Bridgestone Motorsport’s Saturday Update
November 1, 2008 by Christine
Filed under Press Releases
Felipe Massa will start from pole position for the Brazilian Grand Prix after using Bridgestone’s soft compound tyre to set a time of 1min 12.368secs at Interlagos. He was over three tenths faster than his next quickest rival, Jarno Trulli (Panasonic Toyota Racing), who will join him on the front row .
Kimi Raikkonen was the third fastest and will be joined on the second row by drivers’ championship leader Lewis Hamilton (Vodafone McLaren Mercedes). Heikki Kovalainen (Vodafone McLaren Mercedes) was fifth fastest and Fernando Alonso (ING Renault F1 Team) was sixth. Sebastian Vettel (Scuderia Toro Rosso) set the seventh fastest time and Nick Heidfeld (BMW Sauber F1 Team) was eighth. Sebastien Bourdais (Scuderia Toro Rosso) and Timo Glock (Panasonic Toyota Racing) were the final two drivers to qualify in the top ten.
In the morning practice session Fernando Alonso topped the times with a 1min 12.141secs lap, set using the soft compound. Alonso was over seven hundredths faster than Hamilton, with Kovalainen the third quickest. Times were close, illustrated by the fact that the top seventeen cars were within a second of each other.
Today saw a discernable difference in weather between the morning practice session and afternoon qualifying session, with the afternoon warmer than the morning. Today’s fastest lap time, a 1min 11.768secs, was set by Kovalainen using the soft tyre in Q2. Last year’s pole time was a 1min 11.931secs set by Massa using the super soft compound. Massa also set the day’s fastest lap time in
2007, a 1min 11.810secs, set using the super soft in FP3.
Hirohide Hamashima - Bridgestone Director of Motorsport Tyre Development, said:
“Congratulations to Felipe Massa for a stunning lap to give him pole position in front of a massive Brazilian crowd. This is his third consecutive pole position in Brazil and I’m sure he will be strong in tomorrow’s race. Congratulations also to Jarno Trulli for qualifying on the front row for the first time since 2005. Tomorrow we should have an interesting battle for the championship as Massa is on pole and Hamilton has a very fast McLaren Mercedes, as was illustrated by Kovalainen’s fastest lap in Q2. The circuit surface condition is better than it was yesterday, but we are still seeing graining. The key point in tomorrow’s race will be who manages the graining phase of their tyres the best in order to get a strong result.”
Toyota - Brazilian Grand Prix - Qualifying Round-Up
November 1, 2008 by Christine
Filed under Press Releases
Today’s Weather: Sunny and warm. Air 21-22°C, track 38-41°C
Best 2008 grid position: 2nd Jarno Trulli (Brazil)
Best 2008 race result: 2nd Timo Glock (Hungary)
Jarno Trulli (Car 11, Chassis TF108-05)
Summary: Made the front row with a stunning drive PROVISIONAL GRID: 2nd
FP3 10th Best Lap Time: 1m 12.457s (+0.316s) Laps: 19
Q1 6th Best Lap Time: 1m 12.226s (+0.396s) Laps: 3
Q2 10th Best Lap Time: 1m 12.107s (+0.339s) Laps: 6
Q3 2nd Best Lap Time: 1m 12.737s (+0.369s) Laps: 6
“Before coming here I knew this was one of those difficult, technical tracks where I could be strong and my car could be very competitive. So I have been preparing and waiting for this grand prix and now here I am. We have been competitive all weekend and I played my cards during qualifying, saving my tyres and getting ready for Q3. In the end I put in a really good lap. It’s ironic because for the first time in my career I thought I might not make it on Friday because I was feeling really ill with flu. So after this result I have to thank the whole team for the job - the mechanics, the engineers and also to the doctor. I am really happy for everyone and this shows the progress we have made this season. Now we hope to finish on a high.”
Timo Glock (Car 12, Chassis TF108-07)
Summary: Made it safely into Q3 and row five PROVISIONAL GRID: 10th
FP3 13th Best Lap Time: 1m 12.712s (+0.571s) Laps: 22
Q1 5th Best Lap Time: 1m 12.223s (+0.393s) Laps: 9
Q2 5th Best Lap Time: 1m 11.909s (+0.141s) Laps: 9
Q3 10th Best Lap Time: 1m 14.230s (+1.862s) Laps: 6
“We worked hard today to improve the set-up after the problems we had yesterday. In the end we found a decent balance this afternoon. During Q2 I found a good rhythm and the car felt quick. I made it under 1m 12s on my penultimate run but at the end of the session we went out again on a set of options. In hindsight we could have saved those tyres for Q3, which might have helped. The top ten is not bad but we could have achieved slightly more.”
Pascal Vasselon - Senior General Manager Chassis
“Clearly we are delighted by the outcome of qualifying. For Jarno things went exactly as expected. We had several indications throughout the weekend that he was very comfortable and quick here. Then he did a very strong performance so congratulations to him. He was caught out by a gust of wind in the second outing in Q2 but the first outing was good enough. For Timo things went even better than expected. He was struggling more with the balance of the car yesterday but today he was able to put everything together when it mattered. The two cars are obviously on different strategies, which considering the unstable weather predicted for tomorrow should put the team in a strong position. The tyre situation is challenging as this circuit is severe for tyres but we feel that we will be able to handle both compounds well. So now we are looking forward very much to an exciting race to finish the season.”
Honda - 2008 Brazilian GP: Qualifying
November 1, 2008 by Christine
Filed under Press Releases
Rubens Barrichello will start his home Grand Prix from 15th position after maximising the performance of his RA108 in Q1 at the Autodromo Jose Carlos Pace. The Brazilian made it through to Q2 for the second consecutive race, while his Honda team-mate Jenson Button missed the cut by just 0.2s and will start tomorrow’s race from 17th place.
Sunshine over Sao Paulo increased the track temperature at Interlagos to 41 degrees, which helped the team to find more performance from the option tyres than had been the case in the cooler conditions of yesterday’s practice sessions. The drivers set up their cars to suit the conditions early in the session, before going on to improve their lap times significantly.
Rubens’ first flying lap of Q1 was 1:13.030s and he improved by more than 0.5s to set the 14th fastest time and progress into Q2.
Jenson completed three runs during Q1. His first lap was a 1:13.351s and he improved to a best time of 1:12.810s. Despite being only a second slower than Felipe Massa’s fastest time, it wasn’t quite enough to see him progress into the next part of qualifying.
Rubens was unable to achieve the same level of grip in Q2 and his best lap was 0.6s slower than he had managed in Q1 therefore he will line up on the eighth row of the grid.
RUBENS BARRICHELLO
Q. A great lap today to make Q2 for the second race in succession.
A. “I’m pleased that we were able to make it into the second qualifying session here in Interlagos today. We had a perfect lap on my second run in Q1 with the option tyres working really well. Unfortunately we couldn’t get the same grip level in Q2 and were really struggling with understeer. Despite tweaking the pressures to try and improve, we weren’t able to make any further progress. Without the understeer, I could have hoped for 14th or maybe even 13th but we were right on the limit of the car’s performance.”
JENSON BUTTON
Q. What issues did you face in qualifying today?
A. “The car was a definite improvement from practice this morning as I had much more front grip. Unfortunately I made a mistake on my second lap in turn 4, which cost me some time. We made some adjustments to the pressures to help the front end grip before my final run and we were able to go quicker but not by enough. In any case, my car stopped out on track on my in-lap.”
STEVE CLARK
Head of Race & Test Engineering
Q. How do you feel about the team’s qualifying performance today?
A. “Obviously we are very satisfied with Rubens getting through to Q2 for the second time in as many race weekends. Realistically he extracted the maximum from the car with the performance we have today and so this was, in his own words, a fantastic lap. For Jenson, the session was very tight and he didn’t quite have the balance to make it through. After progressing through to Q2, with an evolving track, we were just unable to get the balance back with the single set of options he had remaining.”
Q. What is the outlook for tomorrow’s race?
A. “The weather may well play a pivotal role in tomorrow’s race. Forecasts vary but rain seems extremely likely. From our grid positions, rain, and the chaos it brings, is not unwelcome for us as the conditions hand more responsibility to the driver and both of ours are extremely good in the wet.”
01-Nov-08: Massa Takes Pole Position for Home Grand Prix
Welcome to F1 Minute for the 1st November 2008.
Saturday in Brazil turned out a bit cloudy in the morning for Free Practice 3 but the sun was shining by the time qualifying got going. Alonso had repeated his Friday feat of jumping to the top of the timesheets at the very last minute and we were expecting more of the same.
The first session was not out of the ordinary, except that neither Williams driver got out of the bottom five. Button was also out in Q1, and suffered his car running out of fuel on the way back to the pit lane.
Quali 2 was more interesting, as both Red Bull drivers were out, Coulthard quite disappointed on his final Saturday, and Kubica stuck between them.
On to Q3, and Massa put in the first early benchmark. He was clearly lighter than Hamilton and managed to retain pole position throughout the session, whilst Hamilton posted second, only to be pushed down by Raikkonen and Trulli as well! Kovalainen qualified behind Hamilton but Alonso lines up behind him on the grid. It’s going to be a fascinating first corner.
That’s it for today, I’ll be back tomorrow with another F1 Minute.
18-Oct-08: Hamilton Takes Pole Position for Chinese Grand Prix
It’s the 18th October 2008 and this is F1 Minute.
Hamilton has taken pole position in China, with both Ferraris behind him, and Kovalainen back in fifth. Webber suffered from a grid penalty, after his engine blew up in Free Practice 3. He qualified sixth but starts down in 16th. That bumped Heidfeld up to sixth, but he’s also received a penalty. In the first Free Practice session, he impeded David Coulthard’s hot lap. The Red Bull team complained to the stewards and Heidfeld received a three place grid drop seeing him start in 9th.
With Hamilton first and Massa third, Kubica will be ruing his performance which sees him start in 11th. He appeared to struggle with the same tyre issues that Heidfeld had last week, and he concedes his title chances are now supremely slim.
Finally, Force India have confirmed they will be keeping both Sutil and Fisichella on for next year, whilst Toyota have announced the launch date for their 2009 car – January 16th. Seems such a long time away.
That’s it for today, I’ll be back tomorrow with another F1 Minute.
22-Sep-08: Ross Brawn Defends 2009 Rear Wing Style
It’s the 22nd September 2008, and this is F1 Minute.
At the Jerez test last week, Williams ran a brand new but old-style rear wing in preparation for 2009. Not everyone, including myself, is in favour of the look of the cars with this wing, but Ross Brawn has defended the change. “I think they look okay - and they look in many ways nicer because the bodywork doesn’t have all this furniture. It is a much bigger front wing and smaller higher rear wing, but we have had things like that in the past.” He said that just like when grooved tyres were introduced, people didn’t like the look of them, but we will soon get used to it.
Talking of 2009, Vijay Mallya has spoken about how he is measuring the performance of his team, and whilst he says Force India are doing well this year, next season will be the real test. “I’ve always said that we will take baby steps in 2008, such as getting into Q2, and I think we have managed to do that. In 2009 we have no excuses, I know that, and I will make sure that we perform.”
That’s it for today, I’ll be back tomorrow with another F1 Minute.
05-Jul-08: British GP Qualifying Update Plus It’s Future
This is F1 Minute for the 5th July 2008, and I’m in the vicinity of Silverstone having watched qualifying first hand. So, let me fill you in on all that happened.
Kovalainen took his first ever pole position just ahead of Webber who for a brief moment looked like he’d secured the top spot. I know what you’re thinking, the world’s gone crazy - no Hamilton, Raikkonen, or Massa at the top. In fact, Massa finished in 9th.
The constant threat of rain became a reality first thing and although most of FP3 was dry, drivers still had to negotiate the spray. For qualifying, there was a brief shower or two but nothing to cause any major problems. Teams who were facing adversity though include Honda, who couldn’t get either driver out of the bottom five, and BMW who had to pull Kubica in for emergency repairs similar to those they had on Friday.
In other news, and in very bad and obviously orchestrated timing, Bernie has announced that the British Grand Prix will move to Donington Park from 2010. This decision is of particular interest as Bernie has interests in Donington Park, and has been threatening to ditch Silverstone for a very long time.
That’s all for today, please join me again tomorrow for another F1 Minute.
21-Jun-08: Raikkonen Secures Ferrari’s 200th Pole Position
This is F1 Minute for the 21st June 2008.
Kimi Raikkonen has secured Ferrari’s 200th pole position today, with Felipe Massa helping the team lock out the front row.
Free Practice 3 was slightly bizarre with Nelson Piquet topping the timesheets, so that gave nothing away as to what would happen in qualifying. The first two sessions saw nothing out of the ordinary, except for Heidfeld struggling to get out of 18th position. He finally managed to pull his BMW into 12th in the nick of time. Other than that the bottom of the timesheets saw team mates sticking together. Force India’s last, then both Honda drivers, both Williams and Toro Rossos.
At the top, Hamilton and Alonso followed the Ferrari’s, but with Hamilton’s ten place grid drop, that promotes Alonso to third. Kovalainen in the other McLaren also suffered at the hands of the stewards, being handed a five place grid drop for impeding Mark Webber on a hot lap.
Finally, on that subject, Raikkonen was fined 5,000 Euros for turning up late to the driver’s post-practice meeting on Friday.
That’s all for today, join me again tomorrow for another F1 Minute.
10-May-08: Massa Lines Up on Pole in Turkey
Welcome to F1 Minute, today is the 10th May.
After the rain dashed a bit of uncertainty into the Free Practice sessions yesterday, today was bright and sunny in Turkey. Free Practice 3 did see some unpredictable results though, with Webber topping the timesheets, and fellow Red Bull driver Coulthard in third. Between them, Alonso brought the Renault team a good result.
However, qualifying was a different matter. With the rules changed to accommodate the lack of Super Aguri, each drop out session was tighter than before. Piquet and Nakajima fell at the first hurdle, and Glock and the Honda boys at the next.
In the battle for pole position, it was close at the top between Ferrari, McLaren and BMW, with Kubica appearing to fare better than Heidfeld. A last minute tyre choice by Hamilton, however, handed pole to Felipe Massa, with Heikki Kovalainen lining up beside him on the grid. Webber made up for yesterday’s crash by putting the Red Bull in 6th.
The line up looks promising for tomorrow’s race, don’t forget to air your thoughts during live commenting on Sidepodcast.com, and join me tomorrow for another F1 Minute.
08-May-08: Kovalainen Given the Okay to Race in Turkey
Welcome to F1 Minute, it’s the 8th May.
Heikki Kovalainen has been given the all clear to race in Turkey this weekend, after an FIA medical examination today. Heikki says he is obviously very pleased about the decision as he is feeling 100% ready.
The FIA have confirmed that there’s a small tweak to the qualifying setup, due to Super Aguri’s withdrawal from the competition. From this Saturday, the first and second sessions of qualifying will see five cars drop out each, leaving ten to go through to the third session. This rewrite comes after the rules were already adjusted to accommodate the missing Prodrive team, and now we are down to just twenty cars.
Finally today, there is controversy surrounding Germany’s new state-sponsored sporting Hall of Fame, as it misses of three of the most famous sporting personalities. Michael Schumacher, and tennis stars Steffi Graf and Boris Becker are all missing. The initiative is intended to encourage youngsters to take up sport, but the list is made up of mostly deceased sporting heroes.
That’s all for today, please join me again tomorrow for another F1 Minute.