Round 11: Hungary Preview 2012

Greetings Internet,

Less than a week since the fall of the flag in Germany and the blog is here once more in preparation for the next thrilling instalment of the 2012 season. Well I say thrilling but it is the inevitable point in the championship when heads into eastern Europe and to the Hungaroring, one of the few tracks on the calendar famous for being appallingly dull. Usually the race of the season where very little is expected to happen, the narrow dusty track is cursed with the problem of being a nice place to drive around on but the racing it produces is negligible most of the time.

However if the track action does get a little tiresome we do have another large scale distraction gracing out little corner of the world in the form of the Olympics, which doesn't seem to include any motor-racing for some reason. In fact it only seems to include sports which are only either really hard, or really expensive to pursue, hence why the blog isn't representing the island at anything. If there was a medal available for writing a whole bunch of nonsense on the internet then perhaps, but everyone who has access to the internet is usually guilty of that. Because here in this corner of the room, the blog would like to have a go, at what who knows, but it would be brilliant. So we have to resort to the next best thing, well a couple of tiers down the hierarchy, but a long way up from hiding in this corner. As the blog is indeed heading to the Olympics if only in a spectoral capacity, and not all the way down to see the scary southerners. Instead travelling east into Newcastle to see some group stage football. The blog doesn't really understand football, but given the scale of the whole thing it does seem like a rather good idea.

That does bring us to one problematic consequence of this little venture, is that the post-race review post may have to wait until Monday as of course at the time I would normally be writing it I will be watching Japan play Morocco and then Spain playing Honduras. Therefore not returning back to headquarters until really late in the evening virtually the morning and no writing will be taken care of at that time of night. It might make the report a little sketchy and out of date but these things don't really come around that often and certainly not to this corner of the world. Anyway this is blog HQ and that means were are here now for motor-racing purposes and it is time to bring on this week's track.

The Track

credit to the FIA for the graphic

The Hungaroring is a world of contrasts and contradictions it drives and races like two completely different entities and throughout the course of the weekend will change and evolve very dramatically. During the year the track isn't used that often, not like courses such as the Nurburgring which see several categories use the facility. Which means when the teams first turn up on Friday for first practice session, the surface will be very dusty and slippery and the early track action only serves to clean a line. Then as the weekend progresses, a thin racing line will develop and offline will be coated in a layer of discarded rubber and the dust pushed off line by the runners. A problem which will be compromised by the support races, so by the time the race rolls round on Sunday afternoon the racing groove will be really narrow and overtaking will be strictly limited to the first corner under normal circumstances.

How much of that can we put on the layout, well perhaps there is a fair amount of blame to be placed there, because the flowing nature of the lap does make it difficult to pass and the abrasive surface will exacerbate the build-up of marbles offline. But although it makes the racing a little, or more than often a lot, dull in places  - the track is a nice place to drive on the simulator. As one corner flows into the next with the exception for the chicane at the top of the track. Now I like a good chicane as much as the next person, but this isn't one, it fits for some other car types, ran some laps in a touring car and it wasn't so problematic or clumsy. Yet in a high powered formula one car, even the blogmobile struggles to get through without losing mechanical grip. 

The only other problems with the track, lie with the opening and concluding two corners at either end of the track. Because they seem like a contrast to the rest of the lap, almost as if they were somewhat of an afterthought, and don't exist as a challenge to the drivers, but tempts drivers into carrying that little bit extra through the apex and drifting offline leading to being trapped in the vast fields of marbles and generic debris. 

One place where marbles and dust isn't a problem is in the virtual world of the simulator, so driving the blogmobile round the track is a little more forgiving, where the track traditionally behaves like a street track in race conditions I have more freedom in the virtual realm. That is the cue to release this week's video which returns to the traditional format since the Hungaroring has remained roughly the same since its introduction to the calendar barring some minor corner re-profiling. So here it is.

What to expect

Well given the nature of the track we may as well print out the qualifying result as the final standings where overtaking is a long forgotten concept at the Hungaroring.  However through tyre degradation things may change this season, allowing cars to have enough of a time difference to encourage some position changes, but that is wishful thinking. This does make the single lap pace on Saturday so much more important which could play more into the hands of Red Bull and Mercedes who have demonstrated stronger performances in qualifying rather than the race. Conversely it could hurt the likes of McLaren and Lotus who race a lot better than they qualify at the moment, that could be minimised for Lotus if the track temperature remains high across the weekend as their car appears to be very temperature sensitive working much better in warmer climates.

The mid-field this weekend will be exceptionally competitive and be much closer to the front of the grid to the point where a surprise winner from this part of the grid would not be too much of a surprise as Sauber and Force India were strong in Germany and that pace could be translated through into this race. At the other end of the scale, as the track is harder to overtake on there is a slightly large risk of drivers trying moves out of frustration or impatience. Which could be a problem for someone like Pastor Maldonado who could put his recent streak of not hitting anyone under threat.

Naturally down at the back there really isn't that much of a need to predict what is going on, as the three teams have developed their own permanent hierarchy. Caterham are in a division of their own, roughly 1s behind Torro Rosso ahead and a similar distance in front of the other two teams at the bottom of the grid. The static nature of this race isn't conjusive to the high amount of randomness needed to bump them up anywhere near the points positions. Even in the unpredictable events in Valencia only saw Petrov temporarily hold 10th while driver were out of sync in the pit stop phase, so scores in Hungary are not really on the cards.

Blog predictions

This is time for the blog to demonstrate how little the blog knows about the forever changing realm of current form and relative pace across the field. 

1. Hamilton 
2. Vettel
3. Alonso
4. Raikkonen
5. Webber
6. Button
7. Grosjean
8. Kobayashi
9. Rosberg
10. Di Resta

Qualifying Battle

• Red Bull  - Vettel
• McLaren - Hamilton
• Ferrari - Alonso
• Lotus - Raikkonen
• Sauber - Kobayashi
• Force India - Di Resta
• Williams - Maldonado
• Torro Rosso - Ricciardo
• Caterham - Kovalainen
• Marussia - Glock
• HRT - De La Rosa

So there we go then, on the eve of the opening ceremony for the Olympic games blog HQ has set all the preparations for the other important sporting event this weekend across on the other side of Europe, well as far east on the continent the series visits this season. At the conclusion of the opening post from the weekend and one of the few that will be on time due to the events and the fact the the blog is going to the Olympics this weekend after the race, I shall bid you all farewell until after qualifying on Saturday.

Round Ten: Germany Review

Greetings Internet,

Well there we have it, we did manage to go an entire session without some form of rain interruption, a start contrast to the past few days where storms have been a recurring factor. We escaped the rain here in little old England but so too on the continent, which this time didn't really harm the spectacle as we were in for a decent race. The track demonstrating that it can be entertaining despite being visually rather dull and uninspiring, but it was the design of the track which has lead to a little bought of controversy towards the end of the race. I knew this plague of excessive concrete run-offs would be more problematic than it would be beneficial. Personally don't understand why there is no boundary of grass between the edge of the track and the extra tarmac. That way drivers could run off and rejoin without a problem, no unnecessary retirements would be caused and additionally no-one would gain an advantage from running wide. Hockenheim has always had problems with cars running wide in the fast corners, and in the hairpin - to the point where on occasion tyre bundles have been placed on the outside of turn one for other races.

 The change from wet to dry across the weekend did see fortunes and pace change throughout the field, widening the range of competitors at the front and making the competition in the mid-field very close. Where there is close competition there is room for great battles and inventive overtaking, and we certainly had some of that, bounded with an impressive lack of contact between drivers. Even Maldonado was on his best behaviour, not that the Williams was that competitive on race day in the dry, as other drivers came forward. What was also rather interesting was the lack of attrition for the race, no-one retired from contact or mechanical problems, in fact there was only one retirement overall - but I shall get to that later. As with the last race report there is a matter of an Indycar race cropping up so should get a move on.

credit to F1Fanatic.co.uk

The Race


Yesterday the climate was definitely questionable, but on activating the coverage today seeing blue skies and dry tarmac was no great surprise. What was interesting however at the time I managed to escape the cocoon in which I sleep, was Christian Horner having words with the FIA - regrading an emerging issue regarding some questionable engine mapping. The current theory is that Red Bull are using an engine setting to act as a form of traction control on their car, the FIA have stated that this is not an acceptable practice, but the regulations don't prevent it. Therefore as per the rule book, they are not doing anything technically wrong, so we can expect those rules to be modified at the end of the summer break after Hungary next week. Making it two issues that Red Bull and the stewards will be contemplating for a while this weekend, but onto the race.

The grid had been reshaped yet more following qualifying with One-Stop Perez being handed a 5-place grid drop for impeding other drivers in the second part of qualifying and therefore was relegated down to 17th. Bringing the total of penalised drivers up to four, only one of which was for driving standards. At least for the beginning of this session I had timed the consumption breakfast (not that food at 1pm could really be considered breakfast) meaning I was in place for the start. And at that start it was the Ferrari's that made a strong initial getaway, a little too quickly for Felipe as he drove straight into the back of the Torro Rosso of Daniel Ricciardo. Sending Massa's front wing floating through the along with many shards of carbon fibre littering the track, surprisingly Ricciardo avoided a puncture which is so often the case with wing to wheel contact. Other than that the start was clean and free of contact - for the first three corners anyway. It was the turn of Romain Grosjean to encounter difficulties, running up to the back of a damaged Massa faster than he anticipated chipping half of his front wing in the process, seeing him skate off down at the hairpin.

Further up front Vettel and Schumacher duelled through the opening lap, two wide into the hairpin and defending a second challenge towards the Mercedes Arena. As the cars returned at the start of the second lap they were greeted by a lake of debris in turn one from Massa's wing, questions were raised as to whether the safety car should have been deployed in case of shards causing punctures. Fortunately everyone managed to navigate the field of shrapnel on the first encounter, but it was on the second time round where it would affect the race. Kimi Raikkonen in the Lotus was running quickly and had caught up to the back of Lewis Hamilton, and had a look to the inside turn one - that meant Hamilton took a slightly wider line and into the debris fields. This excursion resulted in the McLaren picking up a rear puncture and dropping to the back of the field - Lewis came on the radio claiming they needed to retire the car, but through the advances in modern technology it turns out tyres can be changed. Allowing Hamilton to continue albeit in last place.

With Hamilton now out of the way Raikkonen was now heading towards the next car in his sights, the Force India of Paul Di Resta. Paul had the end of the DRS zone covered defending into the hairpin, but that wasn't going to discourage the Finn, as Kimi went to the outside cutting back to the inside on the exit. Running two wide on the way down the straight and still two wide millimetres apart through the entrance to the Mercedes Arena. At the point where you'd think Di Resta had done enough to keep the position, Raikkonen managed to go round the outside of the Mercedes Arena to take the place away in one of the best overtaking manoeuvres of the day. There were position changes in place for the other of the Force India cars, as Button was on the charge towards the front, finally gaining some form after some challenging races this season - lining up Nico Hulkenberg. Jenson threw the car down the inside from quite some distance back at the hairpin, almost surprising Nico in the process at the apex.

Button wasn't done yet, and was driving towards another German, this time the target was the slightly more successful Michael oh Sch...umacher in the Mercedes, but the extra experience wasn't going to stop Jenson's early charge. In an almost identical manoeuvre into the hairpin Button went to the inside forcing Michael to turn out of the corner to avoid damage. Towards the bottom of the top ten were the Saubers running virtually in formation behind Di Resta, Sergio went to pass the Force India but both cars ended forcing each other wide allowing Kobayashi to take his team-mate. Due to the different strategies within the team Kamui didn't resist when Perez re-took the position after both of them dealt with the Force India.

It was time for the first round of pit-stops and it played into the hands of Kimi Raikkonen, who jumped ahead of Webber and placed right behind Schumacher and Hulkenberg. Michael went for the pass on the Force India in a late move down the inside through the Mercedes Arena, Raikkonen watched the battle unfold and saw an opportunity to follow Michael through, driving round the outside of another Force India on the exit of the arena.Heading in the opposite direction was Pastor Maldonado rejoining just ahead of Webber. Pastor managed to pull out a slight gap while negotiating the Caterham of Petrov who hadn't stopped by this point, Mark's difficulty in dealing with the slower car demonstrated he was having difficulty on the harder compound affecting his confidence on the brakes while the Williams scampered away. Only to be caught back up several laps later to regain the position.

Running longer on the strategies the top three took their stops, as they were in a race of their own, dropping the cars behind - where the Saubers yet to pit were lurking and briefly overlapping with Vettel, but they too pulled in returning back with the Force India's continuing the race long duel as to who would be the champion from the mid-field teams. It was time for some more overtaking and it was Kimi who had caught up to Schumacher after both of them dealt with Hulkenberg a few laps earlier, it was once more down at the hairpin - one of only two overtaking places developing on the track. Michael defended the position but drifted a little wide and Kimi got a better exit to claim the position up into a net fourth position. A little under the radar making places from a low grid slot was Nico Rosberg, working his way into the points from 22nd place. While Sauber were launching a coordinated strike against  Force India - Sergio attacking Hulkenberg and Kamui re-passing Paul Di Resta, everything taking place down into the hairpin.

Well almost everything - as the Kobayashi battle raged all the way to the Mercedes Arena, with the Japanese driver throwing it up the inside at the last possible second, but carried too much speed and was re-passed again.

Then that almost guaranteed moment of stability we get in the middle of the race, where not too much happens, with a little twist this time around. As the leaders encountered a rather unusual scenario - being caught by a lapped car, and this lapped car was being piloted by Lewis Hamilton a long way back due to the early puncture. We had the situation where Hamilton was trying to unlap himself, against Vettel, and in the DRS zone managed to do so, much to the German bloke's displeasure waving his arms and gesticulating at the McLaren as it passed. Lewis tried the same procedure on the leader Alonso but Fernando held off the challenge

Things didn't pick up again until the second round of stops were completed, as everyone was handed fresh tyres to reinvigorate their battles. The stops gave Raikkonen a severe burst of speed but the top three were too far ahead, but it did build a gap to the two Saubers behind still running in formation, something the former Renault Squadron were famous for last season. Back in their own battle up front, Vettel had the attentions of Jenson Button once more and the German bloke was soon passed by the McLaren. He set his sights firmly on the leading Ferrari, incurring a flatspot locking up into the hairpin on mounting the charge.A little further back a Force India was in a battle with a Sauber as the two white cars were coming back after their final stops. Hulkenberg had both Saubers closing in lead by Kobayashi a second ahead of Perez, it was in the DRS zone once more where the pass was finally completed. Kamui looked to the outside before switching to the inside just as the apex approached in an undefendable move.

Some drivers were starting to explore the fringes of the track, Grosjean venturing through the gravel on the exit of the mobil curve, while Vettel was running wide virtually everywhere in an effort to catch up with Button ahead. Jenson was right behind Alonso now but was unable to make any advances on the Ferrari and allowing Vettel to close up slowly behind. With laps running out some drivers opted for an extra pit stop to counter the tyre degradation, as the new tyres would easily recoup the time lost pitting for them. The furthest forward of those pitting in was Michael Schumacher out of 5th, as he was about to come under threat from the Sauber duo - Kamui was running over a second per lap faster than the Mercedes. Someone else entering the pit lane was Lewis Hamilton, except he wasn't coming back out again, driving into retirement - citing damage from the puncture. Now there are a couple of problems with that theory, a car with terminal damage tends not to compete for over 50 laps after sustaining the puncture, additionally the car wouldn't be able to catch and un-lap Sebastien Vettel. What the blog assumes is a play here, is that because he officially retired the car, it means Lewis gets to swap the gearbox without a penalty - we're onto your plan Hamilton....

Back at the front and Alonso was able to pull away from Button and Vettel was closing in rapidly on the McLaren, while Schumacher's anti-sauber plan wasn't working out as he wasn't fast enough to charge down Perez in time. Rosberg on a similar strategy to his fellow German team-mate was making some gains being the latest driver to have a go at passing some Force India cars, passing Di Resta for the last championship point.

It was on the penultimate lap where Vettel was within passing range of Jenson in the DRS zone, Button naturally defended the inside lane forcing Sebastien to use the outside. Not that it would stop the German bloke driving round the outside of the McLaren on the exit of the corner. There was only one problem with this is that Button was against the white line at the edge of the track, therefore for Vettel to pass on the outside he was off the track. Using the run-off area as a passing zone, which isn't really allowed and following a long post race investigation Vettel was to handed a 20s time penalty.

Alonso was free and clear to take his third win of the season, staking a claim on the top spot in the championship, Vettel finished on the road in second ahead of Button. Raikkonen finished fourth ahead of the Sauber duo Kamui heading Sergio Perez, they were followed by Schumacher ahead of his friend from Valencia Mark Webber, the points were finished by Hulkenberg in 9th and Rosberg in 10th. Vettel's penalty dropped him in between the two Saubers bumping Raikkonen up onto the podium and Kobayashi into 4th.

The bonus points championship points winners


We not have had some rainfall, or any quantity of mayhem, but the track did offer some great racing overtaking to the outside and the inside and thats where bonus points can be won and lost and these are the winners from the German GP.

• 25pts - Kimi Raikkonen - A strong performance but some brilliant overtaking manoeuvres especially the early more on Di Resta
• 18pts - Kamui Kobayshi - The best finish of his career and some great moves on the way to it
• 15pts - Nico Rosberg - From 22nd to 9th is generally worth points, good job
• 12pts - One-Stop Perez - Another very strong performance from 17th to 5th
• 10pts - Jenson Button - Some forceful late moves into the hairpin, and a nice comeback podium
• 8pts - Fernando Alonso - For a dominant performance  in an age of competitiveness
• 6pts - Michael Schumacher - Good racing early in the race, with Hulkenberg and Raikkonen
• 4pts - Lewis Hamilton - For unlapping himself during the race, novelty points there
• 2pts - Maria De Vilotta  - Deserves some points to aid the recovery from the testing accident
• 1pt - Pastor Madonado - The first race in while he hasn't hit anyone

The penalties series

There are two entries to add to the table today, and those go to Sergio Perez for his blocking in qualifying and the 20s time penalty handed to Vettel for the illegal pass on Button.

The penalty points series

Considering everyone was so well behaved this weekend for the most part I thought I'd go an entire race without penalising anyone, but I found Hamilton's retirement rather curious, and very suspicious, so suspicious it was going to get a penalty point.

Looking to Hungary

Ah... suppose it is that time of the season again when we head off to Hungary one of the tracks famous for being usually agonisingly dull and processional, as a track is it quite nice to drive on - it flows well and is challenging in places. But as a race it normally is rather lifeless, although when it rains it can get interesting as it was last season, however in all the years the race has featured on the calender it has only rained twice and Button has won both of them attaining a 100% record in the Hungarian rain. That does mean that rain is a little on the unlikely side, therefore we could be in for a rather boring race next week.

Yet, the blog has been surprised before - a similar prospect was planned for Valencia - and that turned out really well with crashing mayhem and some great racing in the process. If we were to look at the different layouts you'd have to say there was a greater chance of carnage in Spain than there is in Hungary because he lap is more flowing and single file. Hopefully the severe drop off in the tyres will allow for some action along the way and make the Hungarian GP another entertaining step in this season. So until them this is farewell from the blog.

Round Ten: Germany Pre-race

Greetings Internet,

On Thursday when the first post went up there was a slight remark on a higher degree of climatic consistency  in practice this weekend. Well from the session we have had this afternoon, that process has gone completely out the window, as there has been all sorts of showers dowsing the track across the two practice sessions on Friday. Would today be any different, dry and consistent maybe - well apparently not, however that isn't a bad thing at all, actually makes things a fair bit more interesting, but looking at the forecast for the rest of the weekend it might stay dry. Shame on that note, because the rain during the race would be more entertaining. On a hilarious note, just the final warning on the grid for the GP3 race went out the rain started to fall as the drivers for the most part opted for slick tyres, this is not going to end well for about half the field.

But the grid that we have been dealt does bear a resemblance to a simple dry qualifying with a couple of fluctuations up and down the field where the conditions caused problems or induced an advantage elsewhere. The results from the session will be rather different from the order in which the teams line up on the grid tomorrow afternoon as a spate of gearbox penalties have blighted the field, dropping the likes of Webber, Rosberg and Grosjean all suffering five place drops from their final qualifying position. So lets examine how a very changeable session fell into place.

Credit to F1Fanatic.co.uk

Qualifying


After two days of severe rain showers, it was anyone's guess what the conditions were going to be when the coverage started, there were hints of previous rainfall in the pitlane, but the track was effectively dry and easily clear for slick tyres. The skies overhead were also clear and bright, something that this island is only recently getting itself used to after rainfall drowning the nation for the past month. So at least the first part of the session was going to be dry.

On the other note, the rainfall in GP3 has now brought out the red flag, pfft, it was going to be rather hilarious but not anymore...

Back to the qualifying update and at the end of the pit lane was a growing queue of cars, as people in the area had pointed out there was a large cloud bearing rain coming towards the track, and peering over the pit lane grandstands the black cloud was visible. It was Force India leading the train out of the garage followed by the lower running teams of HRT and Marussia. Now this is where the blog encountered a minor problem regarding nourishment, prior to the green light, a toastie was prepared and inserted into the machine, aimed to be returned on the warm up laps. In theory this was a flawless plan, but the things didn't follow the plan, because the machine wouldn't release my food - so several minutes of fighting later some laps had been completed.

On return from the toastie machine battle, it seemed that the McLarens were at the top of the timesheets with Hamilton leading from Button, but the silver dominance at the top was divided by the Sauber of Kamui Kobayashi moving into second position. Down at the other end of the field the relegation zone was populated by the common six runners still as far off the pace as they were in Silverstone. Demonstrating that the updates that the likes of Caterham haven't made any real net improvements in catching likes of Torro Rosso. Joining them for now was the Mercedes of Nico Rosberg, having not set a competitive time, the other Mercedes of Schumacher wasn't to safe at the time either.

With more than half the session completed Hamilton returned to the pit lane, under advice that his time was safe, based on predictions of the tyre performance differences in FP3. But then drivers who had fitted the softer tyre started to go rather quicker, Hulkenberg found 1.5s in the Force India to go second making the McLarens look a little less safe. Then out of nowhere, Raikkonen found half a second over Hamiltons fastest time - on the harder tyre of all things to set an unbeatable time, but it was at the back where things were more interesting. As each lap saw a different driver holding the final relegation place, passing from Rosberg, to Senna and then to Micheal Schumacher. Yet with seconds left on the clock Michael managed to find half a tenth to escape the zone, dropping relegation regular Vergne out of the first session of qualifying.

Moving swiftly on to Q2, and the attention turned to the sky as that cloud had moved a lot closer and was leaking over the track, drawing a rather unusual response from the teams - in Silverstone everyone rushed down to the end of the pit lane. This time no-one was queuing and even at the turn of the green light no major rush to get on with things. It seemed nonsensical considering the rain was only going to get worse therefore it would be quicker at the start of the session. Only Button and Maldonado left the pits on the intermediate tyres. Then the mother of all delayed reactions took place as teams started throwing tyres at the cars and getting them onto the track as more rain fell. Jenson and Pastor were sliding on the slippery track on way to setting the opening times. A train of cars was circulating round the track a little too close for the Ferrari team as Massa and Alonso almost bumped wheels in the stadium section.

Then things got really interesting, as the rain steadied, the times were actually getting faster despite the track being wetter than it was for Jenson and Maldonado at the start of the session. Hamilton went fastest finding an inexplicable amount of time compared to the drivers around him, what was more interesting is that he was joined by Schumacher - who only just made it through and left the pit lane last a long time after the track was at its driest. Down in the relegation zone this time were the likes of Massa, Grosjean who had KERS problems and Rosberg. But that was where they were going to stay because the rain picked up a lot, too much for the intermediates and the times suffered. Several drivers went out on the full wets in some vain hope it would help, or to learn something for Q3. The conditions severely hampered the Sauber team who were quick in the dry but trapped in relegation at the we conclusion of Q2.

Only ten cars remained and the rain was beginning to ease off a little, but the track was going to remain rather wet for the remainder of the session. Fernando came on the team radio before the session began complaining that the Q3 shouldn't go ahead due to the weather, being a little whiny perhaps on that occasion. But ahead it was going to go whether the grumpy Spaniard liked it or not. This time the best laps were scheduled to happen at the tail end of the session as the track dried slightly but all laps were to be done on the full wets. McLaren were out first with both drivers setting the initial pace. Nico Hulkenberg had an almighty moment through the parabolika, getting some wheelspin on a gear change spinning the car on one of the fastest points of the circuit. Luckily there was enough run-off to control the slide and keep it off anything solid so he could rejoin undamaged.

The McLaren domination at the top of the timesheets was ended by a strong time by Schumacher, who had also been complaining about the conditions on the radio, then it was Alonso's turn - assuredly happy the FIA decided to run the session now... Well that would have been until the German bloke took the top spot by a tenth of a second. Several drivers opted for some new tyres, to displace the water from the track a little better, as the conditions were gradually improving meaning times were falling rapidly. Illustrated by Schumacher taking the provisional pole by 1.7s away from Hamilton. That in turn was defeated by Vettel and then it was time for a new leader in the form of Mark Webber in the other of the Red Bulls, albeit weighted by the penalty hanging over his grid position.

With the drivers on the final laps of the session it was Alonso who claimed the top spot, 0.7s clear of Webber, and it was that gap Vettel managed to move into placing his car on the front row. Schumacher and Hulkenberg made it three Germans in the top 5 (top 4 after Mark's penalty). Maldonado finished in 6th, ahead of the two McLarens Button heading Hamilton. Paul Di Resta completed a British trio in the mid pack with his Force India in 9th while Raikkonen rounds out the top 10.

The bonus points championship points winners

From another session which has shifted from completely dry to using the full wets, here are the points scores from the qualifying phase of the German GP.

• 10pts - Kimi Raikkonen - mainly for destroying everyone in Q1 on the medium tyres while others were fitting the soft compound
• 8pts - Michael Schumacher - in comparison to his team-mate a brilliant job, starting a net third
• 6pts - Nico Hulkenberg - A very strong performance in the Force India, and avoiding the wall in Q3
• 5pts - Daniel Ricciardo - Not bad for the Torro Rosso, almost making the top ten
• 4pts - Fernando Alonso - Suppose there are points for pole position
• 3pts - Charles Pic - Out-qualifying Glock on home turf deserves points
• 2pts - Kamui Kobayshi - For the strong Q1 pace when things were dry
• 1pt - Pastor Maldonado - For not hitting anyone for an entire session

The penalty points series

Although several grid penalties have been awarded before the race, they are all for technical infringements and gearbox changes, so we shall move on to the penalty points awards.

• Fernando Alonso - for whining about the weather, it certainly wasn't wet enough to stop the session at all, you were just being silly. 
• The Toastie Machine - for trying to take my breakfast away from me
• Windows Movie Maker - for ruining the initial upload of my video on Wednesday.

Looking to tomorrow

As it has been said already in the run up to this race, the track does look a little simplistic on the surface, even Webber this weekend has stated that is it a little dull in design but can work well in terms of entertainment on race day. Because of the slightly mixed up grid from the wet final segments it could get rather more interesting indeed, especially if it does stay dry as the likes of Sauber and Lotus will be moving forward while Mercedes will be falling backwards. With Schumacher so far forward the train of cars behind the German could get long and agitated which can only lead to hilarity and mayhem. There is also the matter of cars dropped down the grid from gearbox penalties to look out for coming through the grid as well.

On top of everything once more is the weather, the forecast is for a dry race, but as I've seen in the support races the showers are sweeping in very rapidly and dropping a lot of water in the process, so the broad forecast probably cannot be trusted. A shower mid race would spice the show up quite a lot and throw in yet more unpredictability into a season which is completely mad at the moment. And who will suffer the wrath of Maldonado this weekend, all in all this German GP could be surprisingly entertaining one. So until then this is farewell from me here at Blog HQ.

Round Ten: Germany Preview 2012

Greetings Internet,

Two weeks after the British GP the blog has returned at this, the half-way point of the season well it will be once this weekend has been completed at the fall of the chequered flag on Sunday afternoon. By this point last year, the outcome of the championship had started to turn slowly into a formality as that German bloke was walking away with it a little too easily. Fortunately it has turned out rather differently this season where in the first nine completed races we've had seven different winners, and no one is running away with the championship. There is a slight contrast in the bonus points championship has been a little less competitive than its opening year, where six drivers came into the final race looking to claim the inaugural title. It might be a by-product of the change to the points scoring system which may be recalibrated for 2013, but there is the slightly more pressing matter of the race ahead this weekend.

Where we head shift from the home of the bonus points champion into that occupied by the actual world champion, along with several other members of the grid. Meaning the next stop on the European leg of the season is indeed the German GP. With its history linked to some of the greatest tracks the sport has encountered including the epic Nordschleife which ended up on the blog for this weekend last time. But this time around the race is handed over to the other track that operates the shared hosting of the event, another former legend of the series  - Hockenheim. Initially famous for the long full speed straights powering through the forest between walls of trees. Interspersed with chicanes to break up the straights, to stop people hitting the fence too hard in places. However those powerful blasts out into the wilderness have been amputated from the track Leaving us with a rather shorter version of the lap, but despite the loss of the original sections what we have is still a decent set of corners.

The Track

credit to the FIA for the map

So what do we have here now, and looking at the map the layout does seem a little simplistic in comparison to some of the more extravagant efforts on the calendar, Abu Dhabi is a prime example of taking things a little too far. Having far too many corners and placing the design of the surroundings far and above the requirements of the track, the same could easily be said of the extension that was added to the Bahrain lap in 2010. This track runs in contrast to that removing any unnecessary corners and features that would only get in the way of good racing.

It could be said that the track is a stereotypical representation of Germany, because it has been engineered specifically to function in the capacity of a racing facility, and therefore works for all series that compete on the layout. Where other tracks designed initially for F1 are oversized and ineffective for any other category, this one functions for everything. What is also rather impressive is that the track also manages to balance all the different elements that form the circuits of the world, including slow corners for overtaking chances merged into the rest of the lap without coming across as contrived. Something the likes of Korea and India have been guilty of in their latest efforts.

Incorporating faster, more interesting corners into the lap as well, the turn into the Mercedes arena and the mobil kurve are key highlights although one consequence of the improvements to aerodynamic technology minimises the challenge these corners present. The opening corner still maintains some of it's difficulty because the rough edges of the curbing can throw the car off balance if they run a little wide, which is all to often the case through the corner. It does make lap one an interesting prospect in these uncertain times. 

But after repairing this weeks video it is now time to unleash it onto the world, and there may be some typos as I has to revert to an earlier version since WMM ruined the first release, hideous program always trying to destroying everything. In this week's edition as with last week, there is an element of nostalgia going on once more, from a less historic time. Taking a visit back to the time the blog first started tuning into the world of motor-racing well - three years after that. So this is the video release from the German GP.

What to expect


This could prove to be a rather interesting weekend, as the track should keep the cars rather close on pace, which should carry through into the race leading to the chance of long car trains forming - probably behind Schumacher as other events have shown. It could be a track that will close up the front teams leading to conceivably four teams competing for pole and that is before you throw in the competitors from the mid-field that can mix things up a little.

So at the front Ferrari, Red Bull, Lotus and McLaren will be the main contenders one can assume, and perhaps this weekend McLaren won't be so far off the pace in comparison to Silverstone. But because the times will be so close only a couple of tenths would shuffle them down to the bottom of the top ten, to where Mercedes and Sauber will be lurking to benefit from a fortunate lap.

That means the mid-field will be in contention for some serious points and close on pace to the front running cars, which can cause a very uncertain grid, as a will timed run in qualifying can jump a driver several places further up then we'd normally expect. This applied to all of Sauber, Williams and Force India who have all exhibited strong turns of speed in the recent races through the large amount of updates brought to the cars. It does sort of leave Torro Rosso in a division of their own towards the back fighting to stay ahead of the three newer teams.

Looking at those teams and the updates didn't work out too well as a large gap had opened up between group leaders Caterham and mid-field tail enders Torro Rosso, a gap which was completely erased in Valencia. This time however the two phases of the grid should be a lot closer, and there is a chance for Heikki to break out of the first qualifying session again probably at the expense of Vergne. As for the other two teams back here, well they are now roughly on the same pace once more, as they managed through the middle of last season. Illustrating that it takes half a season for HRT, to get up to speed with the next slowest team on the grid which doesn't bode too well for their future really.

The blog predictions.


It is that time once more, where the blog gets to demonstrate how little idea how badly the blog can figure out who belongs where in the rapidly changing hierarchy this season and the scoring reflects how not so well it has gone, so here we go again.

1. Vettel
2. Alonso
3. Hamilton
4. Webber
5. Raikkonen
6. Grosjean
7. Button
8. Rosberg
9. Massa
10. Kobayashi

qualfying battle

• Red Bull - Vettel
• McLaren - Hamilton
• Ferrari - Alonso
• Mercedes - Rosberg
• Lotus - Grosjean
• Sauber - Kobayashi
• Force India - Hulkenberg
• Williams - Maldonado
• Torro Rosso - Ricciardo
• Caterham - Kovalainen
• Marussia - Glock
• HRT - De La Rosa

So there we go then, all the criteria for setting up a race weekend have been put in place for the weekend, and the event does omit a subtle hint of anticipation. Because on the surface it may not seem like one of the races that would be picked out as a certain highlight, the actual race can still prove to be rather exciting. Hockenheim may not have the climatic variability that the Nurburgring does, but the simplicity of the layout and the refreshing focus on the racing a track can provide make this one race that could go either way in terms of entertainment. Yes this isn't the original charge through the forest that is used to be but the shorter modern layout has a different charm and personality and can lead to an unpredictable and enthralling weekend. So on that note the blog shall bid you all farewell until the post qualifying update.  

Round Nine: Great Britain Review

Greetings Internet,

So there we have it, the most important sporting event on the British calendar has now been completed. There is a lot of people paying a lot of attention towards a couple of people hitting a small green sphere backwards and forwards, where the nation only really seems to care because some Scottish bloke is having a go. The bandwagon there is starting to get rather full, until the guy loses then there will be complete public outcry - how fickle the general public are, the BBC made a great point post race - the world of motor-racing is much more tolerable. Yes people have their favourites and here at blog HQ there is a practice of neutrality in place, but there is a greater respect for all involved. If a driver has a bad day, ends up in the fence or falls down the standings, there isn't the same international petition to have them exiled back home and completely rejected only until the event rolls round again next time. It could be said that the British GP isn't so much of a race like the other 19 on the calendar this season, and more of an event where pre and post show entertainment are just as important and sometimes moreso entertaining than the 52 laps round the track.

Which can only help when the race itself was a little minimalistic in terms of action for the most part, featuring more of a strategic event than the wheel to wheel contact based mayhem we fought with on the pseudo streets of Valencia. Still doesn't make that track any better, but that's a rant for that time next season. Today's race did have it's moments and wasn't completely devoid of action, intrigue and a small component of controversy. One of the elements that we were robbed of this weekend, was the rain, which now has decided to fall while the coverage moves onto the forum. The track stayed dry throughout the race and that could have rearranged the finishing order a fair bit, so we did keep up with one of the great British traditions in the form of disappointment and underwhelming performances. However there is a rather promising Indycar race on a bit later on at Toronto and that is predicted to be a series of collisions in-between which a race might break out.

credit to F1Fanatic.co.uk for the image

The Race


When the TV coverage opened the focus was drawn to the skies and the tarmac to make an initial judgement on whether the rain would be coming, and the clouds were similar in colour to the final practice session on Saturday morning. Where things remained dry for that session and all the way up to qualifying - roughly the same time window as a race distance which was rather unfortunate. But bigger problems were elsewhere as Vitaly Petrov in the Caterham returned from his lap to the grid with plumes of smoke leaving the rear of the car. The fuel pressure problem brought the car to a halt on the pit lane entry road and proved to be a terminal problem, meaning grid was going to be one car short for the race.

Patches of sun and blue sky erupted of the start finish straight as the drivers lined up in position alongside the swanky new pit buildings - dispelling the threat of inclement conditions for the afternoon ahead. When the lights went out under the uncharacteristic British sun Fernando made sure he was going to be the first car heading into Abby corner on this opening lap. Cutting across the front of Webber's nose, leaving only inches between cars being pitched into pit-wall, but they kept all parts on the cars through the opening sequence. A couple of rows further back Vettel was having to defend against Massa and Kimi - running close to three wide on the apex at turn 4. With all the cars running so close at this point it was miraculaous there were no shards of carbon fibre sailing through the air, a problem slightly rectified as Vettel trimmed some of Massa's rear wing aero-vanes off. But that wasn't the end of it all, Holy endplates Lotus as Grosjean after finding himself on the outside of Hamilton brushed Di Resta's rear tyre with his wing. The Force India took on a puncture and span off before retiring later with further damage from the flailing tyre.

At the end of the opening lap Alonso had built a small lead ahead of Webber while Schumacher maintained third ahead of the second Ferrari of Massa - a little too orderly at the front so we have to look a little further back. Holy understeer Lotus, as Romain was missing a proportion of his front wing the car was struggling to stay on the track in the high speed corners spending some time on the astroturf on the fringes of the circuit. He had fallen back into the clutches of Jenson Button, the Frenchman defended from the McLaren into turn three failing to notice a Sauber finding space on the outside. That Sauber was piloted by Kamui Kobayshi who passed both Jenson and Grosjean in the one corner, Romain fought back as Kamui slide wide in turn four but it was only delaying the inevitable, surrendering the position in Brooklands. In the same corner a couple of cars further up the grid.. Holy Run-off Lotus as Kimi found himself on the outside of the ever friendly Pastor Maldonado - the thing is that Pastor isn't particularly respectful of personal space. Therefore Raikkonen no found soggy green false grass underneath his tyres instead of dry tarmac as the Williams eased him out and off the track.

After the opening phase of cars being entertaining and racing each other, things did decide to settle down and take on the other great British tradition of queuing - mainly behind Schumacher who once more was demonstrating that the Mercedes is not so quick in immediate race pace. Speaking of traditions and Britain there was another one filtering through and that was moaning and complaining, usually while queuing, and this was Hamilton running between Raikkonen and One-Stop Perez. Lewis made a radio call back to the team complaining that the car had no pace, which might have been a consequence of being one of the few cars on the hard compound tyres.

Back in the Schumacher train - shade of Valencia were coming through here, though in this case the queue of followers didn't stretch as far back and wasn't quite so rowdy as last time round. Felipe was the first car in the line behind the Mercedes and was looking considerably faster. However Schumacher has been doing this driving thing for a long time and was able to defend the position from the Ferrari, because the queue was costing those trapped in it time Vettel opted to pit and get out of sequence to avoid any problems. As the last time there was a Schumacher queue there was contact and madness. Michael in the high top speed of his car  was able to counter the DRS attacks on the Wellington straight - formally known as the national straight - but was slower in the faster corners. Massa figured this out and focussed the charge on the high speed middle sector and got a good run out of Chapel diving down the inside of Michael into Stowe breaking free of the queue.

It was time for the rest of pit stops to unfold for the starters on the softer compound tyres, so we saw Hamilton and Kobayashi filter up onto the podium on account staying out. Through stopping earlier Vettel had jumped ahead of Massa and Schumacher into a net third position - but it wasn't all going to plan through the field as it had been a little while since everything happened. We turn the focus down towards One-stop Perez and Maldonado having just made their stops the pair were released in close proximity onto the track. Maldonado doesn't do close proximity, as it normally results in issues. This time was to be no different, Sergio in the DRS zone went to the outside as Pastor defended the inside as is the correct thing to do. They entered the corner side by side, and in a scene of deja vu, the Williams drifted wide and into the side of the Sauber. Contact was made and the rear suspension on the Sauber was damaged and Pastor suffered a puncture but could continues. As the commentary mentioned this could be classed as a racing incident as the Williams got loose on the apex and that precipitated the contact - at this point no decision has been made as to any possible penalties for the accident.

We headed into a phase of inactivity and serenity only permeated by Alonso catching up with Hamilton who hadn't stopped by this point on the harder tyres. Lewis fought with the faster Ferrari losing the position in the slower hairpins in the arena section before Aintree corner. Meaning Alonso was able to use the DRS while being in front, but that didn't seem to matter as Hamilton managed to out-drag the Ferrari even with the wing open, yet the McLaren went deep into Brooklands surrendering the position once more. The rest of the middle stint was almost eventless where Fernando lead from the Red Bull pairing of Webber and Vettel, Massa held fourth which was a good day for the pressured Ferrari driver with Raikkonen fifth.

The second run of stops started to turn into target practice in the Sauber pit as Kamui collected a fair amount of his pit crew all of the escaping any serious injuries as they were launched into into the air. We also found out that while the suspension on the Sauber can't survive an attack from an errant Williams the front wing can withstand bouncing off pit crews. On the plus side the pit stops did place cars out of position in relation to their strategies - Hamilton found came out with a warning coming over the radio. Holy comeback Lotus as it was Grosjean on the charge behind him - Lewis tried to put cars between himself and the Lotus starting with the Mercedes of Nico Rosberg. Hamilton took the German into Copse but Holy overtaking Lotus, Grosjean went one better and threw one down the inside of Maggots. Closing the battle up once more, Lewis needed another car to put between them, and convenienly there was one just ahead, it was almost as if this was planned as that car was Jenson. The two McLarens ran together for a while not being particularly decisive as to where the pass was going to happen, but it was to be into Copse once more. Leading to Grosjean repeating his manoeuvre this time to the outside of Maggots on Button.

Holy perseverance Lotus Romain spent a while behind Hamilton before being able to use the DRS to take the position from the McLaren and setting off after Raikkonen in the other batman sponsored machine further up the road. At this late stage in the race the drivers starting on the harder tyres were beginning to suffer on their strategy falling back towards the cars behind them, a situation that did include the leading Ferrari of Fernando Alonso being closed in on by Webber in the Ferrari. The only car on this strategy looking like making progress was Button locked in a battle with Senna and Hulkenberg trying to claim the final point in another challenging day for McLaren. Senna took a look at the inside of Nico to take the place and the Force India ran wide on the exit of Aintree allowing Button and Kobayashi through handing Jenson the single point for tenth place.

More woes in McLaren as Hamilton's tyres had seen their best, allowing Schumacher to close considerably, Lewis tried defending but the position on the Wellington straight but the Mercedes drove completely round the outside into Brooklands easily taking the position away. Holy team-mates Lotus for a while it seemed like Romain was going to drive up to the back of Raikkonen, carving into the gap, but towards the end of the race Kimi started setting fastest laps and charged after Massa in 4th. One gap that was still coming down and getting rather close was the battle for the lead - because Webber was getting very close to Alonso as the laps were running thin. With only four remaining, Mark took a tighter line through turn four resulting in a better run through Aintree onto the back straight. Instinctively Fernando defended to the inside leaving the only the outside lane open. A combination of extra momentum from the DRS and a wider line allowed Webber to sweep around the outside of Brooklands not only just to pass Alonso but to take the lead of the British GP.

The positions were now settled for the run to the line, meaning Webber becomes the second driver to double his win tally of the season with the rest of the podium filled by Alonso and Vettel. Just outside the podium was Felipe Massa having the strongest race he has had since 2010, fending off the position from Raikkonen at the end of the race. Grosjean recovered from the opening lap contact with Di Resta to finish in 6th place ahead of Schumacher and Hamilton finishing where he started in 8th. The top ten was completed by Bruno Senna in 9th and the last point went to the second McLaren of Jenson Button.

The bonus points championship points winners


Even through this race may not have had the immense quantity of racing and action that other races this season including the surprise entertaining race last time in Valencia, there has to be the same amount of points on offer for the British GP, because there were some performances worth handing points to.

25pts - Romain Grosjean - Holy recovery-drive Lotus from a damaged wing to be within 7s of Kimi
18pts - Mark Webber - A relentless drive and a strong pass to take the win
15pts - Fernando Alonso - Again a very accomplished drive
12pts - Felipe Massa - His best race since a very wet Korea 2010, very composed considering the rumours of being replaced remained
10pts - Sebastien Vettel - Some points for a decent, race but for his shameless interview with Lee Mckenzie in the post race Forum, and pouring champagne on Jackie Steward on the podium
8pts - Lewis Hamilton - Two main reasons firstly for making a pass against a car using DRS, and secondly for doing doughnuts, automatic bonus points for that
6pts - Jean Eric Vergne - For making the most places in the race, even through 66% of them were the newer cars
4pts - BBC F1 Team - A great broadcast including David Couthard crashing Martin Brundle's sky tv broadcast on the grid - legendary
2pts - Kimi Raikkonen - For a great opening battle with Vettel for the opening sequence of corners
1pt - Jenson Button - There is the single point you fought for at the end of the race

Penalty points championship


As there as of yet has been no decision on the Maldonado/Perez contact so there hasn't been any official driving penalties followed today's race we shall move swiftly onto the penalty points series and there are going to be some penalties from the blog.

• Pastor Maldonado - not so much for the crash because that wasn't an intentional event getting loose mid corner and sliding into the Sauber, but for earlier in the race when he forced Raikkonen off in the same corner
• Tennis - for taking over the BBC HD channel, shocking confusion of priorities there
• Kobayashi - hitting your own pit crew, not cool there really 
• Rain - you let us all down hiding until after the race had finished, also not cool.

Looking ahead to Germany

For this year the German GP is to be held at the Hokkenheimring as part of the alternating deal with the Nurburgring, a similar deal to the one that is planned in response to managing the cost of having two races in Span. The track continues the pattern of traditional European tracks we visit in this phase of the season in a run that will see us all the way to the end of the European season. Hokkenheim used to be a very formidable high speed and exciting track featuring powerful blasts through the dark and mysterious forest, where rain and mist hung in the branches creating a special and eerie atmosphere in the wet. 

Sadly now, the track is now a faint shadow of its former self, where the long straights have been neutered from the layout, replaced with a smaller more technical spectator friendly infield track. As much as it may be less enthralling and challenging to drive the racing on the track has generally been good. Designed as a nice balance between speed and precision and with the current tyre scenarios and the DRS system which will be debuting there the results could be rather spectacular. So until then this is farewell from me here at Blog HQ 

Round Nine: Great Britain Pre-Race

Greetings Internet,

Once more whilst in the grand public view of international television our little nation has illustrated how wonderfully dry our summer climate is, a nice tourism advert for the tiny island. If the outlook was based on the scenes we saw in the final practice session this morning then we would be expecting a simple straight forward dry session. As I looked out the window at that time of the day and it seemed bright enough, not that it matters being several hundred miles north of the circuit anyway. A dry qualifying session would be most interesting because if the rain we expect tomorrow arrives then the grid wouldn't be compatible with the conditions meaning there is a greater chance of madness and insanity to ensue.

Yet that's not quite the way things were going to plan in that respect, because just as the final few moments of FP3 there were a few little drops of rainfall landing on the final corner of the track. Enough moisture remained outside the track in the astroturf and in the dips in the curbing to prevent drivers trying to run out as wide as they liked. The dampness was caught out championship leader Alonso who span on the exit of Club corner. But should the clouds completely open up the sessions on Friday demonstrated where the puddles were going to lie and where the problems would be in high rainfall the first practice sessions suffered with. It certainly appeared that the end of the Maggots/Becketts section coming into Chapel becomes rather treacherous as it caused Senna to hit the wall in FP2. Additionally water was accumulating in the final sector coming into the Vale where many cars were powersliding in the rain.

When it was time to catch up with the qualifying session the opening images showed a dry track and a dry pit lane, no-one was sporting umbrella's or rain macs - but almost within seconds the light concrete in the pits began to change colour. Clouds were approaching the circuit and were in the process of unloading rainfall onto the track below, so before there is a threat of drowning time to get on with the post.

Holy rainfall Raikkonen: image credit to F1Fanatic.co.uk

Qualifying


One of the most entertaining moments of the pre-session build-up was where the Marussia team were in the garage fitting a dry setup to the car just as the rain was beginning to fall, it may have only been a small shower but it was water nonetheless. But there wasn't any time to dial it back, as one of the mechanics was carrying round the under-floor plank across the garage, meaning they had to join the massive queue lining up at the end of pit lane headed by Sauber and Williams. Somewhere in the monolithic line of cars were Lotus, who were sporting something of a different decoration this weekend - with sponsorship from Batman, which is rather cool, almost as cool as the Red Bull Star Wars livery from the Monaco GP some years back now.

With the threat of further rain on the cars before the end of the opening session the need to set a time early in the session was of greater importance, and leaving the pit lane all at the same meant there was going to be a problem with traffic. Throw the mildly damp conditions into the mix, and visibility was going to be a bigger problem in the plumes of spray thrown up by the intermediate tyres. But something interesting was happening coming into the Vale, Holy sidepods Lotus, cars were running three wide - both the Batman sponsored cars were crusading round the outside of One-Stop Perez. Grosjean was trying to pass Sergio who was backing off to find space and Raikkonen tried to pass both of them over the grass and curbing. Another car having troubles in the damp was the Force India of Paul Di Resta going off in Becketts rejoining perilously close to a Williams.

Despite the people running off and almost into each other there were times being posted and those times were tumbling all over the place - different cars appeared at the top of the standings. Visitors to the top of the timesheets were from outside the standard set of competitive drivers, such is the fun that some changeable conditions can generate. Initially Sauber were continuing on their form from the wet Friday sessions with Kamui setting the fastest time, only to be beaten by both the Torro Rosso cars before passing it back to Sauber. Who could change this odd sequence of events, Holy laptimes Lotus, Grosjean found some space and some time to go fastest. But as the time was running out the main protagonists started to shine as Vettel put the Red Bull fastest, however things were not going so well for Jenson, whose intermediate tyres were beginning to suffer. He had fallen down the scoring and into relegation, forcing a stop for some wheels, yet that didn't have the same effect he wanted, as there was a growing quantity of rain falling between Stowe and Vale. To make matters worse on the exit of Club Timo Glock span the car almost making the pit-wall bringing out the yellow flags, hampering his time and preventing Jenson escaping relegation making him the driver to fall out with the six newer team drivers.


There was only five minutes between the end of Q1, and Q2 but the transformation in track conditions was massive, the green light on the pitlane opened the session into a very wet Silverstone and the rain was still steadily falling. Vergne was at the head of the train looking to get a lap in before the conditions became undrivable, a scenario which certainly was on the cards, as the clouds did resemble the storms the north has had in recent days. Not quite the Thursday monsoons but it was still rather wet. The Torro Rosso driver despite being on the full wet tyre was struggling to find grip, powersliding through Farm corner, and backing the car into Vale at the wettest part of the track. Other drivers were having bigger problems as Schumacher went off on the exit of Maggots sliding into the road used for the national circuit. Some more trouble at Vale, Holy Gravel-traps Lotus as Raikkonen skated across the surface of the water and over the grass and gravel before rejoining. 


The rain intensified further and larger puddles were forming making the exit of Chapel more dangerous than normal - which didn't bode too well for the Ferrari drivers as both of them left the circuit. First it was Fernando, with snap aquaplaning oversteer pitching the car towards the inside wall, but an epic save kept the Ferrari out of the barriers.. Felipe's car span the other way after hitting the same puddle, sliding sideways down the grass on the outside of the hanger straight. At the other end of the straight, more issues for Michael sliding off at Stowe - a sign that the conditions were now a little too damp, as Vale was becoming impassible. Consequently the session was red flagged, much to the disappointment of One-Stop Perez who had managed the conditions brilliantly to go fastest with 6:19s left on the timer as the session was stopped.


It was time to play the waiting game, and having seen several of these storms in the passing days up here in the north, it was going to be a long waiting game - there was a temptation to turn over to Sky to see how they managed to fill the gap. But in a spite of wisdom I thought it would be wiser to stick with the BBC as they are better at this sort of thing, especially considering the 4hr race in Canada last season, and of course Sky doesn't have the complete lunacy that is Eddie, who is good entertainment even though at times he does walk the fine line between hilarity and penalty points. The rain fell consistently for close to an hour before stopping before kicking off once more, but as the session closed on on the two hour mark sweepers and marshals took the track to allow racing to get underway. 


A long time later and a couple of visitors later, almost as if people sense red flag periods and swing into frequent blog HQ, heading off before the green light activated once more. Although down at Williams they wanted to line up considerably early, drawing Sauber along with them, but they were not alone. Holy queuing Lotus as Grosjean and Raikkonen joined in. But once the session finally got completely underway the track was drier than at the start of the session so the times started to fall continuously, with every passing lap a new driver topped the times. Which wasn't too good for Sergio who fell rapidly down the standings, compounded by the Sauber team risking an attempt on the intermediate tyres, rubber Kamui on the sister car quickly replaced. As the track dried further the faster cars came through, as Red Bull, Ferrari, and Hamilton were high up the timesheets, although Fernando left it a little late to make the top ten. Knocking Paul Di Resta out in the process, but that wasn't as simple as that... Holy controversy Lotus, as Grosjean despite making it through binned the car in Vale getting trapped in the gravel. This brought out the yellows under which Fernando set the lap, but as his final sector showed he slowed down making the lap legitimate. 


So we're left with the remaining ten, two Red Bulls, two Ferraris, Holy double Lotus, although Romain can't continue due to the spin. Hamilton, Oh Sch...umacher, Hulkenberg and Maldonado, and it was the Venezuelan who once more lined up in the pit lane first. The track now was dry enough to set times on the intermediate tyres, worlds apart from the monsoon in Q2, but there was a massive cloud on the horizon timing itselft for the GP2 race which followed. However both Hamilton and Michael were running round on the wet tyres, oddly enough despite Massa taking the early lead the wet tyred Mercedes went faster only to be defeated by the flying Ferrari of Fernando Alonso. In a traditional Q3 session we would have two distinct runs where drivers come in an change tyres before going back out once more, but due to the conditions it was better to stay out at all times as the track was continuously improving.


Yet no-one seemed to remind Hamilton that the track was getting any better as he couldn't improve on sixth place for most of the session, Holy wheelspin Lotus as Raikkonen drifted most of the way round the final corner on the way to fourth. It was change again at the front as Mark Webber went fastest ahead of the Ferraris, spending a long time at the top. But is was time for the final laps, which as the tarmac grew drier were destined to be the fastest ones, so Alonso took full advantage of that to put the red machine back onto pole position. Webber fought back but lost out by hundredths landing in second place - joined at the death on the podium by Schumacher, forming a collection of the bonus points winners from Valencia. Holy defeat Lotus as both Vettel and Massa passed Raikkonen at the end of the session. Maldonado lines up 7th just ahead of his favourite person in the whole world Lewis Hamilton, while Hulkenberg finished the competing drivers in 9th. Holy last place Lotus as Romain starts tenth as a result of not running in the final session by spinning out of Q3.


The bonus points championship points winners.


From the wet and changeable conditions exhibiting the wide range of climatic diversity Britain has to offer, even Sauber director Manisha was forced into her rather interesting pair of Wellington boots. But here are the points for this weekend.

10pts - Fernando Alonso - not only for getting pole because that happens, but for the epic save on the exit chapel keeping the car out of the wall
8pts - Jean Eric Vergne - that powerslide through farm was marvellous
6pts - Mark Webber - one of the few cars that hasn't been off in the session and almost taking pole
5pts - Micheal Oh...Schumacher - top three for the old guy, setting up another team Michael and Mark race
4pts - Holy Bonus Points Lotus - because batman
3pts - Vitaly Petrov - for out qualifying Heikki in the Caterham team good job
2pts -Kimi Raikkonen - Holy pitlane Lotus, for passing a Sauber in the pit lane on the restart, brilliant
1pt - Heikki Kovalainen - for his angry birds helmet, brilliant

This is the only table I need to deal with today as there are no official penalties handed out for driving issues, even though the grid had been rearranged based on the penalties hanging over from Valencia for Kamui and Vergne. Those have been added to with technical issues resulting in more grid drops for gearbox changes for Pic and Hulkenberg.

As for the penalty points, there was a consideration of throwing one at the officials for red flagging the session but if they hadn't people would have just given up competing and it would be duller. Additionally it was becoming inevitable that someone would end up in the wall, Alonso did come close to losing wheels when the rain started falling. So I will not be awarding penalty points at this stage in the weekend, but there is plenty of time tomorrow for madness to ensue.

Looking to Tomorrow


Well the outcome of the race will likely depend on the conditions the drivers are going to face as that certainly will impact the performance of different cars. For example if the temperatures were to stay warm and the track dry - Holy overtaking Lotus as the team perform well in warmer conditions. But should the balance swing the other way and we end up with a cold wet afternoon then Sauber will be making their way forwards. The climate will decide who Fernando and Webber will have to compete with throughout the race, but it will also decide how entertaining the race is. A wet race can go either way, it can lead to complete madness as we saw in Canada last season, or it can be dull and processional as the rain nullifies the downforce and grip of the cars and cancels the DRS system.

But if it was to remain dry, the high speed nature of the track can also lead to a single file race because of the nature of the corners and the aero wake at high speeds prevents cars running too close. Yet we could see some great drives from drivers who are starting a long way out of position, mainly with Button and Perez down the back of the grid. Which in either condition could definitely add to the show. What would be interesting would be if the weather was to be constantly changing meaning no one would be completely sure of the grip levels from lap to lap. So we may have a grid of very skilled drivers and a mostly grand race track but it will be the weather who will be the greatest influence of the laps we are set for tomorrow. I shall bid you all farewell until then from me here at blog HQ.

Round Nine: Great Britain 2012 Preview

Greetings Internet,

Jolly good show this time round folks, as the season descends to the green and pleasant land that is our country. Even though at the moment the place isn't so green any more, it is mostly underwater since the significant amount of storm rainfall that that assaulted the little northern part of this land that the blog hides in. But despite that minor technicality, this is a world governed by tea, scones and moaning about all manner of things. It is this power of moaning that keeps this part of the internet running, as most of the time I do end up moaning about one thing or the other - last time out moaning was the sole component of all pre-race communications. This weekend however there is something else festering to drain all the venting cynicism I have an abundance of, considering I can't fire it all at Valencia this time; and that is the disgraceful infection of the 'prom'. A concept born out of pure evil, fuelling the ever depressing and persistent plague of aesthetic dependency - makes a person want to set fire to things in blind fury. Sadly a large quantity of fiery vengeance is not allowed any more; which is a shame as complete incineration is the only solution to this hideous abomination. It is so appalling that it even makes the pseudo track in Valencia seem like the greatest thing in the history of the world. I would assign penalty points to the monstrosity but the amount of penalty points it deserves would bring the entire of the internet to critical mass plunging the entire solar system into a quantum singularity. Ending all life as we know it.... and it probably would be worth it.

Anyway that's my rant over for the weekend, at least this part of the weekend anyway, can't really promise there will be no more ranting, it just sort of happens from time to time. So before another set of literary rage cascades onwards I shall turn attentions back to the actual reason I sit at the keyboard every other week or so and that is grand event that is the British GP, one of the traditional points of interest remaining on the modern calendar. Held down south at Silverstone despite recent ideas from Bernie to have a race around central London encompassing the Olympic stadium. Something that the Australians have done with the Olympic park in Sydney - where they user the roads around the area to host the finale of the V8 Supercar season. The thing is compact street races like that can work for touring car series' but not so much for a Formula one car - if it wasn't for tradition and historical connections the Monaco GP probably wouldn't make it onto the calendar. On balance leaving the race at Silverstone is the best idea, the lap has so much value to it, but like so many others, is certainly not without it's flaws, so lets examine the venue for this weekend.

The Track

circuit graphic by the FIA.

Silverstone has been one of the mainstays on the calendar, from hosting the inaugural race all those years ago when it was decided that taking a bunch of race cars and driving them really quickly on a regular basis was a great idea, and truly it was. Since then some 62 years later he we are with the maddest most competitive season that the blog can remember, so it is only fair that we return to Silverstone to host the British round of the season - even though moving the race to Knockhill would be hilarious.

The track has sections and corners that are famed on an international scale, to those in the know anyway, and the run all the way from Woodcote down to Stowe corner is one of the most enjoyable pieces of road to drive along. At least in the simulator, up there with the first sector of Suzuka and the majority of Spa, that sequence once was also joined by the nifty chicane at Abby and the greatness of the Bridge corner. But there was a little update since then and those corners no longer exist which is a shame - as we replaced one stadium section with another in an attempt to improve racing and attract overtaking. To an extent the use of the national straight has seen some passing, because a track that is fast flowing and entertaining to drive does tend to veer more towards processional racing. Because the fastest line is often only a single file route around the track, and high speed corners in cars with the amount of downforce they have now cars can't run that closely behind each other due to the aero wake. 

So that's why a section with two awkward hairpins has been introduced into the layout, that and that there has always been pressure on the race to improve the facilities for some reason. When tracks like Canada can have older pit buildings and amenities and no-one has been imposing all sorts of developments there, it could be said that the over importance the powers that be put on the pit buildings means that the track can suffer. Spa and Silverstone have been examples of that - where the refurbishment of the Belgian pit area cost the world the original bus stop chicane instead replacing it with the appalling replacement, and now there is this arena section here. At least, like Spa there are enough redeeming features to make the track well worth visiting - outside the mammoth amount of money that it took to build the new pit lane buildings, which in all fairness do look really cool. 

It is that time of the post again, we've had the obligatory rant, complained about a section of a track and global design principles which means it should be the part of the entry where a video comes along. In lieu of anything more intelligent to post, it shall indeed be the video, and because this is the British GP I thought it was good cause to make another special longer edition. That and there is some dark sense of satisfying justice in irritating windows movie maker for making all my videos really pants and limited. But this one, like Monaco contains a slight historical element including some track footage from the first ever race-track at Brooklands driven in an 1937 Auto Union car. So here it is.

   What to expect


Changes, lots and lots of changes - perhaps not to the running order as these things do tend to cancel each other out - each team bringing an upgrade so the entire grid moves forwards in unison no-one gains and no-one really loses out. At least that is how it used to play out but this season has seen different cars at different places on the grid from race to race and that is even without an event that comes with many modifications as the British GP. Because most of the teams are based in England this race is one of the easiest of the season to transport new parts and upgrades from the factory to the car. The Force India team have their factory just outside the grounds of the Silverstone circuit so they just have to walk through the gates with a new wing if someone puts it in the fence one too many times.

At the front however it is likely to be the same competitors looking to claim the front row and ultimately the top place on the Podium come Sunday - but it is difficult to ignore the pace that Vettel had in Valencia before the car broke down. Additionally it could be considered that in Silvertstone that the team would be just as fast given their tendency in previous years to do rather well on aero grip dependant circuits. However it is impossible to count out the other teams towards the front in the form of McLaren and now Ferrari, this time Mercedes can be in that division this weekend as well methinks. But it might be Lotus who could lose out as their car tends to be more effective in warmer climates... Britain isn't really known for it's warm climate. If we were to look at the recent weather the race will need to be completed in little rubber dinghies instead after the amount of rain and flooding we've had to deal with.

It would be that degree of mad conditions that would play into the midfield excellently, bringing teams like Sauber and Williams a chance at scoring major points this weekend some of them points that may come with some podium silverware. For example in Malaysia when the rains fell Perez almost claimed a win so anything is possible from that part of the grid - and it could make the qualifying session rather interesting if the forecast is anything to go by.

Even a monsoon might be a little too much to bring one of the teams from the very back of the grid up into the points, but not entirely impossible - for a brief moment Petrov was running in 10th place only two weeks ago. That was a mad race so if the similar events took place under a layer of rain then who knows - except for you HRT there is no hope for you.

Blog Predictions


Speaking of no hope, this is the time once more to make a complete fool of myself, but because this is a lonely corner of the internet no-one really sees how badly wrong the predictions often go.

1. Webber
2. Hamilton
3. Vettel
4. Alonso
5. Schumacher
6. Raikkonen
7. Rosberg
8. Button
9. Massa
10. Senna

Qualifying

• Red Bull: Vettel
• McLaren: Hamilton
• Ferrari: Alonso
• Mercedes: Rosberg
• Lotus: Raikkonen
• Sauber: Perez
• Williams: Senna
• Force India: Di Resta
• Torro Rosso: Ricciardo
• Caterham: Kovalainen
• Marussia; Glock
• HRT: De La Rosa

So there we go everything has been covered, before the storms that are hovering once more above not only this corner of the internet, but also I would assume above the track itself which will unleash themselves over the coming days. The calendar has timed this rather well, arriving in the country just as the weather goes almost Malaysian, and we all know how well that went. But this does mean we have another excuse to bring out the Ice Creams for Kimi who does like a little visit to the freezer once the rain descends, maybe we should have brought over some Valencian Orange Juice so both Kimi and Kamui had interval nutrients. And that is my call to go and make some tea, it does seem a little counter intuitive in the sweltering humidity in blog HQ at the moment but I frankly don't care. So until next time this is farewell from the blog.