turn five hairpin at the end of the straight which isn’t a straight, it mostly consists of a long left hander, easily taken flat out in the wet or the dry. The standout feature of sector two is the large Mercedes grandstand, always packed with Silver Arrows supporters. The final sector mainly consists of the much tighter stadium section, which is always a spectacular sight on race day.

 

For a race that has been held so many times, it is unsurprising that Williams have won the race on eight occasions. It was the location of one of the team’s first ever victories in 1979 and their first ever 1-2, Alan Jones took the honors that day from team mate Clay Regazzoni. Nelson Piquet would kick off a run of Brazilians winning the race 5 years in a row, taking the flag in 1896 and a race of attrition in 1987, in which just 6 cars finished. Senna’s McLaren won from 1988-90 but Nigel Mansell would take the trophy back to Grove in 1991, it was another 1-2 for Williams, Ricciardo Patrese backed up the Brit. Mansell took another lights to flag win in 1992, but the drama surrounded his team mate, who spun off on the penultimate lap whilst trying to pass Senna for second. Prost won in 1993 in equally dramatic circumstances, his team mate Damon Hill was odds on to take his first ever win when his tire failed on lap 42 of 45. Being classified fifteenth was of no comfort to the British driver as his team mate won his final race, prost his career on a (then record) of 51 wins. Hill finally got his German Grand prix in 1996, Alesi’s Benetton prevented another Williams 1-2. Williams dominated the last race to be held at the old track in 2001, Juan Pablo Montoya set pole position and fastest lap but a glitch with the refueling rig allowed team mate Ralf Schumacher into the lead, then Montoya’s BMW engine blew, forcing him into retirement. Ralf Schumacher won the race, 46 seconds ahead of Ferrari’s Rubens Barrichello. Williams final win in 2003 was a truly dominant showing for Montoya, he took pole position, fastest lap and the race win by over a minute from Coulthard’s McLaren.

Williams were very impressive at the 2014 event, Bottas and Massa qualified second and third thanks to Hamilton’s brake failure and subsequent crash in qualifying. Massa didn’t make it past turn one, owing to a crash with the McLaren of Magnusson, which culminated with the Williams memorably rolling over. Bottas kept it all together to finish second, ahead of Hamilton’s charge from the back of the grid.

The 2014 event really made the grid stand up and take Williams seriously as podium challengers, they outclassed Red Bull and Ferrari the whole weekend. It is difficult to see a repeat performance in 2016 though, Red Bull and Ferrari are much stronger and Williams weren’t even close to challenging them in Hungary. Hockenheim should suit the car more but a podium still looks unlikely. The aim for this race weekend has to be to quash the rise for Force India with some good, solid points so that the team can go into the summer break on a high and focus on closing the gap to the top three teams.

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Ferrari,German Grand Prix Preview

 

GP UNGHERIA F1/2016 – BUDAPEST (UNGHERIA) 24/07/2016
© FOTO STUDIO COLOMBO PER PIRELLI MEDIA (© COPYRIGHT FREE)

Ferrari go into the returning German Grand Prix just one point clear of Red Bull in the race for second place in the Constructors’ Championship.

After losing less ground than expected in Hungary after strong race pace saw Sebastian Vettel split the Red Bulls in fourth and Kimi Raikkonen climb up to sixth from 14th on the grid at the Hungaroring, Ferrari were able to cling on to second – just.

It has been a turbulent build-up to the German Grand Prix for the Prancing Horse, with technical director James Allison departing after three years in what Ferrari called a “joint decision”, with Ferrari’s President Sergio Marchionne also reported to be sitting in on technical meetings.

Allison’s wife died in March, meaning a departure was almost inevitable with family based in England.

He has been replaced by former head of engines Mattia Binotto, although there are increasing rumours that ex-technical director Ross Brawn may rejoin Ferrari having left ten years ago following the retirement of Michael Schumacher.

Ferrari are easily the most successful team at the German Grand Prix having won it a staggering 22 times, 13 clear of Mercedes.

They last won it in 2012 when Fernando Alonso’s unlikely title challenge in an inferior car was taking hold, while Alonso won in more controversial circumstances in 2010 when teammate Felipe Massa was ordered to move over and let him into the lead.

After an absence in 2015, the German Grand Prix returns to the Hockenheimring with the future of the German round heavily in doubt beyond 2018, with neither Hockenheim nor the Nurburgring having the finance to secure the race long-term.

Ferrari will hope to gain ground on Red Bull at one of their traditionally stronger circuits, with Raikkonen in fourth just one point behind Red Bull’s Daniel Ricciardo and Sebastian Vettel a further four behind, ten ahead of Max Verstappen.

The Scuderia therefore need to put behind them a turbulent week in order to fend off Red Bull.

Hungarian Grand Prix Review

For Ferrari, the Hungarian Grand Prix was a solid if unspectacular affair which in all likelihood quietly exceeded expectations.

Sebastian Vettel showed strong race pace against the Red Bulls to finish fourth after applying heavy pressure on Daniel Ricciardo for third, while Kimi Raikkonen produced a stunning drive to climb from fourteenth to sixth place.

In a performance from the Iceman seen more often during his previous Ferrari spell, Raikkonen was unfortunate not to take fifth place after breaking his front wing against an ever-aggressive Max Verstappen, as Ferrari avoided being soundly beaten by a resurgent Red Bull.

The Iceman was uncharacteristically vocal in his criticism of Dutchman Verstappen, who appeared to move twice when defending fifth position at Turn 2 on lap 58.

“There are so many rules discussed and in some rules you can move, but when the guy behind makes the decision to commit to something, and when the other guy moves afterwards it’s difficult to avoid the car in front.”

Raikkonen also questioned the stewards handling of qualifying, with changes to the grid concerning Session 1 and the 107% rule almost coming into effect before a last-minute U-turn. He also criticised what he felt was a lack of consistency from the stewards in applying the rules, calling them a “joke”.

“A good example is the qualifying. You have the 107 per cent rule and the people who didn’t go through from first qualifying they are applying it to those cars, but not applying it on the rest. How can you apply it two different ways?

“If somebody can explain to me how that works? But it seems to be F1 these days. Something must change because it looks bad to people outside. There is a rule and it should apply in exactly the same way to every person.”

Raikkonen slipped from third to fourth in the standings, one point behind Ricciardo. Vettel is fifth, four behind his teammate and ten clear of Verstapen, while Ferrari only have a one-point advantage of Red Bull in the Constructors’ standings.

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German Grand Prix, at the end, the Germans always win

2014 Formula One German Grand Prix, Hockenheimring, Hockenheim, Baden-Wurttemberg,Germany, 17th – 20th July 2014.
World Copyright: © Andrew Hone Photographer 2014.
Ref: _ONZ8035

Teams and drivers are focused on the final race before the summer break, which will take place in Germany. Gary Lineker once said that at the end, the Germans always win, that is what I expect to see in the German Grand Prix, a German to celebrate a victory in his home race.

 

 You still don’t know to whom I’m referring to? I’m talking about Nico Rosberg.

Nico Rosberg took the pole position in Hungary, but he finished second behind his team-mate and lost the leading position in the championship standings. Germany is a good place for Nico to start his counterattack and return on the top of the championship.

If Rosberg wins the German Grand Prix, he will become the first German who wins a back to back races on home soils.

Hockenheim Key stats

Laps: 67

Circuit Length: 4.574 km

Total Length: 306.458 km

Fastest Lap: 1:13:780s (Kimi Raikkonen – 2004)

Tyre allocations: Medium, Soft, Supersoft

The pole positions have a significant role in Germany, six of the last ten races at Hockenheim have been won from pole position.

Ferrari must feel worried about Red Bull’s form in the last races but, Hockenheim is not Kimi Raikkonen’s favourite circuit, the Finn had five consecutive DNF’s in his first five races in Hockenheim.

It’s a home race for Pascal Wehrlein, the German driver made some comments about the upcoming race: “It’s my home Grand Prix – the one I’ve been most looking forward to. It will also be the busiest so far for me, so maybe after that a little break will be nice. I intend to enjoy it. Of course Germany will have a special significance as the first home race of my F1 career. First of many, I hope! Knowing a race track does have its advantages but, really, we push just as hard at every track we race at.”

I expect to see a battle between Red Bull Racing and Scuderia Ferrari for a place on the podium and an easy victory for Mercedes. Both Max Verstappen and Daniel Ricciardo are in a good form and it will be hard for Ferrari to beat them.

I think the Hockenheimring is actually a pretty fun track. I like entering the stadium section. Also, the fans are huge motorsport fans, which is always pretty awesome. There are some cool little towns around the track which offer some traditional German food and after my week in Austria, I can’t wait to enjoy my second round of Schnitzels.” Said Daniel Ricciardo.

My predictions for the race are: 1 – Nico Rosberg 2- Lewis Hamilton 3 – Max Verstappen

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