F1 News
Date: 25/March/2012
While the pre-race favourites for Sunday’s Malaysian F1 Grand Prix saw their hopes washed away by a torrential storm, Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso was left to fend off a surprise attack from Sauber’s Sergio Perez to take his first win of 2012.
Starting just eighth on the grid, Alonso had little chance of racing the McLaren, Mercedes and Red Bull drivers in the dry - but a rain storm just before the start threw the established Sepang formbook out of the window.
The rain was so intense that the decision was taken to red flag the race and it took almost an hour for the restart.
When it did Alonso, whose Ferrari team has been under immense pressure after an uncompetitive start to the year, and young Mexican Perez - starting only his second F1 season - took full advantage of the new playing field on offer.
Perez had already made great gains by a smart switch to extreme wets early on, allowing him to reach third place (from ninth on the grid) within six laps.
Alonso was two places behind, but passed pole sitter Lewis Hamilton during the change from wets to intermediates, while race and world championship leader Jenson Button lost part of his wing after tangling with a backmarker.
Alonso and Perez were one-two from lap 16 of 56 onwards - Alonso’s speedy pit stops getting him ahead - but despite holding a debut podium, Perez proved he has plenty of fire in his belly by chasing down Alonso after the final tyre change, to slicks on the now dry track.
Perez’s dream victory hopes ended when he ran wide with just a handful of laps to go, allowing a relieved Alonso to confirm his first win since last year’s Silverstone round by two seconds.
“Definitely, a big surprise with the win,” said Alonso. “We were not competitive in Australia, we were not competitive here and our goal was just to score as many points as possible. Today we scored 25. It’s an unbelievable result.
“I think we maximised the potential we have in our hands at the moment. Keeping calm in some extreme conditions. We started with inters and switched to extreme tyres because the aquaplaning was very bad and we overtook Vettel in that pit stop because we anticipated (it by) one lap.
“Then we came in with Lewis to change for inters after the restart. I exited in front, so it was just the pit stop itself that was quicker. I was making positions little by little with perfect calls from the team, so this victory is definitely for them. It’s a tough time for us at the moment but this Sunday we will remember.”
Despite the excitement of his first podium, Perez may have a few sleepless nights about the win that got away.
“I think the win today was really possible,” confirmed Perez, who didn’t finish high than seventh in his rookie F1 season. “When I caught Fernando I knew I would have to be quick to overtake him because I was having a lot of degradation in my front tyres.
“So I went looking for a way to get him and then I just ran a bit wide and touched the kerb. It was completely wet and that was the end of the win, probably. It was very difficult obviously to get Fernando but I think the win was possible.
“I have to say the team has done an incredible job. They called me always on the right time, especially the first pitstop.”
Adding spice to the Perez result is speculation that he might be called up by Ferrari to replace the struggling Felipe Massa, who crossed the line 15th on Sunday.
“It’s only rumours… I will stay with Sauber for the whole season,” Perez insisted.
Hamilton completed the podium, followed by Mark Webber (Red Bull), Kimi Raikkonen (Lotus) and Bruno Senna (Williams).
Michael Schumacher (Mercedes) and Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull) joined Button in sinking down the order due to racing incidents. Alonso now leads the championship by five points from Hamilton, with Button ten points from the top in third.
Hamilton heads McLaren front row, ‘majority’ commit to F1
F1 News
Date: 24/March/2012
Lewis Hamilton will start Sunday’s Malaysian Grand Prix from pole position, having been fastest in all but one of the four track sessions so far this weekend.
It was the McLaren driver’s second pole in a week, having also started from P1 in last weekend’s Australian season opener.
On that occasion Hamilton was pipped by team-mate Jenson Button on the run to turn one, and later lost out to Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel, leaving the Englishman a dejected third on the rostrum.
After such a strong weekend, nothing less than victory will suffice for Hamilton on Sunday, when he will be concentrating on keeping Button - again starting alongside him - at bay into to turn one, then maintaining his tyres for as long as possible.
“It’s been a good weekend so far,” said Hamilton. “It’s a long haul down to Turn One and I think there are going to be interesting strategies tomorrow. The key is looking after your tyres. They are having a seriously hard time around here, especially under 150 kilos of fuel. I’ll do everything I can to make sure we’re as competitive as possible.”
Button, just 0.149sec slower than Hamilton, applied a little further pressure by highlighting the fast-starting form of third on the grid Mercedes star Michael Schumacher.
“I think it’ll be an exciting start and not just for us two on the front row but the Mercedes is renowned, especially Michael, for getting good starts so it’s going to be a fun Turn One I think,” he said.
Seven time world champion Schumacher, without a podium since coming out of retirement in 2010, stands an excellent chance of spraying champagne for the 155h time in his career on Sunday.
“I think it’s quite an achievement to be third, particularly knowing that we have chosen a car that should work much better in the race. I would rather be compromised for qualifying; that’s a situation which I hope will pay back tomorrow,” he revealed.
Meanwhile, Mercedes is one of the few teams not thought to yet be included in a surprise statement released by Formula One Group Chief Executive Bernie Ecclestone on Saturday:
"I am very pleased to announce that we have reached commercial agreements with the majority of the current Formula One teams, including Ferrari, McLaren and Red Bull Racing, about the terms on which they will continue competing in Formula One after the current Concorde Agreement expires at the end of this year."
Once a new Concorde Agreement is in place the stability it brings will cause the value of the sport to increase and thus be the ideal time for the rumoured floatation of some shares by CVC Capital Partners, which owns F1’s commercial rights.
Date: 24/March/2012
Lewis Hamilton will start Sunday’s Malaysian Grand Prix from pole position, having been fastest in all but one of the four track sessions so far this weekend.
It was the McLaren driver’s second pole in a week, having also started from P1 in last weekend’s Australian season opener.
On that occasion Hamilton was pipped by team-mate Jenson Button on the run to turn one, and later lost out to Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel, leaving the Englishman a dejected third on the rostrum.
After such a strong weekend, nothing less than victory will suffice for Hamilton on Sunday, when he will be concentrating on keeping Button - again starting alongside him - at bay into to turn one, then maintaining his tyres for as long as possible.
“It’s been a good weekend so far,” said Hamilton. “It’s a long haul down to Turn One and I think there are going to be interesting strategies tomorrow. The key is looking after your tyres. They are having a seriously hard time around here, especially under 150 kilos of fuel. I’ll do everything I can to make sure we’re as competitive as possible.”
Button, just 0.149sec slower than Hamilton, applied a little further pressure by highlighting the fast-starting form of third on the grid Mercedes star Michael Schumacher.
“I think it’ll be an exciting start and not just for us two on the front row but the Mercedes is renowned, especially Michael, for getting good starts so it’s going to be a fun Turn One I think,” he said.
Seven time world champion Schumacher, without a podium since coming out of retirement in 2010, stands an excellent chance of spraying champagne for the 155h time in his career on Sunday.
“I think it’s quite an achievement to be third, particularly knowing that we have chosen a car that should work much better in the race. I would rather be compromised for qualifying; that’s a situation which I hope will pay back tomorrow,” he revealed.
Meanwhile, Mercedes is one of the few teams not thought to yet be included in a surprise statement released by Formula One Group Chief Executive Bernie Ecclestone on Saturday:
"I am very pleased to announce that we have reached commercial agreements with the majority of the current Formula One teams, including Ferrari, McLaren and Red Bull Racing, about the terms on which they will continue competing in Formula One after the current Concorde Agreement expires at the end of this year."
Once a new Concorde Agreement is in place the stability it brings will cause the value of the sport to increase and thus be the ideal time for the rumoured floatation of some shares by CVC Capital Partners, which owns F1’s commercial rights.
Hamilton straight back in his stride at Sepang
F1 News
Date: 23/March/2012
Having failed to hide his disappointment at slipping from pole to third in last Sunday’s Australian F1 season-opener, Lewis Hamilton got back into his stride in style by leading both Friday practice sessions at Sepang in Malaysia.
The McLaren driver shot out of the blocks to sit half-a-second clear of Red Bull’s reigning champion Sebastian Vettel in the morning session - then held off another German star, Michael Schumacher (Mercedes) by 0.36sec in the afternoon.
“It’s been a good day for me,” said Hamilton. “We’ve made a few changes to the balance of the car since the last race and I’m much happier - but we’ll still be making changes to improve our long-run pace, which can always be better.
“I went wide a couple of times on my long run in the afternoon, and looking after the tyres will be a tough call in the race – so it’s all about finding the right balance.
“Around here, overtaking will be a little more possible than in Melbourne. Nevertheless, starting from the front will still be the best position for the race, and that’s what I’ll be going for tomorrow.
“We’ve got to keep pushing, stay hydrated and remain focused - there’s a lot of hard work ahead.”
Hamilton’s team-mate Jenson Button, who won last weekend’s race, moved from ninth in the morning to third place in the afternoon session at the sweltering Sepang Circuit.
“The morning was a little frustrating: we had an oil leak which cut my session short, but it didn’t really matter as the track was still dirty,” explained Button.
“In the afternoon, I did some positive running on both tyre compounds - I think we have a good understanding of the tyre. But it’s going to be tough on both compounds around here with all the humidity and the heat.
“I think the race will be tough for all of us - unless the circuit improves a great deal, there’s going to be quite a few stops on Sunday!
“The aim for tomorrow is pole – you make your life a lot easier if you start from pole position, so we’re putting a lot of work into single-lap performance.”
Nico Rosberg (Mercedes), Daniel Ricciardo (STR-Ferrari), Fernando Alonso (Ferrari), Mark Webber (Red Bull) and rookie Jean-Eric Vergne (STR-Ferrari) completed an unpredictable afternoon top eight.
Date: 23/March/2012
Having failed to hide his disappointment at slipping from pole to third in last Sunday’s Australian F1 season-opener, Lewis Hamilton got back into his stride in style by leading both Friday practice sessions at Sepang in Malaysia.
The McLaren driver shot out of the blocks to sit half-a-second clear of Red Bull’s reigning champion Sebastian Vettel in the morning session - then held off another German star, Michael Schumacher (Mercedes) by 0.36sec in the afternoon.
“It’s been a good day for me,” said Hamilton. “We’ve made a few changes to the balance of the car since the last race and I’m much happier - but we’ll still be making changes to improve our long-run pace, which can always be better.
“I went wide a couple of times on my long run in the afternoon, and looking after the tyres will be a tough call in the race – so it’s all about finding the right balance.
“Around here, overtaking will be a little more possible than in Melbourne. Nevertheless, starting from the front will still be the best position for the race, and that’s what I’ll be going for tomorrow.
“We’ve got to keep pushing, stay hydrated and remain focused - there’s a lot of hard work ahead.”
Hamilton’s team-mate Jenson Button, who won last weekend’s race, moved from ninth in the morning to third place in the afternoon session at the sweltering Sepang Circuit.
“The morning was a little frustrating: we had an oil leak which cut my session short, but it didn’t really matter as the track was still dirty,” explained Button.
“In the afternoon, I did some positive running on both tyre compounds - I think we have a good understanding of the tyre. But it’s going to be tough on both compounds around here with all the humidity and the heat.
“I think the race will be tough for all of us - unless the circuit improves a great deal, there’s going to be quite a few stops on Sunday!
“The aim for tomorrow is pole – you make your life a lot easier if you start from pole position, so we’re putting a lot of work into single-lap performance.”
Nico Rosberg (Mercedes), Daniel Ricciardo (STR-Ferrari), Fernando Alonso (Ferrari), Mark Webber (Red Bull) and rookie Jean-Eric Vergne (STR-Ferrari) completed an unpredictable afternoon top eight.
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