German Grand Prix - Hamilton Wins 2 In A Row

 

Lewis Hamilton has won the German Grand Prix.

He is now four points clear of  Felipe Massa at the top of the Formula One championship.
Nelson Piquet, who had started in 17th place on a one-stop strategy, finished an astonishing second for Renault after leading for six laps in the race of his life.
Hamilton led from pole position at engine partners’ Mercedes home track but the 23-year-old had to make an inspired fightback from fifth place with 16 laps remaining after a safety car interlude shook up his strategy.
Massa was ahead of Hamilton after Hamilton made his 3rd and final pitstop, but a few quick laps, he had caught up with Massa again.
He then overtook Massa and his next target was race leader Nelson Piquet, who he also quickly caught up to and overtook

Mclaren made a big mistake by not bringing in Lewis for his final pitstop when the safety car was bought out for a big accident involving Timo Glock
They decided to keep Lewis out, while most other teams made a pitstop.

“I didn’t plan on doing that. I’d have much preferred an easy, comfortable afternoon out front,” he said.
“Overall it was a very, very good weekend. It’s got to be the best weekend up to now,” added Hamilton. “I think that we’re really on top of our game right now.”

Robert Kubica finished in seventh position in the second BMW Sauber in what was a difficult race for him while a spin in the final laps from Jarno Trulli promoted Sebastian Vettel to eighth position and into the final points scoring position at his first German Grand Prix
Nico Rosberg picked up tenth position in the leading Williams Toyota, gaining the position from Fernando Alonso late in the race following a spin from the former champion. With Piquet finishing a sensational second, it was a less stellar performance from Renault team-mate Alonso who slipped back through the field. Renault now move ahead of Williams in the constructors’ championship and are just one point behind Red Bull Renault.
The victory was Hamilton’s eighth of his career, after a dominant performance in the wet at the previous British Grand Prix two weeks ago and made him the first driver to win four times this season.
Hamilton now has 58 points to Massa’s 54. Ferrari’s world champion Kimi Raikkonen, who started and finished sixth on Sunday, has 51.

German Grand Prix - Hamilton Claims Pole Position

Lewis Hamilton has claimed pole positon for tomorrow’s German Grand Prix

Pole Position Shootout

1.  HAMILTON      McLaren       1m15.666s

2.  MASSA         Ferrari       1m15.859s

3.  KOVALAINEN    McLaren       1m16.143s

4.  TRULLI        Toyota        1m16.191s

5.  ALONSO        Renault       1m16.385s

6.  RAIKKONEN     Ferrari       1m16.389s

7.  KUBICA        BMW           1m16.521s

8.  WEBBER        Red Bull      1m17.014s

9.  VETTEL        Toro Rosso    1m17.244s

10. COULTHARD     Red Bull      1m17.503s

Qualifying 2

1.  HAMILTON      McLaren       1m14.603s

2.  MASSA         Ferrari       1m14.747s

3.  KOVALAINEN    McLaren       1m14.855s

4.  ALONSO        Renault       1m14.943s

5.  RAIKKONEN     Ferrari       1m14.949s

6.  KUBICA        BMW           1m15.109s

7.  TRULLI        Toyota        1m15.122s

8.  COULTHARD     Red Bull      1m15.338s

9.  VETTEL        Toro Rosso    1m15.420s

10. WEBBER        Red Bull      1m15.481s

11. GLOCK         Toyota        1m15.508s

12. HEIDFELD      BMW           1m15.581s

13. ROSBERG       Williams      1m15.633s

14. BUTTON        Honda         1m15.701s

15. BOURDAIS      Toro Rosso    1m15.858s

Qualifying 1

1.  MASSA         Ferrari       1m14.921s

2.  RAIKKONEN     Ferrari       1m15.201s

3.  HAMILTON      McLaren       1m15.218s

4.  KOVALAINEN    McLaren       1m15.476s

5.  VETTEL        Toro Rosso    1m15.532s

6.  TRULLI        Toyota        1m15.560s

7.  GLOCK         Toyota        1m15.560s

8.  HEIDFELD      BMW           1m15.596s

9.  ROSBERG       Williams      1m15.863s

10. WEBBER        Red Bull      1m15.900s

11. ALONSO        Renault       1m15.917s

12. BOURDAIS      Toro Rosso    1m15.927s

13. COULTHARD     Red Bull      1m15.975s

14. KUBICA        BMW           1m15.985s

15. BUTTON        Honda         1m15.993s

16. NAKAJIMA      Williams      1m16.083s

17. PIQUET        Renault       1m16.189s

18. BARRICHELLO   Honda         1m16.246s

19. SUTIL         Force India   1m16.657s

20. FISICHELLA    Force India   1m16.963s

German Grand Prix - Hamilton Fastest In Both Sessions

Lewis Hamilton ended up fastest in both practice sessions for this weekend’s German Grand Prix

German Grand Prix Session 2 Times : 

 

1.  HAMILTON      McLaren       1m15.025s
2.  MASSA         Ferrari       1m15.722s
3.  RAIKKONEN     Ferrari       1m15.760s
4.  KOVALAINEN    McLaren       1m15.990s
5.  WEBBER        Red Bull      1m16.017s
6.  ALONSO        Renault       1m16.230s
7.  ROSBERG       Williams      1m16.355s
8.  KUBICA        BMW           1m16.363s
9.  HEIDFELD      BMW           1m16.377s
10. COULTHARD     Red Bull      1m16.378s
11. VETTEL        Toro Rosso    1m16.422s
12. TRULLI        Toyota        1m16.530s
13. BUTTON        Honda         1m16.542s
14. BARRICHELLO   Honda         1m16.677s
15. PIQUET        Renault       1m16.734s
16. GLOCK         Toyota        1m16.781s
17. NAKAJIMA      Williams      1m16.839s
18. BOURDAIS      Toro Rosso    1m16.860s
19. SUTIL         Force India   1m17.008s
20. FISICHELLA    Force India   1m17.047s

Sebastian Vettel Confirmed As The New Red Bull Driver

It has been confirmed today that Sebastian Vettel will drive for the Red Bull F1 Racing team from the start of the 2009 season.
Rumours of this move were around for some time now, more so since David Coulthard announced his plans to retire at the end of the present season, thereby leaving a racing seat available
The following statements were issued by the Red Bull team today:

Christian Horner, Team Principal:
“We are delighted that Sebastian will be joining us next year. With David Coulthard announcing his retirement as a Formula 1 driver a fortnight ago at the British Grand Prix, after careful consideration, it seemed natural to announce his replacement here at Sebastian’s home race in Hockenheim. As he was already part of the Red Bull family, choosing Sebastian as Mark Webber’s teammate was not a difficult decision. 
 However, we have always stated that our aim is to have the strongest available driver line-up and Vettel’s selection also matches these criteria.”
“Having only turned 21 at the last race and with only 17 Grand Prix starts to his name, he is still on a learning curve, but it is clear that he has plenty of ability and speed. We are confident that Red Bull Racing will make the most of these attributes and believe that, in Mark and Sebastian, we have a very competitive driver line-up for 2009.”

Sebastian Vettel:
“I am very proud to be joining Red Bull Racing and it’s always good to have an early decision on what you are doing next year. As a driver your target is always to be with the most competitive team possible and, over the past couple of years, Red Bull Racing has proved it has great potential, so this is a good move for me. I have been part of the Red Bull family for a long time and with its Junior Team since 2000. Throughout my career, they have offered me great support and now, to drive for their senior F1 team is a dream come true and I am looking forward to having a great season next year, even if I still have a lot to learn about F1.”
“Apart from Red Bull, I must also say a big thank you to Scuderia Toro Rosso, where I feel very much at home. They have been my ‘family’ for over a year and I would like to thank Franz (Tost) and Gerhard (Berger) for the opportunity they gave me and thank the entire team for all their efforts.”
“Having got this announcement out of the way, I can concentrate on racing for Toro Rosso over the second half of the season. I will try and repay them by doing my very best to get some more good results, to add to those we have achieved so far.”

The British Grand Prix - Hamilton Wins Home Grand Prix

Lewis Hamilton won an incident filled and rain hit British Grand Prix after a dominant display in tricky conditions. Nick Heidfeld also put in a great performance to finish in second position while Rubens Barrichello seized the opportunity with both hands to take a memorable third position in the Honda.
Starting fourth, Hamilton made an excellent start and powered his way to second into the first corner behind pole-sitter and team-mate Heikki Kovalainen. There was the slightest of contact as the duo battled for position and five laps later Hamilton got a good tow down the Hanger Straight and made a clean pass for the lead.
Kimi Raikkonen was on the move as well after a slow start and soon found his way into second position and shadowed the race leader until the first round of pitstops. With the circuit beginning to dry a little and more rain forecast, this is where Ferrari made the crucial mistake that took Raikkonen out of contention for the race win.
Hamilton and Raikkonen both pitted together with McLaren fitting a new set of intermediate tyres while Raikkonen received just fuel. As the rain started to fall a few laps later Raikkonen found himself out of grip and his lap times fell away dramatically. In the space of ten laps Hamilton had extended his lead from almost nothing to over 40 seconds. Ferrari did not react to the situation and it was only in the later stages of the race that Raikkonen could make any kind of recovery. 
Nick Heidfeld steered clear of trouble – made some great passes - and took advantage of errors from his rivals to take the chequered flag in second position 70 seconds behind the dominant Hamilton. Another driver to make best of the conditions was Rubens Barrichello who along with the Honda team made the best calls of the day in terms of tyre strategy.
Running in the lower points-paying positions mid-race, a heavy rain shower saw Barrichello take full wet tyres. The results were immediate with the Brazilian veteran lapping between ten and 14 seconds a lap faster than anyone else. This promoted Barrichello to a stunning second position but a late race change back to the intermediate tyres and fuel top-up, dropped him back behind Heidfeld. It was an excellent drive from a man known to shine in such tricky conditions.
Kimi Raikkonen battled back to finish in fourth position in the leading Ferrari, but it was very much a case of damage limitation following the earlier error by the team. Team-mate Felipe Massa, the championship leader heading into the 60-lap race, endured what was probably his least competitive showing of his entire career and finished flat last a lap behind the next highest placed finisher. It was certainly not his day.
With Hamilton taking the win, Raikkonen scrambling home in fourth and Massa not scoring, the trio all have 48 championship points heading to Hockenheim in two weeks time…
Heikki Kovalainen could not match the pace of Hamilton or Raikkonen early in the race and a spin late in the race at Club saw him lose position to Raikkonen and Fernando Alonso. He would get one of those positions back as he took the chequered flag in a disappointing fifth position.
Fernando Alonso found himself in defence mode in the closing stages of the race and could not resist the pace of Raikkonen and Kovalainen but did hold on to finish in sixth position. Renault team-mate Nelson Piquet ran well until the heavy rains fell and lost control of his R28 and spun out of the race.
Jarno Trulli finished in seventh position in the leading Toyota, taking the position on the very final lap from Kazuki Nakajima in the Williams. Nakajima looked to have the pace to pass Alonso but went defensive in the final moment of the race and lost out to the Italian veteran. Still it was a good race from the rookie Williams Toyota driver.
Nico Rosberg finished in ninth position having started the race from the pit lane. It was not a trouble-free race for the highly-rated driver as a collision with Timo Glock – the second of the season - saw him forced to fit for a new front wing and the error cost him a chance of points.
Starting second on the grid, Mark Webber had high hopes of a good haul of points this afternoon but a spin exiting Chapel on lap one saw those hopes dashed. Facing the wrong way as the field passed by, Webber can count his lucky stars that he was just far enough off line not to be hit. The Australian racer finished in tenths position while team-mate David Coulthard ran into Sebastian Vettel at the start of the race eliminating both on the spot.
Sebastien Bourdais soldiered on in the surviving Toro Rosso and finished 11th ahead of Timo Glock who suffered several spins in the later stages of the race in his Toyota. With half a dozen spins of his own, Massa was Classified 13th and last.
Robert Kubica was caught out in the heavy rain and spun off and into retirement as was Jenson Button and the Force India duo of Giancarlo Fisichella and Adrian Sutil.

Source : GMM

My Day At The Silverstone F1 Test

 

  

Well what a day it was. The weather was great, I even mananged to get a suntanned face while waiting for autographs.

I had a paddock pass and was able to go into the pitlane and the F1 paddock.

I managed to get my photo taken with David Coulthard. I also got 4 Minichamps models signed by David for my collection.

I also managed to get my rarest Barrichello model ( Jordan 193 ) autographed by Rubens

I also got a Minichamps model signed by Fernando Alonso, although it was quickly rushed while he was running to get in his car.

But the highlight of my day was getting to see Lewis Hamilton who signed 6 baseball caps for me. He was so nice to me and my son. I also got a photo of my son with Lewis as Lewis was signing his book for my son. Although lewis spelt my son’s name wrong, so they were laughing about it together.

Lewis spent so much time signing autographs for his fans, unlike Kimi Raikkonen who hardly ever signs anything for his fans.

So I have one happy son now who has a photo with Lewis. He also had photos with Anthony Hamilton, and Nick Hamilton, ( Lewis’s Brother )

So roll on next week to the British Grand Prix, which I will also be attending

YOU CAN SEE THE SIGNED CAPS ON MY WEBSITE IN THE SHOP

http://f1bits.webasyst.net/shop/

Bruno Senna Linked To BMW Sauber

BMW Sauber is in ‘intensive talks’ with GP2 driver Bruno Senna about a Formula One role for the Brazilian in 2009, according to reports.
The German magazine Sport Bild claims that Senna, the 24-year-old nephew of the late triple world champion, could become a test or even a full race driver for the Hinwil-based squad next year.
Senna, second overall in the 2008 GP2 standings, won a race at the prestigious Monaco venue last month.
His quest to go all the way to Formula One is backed by his uncle’s friend and former McLaren team-mate Gerhard Berger, who today co-owns the Toro Rosso team.
“I will help Bruno, and his family who looks out for his career, to do it. His development is obvious, and there is no doubt he has talent,” the Austrian said.
Sport Bild claims that Berger discussed Senna at Magny Cours with BMW Sauber boss Mario Theissen, his former colleague as joint BMW Motorsport Director. 
An insider confirmed: “Senna is determined to get a test and then BMW will decide.”
The magazine also said Red Bull, Toro Rosso and Williams may be interested in Senna.
Bruno Senna, meanwhile, is personally backed by Santander, the Spanish bank that also sponsors McLaren.
For now, he is staying focused on his current task.
“I must continue to push and win races and podiums. Then I can dream a little bit more,” Senna said.

Source: GMM

Formula 2 To Launch In 2009

The FIA have announced plans to launch a new feeder series for Formula One, expected to appear on the calendar from 2009. At a meeting of the World Motor Sport Council in Paris today, the FIA revealed plans for a “Formula Two”, “an inexpensive platform to develop emerging driver talent for Formula One”.
The designation “Formula Two” was last used in 1984, before the series was renamed Formula 3000, before itself being relaunched as GP2 in 2005. While GP2 is currently the primary feeder series for Formula One, with such names as Hamilton, Kovalainen, Piquet and Rosberg all having graduated in the past three years, Formula Two would undoubtedly emerge as a competitor to GP2.
In its press release, the FIA said that it was inviting tenders for the new series, for a 2009 launch. The FIA hopes for a budget of €200,000 per car per season to be sufficient, a figure which is lower than the budget needed for GP2, although no specifications about the series have been announced.
Such is the success of GP2 to produce high-quality drivers and hone their skills, that many observers will wonder about the necessity to launch a new series. With the power struggle currently ongoing between the FIA and Commercial rights holders of Formula One, who incidentally also own GP2, it’s likely that the news of the new series will begin a new chapter in the battle for supremacy in F1.

Provisional F1 2009 Calendar

Below is the Provisional 2009 Schedule :

29 March, Australia
5 April, Malaysia
19 April, Bahrain
10 May, Spain
24 May, Monaco
7 June, Canada
21 June, Great Britain
28 June, France
12 July, Germany
26 July, Hungary
9 August, Turkey
23 August, Europe (Valencia)
6 September, Italy
13 September, Belgium
27 September, Singapore
11 October, Japan
18 October, China
1 November, Brazil
15 November, Abu Dhabi

French Grand Prix - Raikkonen Takes Pole

Kimi Raikkonen has snatched pole position from team mate Massa

Raikkonen helped Ferrari claim their 200th pole position

Hamilton managed 3rd spot, but due to his 10 place grid penalty, will now start from 13th

Kovalainen finished 5th, but was given a 5 place grid penalty for blocking Mark Webber

Below is the revised grid for tomorrows French Grand Prix following Kovalainen’s penalty

  1. Kimi Raikkonen   Ferrari
  2. Felipe Massa   Ferrari
  3. Fernando Alonso   Renault
  4. Jarno Trulli   Toyota
  5. Robert Kubica   BMW Sauber
  6. Mark Webber  RedBull - Renault
  7. David Coulthard   RedBull - Renault
  8. Timo Glock   Toyota
  9. Nelson Piquet   Renault
 10. Heikki Kovalainen   McLaren
 11. Nick Heidfeld    BMW Sauber
 12. Sebastian Vettel   Toro Rosso - Ferrari
 13. Lewis Hamilton   McLaren
 14. Sebastien Bourdais   Toro Rosso - Ferrari
 15. Kazuki Nakajima   Williams - Toyota
 16. Jenson Button  Honda
 17. Rubens Barrichello   Honda
 18. Giancarlo Fisichella  Force India - Ferrari
 19. Adrian Sutil   Force India - Ferrari
 20. Nico Rosberg   Williams - Toyota

French Grand Prix - Alonso Fastest In Final Practice

Alonso has finished a surprise fastest in the final practice session.

Considering he had a blown engine at the end of the 1st practice, he has recovered very well.

 

1.  ALONSO        Renault       1m15.778s
2.  MASSA         Ferrari       1m15.854s
3.  RAIKKONEN     Ferrari       1m15.999s
4.  HAMILTON      McLaren       1m16.232s
5.  VETTEL        Toro Rosso    1m16.298s
6.  KUBICA        BMW           1m16.317s
7.  KOVALAINEN    McLaren       1m16.340s
8.  HEIDFELD      BMW           1m16.458s
9.  ALONSO        Renault       1m16.543s
10. COULTHARD     Red Bull      1m16.572s
11. ROSBERG       Williams      1m16.682s
12. TRULLI        Toyota        1m16.743s
13. BOURDAIS      Toro Rosso    1m16.758s
14. NAKAJIMA      Williams      1m17.002s
15. GLOCK         Toyota        1m17.092s
16. WEBBER        Red Bull      1m17.106s
17. BUTTON        Honda         1m17.244s
18. FISICHELLA    Force India   1m17.394s
19. BARRICHELLO   Honda         1m17.591s
20. SUTIL         Force India   1m17.868s

French Grand Prix - Massa Fastest - Friday Practice 1

Massa has gone fastest in the 1st practice session for this weekends French Grand Prix

1.  MASSA         Ferrari       1m15.306s
2.  HAMILTON      McLaren       1m16.002s
3.  KOVALAINEN    McLaren       1m16.055s
4.  RAIKKONEN     Ferrari       1m16.073s
5.  KUBICA        BMW           1m16.377s
6.  ALONSO        Renault       1m16.400s
7.  TRULLI        Toyota        1m16.758s
8.  VETTEL        Toro Rosso    1m16.838s
9.  HEIDFELD      BMW           1m16.870s
10. GLOCK         Toyota        1m16.886s
11. PIQUET        Renault       1m17.063s
12. COULTHARD     Red Bull      1m17.234s
13. WEBBER        Red Bull      1m17.269s
14. ROSBERG       Williams      1m17.394s
15. BARRICHELLO   Honda         1m17.491s
16. BOURDAIS      Toro Rosso    1m17.683s
17. NAKAJIMA      Williams      1m17.696s
18. BUTTON        Honda         1m17.928s
19. FISICHELLA    Force India   1m18.072s
20. SUTIL         Force India   1m18.673s

F1 Drivers May Strike At The British Grand Prix

The F1 drivers have confirmed they are unhappy about increases to the cost of obtaining their mandatory FIA superlicenses in 2008.
Grand Prix Drivers’ Association (GPDA) director Fernando Alonso did not deny that boycott action at next month’s British Grand Prix over the issue is possible.
Championship leader and GPDA member Robert Kubica said the cost of a F1 license increased by at least a factor of eight compared to last year.
“It’s quite a lot of money, especially if you are scoring points like Lewis did last year and it’s your first year in Formula One,” he said.
“But another point is that experienced drivers who don’t have a quick car are not scoring points, so they don’t care because they don’t have to pay.
“So I think it will be difficult to get all drivers to have the same idea but we are trying to convince the FIA to reduce the cost.”
McLaren’s Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari’s Felipe Massa, despite neither being GPDA members, told a news conference on Thursday that they also support the GPDA.
“For sure I support them,” reigning world champion Kimi Raikkonen agreed. 
“Of course it’s better if it’s not so expensive and it’s the same for everybody, but I don’t think there’s any reason to go on strike and not race. I don’t think that’s the right way to go but it would be nice if we could reduce it,” he said.
It is not clear what form a Silverstone strike might take - boycotting the drivers’ parade, an official session, or the race itself.
With individual drivers bound contractually to teams, Raikkonen admitted that a completely unified front among the 20 Grand Prix stars is unlikely.
“It’s never going to happen that all the drivers will strike. Hopefully there is some nice solution that can be found at some point,” he said.

Donnington In Talks To Host The British Grand Prix

Bernie Ecclestone is applying more pressure to the Silverstone circuit by revealing that he is in talks with Donington Park to host future F1 races in Britain.
Ecclestone has long criticised Silverstone and has been trying to persuade the owners of the circuit, the BRDC, to upgrade the track’s facilities. In recent months, he has threatened to axe the British Grand Prix completely if his demands over the state of the circuit are not met.
However British newspaper The Times has revealed that Ecclestone is looking to safeguard the future of the British Grand Prix by talking to Donington Park management as he believes they have a better chance of coming up with the £11 million annual fee and the large investments required to run the race than Silverstone does.
“We are discussing the possibility of reaching an agreement with Donington to host the British Grand Prix,” Ecclestone explained. “We are trying to save the British Grand Prix and we want it to be staged at a venue which befits an even of it’s stature. I have been in negotiations for a long time and whether or not we are going to do a deal with Donington or Silverstone, I don’t know.
“Donington have said they are going to build everything we want. Have they got the money? Only time will tell. But I think there is more chance of Donington having the money than the BRDC.”
If Donington wishes to take over from Silverstone to host the British Grand Prix, track organisers will have a mammoth task on their hands. The track potentially needs lengthening, and a new pit, paddock area and media complex would have to be built, along with additional grandstands. The total bill for kitting the circuit out to a high enough standard to host an F1 race is likely to cost in the order of tens of millions of pounds.

Barcelona F1 Test - Testing Times For 3 Days

For 3 days this week the F1 teams have been testing in Barcelona

Anthony Davidson was back in action this week, after losing his F1 drive, after the Super Aguri team folded 6 weeks ago. He was asked by the Honda F1 team to help with testing the Honda RA108, while regular tester Alex Wurz is racing in the Le Mans 24 Hour race this weekend.

Luca Badoer was fastest for the 1st 2 days, and Piquet ended up fastest on the final day.

The teams will be backin action next weekend for the French Grand Prix

 

Barcelona - 14/06/2008

1 . N. Piquet - Renault R28 - 1:20.076 (+ 0.000 ) - 112 laps
2 . P. de la Rosa - McLaren MP4-23 - 1:20.402 (+ 0.326 ) - 82 laps
3 . L. Badoer - Ferrari F2008 - 1:20.680 (+ 0.604 ) - 63 laps
4 . M. Webber - Red Bull Renault RB4 - 1:21.037 (+ 0.961 ) - 92 laps
5 . T. Glock - Toyota TF108 - 1:21.158 (+ 1.082 ) - 86 laps
6 . N. Heidfeld - BMW Sauber F1.08 - 1:21.295 (+ 1.219 ) - 88 laps
7 . R. Barrichello - Honda RA108 - 1:21.672 (+ 1.596 ) - 83 laps
8 . N. Hulkenberg - Williams FW30 - 1:21.674 (+ 1.598 ) - 60 laps
9 . S. Vettel - Toro Rosso STR3 - 1:21.880 (+ 1.804 ) - 72 laps.

 

Barcelona Friday - 13/06/2008

1 . L. Badoer - Ferrari F2008 - 1:21.013 (+ 0.000 ) - 95 laps
2 . P. de la Rosa - McLaren MP4-23 - 1:21.374 (+ 0.361 ) - 111 laps
3 . T. Glock - Toyota TF108 - 1:21.573 (+ 0.560 ) - 87 laps
4 . N. Rosberg - Williams Toyota FW30 - 1:21.614 (+ 0.601 ) - 86 laps
5 . D. Coulthard - Red Bull Renault RB4 - 1:21.668 (+ 0.655 ) - 86 laps
6 . R. Kubica - BMW Sauber F1.08 - 1:21.761 (+ 0.748 ) - 114 laps
7 . R. Barrichello - Honda RA108 - 1:21.950 (+ 0.937 ) - 122 laps
8 . N. Piquet - Renault R28 - 1:22.037 (+ 1.024 ) - 129 laps
9 . S. Bourdais - Toro Rosso STR3 - 1:22.395 (+ 1.382 ) - 101 lap

 

Barcelona Thursday - 12/06/2008

1 . L. Badoer - Ferrari F2008 - 1:22.412 (+ 0.000 ) - 81 laps
2 . R. Kubica - BMW Sauber F1.08 - 1:22.682 (+ 0.270 ) - 69 laps
3 . D. Coulthard - Red Bull RB4 - 1:22.724 (+ 0.312 ) - 21 laps
4 . S. Buemi - Red Bull RB4 - 1:22.764 (+ 0.352 ) - 79 laps
5 . G. Paffett - McLaren MP4-23 - 1:22.938 (+ 0.526 ) - 36 laps
6 . A. Davidson - Honda RA108 - 1:23.208 (+ 0.796 ) - 81 laps
7 . N. Hulkenberg - Williams FW30 - 1:23.619 (+ 1.207 ) - 112 laps
8 . R. Grosjean - Renault R28 - 1:23.899 (+ 1.487 ) - 60 laps
9 . K. Kobayashi - Toyota TF108 - 1:24.442 (+ 2.030 ) - 82 laps.

 

10 Place Grid Penalty For Hamilton

Stewards at the Canadian Grand Prix have ruled that Lewis Hamilton caused an avoidable crash when he hit Raikkonen from behind.

Nico Rosberg has also been penalised
Both drivers will be demoted 10 places down the Magny Cours grid in two weeks.
“It was a serious mistake from Hamilton and I think the penalty imposed by the FIA is in line with it, even if it does not restore what was a lost opportunity for us,” Ferrari chief Stefano Domenicali said.
“It’s just unfortunate when stuff like this happens, but I have no argument with the Stewards,” Hamilton said.
Team boss Ron Dennis, however, came closer to disagreeing with the penalty, playing down the incident as ‘just one of those things’. 
“The plain fact is that Lewis didn’t realise that the cars in front of him were coming to a halt until too late,” he said.
“It’s difficult for a driver to decide whether to focus on the lights or on the cars ahead in situations like that. Having said that, we accept the stewards’ decision,” Dennis added.

Canadian Grand Prix - 1st F1 Win For Kubica

Robert Kubica has claimed his first ever F1 win with a fantastic drive for BMW Sauber

It was also the first ever win for the BMW Sauber team, so its a double celebration today

Lewis Hamilton & Kimi Raikkonen both scored no points after Hamilton went straight into the back of Raikkonen after exiting the pitlane during a safety car incident. Raikkonen and Kubica were both exiting the pitlane, and stopped at the exit because the red light was flashing, but Hamilton didn’t stop and ended up in the back of raikkonen, taking them both out of the race. Raikkonen then jumped out of his car, and showed hamilton the red light still flashing. Hamilton said he has since apologised to Raikkonen for the incident.

Nick Heidfeld, took second place and David Coulthard was third for Red Bull, it’s been a while since he was last on the podium.
Timo Glock took fourth place, the best result of his first full F1 season, and Felipe Massa was an eventful fifth.
Barrichello, who now has the most ever starts in F1 History, was leading the race at one point for a few laps, then had to pit for fuel. But he still mamaged to bring the Honda home in 7th place.
Kubica is now top of the Drivers’ World championship, four points clear of Hamilton, and BMW Sauber is now top the Constructor’s title race.

Race Result : 

1.  KUBICA       BMW                 
2.  HEIDFELD     BMW           +16.4s
3.  COULTHARD    Red Bull      +23.3s
4.  GLOCK        Toyota        +42.6s
5.  MASSA        Ferrari       +43.9s
6.  TRULLI       Toyota        +47.7s
7.  BARRICHELLO  Honda         +53.5s
8.  VETTEL       Toro Rosso    +54.1s
9.  KOVALAINEN   McLaren       +54.4s
10. ROSBERG      Williams      +57.7s
11. BUTTON       Honda         +67.5s
12. WEBBER       Red Bull      +71.2s
13. BOURDAIS     Toro Rosso    +1 lap
R.  FISICHELLA   Force India   +19 laps
R.  NAKAJIMA     Williams      +24 laps
R . ALONSO       Renault       +26 laps
R.  PIQUET       Renault       +31 laps
R.  RAIKKONEN    Ferrari       +51 laps
R.  HAMILTON     McLaren       +51 laps
R.  SUTIL        Force India   +57 laps

Monaco Grand Prix - Hamilton Wins After Eventful Race

Lewis Hamilton has won the Monaco grand prix.

Hamilton finished just 3 seconds ahead of Robert Kubica with Felipe Massa 3rd
This was Hamilton’s second win of the season and the sixth of his career.
Mark Webber was fourth. Kimi Raikkonen had a race of accidents and incidents and finished ninth, failing to score a point. This left Hamilton on top of the title race again for the first time since the season opening race in Australia. He has 38 points now with Raikkonen on 35 second and Massa third on 34. Hamilton made a great start and found a way past Raikkonen going into the first corner.
The rain caused big problems at the start of the race which involved Hamilton himself smashing into the barriers on lap six at Tabac. His rear right tyre was left hanging as he returned to the pits.
David Coulthard had climbed from 15th to the top ten by now but the rain played havoc with the race for several minutes as Alonso, followed by Coulthard and Sebastian Bourdais crashed off into the barriers at Massenet. Then Raikkonen was given a ‘drive-through’ penalty because Ferrari had failed to fit his car’s tyres properly more than three minutes before the start of the race.
After he had performed his punishment, the running order at the top was Massa followed by Kubica and then Hamilton who had pitted and recovered.
As the track dried out, Hamilton had to decide what tyres to change to, and chose dry ones, and came out with a 30 second lead over 2nd placed Kubica
With 17 laps remaining, Nico Rosberg caused the second Safety Car intervention when he lost control in the swimming pool complex and wrecked his car in a massive accident.
When racing resumed, Hamilton raced clear but on lap 68 Raikkonen made a big mistake and lost control of his car as he came out of the tunnel and ran into the back of Sutil, who was running in an excellent 4th place
Both drivers had to pit for repairs, but Sutil was forced to retire while Raikkonen rejoined in 9th place.

So we now move on to Canada in 2 weeks time, with Hamilton once again leading the world championship by 3 points.

Monaco GP Result - 76 laps

1.  HAMILTON     McLaren       
2.  KUBICA       BMW           +3.0s
3.  MASSA        Ferrari       +4.8s
4.  WEBBER       Red Bull      +19.2s
5.  VETTEL       Toro Rosso    +24.6s
6.  BARRICHELLO  Honda         +28.4s
7.  NAKAJIMA     Williams      +30.1s
8.  KOVALAINEN   McLaren       +33.1s
9.  RAIKKONEN    Ferrari       +33.7s
10. ALONSO       Renault       +1 lap
11. BUTTON       Honda         +1 lap
12. GLOCK        Toyota        +1 lap
13. TRULLI       Toyota        +1 lap
14. HEIDFELD     BMW           +4 laps
R.  SUTIL        Force India   +9 laps
R . ROSBERG      Williams      +17 laps
R.  PIQUET       Renault       +29 laps
R.  FISICHELLA   Force India   +40 laps
R.  COULTHARD    Red Bull      +69 laps
R.  BOURDAIS     Toro Rosso    +69 laps

 

Monaco Grand Prix - Massa Takes A Suprise Pole

Felipe Massa secured pole position for the Monaco Grand Prix when he outpaced his Ferrari teammate and defending champion Kimi Raikkonen in the final seconds.

Raikkonen ended up second ahead of Lewis Hamilton and his McLaren teammate, Heikki Kovalainen, who was fourth.

They will share the second row of the grid after failing to build on their speed earlier in the weekend.

It was Massa’s 12th career pole position and Ferrari’s first pole in Monaco since 2000. Poland’s Robert Kubica was fifth for BMW ahead of German Nico Rosberg in a Williams. Twice champion Spaniard Fernando Alonso in a Renault was seventh and Italian Jarno Trulli eighth for Toyota.

That left the two Red Bulls of Australian Mark Webber and David Coulthard in ninth and 10th places. Coulthard had a huge accident but escaped unhurt at the end of the second mini-session.

German Adrian Sutil in a Force India was 19th and his teammate Italian Giancarlo Fisichella was 20th, an outcome that meant they fill the back row of the grid.

Monaco Grid

 

1.  MASSA          Ferrari
2.  RAIKKONEN      Ferrari

3.  HAMILTON       McLaren

4.  KOVALAINEN     McLaren

5.  KUBICA         BMW

6.  ROSBERG        Williams

7.  ALONSO         Renault

8.  TRULLI         Toyota

9.  WEBBER         Red Bull

10. COULTHARD      Red Bull

11. GLOCK          Toyota

12. BUTTON         Honda

13. HEIDFELD       BMW

14. NAKAJIMA       Williams

15. BARRICHELLO    Honda

16. BOURDAIS       Toro Rosso

17. PIQUET         Renault

18. SUTIL          Force India

19. FISICHELLA     Force India

20. VETTEL         Toro Rosso*

 

* Penalised For Changing Gearbox

 

 

Turkish Grand Prix - Massa Wins For The 3rd Time

Felipe Massa has won his 3rd consecutive win.

Massa was hunted down by Lewis Hamilton who finished 2nd. Raikkone was also closing in on Hamilton in the final stages, and managed to finish 3rd.

Alonso managed to get ahead of Webber at the start to finish 6th, another good show for the Renault team. The 2 BMW Saubers had a quiet afternoon, with Kubica finishing 4th ahead of team mate Heidfeld in 5th.

Turkish GP Result - 58 Laps

1.  MASSA        Ferrari       
2.  HAMILTON     McLaren       +3.7s
3.  RAIKKONEN    Ferrari       +4.2s
4.  KUBICA       BMW           +21.6s
5.  HEIDFELD     BMW           +38.7s
6.  ALONSO       Renault       +53.7s
7.  WEBBER       Red Bull      +64.2s
8.  ROSBERG      Williams      +71.4s
9.  COULTHARD    Red Bull      +75.2s
10. TRULLI       Toyota        +76.3s
11. BUTTON       Honda         +1 lap
12. KOVALAINEN   McLaren       +1 lap
13. GLOCK        Toyota        +1 lap
14. BARRICHELLO  Honda         +1 lap
15. PIQUET       Renault       +1 lap
16. SUTIL        Force India   +1 lap
17. VETTEL       Toro Rosso    +1 lap
R.  BOURDAIS     Toro Rosso    +34 laps
R.  NAKAJIMA     Williams      +57 laps
R.  FISICHELLA   Force India   +58 laps

Turkish Grand Prix - Massa Takes Pole

Massa has claimed his 3rd consecutive pole position for the Turkish Grand Prix

Kovalainen was back to his best by securing 2nd place, ahead of team mate Hamilton who managed 3rd. Hamilton was the only front runner on theharder compound tyre. He said he felt in more control of the car using the harder compound.

Raikkonen lines up behind Hamilton in 4th

Fisichella starts last after incurring a 3 grid place penalty for passing a red light in practice.

Starting Grid : 

1.  MASSA         Ferrari     

2.  KOVALAINEN    McLaren        

3.  HAMILTON      McLaren        

4.  RAIKKONEN     Ferrari    

5.  KUBICA        BMW

6.  WEBBER        Red Bull

7.  ALONSO        Renault

8.  TRULLI        Toyota

9.  HEIDFELD      BMW

10. COULTHARD     Red Bull       

11. ROSBERG       Williams     

12. BARRICHELLO   Honda        

13. BUTTON        Honda        

14. VETTEL        Toro Rosso    

15. GLOCK         Toyota       

16. NAKAJIMA      Williams      
17. PIQUET        Renault      
18. BOURDAIS      Toro Rosso    
19. SUTIL         Force India

20. FISICHELLA    Force India*

 

 

*three-place grid penalty for passing red light at pit lane exit in practice

 

Turkish Grand Prix - Raikkonen Fastest In 2nd Practice

Kimi Raikkonen has finished fastest of the day in 2nd practice this afternoon
The team had to change his gearbox during 1st practice
Mark Webber had a crash into a barrier at turn 6, he broke the front suspension
Alonso couldn’t match his morning time, and ended up 9th, neither could Button who ended up 11th
Hamilton ended up 2nd after a better run in the afternoon, while Massa dropped to 3rd after being fastest in the morning session.

Turkish GP Free Practice Session 2 Times :

 

1.  RAIKKONEN    Ferrari      1m27.543s
2.  HAMILTON     McLaren      1m27.579s
3.  MASSA        Ferrari      1m27.682s
4.  COULTHARD    Red Bull     1m27.763s
5.  KOVALAINEN   McLaren      1m27.954s
6.  KUBICA       BMW          1m28.431s
7.  TRULLI       Toyota       1m28.619s
8.  NAKAJIMA     Williams     1m28.664s
9.  ALONSO       Renault      1m28.681s
10. HEIDFELD     BMW          1m28.817s
11. BUTTON       Honda        1m28.826s
12. GLOCK        Toyota       1m28.849s
13. ROSBERG      Williams     1m28.907s
14. FISICHELLA   Force India  1m29.008s
15. BARRICHELLO  Honda        1m29.024s
16. PIQUET       Renault      1m29.212s
17. VETTEL       Toro Rosso   1m29.462s
18. BOURDAIS     Toro Rosso   1m29.630s
19. WEBBER       Red Bull     1m29.633s
20. SUTIL        Force India  1m30.832s

Turkish Grand Prix - Massa Fastest In 1st Practice

Massa has finished fastest in the 1st practice session

Raikkonen had gearbox problems, so ended up last.
Kovalainen was impressive after his crash 2 weeks ago by claiming 2nd place, ahead of team mate Hamilton who was 3rd. Alonso is showing his car has improved by going 4th fastest, ahead of a quick Jenson Button in 5th

Turkish GP Free Practice Session 1 Times :

 

1.  MASSA         Ferrari     1m27.323s

2.  KOVALAINEN    McLaren     1m27.456s

3.  HAMILTON      McLaren     1m27.752s

4.  ALONSO        Renault     1m28.284s

5.  BUTTON        Honda       1m28.919s

6.  NAKAJIMA      Williams    1m29.002s

7.  HEIDFELD      BMW         1m29.024s

8.  BARRICHELLO   Honda       1m29.068s

9.  PIQUET        Renault     1m29.082s

10. GLOCK         Toyota      1m29.103s

11. TRULLI        Toyota      1m29.329s

12. KUBICA        BMW         1m29.330s

13. ROSBERG       Williams    1m29.367s

14. SUTIL         Force India 1m29.756s

15. FISICHELLA    Force India 1m29.811s

16. WEBBER        Red Bull    1m30.088s

17. COULTHARD     Red Bull    1m30.340s

18. BOURDAIS      Toro Rosso  1m30.388s

19. VETTEL        Toro Rosso  1m30.426s

20. RAIKKONEN     Ferrari     1m30.732s

Lewis Hamilton Makes His Stage Debut

Lewis Hamilton has made his stage debut in a historical stage show called Troya. He met a local dance troop where he was hoisted into the sky on wires over a huge Trojan Horse.
The dancers were there to perform the Troy (Troya), portraying the legendary Trojan War. The show depicts 3,000 years of Anatolian history, beginning with the famous legend.

It was part of a promotional event before Sunday’s Turkish Grand prix

Qualifying Change For Turkey

It has been confirmed on Friday that the qualifying procedures will now change after the Super Aguri team’s withdrawal from the championship. Race stewards said that with only 20 cars now on the grid, 5 rather than 6 drivers would be excluded after each of the first two parts of Saturday qualifying.
This will still leave 10 cars fighting for pole position in the final 10-minute phase.

Kovalainen Cleared To Race In Turkey

Heikki Kovalainen has been given the all clear to