Many Massa Returns

A ten-part F1 Big Picture series celebrating the return of F1 in Bahrain. Massa steers the Ferrari around Bahrain during Free Practice. Felipe made his F1 weekend return after sitting out the sport since his accident in Hungary 2009. His performance in testing showed no significant issues, and despite running with a temperature today, he says he’s ready for the first race to begin.

Credit: Bridgestone Corporation

ING Renault F1 Team statement following the decision of the FIA International Court of Appeal on 17/08/09

The ING Renault F1 Team welcomes the decision of the FIA’s International Court of Appeal to lift the team’s suspension from the European Grand Prix. However, the team acknowledges that sporting regulations were breached during the incident in the pit lane of the Hungarian Grand Prix, which compromised safety. The team therefore accepts that the decision of the FIA to issue a reprimand and a $50,000 fine is fair and balanced. The ING Renault F1 Team now looks forward to concentrating on preparations for racing this weekend in Valencia.

Interview with Adrian Sutil : ‘It’s a good thing that we have a summer break’

After his great drive in Germany Adrian Sutil had a frustrating weekend in Hungary that ended with an early retirement. However he now has a long wait to make amends, because there is a three-week break until Valencia, which gives everyone a chance to recharge their batteries. We asked Adrian for his thoughts on Hungary, the summer break, and the upcoming European GP.

Q: You had a very short race in Hungary. What happened?

The first problem was my crash on Saturday morning. The guys needed some time to repair the car, which affected my qualifying in the end. They did a fantastic job to get it out again, but as I could only do two flying laps we were always going to be on the back foot. Then something went wrong straight away in the race. We had no issue in qualifying with temperatures at all, and then suddenly when I was exiting the pitlane to go the grid we had a massive problem. It seems there was something with the cooling system, and the water temperature was sky-high. It was really unlucky that something went wrong just before the race and we didn’t have a chance to fix it.

Q: How disappointing was that?

It was really frustrating, because you always have hopes, particularly for this race as we had had such a good one in Germany, and you go through the weekend thinking this is going to be it. When you’re on the grid and your engineer is telling you ‘sorry but I think you we have a problem’ it is like expecting presents for Christmas, and when you look under the tree, there is nothing!

Q: How do you feel about having a long break in the middle of the summer?

It’s a long season and it’s very hard, and by the last few races everybody’s tired because there is so much travelling. So I think it’s a good thing that we have a summer break in F1, as nearly everyone else does. I think it’s important to refresh your mind and be fresh for the last few races.

Q: What are your plans for the next three weeks?

The first week I’m a home in Switzerland, and then I go to Bali with my family. I’m looking forward to that, because it’s one of my favourite destinations for a holiday, I’ve been there so many times and I know the place very well. It’s a good place to relax. And then I come back for the last week before Valencia and stay a few days at home.

Q: Has it felt different this year with no testing?

It feels a little bit different, but not too much. You have one and a half weeks between the races, but normally there’s a lot to do. You go to the races and you travel around. I have been so busy this year, even busier than last year when we were testing, so I didn’t really feel the difference. However we haven’t had a disadvantage from not testing as all the parts we’ve developed this year have worked well when we’ve put them on the car.

Q: How do you feel about the race in Valencia?

It’s fair to say it’s not one of my favourites. Last year I was really looking forward to the weekend, because I like street circuits and I have good memories of Monaco and Macau. These are real street circuits, but Valencia was disappointing because it was so flat and wide, and there are no real corners.It’s not very difficult, very easy to drive, just straight on and braking for some hairpins. It’s not that challenging, but physically it can be tough as it’s very hot.

Q: Nevertheless are you confident that you can do well this year?

Last year the race pace was not so bad, but in qualifying I was struggling with the tyres. In the race I lost the car in Turn One about two thirds through the race, so it was not the best weekend! This time for us it should be quite good because we’ll get our new update package on the car, which should help us quite a lot performance wise.

05-Aug-09: Massa Goes Home to Recuperate

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Today is the 5th August 2009 and this is F1 Minute.

An update on Massa first, and not only did he return to Brazil from the Hungarian hospital where he was being treated, but he has now been discharged to continue to recuperate at home. Massa recorded his first interview since the crash on Monday, offering his thanks to everyone involved in his recovery, and saying the last thing he remembers before the accident is following the Brawn car. He added that he wants to get back to racing as soon as possible, but understands he needs to be fully fit before that happens.

On the subject of his replacement, Schumacher has reportedly lost three kilograms in his preparation for the race, but is still a little worried about his neck. He injured himself in a motorbike accident earlier in the year, and after his recent test in the 2007 car, he said that it was pinching a little. The final decision on whether he is fit to race will be taken nearer the time.

That’ll do it for now, please join me again tomorrow for another F1 Minute.

Force India – Summer Break – Where in the world?

August is usually a time for drivers as well as team personnel to take a short break, and this year is no exception with the four week gap between the Hungarian Grand Prix and the next event in Valencia on 23 August.

With the Force India factory closed from 3 – 16 August and no development or testing occurring, we asked Adrian and Giancarlo what they will be doing on their time off.

Adrian

‘I will be returning to my home in Switzerland for a short time to relax and do some training before I head off to Bali, Indonesia, for some time with my family. I love going to Bali and go there at least once a year. It’s different and very relaxing, so I’m looking forward to chilling out, eating some good Asian food, and catching up with my family. I will also do a bit of warm weather training when I’m there, such as swimming and running, but it will be good to have some time off as the last part of the year has been very busy. After I get back from Bali I’ll go back to Switzerland to get back into the zone for racing. It’s going to be a very busy end to the year!’

Giancarlo

‘I went from Hungary back to Sardinia, where my boat – the Fizzy – is moored at the moment. My family and some of my friends are on board right now so I’m looking forward to spending some time with them and enjoying Sardinia, which is a great place to spend a few days. We’re not really going to do much sailing, but we will probably move the boat down to Corsica, which isn’t too far away from Sardinia and check out the island. Overall it’s going to be a very relaxing time before we re-start the second part of the year. With four flyaway races at the end of the year and my home GP in Monza, it’s pretty much non-stop!’

Champagne Supernova

Lewis Hamilton sprays McLaren team principal Martin Whitmarsh on the podium at the Hungarian Grand Prix. The team have made impressive steps to turn around their poor performance from the beginning of the season, and now they’ve had a taste of winning, they want more.

Credit: Bridgestone Motorsport Corporation

Toyota – Hungarian Grand Prix Debrief – Q+A with Timo Glock

Are you happy with sixth place in the Hungarian Grand Prix?
I am happy with the result in the end, especially considering I started from 13th. To make up seven places at the Hungaroring is not easy, so finishing in sixth is an encouraging result. It was nice to be back in the top six after a few tricky races and this was actually my best result since the podium in Malaysia.

Was it a surprise to finish the race in the top six?
On Saturday I could not have predicted a result like that but the team, like me and Jarno, never give up and they worked really hard to give us both the chance to finish in the points. Our strategy was excellent but a lot of credit goes to my pit crew as well because they did a great job all through the weekend, especially on Saturday when we needed to make some repairs very quickly. Then in the race my pit stops were perfect, which really makes a difference when you are in a close fight for position. Overall it was good team work from everyone and we got our reward.

Realistically, was sixth the best possible result?
We could definitely have been fifth because we had really strong pace throughout the race and I finished directly behind Heikki Kovalainen. However, as you always expect at this track, there was some traffic and that cost me time at the end of my first two stints. Kimi (Raikkonen) came out of the pits just ahead of me both times and, as he had more fuel than I did, he was slower than me. I was able to go quite a bit quicker but overtaking at the Hungaroring is tricky and I just couldn’t get past. Without that, I am sure I would have been able to get Kovalainen for fifth. I put in some really quick laps towards the end, including the fifth fastest race lap, and caught him but it wasn’t possible to pass.

How did you make up so many positions in the race?
As everyone knows, it is almost impossible to overtake in Hungary so strategy is very important if you are to make up positions. I got a pretty good start and overtook (Rubens) Barrichello so I was 12th at the end of the first lap which meant it was difficult to think about the top six at that point. But we were confident our strategy would help us gain positions during the long first stint; I just had to keep fighting and setting good lap times.

How did the car feel during that first stint?
Obviously we were really heavy at the start of the race and, just like at the Nürburgring, I was one of the last guys to make my first pit stop. It was tricky to start with but I found a good rhythm and my lap times were strong, even though I was heavier than the cars around me. The super soft Bridgestone tyres felt really good and didn’t lose performance, even though I did a lot of laps on them, so the car felt spot on.

Are you happy to have a break now? What will you do?
It will be nice to have some time off but I am a racing driver and I love to drive Formula 1 cars, so I would never say I am happy to be away from them! The main priority for me during the summer break is to just relax and spend time with my family and friends; normally I have very little time to do that. It will be a relief to be away from airports for a little while and I will make sure I will get plenty of rest so I am refreshed for the last part of the season. But I won’t be just putting my feet up the whole time. I have some fitness work planned with my physio so I will stay in good shape and I’ll be really keen to get back in the car for Valencia.

What are your thoughts ahead of the European Grand Prix?
We were strong last year in Valencia so I am hopeful we will be again this time too. Qualifying is an area I want to improve on because that has been a bit frustrating for me in the last couple of races. If we can get the maximum out of the car and tyres over one lap in qualifying, I am sure we will be competitive and that gives us the best chance for the race. As always, my goal is to score as many points as possible; hopefully I can finish higher than my seventh place there last year.

27-Jul-09: Positive News Regarding Massa’s Condition

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This is another special F1 Minute with an update on Felipe Massa.

The Chief Surgeon who has been keeping an eye on Massa, Dr. Lajos Zsiros, gave us a full run down of his condition at the moment, saying: “In the last 24 hours some major changes have gone through in the condition of Felipe Massa. He continues to be stable… We stopped sedation and after that he became capable of making contact.”

Zsiros continues: “As we speak he is sleepy, but he gives adequate answers to the questions we ask him, and he can move his arms and legs spontaneously… During the night we do not plan to do any more interventions on him.”

There were rumours earlier in the day that injuries to Massa’s left eye would possibly be serious enough to stop him racing in the future, but Zsiros says it is too early to comment on the state of his vision. Massa remains in intensive care, he has been asking questions about what happened to him, although there is no word on whether he remembers the accident. His family are with him.

That’s all for today, please join me tomorrow for another F1 Minute.

Forza Felipe

Rob Smedley leads the Ferrari mechanics in a tribute to Felipe Massa ahead of the Hungarian Grand Prix. Massa was injured during qualifying when a spring worked loose from a car in front and hit him in the helmet. Felipe is still in a serious condition but he does seem to be improving.

26-Jul-09: Lewis Hamilton Wins Hungarian Grand Prix

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This is F1 Minute for the 26th July 2009.

Firstly, an update on Massa’s condition. He is still stable, and was awake earlier today, when his family arrived to see him. However, the doctors decided to continue with the induced coma for another 48 hours to aid his recovery. I will keep you posted.

Meanwhile, the race played out today in Hungary, with Lewis Hamilton securing his first win of the season. Alonso’s had a few problems with the car that meant he couldn’t pull away enough of a gap and after his first pit stop, the right front wheel was not secured properly, and flew off, bouncing across the grass and settling into the barriers. Alonso was out of the race, giving Hamilton a clear run to put in a fine performance for the win. He was joined on the podium by Raikkonen and Webber.

Post-race, Renault were investigated and found to be in breach of several regulations with regards to letting Alonso out of the pits with an unsafe wheel and not informing him straight away. They have been suspended from the next race in Valencia, but have appealed the decision.

That’s it for now, I’ll be back tomorrow with another F1 Minute.

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