New F1 season kicks off this weekend (Page 18 of 33)

Not just that which in itself is a brilliant achievement for Nico and the team, but also wasn't it the first time a Mercedes has been atop the podium since 1955 ?  No wonder Norbert was looking delighted, and justifiably so.

Such a thrilling race from start to finish with good old fashioned wheel to wheel racing, sometimes a bit too close for comfort. 

As much as I was delighted for Nico I couldn't but help thinking Lotus should have put some new tyres on Kimi's car.  To go from a wonderful second place to fourteenth in just a couple of laps must have been soul destroying for him.  The car and him have the pace.  Now they need to get the tactics right.

But for me the highlight of the race was Mark Webber's wheelie .... in an F1 car.  Yes, you had to see it to believe it.

Brilliant racing throughout, how long have we been waiting for that to happen in F1. All the teams that matter are very close, although Mercedes will suffer badly with hotter weather and track surfaces. Crowds will only appear in Europe and the Americas.
Still fancy Button for thew title though...

+1 on that. Much as I love the racing now, this just screams finance and not sport to me. It could come back to haunt Bernie although he does have the thickest of skins, possibly teflon.

Shouldn't have taken place in my opinion, however a good close race again. McLaren however must have been bad this week to have the race problems they had, just a shame Lotus could not hit the top step instead of Red Bull. Racing is always better in Europe with all the crowds. It seems wrong racing at this level in front of empty stands. Thats big finance for you.

I hear everyone on the ethics of racing in Bahrain,but someone told me a major golf tournament  happened there recently,and not a word was mentioned in the press or anywhere.Icould be wrong-and just a LITTLE lazy-as i haven't followed this line of enquiry up,but,if it did.....? I DO agree that Bernie is a shrewd money-maker,he HAS done a lot to bring F1 along,doesn't say anything without thinking through the conseqences and often does on purpose. Still,hasn't stopped me from going to Silverstone practically every year since '88. (roll eyes)
The Race!!! Yeah,another corker,but just HOW did Nico get away with pushing two drivers onto the outfield (for want of a better word).Surely the track is everything BETWEEN the white lines,not outside 'em!...and all four wheels,too,not just two.......

I think Nico knew they were behind and might chance their arm, but he was in front and on the full outside on the racing line. Both decided to extend that line by going outside it! These cars have pretty poor rear/side vision still. Clearly Alonso and Hamilton had a better exit off the preceeding corner thru better traction but Nico still had track position and the line.

If a wall had been there, they wouldn't have tried it! There is only one racing line and Nico was on it and in front. I would be the first to say you SHOULD leave room, but thats when you are alongside by at least half the car. Alonso certainly wasn't and Hamilton only was by extending the limits of the track.

You just can't bully people like that. " OK I'm here Nico, I've put myself in danger and now YOU have to save me". I'm not sure about the ethics of that. Hamilton and Alonso are racers - Nico too, but from the pictures I saw I thought their moves over-optimistic. If they had been a high kerb there both Alonso and Hamilton wouldn't have tried it. There isn't becos for safety reasons they don't want cars to launch on the exit of the corner. That doesn't mean you should be able to run over the line inorder to get a run on someone and then expect them to move over.

I want overtaking as much as the next person but I don't like this "let me through or we have an accident" type of stuff.

We have more overtaking than for the longest time but using the bits of the track that are not designed for it is the not the way.

I thought Nico might have been guilty of changing position twice but he wasn't. He went right to the outside of the track for his first move and then took his line on the left side for the next corner. Hard but fair.

Net result, both Hamilton and Alonso know where they stand with Nico next time. Marker laid down. Get level, you get room - anything else get stuffed, Mark Webber should write the book on it, probably call it "Aussie Rules", with Alan Jones doing the foreword.......................

Agreed!  A wonderful birthday present for Sir Frank.  Back in the early 90s Williams were the team to beat but have suffered with lack of funding over the last decade or so.  But I've always been a fan (British team and all that) so good to see them on the up again.

What a season this is turning out to be.  Five different winners from five different races.  Aside from the Williams how great to see Lotus in the top three again.  This week they got the tyre strategy right.  Kimi was pushing and gaining over 1 second a lap towards the latter part of the race.  With the tyres on Alonso's Ferrari looking to have gone close to the cliff edge, if the race had been a few more laps longer then Kimi could possibly have taken second. 

But the driver of the day has to go to Lewis Hamilton who finished a brilliant eighth after starting from back of the grid.  It's easy to say he had a quicker car and therefore would be bound to despatch the back markers quite effortlessly, but it's not that easy to overtake on the Barcelona circuit.

I told you that it is exiting sport!!! Funny that Monaco becomes the most boring race so far when it was once the best! - Canada is a road circuit is n't it?

I had Grosjean down for a podium in our company sweep,- well that went wrong even before the first corner!