New F1 season kicks off this weekend (Page 19 of 33)

Very well managed win by Lewis yesterday.

The win has been coming and nice for him to get it at the scene of his first F1 victory. Everything went right yesterday: No safety cars, good weather, good pace and (relatively) good pit work.

Lewis did the rest and once again demonstrated what a fine racer and driver he is.

Great finishes by Grosjean and Perez too. Both these guys are proving that they are top draw. I know McLaren are looking at DiResta in case Lewis moves on somewhere, but for me, Grosjean is proving what a capable replacement he would be for anyone.

I'm devastated to see Jenson Button struggling so much. According to the reports I read today he isn't even blaming the tyres anymore! He hasn't become 1.5 to 2 seconds slower than Lewis since the first 3 races. If it isn't a tyre problem there is something wrong with that chassis. Whatever it is then MCLaren need to get to the bottom of it.

Michael got a bum deal too yesterday. He seems to have acquired Mark Webber's bad luck. Yesterday the DRS failed. What next?

Talking of Mark I do hope he gets the Ferrari offer. It would be a great way for him to sign off his F1 career I feel. He and Alonso would do well and Ferrari would get more Contsructor points than they can with Massa, although the shots from his car yesterday showed how hard he was working. Great stuff!

Spare a thought too for Pedro de la Rosa in the HRT. He declared after qualifying he had driven (what he thought) was his best ever qualifying lap. Given how long his career had been and that he has driven for McLaren and Jaguar (amongst others) thats quite a statement.

What did it bring him ? just beating the Marussia's to land 23rd spot on the grid. It's tough down at that end of the grid

It's a fascinating season, no question about it. Who would have, could have, thought at the beginning when Ferrari clearly had a dog on their hands, that it would be Ferrari who claimed the first 'double win' of the year to date.

A huge amount of this performance is coming from Alonso himself, who is driving out of his skin this year, exacting as much as he can from what he has. They are still making mistakes, like the rest of the teams, but are learning from them all the time.

Autosport's Mark Hughes did a fascinating comparison of the various chassis this year in order to find out what is the best car to date. He cites the nopw improved Ferrari, combined with Alonso's nous, as being perhaps almost the best combination in all circumstances. A triumph of averages so to speak.

Interesting to learn that this year the struggle to regain lost aerodynamic downforce might not be the governing factor. The Mclaren is the most potent, apparently, in this regard, with Red Bull not far behind, but whilst this provides the one lap supremacy in practice for pole, does not necessarily provide the best set up for the race long runs on various compound of tyres.

Too much downforce works the rear tyres too much over a stint which causes the car to slide more, causing more degradation and eventually the performance drops off a cliff. So whilst the downforce is still critical the trick is finding where the limit is. The right balance of aerodynamics to get the tyres to 'switch on' and grip and endure, or get it wrong and condemn your car to a multi stop strategy which may, or may not be, advantageous.

So why is it that more of the midfield teams seem to be finding this 'sweet spot' more often? RB's Christian Horner has a theory that because the less funded midfielders were never able to previously fully exploit the hot and cold blown exhaust concepts and various other aerodynamic trickery, they actually have a better understanding of refining a car with less downforce and 'ultimate' performance. Therefore, the current situation may be, actually, providing them with a unique, albeit short term, advantage. The only thing currently holding them back from regular top step visits is that their single lap pace is not sufficient to get them high enough up the grid to exploit this advantage on race days.

It is, of course, all subjective F1 techno-babble, which I admit, I love. So what is the best car so far this year?

Mark Hughes was non-committal, other than to say that it would be great to see Alonso or Hamilton drive the Williams, thus indicating that a better qualifying performance with this car could see it winning regularly. So if Senna and Maldonaldo can cut out their mistakes in practice they might just be regularly breaking through to the podium...........for a short whiles anyway.......before normal service is resumed.

I'l keep the old eyes peeled. Enjoy, I have to make use of the tv as usual.

Used to go to qualifying on Saturday every year, back in the days when you could do a pit lane walk and sit anywhere you liked, even on the infield, but then it got all too expensive and a hassle to get there and out again.  Stowe/Vale/Club are great places to see the action.  Last time I went we ended up at Maggots/Becketts, that's a great place to watch the cars race down from Copse - one of my favourite corners!

Hmm, the weather forecast isn't looking too good so taking the caravan is a smart move.

As an aside, I went to Goodwood Festival of Speed last Thursday and it was such a thrill to get up close and personal to some F1 cars, past and present.  Remember the old Saudia Williams with its 6 wheels?

Yeah,think she's doing well,considering. The guy who booked the site got an e-mail suggesting 'bring wellies'....still,can't be as wet as '02,surely.....:).Standing on the apex of Maggots as they go by-IT HURTS! ...but in a good way.

Strange accident. From the photos it looked like she went under the rear/side of the transporter. Seems she has lost an eye in the incident with other facial/head injuries.

The witness report I watched claimed the car suddenly 'took off' from a slow speed again. Throttle potentiometer failure? So many electrics on these cars (even a Marussia). The telemetry should prove what happened.

Such a shame that an unfortunate accident like this can have extreme consequences. Here's wishing her a speedy recovery.

Have yet to watch my full recorded version but was following events closely on the live ticker and have seen a couple of highlights.

Looked like/sounded like an excellent victory for Mark, with RB employing an excellent strategy with the tyres. The pass on the outside looked good as well. Webber is an excellent racer, and I'm sure Alonso knew his number was up. He'll be pleased with the points though.

My big disappointment was Maldonaldo/Williams. He has got to stop putting himself in situations where he can have an accident. He seems to be overdriving at the moment. He's lost at least 4 good finishes now this season. Yesterday, he could have been top 5 finish and instead he just enhanced his reputation as impetuous. Frank Williams needs to have a word....and soon.

Classic is in some ways too small for it. Also will Button's poor form continue? Will McLaren fulfil their potential? Whatever happens Sunday afternoons have become exciting again.