Category Archives: Sport

Mercedes Marches On in Spain

Barcelona – Today’s F1 Spanish Grand Prix was simply an easy run in the park for Mercedes AMG Petronas. Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg dominated the day, with neither Mercedes Works driver falling below 3rd place throughout the day. On the contrary, Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso did not fare nearly as well as he would have hoped this year at his home grand prix.

The race started with a few grid penalties. Toro Rosso’s Jean-Éric Vergne (FRA) received a grid penalty which had him start at 22nd place on the starting grid. Likewise, Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel (GER) started at 15th, receiving a 5 place grid penalty for having his gear box changed following his breakdown in Q3.

From Lap 1, the two Mercedes quickly left the rest of the pack in the dust. Their next closest competitor was Williams’ Valtteri Bottas (FIN), who kept 3rd place for much of the first few laps of the race. At Lap 3, Lotus’ Pastor Maldonado made contact with Caterham’s Marcus Ericsson, earning the Venezuelan a 5-second stop and go penalty at Lap 11.

One could certainly tell that today’s grand prix was no longer within the Reign of Red Bull. At Lap 16, 4-year consecutive champion Sebastian Vettel found himself attempting a pass on Caterham’s Kamui Kobayashi (JPN), the key word there being “attempting” as Kobayashi was able to defend against the German.

By Lap 25, Vergne, who already had been having problems with his car this weekend was forced to retire due to “an exhaust problem” as BBC Sport reported.

Out of all of the Mercedes engined cars, the McLarens have been the most disappointing. Neither of the two cars from Woking were able to finish with points in Spain, setting a rather unhappy scene for the races to come.

On the flip side, Ferrari’s performance improved dramatically today, with Kimi Räikkönen (FIN) holding onto 5th place until Lap 64, when he was passed by his teammate Alonso, much to the home crowd’s rejoicing. However, Alonso was outdone by Räikkönen’s countryman, Valtteri Bottas who finished in 5th.

By this point the Ferraris had been passed by both Red Bulls, with Ricciardo maintaining 3rd and Vettel taking 4th. The German had an impressive drive today, rising a total of 9 positions from his start at 15th.

All this being said, the Mercedes of Hamilton and Rosberg lapped everyone from Räikkönen at 7th on down the line. When the chequered flag fell with the top 3 being Hamilton, Rosberg, Ricciardo, the Australian in 3rd finished a total of 48.9 seconds behind the Briton in 1st.

Undoubtedly, the intrateam rivalry at Mercedes is growing, considering just how close Rosberg came to passing Hamilton, at one point being a mere 1.1 seconds behind the Briton. Perhaps it will all play out on the streets of Monaco on the 25th.

The final result from the 2014 Pirelli F1 Spanish Grand Prix are as follows:

  1. Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes (GBR), 1:41:05.155
  2. Nico Rosberg, Mercedes (GER), +00:00.600 secs
  3. Daniel Ricciardo, Red Bull (AUS), +00:49:000 secs
  4. Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull (GER), +1:16:700 secs
  5. Valtteri Bottas, Williams (FIN), +1:19.200 secs
  6. Fernando Alonso, Ferrari (ESP), +1:27.700 secs
  7. Kimi Räikkönen, Ferrari (FIN), lapped
  8. Romain Grosjean, Lotus (FRA), lapped
  9. Sergio Pérez, Force India (MEX), lapped
  10. Nico Hülkenberg, Force India (GER), lapped
  11. Jenson Button, McLaren (GBR), lapped
  12. Kevin Magnussen, McLaren (GBR), lapped
  13. Felipe Massa, Williams (BRA), lapped
  14. Daniil Kvyat, Toro Rosso (RUS), lapped
  15. Pastor Maldonado, Lotus (VEN), lapped
  16. Esteban Gutierrez, Sauber (MEX), lapped
  17. Adrian Sutil, Sauber (GER), lapped
  18. Jules Bianchi, Marussia (FRA), lapped
  19. Max Chilton, Marussia (GBR), lapped
  20. Marcus Ericsson, Caterham (SWE), lapped
  21. Kamui Kobayashi, Caterham (JPN), retired 34 laps
  22. Jean-Éric Vergne, Toro Rosso (FRA), retired 24 laps

F1 Midweek – Preparing for España

Kansas City – In most cases, I’d argue that when the Formula 1 circus comes to a particular country, nothing can possibly beat it in terms of media attention and popularity. However, two cases immediately stand out from the rogues gallery as exceptions to the aforementioned rule. 1. Here in the USA, because it’s America and there’s so very much always going on, and 2. Spain in May 2014, with the upcoming Derbi madrileño in the UEFA Champions League final on the 24th.

In general what I’d say should be expected from this weekend’s race in Catalonia is fairly simple: much of the same from the last race in Shanghai. Mercedes will most likely dominate the field, taking at the very least 1st place, if not 2nd as well, on the podium. What the viewer should watch most for will be how Ferrari and Red Bull fare in aiming for 3rd and the middle of the road in regards to points scoring.

My own prediction is that Fernando Alonso will drive well for his home crowd, finishing at least at 3rd place, followed close at hand by Red Bull’s Ricciardo. Given the recent trends in driver performance, I would not be surprised if Force India also drive quite well, perhaps with one of their two drivers even finishing in 5th or 6th.

Unfortunately, some clouds do hang over this coming weekend. For one thing this will be the closest race weekend to the 20th anniversary of the deaths of Germany’s Roland Ratzenberger and Brazil’s Ayrton Senna at the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix at Imola. On the ongoing side of things, in the period since Shanghai, the trial of Formula 1’s boss Bernie Ecclestone on corruption charges in Munich has begun. Undoubtedly the court’s final ruling will have a major impact on the sport as we know it today, possibly even advancing Ecclestone’s retirement date by a year or so.

The 2014 Pirelli Spanish Grand Prix will take place on Sunday 11 May, Mother’s Day here in the States, at 14.00 Barcelona (07.00 Chicago, 13.00 London.)

F1 Chinese Grand Prix all for Lewis

Shanghai – Today’s installment of the 2014 UBS Chinese Grand Prix was a thriller for fans of Mercedes AMG Petronas, Red Bull, and Ferrari. At long last, Ferrari made itself known on the podium, with Spaniard Fernando Alonso’s 3rd place finish. Once again, the weekend was Mercedes’ for the taking.

Lewis Hamilton took off from pole and didn’t look back to the extent that even when he had to go in for pit stops he didn’t have to worry at all for his 1st place position. Meanwhile he teammate Nico Rosberg found himself in a bit of trouble when his wheels and those of Williams’ Valtteri Bottas just past Turn 1 on Lap 1. Rosberg was able to come out of that incident without much trouble, passing by the Red Bulls and Alonso’s Ferrari, finishing in 2nd.

Red Bull was quite strong today. Between Sebastian Vettel’s strong race thus far and Daniel Ricciardo’s consistency in his tyre usage, the Red Bulls could very well be back to challenge for 1st. After a few laps of Vettel leading Ricciardo, in part due to continuing tyre degradation, team orders came to Vettel to allow his Australian teammate through. Vettel initially fought Ricciardo on his passing, but after a time let him through largely due to the worsening situation of Vettel’s tyres.

Ferrari equally had a pleasant day. Fernando Alonso’s performance was spot on from the beginning, coming through making contact with his former Brazilian teammate Felipe Massa of Williams on the main straight up to Turn 1 on Lap 1. Despite being overtaken by Rosberg, Alonso was able to hold off both of the Red Bulls to the very end, finishing in 3rd and earning his and Ferrari’s first podium of 2014. No doubt the Ferrari bosses in Maranello will be in better moods after China than they were after Bahrain. Kimi Räikkönen earned points today, but stayed mostly in the middle of the pack, racing with the Williams, Force Indias, and McLarens.

On the topic of McLaren, unfortunately China did not offer good luck. Neither Jenson Button (GBR) nor Kevin Magnussen (DEN) finished in the top 10, thus leaving Shanghai without valuable driver and constructor points. On the other hand, times are looking up for Force India, along with Valtteri Bottas of Williams. 

The final standings from today are:

  1. Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes (GBR), 1:33:28.338
  2. Nico Rosberg, Mercedes (GER), +18.1 secs
  3. Fernando Alonso, Ferrari (ESP), +23.6 secs
  4. Daniel Ricciardo, Red Bull (AUS), +27.1 secs
  5. Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull (GER), +47.8 secs
  6. Nico Hülkenberg, Force India (GER), +54.3 secs
  7. Valtteri Bottas, Williams (FIN), +55.7 secs
  8. Kimi Räikkönen, Ferrari (FIN), +76.3 secs
  9. Sergio Pérez, Force India (MEX), +82.6 secs
  10. Daniil Kvyat, Toro Rosso (RUS), +1 lap
  11. Jenson Button, McLaren (GBR), +1 lap
  12. Jean-Éric Vergne, Toro Rosso (FRA), +1 lap
  13. Kevin Magnussen, McLaren (DEN), +1 lap
  14. Pastor Maldonado, Lotus (VEN), +1 lap
  15. Felipe Massa, Williams (BRA), +1 lap
  16. Esteban Gutierrez, Sauber (MEX), +1 lap
  17. Jules Bianchi, Marussia (FRA), +1 lap
  18. Kamui Kobayashi, Caterham (JPN), +1 lap
  19. Max Chilton, Marussia (GBR), +2 laps
  20. Marcus Ericsson, Caterham (SWE), +2 laps
  • Romain Grosjean, Lotus (FRA), retired 28 laps
  • Adrian Sutil, Sauber (GER), retired 5 laps

 

Formula 1 will return to Europe with the Pirelli Spanish Grand Prix on 4 May in Catalonia. This thankfully means that the race will be broadcasted at a decent time (07.30 Chicago) in North America.

Formula 1 – Midweek Madness

Kansas City – Two bits of news are just in from the Formula 1 Press Office, both of which could decide the course of the season to come. Firstly, longtime Ferrari boss Stefano Domenicali is quitting the team effective immediately. The second piece of big F1 news is of course the FIA’s ruling against Red Bull’s petition on behalf of Daniel Ricciardo for his fuel sensor issues at his home Grand Prix in Melbourne a month ago.

Despite the fact that one of the current headlines (as of 21.17 CDT on Tuesday 15 April 2014) on F1.com is announcing the team’s plans for becoming the second best in the sport, Domenicali’s departure mirrors the woes felt by the lads from Maranello over the three races already run this season. So far this season, Ferrari’s drivers Fernando Alonso (ESP) and Kimi Räikkönen (FIN) have yet to qualify or finish a race higher than 4th. Not only that, but the situation has proven even more distressing for the Italians in that they were beaten to the podium in Bahrain by the Force India of Sergio Pérez.

Meanwhile, yesterday in Paris a committee of the FIA met to rule on Red Bull’s appeal on behalf of Daniel Ricciardo in regards to his disqualification from the Australian Grand Prix in March after finishing in 2nd. His disqualification came as a result of Red Bull’s choice to rely on their own fuel calculations in Melbourne rather than those provided by the FIA. According to the Red Bull technical staff, the FIA fuel sensors were not working, an issue which has repeated itself since.

A Red Bull spokesperson said today on the ruling that “We are of course disappointed by the outcome and would not have appealed if we didn’t think we had a very strong case.” (F1.com) In regards to the Red Bull ruling, I am not too surprised. I would have preferred to see at the very least Ricciardo’s points restored from the race proper, as he had very little if nothing at all to do with the sensors.

All of this leads into this weekend’s Chinese Grand Prix, which is sure to be an interesting Easter Sunday spectacle. The race begins at 14.00 Shanghai (02.00 Chicago, 07.00 London) this Sunday.

Mercedes, Force India Storm their Way to Podium in Bahrain

Sakhir – Today’s night race from Bahrain was anything but boring. Firstly, I would like the thank the FIA for making it a night race as at long last those of us in the Americas can watch some of these non-European races in real time rather than tape delayed as per usual.

From the very beginning the two Mercedes AMG Petronas cars of Lewis Hamilton (GBR) and Nico Rosberg (GER) left the rest of the grid far behind. The racing between these two teammates was one great highlight of the weekend, showing off not only the prowess and power of the Mercedes engines and chassis, but also the expertise with which those two drive. It was, as F1.com so eloquently put it, an “epic desert duel” between the two Mercedes drivers.

Even more exciting was the equally invigorating drives by the two Force Indias and two Williams, who for much of the race not only outperformed the Red Bulls, but also the Ferraris and McLarens. Sergio Pérez’s 3rd place podium was the best finish for the team from Northamptonshire since their 2nd place at Spa in 2009. Felipe Massa (BRA) and his Williams were able to hold off the rest of the grid, save the two Mercedes for much of the first half of the race, until tyre degradation forced him and a fair number of the rest of the grid, to pit. His teammate, Valtteri Bottas (FIN) was likewise successful, though he did not achieve quite the success of his Brazilian teammate today.

For the three usual suspects near the top of the grid, the Red Bulls, Ferraris, and McLarens, it was not the best of days. Though the Red Bulls were able to hold their own in the latter half of the race, they stayed mostly in the middle of the pack for the first few dozen laps. The previously ill-fated Australian, Daniel Ricciardo, made his way to a 4th place finish just 0.4 seconds behind 3rd place Mexican finisher Sergio Pérez. Ricciardo’s 4 time champion German teammate, Sebastian Vettel, also was able to move well up the pack, finishing just behind fellow German Nico Hülkenberg of Force India.

The Ferraris simply didn’t have a good day. Under the watchful eye of Ferrari President Luca Cordero di Montezemolo the two Ferraris floundered a bit at the first few laps, being quickly overtaken by each of the Force Indias and Williams in turn, a sight that is quite rare in Formula 1 to say the least. The day was bad enough for the Italian team that their aforementioned President left Sakhir before the race was over.

The McLarens equally had a sour day of it, with neither of their two drivers finishing the race. Briton Jenson Button retired on the 55th lap due to a clutch issue finishing in 17th place. Dane Kevin Magnussen retired 15 laps earlier on a similar issue with his car.

The most shocking moment of the day however came afoul of Sauber’s Esteban Gutierrez (MEX), whose car was broadsided by Lotus’ Pastor Maldonado (VEN) at Turn 1 just after the Venezuelan had left the pit lane, resulting in Gutierrez’s car performing a spectacular and terrifying roll off to the edge of the track. Thankfully, Gutierrez was able to stand and get out of the cockpit. Maldonado will face a 5-spot grid penalty at the next race in China along with 3 penalty points added onto his Super Licence. I personally find it odd that Ricciardo was given a heavier sentence for a lose tyre in Malaysia, namely a 10-spot grid penalty here in Bahrain, than Maldonado who caused another driver’s car to flip twice, threatening Gutierrez’s life. But, that’s just that.

The resulting safety car laps helped eliminate the distances between the cars on track, adding to some last minute passing and position swapping between the drivers. It should also be noted that thus far in 2014, Marussia has always had at least one car finish the race, which is more than their rivals at Caterham can say. It could very well add up come season’s end at Abu Dhabi in November.

The final race standings are as follows:

  1. Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes (GBR), 1:39:42.743
  2. Nico Rosberg, Mercedes (GER), +1.1 secs
  3. Sergio Pérez, Force India (MEX), +24.1 secs
  4. Daniel Ricciardo, Red Bull (AUS), +24.5 secs
  5. Nico Hülkenberg, Force India (GER), +28.7 secs
  6. Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull (GER), +29.9 secs
  7. Felipe Massa, Williams (BRA), +31.3 secs
  8. Valtteri Bottas, Williams (FIN), +31.9 secs
  9. Fernando Alonso, Ferrari (ESP), +32.6 secs
  10. Kimi Räikkönen, Ferrari (FIN), +33.5 secs
  11. Daniil Kvyat, Toro Rosso (RUS), +41.3 secs
  12. Romain Grosjean, Lotus (FRA), +43.1 secs
  13. Max Chilton, Marussia (GBR), +59.9 secs
  14. Pastor Maldonado, Lotus (VEN), +62.8 secs
  15. Kamui Kobayashi, Caterham (JPN), +87.9 secs
  16. Jules Bianchi, Marussia (FRA), +1 lap
  17. Jenson Button, McLaren (GBR), clutch, 55 laps
  • Kevin Magnussen, McLaren (DEN), clutch, 40 laps
  • Esteban Gutierrez, Sauber (MEX), accident, 39 laps
  • Marcus Ericsson, Caterham (SWE), oil leak, 33 laps
  • Jean-Éric Vergne, Toro Rosso (FRA), accident damage, 18 laps
  • Adrian Sutil, Sauber (GER), accident, 17 laps

At the end of today, the current driver’s standings are:

  1. Nico Rosberg, Mercedes (GER), 61 points
  2. Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes (GBR), 50 points
  3. Nico Hülkenberg, Force India (GER), 28 points
  4. Fernando Alonso, Ferrari (ESP), 26 points
  5. Jenson Button, McLaren (GBR), 23 points
  6. Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull (GER), 23 points
  7. Kevin Magnussen, McLaren (DEN), 20 points
  8. Valtteri Bottas, Williams (FIN), 18 points
  9. Sergio Pérez, Force India (MEX), 16 points
  10. Daniel Ricciardo, Red Bull (AUS), 12 points
  11. Felipe Massa, Williams (BRA), 12 points
  12. Kimi Räikkönen, Ferrari (FIN), 7 points
  13. Jean-Éric Vergne, Toro Rosso (FRA), 4 points
  14. Daniil Kvyat, Toro Rosso (RUS), 3 points
  15. Romain Grosjean, Lotus (FRA), 0 points
  16. Adrian Sutil, Sauber (GER), 0 points
  17. Esteban Gutierrez, Sauber (MEX), 0 points
  18. Max Chilton, Marussia (GBR), 0 points
  19. Kamui Kobayashi, Caterham (JPN), 0 points
  20. Pastor Maldonado, Lotus (VEN), 0 points
  21. Marcus Ericsson, Caterham (SWE), 0 points
  22. Jules Bianchi, Marussia (FRA), 0 points

Finally, the constructor’s championship stands at:

  1. Mercedes, Germany, 111 points
  2. Force India, India, 44 points
  3. McLaren, Great Britain, 43 points
  4. Red Bull, Austria, 35 points
  5. Ferrari, Italy, 33 points
  6. Williams, Great Britain, 30 points
  7. Toro Rosso, Italy, 7 points
  8. Lotus, Great Britain, 0 points
  9. Sauber, Switzerland, 0 points
  10. Marussia, Russia, 0 points
  11. Caterham, Malaysia, 0 points

The 2014 Formula 1 UBS Chinese Grand Prix is next on the calendar. Practise will begin in Shanghai on Friday 18 April with FP1 at 10.00 Shanghai (Thursday at 21.00 in Chicago, Friday at 03.00 in London), with FP2 on Friday at 14.00 Shanghai (Friday 01.00 Chicago, 07.00 London), FP3 on Saturday 19 April at 14.00 Shanghai, (Friday at 22.00 Chicago, Saturday at 04.00 London), Qualifying at 14.00 Shanghai (01.00 Chicago, 06.00 London), and the Race on Easter Sunday at 14.00 Shanghai (02.00 Chicago, 07.00 London).

The Chinese Grand Prix this year happens to fall on Easter Weekend, which is by far the most important weekend of the year for me as a Catholic. I follow the custom of doing no work from 15.00 on Good Friday until sunset on Holy Saturday, so there will be no Practise and Qualifying article going up for the Chinese Grand Prix. However, the race article will be up, albeit a bit delayed as per usual due to the time difference.

Mercedes, Force India, Williams Perform Well in Bahrain Qualifying

Sakhir – This year’s Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix is one to be remembered. Firstly, 2014 marks the 10th anniversary of Formula 1’s entrance into the Middle East and the Bahrain Grand Prix. Secondly, and perhaps offering more excitement, this marks the first time that the racing will take place after dark in Bahrain, adding it to the ever-growing list of night races alongside Singapore and Abu Dhabi. Equally exciting however was the 3 qualifying sessions undertaken by the teams in preparation for tomorrow’s race.

Q1 was highlighted by the surprisingly strong performance by both Force India drivers, in particular German Nico Hülkenberg, who quickly made his way to the top of the leaderboard. Hülkenberg, who could very well find himself with a top-tier ride in the next few years, proved himself more than able to keep the Mercedes, Ferraris, Red Bulls, McLarens, and Williamses at bay.

At the end of Q1 the usual suspects at Caterham and Marussia found themselves at the bottom, this time joined by the unfortunate Venezuelan Pastor Maldonado of Lotus and German Adrian Sutil of Sauber.

Q2 was equally impressive and exciting, with strong performances from especially the Mercedes, with both Nico Rosberg (GER) and Lewis Hamilton (GBR) finishing the session at 1, 2. They were closely followed by Australian Daniel Ricciardo of Red Bull. Arguably the most shocking moment of the session came at the chequered flag when the reigning world champion, Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel (GER), finished in 11th and his fellow German, Q1 leader Nico Hülkenberg finished in 12th, eliminating them from the top 10 seat needed to enter the final qualifying round of the day.

Q3 in some ways seemed predetermined, considering how much faster the two Mercedes cars are in comparison to the rest of the pack thus far in 2014. Positions 3 through 10 were left to be determined, however, as the rest of the remaining field seemed evenly matched to the challenge. The McLarens of Jenson Button (GBR) and Kevin Magnussen (DEN) qualified fairly well in 7th and 9th respectively, with Williams’ Felipe Massa (BRA) sandwiched between them. One major surprise of the qualifying results was just how high Force India’s Sergio Pérez (MEX) and Williams’ Valtteri Bottas (FIN) came, with 4th and 5th places respectively.

However, poor luck once again struck the Red Bull paddock, as their Australian driver, Daniel Ricciardo will have to serve a 10-spot grid penalty resulting from him retiring from last Sunday’s race in Malaysia prior to serving a drive-through penalty for leaving the pit with an unsecured tyre. Hopefully the Australian’s luck will return to him here in Bahrain and from here on out in 2014. Likewise, Sauber’s Adrian Sutil will start the race from the back of the grid due to a 5-place grid penalty placed upon him for holding up Lotus’ Romain Grosjean (FRA) in an “unsafe manner” according to F1.com.

The starting grid for Sunday’s Gulf Air Formula 1 Bahrain Grand Prix are as follows:

  1. Nico Rosberg, Mercedes (Germany)
  2. Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes (Great Britain)
  3. Valtteri Bottas, Williams (Finland)
  4. Sergio Pérez, Force India (Mexico)
  5. Kimi Räikkönen, Ferrari (Finland)
  6. Jenson Button, McLaren (Great Britain)
  7. Felipe Massa, Williams (Brazil)
  8. Kevin Magnussen, McLaren (Denmark)
  9. Fernando Alonso, Ferrari (Spain)
  10. Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull (Germany)
  11. Nico Hülkenberg, Force India (Germany)
  12. Daniil Kvyat, Toro Rosso (Russia)
  13. Daniel Ricciardo, Red Bull (Australia)
  14. Jean-Éric Vergne, Toro Rosso (France)
  15. Esteban Gutierrez, Sauber (Mexico)
  16. Romain Grosjean, Lotus (France)
  17. Pastor Maldonado, Lotus (Venezuela)
  18. Kamui Kobayashi, Caterham (Japan)
  19. Jules Bianchi, Marussia (France)
  20. Marcus Ericsson, Caterham (Sweden)
  21. Max Chilton, Marussia (Great Britain)
  22. Adrian Sutil, Sauber (Germany)

The 2014 F1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix will start at 18:00 Kuala Lampur (10:00 Chicago, 15.00 London) and will be broadcast live in the United States in English on NBC Sports at 10.00 y en Español en diferido en Univision Deportes a las 10.00 y 04.00 en Lunes. All US times are in Central Time. In Canada at 10.55 Eastern on TSN in English et il sera dans le même temps sur RDS en français. In the United Kingdom it will be broadcasted at 22.00 on BBC2 and at 14.30 on Sky Sports 1. In Australia it will be broadcasted at 00.15 on Ten.

Mercedes dominates the 2014 Malaysian Grand Prix

Kuala Lumpur – From the very start, Mercedes AMG Petronas dominated today’s F1 Petronas Malaysia Grand Prix at Sepang International Circuit in Kuala Lumpur. Lewis Hamilton started off at pole and didn’t look back for the next 56 laps, finishing a full 17.3 seconds ahead of the next closest driver, his German teammate Nico Rosberg. 

Mishaps and misfortune were afoot once again amongst the drivers as Force India’s Sergio Peréz (MEX) did not start due to a gearbox failure. 6 other drivers would follow him into retirement from the race for various reasons including Red Bull’s Daniel Ricciardo (AUS) whose bad luck from the disqualification in Melbourne followed him to Malaysia in the form of leaving the pits with his front left tyre not properly attached. The mistake leaves him with a 10 spot grid penalty for the next race in Bahrain.

One of the more interesting struggles to take place in the race was between Williams drivers Felipe Massa (BRA) and Valtteri Bottas (FIN) the former having been ordered by the team to let the latter pass him by, as Bottas had the faster car. Massa didn’t make Bottas’ attempts at passing easy, resulting in the Fin finishing just behind the Brazilian in 7th and 8th respectively.

McLaren’s Jenson Button (GBR) did fairly good, finishing in 6th with his rookie Danish teammate Kevin Magnussen coming in 9th. This comes just after the 2 McLaren drivers finished in 2nd and 3rd on the official tables following the season opener from Albert Park in Melbourne.

Ferrari suffered this weekend, with only one of their two drivers, Spaniard Fernando Alonso, scoring any points. Alonso finished in 4th place, whereas his Finnish teammate Kimi Räikkönen finished in 12th after suffering damage to his right-rear tyre following a collision with Magnussen.

Thus far 2014 has been the year of the Silver Arrows. For a while, it certainly seemed as though the years of Red Bull dominance might well be over, but after German Sebastian Vettel’s 3rd place finish that previous assessment may prove to be false. Certainly between the seasoned champion Vettel and the young, quite talented, if not a bit unlucky, Ricciardo I’d say Red Bull stands a chance at making a strong mark on this year’s championship. Whether they will win outright for the 5th time in a row is for the future to tell.

The results for the 2014 Malaysian Grand Prix are as follows:

  1. Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes (GBR) 25 pts. 1:40:25.974
  2. Nico Rosberg, Mercedes (GER) 18 pts. +17.3 secs
  3. Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull (GER) 15 pts. +24.5 secs
  4. Fernando Alonso, Ferrari (ESP) 12 pts. +35.9 secs
  5. Nico Hülkenberg, Force India (GER) 10 pts. +47.1 secs
  6. Jenson Button, McLaren (GBR) 8 pts. +83.6 secs
  7. Felipe Massa, Williams (BRA) 6 pts. +85.0 secs
  8. Valtteri Bottas, Williams (FIN) 4 pts. +85.5 sec
  9. Kevin Magnussen, McLaren (DEN) 2 pts. +1 lap
  10. Daniil Kvyat, Toro Rosso (RUS) 1 pt. +1 lap
  11. Romain Grosjean, Lotus (FRA) 0 pts. +1 lap
  12. Kimi Räikkönen, Ferrari (FIN) 0 pts. +1 lap
  13. Kamui Kobayashi, Caterham (JPN) 0 pts. +1 lap
  14. Marcus Ericsson, Caterham (SWE) 0 pts. +2 laps
  15. Max Chilton, Marussia (GBR) 0 pts. +2 laps

  • Daniel Ricciardo, Red Bull (GER) 0 pts. Retired.
  • Esteban Gutierrez, Sauber (MEX) 0 pts. Gearbox
  • Adrian Sutil, Sauber (GER) 0 pts. Power unit
  • Jean-Éric Vergne, Toro Rosso (FRA) 0 pts. Turbo
  • Jules Bianchi, Marussia (FRA) 0 pts. Accident damage
  • Pastor Maldonado, Lotus (VEN) 0 pts. Power unit
  • Sergio Peréz, Force India (MEX) 0 pts. DNS, gearbox

Formula 1 returns this coming Friday, 4 April at the Bahrain International Circuit in Sakhir, Bahrain. The race will begin the following Sunday, 6 April, at 18.00 Bahrain (10.00 Chicago, 14.00 London.)

Rainy F1 Malaysian Grand Prix Practise and Qualifying sets stage for Race

Kuala Lumpur – This weekend marks the second leg of this year’s Formula 1 World Championship: Malaysia. The tropical setting always offers extreme heat and humidity for the teams to compete in, leading to often surprising results. This year’s Grand Prix however is overshadowed by the tragic disappearance of Malaysian Airlines Flight 370, the passengers and crew of which are being honoured this weekend by the teams.

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Practises 1 and 2 saw the same general issues marring the various car’s performances. Neither of the Lotuses nor Force India’s Sergio Pérez (MEX) set lap times in P1. Meanwhile, the Mercedes, McLarens, Ferraris, and Red Bulls held the upper echelons of the leaderboard throughout most of Friday and Saturday. P1 concluded with Lewis Hamilton’s (GBR) Mercedes on top. Practise 2 was the only one of the 3 to be fully televised here in the United States by NBC Sports. Hamilton’s lead was taken by his teammate Nico Rosberg (GER). Practise 3 was once again a Mercedes 1, 2. Close behind the silver arrows came the Ferraris, Red Bulls, Force Indias, and Williams.

Qualifying however cut the tempo of the weekend short a bit as what the NBC lads called a “monsoon” sailed over the track at Sepang. After a good 45 minutes, as Q1 began, the teams went out in a variety of mostly intermediate tyres, which proved to be troublesome for the still quite wet track.

Tyre trouble became the main bane of the teams as they struggled to set good qualifying times for tomorrow’s Grand Prix. The more woeful incident of Q1 was Marcus Ericcson’s crash at the end of Q1, which led to a red flag and a premature end to the session with 0:36 seconds remaining on the clock.

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Marcus Ericsson / BBC Sport

Q2 was equally final for the grid placements for the two Williams of Felipe Massa and Valtteri Bottas, who placed 13th and 15th respectively. Russian rookie, Daniil Kvyat just barely remained at the top of the elimination group at the end of Q2. His teammate Jean-Éric Vergne was able to advance to Q3, qualifying in 9th.

Q3 was marked by a bit of a hurry in the end to get the laps in before more rain hit the circuit. The two McLarens had had their own tyre issues in the previous two qualifying sessions, having chosen to go on the intermediate tyres and soft tyres in such an order that was counterproductive to their own qualifying times.

What should be noted is just how much slower the qualifying times of this year’s Malaysian Grand Prix are in comparison to last year’s, with Lewis Hamilton taking pole with a time of 1:59.431 as opposed to Sebastian Vettel’s 2013 pole a full 9 seconds faster at 1:49.674. The grid positions are as follows:

  1. Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes (GBR) 1:59.431
  2. Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull (GER) 1:59.486
  3. Nico Rosberg, Mercedes (GER) 2:00.050
  4. Fernando Alonso, Ferrari (ESP) 2:00.175
  5. Daniel Ricciardo, Red Bull (AUS) 2:00.541
  6. Kimi Räikkönen, Ferrari (FIN) 2:01.218
  7. Nico Hülkenberg, Force India (GER) 2:01.712
  8. Kevin Magnussen, McLaren (DEN) 2:02.213
  9. Jean-Éric Vergne, Toro Rosso (FRA) 2:03.078
  10. Jenson Button, McLaren (GBR) 2:04.053
  11. Daniil Kvyat, Toro Rosso (RUS) Q2 2:02.351
  12. Esteban Gutirrez, Sauber (MEX) Q2 2:02.369
  13. Felipe Massa, Williams (BRA) Q2 2:02.460
  14. Sergio Peréz, Force India (MEX) Q2 2:02.511
  15. Valtteri Bottas, Williams (FIN) Q2 2:02.756
  16. Romain Grosjean, Lotus (FRA) Q2 2:02.885
  17. Pastor Maldonado, Lotus (VEN) Q3 2:02.074
  18. Adrian Sutil, Sauber (GER) Q3 2:02.131
  19. Jules Bianchi, Marussia (FRA) Q3 2:02.702
  20. Kamui Kobayashi, Caterham (JPN) Q3 2:03.595
  21. Max Chilton, Marussia (GBR) Q3 2:04.388
  22. Marcus Ericsson, Caterham (SWE) Q3 2:04.407
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Lewis Hamilton / BBC Sport

The 2014 F1 Petronas Malaysian Grand Prix will start at 16:00 Kuala Lampur (03:00 Chicago, 09.00 London) and will be broadcast live in the United States in English on NBC Sports y en Español en diferido en Univision Deportes a las 10.00. In Canada at 04.00 Eastern on TSN in English et il sera dans le même temps sur RDS en français. In the United Kingdom it will be broadcasted at 08.00 on BBC1 and at 07.30 on Sky Sports 1. In Australia it will be broadcasted at 18.30 on One.

Australian Grand Prix a memorable start to the 2014 season

Melbourne – From before the start, or rather before the start, this year’s Australian Grand Prix was one not to miss. After a false start resulting from Frenchman Jules Bianchi’s Marussia dying on the starting grid, the race began with a crash at the first corner caused when Caterham’s Kamui Kobayashi (JPN) ran into Brazilian Felipe Massa’s Williams, forcing both of their retirements from the race.

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Kobayashi retired at Turn 1 on Lap 1 after crashing into Felipe Massa of Williams. / Photo Credit: AP, from BBC Sport

Further along, mechanical issues forced Mercedes’ British driver Lewis Hamilton, who had started off at pole, to retire, whilst a couple of laps after that Red Bull’s 4 time world champion Sebastian Vettel (GER) retired due to software trouble with his car.

From those two bombshells, the race continued onwards, surprising the world with each passing lap. Williams’ Valtteri Bottas (FIN) had a bit of a scare after hitting the wall at the exit of Turn 10, which caused his right rear tyre to puncture and fly off, but thankfully for him and for Williams, Bottas was able to return to the box and get a new tyre on the back of the car in time that he finished 6th.

More excitement was to follow as Bottas’ countryman, Kimi Räikkönen of Ferrari, had an issue with his tyres locking up fairly often throughout the race. In turn, this caused Räikkönen, last year’s winner in Australia, to finish 8th. His teammate, Spanish driver Fernando Alonso, did fairly well for himself in the first weekend of the new season, finishing in 5th just behind McLaren’s Jenson Button (GBR).

Today was by far a race for the drivers who either didn’t perform as well last year, or were new to the sport in general. McLaren’s rookie Danish driver Kevin Magnussen finished in 3rd today in his first ever Formula 1 race. Likewise in firsts, Russian Daniil Kvyat of Toro Rosso finished in 10th, making him at 19 years of age the youngest driver to ever win points in Formula 1.

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Daniel Riccardo on the podium in Melbourne / BBC Sport

The two biggest names at the end of the day in Melbourne were by far race winner, Mercedes’ Nico Rosberg (GER), and second place, Red Bull’s Daniel Riccardo who’s first Formula 1 podium came happily in his home country of Australia. Unfortunately for Riccardo, the FIA revoked his 2nd place finish after the race because his car, “exceeded the required fuel mass flow of 100kg/h.” (Source: F1.com).

According to the article on F1’s website, the Red Bull team decided to use a different fuel sensor on Riccardo’s car starting on Saturday after finding that the original one was unreliable. The stewards ordered the team to replace the new sensor with the old one in the parc ferme on Saturday evening, but Red Bull decided not to do so, “considering the sensor unreliable.” Rather they used their own internal measurement models, which was “in violation of the procedure outlined in the technical regulations,” according to the stewards. Red Bull Racing is appealing the steward’s decision, and good on them for that. Following Riccardo’s disqualification, the results stand as follows:

01. Nico Rosberg, Mercedes (GER): 1:32:58.710
02. Kevin Magnussen, McLaren (DEN): +26.7 sec
03. Jenson Button, Mercedes (GBR): +30.0 sec
04. Fernando Alonso, Ferrari (ESP): +35.2 sec
05. Valtteri Bottas, Williams (FIN): +47.6 sec
06. Nico Hülkenberg, Sahara Force India (GER): +50.7 sec
07. Kimi Räikkönen, Ferrari (FIN): +57.6 sec
08. Jean-Éric Vergne, Scueria Toro Rosso (FRA): +60.4 sec
09. Daniil Kvyat, Scuderia Toro Rosso (RUS): +63.5 sec 
10. Sergio Pérez, Sahara Force India (MEX): +85.9 sec 
11. Adrian Sutil, Sauber (GER): 1:45.6 +1 lap
12. Esteban Gutierrez, Sauber (MEX): +1 lap 
13. Max Chilton, Marussia (GBR): +2 laps
NC Jules Bianchi, Marussia (FRA): +8 laps
Ret. Romain Grosjean, Lotus (FRA): ERS
Ret. Pastor Maldonado, Lotus (VEN): ERS
Ret. Marcus Ericsson, Caterham (SWE): Oil pressure
Ret. Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull (GER): Power unit
Ret. Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes (GBR): Engine
Ret. Felipe Massa, Williams (BRA): Accident
Ret. Kamui Kobayashi, Caterham (JPN): Accident
DSQ: Daniel Riccardo, Red Bull (AUS): +24.5 sec
 
For more information on today’s race, I recommend these articles from the BBC, NBC Sports, and F1.com.
 

2014 Australian Grand Prix Qualifying questions 2013 norms

Coming out of the Free Practice sessions, qualifying for this year’s F1 Australian Grand Prix was bound to be both exciting and up in the air until the last minute. Not only did the famous Melbourne weather raise its standards with silver, though mostly grey, celestial trumpets which heralded the rains that would mark the session at the end of Q1, but the regulation changes equally added to the excitement of today’s highlight.
 
The rains greatly impacted the routines of the teams and drivers, leaving some like Lotus’ Romain Grosjean (FRA) in the paddock with a back of the line grid place. Other typically top tier drivers like Ferrari’s Kimi Räikkönen fell quite further back than usual with an accident in Q2. Alongside him in the paddock throughout Q3 was 4 time and defending world champion Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel (GER) who earned the 12th spot, eliminating him from Q3 for the first time since the 2012 Belgian Grand Prix. Likewise Williams’ Felipe Massa (BRA) and McLaren’s Jenson Button (GBR) were eliminated from Q3, having trouble in the second qualifying session.
 
Q3 was marked by surprise and excitement. Red Bull’s Daniel Riccardo went out to please his home crowd at Albert Park, making an excellent finish at 2nd place in his first race with Red Bull. Riccardo was outrun by Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton (GBR) who finished .3 of a second faster than the Australian. Hamilton’s German teammate Nico Rosberg came in third by less than a tenth of a second slower than Riccardo. He was followed by rookie McLaren driver Kevin Magnussen (DEN), and 2 time world champion Fernando Alonso (ESP).
 
The 2014 Australian Grand Prix will begin tomorrow morning at 01.00 Chicago (17.00 Melbourne, 14.00 London) and will be broadcast on NBC Sports in the United States, BBC1 in the United Kingdom, TEN in Australia, and TSN and RDS in Canada for English and French viewing audiences respectively.
 
The full qualifying results are as follows (Source F1.com):
 
01. Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes (GBR): 1:44.2
02. Daniel Riccardo, Red Bull (AUS): 1:44.5
03. Nico Rosberg, Mercedes (GER): 1:44.5
04. Kevin Magnussen, McLaren (DEN): 1:45.7
05. Fernando Alonso, Ferrari (ESP): 1:45.8
06. Jean-Éric Vergne, Scueria Toro Rosso (FRA): 1:45.8
07. Nico Hülkenberg, Sahara Force India (GER): 1:46.0
08. Daniil Kvyat, Scuderia Toro Rosso (RUS): 1:47.3
09. Felipe Massa, Williams (BRA): 1:48.0 
10. Valtteri Bottas, Williams (FIN): 1:48.1
11. Jenson Button, Mercedes (GBR): 1:44.4
12. Kimi Räikkönen, Ferrari (FIN): 1:44.4
13. Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull (GER): 1:44.6
14. Adrian Sutil, Sauber (GER): 1:45.6
15. Kamui Kobayashi, Caterham (JPN): 1:45.8
16. Sergio Pérez, Force India (MEX): 1:47.2
17. Max Chilton, Marussia (GBR): 1:34.2
18. Jules Bianchi, Marussia (FRA): 1:34.7
19. Esteban Gutierrez, Sauber (MEX): 1:35.1
20. Marcus Ericsson, Caterham (SWE): 1:35.1
21. Romain Grosjean, Lotus (FRA): 1:36.9
22. Pastor Maldonado, Lotus (VEN): No result