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Were Ferrari Right To Break Felipe Massa’s Gearbox Seal?

November 20, 2012 in F1 2012, Ferrari, United States Grand Prix

Qualifying - Felipe Massa - Car 6 - F2012 - Me...

(Photo credit: dawvon)

Ferrari are no strangers to controversy, they’ve no issues with stunting Felipe Massa’s performance if he ever does better than Alonso it will help Fernando Alonso, but was breaking Massa’s gearbox seal at the US Grand Prix a step too far?

The issue was all down to the huge difference in grip between the two sides of the track; while the right hand side offered bucket loads of grip, the left hand side, which was much dirtier, offered less grip meaning it wouldn’t be easy to make a brilliant start at the beginning of the race.

On Saturday Felipe Massa was due to start the race in 6th, while Alonso qualified in 8th, meaning he would start from the dirty side of the track. The team were so concerned about how ‘dirty’ the left hand side of the track was, they clearly thought it could really hamper their chances at winning the 2012 World Championship.

In a move that Dick Dastardly would be proud of, they decided to break the seal on Massa’s gearbox, meaning the Brazilian would take a five place grid penalty. He would now start the race in 11th, meaning Alonso would be boosted up the grid by one place and would now start from the clean side of the grid in 7th place.  Read the rest of this entry →

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Italian newspaper claims Alonso was at loggerheads with Ferrari at Indian Grand Prix

October 30, 2012 in DRS, F1, Felipe Massa, Fernando Alonso, Ferrari, FIA, Formula 1, Grand Prixs, Indian Grand Prix, Teams & Drivers

By Ryan Bayona (Fernando Alonso) [CC-BY-2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0) or CC-BY-2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia CommonsWith the grid swiftly moving on to the middle east for this weekend’s Abu Dhabi grand prix, there has been little time for the teams to celebrate, make excuses or to lick wounds in the wake of the Indian grand prix. This is understandable; it’s a new event demanding a new start and a clear focus.

One team which you would expect to be licking their wounds more than most is Ferrari. Their main man Fernando Alonso fell further behind in the title race, seemingly powerless to stop the charging bull that is Sebastian Vettel. The pressure put on Ferrari as a result of sunday’s (and previous) grand prix has been massive. When you have one of the largest car groups in the world as a parent company (Fiat), a reputation as a premium sports and F1 car maker to protect, and a passionate country behind you, this pressure is entirely comprehensible. That pressure almost became too much this weekend.

That is, at least, according to Italian newspaper La stampa. Read the rest of this entry →

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Why Formula 1 and Politics Should Never Mix.

October 29, 2012 in Bahrain Grand Prix, F1, Indian Grand Prix, Rants and discussions

Last weekend at the Indian Grand Prix Ferrari displayed their home countries Navy flag, in support of two Italian marines who shot two Indian Fishermen in February of this year. The less than tactful move offended both Indian officials and Formula 1 fans. 

The Maranello based team posted a statement on their website last week explaining their decision;

“Ferrari will carry the flag of the Italian Navy on the cars driven by Fernando Alonso and Felipe Massa in this weekend’s Indian Grand Prix.

In doing so, Ferrari pays tribute to one of the outstanding entities of our country, also in the hope that the Indian and Italian authorities will soon find a solution to the situation currently involving two sailors from the Italian Navy.” 

It wouldn’t have been so bad had they displayed the flag in Australia as that was the first race of the season and therefore the closest race to the incident, however waiting for the Indian Grand Prix to come around to display the flag was less than tasteful.

Astonishingly though, Ferrari Team Principle Stefano Domenicalli, claimed that the move was not political, and told Italian Network SKY TG24 that it wasn’t about politics and was about “the contribution that Ferrari can make to this story.”. Forgive me if I’m wrong, but that sounds a little political, even if they are only raising awareness about the story. (Which they succeeded in.)

In fairness Domenicalli, did look rather uncomfortable and it was quite clear that the decision had been made by someone much further up the chain Read the rest of this entry →

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Indian Grand Prix: How can Alonso beat Vettel?

October 27, 2012 in DRS, F1, Fernando Alonso, Ferrari, Formula 1, Jenson Button, Lewis Hamilton, Mark Webber, McLaren, Red Bull Racing, Sebastian Vettel

By Nic Redhead (Flickr: Fernando Alonso) [CC-BY-SA-2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

After qualifying for the Indian Grand Prix, it is certainly advantage Sebastian Vettel in the championship race. Qualifying on pole with a single scorching lap in Q3, Vettel confirmed Red Bull’s qualifying pace and delivered a stark warning to his nearest rival, Fernando Alonso. Despite appearing to have the second best pace of the leading constructors throughout the three practice sessions behind Red Bull, Ferrari found themselves behind McLaren too, leaving Alonso in 5th position. With no grid penalties this time around to help him, the Spaniard now has 3 cars between himself and Vettel, none of which are going to aid him in pursuing the German.

The question that the Ferrari management, strategists and mechanics will be asking in their debriefing is “how can Alonso beat Vettel?” Unfortunately, the answer will be, “he can’t”. Almost certainly the words “damage limitation” will be muttered in Italian too.

Vettel holds such a monopoly over the rest of the field now in terms of qualifying pace that it doesn’t necessarily matter if he doesn’t have the fastest pace on race day. Vettel will have a rear-gunner right behind him, in the form of the supposedly non-yielding Mark Webber. Even the most uninformed of pundits would be able to detect that that interview on Thursday was just fighting talk, and that he’ll be supporting Vettel. With his help, just like in Korea and Japan, Vettel can easily deploy the tactics which proved so formidable in 2011.

Read the rest of this entry →

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Indian GP qualifying: It all feels very last year…

October 27, 2012 in Bruno Senna, Caterham, F1, Felipe Massa, Fernando Alonso, Ferrari, FIA, Force India, Formula 1, Grand Prixs, HRT, Jenson Button, Kamui Kobayashi, Kimi Raikkonen, Lewis Hamilton, Lotus, Mark Webber, Marussia, McLaren, Mercedes, Michael Schumacher, Narain Karthikeyan, Nico Hulkenberg, Pastor Maldonado, Paul di Resta, Red Bull Racing, Romain Grosjean, Sauber, Sebastian Vettel, Sergio Perez, Teams & Drivers, Toro Rosso, Williams

After this morning’s qualifying session for the Indian Grand Prix, most fans would be forgiven for thinking that they had been transported back in time. Just as in Korea and Japan, Red Bull dominated in a fashion reminiscent to 2011, securing another 1-2 result and confirming that, in qualifying trim at least, they are indeed in a league of their own.

Unlike Korea, it was Sebastian Vettel who took top spot, with Webber following closely behind. Their commanding performance crushed McLaren and, most importantly for the drivers championship, Ferrari, who could only manage 3-4 and 5-6 respectively. The result will be of particular concern for Fernando Alonso in fifth, who has three cars between him and Vettel. Read the rest of this entry →

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Korean Grand Prix: Yay and Nay

October 16, 2012 in Korean Grand Prix, Yay and Nay

The title race is really beginning to hot up now and is turning into a two horse, or should I say a horse and a bull race, between Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso and Red Bull Racing’s Sebastian Vettel.

Let’s take a look at the Yays and Nays of the Korean Grand Prix.

Yay:

Sebastian Vettel leading the Championship

He stormed to victory in Korean to regain control of the Drivers Championship. He may only be leading the Championship by four points, but the Red Bulls are looking a lot more confident with their car than Fernando is in his Ferrari.

While Alonso’s not going to let Vettel just walk away with the drivers title, it’s looking ever more likely that Vettel will take his third consecutive Drivers World Championship.

Nico Hulkenberg’s brilliant overtake

While Lewis Hamilton and Romain Grosjean were busy scrapping with each other, Force India’s Nico Hulkenberg was advancing on them and made a brilliant overtake on both of them at Turn 5.  Read the rest of this entry →

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Why Nico Hulkenberg Going To Ferrari Doesn’t Make Sense.

October 3, 2012 in F1

Over the past couple of years everyone and their nan (and their nan’s dog) has been linked to Ferrari to replace Brazilian driver Felipe Massa. 

With Sergio Perez moving to McLaren next year, it appeared that Felipe Massa’s drive wasn’t at too much risk. This was backed up further when Ferrari said they weren’t in any rush to find a replacement for Massa.

As the driver reshuffle hots up, Force India’s Nico Hulkenberg is the latest to be linked to Ferrari, with Italian media claiming that it will be confirmed some time before the Korean Grand Prix. There are a few things that don’t add up here though.

Read the rest of this entry →

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Hamilton to Mercedes & Perez to McLaren and What That Means.

September 28, 2012 in F1 2013, Lewis Hamilton, Sergio Perez

It was been confirmed this morning that Lewis Hamilton will leave McLaren at this end of the year to join Mercedes under a three year contract and will be replaced by Sauber’s Sergio Perez. 
The 2008 World Champion has been driving for McLaren in F1 for six years now and has been involved with the team for 14 years, so perhaps it was time for a new environment, or maybe they just wouldn’t let him keep the real trophies.
Sauber confirmed this morning that Sergio Perez, affectionately known as Checo, will move to McLaren to replace Hamilton, a brilliant move and fantastic opportunity for the young Mexican, certainly one he’s earned.
Is it a good move? 

It’s certainly a brilliant move for Sergio Perez, who was widely tipped to be moving to Ferrari in the next couple of years, I imagine Ferrari are kicking themselves now. Despite Checo’s three trips to the podium this year, he has remained down to earth and said that he’d like to remain with Sauber for another year or two to further his development. A drive at McLaren was understandably too good an opportunity to turn down.
I’m really happy to see Sergio go to McLaren, I would have hated for him to go to Ferrari and have his development stunted as he played second to Fernando Alonso.
Despite what the majority of Lewis Hamilton fans are saying, the move doesn’t exactly look bad for him either. Read the rest of this entry →

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Italian Grand Prix: Yay and Nay

September 10, 2012 in Italian Grand Prix, Yay and Nay

Yay

Lewis Hamilton; Lewis Hamilton dominated from lights out to the checkered flag, without any problems and without even coming under pressure from anyone at all, he was completely untouchable. Given a few extra laps we could have seen an interesting fight between Hamilton and Perez for first place.

Hamilton’s win makes this the third win a row for McLaren, who are beginning to establish themselves as the dominant team in F1 this year.  It’s a shame that there only ever seems to be one McLaren doing well.

Perez; Perez drove brilliantly, after starting the race in 12th place he worked his way up to second place to finish on the podium alongside Hamilton and Alonso. I’m really impressed with Perez and the way he manages to look after his tyres and make one stops work so well. Read the rest of this entry →

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Were Ferrari Too Quick To Judge Sergio Perez?

June 22, 2012 in F1

Sergio Perez then, a driver that is seemingly doing himself a world of favours this season after two incredibly strong podium finishes which look set to raise his reputation as a world class driver through the roof. So when it came to hearing news that Ferrari cautioned him after the difficult Monaco Grand Prix weekend for his “aggressive driving” it got most of the F1 circus a bit perplexed.

Now let’s not forget that this is a driver that is famous for his tyre management skills and 1 stop strategies, not exactly something you would necessarily associate with an aggressive style, so it leads us to ask this – Were Ferrari right in their decision to talk to Perez? Read the rest of this entry →

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