Formula 1 General Chat & Discussion

What has happened for this result?
I have not seen the qualification. Have all madmen turned?
Tomorrow any thing can happen; this time I do not know what to put in the Top 3.

Interesting tomorrow will be racing! All will depend - as the leaders of the (Button Hamilton Alonso Schumacher) will overtake the people caught up in front of more or less by accident! And of course to start Webber!

Here is the result of the qualification :

1. Nico Rosberg : Mercedes GP : 1:35.121 -
2. Lewis Hamilton: McLaren : 1:35.626 + 0.505
3. Michael Schumacher: Mercedes GP: 1:35.691 + 0.570
4. Kamui Kobayashi :Sauber: 1:35.784 + 0.663
5. Kimi Räikkönen: Lotus :1:35.898 + 0.777
6. Jenson Button: McLaren :1:36.191 + 1.070
7. Mark Webber: Red Bull Racing :1:36.290 + 1.169
8. Sergio Perez: Sauber :1:36.524 + 1.403
9. Fernando Alonso :Ferrari :1:36.622 + 1.501
10. Romain Grosjean: Lotus :no time -
Q2
11. Sebastian Vettel: Red Bull Racing : 1:36.031 + 0.910
12. Felipe Massa: Ferrari: 1:36.255 + 1.134
13. Pastor Maldonado: Williams : 1:36.283 + 1.162
14. Bruno Senna: Williams : 1:36.289 + 1.168
15. Paul di Resta: Force India: 1:36.317 + 1.196
16. Nico Hulkenberg: Force India: 1:36.745 + 1.624
17. Daniel Ricciardo: Toro Rosso : 1:36.956 + 1.835
Q1
18. Jean-Eric Vergne: Toro Rosso: 1:37.714 -
19. Heikki Kovalainen: Caterham: 1:38.463 + 3.342
20. Vitaly Petrov: Caterham: 1:38.677 + 3.556
21. Timo Glock: Marussia F1 Team: 1:38.282 + 3.161
22. Charles Pic: Marussia F1 Team: 1:39.717 + 4.596
23. Pedro de la: Rosa HRT F1 Team : 1:40.411 + 5.290
24. Narain Karthikeyan: HRT F1 Team: 1:41.000 + 5.879

Rain : no

Comment of qualifying :
Nico Rosberg claimed a maiden Formula 1 pole position for himself and the current version of the Mercedes team with a commanding performance in Chinese Grand Prix qualifying at Shanghai. The German was a full half a second quicker than second-fastest Lewis Hamilton, as predictions of a spectacular Mercedes qualifying performance came true. Michael Schumacher will make it an all-Mercedes front row having qualified third fastest, for Hamilton's gearbox change penalty will drop his McLaren to seventh. While one German celebrated a first ever pole, another had a disastrous result, as reigning world champion Sebastian Vettel could only manage 11th on the grid for Red Bull.
Rosberg had led a Mercedes one-two in Q2, and then blitzed his rivals early in Q3 with an unbeatable 1m35.121s. So confident was Rosberg that the time would hold for pole, he got out of his car and walked off to the weighing area while the rest of the top 10 pack tried in vain to improve their times and catch him.
Hamilton managed to get between the Mercedes in the times, even if he cannot do so on the grid.
His penalty will also move Kamui Kobayashi up to an amazing third place, as the Japanese driver emphasised Sauber's progress by setting the fourth quickest time. On current form, Vettel had always seemed a long shot for a fourth consecutive Shanghai pole, but to fail to make the top 10 on the grid for the first time since Brazil 2009 was a major shock.
The double champion, running a different exhaust specification on his Red Bull to Mark Webber, was only 0.3s slower than his pacesetting team-mate in Q2, but that was the difference between first and 11th in the extraordinarily close session. Vettel had been gradually edged down the top 10 and ultimately pushed out by Romain Grosjean's Lotus, and though he was still on his final flying lap at the time, it was not quick enough to get Vettel back inside the cut.
A low-key session for Jenson Button and Webber saw the McLaren and Red Bull back in sixth and seventh in the times, behind Kimi Raikkonen's Lotus.
Malaysia combatants Sergio Perez (Sauber) and Fernando Alonso (Ferrari) were together again as they led the way in Q1 after going for softs tyres, and qualified in close company once more in eighth and ninth, ahead of the second Lotus of Romain Grosjean. Felipe Massa was closer to Alonso's pace than of late, but will start 12th.
The second half of the grid will line up in neat team formation. The two Williams share row seven ahead of the two Force Indias, and while Jean-Eric Vergne did not get beyond Q1, he will still start alongside Toro Rosso team-mate Daniel Ricciardo. It was business as usual at the back, as Caterham led Marussia and HRT, with everyone now comfortably inside the 107 per cent margin.

Remember that Lewis Hamilton has a 5 places penalty grid, so this means that the positions /starting grid on race day tomorrow at the top 10 will be :
1. Nico Rosberg
2. Michael Schumacher
3. Kamui Kobayashi
4 .Kimi Räikkönen
5. Jenson Button
6. Mark Webber
7. Lewis Hamilton
8. Sergio Perez
9. Fernando Alonso
10.Romain Grosjean

Kind Regards
Shaky-Schumi

Fantastic! Both Mercedes In the first row! Vettel 11!

pole position

Rosberg 1:35:121
no rain

Here are the results of the 3rd free practice session :

1. Lewis Hamilton : McLaren-Mercedes : 1m35.940s laps 13
2. Jenson Button : McLaren-Mercedes : 1m36.093s + 0.123 laps 12
3. Nico Rosberg : Mercedes : 1m36.389s + 0.449 laps 16
4. Michael Schumacher : Mercedes : 1m36.512s + 0.572 laps 17
5. Mark Webber : Red Bull-Renault : 1m36.635s + 0.695 laps 16
6. Pastor Maldonado : Williams-Renault : 1m36.765s + 0.825 laps 17
7. Sergio Perez : Sauber-Ferrari : 1m36.781s + 0.841 laps 19
8. Kamui Kobayashi : Sauber-Ferrari : 1m36.880s + 0.940 laps 17
9. Sebastian Vettel : Red Bull-Renault : 1m37.039s + 1.099 laps 15
10. Kimi Raikkonen : Lotus-Renault : 1m37.061s + 1.121 laps 17
11. Nico Hulkenberg : Force India-Mercedes : 1m37.237s + 1.297 laps 16
12. Romain Grosjean : Lotus-Renault : 1m37.274s + 1.334 laps 19
13. Paul di Resta : Force India-Mercedes : 1m37.288s + 1.348 laps 16
14. Bruno Senna : Williams-Renault : 1m37.425s + 1.485 laps 14
15. Fernando Alonso : Ferrari : 1m37.465s + 1.525 laps 12
16. Jean-Eric Vergne : Toro Rosso-Ferrari : 1m37.493s + 1.553 laps 13
17. Daniel Ricciardo : Toro Rosso-Ferrari : 1m37.628s + 1.688 laps 14
18. Felipe Massa : Ferrari : 1m37.831s + 1.891 laps 14
19. Vitaly Petrov : Caterham-Renault : 1m38.701s + 2.761 laps 19
20. Heikki Kovalainen : Caterham-Renault : 1m39.198s + 3.258 laps 19
21. Timo Glock : Marussia-Cosworth : 1m39.796s + 3.856 laps 18
22. Charles Pic : Marussia-Cosworth : 1m40.048s + 4.108 laps 17
23. Narain Karthikeyan : HRT-Cosworth : 1m41.263s + 5.323 laps 14
24. Pedro de la Rosa : HRT-Cosworth : 1m41.499s + 5.559 laps 18

Comment of the 3rd session :

Lewis Hamilton set himself up perfectly for a strong qualifying run at the Chinese Grand Prix by topping the final free practice session at Shanghai. The McLaren driver must serve a five-place grid penalty because of a gearbox change, but confirmed his status as qualifying favourite as he bids to limit the damage caused and secure what would become sixth place on the grid. Hamilton's fastest time came during a qualifying simulation on the soft Pirelli rubber late in the session, the 2008 world champion eclipsing his team-mate Jenson Button by just over a tenth of a second.
After a quiet start to the session, with the first timed lap not being completed until almost 15 minutes had elapsed, the teams and drivers set about their run plans on prime rubber. As well as evaluating overnight setup changes, teams also needed to use the running to understand how the increased track temperature, which was almost 15C higher than on Friday, affected tyre characteristics and grip levels, the latter reckoned to have reduced. Red Bull's Mark Webber emerged with the fastest lap from those completing their initial prime runs in the first half-hour. He set a mark of 1m36.879s to shade Mercedes driver Nico Rosberg by 0.1s. But Hamilton also showed his pace on with fuel by lapping 0.375s off Webber's pace with a time set on his first flying lap. A subsequent run on mediums suggested that he could easily have gone quicker, even though he didn't complete what would have been a faster lap.
Sebastian Vettel also turned in a decent lap on his first proper prime run, which came later than most, lapping 0.160s off his team-mate. Vettel opted to use the Red Bull exhaust setup used in the first part of pre-season testing, which although it produces less downforce appears to offer him a more consistent and well-balanced car, while Webber stuck with the latest-specification.
Mercedes pairing Michael Schumacher and Rosberg were the first of the frontrunners to complete a qualifying simulation on soft rubber with around 20 minutes to go. Rosberg took top spot with a lap of 1m36.389s, shading his 43-year-old team-mate by 0.123s. Button jumped ahead of both on his qualifying simulation with 10 minutes remaining, setting his best time on the third lap of his run.
In the flurry of qualifying simulations that followed in the final five minutes, Hamilton made his move and put together the fastest times in all three sectors to take top spot despite a lock-up at Turn 14.
Neither Red Bull driver appeared to show their full qualifying hand, with Webber ending up fifth and Vettel ninth, but Williams man Pastor Maldonado and Sauber duo Sergio Perez and Kamui Kobayashi both did times good enough for the top 10.
The top 18, propped up by Ferrari's Felipe Massa, were covered by just 1.891s, suggesting that today's qualifying session will be a very competitive one for the leading nine teams.

Kind Regards
Shaky-Schumi

Short News : ..starting with a with a Headline !!!!


FIA: The Bahrain Grand Prix will go ahead !!!!!!!!!!
The FIA claims that it is ‘satisfied’ with levels of security in Bahrain and that next weekend’s Grand Prix will be going ahead. The Paris-based body issued a statement early on Friday morning. Prior to this, all Formula 1 teams had awaited a final call on the matter from the federation headed up by Jean Todt.As a result of the decision, the race can no longer be skipped by any team without facing hefty financial implications. Last year, the event was officially called off when Bahraini authorities informed the FIA that the country was in a state of emergency. This time, the country is facing a series of negative press reports as some protestors continue to fight against F1’s visit.
‘The 2012 calendar, as presented by the CRH (Commercial Rights Holder – Bernie Ecclestone’s Formula One Management/FOM), was ratified by the World Motor Sport Council (WMSC) in September 2011,’ the FIA statement reads.
‘Since then no request from the F1 Commission or the CRH has been made to the WMSC to either postpone or cancel the Bahrain Grand Prix.Based on the current information the FIA has at this stage, it is satisfied that all the proper security measures are in place for the running of a Formula One World Championship event in Bahrain.Therefore, the FIA confirms that the 2012 Gulf Air F1 Grand Prix of Bahrain will go ahead as scheduled.’
First practice will take place in Bahrain one week today. Feeder series GP2 will also be in action, then staying on in Bahrain for two more races on the following weekend

Full FIA statement on Bahrain ( this comes from the interview they have given and from there website !)

The full FIA statements reads as follows:
‘The FIA is the governing body of motor sport and therefore of Formula One. As such, it sets the season’s calendars following the proposal of the Commercial Rights Holder (CRH) in accordance with the local national authorities in all matters relating to safety.Within that context, the FIA ensures that any event forming part of an FIA World Championship is organised in compliance with the FIA Statutes and the relevant Sporting and Technical Regulations and that the safety of the public, officials, drivers and teams is secured at all times during an event.The FIA must make rational decisions based on the information provided to us by the Bahraini authorities and by the Commercial Rights Holder. In addition we have endeavoured to assess the ongoing situation in Bahrain.
President Jean Todt led a fact-finding mission to the Kingdom in November 2011, meeting a large number of decision-makers and opinion formers, including elected Shia members of parliament, the president of the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry, ambassadors from the European Union countries, the Crown Prince, the Interior Minister and many members of the business community.All expressed their wish for the Grand Prix to go ahead in 2012, and since then, the FIA has kept in close touch with all these stakeholders. Away from the public eye, the FIA has received regular security briefings from the most senior diplomatic officials based in the Kingdom as well as from other independent experts.
The 2012 calendar, as presented by the CRH, was ratified by the World Motor Sport Council (WMSC) in September 2011. Since then no request from the F1 Commission or the CRH has been made to the WMSC to either postpone or cancel the Bahrain Grand Prix.Based on the current information the FIA has at this stage, it is satisfied that all the proper security measures are in place for the running of a Formula One World Championship event in Bahrain.
Therefore, the FIA confirms that the 2012 Gulf Air F1 Grand Prix of Bahrain will go ahead as scheduled.’

Ecclestone: No problems at all with Bahrain
An annoyed Bernie Ecclestone has categorically denied that the Bahrain Grand Prix will face boycotts or other threats. The head of Formula One Management (FOM, commercial rights holder for the sport) met with Team Principals in Shanghai between the two practice sessions on Friday.Although many attending the meeting denied that Bahrain would be mentioned, with F1 governing body the FIA having already confirmed the race this morning, Ecclestone was quizzed by a number of reporters as he emerged back into the paddock.
“Everybody’s happy and we haven’t got any problems,” he said firmly. “It’s just a problem being discussed by the media – they have no idea about what’s going on, that’s the problem. The race is on the calendar and it has been for a long time. So is Barcelona, so is Korea…we’re going to all of them and we’re happy to go.
“There’s been enough speculation and things said now, so I suppose it was good to put something out about it. It was the right thing to do to stop the speculation…we’ll deal with any matters when they arise.”
When asked if he would be travelling to Bahrain personally, Ecclestone responded:
“What a stupid question. And you’ll get a stupid answer. What do you think?”

Bahrain International Circuit praises FIA’s decision
The Bahrain International Circuit, home of next weekend’s Bahrain Grand Prix, has responded to the FIA’s decision for Formula 1 to return to the country this year. This follows a series of recent protests near to Manama, but ones which the Sakhir track and FOM head Bernie Ecclestone have continued to say are blown out of proportion.
A decision from the FIA came early on Friday, in which the Jean Todt-led federation expressed its confidence in both the Bahraini authorities and safety of the country.
reads the BIC statement, sent out later on Friday.
‘The BIC has been clear throughout recent weeks and months that the security situation in Bahrain is suitable for the staging of a major sporting event. This assessment has been provided by experienced figures, from both inside and outside the Bahraini government, to motor racing entities which have travelled to Bahrain to do their own research.
The certainty of those assessments have meant that the BIC has been able to prepare as usual for the staging of the F1 Grand Prix and is therefore wholly confident that the event will be organised with the efficiency that has been the hallmark of the BIC in the past.We hugely look forward both to an exciting sporting occasion and to extending the traditional warm Bahraini welcome to Formula 1 teams, administrators and fans visiting our country next week.’
Following last year’s ‘Day of Rage’ on 14 February, the season-opening F1 race was called off as the country was in a state of emergency. This year’s fixture is Round 4.

Ferrari says Chinese Grand Prix upgrades a step forward
Ferrari technical director Pat Fry says the upgrades the team has brought to Shanghai are a step forward - but that this will not be apparent in the Chinese Grand Prix as the circuit characteristics do not suit the F2012.
Although Fernando Alonso leads the world championship thanks to his surprise Malaysian GP victory, Ferrari has struggled for pace in dry conditions all year.It accelerated its upgrade programme to fit new parts for China, but Fry warned that the team was still unlikely to qualify above the lower part of the top 10.
"We have brought some updates here for the F2012 which should provide an improvement in terms of performance, compared to the first two races," he said.
"The first evaluation that we can make after these three hours of free practice is a positive one, but clearly we have hours of work ahead of us this afternoon and tonight to complete an in-depth analysis. On the other hand, we cannot ignore the fact that the characteristics of this track seem to be less suited to our car than Malaysia.
"Taking these two factors into consideration, I am not expecting anything new in terms of our positions on the grid. At the moment, our realistic expectation is somewhere between seventh and 12th place, as indeed we were in Sepang.
Fry called for patience from Ferrari's fans as it tries to pull itself out of its current troubles.
"To those who ask me when we will see a Ferrari fighting for pole position, I can only reply there is no magic button we can press to improve the situation in one go," he said.
Alonso and Felipe Massa were 10th and 17th in practice on Friday, with the latter saying he would have been closer to his team-mate had he not been disrupted by Marussia driver Timo Glock's crash.

Marussia investigating front wing issue following Timo Glock's accident
Marussia is still investigating the cause of Timo Glock's accident in practice to work out if his front wing failed before he went off the track.Television footage of the incident at Turn 1 in second practice showed the front wing was off his car before he hit the barriers - but neither the team nor driver are sure if the wing came off after he had gone off the track.
The team was still looking into the data on Friday evening to try and work out what happened, while Glock said he was unsure about the case.
"I just know that the car went straight," he said when asked about the incident. "When the front wing dropped off I have no idea. I didn't see any video footage so far, so we are looking into it."We have a bit of a direction and we just have to wait until we have the whole analysing done and see what the problem was."
Although Glock said over the team radio that he had hurt his hand in the crash, he made it clear that the matter was not serious."In the first moment it felt like I had hurt it. I was so slow in the end [of the crash], and I thought I would just touch the tyre barrier, so I kept my hands on the steering wheel," he explained.
"I didn't have much speed, but it felt like I ran against a wall and not a tyre barrier. We pulled 8G, and I got a bit of a hit on my hand. But it is all okay now."

Damon Hill now fully behind FIA's Bahrain Grand Prix decision
Damon Hill says he is now 100 per cent behind the decision by the FIA to let the Bahrain Grand Prix go ahead.
The former world champion had initially supported the event, but then changed his mind and asked the governing body for a rethink, saying Formula 1 could not 'be indifferent' to what is happening in the country.
On Friday, however, Hill said he now fully supports the FIA decision to give the race the green light and show that the country can host the event peacefully.
"I am now 100 per cent behind the FIA decision to race in Bahrain," said Hill. "All the arguments have been made for and against. Human rights organisations have had their cases heard. No one is under any illusions about the situation.
"But the less vocal majority of Bahrainis also have a right to get on with their lives and we also have a responsibility to our F1 fans in the region.
"I hope that F1 can be seen as a symbol of all that is possible if we can work together peacefully."

Kind Regards
Shaky-Schumi

Tomorrow morning at 05.00u-06.00u will be the 3rd practice session ,followed at 08.00u with the qualification !

And ofcourse the times of the 2nd free practice session :

1. Michael Schumacher : Mercedes : 1m35.973 laps 32
2. Lewis Hamilton : McLaren-Mercedes : 1m36.145s + 0.172 laps 29
3. Sebastian Vettel : Red Bull-Renault : 1m36.160s + 0.187 laps 26
4. Mark Webber : Red Bull-Renault : 1m36.433s + 0.460 laps 23
5. Nico Rosberg : Mercedes : 1m36.617s + 0.644 laps 30
6. Jenson Button : McLaren-Mercedes : 1m36.711s + 0.738 laps 27
7. Kamui Kobayashi : Sauber-Ferrari : 1m36.956s + 0.983 laps 28
8. Paul di Resta : Force India-Mercedes : 1m36.966s + 0.993 laps 30
9. Nico Hulkenberg : Force India-Mercedes : 1m37.191s + 1.218 laps 30
10. Fernando Alonso : Ferrari : 1m37.316s + 1.343 laps 32
11. Sergio Perez : Sauber-Ferrari : 1m37.417s + 1.444 laps 22
12. Daniel Ricciardo : Toro Rosso-Ferrari : 1m37.616s + 1.643 laps 33
13. Kimi Raikkonen : Lotus-Renault : 1m37.836s + 1.863 laps 30
14. Jean-Eric Vergne : Toro Rosso-Ferrari : 1m37.930s + 1.957 laps 31
15. Romain Grosjean : Lotus-Renault : 1m37.972s + 1.999 laps 25
16. Pastor Maldonado : Williams-Renault : 1m38.176s + 2.203 laps 34
17. Felipe Massa : Ferrari : 1m38.293s + 2.320 laps 30
18. Bruno Senna : Williams-Renault : 1m38.783s + 2.810 laps 37
19. Heikki Kovalainen : Caterham-Renault : 1m38.990s + 3.017 laps 36
20. Vitaly Petrov : Caterham-Renault : 1m39.346s + 3.373 laps 19
21. Timo Glock : Marussia-Cosworth : 1m39.651s + 3.678 laps 15
22. Pedro de la Rosa : HRT-Cosworth : 1m40.343s + 4.370 laps 24
23. Charles Pic : Marussia-Cosworth : 1m40.753s + 4.780 laps 30
24. Narain Karthikeyan : HRT-Cosworth : 1m41.125s + 5.162 laps 26

Comment of the 2nd session :

Michael Schumacher ended the first day of practice for the Chinese Grand Prix on top of the timesheets.
After rain restricted the number of laps completed in the morning, every team opted for an intense schedule during the second 90-minute. Morning pacesetter Lewis Hamilton picked up where he left off early on, hitting top spot after just eight minutes while on a six-lap run on medium Pirellis.With everyone opting for primes for their first serious runs, Hamilton's time was 0.134s faster than Schumacher, with Red Bull Racing's Sebastian Vettel two-tenths further back.
Hamilton and the Mercedes driver continued on mediums on their second run, while Sauber driver Kamui Kobayashi jumped up to third place with a lap within a tenth-and-a-half off Hamilton on the half-hour mark. A few minutes later, the Japanese survived a lurid slide off the track after being caught out while pushing too hard.
Vettel was the first of the frontrunners to set a time on the soft compound tyre, lapping a quarter-of-a-second quicker than Hamilton on the first flier of his second run and subsequently improving by another four tenths of a second.
Team-mate Mark Webber, running the latest-spec exhaust compared to the early specification used in the first part of pre-season testing that Vettel ran, slotted in just under three-tenths behind his team-mate not long before the halfway point of the session.While the Red Bulls had taken three laps to get the peak performance out of their soft tyres, both Schumacher and Hamilton, who shortly after headed out on their fresh soft rubber, extracted the performance from their tyres immediately. Schumacher posted his best time, a 1m35.973s, on his first flier, but Hamilton looked set to outpace him after setting the best time of all in sectors one and two before losing his advantage, and another 0.172s, in the final sector.Neither Nico Rosberg in the second Mercedes, nor Jenson Button in the second McLaren, were able to match the pace of their team-mates, ending up fifth and sixth ahead of Kobayashi, whose earlier lap on prime rubber was enough for seventh overall.Force India driver Paul di Resta ended up eighth fastest, within a second of the outright pace and a couple of tenths ahead of team-mate Nico Hulkenberg, with Alonso, who couldn't get the maximum out of his soft tyres on his first flying lap, just behind.Several drivers had offs during the session. Both di Resta and Caterham driver Vitaly Petrov suffered spins at the final corner after running wide at the exit and losing it on the damp runoff, but the biggest moment of the day was provided by Marussia driver Timo Glock.The German appeared to lose his front wing under braking for Turn 1, locking up and clattering through the gravel trap and ending up against the barrier. The team was uncertain as to the cause of the off, but Glock's initial concern that he had hurt his hands soon abated.

Kind Regards
Shaky-Schumi

Here are the results of the 1st practice session :

1. Lewis Hamilton : McLaren-Mercedes : 1m37.106 laps 7
2. Nico Rosberg : Mercedes : 1m38.116s + 1.010 laps 14
3. Michael Schumacher : Mercedes : 1m38.316s + 1.210 laps 14
4. Sergio Perez : Sauber-Ferrari : 1m38.584s + 1.478 laps 13
5. Kamui Kobayashi : Sauber-Ferrari : 1m38.911s + 1.805 laps 12
6. Mark Webber : Red Bull-Renault : 1m38.977s + 1.871 laps 15
7. Sebastian Vettel : Red Bull-Renault : 1m39.198s + 2.092 laps 12
8. Jenson Button : McLaren-Mercedes : 1m39.199s + 2.093 laps 6
9. Daniel Ricciardo : Toro Rosso-Ferrari : 1m39.748s + 2.642 laps 16
10. Jean-Eric Vergne : Toro Rosso-Ferrari : 1m39.768s + 2.662 laps 14
11. Fernando Alonso : Ferrari : 1m40.056s + 2.950 laps 14
12. Felipe Massa : Ferrari : 1m40.153s + 3.047 laps 14
13. Valtteri Bottas : Williams-Renault : 1m40.298s + 3.192 laps 8
14. Nico Hulkenberg : Force India-Mercedes : 1m40.328s + 3.222 laps 13
15. Pastor Maldonado : Williams-Renault : 1m40.540s + 3.434 laps 12
16. Heikki Kovalainen : Caterham-Renault : 1m41.071s + 3.965 laps 14
17. Romain Grosjean : Lotus-Renault : 1m41.204s + 4.098 laps 14
18. Timo Glock : Marussia-Cosworth : 1m42.330s + 5.224 laps 14
19. Giedo van der Garde : Caterham-Renault : 1m42.521s + 5.415 laps 11
20. Jules Bianchi : Force India-Mercedes : 1m44.118s + 7.012 laps 8
21. Pedro de la Rosa : HRT-Cosworth : 1m44.227s + 7.121 laps 10
22. Charles Pic : Marussia-Cosworth : 1m44.500s + 7.394 laps 15
23. Narain Karthikeyan : HRT-Cosworth : 1m47.204s + 10.098 laps 12
24. Kimi Raikkonen : Lotus-Renault : 1m50.465s + 13.359 laps 11

Comment about the 1st session :

Lewis Hamilton topped the rain-hit opening free practice session for the Chinese Grand Prix.The McLaren driver set two fast laps at the end of the session to head Mercedes driver Nico Rosberg by a second at the top of the timesheets as a flurry of drivers set their best laps in the dying minutes of practice. Hamilton, like team-mate Jenson Button, ran an upgrade package on his McLaren including modified front and rear wings and a new floor during the session - the team taking advantage of new-for-2012 regulations allowing sensor rigs to be run during Friday practice to measure the wake off the rear of the car.
Overnight rain meant that the 90-minute session started in damp conditions and during the half-an-hour most teams focused on installation laps and aerodynamic test runs.
Red Bull Racing's Mark Webber was the first driver to set a serious laptime, getting down to a 1m39.558s on the third flying lap of a six-lap run on Pirelli's medium compound rubber.That lap was good enough to top the timesheets for much of the session as shortly after he had completed it, light rain made track conditions worse. By this stage, only nine drivers had completed serious runs and their laptimes were largely unchallenged until the track dried up enough for slicks to be run effectively in the final 10 minutes of the session.
Michael Schumacher had been in contention to top the timesheets after swapping fastest times with Webber with a few minutes to go, but he ended up third two-tenths behind his team-mate.
Behind him, the two Saubers of Sergio Perez and Kamui Kobayashi both improved at the eleventh hour as the track conditions rapidly improved, demoting Webber to sixth.The Australian was running Red Bull's latest-specification exhaust setup, while team-mate Sebastian Vettel, who ended up one place and two-tenths behind him, used the exhaust setup the team ran early in testing to compare the performance of the two designs.
Button ended up eight fastest, complaining of traffic late on, with Scuderia Toro Rosso pairing Daniel Ricciardo and Jean-Eric Vergne rounding out the top 10, like most of the field setting their fastest times in the final few minutes on prime rubber.All of the top 16 drivers improved late on, with Lotus driver Romain Grosjean down in 17th place the best of the drivers whose laps in the early dry phase of the session were not improved upon.
Force India reserve driver Jules Bianchi made his grand prix weekend debut as third driver at Force India, ending the morning in 20th place, setting his best time on intermediates unlike team-mate Nico Hulkenberg, who used medium slicks.
His opposite number at Caterham, Dutchman Giedo van der Garde, also made his first appearance, lapping around 1.5s off Heikki Kovalainen's pace.

Kind Regards
Shaky-Schumi

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Sorry for a little offtopic, but I can't get enough of this:

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The Times for his weekend China GP :

Friday 13th :
1st free practice session : 04.00u - 05.30u
2nd free practice session : 08.00u - 09.30u

Saturday 14th :
3rd free practice session : 05.00u - 06.00u
Qulification : 08.00u - 09.00u

Sunday 15th :
Race : 09.00u

Kind Regards
Shaky-Schumi

I'm back on track people ....Here is some serious News Round Up :

Ross Brawn denies Mercedes's DRS system is expensive to copy (05/04):
Ross Brawn has hit back at suggestions that Formula 1 teams will face an expensive development race if his Mercedes team's DRS system remains legal and they have to copy it. A number of Brawn's rivals have suggested that it would cost a fortune for them to incorporate a DRS-activated F-duct system on to their cars - at a time when teams are facing budget concerns. But Brawn has dismissed such claims – and reckons that as well as the DRS system being cheap to create, he says major outfits will not face any more expenditure because they are already limited in spending due to F1's Resource Restriction Agreement."The system is actually very cheap," explained Brawn on Thursday. "It is a very simple cheap system, but not so easy to implement if you haven't integrated it into your car. This is perhaps where some of the frustration of some of our opponents [is coming from]. "People talk about the huge cost, but there isn't really a huge cost. You all know that there are a couple of carbon pipes running down the car, and the man on the street will tell you that they cost a few thousands pounds – they are not millions of pounds.
"The benefit we have gained is because we have thought about it and designed it into our car, and that is not so easy for people who have not go it – and that is why some of the opposition is so fierce. It is the recognition that it is quite a difficult thing to do if you haven't designed it from the beginning. That is the nature of F1 ".Although rival teams are awaiting further clarification from the FIA about the legality of the system, Brawn says he remains convinced the governing body will stick to its stance that the passive system is allowed. "We are confident the system is legal. As far back as 2010, in working group meetings, the FIA was stating that it considered such a system to be legal, because they were questioned on it as a matter of record.
"We will obviously be extremely disappointed once someone took a different view, but I think the FIA has been fairly consistent in their position, so we have faith that they will maintain that consistency."

Deputy technical director Naoki Tokunaga leaves Lotus F1 team (05/04 ) :
Lotus deputy technical director Naoki Tokunaga is to leave the team so he can take up a position as technical director of Renault's 2014 engine project. Tokunaga originally joined the Enstone-based team in 2000 as a vehicle dynamics engineer, before being promoted to head of control systems in 2002 and then deputy technical director in 2010.
The role of deputy technical director will not be filled for the foreseeable future. "We would like to thank Naoki for the tremendous contribution he has made to our team during the 12 years he has been with us and we look forward to the performance he will bring us (and all of Renault Sport F1's client teams) in his new role."

Lotus F1 team committed to name despite end of title sponsor deal (06/04) :
Lotus has terminated its title sponsorship deal with sportscar manufacturer Group Lotus, but remains wholly committed to keeping the famous name in Formula 1 for the future. On the back of financial uncertainties for Group Lotus, which was recently sold along with parent company Proton to Malaysian automotive conglomerate DRB-Hicom, Lotus F1's team owner Genii Capital has ended its formal relationship with the marque. Genii owner Gerard Lopez recently agreed a deal for the title sponsorship deal, which was originally put together in 2010, to be cancelled, as well as an old option that Proton had to buy 50 per cent of the team annulled.Speaking about the situation, Lopez sayd "The sponsorship agreement and the obligations of Lotus have been terminated. There is no option from Group Lotus to buy into F1 now - that option was taken over by us. There was one, but we have taken it over now."
Although the end of the Group Lotus sponsorship tie-up means a change of plans for the team, Lopez says that he remains committed to the Lotus name. "We are happy to carry the Lotus name as we believe it is a good name for F1," he explained. "We funded the team last year and the year before for whatever delta was missing. We would prefer to have sponsors up to the full amount - but if we have to fund it then we will fund it. "When we changed the name from Lotus Renault to Lotus [for this year], it opened up the door for a title sponsor. So if you take into account the fact we signed Unilever, probably the biggest sponsorship agreement this year in F1, and we signed Microsoft, which is huge news as it is a brand that has never been in F1 before, we have a wide space for sponsorship.
"If we sign a title sponsor now, we will end up with a better cash flow situation than this team ever had before."

Sebastian Vettel still confident about Red Bull's title defence despite tough start to 2012 Formula 1 season (06/04) :
Sebastian Vettel is convinced that Red Bull Racing can still win the world championship this year, despite its difficult start to the campaign. Admitting that the start to the year has not been what the team wanted, Vettel is optimistic that the situation will improve for both himself and his team. Looking ahead to the remainder of the campaign, Vettel added: "We now have 18 more races ahead of us and we will do all we can to defend our titles. I have total faith in the team, the car and myself. There's still much for us to do, but together as a team we can accomplish anything."

Barrichello open to Ferrari return (06/04) :
RUBENS BARRICHELLO says he would be happy to return to Ferrari’s Formula One team should they ditch struggling Felipe Massa. The 39-year-old Brazilian, who is driving in the IndyCar series after losing his place in F1, made the comment after topping a poll carried out by an Italian racing mag. He was named first choice to replace Massa ahead of Jarno Trulli and Malaysian Grand Prix sensation Sergio Perez. Barrichello, who lost his Williams seat after 19 years in F1, called the accolade “unexpected”. But he said he would consider returning to Ferrari if he was offered a contract, even though he was unhappy at being forced to play second fiddle to Michael Schumacher during his spell with the Italian giants.
Barrichello – twice runner-up to Schumy in the world championship – told a Brazilian TV channel: “I’m completely open about it. It would be something to think about.” Barrichello said he had no hard feelings towards Ferrari, despite his problems in the past. He added: "If they call me today to go drive for them I would go.
“It was the best team I've ever driven for in terms of support, of creativity. But there were definitely some spicy episodes."

Damon Hill says Formula 1 cannot afford to be 'indifferent' about Bahrain situation (07/04) :
Formula 1 risks damage to its reputation if it does not react to the increasingly tense political situation in Bahrain ahead of the scheduled grand prix later this month. That is the view of former world champion Damon Hill, who thinks with a fresh wave of protests on the streets and a worldwide focus now on the fate of jailed activist Abdulhadi Alkhawaja, who has been on hunger strike for 58 days, F1's chiefs must not act like they do not care.
"I think at the moment it is hotting up, which is not a good state of affairs to be wanting to go to Bahrain, when it is actually getting more inflamed," Hill told BBC Radio 4 on Saturday. "We have the human rights president Alkhawaja in a serious situation, with two weeks to go. It is a very difficult call and my concern is that F1 is perceived to be indifferent, and that would be really damaging for F1 ". Earlier this week Hill urged a rethink about the race going ahead, because of the ongoing situation in the Gulf state - and he has reiterated his belief that it would be wrong for the event to be used for political means by Bahrain's rulers. "I think under the right circumstances it would be OK," he said. "I don't doubt that they could hold the grand prix, but if they held the grand prix and in order to hold the grand prix they have to impose very serious security measures to prevent protestors making their point, then it would appear that the event is taking place on one side of the argument. That is the worry for the reputation of the sport; that it is actually taking political sides."
Mary Lawlor, director of human rights group Front Line Defenders that Al-Khawaja represented after setting up the Bahrain Centre for Human Rights, believes that F1 cannot be isolated from the situation. "If Abdulhadi Alkhawaja dies in the run up to the grand prix due to take place in Bahrain on 22 April, it will increase the instability and unrest," she explained. "The Bahraini authorities clearly want to present an image of business as usual but their seeming indifference to the plight of Abdulhadi, risks tragic consequences for Bahrain. "Those involved in Formula 1 must consult with independent journalists, community leaders, human rights groups, to get a good sense of what is going on - to see for themselves the situation in the gulf kingdom. From observing protests last week in Bahrain, it is clear that Bahrain is not safe for Bahrainis."
Nabeel Rajab, the current president of the Bahrain Centre for Human Rights, told BBC Radio 4 that he believed suggestions the Bahrain Grand Prix would unify the country were wide of the work.
"This is a dictator who is saying that. But that is not the people saying that," he said. "The dictator is benefiting from that, the dictator wants to tell the outside world that the whole thing is back to normal... they want to come back from isolation and say that everything is back to normal. "But on the other hand they are killing people, detaining people, torturing people. Everything is not back to normal and F1 should not help Bahrain's leaders to [think it is] so."

Jacques Villeneuve to drive Ferrari at ceremony to mark Gilles’ death (08/04) :
Ferrari will mark 30 years since the death of Gilles Villeneuve in an event at the Fiorano circuit next month. Villeneuve’s son Jacques will drive the 312T4 raced by his father when he finished second in the 1979 season.
Villeneuve was killed in a crash during qualifying for the 1982 Belgian Grand Prix at Zolder.
The team said: “His memory is still vivid and alive in the minds of many at Maranello; his talent, his speed, his bravery which bordered on recklessness, all go to make his name still hugely popular with our fans, even among younger ones who have only been able to see him on replays of his races or read about him in stories written by journalists.”
“It will be a fitting occasion to evoke the memory of a man who has and always will have a place of honour in the history of Ferrari.” The event will take place on May 8th, exactly 30 years since Villeneuve was killed.

Bernie Ecclestone: We can't force teams to race in Bahrain (10/04) :
Formula 1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone has said that he cannot force teams to race in the Bahrain Grand Prix if they do not want to go, amid growing concerns over further unrest in the troubled Gulf state. F1's teams have so far backed the FIA and the Sakhir circuit chiefs to make the right decision as to whether the event should take place on April 22, and to ensure the safety of attending personnel. However some teams are known to have concerns about racing in Bahrain at this time. Ecclestone, who has reportedly met with protest leaders and proposed they hold a press conference on the weekend of the grand prix, told The Times on Monday that he sympathised with the teams' situation and said: "If the teams don't want to go, then we cannot make them."
According to Ecclestone, the decision to cancel or postpone the race must come from the FIA, the event organisers or the Crown Prince of the kingdom. The fate of the Bahrain GP seems set to overshadow this weekend's race in China, with the FIA stating that it is closely monitoring the situation. Concerns heightened on Monday, when a homemade bomb was detonated at a protest in Manama - injuring seven policemen. The incident came amid increased tension caused by the fate of jailed activist Abdulhadi Alkhawaja, who has been on hunger strike for two months.
Meanwhile, John Yates, a former assistant commissioner in the London Metropolitan Police Service who now works for Bahrain's Interior Ministry, has warned that protestors planning to disrupt the event's running would be dealt with harshly.

Ferrari is still almost a second off the ultimate pace says technical director Pat Fry (10/04 ) :
Ferrari technical chief Pat Fry believes the team is still almost a second off the pace in normal dry conditions, even though Fernando Alonso is leading the Formula 1 world championship. Alonso took a shock victory in the damp in Malaysia, and finished fifth in Australia - despite Ferrari struggling for speed. Fry said Ferrari owed its position to both Alonso's heroics, and the Sepang weather working in its favour. "I certainly wasn't expecting to have one driver leading the championship," he said. "From quite early on in testing, we realised we had quite a few issues we needed to sort out.
"Everyone at the factory has been working hard at that, as we still have a long way to go. I think our dry qualifying performance is still around 0.8s off the best while we want to be the best ourselves.
"Damp low grip conditions suit our car and flatter some of the issues we have with the F2012 at the moment. You could see that in Melbourne on Friday and again in the race in Malaysia."
He added that Ferrari was trying to accelerate its development to get out of its current plight, and would have some upgrades for China this weekend then a major package in Spain next month.
"We are constantly working on improving the issues we have," said Fry. "New parts are coming through and we are trying to get them to the racetrack as quickly as possible - we will have five updates for China, some are quite visible, others less so. Then there will be a bigger upgrade package for Spain.
"It would be nice to have them earlier, but we have already brought forward some parts we were developing for Spain and we should have them in China."

Bahrain chairman Zayed Al Zayani says 'scaremongering extremists' are the cause for alarm over the Sakhir event (10/04) :
Bahrain Grand Prix chairman Zayed Al Zayani has blamed 'armchair observers' and 'scaremongering extremists' for creating alarm over the Sakhir event, which is due to go ahead on 22 April. Amid increasing calls for Formula 1 not to race in the troubled Gulf state, the Sakhir venue issued a statement in which Al Zayani insisted that those with first-hand experience of conditions in Bahrain saw no reason for it to be called off for a second year.
"What has been happening is that armchair observers - who have not been sufficiently interested or committed to investigate the situation for themselves - have been driving this debate, at the expense of those neutral parties who have taken the trouble to investigate the situation at first hand," said Al Zayani.
"This, combined with the scaremongering tactics of certain small extremist groups on social networking sites, has created huge misconceptions about the current situation. "We have welcomed a number of people to Bahrain over the last few weeks, who have all been able to find out for themselves that the Kingdom is ready to host Formula 1 next month. I therefore urge all stakeholders in the sport to listen to those with an informed, educated view of the situation and to form their views on the facts of the situation, as presented by neutral first-hand observers." The statement quoted a report by two representatives of the Lotus F1 team who visited the circuit recently to assess the situation.
The extract from the Lotus report read: "Yes there is a need to keep the circuit and the teams secure and they are doing this and they feel very comfortable about the arrangements. If there is going to be protestation then it will be confined to peaceful protests - you will maybe see some banners being waved and maybe some tyres on fire but that is all that they expect.
"We came away from Bahrain feeling a lot more confident that everything is in hand and to be honest if it wasn't for a few more police you wouldn't know any difference from the last year we were there."

Formula One Teams' Association says that decision over Bahrain GP is down to FIA (11/04) :
Formula 1 teams insist that it is not their call as to whether the Bahrain Grand Prix goes ahead, with the FIA now being looked at for a final decision. Amid increasing concern about safety in Bahrain on the back of protests supporting jailed activist Abdulhadi Alkhawaja, who has been on hunger strike for two months, the fate of the race is now the main talking point in F1. Bernie Ecclestone, the sport's commercial rights holder, had said on Monday that if teams had concern then they would be free not to go - although they could face commercial consequences for doing so. However, in a statement issued by the Formula One Teams’ Association, the onus has been firmly shifted on to motor racing’s governing body to decide what the appropriate course of action is.
"There’s been some media speculation recently to the effect that the teams may seek to cancel this year’s Bahrain Grand Prix," said the FOTA statement. "That wouldn’t be possible. Teams are unable to cancel grands prix.
"We race in an international series called the FIA Formula 1 World Championship, and it is therefore for the FIA to offer the teams guidance on these issues."

McLaren waiting for “clarity” on Mercedes DRS (11/04) :
McLaren technical director Paddy Lowe says the team will wait for a clarification on Mercedes’ controversial DRS before deciding whether to create their own version.

Susie Wolff joins Williams as development driver (11/04) :
Williams has announced Susie Wolff has become one of the team’s development drivers.
Wolff (nee Stoddart) has raced in the DTM since 2006. Her best result is two seventh places scored in 2010.
Team principal Frank Williams said: “Susie is a talented, successful and highly professional racing driver who competes in one of the world’s most fiercely-contested racing series. “Susie will join Williams as a Development Driver, in which capacity she will assist us with the development of our simulator and other technical challenges. Susie will also undertake some aerodynamic testing of the FW34 and a full track test in the coming months. Susie will also attend a number of races with us. “I should add that, as Susie is married to Toto Wolff, a Director of Williams, her appointment was carefully considered and then approved by the Board, with Toto recusing himself from the process.”
Wolff said: “I would like to thank Sir Frank for giving me this opportunity both on and off the track. I must also thank Mercedes Benz AMG and HWA for supporting me to take up this new experience with Williams.

FIA reassured Bahrain Grand Prix will be safe (12/04) :
The FIA has been reassured that Bahrain will be safe for next weekend's grand prix, despite concerns about the situation there. Ahead of crunch meetings between teams and Formula 1 bosses in China this weekend to discuss whether or not the race goes ahead, FIA president Jean Todt has been told that matters are not as bad as some have portrayed.
In a letter that was sent to him on Wednesday by former UK head of counter terrorism John Yates, Todt was informed that there was no major worry. Yates, who is an advisor for the Bahrain's Ministry of the Interior, wrote: "I am aware of the very real concerns that those involved in F1 may have regarding the holding of the fixture here in Bahrain next week.
"I have listened to the recent exchanges on the UK BBC Radio 4 Today programme and read related stories in the media with interest. It is clear from this and other reporting that the real picture of life in Bahrain and the very real reforming efforts being made at a number of levels are not reaching the ears of those that matter.
"I am particularly concerned that those intimately involved in F1 - drivers, teams, sponsors, media and supporters wishing to attend – are being presented with a distorted picture. This picture is being shaped by a huge amount of inaccurate and often deliberately false information being spread through social media forums."
Yates did say, however, that there were some troubles in the Gulf state – but these were isolated incidents.
"Some troubles do still exist," he said. "The almost nightly skirmishes that take place in certain villages are a potential block on progress and are putting those involved in their policing and innocent members of the public in significant danger. However, in spite of how these events may be portrayed through the medium of YouTube and other outlets, their significance should not be overplayed. "These are now lawful protests, which are permitted, but violent conduct by a very small minority – often groups of 15-20 young men. These are criminal acts being perpetrated against an unarmed police force who, in the face of such attacks, are acting with remarkable restraint.
"These people are intent on causing harm to the police and the communities in which they live. They are not representative of the vast majority of delightful, law-abiding citizens that represent the real Bahrain that I see every day. Along with my family, I feel completely safe. Indeed, safer than I have often felt in London."

FIA confirms DRS zone for the Chinese Grand Prix (12/04) :
The FIA has confirmed a single DRS zone for this weekend's Chinese Grand Prix at the Shanghai circuit.
The DRS (Drag Reduction System) will be allowed on the back straight, with the activation zone located before the halfway point of the straight, after Turn 13, just like in 2011. Like in the previous race in Malaysia, there will only be one DRS zone this weekend.

Hamilton to take five-place grid penalty in China (12/04) :
Lewis Hamilton’s run of pole positions is almost certain to end as he is set to be penalised five places on the grid for the Chinese Grand Prix. Hamilton revealed on Thursday the team have had to change his gearbox for this weekend’s race.
Hamilton said the damage to the gearbox was only picked up in last 48 hours. Drivers are required to use the same gearbox for five consecutive races. The McLaren driver started the first two races of the year from pole position.

Showers forecast for Chinese Grand Prix weekend (12/04) :
The local weather appears to be running true to form, presenting cool conditions and a recurring threat of rain over the next three days. The forecast radars show bands of rain passing across the area from west to east.
There is a chance of light rain during Friday practice, and the forecasts for rain on Saturday are higher, though there is a good chance it will fall after qualifying. Sunday is currently expected to remain dry.With overcast conditions, temperatures are predicted to remain a cool 10-13C throughout the weekend.

Brawn disappointed Mercedes' wing debate is dragging on for third straight race (12/04) :
Ross Brawn has said he is disappointed that the row over the Mercedes rear wing has dragged into a third race, with Lotus having now lodged a protest against it. Speaking before a scheduled meeting with race stewards to discuss the legality of the DRS-activated F-duct on the W03, Brawn said he believed the matter should have been cleared up earlier in the campaign. "I think it is disappointing after three races that we are still in this situation," he explained before being notified of Lotus' protest.
"The system hasn't changed and the FIA's position hasn't changed, and as far as I understand their arguments haven't changed. So if they protest now, why didn't they protest in Australia? There is nothing new."
Brawn said that he was baffled about why rival teams had got so worked up over the system - especially because he reckoned its benefit was marginal.

Vettel to use older exhaust layout in practice for the Chinese Grand Prix (12/04) :
Sebastian Vettel will revert to an older specification of exhaust layout for first practice at the Chinese Grand Prix as his Red Bull Racing team aims to unlock more pace from the RB8. The reigning world champions introduced a Sauber-style exhaust layout for the final two days of pre-season testing at Barcelona, but Vettel has not been as happy with that configuration as the version used at the beginning of testing.
Although the team is convinced that the update package delivers an improvement in laptime, it has elected to experiment with a different configuration for Vettel in Shanghai on Friday to try and understand the situation better.
While Vettel will run the design that blows the exhausts over the beam wing, team-mate Mark Webber will run with an updated version of the concept that uses the exhausts to channel blown air around the rear area of the car and down on to the floor. Red Bull Racing team principal Christian Horner said that with no opportunity to test the two concepts side-by-side, the only chance was to run them in China practice.

Lotus protest against Mercedes wing rejected by FIA (12/04) :
Lotus's protest against the legality of Mercedes's rear wing has been rejected by the FIA, Formula 1's ruling body.
Lotus had lodged a protest on Thursday ahead of the Chinese Grand Prix as it believes the DRS system used by Mercedes goes against the regulations. Lotus believed the wing was in breach of rule 3.15 of the technical regulations.
"With the exception of the parts necessary for the adjustment described in Article 3.18, any car system, device or procedure which uses driver movement as a means of altering the aerodynamic characteristics of the car is prohibited," the rule says. On Thursday evening, however, the FIA said that stewards had agreed unanimously to reject the Lotus protest, meaning Mercedes will be able to continue using it over the grand prix weekend.

Lotus will not appeal stewards' decision on Mercedes rear wing (12/04) :
Lotus has elected not to appeal against the FIA stewards' decision that the Mercedes DRS system is legal, after its protest about the design was rejected on Thursday night. Following a lengthy meeting in the Shanghai paddock between the FIA and representatives of the Lotus and Mercedes teams, the four race stewards at the Chinese Grand Prix threw out the protest that had been lodged earlier in the day. Although Lotus was reminded of its right to appeal the decision, sources at the team have confirmed that it will not challenge the ruling - which means that the team must now decide if it is worth devoting resources to create its own version of the double DRS.

Kind Regards
Shaky-Schumi

brudgon wrote:SHANGHAI, April 12 - Lewis Hamilton will be penalized five places on the grid Sunday at the Chinese Grand Prix: the McLaren driver had gearbox problems and mechanics have had to replace. Start the evil Chinese adventure of Hamilton, winner last year on the Shanghai circuit, and starting this year at least relegated to the third row. But the tax rules introduced in 2010 are: you can not replace in return except after four races, having five programs available for each rider.

I'm sorry for Lewis fans, but for me is great news.

Probably the most exciting in recent years in F1, has been some races with a bad start on his part and to see how Lewis went back to the top, lap by lap. Currently he is the pilot which take more risks overtaking other drivers (in the past, do you remember Montoya?). Lewis has put the spice in some years extremely dull.

Anyway, not always the faster is the best and I think he is not the best, but I'm sure he is necessary for the F1.

9° GP Chinese Grand Prix – Shanghai circuit (first edition 2004)
This is another track designed by Hermann Tilke, like Sepang, and many others, often with a similar layout. This circuit has two long straights, one of which is extremely long, over a kilometre, but there are also slow-medium and fast speed corners particularly in the second sector. The curves more difficult and demanding for tyres are the number 1(very long right-hander) and number 13. The exit from this long right-hander is crucial for speed along the back straight. It will be difficult to find the right set-up. Tyre degradation is less severe than in Malaysia and the time of the pit stops is quite short. Probably the strategy, for top teams, will be on three pit stops rather than two. Last year despite the pole position Vettel finished second due to wrong strategy (only two pit stops), while his team-mate Webber(three pit stops) from 18 th place in grid, arrived third under the checkered flag. This year however the disparity between the different tyre compounds should be less than last year. There will be a single drag reduction zone(DRS) in the same position as 2011, on the longest straight.
tyre choice: medium (prime, white) and soft (option, yellow)
in 2006 at the Chinese GP, Schumacher was up on a F1 podium for the last time(until now) That was his 91st victory.
Podium 2011 Lewis Hamilton – Sebastian Vettel – Mark Webber – fastest lap on race: Mark Webber – pole position : Vettel time 1'33''706
Podium 2010 Jenson Button – Lewis Hamilton – Nico Rosberg – fastest lap on race: Lewis Hamilton – pole position : Vettel time 1'34''558
Podium 2009 Sebastian Vettel – Mark Webber – Jenson Button – fastest lap on race: Rubens Barrichello – pole position : Vettel.
Chinese GP: victories for current pilots: Hamilton(2) Schumacher Raikkonen, Vettel, Alonso and Button (1).
Webber: best finish 2° th place at Shangai circuit
Chinese GP: pole position for current pilots: Vettel (the last three editions) Alonso and Hamilton(2)
Schumacher, Button, Raikkonen and Webber: never in pole position here.