German Gp: Ferrari Return To Form And To Old Ways

The scene was set today for justice to be served. A year ago Felipe Massa suffered an accident that some said may finsih his career and after bursting into the lead on the opening corner it seemed he may mark the anniversary in the best way. A fairytale victory seemed to be on the cards on a day that look as if it would also be the day Ferrari returned to prominance in the best fashion.
However the prancing horse once again showed the ugly side that had not reared it's head since the Austrian Gp in 2002. With the two Ferrari's six seconds ahead of the Red Bull of Sebastian Vettel the radio call came in from Rob Smedley 'FERNANDO IS FASTETR THAN YOU'. And then just a lap later Massa moved over and Alonso came through to take the lead. Smedley then apologized to Massa and they finished the race as you were. The podium seemed dead, Alonso looking guilty for the victory he had stolen, Massa devasted to have lost out on victory and Vettel disappointed only to be 3rd at his home race. Ferrari now have the media on their back and perhaps even more important, the stewards. Ferrari could now face punishment for this race and this could severly damage the championship.
What could have been a celebratory victory has left a bitter taste in everybody's mouth. And now we all await the verdict of the stewards

Canadian GP: New Rules Finally Deliver

Prior to this season optimists were saying something along the lines of 'this season there will be more overtaking because people on fresh tyres will catch those on worn rubber'. The pessimists were saying 'it will be precession with one stop races'. Before Canada the pessimists could consider themselves right but the one stop race was thrown out the window as the Canadian GP exploded into mayhem as the tyres fell apart. The result was one of the most fascinating races for a long time. A race that saw a Lotus climbing into the points in the early stages and also saw Sebastian Buemi in the Toro Rosso lead. A race that saw Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton racing wheel to wheel and three world champions battling for the lead. The Red Bulls might have fancied their chances of the win as well but in the end had to settle for fourth and fifth. The degredation rate was unbelievable with the soft compound falling apart within ten laps and the harder compound not faring much better.
The race proved to be one of those that you could not predict the winner. Throughout the race the lead changed hands time and time again. With Hamilton, Button, Alonso and Vettel attempting to go around forty laps on the harder compound and Mark Webber swimming against the tide, using the harder tyre for a long middle stint then putting on the softs at the end. Vettel seemed to think he had the win in the bag saying at one point "Do I have to pass to win?" but a technical problem meant he had to nurse his car to the finish.
For Hamilton and McClaren it was a brilliant performance. Hamilton looked assured at all times, after losing the lead to Alonso in the pits he fought back to retake the lead on the long back straight. He also showed that he has the ability to be easy on his tyres after fears he might shred them before the end of the race. After an average weekend Button also produced a good tactical drive to finish in second place. He will be happy to be so close in the championship and also to have passed Alonso to make it a second successive McClaren one-two.
Going to Valencia we are left with a great championship spectacle that has materialised into a five horse race

1)Lewis Hamilton 109pts
2)Jenson Button 106pts
3)Mark Webber 103 pts
4)Fernando Alonso 94pts
5)Sebastian Vettel 90pts

Canadian Gp Preview: Teamates United?

The dust has barely settled from the excitement of the Turkish Gp two weeks ago and now as we head to Canada there is a great deal of anticipation over what the weekend might hold. What everyone wants to see this weekend is how the relationship between Mark Webber and Sebastian Vettel has been affected. Will it have damaged their championship hopes? McClaren are in a similiar position as their rivals with Lewis Hamilton probably slightly weary after Jenson Buttons attempted pass on him in Turkey.
With this the Canadian Gp looks set to be a cracker, as it usually is. The track that almost always has safety cars, as many as four in one race in previous years. With it's street circuit like nature expect to see some end up in the walls. The feeling with the teams this weekend is that McClaren have the advantage due to their straightline speed which will help them along the back straight. We cannot count out Red Bull as their car has been consistently fast wherever we have been. One man who may fancy his chances is Robert Kubica who won here in 2008 and after his sublime drive in Monaco may be able to challenge the podium once more.

With all the right ingredients for a top race I think it's safe to say we are all pleased to see Montreal back on the calender.

Driver Rankings After Turkey

1)Mark Webber - 2 brilliant wins where he led every lap has propelled him to the top of the standings. Unlucky in Turkey
2) Lewis Hamilton - Emerging as a real contender after some great drives
3) Robert Kubica - Still constantly outperforming his car and a stunning podium in Monaco
4) Jenson Button - Nearly stole the victory in Turkey and collecting points well
5)Fernando Alonso - Making mistakes, but recovering from them well
6)Heikki Kovalinen - Pushing his Lotus to the limit
7)Adrian Sutil - Very impressive lately, has cut out mistakes and his driving the car beyond its potential.
8) Jaime Alguersuari - Improving all the time and very consistent
9)Felipe Massa - Average at best, needs to up his game
10)Sebastian Vettel - Pressure is showing and although he has a victory the accident in Turkey will hurt the team badly
11)Nico Rosberg - Disaapointing since the introduction of new car design
12)Michael Schumacher - Slowly but surely improving, two 4th places in three races
13)Vitaly Petrov - The rookie is starting to come good on the tracks he knows
14)Vitantonio Liuzzi - Poor form of late
15)Timo Glock - Dreadfully unlucky but showing good pace
16)Karun Chandhok - Some really good drives
17)Bruno Senna - Less finishes than Chandok but challenging the Virgins
18)Lucas Di Grassi - Solid so far
19)Rubens Barrichello - Williams slipping dreadfully down the order
20)Kamui Kobayashi - Improving and great job in Turkey to reach Q3
21) Nico Hulkenberg - Showing signs of improvement only 1pt so far
22)Jarno Trulli - Needs to up his game at new boys Lotus
23)Sebastian Buemi - Losing out consistently to teamate Alguersuari
24)Pedro De La Rosa - Awful start to the season

The Story So Far.....

F1 Rounds 3,4,5,6,7

By now you would think the title picture would be taking place. That the contenders would be obvious and there would have been a clear of emergence of a favourite. Last year we could clearly say it was going to be Brawn vs Red Bull for the championship.In years past we could see it was going to be Michael Schumacher as the favourite and by now we could probably see he was going to win the title.
The fascinating thing about this season is that it is still absolutely wide open after this weekeneds Turkish Gp. To give you an idea of how close this season really is this is how things would look using last years scoring system.

1)Mark Webber 36pts
2)Jenson Button 35pts
3)Lewis Hamilton 34pts
4)Fernando Alonso 32pts
5)Sebastian Vettel 32pts
6)Robert Kubica 27pts
7)Felipe Massa 26pts
8)Nico Rosberg 26pts

The top 8 would have been within just ten points of eachother. And the top 5 just 4pts apart. In my opinion any one of the top 6 could win races this year and any one of them could win the championship. Fernando Alonso appears to have the measure over Felipe Massa and i'd day he's the only Ferrari in with a shout this year after some great drives through the field. The Red Bull is undeniabley the fastest car on the grid and they have a man on form in Mark Webber. But after their spectacular accident in Turkey it will really put them on the back foot for the next race in Canada. Sebastian Vettel cannot be ruled out we can expect him to add to his victory in Malaysia. The Mcclarens are improving all the time and Jenson Button has well and truly matched Lewis Hamilton this season. Two fine victories in changable conditions in China and Australia puts him clearly in the title hunt. Lewis Hamilton finally got the win he's been looking for in Turkey and he's now in with a shout too. The man I think could spring a surprise this year is Robert Kubica. His Renault has been reliable and they are getting faster all the time. They now seem to be on par with Mercedes and Ferrari and they have more updates on the way. Kubica was mighty in Monaco and maybe we can expect to see more of the same in Canada and Valencia which are both street circuits. Also Canada is where he had his first and only race victory. So maybe his title credentials will be assessed after the next two races.

With a Red Bull civil war and Mcclarens on the rise the season promises to be a classic. Ferrari are on the back foot and Renault are pushing to join the leaders. Mercedes appear to be faltering but maybe we can't count out the Brawn and Schumacher partnership yet.

Malaysia: Webber Takes Pole As Rain Sets Up Fascinating Race

Whilst the other nine drivers in the top 10 decided to use the extreme wet tyres, Mark Webber struck a masterstroke to take pole on the intermediates. The session was exciting from the beginning with both Ferraris and Both Mcclarens eliminated in the first session (Jenson Button made it through to Q2 but was unable to contiune due to an off in Q1). The Red Bulls made it through to Q3 and will start the race in a commanding position. Here is a rundown of the qualifying results.
Q3
1. Webber Red Bull-Renault 1:49.327
2. Rosberg Mercedes 1:50.673
3. Vettel Red Bull-Renault 1:50.789
4. Sutil Force India-Mercedes 1:50.914
5. Hulkenberg Williams-Cosworth 1:51.001
6. Kubica Renault 1:51.051
7. Barrichello Williams-Cosworth 1:51.511
8. Schumacher Mercedes 1:51.717
9. Kobayashi Sauber-Ferrari 1:51.767
10. Liuzzi Force India-Mercedes 1:52.254
Q2
11. Petrov Renault 1:48.760
12. de la Rosa Sauber-Ferrari 1:48.771
13. Buemi Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1:49.207
14. Alguersuari Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1:49.464
15. Kovalainen Lotus-Cosworth 1:52.270
16. Glock Virgin-Cosworth 1:52.520
17. Button McLaren-Mercedes No time
Q3
18. Trulli Lotus-Cosworth 1:52.884
19. Alonso Ferrari 1:53.044
20. Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes 1:53.050
21. Massa Ferrari 1:53.283
22. Chandhok HRT-Cosworth 1:56.299
23. Senna HRT-Cosworth 1:57.269
24. di Grassi Virgin-Cosworth 1:59.977


This grid certainly presents us with a great race for tomorrow and with rain likely to play a part again it could be anybody's race. We have the prospect of the Ferraris and Mcclarens fighting their way through the field and that should be exciting whatever the weather may be. At the front you would think the Red Bulls are the favourites with their posistions but their car has proven fragile this season and could that once again hamper their race? Some other great drives as well from the Williams and Force India cars with Nico Hulkenberg an impressive 5th in only his third F1 weekend. Adrian Sutil must be considered a contender if it rains tomorrow with a great lap for 4th place. Nico Rosberg will be hoping to challenege the Red Bulls whatever the weather as he once again finishes higher than Michael Schumacher who will be disappointed with 8th. But the belonged to Mark Webber with a stunning lap on the intermediates and he is in great shape to win his third grand prix tomorrow.

Malaysian Gp Verdict

1)Sebastian Vettel
2)Robert Kubica
3)Lewis Hamilton
4)Rubens Barrichello
5)Fernando Alonso

Round 1: Bahrain And Round 2: Australia Summary

With two races gone there is already a mixed feeling about the new formula 1 season. Bahrain was a procession, an awful spectacle enough to send anyone to sleep. However Australia proved to be an instant classic with all that makes F1 great. A sprinkle of rain, drama and overtaking to put the doubters to rest at least until Malaysia. The jury is still out on the new rules with both races being hugely contrasted.

So after two races Fernando Alonso and Ferrari head the way in the drivers and constructors championships after two good performances. Alonso with a smooth controlled victory in Bahrain and an impressive fightback through the field to finish 4th in Australia. Perhaps if he had passed Massa in Australia he may have been able to challenge Robert Kubica for 2nd. The unluckiest man from the first two races however has to be Sebastian Vettel who could very well be sitting on 50pts right now after two faultless drives which deserved better than a retirement and a 4th place. Once again he was let down my mechanical failures but after the opening two races the Red Bull appears to be the car to beat. Jenson Button's performance in Australia proved his class with a sublime victory that shows his title credentials for the season. With many doubting his chances against Lewis Hamilton this season he outshone Hamilton with a mature drive. With great tactical insight to stop for tires early on and a smooth 50 lap stint on the softer tyre Button won over many critics. Hamilton himself drove a good race but seemed to lack the maturity of his teamate. A quick mention for Robert Kubica too who has started the season promisingly for the shamed Renault team.
With Malaysia next the weather could once again throw up a great race with heavy rain predicted for the weekend. Hopefully this is the first of many blogs and I will be writing again soon. Also i'm hoping to have a ranking system based on the performance of each driver after each race. So here are the rankings after the first two races this season:


Rankings

1)Fernando Alonso - A faultless win in Bahrain and storming comeback in Australia

2)Sebasitian Vettel - The most unlucky man in F1, deserved a win

3)Robert Kubica - Outperforming his car with two great drives

4)Jenson Button - Sublime victory showed his class

5)Felipe Massa - Two races, two podiums

6)Lewis Hamilton - A surprise podium in Bahrain and an eventful Australia

7)Vitantonio Liuzzi - Doing well for the ever stronger Force India team

8)Karun Chandhok - Looking calm and at home in F1, great job to finish for Hispania

9)Rubens Barrichello - May have hoped for more points but two consistent finishes

10)Nico Rosberg - Outshining Michael Schumacher so far

11)Adrian Sutil - Very unlucky to have no points so far after strong qualifying

12)Heikki Kovalinen - Two finishes for Lotus

13)Mark Webber - So far has been erratic, not showing the same promise as Vettel

14)Michael Schumacher - 7 time champion will expect much better

15)Timo Glock - Decent start for new boys Virgin

16)Bruno Senna - Great start in Melbourne before retiring

17)Vitaly Petrov - Showing promise but needs a finish

18)Jarno Trulli - Being outclassed by Kovalinen

19)Jaime Alguesueri - Just outside the top 10 and has beaten Buemi in both races

20)Lucas Di Grassi - Showed nerves of steel to repass Michael Schumacher

21)Nico Hulkenberg - Yet to show GP2 potential

22)Sebastian Buemi - Will be disappointed with his start to the season

23)Kamui Kobayashi - Not looking the same driver who drove for Toyota last year

24)Pedro De La Rosa - Expirienced driver, but looking like a rookie

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Comment and let me know your opinion

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