Formula 1 General Chat & Discussion

Result of the 3rd practice session :

1. Nico Rosberg - Mercedes GP - 1:25.887
2. Lewis Hamilton - Mercedes GP - 1:26.756 +0.869
3. Fernando Alonso - Ferrari - 1:27.188 +1.301
4. Felipe Massa - Williams - 1:27.223 +1.336
5. Romain Grosjean - Lotus - 1:27.682 +1.795
6. Kevin Magnussen - McLaren - 1:27.806 +1.919
7. Daniel Ricciardo - Red Bull Racing - 1:27.808 +1.921
8. Jenson Button - McLaren - 1:28.006 +2.119
9. Pastor Maldonado - Lotus - 1:28.076 +2.189
10. Sebastian Vettel - Red Bull Racing - 1:28.085 +2.198
11. Valtteri Bottas - Williams - 1:28.101 +2.214
12. Jean-Eric Vergne - Toro Rosso - 1:28.242 +2.355
13. Daniil Kvyat - Toro Rosso - 1:28.298 +2.411
14. Kimi Räikkönen - Ferrari - 1:28.419 +2.532
15. Sergio Perez - Force India - 1:28.571 +2.684
16. Nico Hulkenberg - Force India - 1:28.668 +2.781
17. Adrian Sutil - Sauber - 1:28.715 +2.828
18. Esteban Gutierrez - Sauber - 1:28.865 +2.978
19. Max Chilton - Marussia F1 Team - 1:30.169 +4.282
20. Jules Bianchi - Marussia F1 Team - 1:30.670 +4.783
21. Kamui Kobayashi - Caterham - 1:30.712 +4.825
22. Marcus Ericsson - Caterham - 1:31.559 +5.672

Nico Rosberg leads Lewis Hamilton in final practice :
Mercedes continued its dominance of Formula 1 as Nico Rosberg topped the third practice session for the Spanish Grand Prix ahead of his team-mate Lewis Hamilton. Qualifying this afternoon will most likely be another personal duel between the two Silver Arrows machines. They were split by 0.869 seconds in Saturday morning practice. Local hero Fernando Alonso was third quickest in his Ferrari, more than 1.3s behind Rosberg and just fractionally ahead of Felipe Massa's Williams. Frenchman Romain Grosjean was fifth quickest for Lotus ahead of Kevin Magnussen (McLaren), Daniel Ricciardo (Red Bull) and the other McLaren of Jenson Button.
Pastor Maldonado was ninth quickest in the second Lotus, while Sebastian Vettel made up for the time he lost on Friday by completing 20 laps in his Red Bull and finishing with the 10th fastest time. At the beginning of the hour the Ferraris set the early pace, with firstly Kimi Raikkonen, then his team-mate Alonso going fastest on the hard tyres in the first 20 minutes. As the half hour mark approached the Mercedes drivers emerged from the pits and started lighting up the timesheets. Rosberg was first to post the quickest time, over a second faster than Alonso's Ferrari. Rosberg and his team-mate Hamilton then traded fastest lap times at the top of the order, but it was clear that a number of drivers continued to struggle with the low grip on a dry but overcast day in Barcelona. Several drivers, including the spectacular Alonso, battled with rear grip issues and once again Max Chilton's session ended in the gravel trap, this time after he locked up his front left heading into Turn 5 and slid wide into the gravel on the outside of the corner. Kamui Kobayashi also had a late off-track excursion in his Caterham but was able to continue unharmed.

Kind Regards
Shaky - Schumi

Jean-Eric Vergne, sanctioned with 10 positions and 30.000€ for the incident with a wheel, yesterday in the free practice 2.
Is it logical that they sanction the team but, why to the pilot?

Result of the 2nd practice session :

1. Lewis Hamilton - Mercedes GP - 1:25.524
2. Nico Rosberg - Mercedes GP - 1:25.973 +0.449
3. Daniel Ricciardo - Red Bull Racing - 1:26.509 +0.985
4. Fernando Alonso - Ferrari - 1:27.121 +1.597
5. Kimi Räikkönen - Ferrari - 1:27.296 +1.772
6. Kevin Magnussen - McLaren - 1:27.788 +2.264
7. Jenson Button - McLaren - 1:27.811 +2.287
8. Felipe Massa - Williams - 1:27.824 +2.300
9. Pastor Maldonado - Lotus - 1:27.866 +2.342
10. Daniil Kvyat - Toro Rosso - 1:28.049 +2.525
11. Nico Hulkenberg - Force India - 1:28.074 +2.550
12. Jean-Eric Vergne - Toro Rosso - 1:28.246 +2.722
13. Adrian Sutil - Sauber - 1:28.284 +2.760
14. Valtteri Bottas - Williams - 1:28.698 +3.174
15. Esteban Gutierrez - Sauber - 1:29.105 +3.581
16. Sergio Perez - Force India - 1:29.129 +3.605
17. Romain Grosjean - Lotus - 1:29.493 +3.969
18. Jules Bianchi - Marussia F1 Team - 1:29.991 +4.467
19. Max Chilton - Marussia F1 Team - 1:31.148 +5.624
20. Kamui Kobayashi - Caterham - 1:31.338 +5.814
21. Marcus Ericsson - Caterham - 1:31.586 +6.062
22. Sebastian Vettel - Red Bull Racing - no time


Hamilton on top as Vettel struggles :
Lewis Hamilton continued to set the pace in Barcelona repeating his time-sheet topping performance of the morning in the day’s second session. Mercedes ended the day with top two times as Nico Rosberg joined his team-mate at the top of the order, the German making up for lost time after his opening session was interrupted by power unit problems. He finished just under half a second adrift of Hamilton, who set a best lap of 1:25.524. Third place went to Red Bull Racing’s Daniel Ricciardo, the Australian finishing just under a second behind Rosberg, but over half a second up on fourth-place Fernando Alonso. Ricciardo was the only Red Bull running in the afternoon, however. After being restricted to just four laps in the morning with an electrical problem, the Austrian team failed to repair the damage caused in the afternoon and the champion was forced to sit out the whole session. Alonso, meanwhile, was less than 0.2s ahead of team-mate Kimi Raikkonen, who finished the second in fifth place. The twin Ferrari’s were followed by the McLarens of Kevin Magnussen and Jenson Button respectively. Felipe Massa was eighth for Williams and was followed by the Lotus of Pastor Maldonado. The Lotus driver had a good afternoon completing 42 laps but it was a more tricky outing for team-mate Romain Grosjean. The Frenchman suffered with engine woes and brake issues, the latter forcing him to abandon the session after 26 laps. Elsewhere, there was a worrying moment for Jean-Eric Vergne late in the session. The Toro Rosso driver came out of the pit only for the right-rear wheel of his STR9 to detach and he was to stop at Turn 2.

Kind Regards
Shaky - Schumi

Result of the 1st practice session of the GP of Spain :

1. Lewis Hamilton - Mercedes GP - 1:27.023
2. Jenson Button - McLaren - 1:27.891 +0.868
3. Daniel Ricciardo - Red Bull Racing - 1:27.973 +0.950
4. Fernando Alonso - Ferrari - 1:28.128 +1.105
5. Nico Rosberg - Mercedes GP - 1:28.168 +1.145
6. Kimi Räikkönen - Ferrari - 1:28.337 +1.314
7. Kevin Magnussen - McLaren - 1:28.423 +1.400
8. Pastor Maldonado - Lotus - 1:28.744 +1.721
9. Sergio Perez - Force India - 1:28.779 +1.756
10. Felipe Massa - Williams - 1:28.791 +1.768
11. Daniil Kvyat - Toro Rosso - 1:28.792 +1.769
12. Nico Hulkenberg - Force India - 1:28.828 +1.805
13. Jean-Eric Vergne - Toro Rosso - 1:28.859 +1.836
14. Felipe Nasr - Williams - 1:29.272 +2.249
15. Adrian Sutil - Sauber - 1:29.688 +2.665
16. Jules Bianchi - Marussia F1 Team - 1:29.820 +2.797
17. Romain Grosjean - Lotus - 1:29.944 +2.921
18. Giedo van der Garde - Sauber - 1:30.440 +3.417
19. Max Chilton - Marussia F1 Team - 1:30.748 +3.725
20. Sebastian Vettel - Red Bull Racing - 1:30.942 +3.919
21. Kamui Kobayashi - Caterham - 1:30.997 +3.974
22. Marcus Ericsson - Caterham - 1:31.421 +4.398

Hamilton quickest with ease :
Race favourite Lewis Hamilton set the pace for dominant Mercedes in first Spanish Grand Prix practice on Friday while the pain remained the same for Sebastian Vettel despite a Red Bull chassis switch. Hamilton’s fastest lap of 1:27.023 seconds, set six minutes from the end, was 0.868 quicker than Jenson Button who was best of the rest, for McLaren. The impressive margin on a sunny morning at the Circuit de Catalunya further underlined the Briton’s status as the man to watch after three consecutive wins.
Championship leader Nico Rosberg, who is four points clear of team mate Hamilton and who had said on Thursday that he “just needed a normal weekend” to regain the momentum, suffered a cooling issue that cut short his session. He was fifth fastest.
Quadruple world champion Vettel, who had a miserable pre-season test in Spain and has had a difficult four grands prix since then, kicked off the first European race weekend of the year with another setback. The German, winner of the last nine races of 2013, was using a different chassis to the one raced so far but he completed just four laps before pulling over with an electrical problem.
Marshals handed him a fire extinguisher as he inspected the car before hitching a ride back to the paddock on a scooter.
“We had a full electrical shutdown on Seb’s car. We’re not sure what caused it. It cut the radio and everything,” said Team Principal Christian Horner.Although the car was returned to the pits, the problem prevented Vettel from taking any further part in the morning session. His Australian team mate Daniel Ricciardo, who has out qualified Vettel in three of the four races and passed him in the last two after the German was instructed to let the faster car through, was third fastest. Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso, the local favourite for his home race after winning last year with plenty of banners in the grandstand urging him on, was fourth on the time sheets. With the opening long-haul races in Asia and the Middle East out of the way, all teams have brought updates to their cars and Friday’s practice sessions were being closely watched for any signs of change in the pecking order. In a bizarre early incident, a wing mirror on Sergio Perez’s Force India broke off and was left flapping around on a wire. The Mexican completed the lap with it in his hand.

Kind Regards
Shaky - Schumi

The Catalunya Circuit, will host the Spanish Grand Prix for the 24th year in a row First edition in 1991
Barcelona circuit has a good variety of corners and the track, with its abrasive surface is a very demanding for tyres especially on the outer left side Pirelli has chosen the “Orange hard” and “White medium” compounds for this Gran Prix.

Podium 2011: Vettel(Red Bull) – 2° Hamilton and 3° Button. Fastest lap: Hamilton
pole position : Webber 1'20''981

Podium 2012: Maldonado(Williams) – 2° Alonso and 3° Raikkonen. Fastest lap: Grosjean
pole position : Maldonado 1'22''285 (best lap time Hamilton 1'21''707 but disqualified)

Podium 2013: Alonso(Ferrari) – 2° Raikkonen and 3° Massa. Fastest lap: Gutierrez
pole position : Rosberg 1'20''718

the winners
2 wins: Alonso (2006-2013) and Raikkonen (2005-2008)
1 win: Maldonado(2012) Vettel (2011) Button(2009) Massa(2007)

pole position
2 pole: Raikkonen (2005-2008)
1 pole: Alonso (2006); Massa(2007) Button(2009) Maldonado(2012) and Rosberg(2013)

Fastest lap
2: Massa(2006-2007) and Hamilton(2010-2011);
1: Raikkonen (2008); Grosjean(2012); and Gutierrez(2013);

Podium(winner+second+third) for current pilots at Barcelona(circuit de Catalunya)
7 (2 wins+4 second+1 third) Alonso
4 (2+1+1) Raikkonen
3 (1+1+1) Massa
3 (0+2+1) Hamilton
2 (1+0+1) Vettel
2 (1+0+1) Button
1 (1+0+0) Maldonado
never on podium: Rosberg

At the Barcelona circuit in the previous 23 editions,
17 times won, the pilot started from pole position.

7 different winners in the last seven editions
zero wins for Hamilton and Rosberg in Barcelona
probably this year we will have the eighth different winner

Season 2014: winners after 4 races
Hamilton vs Rosberg 3-1

F1 could axe Friday morning practice to cut costs :
F1 could axe Friday morning practice sessions next year, as teams consider how to cut costs in the absence of a mandatory budget cap. Although keenly supported by the small teams, and championed by FIA president Jean Todt, the 2015 budget cap was vetoed by the powerful 'Strategy Group' teams including grandees Ferrari, Red Bull and Mercedes. The smaller teams are furious, but in a crisis meeting in London last week, they were asked to come back in a fortnight with some cost-cutting rule proposals of their own.
Germany's Sport Bild claims that one of the measures under consideration is reducing the grand prix weekend by one 90-minute practice session from 2015. Another proposed rule change is the extension of the current 'parc ferme' regulations. Currently, the specification of the cars is effectively 'frozen' only after qualifying, meaning that until then new parts are almost constantly flown in from the teams' European factories at huge expense. It is now proposed that, for 2015, 'parc ferme' is to come into effect immediately after a sole practice session on Friday afternoon. Sport Bild reports that, at Biggin Hill last week, the teams also discussed limiting aerodynamic updates - for example a maximum of four front wing specification changes per season - but could not unanimously agree. "There was a meeting last week," confirmed Mercedes' Toto Wolff, "and costs were discussed. It is the unanimous opinion of the teams that costs must be drastically reduced." However, he defended the big teams' decision to veto the budget cap. "We have to be honest," he is quoted by Speed Week. "There are big differences in the agendas of the teams.
"If you think about Red Bull, Mercedes and Ferrari - and also McLaren who are with Honda from next year - the main objective is to represent a multinational, global brand. "And that is of course very different from the small teams who are simply there to race in formula one. "But formula one is all of these teams together, the big and the small, and you have to respect that and find solutions that will help everyone in the long term. "The budget cap is a difficult one, because there are some teams who do not want it. And also by their very design it would be very difficult to control, such as for Ferrari who have the formula one team all under the same roof as the major global company," Wolff explained.

Regards
Shaky - Schumi

FORMULA 1 GRAN PREMIO DE ESPAÑA PIRELLI 2014
[Versteckter Link - Registrierung notwendig]
Fri 09 May 2014
Practice 1 10:00 - 11:30
Practice 2 14:00 - 15:30
Sat 10 May 2014
Practice 3 11:00 - 12:00
Qualifying 14:00
Sun 11 May 2014
Race 14:00

CONSTRUCTORS CHAMPIONSHIP AFTER 4 RACES :

1. Mercedes 154 points
2. Red Bull 57 points
3. Force India 54 points
4. Ferrari 52 points
5. McLaren 43 points
6. Williams 36 points
7. Toro Rosso 8 points

DRIVERS CHAMPIONSHIP AFTER 4 RACES :

1. N. Rosberg GER Mercedes 79 points
2. L. Hamilton GBR Mercedes 75 points
3. F. Alonso ESP Ferrari 41 points
4. N. Hulkenberg GER ForceIndia 36 points
5. S. Vettel GER Red Bull 33 points
6. V. Bottas FIN Williams & D. Ricciardo AUS Red Bull 24 points
7. J. Button GBR McLaren 23 points
8. K. Magnussen DEN McLaren 20 points
9. S. Perez MEX ForceIndia 18 points
10. F. Massa BRA Williams 12 points
11. K. Raikkonen FIN Ferrari 11 points
12. J. E. Vergne FRA ToroRosso & D. Kvyat RUS ToroRosso 4 points

1. L. Hamilton - Mercedes 1:36:52.810
2. N. Rosberg - Mercedes +18.686
3. F. Alonso - Ferrari +25.765
4. D. Ricciardo - Red Bull +26.978
5. S. Vettel - Red Bull +51.012
6. N. Hulkenberg - Force India +57.58
7. V. Bottas - Williams +58.145
8. K. Raikkonen - Ferrari +1:23.990
9. S. Perez - Force India +1:26.489
10. D. Kvyat - Toro Rosso +1 lap
11. J. Button - McLaren +1 lap
12. J. Vergne - Toro Rosso +1 lap
13. K. Magnussen - McLaren +1 lap
14. P. Maldonado - Lotus +1 lap
15. F. Massa - Williams +1 lap
16. E. Gutiérrez - Sauber +1lap
17. K. Kobayashi - Caterham +1 lap
18. J. Bianchi - Marussia +1 lap
19. M. Chilton - Marussia +2 laps
20. M. Ericsson - Caterham +2 laps
Did Not Finish :
21. R. Grosjean Lotus +29 laps
22. A. Sutil Sauber +52 laps

Fastest Lap : Nico Rosberg - 1:40.402
Pitstop Alonso : 2 ( lap 11 - lap 34 )
Bat.2 Teams : Daniil Kvyat > Jenson Button
Grid Pos. Seb.Vettel : 5th place


Hamilton cruises to another Mercedes 1-2 :
Lewis Hamilton claimed a third consecutive victory for the first time in his Formula 1 career to close the gap to championship leader Nico Rosberg in the Chinese Grand Prix. Hamilton dominated the race from pole position, while Mercedes team-mate Rosberg had to battle through to second after a slow start. Australian Grand Prix winner Rosberg started fourth behind the two Red Bulls, but fell to seventh after a sluggish getaway and was fortunate to emerge from the first corner unscathed after tagging the Williams of Valtteri Bottas. Mercedes lost the telemetry readings from Rosberg's car before the start, but the team was able to help manage his race without them. Rosberg repassed Nico Hulkenberg's Force India and Felipe Massa's Williams early on, before jumping Daniel Ricciardo's Red Bull for fourth at the first round of pitstops. Once it became clear Rosberg did not have to worry about fuel consumption in his second stint, he closed down and passed reigning champion Sebastian Vettel's Red Bull for third. Vettel slipped back on his second set of tyres and fell into the clutches of team-mate Ricciardo, also recovering after a slow start from the front row of the grid. Vettel refused an order from his team to let Ricciardo through, but the Australian got the best of their personal duel anyway when four-time world champion Vettel ran deep into Turn 1 around half-distance. They eventually finished fourth and fifth behind Fernando Alonso, who survived contact with his former Ferrari team-mate Felipe Massa at the start to score the Scuderia's first podium of the season. Alonso climbed to third with a fast start from fifth on the grid and jumped Vettel for second by making his first pitstop earlier than the Red Bull. But the improved Ferrari was not fast enough to prevent Mercedes scoring its third consecutive one-two result of 2014, so Alonso had to settle for the final podium spot when Rosberg sailed by serenely on the back straight with 14 laps top go. Alonso had to do a long stint on his final set of tyres and only held off Ricciardo's Red Bull by 1.2 seconds at the flag, while Vettel finished 24s behind his team-mate. Massa survived bouncing off Alonso as he tried to squeeze between the Ferrari and Ricciardo's sluggish Red Bull at the start to run as high as fifth, but the Brazilian's race was ruined by a slow first pitstop at which Williams encountered a problem with the left rear wheel. Nico Hulkenberg got the better of Massa's Williams team-mate Bottas to round out the top six, while Hulkenberg's Force India team-mate Sergio Perez - a podium hero last time out in Bahrain - climbed from 16th on the grid to finish ninth, just 2.4s behind Kimi Raikkonen's Ferrari. Romain Grosjean's Lotus retired with gearbox problems, allowing Toro Rosso rookie Daniil Kvyat to continue his strong start to the season and claim the final point by rounding out the top 10.
Jenson Button completed a disappointing race for McLaren by finishing 11th, ahead of the slow-starting Toro Rosso of Jean-Eric Vergne and rookie team-mate Kevin Magnussen. Pastor Maldonado climbed from the back of the grid to 14th in the other Lotus, one place ahead of the recovering Massa.

Kind Regards
Shaky - Schumi

1. Lewis Hamilton - Mercedes GP - 1:53.860
2. Daniel Ricciardo - Red Bull Racing - 1:54.455 +0.595
3. Sebastian Vettel - Red Bull Racing - 1:54.960 +1.100
4. Nico Rosberg - Mercedes GP - 1:55.143 +1.283
5. Fernando Alonso - Ferrari - 1:55.637 +1.777
6. Felipe Massa - Williams - 1:56.147 +2.287
7. Valtteri Bottas - Williams - 1:56.282 +2.422
8. Nico Hulkenberg - Force India - 1:56.366 +2.506
9. Jean-Eric Vergne - Toro Rosso - 1:56.773 +2.913
10. Romain Grosjean - Lotus - 1:57.079 +3.219
Q2
11. Kimi Räikkönen - Ferrari - 1:56.860 +3.000
12. Jenson Button - McLaren - 1:56.963 +3.103
13. Daniil Kvyat - Toro Rosso - 1:57.289 +3.429
14. Adrian Sutil - Sauber - 1:57.393 +3.533
15. Kevin Magnussen - McLaren - 1:57.675 +3.815
16. Sergio Perez - Force India - 1:58.264 +4.404
Q1
17. Esteban Gutierrez - Sauber -1:58.988 +5.128
18. Kamui Kobayashi - Caterham - 1:59.260 +5.400
19. Jules Bianchi - Marussia F1 Team - 1:59.326 +5.466
20. Marcus Ericsson - Caterham - 2:00.646 +6.786
21. Max Chilton - Marussia F1 Team - 2:00.865 +7.005
22. Pastor Maldonado - Lotus - no time

Pole Time : 1:53.860
Pole : Lewis Hamilton
Team Bat. : Adrian Sutil > Esteban Gutierrez
Grid Pos. Nico Hulkenberg : 8th place


Lewis Hamilton continues Mercedes' pole run in damp :
Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton claimed his third pole position of the 2014 Formula 1 season by setting the pace in qualifying for the Chinese Grand Prix. With qualifying held in wet conditions, initially with most running on wets before the intermediates became the tyre of choice, Hamilton went fastest on his first run in Q3 then improved by almost half a second on his second run to consolidate his position . It is the 34th pole position of Hamilton's F1 career, meaning he has broken Jim Clark's British record, with only Michael Schumacher (68), Ayrton Senna (65) and Sebastian Vettel (45) still ahead of him overall. Red Bull driver Daniel Ricciardo will start second, setting a time six tenths slower than Hamilton on his final attempt. This means he outqualifies team-mate Sebastian Vettel for the third time this season, with Vettel third ahead of the second Mercedes of Nico Rosberg. Rosberg had looked set to take provisional pole away from Hamilton on his second run, but he carried too much speed into the hairpin, running wide and preventing him from improving. A spin at the final corner on his final attempt ensured that Rosberg could do no better than fourth.
Ferrari's Fernando Alonso was fifth fastest having never threatened the top positions during qualifying, with Williams pairing Felipe Massa and Valtteri Bottas closely matched in sixth and seventh. Force India's Nico Hulkenberg qualified eighth, ahead of Toro Rosso's Jean-Eric Vergne. Romain Grosjean put a Lotus into Q3 for the first time since 2014, ending up slowest in the top 10 shootout. Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen and McLaren driver Jenson Button were the big-name casualties during Q2. Both were unable to set a good enough pace on their second set of intermediates to break into the top 10 after being bumped out of it by well-timed improvements by Vergne, Massa, Hulkenberg. Button, who complained of a lack of front tyre temperature, and Raikkonen both lapped quickly enough in the first two sectors to make Q3 on their final laps, but worsening conditions in the final sector made it impossible to improve overall. Daniil Kvyat was 13th ahead of Adrian Sutil, Kevin Magnussen and Sergio Perez. Esteban Gutierrez was the fastest of those to fall in Q1. He had looked set to seal a place in the second stage of qualifying with a late run on intermediates before a very poor final sector, including a wide moment at the final corner, ruined his attempt. Caterham's Kamui Kobayashi beat Jules Bianchi to 18th, with team-mate Marcus Ericsson outpacing the second Marussia of Max Chilton.
Pastor Maldonado was classified 22nd as he was unable to participate thanks to an engine problem that forced him to stop on track during morning practice.

Kind Regards
Shaky - Schumi

Result of the 3rd practice session on a wet track :

1. Daniel Ricciardo - Red Bull Racing - 1:53.958
2. Felipe Massa - Williams - 1:54.492 +0.534
3. Romain Grosjean - Lotus - 1:54.514 +0.556
4. Nico Hulkenberg - Force India - 1:55.032 +1.074
5. Kimi Räikkönen - Ferrari - 1:55.062 +1.104
6. Pastor Maldonado - Lotus - 1:55.228 +1.270
7. Daniil Kvyat - Toro Rosso - 1:55.235 +1.277
8. Valtteri Bottas - Williams - 1:55.381 +1.423
9. Jenson Button - McLaren - 1:55.673 +1.715
10. Sergio Perez - Force India - 1:56.019 +2.061
11. Sebastian Vettel - Red Bull Racing - 1:56.233 +2.275
12. Jean-Eric Vergne - Toro Rosso - 1:56.380 +2.422
13. Adrian Sutil - Sauber - 1:56.760 +2.802
14. Max Chilton - Marussia F1 Team - 1:56.841 +2.883
15. Esteban Gutierrez - Sauber - 1:57.468 +3.510
16. Kamui Kobayashi - Caterham - 1:57.812 +3.854
17. Jules Bianchi - Marussia F1 Team - 1:57.976 +4.018
18. Marcus Ericsson - Caterham - 1:59.507 +5.549
19. Nico Rosberg - Mercedes GP - no time
20. Lewis Hamilton - Mercedes GP - no time
21. Kevin Magnussen - McLaren - no time
22. Fernando Alonso - Ferrari - no time

Ricciardo leads damp final practice in China :
the fastest time in the rainy Free Practice 3 session for the Chinese Grand Prix. Felipe Massa (Williams) and Romain Grosjean (Lotus) rounded out the top three. The ambient temperature at the start of the session was 57 degrees Fahrenheit (14 degrees Celsius ) and the track temperature was 61 degrees Fahrenheit (16 degrees Celsius .) It had been raining earlier in the morning, so the track was wet as Pastor Maldonado, with intermediate rain tires fitted to his Lotus, headed out. Other drivers chose Pirelli's extreme wet tire for their installation laps. But the "inters" would prove to be the tires best suited to the track conditions. There was trouble in the Toro Rosso garage as the engineers spotted problems with the engine mapping on the cars of Daniil Kvyat and Jean-Eric Vergne. Both cars needed repairs before the drivers could go out again. 13 minutes into the session, Maldonado set the first lap time of the session: 1:56.676. His teammate Romain Grosjean topped that with a 1:54.514. Meanwhile, Sebastian Vettel was complaining that the clutch was slipping plus there was a lack of acceleration on his Red Bull Renault. The Lotus duo were the only ones to set lap times in the first 19 minutes, and then Max Chilton clocked a 1:59.056 in his Marussia. 20 minutes into the session, more drivers were in action now, including Vettel who set a time of 1:56.233, which put him fourth behind Grosjean, Maldonado and McLaren's Jenson Button. 23 minutes into the session, only eight drivers had set lap times. The rest were content to wait in the garages and not risk damaging their cars on the slippery track. 26 minutes into the session, Valtteri Bottas spun his Williams and continued at Turn 10. 28 minutes into the session, Daniel Ricciardo posted the best time in his Red Bull. Midway through FP3 the top six were: Ricciardo, Felipe Massa (Williams), Grosjean, Nico Hulkenberg (Force India), Maldonado and Kvyat. With 24 minutes remaining in the session, Sergio Perez spun his Force India at Turn 14. With 21 minutes remaining in the session, 17 drivers had set times. The Ferrari and Mercedes drivers and McLaren's Kevin Magnussen With19 minutes remaining in the session, Lotus radioed Maldonado to immediately stop his car out on the track. He parked it off the track at Turn 10. With16 minutes remaining in the session, Kamui Kobayashi (Caterham) was the only driver circulating on the track. With 15 minutes remaining in the session, Red Bull told Ricciardo that they would not be running his car any more in the session. With 9 minutes remaining in the session, Magnussen started his first flying lap. But then he pitted and the mechanics pushed the car back into the garage. With 5 minutes remaining in the session, Vettel started a flying lap, but he, too, pitted.
The top six at the end of FP3 were: Ricciardo, Massa, Grosjean, Hulkenberg, Kimi Raikkonen ,Maldonado, Kvyat, Bottas, Button and Perez.

Kind Regards
Shaky - Schumi

Result of the 2nd practice session :

1. Lewis Hamilton - Mercedes GP - 1:38.315
2. Fernando Alonso - Ferrari - 1:38.456 +0.141
3. Nico Rosberg - Mercedes GP - 1:38.726 +0.411
4. Daniel Ricciardo - Red Bull Racing - 1:38.811 +0.496
5. Sebastian Vettel - Red Bull Racing - 1:39.015 +0.700
6. Felipe Massa - Williams - 1:39.118 +0.803
7. Kimi Räikkönen - Ferrari - 1:39.283 +0.968
8. Jenson Button - McLaren - 1:39.491 +1.176
9. Romain Grosjean - Lotus - 1:39.537 +1.222
10. Daniil Kvyat - Toro Rosso - 1:39.648 +1.333
11. Nico Hulkenberg - Force India - 1:39.736 +1.421
12. Kevin Magnussen - McLaren - 1:39.744 +1.429
13. Jean-Eric Vergne - Toro Rosso - 1:39.759 +1.444
14. Valtteri Bottas - Williams - 1:39.830 +1.515
15. Sergio Perez - Force India - 1:40.124 +1.809
16. Esteban Gutierrez - Sauber - 1:40.359 +2.044
17. Adrian Sutil - Sauber - 1:40.395 +2.080
18. Pastor Maldonado - Lotus - 1:40.455 +2.140
19. Jules Bianchi - Marussia F1 Team - 1:42.327 +4.012
20. Max Chilton - Marussia F1 Team - 1:43.473 +5.158
21. Kamui Kobayashi - Caterham - 1:43.530 +5.215
22. Marcus Ericsson - Caterham - 1:43.679 +5.364

Hamilton reclaims top spot at the end of day one :
Lewis Hamilton returned Mercedes to the top of the timesheets on Friday by setting the fastest time in the second practice session for the Chinese Grand Prix. Hamilton completed 25 laps of the 5.4 kilometre Shanghai International Circuit in the afternoon to end the day with a best time of 1:38.315. His Formula One championship leading team mate Nico Rosberg was third, the German lapping four tenths of a second slower than Hamilton’s benchmark on a cool and hazy afternoon at the circuit located on the outskirts of Shanghai. Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso, who had topped the weekend’s opening session, split the two Mercedes in second. The Spaniard, watched by the team’s new boss Marco Mattiacci, carried his timesheet-topping form from the morning session over into the afternoon. Alonso’s best lap was just a tenth off Hamilton’s benchmark effort, and the double world champion was swapping the fastest time with Rosberg’s Mercedes for most of the second 90-minute session before the focus switched to high-fuel long runs.
Despite ending the day fastest, it was far from a trouble-free day for Hamilton. The 2008 world champion, gunning for his first hat-trick of wins this weekend, completed just nine laps and set the eighth fastest time in the morning session after a suspension problem limited his running. The issue persisted into the afternoon and Hamilton was forced to sit out the opening 30 minutes of the second session as his team worked to fix the problem. However, despite being sent out to join the on-track action, the Briton didn’t seem comfortable in his car and radioed his team to complain about its handling. Kimi Raikkonen was another driver whose Friday running was hampered by technical glitches. The Ferrari driver was forced to sit out the first session but managed to rack up 25 laps in the afternoon on his way to the seventh-fastest time. Daniel Ricciardo, who had set the third fastest time in the morning, continued to lead the charge for reigning world champions Red Bull, ending the day fourth-fastest ahead of team-mate Sebastian Vettel.
Lotus driver Pastor Maldonado, who had caused some amusement when he drove off the track and spun while changing some settings on his steering wheel on Friday morning, was the only casualty in the second session. The Venezuelan, who carries a five-place grid penalty into Sunday’s race, ran wide while turning into the pits and drove into a tyre barrier, bringing an end to his session after just 12 laps.

Kind Regards
Shaky - Schumi

Result of the 1st practice session :

1. Fernando Alonso - Ferrari - 1:39.783
2. Nico Rosberg - Mercedes GP - 1:40.181 +0.398
3. Daniel Ricciardo - Red Bull Racing - 1:40.772 +0.989
4. Jenson Button - McLaren - 1:40.970 +1.187
5. Nico Hulkenberg - Force India - 1:41.175 +1.392
6. Kevin Magnussen - McLaren - 1:41.366 +1.583
7. Jean-Eric Vergne - Toro Rosso - 1:41.505 +1.722
8. Lewis Hamilton - Mercedes GP - 1:41.560 +1.777
9. Sebastian Vettel - Red Bull Racing - 1:41.629 +1.846
10. Felipe Massa - Williams - 1:41.699 +1.916
11. Daniil Kvyat - Toro Rosso - 1:41.977 +2.194
12. Romain Grosjean - Lotus - 1:42.090 +2.307
13. Giedo van der Garde - Sauber - 1:42.165 +2.382
14. Felipe Nasr - Williams - 1:42.265 +2.482
15. Sergio Perez - Force India - 1:42.733 +2.950
16. Pastor Maldonado - Lotus - 1:43.731 +3.948
17. Kamui Kobayashi - Caterham - 1:44.038 +4.255
18. Esteban Gutierrez - Sauber - 1:44.162 +4.379
19. Jules Bianchi - Marussia F1 Team - 1:44.270 +4.487
20. Max Chilton - Marussia F1 Team - 1:44.782 +4.999
21. Marcus Ericsson - Caterham - 1:44.835 +5.052
22. Kimi Räikkönen - Ferrari - no time

Fernando Alonso and Ferrari lead first Friday practice :
Fernando Alonso set the early pace for the Ferrari Formula 1 team in the opening practice session for this weekend's Chinese Grand Prix.The two-time world champion was 0.398 seconds faster than Nico Rosberg's Mercedes at a cool and misty Shanghai International Circuit. Australian Daniel Ricciardo was third quickest in his Red Bull ahead of Jenson Button's McLaren.
Nico Hulkenberg was fifth fastest for Force India, one place in front of the other McLaren of Kevin Magnussen. The second Mercedes of Lewis Hamilton was eighth fastest overall, but his session ended a few minutes early after he reported a problem with the balance of his car. Alonso's pace will have pleased Ferrari's new team principal Marco Mattiacci, who made his first appearance in his new role with the Scuderia this morning. There was less joy on the other side of the garage as Alonso's team-mate Kimi Raikkonen could only manage a single installation lap after he suffered problems with the front of his car. As ever the first practice session of the weekend was characterised by low grip and many drivers struggled with locking brakes. A number of teams were also trailing new parts - including Mercedes, which has arrived in China with a new front wing. Sauber's Esteban Gutierrez did not emerge from his garage until an hour into the session after he suffered a malfunction his clutch. Jules Bianchi had a fuel system problem following his installation lap and sat out nearly all of the 90 minutes before joining for a brief late run. There was early drama for Pastor Maldonado when he spun his Lotus at Turn 9 just 10 minutes into the session. He appeared to be looking down to make an adjustment on his steering wheel as he lost control. Rookie Daniil Kvyat was another to leave the track, when he made a small mistake and spun at Turn 1 and also Turn 14 .Williams ran its test and reserve driver Felipe Nasr in place of Valtteri Bottas for this session and he finished with the 13th fastest time. Sauber also used one of its test roster, with Giedo van der Garde standing in for Adrian Sutil.

Kind Regards
Shaky - Schumi

The Shangai international circuit will host the Chinese Grand Prix. This year is the 11th edition. First edition in 2004.
Pirelli has chosen the “White medium” and “Yellow soft” compounds for this weekend (18-19 and 20 april)

Podium 2011: Hamilton (Mc Laren) – 2° Vettel and 3° Webber. Fastest lap: Webber
pole position : Vettel 1'33''706

Podium 2012: Rosberg(Mercedes) – 2° Button and 3° Hamilton. Fastest lap: Kobayashi
pole position : Rosberg 1'35''121

Podium 2013: Alonso(Ferrari) – 2° Raikkonen and 3° Hamilton. Fastest lap: Vettel
pole position : Hamilton 1'34''484

the winners
2 wins: Alonso (2005-2013) and Hamilton (2008-2011)
1 win: Button(2010) Vettel(2009) Raikkonen (2007) and Rosberg(2012)

pole position
3 pole: Vettel(2009-2010-2011) and Hamilton(2007-2008-2013)
2 pole: Alonso (2005-2006);
1 pole: Rosberg(2012)

Fastest lap
2: Hamilton (2008-2010)
1: Raikkonen (2005); Alonso(2006); Massa(2007); Kobayashi(2012) and Vettel(2013);

Podium(winner+second+third) for current pilots at Sepang
5 (2wins+1second+2 third) Hamilton
5 (1+2+2) Raikkonen
4 (2+2+0) Alonso
4 (1+2+1) Button
2 (1+1+0) Vettel
2 (1+0+1) Rosberg
2 (0+1+1) Massa

I found these data that I think are interesting
Best lap time GP Bahrain Sunday 06 april
Nico Rosberg Mercedes Lap n.49 Time 1:37.020
Lewis Hamilton Mercedes Lap n.49 Time 1:37.108
Nico Hulkenberg Force India-Mercedes Lap n.37 Time 1:38.785
Daniel Ricciardo Red Bull Racing-Renault Lap n.38 Time 1:39.269
Felipe Massa Williams-Mercedes Lap n.40 Time 1:39.272
Sebastian Vettel Red Bull Racing-Renault Lap n.18 Time 1:39.312
Sergio Perez Force India-Mercedes Lap n.36 Time 1:39.320
Kimi Räikkönen Ferrari Lap n.35 Time 1:39.438

in the final laps of the last GP in Bahrain, Lewis and Nico made a great spectacle, pushing to the maximum their Mercedes.
probably this time, we have seen the real potential of this car and the gap is impressive compared to competitors
as seen from the table above: more than 1.5 sec. for the Third (more than 2 sec for Red Bull and Ferrari!!!!)
It reminds me 1988 season. when McLaren-Honda MP4/ 4 won 15 of the 16 races
with Ayrton Senna “the Magic” and his team mate Alain Prost “the Professor”.
Happy Easter to everyone.