Category: Formula One

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Brazilian Grand Prix Preview, Obrigado Felipe

GP BRASILE F1/2016 – INTERLAGOS (BRASILE) 12/11/2016
© FOTO STUDIO COLOMBO PER PIRELLI MEDIA (© COPYRIGHT FREE)

In Mexico, Lewis Hamilton celebrated his fourth title in his Formula 1 career, a title which Lewis had to fight hard with the four time world champion, Sebastian Vettel, especially before the summer break. Hamilton showed a “winner” character and managed to overcome all his difficulties, both psychological and driving, but at the end Lewis became the first British driver who has ever won four world titles in Formula One.

Next stop, is Brazil, with only two races to go, until the season’s chequered flag, teams are travelling to Sao Paulo, for one of the best races in the Formula 1 calendar. Red Bull will try to win another race and be considering their current form, they have many chances to achieve that. The Bulls, are fast and compatible, both Verstappen and Ricciardo, will fight for a place on the podium and of course not in any place, but the highest one.

GP BRASILE F1/2016 – INTERLAGOS (BRASILE) 12/11/2016
© FOTO STUDIO COLOMBO PER PIRELLI MEDIA (© COPYRIGHT FREE)

Ferrari is facing their own problems, Asia was a difficult chapter for the team, which cost them the chance to fight for the drivers’ and constructors’ championship, they didn’t have many chances for the second one, only if Raikkonen was able to move faster and improve his results.

In Brazil, the Scuderia has to fight for the best possible result, personally I don’t believe that Ferrari will win the race, Red Bull is faster and more reliable from the Scuderia Ferrari, at the moment, Verstappen is getting better and better, and I assume that he wants to close this season with two more victories.

AUTÓDROMO JOSÉ CARLOS PACE

Laps: 71

Circuit Length: 4.309 km

Total Length: 305.909 km

Lap Record: 1:11.473 (Juan Pablo Montoya – 2004)

Supersoft, soft and medium tyres are available for the drivers in Brazil, a circuit which the brake demand is low there are fifteen corners, 44 gear changes per lap and the average lap speed which the drivers will reach is about 220 km/h.

Three current drivers on the gird have won the Brazilian Grand Prix at Interlagos, Lewis Hamilton and Kimi Raikkonen has won one time, whilst Sebastian Vettel has two victories in Interlagos. It is mentionable that only three drivers have exceeded the two victories in the Brazilian Grand Prix history. Alain Prost won six times, Michael Schumacher four times and Carlos Reutemann three.

“It’s very special for me and one of my favourite places and races on the calendar. Sao Paulo is a crazy city and there’s something I really like about it. The food, the people, it’s all really engaging and a highly unique experience.

 

Nico Hulkenberg – “The track itself has so much history especially when you cast your mind to all the stories and championships won there. You can feel the history and the emotions that belong to racing and I really like that. It’s a reason why I usually perform quite well there. The circuit is short and can be quite tricky to get right. It’s anti-clockwise, very bumpy and extremely tough on the neck! It’s all about confidence, especially the in-field middle sector.I have special memories around Interlagos! My only Formula 1 pole position to date came in my rookie season, which was awesome. I put a perfect lap together at the right time in changing conditions and poled it by over a second; that’s a real standout moment in my entire racing career. In 2012, I led for a large part of the race and was unlucky not to get a podium. I have a decent record there and I will be pushing to make sure I continue that.”

Toto Wolff admitted that Mercedes will test new parts for the 2018 season in the two remaining races in Brazil and Abu Dhabi.

“The final two Grands Prix thus present the first two test opportunities ahead of the new season, trialling new and interesting concepts that the competitive landscape on track simply didn’t allow for earlier in the year. [We] will be running a series of experiments over the final two Fridays – with the option for race day, too, if the team feels that the risk connected with any idea is manageable and there is valuable learning for 2018 and beyond.”

GP BRASILE F1/2016 – INTERLAGOS (BRASILE) 10/11/2016
© FOTO STUDIO COLOMBO PER PIRELLI MEDIA (© COPYRIGHT FREE)

Felipe Massa announced that he will retire, for the second time in the last two years, after the end of the 2017 season and that will make the Brazilian Grand Prix a very emotional race, full of Brazilians who will be cheering for Felipe.

Future Stars – Introducing F1’s Next Generation: George Russel & Arjun Maini, Mobil 1 The Grid

Twitter @FP_Passion

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Racing In The Rain – Max Verstappen Relives His Epic Drive At The 2016 Brazilian Grand Prix | Mobil 1 The Grid

Check out the newest video from Mobil 1 The Grid in which Max Verstappen previews the Brazilian Grand Prix, during which he recalls his epic drive at last year’s race in the rain at Interlagos.

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The Factory – Renault

(c) Logo is copyrighted to Renault Sport

In my first feature of “The Factory” I will take a look at the manufacturers in motor racing and have a look at where they are potentially heading. In this first segment I take a look at Renault.

As an entity, Renault Sport Racing was officially established in 1976 after the merger between Alpine and Gordini.

They have a long history involved in different areas of motorsport, in WRC they won the Constructors title as Alpine-Renault in 1973 and had relative success with their R5 Turbo and the R17 Gordini, until they departed from international rallying in 1994 , though supplied cars in the European Rally Championship which won three times in 1999, 2004 and 2005.

They have competed in and run their own events in Hillclimbing, Off-Roading, Formula 2, Formula 3, Formula Renault, Touring Cars (who could forget the Laguna dominance of Alain Menu in 1997) and Sportscars where they won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1978 with Didier Pironi and Jean-Pierre Jaussaud bringing home the Renault Alpine A442B, ahead of the dominant Porsche’s of the time.

Those competition entries aside it is Formula One and more recently Formula E where Renault have concentrated, be it they are now transitioning away from the latter for next season.

Renault have been associated with Formula One as both a constructor and engine supplier since 1977, having secured two constructors’ championships in 2005 and 2006. They entered F1 as Equipe Renault Elf from 1977 to 1985 as a constructor. As an engine supplier they worked with teams such as Lotus (in various guises and names), Ligier, Tyrrell, Williams, Benetton, Red Bull, Caterham and Toro Rosso. It has recently been announced that they will now supply McLaren for the first time.

This brings us nicely up to date with their involvement in Formula E, their return to Formula One and what does the future hold for the French manufacturer.

Renault have won all three team titles since the inception of Formula E, the first two drivers championships were won with Renault engines and the dominance of the team in this new era of motor racing seemed set to carry on for some time to come. Then came the announcement that as a ‘constructor’ Renault would be leaving Formula E to make way for Nissan, who are part of the same motorsport group with Renault owning around 45% of Nissan. It is e.dams who own the Formula E entry and so Renault would transition over to Nissan for 2018.

Why?

A very good question, when you are a front runner in your series. The very simple answer which stares back is – Formula One.

In this era of hybrid technology and electric cars the script was written and the stage was set for Renault to coin a Star Trek quote, ‘boldly go where…..’ and send motorsport into a new time with a new series. Formula One is to take a back seat now, said some, it won’t be at the forefront of their plans, said others. Renault is saying something completely different.

That is the thing with Renault, they take chances, they take risks and they don’t mind the competition. Renault does what Renault wants to do and I for one applaud that adventurous bravery.

It would be easy for Renault to come back into Formula One, as they did in 2016, bumble along and put their brand name out there. They have made some brave decisions which they are not afraid to stand by. What is brave about it? I here you ask.

Renault having supplied competitors Red Bull and Toro Rosso will now supply McLaren, yes not the force in recent years which it had been but a sleeping giant ready to wake up and claim back some pride and honour. For Renault to let a team like McLaren, who could potentially be better than them and also have Red Bull scampering off into the distance and challenging for titles, that is brave.

Would another engine supplier, for instance, Mercedes or Ferrari, be extremely happy with say Force India, Williams or Haas beating them or even challenging them during the course of the season? Of course they wouldn’t, the technology shared would be pulled back. Renault has intimated that with McLaren this won’t be the case.

McLaren have also said that they are interested in a return to sportscar racing, which seeing the length of deal they have signed with Renault and the potential that they could have a better power unit than recently used to could be a possibility that a McLaren with a Renault engine could once again roar at the big sportscar races.

The decision for Renault to move away from Formula E to concentrate and put its resources into Formula One shows in which direction this factory is heading. To supply engines to competitors, not afraid if they are beaten or challenged shows the bravery of this factory.

Will Renault be challenging for titles and race wins in Formula One? I personally can’t see it over the next couple of years. Will a team with a Renault engine be challenging for titles and race wins in Formula One?

Now that is a very good question.

Renault is truly back. Renault isn’t afraid. Renault could possibly, without realising it just yet, change the face of Formula One over the next few years.

Or maybe they do realise it and this is all just a cunning plan.

Just remember, Mercedes returned to Formula One in 2010 and it took them four years to win a Constructors’ Championship. Renault could be on the verge of something similar.

Neil Simmons

Twitter: @world_racing

 

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You keep me coming back for more

The things you do for love… early mornings, late nights, moments of utter joy tempered with moments of abject sadness. It is an inexplicable bond, this thing called love, that causes a person to stand by the object of their affection in bad times and to celebrate the good times with an air of reckless merriment and joy.
No, you have not accidently stumbled onto a “how to fix my love life blog” or a tribute to some mysterious love. What you have found is my story on this love affair with Formula One that, as the Brothers Johnson would say, keeps me coming back for more. A few weeks ago my Crew colleague, Aaron Irwin, invoked the Righteous Brothers as he described losing that loving feeling he has for the sport of F1. He inspired me to examine the reason why I am still in love with F1 and keep on tuning in for more regardless of time differences.
I will be honest, much like a relationship with an actual human, there have been moments of sheer frustration that have made me stop and question why I still have this feeling for the sport. My friends, the non-F1 crowd that is, have a hard time understanding F1 to being with and so you can imagine their confusion when I vent about “the silly grid penalty nonsense and artificial feeling tracks”.

Credit: Pirelli

It was Michael Schumacher who cemented my attraction to the sport but it was Ayton Senna who formed its foundation. I loved how drivers as openly emotional and passionate as Senna and one who as passionate in a more clinical and equally brilliant manner that Schumacher possessed, could drive beyond what even their cars technically allowed. Schumacher battling with Mika Hakkinen and later Fernando Alonso would result in my family waking up at 5am on certain Sunday’s, due to the time differences to Australia and Japan, to the sound of Murray Walker saying “GO GO GO!”.
But with good times, comes the bad. F1 saw technical changes which resulted in certain teams finding loopholes well within the laws, giving them a technical advantage and negating any real competition for many years. Slowly the personalities of drivers were being controlled and the days of free speakers like Juan Pablo Montoya were ending, (although Kimi will always thankfully be Kimi). F1 was slowly feeling a bit too artificial with even drivers being told what to say and do and how to say and do it so as not to create a PR disaster. Tracks felt more like pandering to big money instead of reaching F1’s heart and soul… its fans.

Credit: Pirelli

Right about now, you would be staging and intervention trying to reason with me….
Yet I did not miss a race… not a single one. There were the little things that kept me there, Jenson Button’s empathic maiden championship win, Alonso joining Ferrari, Sauber staying in F1, Schumacher coming back and then breaking my heart by retiring.
You see the uncertainty of F1 is like nothing else. Take this year’s Singapore Grand Prix. It seemed to be all Sebastian Vettel for sure, many online said they would not even watch the procession, but then the first corner happened and changed the 2017 championship forever, similarly the resurgence of the Red Bull team, when many had written them off. You cannot predict an F1 weekend outcome. I still have that feeling, as the lights are about to go out, a nervous excitement and elevated heart rate, which prima facie sounds silly because, after all, I have nothing personally invested in the race. Lately, however, there has been a swing back to more openness and a nostalgic feel to things, the talent of a driver seems to be allowed more room and teams are closer, technically, to each other.

Credit: LAT Photographic/Williams F1

Like any relationship, my love of F1 faced some introspection, what kept me loving the sport? Perhaps Liberty Media have been the correct relationship counsellor? Let us examine that for a quick second. It is evident that fans are less critical of the new regime when compared to that of Bernie and Co. It seems that the more open approach, such as the access to the F1 drivers meeting and more access to the track, have given the fans more of a hands on approach to F1. It is all of that and more. It may sound a bit dramatic, (I am a lawyer, drama is pre-requisite), but my heart and mind and truly invested in F1. While there may be other motorsports that I enjoy, I love F1 and will continue to do so if the ethos remains.
What is this you may ask? For me it is the authentic feel of the F1 of old remaining and the marriage of driver and machine reaching the peak of human physicality and performance, tempered with the emotional and visual entertainment that only F1 can bring.

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Hamilton joined an elite list in Mexico, but the race offered a glimpse toward next season.

Normally when a Formula One World Championship is decided, it answers all the questions you had throughout the season. Who’s the quickest? Who’s in the best form? Which team is the best?

The Mexican Grand Prix was far more than F1 tying up loose ends as Lewis Hamilton joined an elite list of just four other drivers in winning the World Championship four times.

Mercedes content pool.
Lewis Hamilton is now a certified great after a fourth championship.

Like Hamilton, Juan Manuel Fangio, Michael Schumacher, Alain Prost and 2017 rival Sebastian Vettel have all had their fair share of fortune, with all men in that list taking the title in consecutive years as their teams enjoyed spells of domination.

But statistics and numbers is far from the point of this article.

If Max Verstappen’s confidence had been hit after THAT penalty in the USA, he certainly didn’t show it at the first corner.

The Dutchman offered up more bold overtaking as hung it out around the outside of Vettel’s Ferrari, as the German and Hamilton collided at the exit of turn three to leave the champion-elect with a rear right puncture.

From there on, he simply drove away as Valtteri Bottas simply could not keep

Credit: Getty Images / Red Bull Content Pool
Max Verstappen and Daniel Ricciardo have entertained all season

up in his Mercedes, while he himself gapped Kimi Raikkonen easily.

Verstappen and teammate Daniel Ricciardo have shown over the past month the potential that Red Bull has going forward, with the team now able to challenge and beat the two heavyweights at the front after falling back earlier in the season.

However, it won’t be all plain sailing for Dietrich Mateschitz and company. The team will lose their Renault engines after 2018 as the French company have told the team that they do not want to continue their F1 partnership, while they will supply McLaren.

Talking of whom, it was another encouraging weekend for the sleeping giants at Woking.

Fernando Alonso set the quickest middle sector of anyone in the first qualifying session. And, as ever, he made everyone knew how well his lap had gone.

There’s been more punch from the Spaniard recently and his rude move on the Ferrari-powered Haas of Romain Grosjean midway through the race told everyone the fire remained, while his attempts at holding off Hamilton

Spa Francorchamps, Belgium.
Sunday 27 August 2017.
Fernando Alonso, McLaren, on the grid.
Photo: Steven Tee/McLaren
ref: Digital Image _R3I1331
In poor machinery, Fernando Alonso once again showed why many regard him as an all time great

towards the end entertained and enthralled.

It is estimated that the Renault Power-Unit is about a second faster than the Honda unit. If that rings true, he would have been very close to the front of the grid and looking at podium in Mexico.

Should McLaren have a chassis as good as this year’s, the good times might finally start returning to one of F1’s most popular teams.

And what of Ferrari? Had Vettel not had an Asia from hell during which he retired twice and lost a probable 45 points, this title fight would still be well and truly on.

GP UNGHERIA F1/2017
© FOTO STUDIO COLOMBO PER FERRARI MEDIA (© COPYRIGHT FREE)
Despite a poor Asia, don’t rule out Vettel and Ferrari next year either.

It’s certainly not goodbye from Maranello as far as front running is concerned and with the driver hierarchy that appears to be in effect there, you wouldn’t bet against Vettel putting up another stern challenge in 2018.

Mercedes will once again be in the conversion as they bid to extend their dominance to a fifth consecutive season.

Hamilton claimed straight after the race that there is more titles left in him, so the motivation remains.

If all these factors play out, 2018 could be a real treat.

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Mexican Grand Prix Review, Viva Mexico

The minute of silence in respect to the people who suffered from the earthquake in the Mexico City was one of the most emotional moments in the Mexican Grand Prix. People are above everything and we should always help and support each other.

Max Verstappen took the chequered flag in Mexico, but Lewis Hamilton was the big winner of the weekend. Hamilton became the first British, F1 racing driver, with four world titles.

On Saturday, Vettel set the fastest lap in Q3 of the qualifying session and took the pole position in Mexico, followed by Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton. Lights out, a brave start from the young Max Verstappen who added some pressure on Vettel, took the lead after a wheel to wheel battle with Sebastian, who forced to retreat, and had to fight with Hamilton for the second position. Vettel collided with Hamilton, damaged his front wing and caused a puncture to Hamilton’s rear left tyre. Both drivers pitted and dropped down to the back of the grid.

Lewis Hamilton stuck behind Sainz’s car, whilst Vettel was pushing hard to gain position. Sebastian had to finish in the first two positions, in order to have chances for the championship in the two remaining races.

For almost 30 laps, Hamilton, couldn’t find the speed to pass Carlos Sainz’s Renault, Brendon Hartley retired on lap 31 after an engine failure, gave the chance to Mercedes to call Hamilton into the pits, whilst the race was under VSC, and fit him the super-soft tyres.

The new tyres gave the chance to Hamilton to start his counter attack and cover ground as Vettel was gaining places and was hoping for a miracle in order to get a place on the podium. The German, was far behind the first three drivers, he managed to move up to position four and placed behind Raikkonen, Bottas and Verstappen.

A few laps before the chequered flag, Hamilton asked his team if Vettel could get the second position, Mercedes’ reply was “Negative” as Bottas was second and it would be hard for anyone to take it from him.

Esteban Ocon had his chance to shine, especially after lights out, Ocon was third, but after the first pit-stop period Kimi Raikkonen moved up to the third place and forced Esteban to retreat to fourth. Ocon, had to defend his place from Vettel, but that was not easy, and the German took the fourth place. Ocon’s fifth and Perez’s seventh place, were enough to give the fourth position to Sahara Force India in the constructors’ championship.

Lance Stroll had a quiet race, took advantage of Hulkenberg’s and Ricciardo’s retirements also gained an advantage from Hamilton’s and Vettel’s collision and managed to finish sixth and score eight points for Williams.

The four-time world champion Lewis Hamilton had a tough start this season, but despite the difficulties that he faced, mainly during the first half of the season, he had the courage to fight back, and showed to everyone why he is one of the best drivers on the grid. Silverstone was the spark that led to Hamilton’s comeback and to his fourth world title (2008, 2014, 2015, 2017).

Twitter @FP_Passion

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Grand Prix of Mexico Race Reaction

image courtesy of Pirelli Motorsports.

After an exciting qualifying yesterday in which Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel and Red Bull’s Max Verstappen outqualified current Drivers Championship leader Lewis Hamilton, anticipation was the order of the day. Mathematically, as long as Sebastian Vettel finished third or lower Lewis Hamilton would win the title today. Even if Vettel had been on one of the top two steps of the podium, Hamilton only had to finish in the top 5 to secure his fourth trophy.
Despite his strong lead Hamilton was clearly on edge as the drivers got settled into their cars, complaining to his crew that his seat was too hot. One suspects he would’ve been happier in a different hot seat, namely that of pole position.

Penalties also reared their head today, with Ricciardo the latest to receive a penalty due to an engine change. The idea of using penalties to coerce reliability has clearly gone off the rails with the teams opting for strategic penalties instead, and otherwise just taking them as they come.

It would be hard to get a more exciting start, and if the Drivers Championship hadn’t been nearly done for Hamilton it would’ve been even more exciting. Hamilton made a tactical error by an opportunistic attempt to get around Vettel after the Ferrari driver’s contact with Verstappen. Had he hung back a bit he’d have likely been able to challenge for a podium spot, but instead wound up at the back of the field with Vettel. Vettel had to come in for a new wing, and Hamilton suffered a major puncture to his left rear tyre.

Both drivers came in for soft tyres, which had the potential to carry them both to the end of the race. While Seb seemed anxious to get back to business and climb the field, Lewis seemed diffident at best.

Despite his maturing over the past few seasons, Hamilton’s own worst enemy continues to be Lewis Hamilton. Despite rampant speculation of damage that wasn’t obvious on camera, Hamilton’s car appeared in good order (and the pit wall confirmed that his floor was good), yet he struggled mightily to regain his race pace. It took some time before he was able to begin overtaking the usual suspects among the backmarkers, and he was even eventually lapped by Verstappen before getting his act together. You certainly don’t see that every day. Once Hamilton began to get his head back in the game he was able to begin climbing the pack himself, and was able to salvage a few points by finishing in 9th.

It seemed that Hamilton had activated the Conspiracy Switch, asking his engineer Peter ‘Bono’ Bonnington , “Did he hit me deliberately?” Social media was subsequently off to the races with that one, bit clearly Vettel had much more to lose in this situation than did Hamilton. Hamilton’s worries were clearly still getting the better of him, when asking later on what tyres the cars in front of him were using. Hamilton finally seemed to relax a bit later on when it was clear that Vettel wouldn’t be able to close the gap to the frontrunners.

Fernando Alonso showed that he’s still a fighter, giving Hamilton a good deal of trouble overtaking on lap 66. Hamilton opted for a more cautious approach this time, and while he was able to eventually make the overtake stick Alonso put up a fantastic defense.

Vettel himself had a few fraught moments, particularly following a mid-race tussle with ex-Ferrari driver Felipe Massa. It was quite something to hear his engineers talking him down, reminding him to remain calm. He certainly was able to get back down to business afterwards, though, and finished a very respectable 4th. He was certainly aided by a mid-race Virtual Safety Car brought about by Nico Hulkenberg’s exciting retirement, and took advantage of an opportunity to pit for ultrasofts. Sadly, despite delivering a much better race performance (including setting several fastest laps) and Hamilton finishing well out of the top 5, Vettel wasn’t able to finish high enough to keep his title hopes alive.

Lost in all this was Max Verstappen’s masterful drive to finish 1st after setting the fastest lap of the race himself. Despite some early concerns over blistering on the left front, he drove an uneventful race staying substantially clear of second-place Valtteri Bottas. At one point his engineers had to chide him for not slowing down a bit, to which Max replied with a laughing apology. Watch this kid, he’s going places. Here’s hoping that Red Bull and Renault can deliver him a contending chassis and engine next year!

Renault’s sudden lack of reliability, though overshadowed by the opening lap drama and the title contenders’ battle back up the order, was a dubious star of the show. Daniel Ricciardo’s penalty for his power unit change wound up being meaningless as he retired on lap 7 with an engine failure. Toro Rosso’s Brendon Hartley was forced to retire as well, his engine going out in a puff of smoke reminiscent of his woes in qualifying. Carlos Sainz of the Renault factory team also retired his car late in the race.

Of the Renault retirements, the most spectacular was Nico Hulkenberg’s. Reporting a loss of power and boost, Hulkenberg was instructed to immediately stop the car: “The car is not safe, the car is not safe, you need to get out by climbing onto the front of the car and jumping off.” The battery systems store a considerable amount of energy, and one shudders to think what might’ve happened had Hulkenberg grounded himself while in contact with the car. Doubtless some will use this as another reason to move away from hybrid powertrains in the future.

Apart from Verstappen, Toro Rosso’s Pierre Gasly was the final Renault-powered car left standing at the end of the race. While certainly better than Honda’s performance over the last several seasons, one can’t help but wonder if Renault is going to prove the best choice for McLaren in coming seasons – but then it’s not like McLaren had a lot of options.

It’s worth noting that both McLarens saw the chequered flag this time around. Alonso even took home a point.

Local favorite Sergio Perez certainly gave the home crowd some moments to cheer about, but a 7th place finish was doubtless a bit disappointing. Happily, with his Force India teammate Esteban Ocon finishing up in 5th the team has locked up 4th in the Constructors Championship and the boys will be free to race in the final two sessions. Bring us a good show, boys!

Happy birthday to Lance Stroll, 6th place and the points to go with it should make for a nice present.

As the sun sets on an eventful Grand Prix of Mexico, congratulations to Max Verstappen on his dominant victory! Congratulations as well to Lewis Hamilton for his 4th Drivers Championship.

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Grand Prix of Mexico FP3 Reactions

Image courtesy of Pirelli Motorsports (Andrew Home)

Going into Free Practice 3 the big question remains, “Will Lewis Hamilton claim his 4th Drivers Championship?”
High altitude and dust at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez makes life more difficult for the teams, and yesterday’s struggles for grip underscore the challenges. A stiff headwind leading into Turn 1 made for a good deal of excitement as drivers entered the braking zone, and the lower temperatures made for a struggle getting supersoft tyres up to snuff.

The FIA has taken a more aggressive approach to track limits by putting additional measures in place to prevent drivers from gaining an advantage by playing fast and loose with the boundaries. Additional kerbing has been laid out to provide immediate consequences for running wide, with further markers being set up overnight at Turn 11. If drivers cut Turn 10, they’ll need to drive through the markers to ensure they don’t gain an advantage. The stewards will additionally remind the teams about certain corners of concern. Racing drivers are competitive in the same way that the ocean is damp, and curbing their natural tendencies to extract every advantage leads to stewarding being a thankless job at times. It’s thus important that they enforce the rules consistently.

From the session, Scuderia Toro Rosso’s Pierre Gasly will face an uphill fight in tomorrow’s race, his FP3 (and later Qualifying) literally vanishing in a puff of smoke due to a mechanical failure after two laps. With only 10 laps completed yesterday due to an engine issue, and two today, he’s desperately short of real-world track time. Simulator time and study are important tools, but there’s no substitute for getting actual miles in the car.

After losing the Super Formula championship by half a point when the race he skipped Austin for was cancelled due to Typhoon Lan, it feels like Gasly can’t win for losing. We hope his luck improves for the remainder of the weekend! With the Honda power supply deal looming next year, the cynical response would be to say, “Get used to it, kid.”

On the other side of the Baby Bulls’ garage, Brendon Hartley put in another quiet, workmanlike performance to finish the session in 11th. Hartley continues to demonstrate his skill, and Toro Rosso wouldn’t go amiss with him on the roster in 2018.

Mercedes AMG Petronas’ Valtteri Bottas seems to be finding his form again, setting a track record of 1:17.681 on ultrasofts near the midpoint of the session, only to top it with 1:17.537 moments later. Though his record wasn’t to stand, being topped by Ferrari, Red Bull, and his teammate Lewis Hamilton, Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez is just the sort of circuit Bottas enjoys, so here’s hoping for a good show from him both during Qualifying and the race.

Championship leader Lewis Hamilton spent much of the session lurking near the top of the timesheet, but reported engine issues during the middle portion of the session. Happily for Lewis, the response from the pit wall was that it was something that’d just require a calibration adjustment. Hamilton himself went on to sit briefly atop the timings with a momentary record of 1:17.118

Despite being the overall favorites for pace thus far, Red Bull’s Max Verstappen faced some struggles getting his supersoft tyres into shape. The first sector caused him particular trouble, and given Pirelli’s skittishness about lowering tyre pressure the main option to put more heat and grip on the front will be aero. Of course, Verstappen’s first sector times weren’t exactly bad, so one is left wondering if he simply got placebo changes. Whatever they did to resolve it, it seemed to work as Max went on to top Bottas’ and Vettel’s and Hamilton’s top fastest times to finish the session with the new track record of 1:17.113.

Scuderia Ferrari concentrated much of their session on the supersoft compound, but when they switched to ultrasofts their true pace shone through. Sebastian Vettel briefly topped the timing sheets, with a lap time of 1:17.230. Barring quality gremlins, Ferrari will be a force to contend with tomorrow.

Local boy Sergio Perez of Force India ran an uneventful session, finishing in 7th just ahead of his teammate Esteban Ocon. Should Force India conclusively lock up 4th in the Constructors Championship, ‘Best Name in F1’ winner Otmar Szafnauer has said that the drivers will be free to race again. Here’s wishing the team a solid weekend so we can enjoy the Perez-Ocon rivalry in the final events of the season. They’ve certainly done a good job of reining it in for the team, and it’d be great to see them unleashed.

Though it is of course difficult to generalize from practice performance, there should be an exciting battle at the front of the pack between Red Bull, Ferrari, and Mercedes. Onward to Qualifying!

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