Canadian GP 2016

Rosberg's Gap Down to Nine as Hamilton Wins

Nico Rosberg has seen his championship lead cut to just nine points as Lewis Hamilton claimed victory at the Canadian GP in Montréal. Hamilton finished ahead of Sebastian Vettel and Williams' Valtteri Bottas. Max Verstappen bounced back from a disappointing Monaco showing to finish 4th ahead of championship leader Rosberg. Kimi Raikkonen's recent poor form continued as he finished in 6th. Daniel Ricciardo's scrappy race saw him finish 7th ahead of Nico Hulkenberg, Carlos Sainz and Sergio Perez.

Hamilton's victory was not as straight forward as he would have hoped as Vettel, who was on a different strategy to Hamilton, pushed him hard throughout. Vettel got off to a dream start as he came from 3rd to lead into the first corner. Behind Vettel, the two Mercedes had another coming together, although not as severe as the one in Spain. It did however see Rosberg having to run wide at turn 2 and drop to 10th. Rosberg was on a recovery drive from lap 1 and seemed to have the same tyre issues that cost him dearly in Monaco. He did not surge back through the pack like many would have expected. He did what he could and so easily could have finished 3rd. As he was chasing Bottas for the final podium place he peeled off into the pits after a slow puncture was discovered by the team. Rosberg recovered again and was hunting down Verstappen for 4th and made his move on the penultimate lap when he went up the inside of the young Dutchman at the final chicane. Unfortunately for Rosberg, he lost the back end of his Mercedes under braking and spun off into the run off area. He was fortunate not to hit anything and held off Raikkonen's challenge on the final lap to secure 5th but it could have been more for Rosberg.

After his scintillating start, Vettel led the opening stint of the race and was locked into a two-stop strategy after Ferrari opted to stop him under the virtual safety car that was caused by the retiring Jenson Button on lap 12. With Vettel pitting, Hamilton was able to use his one-stop strategy to his advantage. Vettel re-took the lead whilst Hamilton made his one and only stop but conceded the lead after making his second stop. Vettel looked as though he was pulling Hamilton in as the laps tumbled but, another uncharacteristic mistake by Vettel saw him run wide as the final chicane and all but gift Hamilton his 45th victory in Formula One.

The main talking point from the race was surely Rosberg's championship lead eroding so dramatically over the past two races. Three weeks ago, Rosberg looked to be in total control of the championship having won four of the first five races. By the time the European GP in Azerbaijan is complete in just 7 days, Hamilton could have toppled Rosberg for the championship lead. Rosberg needs a strong showing at the European GP but possibly more importantly, the team need to work out their start procedure. In Canada, we saw a carbon copy of Australia where the Mercedes pair where almost at a standstill as Vettel left them for dust. If Ferrari keep improving their engine performance at the rate they are now, and are able to jump the Mercedes at the start, Mercedes will have a real fight on their hands.

Who is Making the Ferrari Pit Calls?

Something does not seem right at Ferrari this season. After the Canadian GP, Ferrari team boss Maurizio Arrivabene said that the team overestimated the tyre degradation, naming this the reason that the team opted to pit Vettel under the virtual safety car.

I bring this up because this is not the first time this season that the Ferrari team have made a call on strategy which has resulted in them throwing away a victory. In Australia, the decision not to run the medium tyre due to their lack of knowledge handed victory to Nico Rosberg who ran the medium tyre. Possible errors in Spain meant that with no Mercedes on track, Ferrari let another possible victory slip through their fingers, handing it to Max Verstappen. The latest episode has now occurred in Canada. Vettel did what he had to on the track but I believe that the team have been letting him down from the pit wall. Vettel could have easily had two victories this season, but strategy calls have cost him. Even after his second stop in Canada, Vettel closed to within 4.3 seconds of Hamilton and closing still until his error completely binned his chances of victory. It is an area that needs to be improved before big pressure arrives from the top of the Ferrari company.

Who Will be at Williams Next Season?

Although it is still early in the season, it doesn't mean that the rumours about the 2017 driver line up can't begin. Over the Canadian GP weekend, it was the Williams team driver line up that had the rumour mill buzzing. Rumours that Jenson Button will leave McLaren and return to the team that gave him his debut back in 2000 were all over the press. Neither party were quick to play down the reports but stopped short of saying something was in place. Ron Dennis has made no secret of his desire to have Stoffel Vandoorne in the McLaren car in the not so distant future and a move to Williams may suit both parties. So who would partner him? Rumours going round claim that this will be Felipe Massa last at the team and would probably mean his last in the sport. With Max Verstappen being tied down at Red Bull now, it may be possible that Ferrari would turn their attention to Bottas to replace Raikkonen who, after a promising start to the season has went on a downward spiral. However others such as the Force India pair of Hulkenberg and Perez, Toro Rosso's Carlos Sainz and even Haas' Romain Grosjean would believe they should be looked at as well. At the moment, it looks like Williams hold the key to the driver market for the 2017 season, although it is very early days.    

U.S GP 2015

Hamilton Makes History

Lewis Hamilton took victory at the U.S grand prix and in doing so, ensured a third World Championship, becoming the first British driver to successfully defend his title. He also joins an elite list of drivers, including his idol, Ayrton Senna in winning three championships. Nico Rosberg finished second after a mistake cost him victory, and the chance to extend the championship race for a further week. Sebastian Vettel took third after coming through from 14^th, with Max Verstappen taking a fantastic fourth. Sergio Perez finished fifth with Jenson Button taking a brilliant sixth place. Carlos Sainz, who started last, finished behind Button in seventh, with Pastor Maldonado eighth, Felipe Nasr ninth and Daniel Ricciardo rounding off the top ten. It could have been all so different at the front however, with changeable conditions from the start and virtual safety cars and individual errors. Ultimately though, the day belonged to Hamilton, who took his tenth victory of the season.

The whole weekend in Austin had been a complete washout, with qualifying not taking place until the Sunday morning, and even then the rain was still coming down hard. The session only got as far as Q2, where the conditions were deemed unsafe. Nico Rosberg took pole position ahead of Hamilton; but with the race only hours later, the forecast was that the rain would pass and we could go racing.

When the time for the race came, it was still very damp, with everyone starting off on the intermediate tyre. With a tricky first corner on the cards, it was Hamilton who got to turn one first, but with a seemingly over aggressive move on Rosberg, forcing the German off track. This saw him drop down into fifth place behind the Red Bull pair of Dani Kvyat and Daniel Ricciardo and Sergio Perez's Force India. In the damper conditions, it was the Red Bull's that looked more comfortable, with Kyvat taking the lead from Hamilton with ease, but ran wide and surrendered that lead before the first virtual safety car of the day occurred.

When the racing resumed, the track began to dry out and drivers started to struggle with the intermediates. Ricciardo wasn't struggling however, and breezed past the struggling Hamilton for the lead. Hamilton's struggles then allowed Rosberg past for second before drivers started pitting for dry tyres. The dry tyres saw the Red Bull charge dwindle, and both Rosberg and Hamilton resumed a Mercedes one-two, with Rosberg leading and pulling a gap to Hamilton. A safety car period caused by Nico Hulkenberg's broken Force India brought Hamilton back into the play, only for a second virtual safety car to hamper Hamilton again, as he stayed out and Rosberg pitted for fresh tyres. This wasn't the last twist in this race however, as a heavy crash from Kvyat brought out the safety car again, allowing Hamilton to pit without losing position and able to challenge Rosberg. On fresh rubber, Hamilton put pressure on Rosberg and forced him into an unforced error, costing him victory and the opportunity make Hamilton wait another week at least for his title.

Sainz and Verstappen Talent Shines Again

Many people pay so much attention to the fact that Red Bull have threatened to quit F1 next year if they can't get a competitive engine deal. What many people haven't seemed to pay attention to is the fact that that pull-out could also have an effect on Toro Rosso. Don't get me wrong, there has been whisperings of their future as well but not on the scale that it should be on.

This is a team with so much talent it would be an absolute travesty is it wasn't on the grid next season. The U.S grand prix was a prime example of the sheer talent the team possess. Obviously, it isn't the only time this season that we have seen both drivers drive tremendous races, but it just highlights what the team itself brings to the grid. Max Verstappen will be a World Champion one day that much is clear; his 4th place in the U.S grand prix was another testament to how good he is. When everyone was struggling in the damp conditions, Verstappen kept control and drove a brilliant race. Carlos Sainz, despite a few silly errors, especially speeding in the pit lane, finished a solid seventh place. This was after starting last on the grid! Had he not have had a time penalty, he would have finished sixth. Again, his on track overtakes and coolness behind the wheel is something that can't be ignored. Like I have said before, it is just a pity for him that Verstappen is his team mate this year. Hopefully, this team will be here next year because this would be a colossal waste of talent.

Sauber Celebrate 400th GP Weekend

It wasn't just Lewis Hamilton celebrating a milestone at the U.S grand prix. Sauber celebrated their 400th GP weekend, a magnificent achievement for the small team from Switzerland, who have been in the sport since 1993. The team has had many ups and downs over the last 22 years, but still have a rich history within the sport. Many great drivers have driven for them over the years, including former World Champion Jacque Villeneuve, although he wasn't to be the driver to deliver the teams first, and only win in F1. Under the BMW guise, Robert Kubica stepped up on a crazy and dramatic day at the 2008 Canadian GP, and headed a BMW Sauber one-two with team mate Nick Heidfeld. When BMW left the sport at the end of 2009, Peter Sauber bought back control of the full team. It has been a difficult five years financially for the team, who have never made any secret of this. Despite this, on track they have had some very strong performances, most notably in Malaysia 2012, where Sergio Perez probably should have won the race, only to be beaten to the flag by Fernando Alonso and ended up second. The team has done brilliantly with the limited resources at its disposal, and I'm sure that they will be racing against the odd for many more years to come. Here's to another 400 GP weekends.    

British GP 2015

"The Best Call of my Career"

He called it the best call of his career, viewers called it the best Grand Prix of the season, as Lewis Hamilton switched to intermediate tyres at just the right time to win an eventful British Grand Prix in front of 140,000 spectators. His teammate and closest championship challenger, Nico Rosberg, finished in second with Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel claiming the final podium place. The race was edge of your seat action from the moment the lights went out as both Mercedes lost out to both Williams by the first corner, with Felipe Massa leading and Valtteri Bottas up in 3rd. Behind the leading four, both Lotus' tangled with each other, as did both McLaren's, resulting in Jenson Button retiring from his home race, along with Pastor Maldonado. The accidents at turn two saw the safety car being deployed for four laps whilst the cars were cleared away.

At the restart, Hamilton didn't make things easier for himself as he out braked himself at the final chicane trying to overtake Massa, which allowed Bottas through into second place. A Williams 1-2 at Silverstone; what a sight to see! They weren't in that position by accident either, as they were matching the Mercedes for single lap pace throughout the first stint of the Grand Prix. At the restart, what was a weekend that started with so much promise for Toro Rosso and Max Verstappen ended abruptly, when the teenage sensation spun out almost immediately and retired from the race. Nico Hulkenberg once again showing what he was capable of, challenging both Ferrari's with his much-improved Force India.

For the first race in a while, it was the Mercedes strategists that had to really think how to get their men ahead of the two Williams'. Their answer was to pit Hamilton before Massa and get the undercut to get him ahead. It worked an absolute treat for Hamilton, as he put in some fantastic  laps, and as Massa pitted from the lead, Hamilton breezed past and was comfortably leading the race. This also saw Hamilton break Sir Jackie Stewart's  record of 17 consecutive races in the lead of a Grand Prix set way back in 1970. Rosberg was unable to get the jump of Bottas however, but the clouds were rolling in and it seemed to spark Rosberg's racing instincts. With rain starting to spit, Rosberg took both Williams and sought after team mate Hamilton. He got to within 1.5 seconds of him before Hamilton dived into the pits to switch to the intermediate tyres, a call that looked to destroy his hopes of winning a hat trick of British GPs. It proved to be, as Hamilton called it, the best call of his career as the heavens opened, and he was on the right tyre as everyone else struggled round to the pits. Hamilton saw the race out and stretched his championship lead over Rosberg to 17 points ahead of the next round in Hungary.

Conservative Williams Blow Chance of Victory

Personally for me, what stood out most during the British GP was Williams failure to convert their true pace into a race victory. Both cars got off to flying starts, even running 1-2 after the safety car period at the beginning. Massa was clearly holding Bottas up and should have been let through, or at least have a clean fight for the lead. Instead, both drivers were told not to race each other. As soon as that message came over, it was clear what was going to happen. Unfortunately, we've seen it a few times in the last year with Williams, none more so than Austria last year, where they had a car on pole position and couldn't do anything with it.

Okay, so Mercedes were the stronger car at that race, but at Silverstone, Williams genuinely looked like they could take the win, if they had played it right strategy-wise. If you are going to keep your faster car behind your slower one, at least pit the slower car to try and maintain position ahead of the Mercedes. The decision to leave Massa out more than a lap after Hamilton pitted also ruined their chances of taking a victory. The second they saw that Hamilton was pitting Massa should have been in the next lap to try and at least cover the Mercedes driver. I am not saying that Massa would have came out in the lead, but maybe he would have been closer to Hamilton and been able to fight. Ultimately, the decision to keep Bottas behind Massa when he was so much quicker is what cost Williams the race. If Bottas was leading that race, I believe with the pace he showed behind Massa, he would have been able to pull out a bigger gap and would have been able to have a better advantage with regards to strategy and have a great chance of winning. Williams need to find a more ruthless approach to these situations if they find themselves in a winning position again at any point this season.

Alonso Scores as McLaren branded "Arrogant"

Fernando Alonso scored his first point of the season with a 10th place finish at McLaren's home race, but it was another tough weekend for the team where they were knocked out in Q1, and lost Jenson Button at the second corner. Over the weekend though, the team were branded arrogant by former team boss and BBC pundit Eddie Jordan. Jordan said the top management were too quick to blame Honda for their problems this season, and need to have a look at themselves. He also said that things needed to change at the team if they are to move forward again, especially the higher management. Jordan believes that McLaren are putting too much emphasis of the lack of power from their Honda unit and not enough on their underperforming chassis. This lead to Ron Dennis calling Jordan a "village idiot". Dennis also admitted how painful this season has been for him and how he wants to turn everything around. Eric Boullier has also came out and said this season has been damaging for the McLaren brand. More importantly I think is the damage and pain it is causing its loyal fans across the globe. McLaren should not be qualifying 17th and 18th at their home grand prix and celebrating a solitary point. As a fan it is painful to see them in this sorry state and something has to change drastically for next season. The team keep saying that it is a long-term project, but their two drivers surely can't wait too long for some form of success to come along. Focus should be moved to next season and discussions with Honda on how they can improve their fortunes.

Giedo van der Garde vs Sauber - F1's Money Issue Raised Again

Last week, Giedo van der Garde issued a statement revealing that he and the Sauber team had reached a settlement over his disputed seat. Van der Garde believed that he had a contract with Sauber for this season, only for the team to sign up Felipe Nasr and Marcus Ericson instead. This led to the farcical court case that proceeded over the Australian GP weekend which ruled that van der Garde should race in Australia, only for Nasr and Ericson to race, not van der Garde.  Having looked at both parties statements over the situation, I think it really speaks volumes about the money problems that the smaller teams in the sport encounter.

Last season saw both Caterham and Marussia go into administration and miss the final three races of the season (Caterham making it into the final race in Abu Dhabi through crowd funding). Problems were also well documented at Force India, Lotus and Sauber, with each team calling for a rethink in prize money distribution to help the smaller teams cope. However this was rejected, with the likes of Ferrari and Red Bull claiming they shouldn’t have to give up their money. Here is the first problem: The teams at the front of the grid seem to control how money is distributed in F1, and it is all wrong in my opinion. For the sake of the future of the sport, this should be completely overhauled and examined in great detail to ensure small teams can enter F1, stay there and become competitive in the sport. We have seen the three new teams that entered the sport in 2010, HRT, Caterham and Marussia all drop off the grid due to financial problems (although Marussia has been reformed as Manor), and with HASS F1 set to join the grid next season, I don’t want to see another new team be forced out due to money problems. Now according to van der Garde, it was his sponsorship money that got Sauber through the remainder of last season, showing how financially crippled the team were. If a team has to survive off the money of a test and reserve driver, surely the whole F1 world should look at this and say that it isn’t right. Teams are talking about louder engine notes and bigger wheels when what I think they should be talking about is helping smaller teams on the grid survive.

The whole affair has been a shambles for the sport, van der Garde himself and the Sauber team. I understand from van der Garde’s point of view that he has a contract and this should be honoured, I mean what’s the point of the paper it’s written on if it isn’t honoured? However, is one driver bigger than the whole team? No. Had van der Garde went ahead and drove for the team, it could have meant the loss of another team in F1 and with that over 300 jobs, which I don’t believe for one second should be happening. I doubt that we will see van der Garde in F1 again because of this incident, unless another cash strapped team need funding to survive. As for the team, this incident will damage their own reputation and leave a few questions for other drivers if they happen to come along with some money wanting a drive. I’ve mentioned earlier that the sport needs to have a proper look at itself and sort costs out to ensure this farcical debacle doesn’t occur again. 

Why Felipe Massa Shouldn't Fall into the F1 Abyss

If anybody reading this entry has read previous entries, then they will know I am a huge fan of Felipe Massa. The formality of him leaving Ferrari at the end of the year still saddens me. My major fear about this popular little Brazilian is that he will fall into the F1 abyss like many other popular drivers such as Heikki Kovalainen, Jerome d’Ambrosio and Jamie Alguersuari. In this entry, I will look at the reasons that F1 teams should be doing all they can to sign Massa up for a 2014 drive.

Before his eight year spell with the Scuderia, Massa was at what could be called Ferrari’s junior team, Sauber. Massa made his debut with Sauber in 2002 where he scored 4 points in his first season, with a best finish of 5^th at the Spanish GP. He showed his competitiveness, but did make several mistakes. He earned a one race suspension which meant he missed the US GP. He returned for the Japanese GP, but was subsequently dropped by the team for the 2003 season, however he moved to Ferrari as their test driver. Massa re-signed for Sauber in 2004 scoring 12 points with a best finish of 4^th at the Belgian GP. His steady season earned him a second consecutive year at Sauber in 2005, where he scored 11 points and outpaced Jacques Villeneuve and beat him in the drivers’ standings. He got his big break the year after with Ferrari, partnering 7 times World Champion, Michael Schumacher.

During his first season at Ferrari, he scored 80 points and finished third in the title race behind champion Fernando Alonso and Michael Schumacher. It was a year that Massa was to be mentored by Schumacher, to try and help cut out the driver errors. Evidence of nerves could be seen during some races during the season such as in Bahrain, where he spun several times. He also crashed his Ferrari in Australia during both qualifying and the race itself. Despite all of this, Schumacher's influence could be seen as Massa scored his first pole position and victory at the Turkish GP. My personal favourite memory of his debut season at Ferrari was his victory at his home Brazilian GP in front of his adoring fans. He was the first Brazilian to win at Brazil since Ayrton Senna.

Schumacher left the team and Massa was partnered by Kimi Raikkonen, his team mate at Sauber in 2002. Massa seemed a much more complete driver, especially during pre-season testing where he looked on brilliant form. When it came to the opening race of the season, Massa suffered a gearbox problem during qualifying and started last, however he still managed to come home in 6^th. Problems continued into Malaysia where he was overtaken by the two McLaren's, despite starting on pole position. Massa attacked Hamilton and went wide, which meant he finished 5^th. His luck and form picked up as he won back to back races in Bahrain and Spain, both from pole position. He won the Turkish GP again and scored another 6 podiums. His team player image was first seen at Ferrari when he yielded the lead of the Brazilian GP to allow Kimi Raikkonen to win the World Championship.

So onto 2008. This without doubt, was Massa’s best year in F1. It all started wrong for Felipe again as he retired from the first two races, both by spinning out. People began to question if Massa was up to the job of racing at the sharp end of the grid without the assist of traction control. Massa silenced his critics in the best way possible. He dominated the entire weekend in Bahrain, only to have pole position snatched away by Robert Kubica. However, this didn’t stop Massa’s awesome pace in the race. Massa had Kubica by the first corner and went onto a dominant win. He scored another brilliant podium in Spain and went onto record his 3^rd consecutive victory in Turkey and started to gather real momentum.

He carried this momentum into Monaco, where he amazed himself by sticking his car on pole position. He started brilliantly and led by 15 seconds in the rain before the safety car came out and took out his lead. After the safety car, Massa pulled away again before he ran off at the first corner and lost the lead. He eventually finished her 3^rd behind his title rival Lewis Hamilton and Kubica. A fifth place in Canada, followed by a win in France meant he led the drivers’ championship, the first time a Brazilian had led the championship since Senna. The next two races saw Massa score zero points as he spun an amazing 5 times at the British GP, and retired from the lead of the Hungarian GP with only 3 laps left. The European GP saw Massa make his 100^th start in F1 and went onto win the race, making him the only driver to date to win on his 100^th start. He was awarded the win in Belgium after his main rival Hamilton was penalised 25 seconds for cutting the final chicane.  Points came his way in Italy before a pointless finish in Singapore meant he was 7 points behind Hamilton. At the Chinese GP, Massa’s stance as number 1 for the season could be seen as Raikkonen yielded 2^nd to Massa to ensure he could keep his title hopes alive.

The final race of the season was held in front of his adoring fans in Brazil, with Massa 7 points behind Hamilton. It was simple for Massa, he had to win or finish second, and for Hamilton for finish lower than 5^th. It started fantastically for Massa, qualifying on pole, with Hamilton fourth. Massa blew everyone away with his performance and won by 13 seconds. His part was done. Felipe Massa was World Champion for 38 seconds. His title was cruelly taken away as Lewis Hamilton overtook Timo Glock at the second last corner for 5^th place and the title by a single point. He was praised left right and centre by everyone and his maturity was praised by Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo. All in all, Massa managed 6 victories and 6 pole positions.

After all the highs of the previous three seasons, 2009 would ultimately see the downfall of Felipe Massa. A poor, uncompetitive Ferrari at the beginning of the year meant the Brazilian couldn’t relive the form of 2008. It was the middle of the season at the Hungarian GP where Massa could have lost his life. He was struck in the head at 180mph by a spring that fell off the back of the Brawn Mercedes of Rubens Barrichello. It would see Massa miss the rest of the season and return in 2010 to partner Fernando Alonso. Despite what Massa said, I believe that his head injury played a part in his below-par 2010 season. He did lead the German GP before being told to move over for Alonso. I also believe this was hard for Massa to take and psychologically destroyed Massa’s confidence. This form continued into 2011. He was continually out-performed by Alonso again and was caught up in many high profile incidents with Hamilton. 2012 started off poorly for Massa before he managed to keep place with Alonso in the second half of the season, even out-qualifying the Spaniard occasionally. He was awarded a new one year deal for 2013. 2013 saw Massa start just as strong as he ended 2012, out-qualifying Alonso and looking as though he had re-captured his 2008 form. However his form faded and Ferrari announced that Massa would be replaced by Raikkonen for 2014.

So there you have it. Eight years at the oldest F1 team have ended. Looking back at his career, Massa deserved so much more. In my opinion Massa deserved the title in 2008 and had he won that, I believe that he could have achieved even more. The end of 2012 and beginning of this year, we saw the old Massa back in action. Unfortunately this form couldn’t be kept up, and it’s now time for a change. I believe Massa still has enough to offer a top team in 2014, possibly Lotus? Only time will tell if he gets another shot, or fall into the F1 abyss.