FORMULA 1 - 2012

[MIKA27]

Pirelli fends off criticism after Bahrain

Pirelli went on the defensive on Sunday, following criticism in the wake of the Bahrain grand prix.

British commentator Martin Brundle said the Italian marque's heavily-degrading 2012 product, so difficult to keep alive and in the narrow performance 'window', is overly dominating the season so far.

Also critical after Bahrain, where tyre performance fell away rapidly in the desert heat, was Michael Schumacher, who told reporters he wanted to talk with Pirelli chiefs about how to improve the situation.

Faced with that sort of criticism on Sunday, Pirelli's motor sport director Paul Hembery said on Twitter: "At the end of last year we had huge criticism for conservative choices and races were boring.

"Make your mind up. We are doing what is asked."

Hembery also argued that how teams tackle their tyre strategies will continue to play a big role for only "a few more races, then like last year all change as they get used (to the tyres)".

[MIKA27]

Massa's 'F1 future' at stake - Domenicali

Felipe Massa's future in formula one is at stake in 2012, Ferrari team boss Stefano Domenicali has admitted.

He said the struggling Brazilian driver, already fighting to keep his seat with the famous Maranello based team, "needs to improve" for the very sake of his "future in formula one".

Domenicali's latest interview in the Spanish newspaper El Mundo indicates therefore that not only Massa's Ferrari seat is in doubt, but that he might struggle to find any place on the grid next season.

Rubens Barrichello, once the great Michael Schumacher's number two teammate at Ferrari, recently advised his friend Massa to "relax" as he faces being destroyed by the Italian marque's new hero, Fernando Alonso.

"Felipe needs to accept," said Domenicali, "that he is facing a very strong teammate. If not, that hurts him.

"He needs to assume a clear role rather than trying to take advantage -- you need to learn from Fernando, not challenge him.

"That (challenging) is the way to being destroyed by a teammate such as Alonso or Schumacher, who are real cannibals," Domenicali insisted.

Apparently justifying Alonso's dominant position, Domenicali said Ferrari has a "moral obligation to champion" the highly rated Spaniard.

And that influence will extend to the selection of his 2013 teammate, Domenicali hinted.

"He (Alonso) has a central role in the team, and he therefore participates in the important issues," said the Italian.

[MIKA27]

Force India silent as Ecclestone justifies blackout

Force India is remaining publicly silent after its cars were excluded from television coverage of qualifying in Bahrain.

Paul di Resta raced into the decisive Q3 segment but, justifying the apparent black-out, Bernie Ecclestone said "nobody cares" about the cars that are not in the running for pole.

Rumours are intensifying that Force India was maliciously excluded from the sport's 'world feed' - controlled by Ecclestone's Formula One Management - because the Silverstone based team sat out a practice session over staff's safety fears.

The F1 chief executive told reporters: "I suspect it (the blackout) was more to do with the Bahrain laws on no alcohol advertising.

"They have a whisky company prominently on the car. They should have taken it off. The TV could not show that," said Ecclestone.

Force India's deputy team boss Bob Fernley, in charge this weekend in Vijay Mallya's absence, would not comment.

Indeed, McLaren and Sauber are not running their usual alcohol sponsors this weekend, but Red Bull was shown on television throughout the Bahrain grand prix weekend so far with its Singha beer brand signage.

And Force India's whisky sponsor Whyte and Mackay was seen on the world feed in Bahrain in Friday morning practice, before the team decided to sit out the second session.

Meanwhile, authoritative media sources have been briefed to the effect that Force India's current livery was approved well in advance of this weekend's race.

A team insider told the Guardian: "Everyone knows what happened. Bernie is giving Force India a slap on the wrist for missing Friday's second practice session."

[MIKA27]

McLaren promises to investigate pitstop problems

McLaren team principal Martin Whitmarsh has promised his drivers there will be a full investigation into its pitstop procedures to ensure that mistakes are ironed out in the future.

Just one week after Jenson Button's hopes of victory in China were dashed by a slow final pitstop, Lewis Hamilton experienced two pitstop errors that pushed him down the field to a disappointing eighth in Bahrain.

At the first pitstop, the wheel nut pegs did not engage properly with the holes in the rim, while at the second stop the nuts cross-threaded.

With the left rear wheel gun man having been involved in the two troubled pitstops, the team elected to change him for the final stop - but Whitmarsh insisted that he had no hard feelings about what had happened.

"We'll review lots of things but I don't think it's a criticism of him as an individual," he said. "He's taken it very badly and it's our job to support to him at the moment.

"Firstly you have got to say that any guy who volunteers to be a gun man in a team like this is a brave guy, and that's one of the reasons I have just been speaking to him now, because I know how hard he is being on himself at the moment.

"These guys are all mechanics and they don't get paid extra for doing it. They put themselves in the firing line and under an enormous amount of pressure, so naturally I'm very protective of them because they deserve my protection.

"They're brave, they volunteer for it, they try hard and they know the pressure they are under. But we have got to look at the equipment, we have got to look at the process, we have got to look at the approach. So it's disappointing."

Lewis Hamilton was frustrated by the pitstop situation - especially because it cost him valuable points at a time when he locked in a tight championship battle.

"I have no idea what went on but I was hoping the second time I came in I wouldn't have that problem," he said. "I was hoping that it would be a good pit stop but it was exactly the same, if not a little bit longer, than the previous one.

"There was a lot of ground lost today. But we still picked up some points so I have got to be happy with that.

"There should be [an inquest] because we gave away a lot of points today which championships are lost through. So we have to try and make sure we pick up on them for the next race because we can't afford to lose points like we did today."

[MIKA27]

BAHRAIN GRAND PRIX - WHO WAS YOUR DRIVER OF THE DAY?

Red Bull Sebastian Vettel finally got his first victory of 2012 after being run close by the Lotus of Kimi Raikkonen in an action-packed Bahrain Grand Prix. Who was your driver of the day?

Sebastian Vettel

After using the old-spec Red Bull in China, Vettel switched to the new package in Bahrain and looked strong in Friday practice. Almost got knocked out in Q1 and Q2 but got everything together in the shoot-out to take a shock pole position for the first time in 2012. Made a clean getaway and then pulled out a gap early on which allowed him to control the race. Resisted pressure from Raikkonen in the penultimate stint to stay in front and score his first win of the season and 22nd of his career to take the lead of the drivers' standings.

Kimi Raikkonen

Qualified 11th but by missing out on Q3 saved an extra set of tyres which would allow him to start every stint in the race on fresh tyres. A disappointing start saw the Finn drop behind both Ferraris, but the Lotus, which had a new rear wing, floor and barge boards in Bahrain, looked fast and consistent in race trim. The Finn battled through the field, passing his team-mate Romain Grosjean for second before setting off in pursuit of leader Vettel. Put the German under pressure but couldn't find a way and ultimately settled for second, his first podium four races into his return to the sport.

Romain Grosjean

Out-qualified Lotus team-mate Kimi Raikkonen to start seventh and start on the clean side of the grid. Made a great start, making several places and then battling Mark Webber for third early on. Rose as high as second with a supreme move around the outside of Lewis Hamilton and pegged the gap to leader Vettel. Could do little about Raikkonen's pace and the Finn duly passed him. But the Frenchman looked after his tyres well and finished a strong third, the first podium of his career and the first for a Frenchman since Jean Alesi in the Belgian Grand Prix in 1998.

Paul di Resta

Missed second practice after the team decided to leave the track early so they could return to their hotel in daylight but made up for lost time with an extended programme in final practice. Made it into Q3, but didn't complete a lap so that he could save tyres. Started 10th and showed that his Force India could look after its tyres as he made a two-stop strategy work. Ran as high as fifth before dropping a place when Nico Rosberg passed him on fresher tyres. Managed to defend his sixth place from Fernando Alonso on the last lap to equal his best ever finish.

Felipe Massa

Arrived in Bahrain having failed to score a point in the first three races. Showed encouraging pace compared to Ferrari team-mate Fernando Alonso in practice. Missed out on Q3 by just over a tenth of a second and started the race 14th. An electric start saw him rise up to seventh in the opening laps. From then on, managed to match his team-mate for pace and though he faded, he only finished seven seconds, and two places, behind Alonso in ninth which is a distinct improvement based on the season so far.

[riazp]

Horrid weekend for the Mclaren boys. But it was a great race to watch. I'm happy for the lotus team, brings more competition to F1 if they can compete with the likes of red bull, McLaren, Ferrari

[MIKA27]

FERRARI EMBARKS ON LONG TERM PROJECTWITH AIM OF SETTING THE STANDARD AGAIN:

In wake of Ferrari technical director Pat Fry's recent frank assessment of the urgent need to change the "methodologies" used at the team in order to become successful again, Stefano Domenicali has now confirmed the process of making such deep-seated change is firmly underway although stressed it would be a long-term project.

Ferrari's disappointing start to the season, which has happened despite a change in design philosophy for 2012, appears to have crystallised for the Maranello hierarchy the need to overhaul its fundamental approach to designing and developing F1 cars. Speaking on Monday, Domenicali, Ferrari's team principal, said the plan was to make root and branch changes to the working practices at the team and confirmed that president Luca di Montezemolo was taking a key active role in the process such is its importance to the outfit's future.

"We are intensifying the process of changing our working procedures in all areas and, at the same time, we are strengthening our efforts in areas where we are weakest, such as aerodynamics," he said on Monday night. "It's a long term project and one that President Montezemolo is studying at first hand and it is vital to the future of the Scuderia. Formula 1 has changed so much these past few years and we have not always been up to speed with these changes. In this area too we need to step up a gear."

Fry had already pinpointed the aerodynamics department as a pivotal area for improvement after being left trailing by Red Bull in particular in recent years and on the eve of the Bahrain GP weekend it was revealed that well-respected former RBR, McLaren and Benetton aerodynamicist Ben Agathangelou was joining the team from Marussia. But although Ferrari is thinking long-term in a bid to return to world championship-winning ways, the team is also working hard to improve its more immediate competitiveness after a difficult start to the season with the F2012.

With teams having another full two weeks of development time ahead of them prior to the start of the European season at Barcelona including the first in-season test for three years at Mugello next week Domenicali admits it is a crucial fortnight for Ferrari. However, he suggested that not every update currently planned to feature in Spain might be ready to roll out on the track at next week's test in Italy.

"The coming days will be very important, during which the primary objective will be to push as hard as possible on the development of the car: next week we have three days of testing at Mugello, but it's not definite that all the updates planned for Barcelona will be seen then," the Italian said. "We must try and make the most of every minute available to us to increase the performance of the F2012."

However, while Ferrari's employees have returned to Europe knowing they have much work ahead of them, the situation has been put into perspective by the tragic news that reached the team in Bahrain on Sunday that a 32-year-old employee who worked in the gearbox department at Maranello, Matteo Vignali, had died of a heart attack that morning.

Following Sunday's race Domenicali admitted the team were in a "state of dismay" and tonight Ferrari added: "After such a long time away, it's good to be home and back with one's nearest and dearest: it is all the more appreciated at this time of sadness at the death of a colleague and in many cases a friend, Matteo Vignali, who passed away suddenly yesterday morning. There were few dry eyes at the Sakhir track yesterday nor in Maranello today at the factory and many will be in Sestola tomorrow afternoon to say a final farewell to Matteo."

[MIKA27]

Alonso angered by Rosberg exoneration

Fernando Alonso says chaos could ensue in future races after the Bahrain stewards ruled that Nico Rosberg's driving was within legal limits.

Rosberg was involved in two controversial moments which were investigated by the stewards after the 57-lap grand prix.

The first was between the Mercedes driver and Lewis Hamilton when Rosberg appeared to force the McLaren driver off the track and onto the dirt while the second was a similar incident, this time involving Alonso.

After hours of looking at all the evidence, the stewards "unanimously decided to take no further action" against Rosberg.

They ruled that his wide line in the Hamilton incident was justifiable while he had not made "any sudden movements" to block or change directions on Alonso.

The Ferrari driver was not happy with the ruling, saying there could have been a very serious accident.

He told the Press Association: "Instead of such a wide run-off area (if) there had been a wall, I'm not sure I'd be here now to talk about it."

Still smarting a while later, the Ferrari driver went onto Twitter to warn of mayhem given that the stewards deemed Rosberg's antics to be okay.

"I think you are going to have fun in future races!" Alonso Tweeted. "You can defend position as you want and you can overtake outside the track! Enjoy!"

MIKA: I'm a MercedesAMG fan BUT in Rosbergs case, he clearly should have been penalised. Look back at Hungarian Grand Prix 2010, Schumacher vs Barichello. Schumacher did the exact same move and was penalised 10 grid places for it. Same should have happened here.

[MIKA27]

'The dead live longest' beams Marko after Bahrain

With Red Bull the latest to hold a trophy aloft this year, yet another potential 2012 champion has emerged.

In theory, back to back world champion Sebastian Vettel, the Bahrain grand prix winner, was always a contender for a third drivers' crown this year.

But his RB8 was not a race winner until Sunday, after McLaren, Mercedes and even Ferrari had tasted the first victory spoils so far this season.

It was said that - amid the extraordinary field of 2012 - Adrian Newey's latest creation was simply in the league of other midfielders including Lotus, Sauber, and perhaps even Williams and Toro Rosso.

But as Dr Helmut Marko remarked at the chequered flag: "Those pronounced dead live longest!"

"We never wrote them off," McLaren team boss Martin Whitmarsh insisted to Germany's Auto Motor und Sport, "because we knew that they had a good car and that they only needed to find the key.

"This season is really crazy; more exciting than we would like!" the Briton admitted. "And now we have to say Lotus are also contenders."

German Vettel won in Bahrain from pole, but even he admitted that the weekend was a surprise.

"After Australia it seemed that McLaren had a supercar and it would be difficult to beat them, at least in the short term," he is quoted by O Estado de S.Paulo.

So even the experts are at a loss after the initial 'flyaway' phase of the new world championship.

"We know that we know nothing," beamed Vettel after his victory, referring to the oddly see-sawing balance of power in 2012, blamed mainly on the Pirelli tyres.

"It is almost impossible to predict in advance how the different tyre compounds are going to behave on race day," he is quoted by Der Spiegel.

"You have an idea, but nothing more."

[MIKA27]

Lotus not sorry after skipping team order

Lotus did not consider employing team orders in order to boost Kimi Raikkonen's chances of winning the Bahrain grand prix.

The 2007 world champion ultimately finished second and even had a stab at overtaking winner Sebastian Vettel.

And he might have had an ever better chance at challenging the Red Bull had his Lotus team chiefs ordered teammate Romain Grosjean aside at a crucial moment.

"Yeah," confirmed Finn Raikkonen, "but there are no team orders and we know the rules.

"I tried to get past as quickly as I can but it's not easy with two similar cars.

"It's always easy to say afterwards 'if we had done that' but in the end we were not fast enough to win and we have to take the second," he added.

Despite team orders being effectively legal in F1, team boss Eric Boullier confirmed that Lotus does not follow that policy.

"We don't want to play team orders, so we let them race normally and what happened, happened," he is quoted by the Mirror.

The most important thing, according to Spanish commentator and former veteran F1 engineer Joan Villadelprat, is that the former Renault team still knows how to win.

"Maybe they don't have the best car on the grid, because McLaren and Red Bull and Mercedes are probably better, but Lotus have made a car capable of competing with the best in the right circumstances," he wrote in El Pais newspaper.

[MIKA27]

Pirelli making F1 a 'show' or a 'lottery'?

Tyres. The political dramas aside, that word utterly dominated the Bahrain grand prix weekend.

Afterwards, Michael Schumacher admitted he was "unhappy" with the situation.

"Sometimes we are driving only 60, 70 per cent through the corners," he is quoted by Bild newspaper.

Pirelli did not take the criticism lightly, insisting it has made Canada 2010-style, heavily degrading tyres to order, for the benefit of the 'show'.

Motor sport director Paul Hembery on Monday 're-Tweeted' a message from a follower accusing the seven time world champion of having thrown "his toys out of the pram".

Moreover, Pirelli said Bahrain is perhaps "the most demanding" on the entire calendar when it comes to degradation.

"As a result, knowing how to manage the tyres and contain thermal degradation was a vital skill" on Sunday, the Italian marque said in a statement.

On Twitter, The Times' correspondent Kevin Eason called Bahrain an "excellent race, although I am not sure we haven't moved from tyre management to lottery".

The roulette wheel didn't spin up for McLaren - the team with arguably the best overall car so far in 2012 - on Sunday.

"Nobody has added a second to their cars in just a week after China," lamented Jenson Button, "but here we were a second off the pace."

His boss Martin Whitmarsh told Auto Motor und Sport: "Maybe it was the pressures, maybe the temperatures. We really don't know."

The German reporter said Whitmarsh's comment indicates an "uncomfortable realisation" for such a scientifically meticulous team.

Whitmarsh agreed: "It is now more important to understand the tyres than to find a bit more downforce."

The tyre marque's test driver Jaime Alguersuari told Mundo Deportivo newspaper that Pirelli deserves credit, not criticism.

"Pirelli is largely responsible for making F1 the most spectacular it has been in a decade," said the young Spaniard.

[mazolaman]

It's an interesting approach to a sport now.

No longer do the FIA allow the teams to build the best car they can, and go for a flat out race.

It's about tinkering with stuff to level off the field...

I can see their angle, to create a spectacle, but it does seem counter-intuitive, and open to manipulation to one or two teams.

[MIKA27]

Mugello rethink for Hamilton

Lewis Hamilton may yet join McLaren's test programme in Mugello following the team's disastrous display in Bahrain.

McLaren announced last week that Hamilton and Jenson Button would skip the in-season test from May 1-3 with reserve drivers Gary Paffett and Oliver Turvey pencilled in for the three days.

However, the team look set to change their plans after their nightmare at the Sakhir circuit on Sunday. Hamilton, who started P2, finished down in eighth after two botched pit stops while Button retired on the penultimate lap with an exhaust problem and a tyre puncture.

Former World Champion Hamilton revealed that he may be in action in Mugello as they have plenty of work to do.

"I need to get back in the car. We need to figure out why the tyres are going off," he said.

"If there are other things to test or ways to figure out I will be the one to do it, not let someone else do it.

"We have a lot of work to do. There is no quick fix. We really have to make some big improvements to the car because the qualifying pace is there but the race pace was miles off."

[MIKA27]

Webber: Season will remain unpredictable

It is anyone's guess how the rest of the 2012 Formula One season will pan out, according to Mark Webber.

The Australian's Red Bull team-mate Sebastian Vettel claimed the honours in Sunday's Bahrain Grand Prix which means four different drivers from four different teams have made it onto the top step of the podium so far this year.

Webber, who has been Mr Consistent so far as he finished fourth in every race, believes the rest of the season is likely to be as unpredictable as the first four races.

"I was a bit surprised by the pace of some other cars," the 35-year-old said on his official website.

"The Lotuses were surprisingly quick, although we've known all season that they have a tidy little car.

"And look at the pace of McLaren and Mercedes: Lewis and Jenson [button] had a difficult day, while Nico [Rosberg] went from dominating in China to being less competitive here. The cars are really sensitive and I can see it continuing like this for the rest of the year."

The build-up to the Bahrain Grand Prix was certainly a tense one for everyone involved with many people calling on authorities to call it off due to the civil unrest in the country.

Webber is happy that the race is over and hopes Red Bull's upgraded packages will give them a big boost during the European season.

"I'm pleased that the Bahrain Grand Prix weekend is over and I'm looking forward to getting back to Europe and racing on some proper circuits," he said.

"We have a lot of new bits coming through and on the evidence of these opening races we'll need them because it's very close out there. I look forward to joining the winner's rostrum soon."

[MIKA27]

Domenicali: We must step up a gear

Although happy that Ferrari managed to "limit the damage" in the Drivers' Championship after a poor start, team boss Stefano Domenicali has warned his squad they need to improve if they want to stay in the running for the title.

Fernando Alonso finds himself just 10 points behind pacesetter Sebastian Vettel in the standings after four flyaway races, but Ferrari will be the first to admit that they have not been anywhere near their best.

"Clearly we cannot be happy with the way our season began but, after the winter tests, we knew the first four races would be very tough," Domenicali told the official Ferrari website.

"We managed to limit the damage, especially in the Drivers' Championship, in which Fernando Alonso is fifth, just ten points off the leader.

"However, it is equally clear that now we must step up a gear, right from the next race. Our engineers are well aware of this and are working day and night to give our drivers a much more competitive car than we have seen on track in these first four races."

The next few weeks will be crucial for the Maranello squad and they will have some time to come up with a better package for the European season as the Spanish GP is nearly three weeks away.

They will also get some valuable track time at Mugello next week as the only in-season test will take place from May 1-3.

"The coming days will be very important, during which the primary objective will be to push as hard as possible on the development of the car: next week we have three days of testing at Mugello, but it's not definite that all the updates planned for Barcelona will be seen then," the Ferrari chief said.

"We must try and make the most of every minute available to us to increase the performance of the F2012."

Most teams have struggled to come to grips with the tyres so far this season and Domenicali knows it will be a crucial aspect to their success.

He added: "Tyres seem to be the most important factor: understanding their behaviour in order to settle on a strategy for the race and also for qualifying, as we saw last weekend in Bahrain, pinpointing the right moment for the pit stops, knowing how best to set a time on a single flying lap, based on the track evolution are all crucial elements in the fight for the top places.

"I expect that, in Barcelona, there will be many teams all bringing significant updates on track and we will have to do a better job than the others."

[MIKA27]

Gonzalez handed Mugello test drive

Rodolfo Gonzalez will share the Caterham driving duties with Heikki Kovalainen and Vitaly Petrov at the three-day test at Mugello next week.

The 25-year-old Venezuelan GP2 driver will be in action on day one on Tuesday with Kovalainen taking over on the Wednesday and his Russian team-mate Petrov finishing things off on Thursday May 3.

Gonzalez, who currently drives for the team's junior Caterham Racing GP2 outfit, previously represented the Norfolk squad at the young driver tests in 2010 and 2011.

"I am very excited about getting back into an F1 car at the Mugello test, and want to thank Caterham F1 Team for this opportunity," he said.

"It will be my third time in an F1 car with this team and it will be another good chance for me to further my experience at the top level of global motorsport.

"I took part in the young driver tests in 2010 and 2011 with the team, so to be able to help their development programme mid-season is another good step in my career and something that I can take lessons from back into my GP2 season with Caterham Racing."

Riad Asmat, Caterham Group Chief Executive Officer said: "Rodolfo is developing well and we are very pleased we are playing an active role in his growth as a driver.

"He did a good job for us when he took part in the young driver tests, and we expect him to work to the plans he is given, deliver what we ask him to on track, and provide the engineers with the sort of feedback someone with his experience should.

"His day with the F1 team in Mugello will also help his ongoing development in GP2 and that will be good news for Caterham Racing, so for everyone involved this is good news."

[MIKA27]

Two testing days for Alonso, one for Massa

Ferrari have confirmed their driving schedule for next week's test at Mugello with Fernando Alonso in action on two of the three days.

The only in-season test of the 2012 season will take place from May 1-3 in Tuscany and all 12 Formula One teams are expected to take part.

Alonso, who finds himself just 10 points behind Championship leader Sebastian Vettel in the standings after four races, will be behind the wheel of the F2012 on Tuesday and Thursday with team-mate Felipe Massa in action the other day.

Ferrari team principal Stefano Dominicali has already urged the squad to make the most of the testing time to get their campaign back on track.

"The coming days will be very important, during which the primary objective will be to push as hard as possible on the development of the car: next week we have three days of testing at Mugello, but it's not definite that all the updates planned for Barcelona will be seen then," he told the team's website.

"We must try and make the most of every minute available to us to increase the performance of the F2012."

[MIKA27]

HRT to skip Mugello test

The HRT F1 team will not take part in next week's test at Mugello as they want to spend more time focusing on updates for their car.

The Spanish-based squad missed the entire pre-season test programme and only launched their F112 shortly before the first race in Australia in the middle of March.

However, their lack of mileage before the start of the season showed in Melbourne as they were unable to qualify for the race with both their drivers outside the 107 per cent rule.

They have made progress since then with Pedro de la Rosa and Narian Karthikeyan qualifying for the races in Malaysia, China and Bahrain.

The duo, though, will once again miss out on testing from May 1-3 as the team wants to "focus its efforts and resources on the new headquarters, work on the car and properly preparing for the Spanish Grand Prix".

"The start to the season was a little bit rushed for us and, since the cars were set up for the first time, we have been working on them at the grands prix," team principal Luis Pérez-Sala said.

"The team and the material have just got back from Bahrain after leaving for Australia in early March. And they return, for the first time, to the team's new headquarters at the Caja Mágica in Madrid.

"This move is very important for us and by not going to Mugello we can work thoroughly on the car to prepare for the Spanish Grand Prix.

"We won't have the new upgrade package until then so we've preferred to focus on what can contribute more to us, which is teamwork at the headquarters. And there is a lot to do."

[MIKA27]

Vettel admits to dip in confidence

Sebastian Vettel has conceded that there has been a dip in confidence inside the Red Bull camp following their stuttering start to the 2012 campaign.

Although the German leads the Championship following his victory at the Bahrain Grand Prix, the team have not come close to replicating the dominating start they had to the 2011 season. Whereas last year Vettel claimed 93 points from a possible 100 in the first four races, this time around he has managed only 53.

The 24-year-old admits that the confidence levels are not quite as high as it was in 2011, but feels they've done well without having the best car on the grid.

"It's a nice story to say we had the best car by far before," he told Metro.

"Yes, we had a very strong car, but sometimes we didn't have the best car yet had strong weekends.

"This year we'd have loved to be in a better place to start. Nevertheless, I think we've had good races."

He added: "It is tight and we're not as confident as we used to be, so small things can make a difference in qualifying and have a big impact on the race.

"The faster you go on Saturday, the easier the race is on Sunday."

The battle at Red Bull between Vettel and Mark Webber is also a lot closer this campaign with the former enjoying only a five-point advantage over his Australian team-mate after the flyaway races.

The defending World Champion believes it could be down to the fact that Webber has come to grips with the new car much quicker than he has.

"I'm not entirely happy with where we are but I think there's great potential in the car," Vettel said.

"You have to give yourself time to try different things and see what works best for you. Maybe Mark struggles a bit less, I don't know, but we talk about how the car feels and agree on most stuff."

[MIKA27]

Haug disagrees with Schumacher's criticism

Mercedes motorsport boss Norbert Haug disagrees with comments made by Michael Schumacher in regards to the Pirelli tyres.

Schumacher criticised Pirelli following the Bahrain Grand Prix after he finished tenth having started 22nd, but had expected much more had it not been for the high tyre wear. He likened the tyres to 'cruising around behind a safety car.'

"The main thing I feel unhappy about is that everyone has to drive well below a driver's, and in particular, the cars limit to maintain the tyres," said the German.

"I just question whether the tyres should play such a big importance, or whether they should last a bit longer - and that you can drive at normal racing car speed and not cruise around like we have a safety car."

Haug however disagrees and believes Pirelli have contributed to making Formula 1 a 'great product.'

"The tires are a challenge for everyone," he told the German media. "Who can best deal with them. It is the same for everyone, and that's important.

"Overall, what we have created in Formula 1 is a very good product, there have been are very good races, we have had different winners and six different teams on the podium. It's a great competition and we are pleased that we are already among the winners."

However, he does understand the drivers frustrations: "I can understand the driver's viewpoint. There is a certain frustration when you think you could go faster, but you are always having to economise - this is not necessarily the nature of a racer."

[MIKA27]

Vergne not focusing on RBR seat

Jean-Eric Vergne insists he doesn't view his battle with Toro Rosso team-mate Daniel Ricciardo as a "fight" for a seat at Red Bull in 2013.

Red Bull have made it clear that they would favour pairing Sebastian Vettel with a driver from their junior programme next year should Mark Webber's contract not be renewed.

Naturally, everyone believes that Vergne and Ricciardo's rivalry at the Faenza team this season is an audition for the seat at their sister squad next year.

However, Vergne played down the suggestions and says he is more interested in helping Toro Rosso finish as high as possible in the standings.

"I don't consider myself more of a rookie - and not faster," he told the official Formula One website. "Some people will tell you that we are in a fight for the Red Bull cockpit, but I don't see that right now.

"I am racing for Toro Rosso and I want to help make the car a points contender. I have no interest finishing in P15 ahead of him. I'd rather finish in P4 behind him if that meant I had a quicker car. Did I just say finish behind him? No, I don't think that I would like this! (laughs) Only the part about fighting at the front is true. Forget about the rest..."

Despite his inexperience, the 21-year-old has not looked out of place in the first four races of the season and finished eighth in only his second race in Malaysia to open his points account in F1.

When asked about the hardest thing to adapt to in the sport, the Frenchman said: "It is a combination of many things - tyres, first and foremost, then aero.

"You have to understand how qualifying works, how race strategies are set up. Many things.

"I have to say that I have adapted to these things pretty well. I also have to say that I like the qualifying format and that there is only one race (the big one on Sunday), not like in GP2 with a race on Saturday and one on Sunday."

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Webber forces Australian broadcast u-turn

Mark Webber has waded into a social media storm over Australian coverage of Formula 1, using his might to force a u-turn on their unfavourable scheduling.

Network Ten, which has the rights to broadcast the sport in Australia, has switched coverage for Perth and Adelaide back to OneHD following its original decision to delay the broadcasts after the race and show them on its main channel, Ten, in standard definition.

It's reported the original move was aimed at hitting a peak audience to attract more advertising revenue, but the network didn't count on such a powerful backlash from F1 fans in the country.

Thousands bombarded Network Ten's Twitter and Facebook pages, whilst others called on Australia's own Mark Webber to use his status to overturn the decision.

Webber tweeted the following: "Come on @tensporttv @onehd I hear our great Australian motor sport fans are not happy with rescheduling of timings of the GPs. #letsgolive."

Just an hour later, the broadcaster announced it would reinstate live coverage on OneHD for Perth and Adelaide, whilst Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane would continue to received the non-HD coverage on Ten, live.

MIKA: This is utter Bull

Been watching F1 live for years and now, they re-instate Live coverage Perth and Adelaide yet the major BIG cities (No offence to Perth and Adelaide) are left without Live coverage.

UPDATE: I couldn't help myself so sent a rather 'Heated" email to ONE HD Network as well as channel 10.

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EUROPE CLINGING ON TO IT'S F1 VENUES:

There has been some movement in the future shape of the F1 calendar with confirmation from Bernie Ecclestone that from next year onwards Valencia and Barcelona will share a slot. And at the same time he said that a deal has been concluded for France to return to the schedule, in a deal alternating with the Belgian Grand Prix at Spa.

“The deal is done,” said Ecclestone. “We agreed the financial terms last Tuesday with the minster of sport, David Douillet. As soon as France is ready, we will sign.”

The sign off for the French Grand Prix is clearly waiting for the French presidential election to be concluded, as is usually the way. It looks quite possible that there could be a new administration in France. Although everyone is working on the assumption that the French race will take place at Paul Ricard in the South of France, paddock sources suggested to me at the weekend not to discount a possible switch and a return to Magny Cours, which hosted the race from 1991 to 2008.

Apparently Paul Ricard, owned by Ecclestone, is not a straightforward proposition as the access roads are not good for a large crowd and there are no grandstands, so temporary ones would have to be erected. There are likely to be political considerations as well, depending on the outcome of the election.

With a French president of the FIA, who is due to face a re-election himself in 18 months time, the French have been making serious efforts to regain their place on the calendar, the French GP not having taken place since 2008. Magny Cours dropped off because of local government finance reasons primarily. The circuit is up to current F1 standards and always provided great racing.

Its return would give Michael Schumacher something to smile about; he won eight times at Magny Cours.

Europe is clinging to its F1 venues, with the financial crisis in the Eurozone set to continue and intensify in the next few years, while there are new venues further afield willing to pay higher sanctioning fees.

Mexico is likely to put a deal together soon, with telecoms billionaire Carlos Slim currently pushing Sergio Perez. If Perez gets into a Ferrari in the near future you can be sure that a Mexican Grand Prix won’t be too far behind. Argentina is pushing hard for a return, while Russia is already scheduled for 2014, New Jersey will have a slot in 2013, probably in June, to tie in with Montreal.

This will leave just seven events; Britain, Monaco, Italy, Spain, Germany, France/Belgium and Hungary as the only European races on a 20 race calendar.

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HOW RAIKKONEN NEARLY WON IN BAHRAIN:

Source: JamesallenonF1.com

The Bahrain Grand Prix was another example of close racing with uncertain outcomes, dependent on race strategy, which has already come to characterise the 2012 F1 season.

Sebastian Vettel and Red Bull became the fourth different car/driver winning combination in four races, showing not only how closely matched the teams are, but also how delicate the balancing act is in getting the strategy right on the Pirelli tyres.

In just four races we have already had eight different drivers on the podium, more than in the whole of 2011.

Bahrain’s Sakhir circuit provided the sternest test yet of the tyres, with plenty of high energy corners, hard braking zones and track temperatures around 40 degrees.

Tyre degradation was very high, especially due to the heat. Degradation is a measure of the decline in lap time performance, whereas wear is the consumption of the tyre.

Strategists briefed on Sunday morning that the wear was not a problem – it would be possible to do a whole race distance on one set of tyres – but the drop-off in lap time was severe over 20 or so laps on the medium tyre and 14 on the soft.

So it was a question of being reactive. It was essential to have a plan in mind, whether that was two stops or three stops, but to be prepared to change it, reacting quickly to pit once you saw degradation affecting the lap time. There was also a huge benefit in having new sets of tyres, rather than used sets.

Pre-race expectations were that most drivers would do three stops, with a few trying a two stop strategy. In the event, among the top ten finishers, only Force India’s Paul di Resta managed to do two stops.

Lotus takes on Red Bull

There were many surprises in this race. The poor performance of McLaren on track and in the pits, for example. But the biggest was the way the Lotus cars of Kimi Raikkonen and Romain Grosjean took on the Red Bulls. They managed to beat Mark Webber fairly easily, but Raikkonen couldn’t quite do enough to beat Vettel to the win.

Lotus has had a good car at every race this season, but hasn’t quite got the strategy right before. In China, for example, they tried to do a two stop race with Raikkonen, but timed the stops wrong and on worn tyres he was vulnerable to the three stoppers at the end of the race, falling from 2nd place to 14th.

In Bahrain they got it almost perfect. The strategy planning began in qualifying, where the Finn did only one lap in the Q2 session, intending save a new set of soft tyres. Here Lotus made a small mistake, which turned out to be a benefit as they sent him out too early and underestimated the track improvement at the end of the Q2 session. Raikkonen failed to make the top ten shootout, where Ricciardo’s result shows that a 6th place start might have been possible for the Lotus. But to do that would have used up more tyres.

It wasn’t their intention to miss Q3, however the upside was that by failing to make the top ten, it meant Raikkonen had two new sets of soft tyres and two new sets of mediums, so he would do the whole race on new tyres. He also had a free choice of starting tyres. Vettel, in contrast, by going all the way to the end of qualifying and taking pole, used all his tyres except for one set of mediums and was forced to start on used softs.

How much was the gain from this on Raikkonen’s side? Every new set you run compared to your rival on a used set is worth around 8 seconds for a stint. Here’s how the strategists work it out: Degradation is 0.3 seconds per lap, so after 3 laps in qualifying on a set of a tyres they is 0.7s per lap slower than a new set.

So for Raikkonen compared to Vettel, in the first three stints there was 24 seconds available to him, provided he could make use of the new tyres and not lose time with mistakes or in traffic. It’s what got him in the game and almost won him the race.

Lotus went for the soft tyre for the start, because it has a higher working temperature than the medium and free practice had shown the car worked well on it with high fuel. They thought they were the fastest car on Friday.

We’ve seen how the start is crucial in strategy terms and Raikkonen made a great start, showing the advantage of new softs tyres off the line, up from 11th to seventh and ahead of Rosberg and Perez. He made a mistake on lap three and let Massa past, taking a couple of laps to get back past him again. During this time he lost three seconds to the leader Vettel. But more significantly he damaged his front wing and so had to deal with some aerodynamic loss, which also cost him for the rest of the race.

Thanks to the new tyres he passed Hamilton, who was struggling, and he managed to extend the first stint to lap 11. By doing this he got ahead of Alonso, Webber and Button. Now he was a contender for the win.

In the second stint on new softs he was the fastest car on the track until he caught his team-mate Grosjean and it was here, arguably, that he lost the chance to win. Vettel was not getting away at the front, Grosjean was on used medium tyres and Raikkonen was caught up behind him. He passed the Frenchman then set off after Vettel.

On new mediums compared to Vettel’s used softs he caught up quickly, but couldn’t pass. With some clear air instead of the four laps he spent behind Grosjean, he might have had the platform to jump Vettel in the final stops, but instead he made his third stop on the same lap and with Vettel using his only new set of tyres in the final stint, Raikkonen had no further tyre advantage to play and had to follow him home.

Raikkonen was disappointed after the race. He had a chance to win, just as Perez had a chance to win in Malaysia. The strategy was good enough to give him a chance, but not perfect. Perhaps with a little more ruthlessness by Lotus, moving Grosjean aside, it could have been perfect.

Tour de Force by Di Resta and Force India

After a trying weekend off the track the Sahara Force India team got a great result on Sunday with Paul Di Resta finishing sixth. As the Scotsman said afterwards, this felt like a win for the midfield team.

He did it despite having the slowest car of the top 12 qualifiers, with a pace offset of 8/10ths of a second per lap to the Red Bulls and McLarens and 3/10ths to the Mercedes.

Again the strategy planning began in qualifying; the team had taken the decision not to do a lap in Q3 but instead to save tyres for the race, knowing that he was going to try to do a two-stop race. This gave him two new sets of soft tyres and one new set of mediums for the race.

The ideal two stop race was to stop on laps 19 and 38, but even though he had new soft tyres at the start, he couldn’t get further than lap 14 before the degradation became too great, relative to the three stoppers, and he had to pit. He was the last of the top ten to do so.

With everyone around him three stopping, Force India knew their driver would be vulnerable at the end of the race on worn tyres to three stoppers on fresh tyres, but Di Resta drove a masterful race, keeping the tyres alive at the same time as keeping the pace up.

On new softs at the start, he lost two places off the line and lost time behind Senna. However, by extending his soft tyres to lap 14 he was able to get ahead of many of the three stoppers, including Rosberg, whom he was racing for final position.

Traffic is less of a problem for a two stopper than a three stopper, but Di Resta still lost time at various stages of the race, particularly the second stint where he was faster than many three stoppers, despite looking to do a 19 lap stint compared to their 13 laps. If there was a place where he lost the opportunity to finish ahead of Rosberg, it was probably here.

With a final stint of 24 laps, he was vulnerable at the end of the race, to Rosberg, but was helped by Button’s late race retirement and the fact that Alonso didn’t quite have the straight line speed to attack in the final laps. Using KERS, Di Resta could defend and hold his 6th position, equalling his career best F1 finish.

The UBS Race Strategy Report is written by James Allen with input from F1 team strategists and from Pirelli.

RACE HISTORY

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Lotus boss Boullier says Romain Grosjean has the potential to be F1 champion

Lotus team principal Eric Boullier believes that Romain Grosjean's performance in the Bahrain Grand Prix has proved that he has the potential to be world champion in the future.

The Franco-Swiss driver claimed his first podium finish in F1, but Boullier was particularly impressed with his pace relative to team-mate Kimi Raikkonen.

"More than the podium finish, what was impressive is the fact that he finished so close to Kimi and just 10 seconds behind Sebastian Vettel," said Boullier when asked by AUTOSPORT about Grosjean's performance.

"I was not expecting to have both drivers to finish so close together.

"That means that he is now capable and ready to compete at the highest level. He has the speed and the talent to be world champion one day."

Boullier believes that the team's strong driver line-up will be key to its success this season.

Despite being impressed with Raikkonen's performances on F1 comeback and hailing his results so far, Boullier expects the Finn to improve further as the season progresses.

"There is more to come," said Boullier. "He has shown many times that he has the pace. When he needed to recover, from a bad qualifying in the race, he has been able to do it.

"It took him very little time to recover after a two year's absence and he showed this weekend that he is there."

MIKA: It's interesting this article as it was only this afternoon I spoke with Steve (OzCuban) where I stated the same feeling that Grosjean will be a World champion such as Schumacher. I also stated Maldonado at Williams is another to look out for.