Formula 1 General Chat & Discussion

News Round-Up part 1 :

Ecclestone wants Barcelona and Valencia to share race :
Bernie Ecclestone has revealed he would like Barcelona and Valencia to alternate a single date for the Spanish grand prix on F1's annual calendar. Amid reports the two Spanish cities are close to agreeing a deal, Circuit de Catalunya track boss Salvador Servia played down the likelihood. A deal would see Valencia's streets host formula one in 2014, but Servia said Barcelona is already "working on next year". "We have already published the ticket prices for 2014," he told Reuters on Saturday. Clearly, no deal has been struck yet. "Right now I don't know where the (Spanish) grand prix will be next year," F1 chief executive Ecclestone is quoted by the AS sports daily. "The best and right option for both of them is the alternation." AS newspaper said Ecclestone met on Friday at the Circuit de Catalunya with Valencia race official Gonzalo Gobert.

McLaren open for return to orange F1 livery :
McLaren's cars could go orange in the near future, team boss Martin Whitmarsh has admitted. Although the Woking based team's cars have been silver since 1997, orange is actually McLaren's traditional race colour, dating back to the Can-Am days of the 60s. After 2014, however, it looks likely McLaren's long relationship with 'Silver Arrows' carmaker Mercedes will end. Whitmarsh said in Barcelona on Sunday that he could not comment on reports McLaren will definitely be Honda-powered in 2015, saying the matter was "confidential" between the team and existing partner Mercedes. Asked, however, if the change of title sponsor for next year in the wake of Vodafone's scheduled departure might be a chance for McLaren to return to orange, Whitmarsh answered: "I really like the idea. Orange is a great colour, especially for McLaren," he told the Russian website f1news.ru. "We use it for our racing GT and it looks great, and we'll continue to move in this direction. F1 is a bit different: the modern business model is one of the main tasks of the team -- to promote the brands of our partners. But if we're lucky enough to find a sponsor who likes orange, you could see that colour again in formula one," added Whitmarsh.

Lotus sells team stake to Ruhan, Mercedes on F1 board :
F1 team Lotus has reportedly sold a $1.5 million stake to a British property investor. Writing in the Telegraph, F1 business journalist Christian Sylt said the buyer is Andrew Ruhan, who bought a 2 per cent stake from team owner Genii Capital. Genii's Gerard Lopez confirmed that Ruhan is "a friend and a business partner in some substantial real estate developments, loves cars, racing and has purchased, if I am not mistaken, 2pc of the equity to be on the board and feel involved -– for sure, not a substantial deal for either party."
Sylt also revealed in the Telegraph that, having initially refused to let Mercedes onto F1's board as per other top teams, Bernie Ecclestone has now appointed a Daimler executive. "Correct," Sylt told us. "Pre and post (the sport's floatation), they're on it."

Maldonado - 'no idea' how to fix Williams problems :
A year after winning in Barcelona from pole, Pastor Maldonado has hit rock bottom at the scene of his F1 breakthrough. For many in the paddock, the depth of Williams' and Maldonado's decline in just 12 months is hard to believe -- on Saturday, both FW35s failed to make it out of Q1, and the Venezuelan was outqualified by his rookie teammate Valtteri Bottas. With new improvements to the struggling car on board this weekend, Maldonado told EFE news agency that "nothing worked" as his team tried to improve his car through the weekend. "Nothing worked at all," he said again, "but we have to keep calm and keep going. We cannot give up," the 28-year-old added. "We must keep going to find a solution. At the moment we have no idea how to fix our problems, which seems incredible, but this is formula one."

Alonso breached regulations by grabbing Spanish flag :
The FIA on Sunday considered penalising Fernando Alonso for picking up a Spanish flag during his post-chequered flag in-lap. After winning his home race in Barcelona, Alonso stopped beside a marshal who furnished his Spanish compatriot and hero with a red and yellow Spanish flag. Once in 'parc ferme', the Ferrari driver draped the flag over the '1' signboard indicating where he should park. But the glorious moment was actually a breach of a regulation about "receiving an object" prior to the post-race weighing and scrutineering procedure, and Alonso and a Ferrari team member were summoned to the stewards. Ultimately, the FIA officials let him off without penalty "to be consistent with a previous decision made under similar circumstances".

Mercedes will be difficult to beat in Monaco :
Mercedes has been tipped as a likely favourite to win the fabled Monaco grand prix later this month. Having dominated qualifying in Spain, Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton fell spectacularly backwards through the field in the race as the W04 chew mercilessly through Pirelli's tyres. Toto Wolff, the team's co-owner and director, said the extreme reversal of Saturday's fortunes caused himself and Daimler CEO Dieter Zetsche "almost physical pain". But it could all be different in Monaco. "I think Mercedes has a good chance to win in Monte Carlo," said Swiss commentator and former driver Marc Surer. "Whoever starts at the front in the principality also has a good chance for victory," he is quoted by Speed Week. "And the degradation of the rear tyres will not be such a big issue there." Asked if predictions like Surer's are right, Barcelona winner Fernando Alonso said: "Yes, definitely. They've been on pole position for the last three races, they were on pole last year with Michael (Schumacher), so it would be a surprise if they weren't on pole position in Monaco," said the Ferrari driver. And it's more difficult to overtake in Monaco, so maybe they can keep good positions for longer."
Lotus' Kimi Raikkonen also agreed: "I think Mercedes will unfortunately be pretty quick there and after that it's difficult to overtake. So you can really expect, from what they did last year and what they did here, that they should be pretty fast there," the Finn added in Barcelona. Mercedes' Rosberg told DPA news agency: "In qualifying we are very good, so it's very likely that we'll be close to the front (in Monaco) and hopefully I can keep the train behind me."

Ecclestone uses F1 money to pay off New Jersey debts :
F1 has invested financially in the project to put the sport amid the fabled New York skyline. Amid suggestions the already delayed New Jersey street race might now falter altogether, the project announced this week that Long Beach grand prix founder Chris Pook has joined up. "Chris has a history of great success in formula one, which I'm confident he'll bring to the grand prix of America race," Ecclestone said earlier this week.
Now, in the Barcelona paddock, the F1 chief executive revealed that he has committed some of the sport's money to the New Jersey project. "There's no reason why it shouldn't happen," Ecclestone told Reuters on Saturday. "We've put money behind it to pay a lot of the things off, a lot of their debts," he said, explaining that he will look to recoup the money later. We're going to try and make it happen next year."
Ecclestone also hinted he might be lining up a race on the streets of Long Beach as a potential alternative to New Jersey. "If we do this (in New Jersey), it (Long Beach) won't (happen)," said the 82-year-old.

F1 reaches 'T-word' tipping point after puzzling race :
There is an angry 'T-word' on everybody's lips after Sunday's puzzling and painful Spanish grand prix. "Can anyone tell me what's going on?" an exasperated Paul di Resta asked his team during the race in Barcelona.
With that, he summed up the situation in F1 at present: Pirelli's unprecedentedly heavily degrading tyres are confusing even the sport's drivers. Lewis Hamilton, having qualified on the front row, sounded amazed, sarcastic and incensed when he informed his Mercedes bosses that "I've been passed by a Williams now".
Only 24 hours earlier, the same Williams had failed to make it out of 'Q1', while many were tipping a Mercedes victory. "When we're going round three seconds slower than a GP2 car did in qualifying, and only six seconds quicker than a GP3 car did in the race, there's something wrong," said McLaren's Jenson Button.
Hamilton, asked to slow down to protect his tyres during Sunday's race, replied that he couldn't go any slower "otherwise I'm going at walking pace". "That is the way the sport has gone to improve overtaking," he told reporters afterwards. "It is for the public to judge." Until now, Pirelli has vigorously defended its mandate, having come into F1 tasked with spicing up the action by supplying tyres that will force multiple pitstops per driver. But, amid the post-race vitriol in Spain from both inside and outside the paddock, motor sport director Paul Hembery announced that Pirelli will now make changes. "It's too late for Monaco but we'd look to change things for Silverstone," he said. Gerhard Berger, a former grand prix winner and team co-owner, explained: "They can't go on like this. "Every 14 days it's just negative advertising for them. And the fans no longer know their stuff."
In short, the pressure has built to tipping point, spurred on by vocal opponents like Red Bull, and also the media. "Is this really a formula one world championship?" said Nicola Pohl in the mass-circulation German newspaper Bild. She quoted Red Bull team boss Christian Horner saying: "It's like chess now. And chess is not necessarily a sport that has many fans." Hembery is quoted by Auto Motor und Sport: "In the last two years, the public has supported us. The races have become much more exciting. "But the criticism has reached a level where we can no longer be indifferent." However, not everyone supports a major change. Apparently Ferrari and Force India are quite happy with the 2013 tyres, as is - obviously – Lotus. "It's like football," team owner Gerard Lopez said. "As soon as one team is always hitting the post, the discussion becomes making the goals a bit bigger." Another factor is that if Pirelli makes significant compound or structure changes, they want a day of testing prior to Silverstone. "They'll never get it through," said Sauber team manager Beat Zehnder, "because all the teams would have to agree."

Teams starting to sign 2014 Pirelli tyre deals :
Still unsure it will be retained as F1's official supplier, Pirelli has begun to sign supply contracts with teams for the 2014 season. That is the claim of the specialist German website motorsport-total.com, reporting that Ferrari, and Red Bull's two teams, have already signed deals with the Italian supplier. Mercedes is also believed to have signed, but for the moment insiders at the German squad are quiet. "We have had initial talks with a few teams," Pirelli's motor sport director Paul Hembery said. The report said Pirelli wants to charge each team EUR 1.2 million per season for the tyre deal, but some teams are arguing that a discount is in order due to the huge sponsorship exposure enjoyed by the Italian marque in F1.

Kind Regards
Shaky-Schumi

Driver standings after the GP of Spain :

1. Sebastian Vettel - Red Bull - 89
2. Kimi Räikkönen - Lotus - 85
3. Fernando Alonso - Ferrari - 72
4. Lewis Hamilton - Mercedes - 50
5. Felipe Massa - Ferrari - 45
6. Mark Webber - Red Bull - 42
7. Romain Grosjean - Lotus - 26
8. Paul di Resta - Force India - 26
9. Nico Rosberg - Mercedes - 22
10. Jenson Button - McLaren - 17
11. Sergio Perez - McLaren - 12
12. Daniel Ricciardo - Toro Rosso - 7
13. Adrian Sutil - Force India - 6
14. Nico Hülkenberg - Sauber - 5
15. Jean-Eric Vergne - Toro Rosso - 1
16. Esteban Gutiérrez - Sauber - 0
17. Valtteri Bottas - Williams - 0
18. Pastor Maldonado - Williams - 0
19. Jules Bianchi - Marussia - 0
20. Charles Pic - Caterham - 0
21. Giedo van der Garde - Caterham - 0
22. Max Chilton - Marussia - 0

Constructor Standings after the GP of Spain :

1. Infiniti Red Bull Racing - 131
2. Scuderia Ferrari - 117
3. Lotus F1 Team - 111
4. Mercedes AMG Petronas - 72
5. Sahara Force India - 32
6. Vodafone McLaren Mercedes - 29
7. Scuderia Toro Rosso - 8
8. Sauber F1 Team - 5
9. Williams F1 Team - 0
10. Marussia Racing - 0
11. Caterham F1 Team - 0

Kind Regards
Shaky-Schumi

The result of the Spanish GP :

Fernando Alonso takes commanding home win for Ferrari :
Fernando Alonso sent the Spanish Grand Prix crowd into ecstasy as the Ferrari driver and home hero charged to his first Barcelona victory since 2006. Kimi Raikkonen's Lotus emerged as Alonso's main rival, while Sebastian Vettel and the front-row-starting Mercedes faded in the race. Felipe Massa moved in the opposite direction, recovering from a penalised ninth on the grid to take the final podium spot. In a race full of tyre conservation, Alonso's approach from the outset was to charge. While Vettel split the Mercedes into Turn 1, Alonso accelerated around the outside of both Raikkonen and Lewis Hamilton at Turn 3 to move into third.
Rosberg clung on at the front of the field through the first pitstops. By the time they were done, Alonso was his main rival, having pitted one lap ahead of Vettel and jumped the Red Bull. Rosberg's plunge down the order began on lap 12, when Alonso passed him into Turn 1, and Vettel and Raikkonen further demoted him before the lap was complete. Once in front, Alonso began to pull away. Despite running longer, Vettel turned out to be on the same four-stop strategy as Alonso, but unable to match the Ferrari's sheer pace. Raikkonen, however, could pull off a three-stop. He lost time behind Vettel in the middle of the, then raised his pace after overtaking the Red Bull on lap 33. Lotus had a potential edge going into the closing stages, with Raikkonen a few seconds ahead of Alonso at a point when both had a single stop to go. But on his fresher tyres, Alonso stormed up behind Raikkonen at a rate of two seconds per lap, breezed past the Lotus then vanished into the distance, swiftly building a 12-second advantage. Raikkonen was left to keep half an eye on Massa, who had been rapid all afternoon and got a green light from Ferrari to try to catch the Lotus. Tyre wear stymied this and forced Massa to back off again, but third was still safe. Vettel's attempts to run longer on tyres ultimately cost him so much pace that he fell behind the earlier-pitting Massa. The world champion had to settle for fourth, followed by his team-mate Mark Webber. Mercedes' fade ended with Rosberg pulling off a three-stop in sixth and his despondent team-mate Hamilton right out of the points in a lapped 12th, having gone into freefall following his first stop. Paul di Resta's Force India chased Rosberg home. McLaren ended up eighth and ninth. Jenson Button had tumbled to 17th in the opening laps, but nursed his tyres through three stops and emerged ahead of his early-charging, but four-stopping, team-mate Sergio Perez. Daniel Ricciardo fended off Esteban Gutierrez to give Toro Rosso the final point. It was still a breakthrough day for Gutierrez, as a long first stint meant Sauber's rookie managed to lead a Formula 1 race for the first time. Last year's Barcelona winner Pastor Maldonado struggled home 14th, recovering from a pitlane speeding penalty to get there. Romain Grosjean was an early retirement with skewed right rear suspension on his Lotus.
Two pitlane incidents attracted stewards' attention. Caterham could face sanctions after Giedo van der Garde lost a wheel on his out-lap, while Nico Hulkenberg had an unsafe release penalty following a pitlane clash with Jean-Eric Vergne, prior to which both had been points contenders.

1. Fernando Alonso : Ferrari
2. Kimi Räikkönen : Lotus
3. Felipe Massa : Ferrari
4. Sebastian Vettel : Red Bull Racing
5. Mark Webber : Red Bull Racing
6. Nico Rosberg : Mercedes GP
7. Paul di Resta : Force India
8. Jenson Button : McLaren
9. Sergio Perez : McLaren
10. Daniel Ricciardo : Toro Rosso + 1 lap
11. Esteban Gutierrez : Sauber + 1 lap
12. Lewis Hamilton : Mercedes GP + 1 lap
13. Adrian Sutil : Force India + 1 lap
14. Pastor Maldonado : Williams + 1 lap
15. Nico Hulkenberg : Sauber + 1 lap
16. Valtteri Bottas : Williams + 1 lap
17. Charles Pic : Caterham + 1 lap
18. Jules Bianchi : Marussia F1 Team + 2 laps
19. Max Chilton : Marussia F1 Team + 2 laps
Did Not Finish :
20. Jean-Eric Vergne : Toro Rosso
21. Giedo van der Garde : Caterham
22. Romain Grosjean : Lotus

Fastest Lap : Esteban Gutierrez - 1:26.217
Pitstop Paul di Resta: 4
Bat.2 Teams : Button > Sutil
Grid Pos. Jean-Eric Vergne : DNF

Kind Regards
Shaky-Schumi

Hmmmmm ....i wonder when Hamilton has the lead & Rosberg is behind him and is faster than Hamilton ,will he get again a message on the board radio something like " Nico don't overtake Lewis " or " Nico mix 12 " or that Nico can finaly go for a win and don't care about what Lewis place is or is going to do I hope that Felipe can go into the first corner at the start without having a crash or is involved in a crash now with this gridpenalty ,because the Ferrari always makes good starts ! Will Raikkonen be the one again that we should keep a eye on ?

Kind Regards
Shaky - Schumi

Update :

Felipe Massa - Ferrari en Estaban Gutierrez - Williams are penalysized for holding up Mark Webber & Kimi Raikkonen . Both penalysized with 3 places

Kind Regards
Shaky-Schumi

FORMULA 1 GRAND PRIX DE MONACO 2013
[Versteckter Link - Registrierung notwendig]

Thu 23 May 2013
Practice 1 10:00 - 11:30
Practice 2 14:00 - 15:30
Sat 25 May 2013
Practice 3 11:00 - 12:00
Qualifying 14:00
Sun 26 May 2013
Race 14:00

Result of the Qualifying :

Nico Rosberg leads Lewis Hamilton in Mercedes front row :
Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton secured an all-Mercedes front row in qualifying for the Spanish Grand Prix.
Rosberg repeated his Bahrain pole in a brilliant Q3 performance in which he delivered two laps good enough for the top spot. His initial 1m20.8s benchmark proved unbeatable, but Rosberg still improved to a 1m20.718s with his last run just to be certain. Hamilton had to settle for second, 0.254 seconds adrift.
Formula 1 championship leader Sebastian Vettel was third for Red Bull, ahead of Kimi Raikkonen's Lotus and Fernando Alonso's Ferrari. Alonso's team-mate Felipe Massa mounted a strong challenge for pole only to lose time in sector three and end up sixth. He will also have to see the stewards after the session having seemingly impeded Mark Webber's Red Bull in Q2. The Australian subsequently qualified eighth, behind Romain Grosjean's Lotus. Hamilton had earlier starred in a thrilling end to Q2, throwing in a last-gasp lap that jumped him from a worrying 13th to a comfortable first, six tenths clear of the pack.
Sergio Perez also produced an eleventh-hour surge in Q2, getting up to seventh and then qualifying ninth. His McLaren team-mate Jenson Button could not match that - six tenths slower, he will start only 14th.
Toro Rosso had looked promising in practice and both Daniel Ricciardo and Jean-Eric Vergne had a realistic shot at Q3, holding top-10 spots late on before being narrowly squeezed out. They will share row six, ahead of Adrian Sutil, who could not join team-mate Paul di Resta in the pole session. The Scot took 10th.
Going into the final seconds of Q2, both Saubers had made it into Q3. But in the subsequent flurry of improvements, Nico Hulkenberg and Esteban Gutierrez tumbled down to row eight. The Mexican could yet face sanctions for blocking Raikkonen in Q1. Last year's winner Williams's plight deepened, despite its upgrades, as neither car got beyond Q1. Twelve months on from his pole and win, Pastor Maldonado was only 18th - and accused of blocking by Button - while Valtteri Bottas was just one place ahead.
The back of the grid battle stepped up a gear with a very close tussle between Caterham and Marussia.
Giedo van der Garde finally emerged on top for Caterham, edging out Marussia's Jules Bianchi by just 0.052s.
Max Chilton and Charles Pic were a few tenths behind having also had a sniff of 'class pole'.

1.Nico Rosberg : Mercedes GP - 1:20.718
2. Lewis Hamilton : Mercedes GP - 1:20.972 + 0.254
3. Sebastian Vettel : Red Bull Racing - 1:21.054 + 0.336
4. Kimi Räikkönen : Lotus - 1:21.177 + 0.459
5. Fernando Alonso : Ferrari - 1:21.218 + 0.500
6. Felipe Massa : Ferrari - 1:21.219 + 0.501
7. Romain Grosjean : Lotus - 1:21.308 + 0.590
8. Mark Webber : Red Bull Racing - 1:21.570 + 0.852
9. Sergio Perez : McLaren - 1:22.069 + 1.351
10. Paul di Resta : Force India - 1:22.233 + 1.515
Q2
11. Daniel Ricciardo : Toro Rosso - 1:22.127 + 1.409
12. Jean-Eric Vergne Toro Rosso - 1:22.166 + 1.448
13. Adrian Sutil : Force India - 1:22.346 + 1.628
14. Jenson Button : McLaren - 1:22.355 + 1.637
15. Nico Hulkenberg : Sauber - 1:22.389 + 1.671
16. Esteban Gutierrez : Sauber -1:22.793 + 2.075
17. Valtteri Bottas : Williams - 1:23.260 + 2.542
Q1
18. Pastor Maldonado : Williams - 1:23.318 -
19. Giedo van der Garde : Caterham - 1:24.661 + 3.943
20. Jules Bianchi : Marussia F1 Team - 1:24.713 + 3.995
21. Max Chilton : Marussia F1 Team - 1:24.996 + 4.278
22. Charles Pic : Caterham - 1:25.070 + 4.352

Kind Regards
Shaky-Schumi

brudgon wrote:11/05/1965
stefano domenicali ferrari team manager
[Verstecktes Bild - Registrierung notwendig]

that picture is from the 1965 ?

FORMULA 1 GRAN PREMIO DE ESPAÑA 2013
free practice3
1 4 Felipe Massa Ferrari 1:21.901 13
2 7 Kimi Räikkönen Lotus-Renault 1:21.907 0.006 14
3 2 Mark Webber Red Bull Racing-Renault 1:22.044 0.143 17
4 8 Romain Grosjean Lotus-Renault 1:22.069 0.168 13
5 1 Sebastian Vettel Red Bull Racing-Renault 1:22.229 0.328 17
6 3 Fernando Alonso Ferrari 1:22.254 0.353 15
7 14 Paul di Resta Force India-Mercedes 1:22.574 0.673 11
8 15 Adrian Sutil Force India-Mercedes 1:22.729 0.828 17
9 10 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 1:22.740 0.839 24
10 18 Jean-Eric Vergne STR-Ferrari 1:22.759 0.858 15
11 9 Nico Rosberg Mercedes 1:22.839 0.938 26
12 5 Jenson Button McLaren-Mercedes 1:23.151 1.250 13
13 12 Esteban Gutierrez Sauber-Ferrari 1:23.371 1.470 21
14 6 Sergio Perez McLaren-Mercedes 1:23.373 1.472 13
15 16 Pastor Maldonado Williams-Renault 1:23.385 1.484 17
16 11 Nico Hulkenberg Sauber-Ferrari 1:23.388 1.487 18
17 17 Valtteri Bottas Williams-Renault 1:23.660 1.759 16
18 19 Daniel Ricciardo STR-Ferrari 1:23.767 1.866 17
19 20 Charles Pic Caterham-Renault 1:24.775 2.874 18
20 22 Jules Bianchi Marussia-Cosworth 1:24.793 2.892 16
21 23 Max Chilton Marussia-Cosworth 1:25.135 3.234 17
22 21 Giedo van der Garde Caterham-Renault 1:25.250 3.349 18

11/05/1965 stefano domenicali ferrari team manager
[Verstecktes Bild - Registrierung notwendig]

Result 2nd practice session :

Vettel edges out Alonso in second Friday practice
Sebastian Vettel narrowly edged out home favourite Fernando Alonso to set the fastest time in second free practice for the Spanish Grand Prix. Just 0.083 seconds covered the top three at Barcelona, as Alonso's Ferrari split the Red Bulls of Vettel and Mark Webber. After an early all-Mercedes battle for the top spot, it was Alonso and the Red Bulls that dominated the lead order through the low-fuel runs.
Webber kicked off the dice with a 1m23.112s after 22 minutes, but was deposed by Alonso on a 1m23.030s five minutes later. When they switched to the softer medium tyres shortly afterwards, Webber reclaimed first place by 0.2s over Alonso, before Vettel jumped ahead of them both. Alonso's retaliation managed to get him back in front of Webber, but Vettel remained just out of reach. Kimi Raikkonen's Lotus and Felipe Massa's Ferrari completed the top five. Lewis Hamilton spun his Mercedes at Turn 11 during the early runs, swiftly rejoining without problems and ultimately taking sixth ahead of team-mate Nico Rosberg.
Tyre wear was again high and there was a scare at Force India when Paul di Resta's left rear delaminated on the main straight, forcing the Scot to park on the grass. He was still 10th quickest, two places behind team-mate Adrian Sutil. Jean-Eric Vergne split them, in a strong performance for Toro Rosso, which also had Daniel Ricciardo in 11th. McLaren was only 12th and 13th with Jenson Button and Sergio Perez as it began to evaluate its major upgrade package, including a new front wing.

1. Sebastian Vettel : Red Bull Racing 1:22.808
2. Fernando Alonso : Ferrari - 1:22.825 + 0.017
3. Mark Webber : Red Bull Racing - 1:22.891 + 0.083
4. Kimi Räikkönen : Lotus - 1:23.030 + 0.222
5. Felipe Massa : Ferrari - 1:23.110 + 0.302
6. Lewis Hamilton : Mercedes GP - 1:23.140 + 0.332
7. Nico Rosberg : Mercedes GP - 1:23.398 + 0.590
8. Adrian Sutil : Force India - 1:23.840 + 1.032
9. Jean-Eric Vergne : Toro Rosso - 1:24.058 + 1.250
10. Paul di Resta : Force India - 1:24.104 + 1.296
11. Daniel Ricciardo : Toro Rosso - 1:24.175 + 1.367
12. Jenson Button : McLaren - 1:24.306 + 1.498
13. Sergio Perez : McLaren - 1:24.854 + 2.046
14. Valtteri Bottas : Williams - 1:24.888 + 2.080
15. Nico Hulkenberg : Sauber - 1:25.167 + 2.359
16. Pastor Maldonado : Williams - 1:25.321 + 2.513
17. Esteban Gutierrez : Sauber - 1:25.441 + 2.633
18. Romain Grosjean : Lotus - 1:25.851 + 3.043
19. Giedo van der Garde : Caterham - 1:25.963 + 3.155
20. Jules Bianchi : Marussia F1 Team - 1:26.078 + 3.270
21. Charles Pic : Caterham - 1:26.930 + 4.122
22. Max Chilton : Marussia F1 Team - 1:26.970 + 4.162

Kind Regards
Shaky-Schumi

Result of the 1st practice session :

Fernando Alonso leads damp first practice :
Fernando Alonso grabbed the fastest time in a Ferrari one-two as wet weather frustrated the Formula 1 field's attempts to get an early understanding of the Spanish Grand Prix upgrade packages in opening practice at Barcelona. It was only coming into the final quarter of an hour that slicks were viable, and even then there were sufficient slippery patches to limit the relevance of the laps that drivers managed.
But with so many developments to try, teams were less reticent about coming out early than is often the case in wet sessions. The Spanish crowd therefore had a decent amount of track activity to enjoy all morning, and would also have appreciated seeing home hero Alonso on time of the times for much of the session.
Alonso spent a while as the fastest man during the wet running, though he tumbled down the order as conditions improved. Going into the closing seconds, his Ferrari team-mate Felipe Massa was the latest to burst to the top of a constantly fluctuating timing screen as everyone got up to speed on slicks.
But Alonso finished the morning with a flourish, setting a 1m25.252s lap to beat his team-mate by 0.203 seconds. Toro Rosso's Jean-Eric Vergne had starred by being the first man to get slicks to work, and he remained consistently up front for the rest of the session, ending up third.
Romain Grosjean had an early spin into the hairpin at the end of the back straight, before finishing the session fourth for Lotus. Adrian Sutil's Force India, Lewis Hamilton's McLaren and Valtteri Bottas's Williams were next up in an inevitably shuffled order, with Kimi Raikkonen, Nico Rosberg and Paul di Resta completing the top 10.
Jenson Button was the only driver not to attempt a flying lap, though he did six exploratory tours in the updated McLaren. Red Bull also hung back when the track dried, with Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber at the foot of the top 20.

1. Fernando Alonso : Ferrari - 1:25.252
2. Felipe Massa : Ferrari - 1:25.455 + 0.203
3. Jean-Eric Vergne : Toro Rosso - 1:25.667 + 0.415
4. Romain Grosjean : Lotus - 1:26.042 + 0.790
5. Adrian Sutil :Force India - 1:26.212 + 0.960
6. Lewis Hamilton : Mercedes GP - 1:26.374 + 1.122
7. Valtteri Bottas : Williams - 1:26.456 + 1.204
8. Kimi Räikkönen : Lotus - 1:26.614 + 1.362
9. Nico Rosberg : Mercedes GP - 1:26.621 + 1.369
10. Paul di Resta : Force India - 1:26.755 + 1.503
11. Daniel Ricciardo : Toro Rosso - 1:26.940 + 1.688
12. Nico Hulkenberg : Sauber - 1:27.061 + 1.809
13. Sergio Perez : McLaren - 1:27.135 + 1.883
14. Esteban Gutierrez : Sauber - 1:27.250 + 1.998
15. Pastor Maldonado : Williams - 1:27.576 + 2.324
16. Heikki Kovalainen : Caterham - 1:28.373 + 3.121
17. Giedo van der Garde : Caterham - 1:28.600 + 3.348
18. Jules Bianchi : Marussia F1 Team - 1:28.887 + 3.635
19. Sebastian Vettel : Red Bull Racing - 1:29.457 + 4.205
20. Mark Webber : Red Bull Racing - 1:29.473 + 4.221
21. Rodolfo Gonzalez : Marussia F1 Team - 1:30.314 + 5.062
22. Jenson Button : McLaren - no time set

Kind Regards
Shaky-Schumi

A little reminder :

brudgon wrote:Fri 10 May 2013
Practice 1 10:00 - 11:30
Practice 2 14:00 - 15:30

Sat 11 May 2013
Practice 3 11:00 - 12:00
Qualifying 14:00

Sun 12 May 2013
Race 14:00

Kind Regards
Shaky-Schumi

F1 – this week end - Barcelona GP - some statistics:

Tomorrow: practice 1 and 2
Saturday 11 may : practice 3 and qualifying
Sunday 12 may: the race at 14.00

the winners (last 5 editions)
2008 Raikkonen – Ferrari
2009 Button – Brown Mercedes
2010 Webber – Red Bull Renault (2° place Alonso and 3° place Vettel)
2011 Vettel – Red Bull Renault (2° place Hamilton and 3° place Button)
2012 Maldonado – Williams Renault (2° place Alonso and 3° place Raikkonen)
- In previous years also one victory for Alonso and Massa.

Pole position: (last 3 editions)
2010 Webber – Red Bull Renault – pole time 1m 19.995
2011 Webber – Red Bull Renault – pole time 1m 20.981
2012 Maldonado – Mercedes – pole time 1m 22.285* (the best lap time was 1.21.707 (Hamilton) but was canceled for not having sufficient fuel onboard and so Lewis lost his pole position)
- Also 2 pole position for Raikkonen – quite strange Vettel and Hamilton: never in pole at Barcelona

Best flying laps at Barcelona, during the preseason tests only two months ago:
1 Nico Rosberg – Mercedes time: 1m20.130s (soft tyre) *
2. Fernando Alonso – Ferrari time: 1m20.494s (soft tyre) *
3. Lewis Hamilton – Mercedes time: 1m20.558s (soft tyre) *
* important: during this week end, soft tires will not be used

When is the next race, I wanna be sure not to miss it