The rain continues, but it’s not enough to see a crazy grid in qualifying. Still, there’s a couple of things to note, and F1 Digest is here to straighten it all out for you.
Free Practice 3
A slow session with the rain coming on and off meant that tyre issues and setup changes were a real problem. Button didn’t make a very good start at all.
Qualifying
Bourdais topped the first session which gave us false hope that it was going to be another mixed up session. It wasn’t. The only other notable thing was Force India almost making it through to the second session, and failing.
Conclusions
A lot of drivers are relatively satisfied with what they achieved today considering the conditions, but know that it really all comes down to tomorrow. If it rains, which is looking less likely, the whole thing is going to be, as Massa puts it, a lottery.
Free Practice 3 just added to the overall sense of confusion I’m getting from this weekend, but at least a couple of things were cleared up. Firstly, Honda are really struggling. Button only made a few feet from the pit lane before pulling off to the side of the track. There was no spectacular blowout or crash, just a depressing exit from the session. With Barrichello as the slowest man completing a lap today, the team really have their work cut out for them.
On to happier subjects, Heidfeld showed he does know what he’s doing by topping the time sheets, although Kubica still struggled down in 13th. Alonso continued his fine form so far this weekend to end up third. With many people featuring Alonso in their Fantasy Racers teams, there are plenty of fingers crossed that he can pull off something spectacular this weekend.
However, despite not finishing near the top, Massa, Hamilton and Raikkonen still look like the guys to beat. Massa braved only a few minutes of the session this morning, proving that he really doesn’t like the rain. The Ferrari has the pace, it’s all in the hands of the two men behind the wheel. Hamilton put in a blinder of a lap on his first go out, showing that he’s full of confidence, even if they may be a step behind their rivals this weekend.
Supposedly the rain has cleared up now for the rest of the day, but I wouldn’t place any bets on this. It’s been unpredictable so far, and if it carries on this way, we’re in for one hell of a qualifying session.
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Although some of us prayed for the rain to come and spice things up a bit, the one thing it does do is make things very confusing. We’ve had two sessions in the wet at Spa now, and we haven’t really learned much. It does seem like Ferrari have the upper hand so far this weekend, but then by their own admission, McLaren weren’t actually trying very hard yesterday.
The weather looks set to be a bit less damp today, although there was a lot of rain overnight. Showers are predicted for the morning, but things should start clearing up by the time qualifying gets going. Either way it looks like FP3 will at least start damp, whether it gets any worse we’ll have to wait and see.
Several drivers will be hoping conditions stay clear for them, as they missed out on plenty of running yesterday. Webber, Raikkonen and Fisichella in particular all spent some time tucked into the tyre barriers, so they will be wanting to make the most of any dry areas on track today. Kubica also couldn’t find anything positive to say about his car, so for the sake of his sanity, I’m hoping he has a good day.
We should also see more experimentation with the tyres if it is dry today, although if weather predictions show more rain for the weekend, it’s not going to make that much difference. So far it looks like the softer tyre is the faster option, but as a long lap, they could wear out quite quickly. Hopefully we’ll see some evidence of that this morning.
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Obviously it was wet in Spa, it always is, and the drivers struggled their way round two free practice sessions. Tune in to F1 Digest for a full round up of proceedings.
Free Practice 1
A slow start to the day, although we’ve seen worse, gave way to some pretty slippery laps and no major incidents. The laptimes weren’t particularly outstanding, and I don’t think anyone learnt anything from this session.
Free Practice 2
The predicted rain meant things got going very quickly, but the inactivity once the weather hit balanced it out a bit. Plenty of incidents as well, with many drivers meeting the barriers.
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FP1 wasn’t a spectacular start to the racing weekend, but the greenery makes all the difference after the blandness of the last location. It was dry to start with, and mercifully, we didn’t have to wait too long for some proper lap times - amazingly it was a Ferrari putting down the first marker.
It worked out well for them, for although Raikkonen had a slow start, the pair topped the times for the first session.
A little bit of rain spiced up the action towards the end, but it was mostly a few slip ups here and there, and no major incidents.
Things to watch out for in Free Practice 2 include the Toro Rosso boys, who both seem to be showing well again this weekend. Heidfeld hasn’t exactly shone yet, but then he was only just behind Kubica in 11th this morning. Also, Alonso is putting in a fine performance so far, and it will be interesting to see if the Renault can keep it up all day.
At the bottom of the timesheets, both Hondas feature prominently, whilst Nakajima fell behind the Force India boys. He will be looking to improve somewhat, although Rosberg doesn’t seem to be finding it easy either.
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Please do not forget to update your Fantasy Racers team.
The format of picking a lot of drivers, even if they’re not expected to be getting results, has worked quite well for me in the past. Unfortunately, the last race was a particularly poor showing for Sidepodcast Racers, but that’s okay, this week we’re going to bounce back.
I’ve decided to pick the top two drivers in the championship. The plan was to start from the top and work my way down until I ran out of money, but that only meant I could afford two drivers. That’s Lewis Hamilton and Felipe Massa. The total is only £26.10 million, which is quite annoying, but Raikkonen is next and he’s just too damn expensive.
I’d love to know what strategy you’re using, whether the Free Practice results are useful to you at all. Visit Fantasy Racers to update, or to register a new team. It’s probably a bit late to be a serious threat in the Sidepodcast League, but we have plenty of very welcome latecomers and we’re almost seeing a secondary championship forming. Join in, and have fun.
Written on September 5th, 2008 at 11:12 am by Christine.
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Finally we can put Valencia behind us and move on. From the early anticipation to arguments about the track to the pit lane antics of Ferrari, it really feels like we have been talking about it forever. Now it’s time to move on, and what better place to follow the European GP than Belgium and the ever-popular Spa.
The three day test at Monza was really setup for the Italian race next weekend, and with Fisichella finishing third at one point, it didn’t really offer up any insight into the possibilities of this weekend. One particular man to watch out for is Nick Heidfeld, who is under pressure from his team to buck up his ideas a bit. He may want to get in plenty of practice before trying his best in qualifying so as not to start in the traffic.
For some reason, the battle at the top seems to have segregated into team only warfare. Hamilton proclaims that McLaren are better than Ferrari so he’s not particularly worried, whilst Massa says his only rival is Raikkonen - who will also support him if need be. Doesn’t seem like antagonising him is the best way to garner support from your team mate, but presumably Massa knows what he’s doing.
This is Kimi’s track, but with the weather looking to be inclement for the majority of the weekend, Ferrari may find themselves struggling. If the wet weather becomes an issue, then at least any tyre problems will vanish, but at Spa, handling the rain is not easy.
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The perfect antidote for a Valencian procession has to be a blast through the Ardennes Forest, and Formula One delivers this and more as the teams arrive at the Circuit de Spa Francorchamps for the Belgium Grand Prix.
This week Inside Track takes a look at the circuit and catches up with the thoughts of Christian Danner and Sébastien Bourdais. We also look back on the controversial events that unfolded last year and see how the championship stands before the drivers come face-to-face with one of the most daunting tracks of year.
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One of the most highly rated circuits on the calendar means we must be at Spa for the Belgian Grand Prix. With many teams counting on rain, we preview what the drivers are thinking ahead of the weekend.
Vital Statistics
- Date: 7th September
- Circuit: Spa-Francorchamps
- Length: 7.0km
- Laps: 44
- 2007 Winner: Kimi Raikkonen
Preview
The Eau Rouge corner, the fact that the track can be raining at one point and bone dry at another, the Bus Stop and the greenery of the forests. All of these are reasons why we love Spa, and the drivers feel the same. Except tester Alex Wurz, who’s a bit of a downer on the eve of what should be a great weekend.
The second week in a row in which we feature a guest, and this time there’s some insight into turning old technologies into the future.
Intro
There’s this new idea about gathering together news stories and separating them into those that have been good and those that have been bad. Where have we heard that before?
Good Week / Bad Week
Good week for Ferrari and Takuma Sato as they’re both sorting out their drives for next year, but a bad week for Nurburgring and Valencia as the organisers have some work to do.
News and Views
A quick catchup of testing this week at Monza, which Renault’s determination to go slowly whatever the costs, and Force India possibly evaluating their drivers. We talk to Scott Woodwiss about his thoughts on this season compared to others, the regulation changes, and how F1 can get back to America.
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