Sidepodcast

A Bumper Week for Christine's Rankings

With the return of Formula One, and the Bahrain Grand Prix, comes a mammoth week for Christine's Rankings. Drivers have been in the spotlight more than ever since our ranking system was introduced, and there was plenty to take note of.

Chandhok, in particular, has done very well. After such a difficult start to the season for the new Hispania driver, he carried himself well and went up in a lot of people's estimation. Meanwhile Kobayashi finally gets some points on the board this week.

Notes:

1. A breakdown of Chandhok's points: +2 for this funny Twitpic (spotted by Pat), +2 for the quote: "The more time they spend talking to me, the less time they have to work on the car", +2 for just wanting to keep out of everyone's way, +2 for being calm when all the odds were against him, and +2 for being generally quite awesome.
2. The picture of Webber looking at the McLaren plus a great tweet.
3. heikkikovalainen.com

It's been a fabulous week watching the drivers do what they do, and thanks to everyone who pointed things out that should be considered for the rankings. More of the same for next week, please.

F1 Digest 2010 - Bahrain Qualifying

• Length: 13:24 
• Size: 12.3 MB 
• File: digest150.mp3 
• Transcript: digest150.pdf 
• Torrent: digest150.torrent 

Our second Digest episode for the Bahrain GP weekend takes a look at all three free practice sessions, plus a fabulous qualifying session. We compare the top ten to their teammates, and find out what the drivers think of their performance so far.

Free Practice

We saw the new teams struggle a little, particular poor Chandhok, whilst it really became clear that Rosberg was outshining Schumacher, and Ferrari and Red Bull were going to battle it out at the top.

Qualifying

Vettel was very strong as he posted his qualifying lap, whilst it was down to the Ferrari boys to try and challenge him. Webber could only manage 6th, and the McLaren drivers didn't fare as well as they'd hoped.

Team By Team

Most of the new teams are happy with their debut qualifying efforts, particularly Virgin who managed to get Glock the highest up the order. Chandhok's shakedown went successfully and he didn't get in anyone's way. Schumacher is satisfied with his comeback so far and Sutil celebrates being in the top ten.

Live: Bahrain 2010 - Qualifying

Morning Practice was fascinating, as we watched a wheel fall of Glock's car, Chandhok have to wait and wait and wait, and Hamilton have to give up before the real qualifying setups began. If qualifying is up to its usual standard, we're in for a good one.

Weather Update

In continuing tradition, the weather will be hot and sunny. The temperatures go up and up, and with qualifying on at the same time as FP2, expect the track to hit the 40s pretty quickly. The humidity is lower today, though, although it seems just as dusty.

One to Watch

I don't know about anyone else, but I am keeping firmly glued to Nico's progress. So far he has outshone Michael in all sessions, and if he outqualifies Schumi, there's going to be a riot down in the Mercedes garage. It looks very likely this might happen, too!

Predictions Please

Who will get the glory of the first pole position of the year? Will Rosberg outqualify Schumi? Will drivers find themselves tripping over those new and slow cars? Will there be any surprises in the top ten?

Circuit Guide

Bahrain Circuit Map

Don't forget that comments automatically update on this post, there is no need to refresh the page this year. You can also follow up-to-the-minute session updates via Sidepodcast's Factbyte Factbox

Bahrain 2010 - Free Practice 3 Results

The end of Saturday Practice was almost as exciting as the push for pole, but it was Alonso who grabbed the morning headlines. Poor Chandhok still couldn't get in the car meaning he will have to make his debut in qualifying. No pressure!

Daily: 13th March 2010

Well, did you see any of the action yesterday? Even if you weren't enamoured with what was actually happening out on track (not all that much, if we're honest), it was still good to see the cars again. Yes, I said that, even though I still think they are really bad looking. Today is qualifying day, the best day of the weekend. Bring it on! Meanwhile, here's what we're talking about:

• A quick link, via Joe, to GP Guide. It's essentially a big database of statistics, more than you could ever dream of needing, and they're presented in an easy to use format and free! GP Guide is normally published as a book, but this site has it all.
• The Factbyte Factbox had a fabulous launch yesterday with two successful Free Practice sessions completed. We're not sure whether we're going to be doing this for all Friday's, but we certainly intend to cover the weekends. The ability to have the highlight posts really makes it for me - check out Free Practice 1 and Free Practice 2 if you missed any of the day's running.
• As a celebration of the return of Formula One, and really because we just couldn't decide which photo to use, we decided to do an F1 Big Picture special. Instead of one, you get ten photos, with moments throughout the sessions on Friday. We like to think there's something for everyone.

That should do it for now. I don't know about anyone else, but I am exhausted after just one day. Goodness knows what we'll be like on Sunday! I will see you in the comments.

Bahrain 2010 - Free Practice 2 Results

Free Practice 2 is complete and we still have yet to see Chandhok out on track. Rosberg put Mercedes on top, with Schumacher in third, and Hamilton splitting the pair of them.

Live: Bahrain 2010 - Free Practice 1

F1 is back and it's in Bahrain! The season returns with the desert replacing Albert Park as the opening round. Free Practice gets underway with 24 drivers ready to hit the track and show everyone what they can do.

Weather Update

Bahrain is all about the sunshine and FP1 should have good weather throughout. The temperature looks to be around the 30 degree mark, whilst humidity is high at roughly 85%.

One to Watch

When we were testing out the Factbyte Factbox, we ran through a dry run of today's Free Practice 1, and Mr C declared that Mark Webber was the fastest at the end. I am curious to find out if that comes true. If it is, Mr C is buying us a lottery ticket.

Predictions Please

It's the first proper track action of the year, we need to know what you think will happen. Who will be the first to fly off the track? Will all the cars make it to the end of the session safely? Who will be the fastest and get the first headlines of the year?

Circuit Guide

Bahrain Circuit Map

Don't forget that comments automatically update on this post, there is no need to refresh the page this year. You can also follow up-to-the-minute session updates via Sidepodcast's Factbyte Factbox

Bahrain 2010 - Race Information

Formula One has returned! We are gearing up for the first race of the season and by all accounts, it's going to be a spectacular one. Although Bahrain has a lot to live up to, replacing Australia as the season opener, there is so much going on, it's bound to be a fantastic weekend.

The Weather

The long range forecast for the weekend suggests there will be nothing but sunshine for F1 to look forward too. Saturday might see a little cloud, but nothing that should make a difference to the action and the high appears consistent for both Saturday and Sunday.

Regularly updated weather information can be found on the BBC.

The Circuit

This year, the Bahrain circuit sees the first major change to its layout since it began hosting F1 races in 2004. The track has been extended by nine corners and the number of laps reduced accordingly.

Credit: Bridgestone Corporation

Bahrain Circuit Map

Event Schedule

An F1 weekend comprises of events spanning three days. Action begins on Friday and ends on Sunday.

Support races for this event include GP2 Asia and the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup.

Press Conference Schedule

Official press conferences are organised by the FIA and happen four times during the weekend.

The qualifying and post race press conferences will take place after the television unilateral interviews.

Podcast Schedule

Sidepodcast provides comprehensive coverage of every Grand Prix weekend with free audio podcasts.

Following Live

A thread will be created on Sidepodcast.com for every session and every thread is live enabled, meaning you can follow along and contribute to the conversation without refreshing the page.

Additionally, for every session this weekend we'll be providing up-to-the-minute F1 information via the all new Factbyte Factbox.

Gerry Birrell - What Might Have Been

Steven Roy is back again with another story from F1 gone by. I've never heard of this driver, so once again, many thanks go to Steven for the excellent history lessons.

Credit: pietroz cc:ann

A Chevron B25 similar to the Formula 2 car Birrell drove in 1973.

Gerry Birrell was born in Milngavie, Glasgow on July 30th 1944. He left school at 15 to become a car mechanic and soon became involved in racing as a mechanic for his brother Graham. In 1961 Gerry made his race debut in the family’s Austin A40 at Charterhall. The Austin was soon replaced with a Lotus 11 which Gerry re-built from a burnt out shell. It was soon clear that he was more talented than his brother and that coupled with his mechanical background and car development ability made him a very effective driver. The Birrells were a real racing family as the middle brother Ian also raced although only briefly and Graham’s wife Jenny was also a good saloon car racer.

Despite making his race debut at the age of 17 Birrell did not sit in a single-seater until he was 24 years old. He raced a Formula Vee at Ingliston and despite leading the race he finished second to Nick Brittain who was the top Formula Vee driver in the UK. The following year, 1968, he won the British Formula Vee title and moved into Formula Ford for 1969 winning the European championship in a Crossle.

1970 was an important year in his career as he stepped up to Formula 3, winning several races, and made his sportscar debut. For 1971 he made another big step entering Formula 2 and the European touring car series as a works Ford driver in addition to more sportscar races. He won the touring car series in an Escort RS1600.

In 1972 he continued with the same programs. Sharing with Claude Bourgoignie he won the touring car class and finished 11th overall at the Le Mans 24 hours and finished second at the Spa 24 hours. His best result of the year was in the Rothmans 50,000 International Libre race where Birrell finished 4th in his F2 car behind 3 F1 cars. Birrell was followed home by James Hunt and John Watson also in F2 cars. At the end of the season Birrell went to South Africa and won the Springbok Sportscar championship in a Chevron.

By 1973 Gerry Birrell was established as a hot prospect for the future with a growing reputation. He was highly rated by Ford for his development as well as racing abilities and was known as a real gentleman. For the 1973 season Birrell contested the Formula 2 championship in a Chevron and continued driving in endurance races for Ford.

The ninth round of the Formula 2 championship was at Rouen-les-Essarts in France. During Friday practice some of the drivers had raised questions about the safety of the track. Birrell’s car had been held up at French customs for ten hours causing him to miss Friday practice. As a result he was very angry when he went out for final practice on Saturday. He put in some quick laps and was heading through the fast downhill bend at Virage des Six Freres at around 150mph when one of his front tyres deflated. He went nose first into an Armco barrier which should have absorbed the impact. Instead due to poor installation the barrier rose up allowing the nose of the car to pass under it and Birrell was decapitated.

In 1970 Denis Dayan died in nearly identical accident. His Formula 3 car was involved in a collision which caused it to leave the track and go between the top and bottom rails of the barrier at the same corner. His car was totally destroyed and he died a few days later without regaining consciousness. It says much about the attitude to safety prevailing at the time that Birrell could hit an incorrectly installed barrier in the same place three years later.

Although Jackie Stewart’s retirement from racing had not been made public it had been widely predicted. Francois Cevert was expected to become the team leader and Birrell was expected to become the second driver for Tyrrell. In fact Ford rated Birrell so highly that their head of motor sport Stuart Turner had said that they would make sure he was in F1 for 1974. It would be very difficult not to sympathise with Ken Tyrrell. His team had been started to run Jackie Stewart in F1 and had done so magnificently. Stewart had trained his apprentice Cevert who was ready to take over on Stewart’s retirement and Birrell had been identified as the new apprentice.

Birrell died on June 23rd and a little over 3 months later so did Cevert in a freakishly similar accident with Stewart retiring the same day. The well planned succession was in ruins and the team never recovered.

At that time many drivers died as the result of the lack of safety provisions at circuits which meant trees, lamp posts and the like, were exposed and there were high kerbs or big drops at the sides of some tracks. It is particularly sad that these two men died in the manner that they did. They both hit safety barriers that should have saved their lives but due to neglect the barriers had not been fitted or maintained properly and instead of saving them they contributed greatly to their injuries.

The Tyrrell team never really recovered from Jackie Stewart’s retirement. Imagine however what would have happened had Cevert and Birrell survived 1973 and lined up for the team in 1974. Cevert could have delivered on his obvious promise and made use of everything he learned from Jackie Stewart. Birrell would have learned from Cevert and Stewart would have been advising the team. You have to deduce that Tyrrell would have been one of the top teams over the next few years and you have to wonder what the effect would have been on Niki Lauda’s attempts to turn round Ferrari and James Hunt’s position at McLaren after Emerson Fittipaldi committed career suicide by leaving to join Copersucar.

Would Lauda or Hunt have won their championships and had Lauda not won a title at Ferrari what would have happened to them? Would Scheckter have been able to win with them? The whole history of the sport since could have been very different had two circuit owners taken safety seriously and made sure that their Armco barriers were properly fitted. It seems particularly cruel that Jackie Stewart, who had campaigned for 7 years by that stage to improve safety, lost both Cevert and Birrell.

Your Thoughts on This Year's Circuits

With an extra couple of races on the calendar this year, Mr C and I are rethinking the way we watch and discuss Formula 1. Free Practice has to take a back seat as there are only so many hours in the day, and we don't intend to free up all 19 Fridays through the year.

Less Conversation, More Action

A lack of Friday information means F1 Digest has to change, but hopefully it will be for the better. The first noticeable difference will be the reduction in show numbers. For the past two years, there have been four "digest" shows during a race weekend, but in 2010 we'll release only three. Free practice information will be bundled into a better qualifying show on Saturday.

The running order for F1 Digest will now look as follows:

• Thursday - Race preview in audio
• Saturday - Free practice and qualifying round-up
• Sunday - Race round-up

If you need more detail, all of this information can be found in our brand new 2010 F1 Calendar. Please subscribe to keep up-to-date.

Living for the Weekend

The weekend preview show will remain, but there is one addition to the show that I want to introduce, and that's your cue to get involved. As an introduction to the race, I want to get your thoughts on the circuits. Whether you love or hate them, favourite sections, thoughts on the atmosphere, and any other notes you'd like to make. If you've ever been to a race, first hand information is also a bonus.

I'm looking for opinions via text here, no need to pick up the phone for this one. The emphasis should be on concise thoughts, short sentences and catchy snippets, but I want to hear what you think about every circuit on the calendar (although Korea might pose a challenge).

I will read them out, mix them up and make the preview podcasts a great start to the weekend. I've set up a wiki page for the purposes - multiple entries per circuit are actively encouraged! There are a few examples on there already, so it just takes a moment of thought to add your own. You can also leave them in the comments here, or fill in the contact form below.

After submitting your ideas, all you need do is stay tuned and listen out in the first show of the year - the Bahrain Preview!

If you have any other opinions about F1 Digest, things you would like to see included, or anything that would make the coverage better for you, please let us know in the comments.