FORMULA 1 - 2012

[MIKA27]

High demand for US GP tickets

Tickets for the first US grand prix in Austin later this year appear to be selling exceedingly well.

The local American Statesman newspaper is reporting that the Circuit of the Americas organisation is considering adding more grandstands due to the unexpectedly high demand.

"We have experienced incredible demand for reserved grandstand seating tickets, and customers have quickly purchased our available inventory," public relations vice-president Julie Loignon confirmed.

She said most of the tickets that went on sale a week ago have been sold.

The first US grand prix since 2007 is scheduled for mid November.

[MIKA27]

Thailand eyes 2014 grand prix debut

Thailand is on track to secure a round of the 2014 world championship.

The southeast Asian country made its intentions clear recently by successfully bidding to host this year's end-of-season Race of Champions in December, which will be attended by reigning world champion Sebastian Vettel.

Talks have also been taking place about bringing formula one to Thailand.

"Our discussions with Bernie Ecclestone have gone smoothly. We expect to get rights to host a grand prix from 2014 onwards," Kanokphand Chulakasem, governor of the Sports Authority of Thailand, is quoted by the Phuket News.

The Thai daily The Nation said 51 per cent Red Bull energy drink owner and co-founder Chalerm Yoovidhya is playing a role in the logistics of the Thai grand prix.

[capnshazam]

  On 6/18/2012 at 3:08 AM, MIKA27 said:

High demand for US GP tickets

Tickets for the first US grand prix in Austin later this year appear to be selling exceedingly well.

The local American Statesman newspaper is reporting that the Circuit of the Americas organisation is considering adding more grandstands due to the unexpectedly high demand.

"We have experienced incredible demand for reserved grandstand seating tickets, and customers have quickly purchased our available inventory," public relations vice-president Julie Loignon confirmed.

She said most of the tickets that went on sale a week ago have been sold.

The first US grand prix since 2007 is scheduled for mid November.

I bought tickets last week, but just checked again to see what was available and only general admission passes are left. There are no grandstand seats...I don't know about the premium seats though I don't have the 3,000-5,000 US for a PSL.

[OZCUBAN]

Hi all

Good to see the G.P back in the the U.S looks like a really good track can't wait for the race ,congrats Austin

Cheers OZ

[MIKA27]

ANGRY F1 FANS LEFT HIGH AND DRY AS TICKET COMPANY FAILS:

Many F1 fans have found themselves without tickets for upcoming Grands Prix, including the British GP at Silverstone, despite paying for them, due to the apparent closure of a business called Simply The Ticket.

Fans, many of whom are travelling to Valencia this week for the European GP, became alarmed when tickets did not arrive and have been trying to get information over the weekend. The company’s website and Twitter account are no longer active.

“I booked British F1 tickets through simplytheticket and not received anything. We’ve resorted to booking weekend passes,” tweeted one fan, Louise Smith. While another, Daffyd Owain Davies in desperation tweeted Fernando Alonso to see if he could help, “can you re-tweet, #simplytheticket website has taken money from people and not delivered European grand prix tickets.”

Fans are finding that availability for replacement tickets for Valencia is quite difficult, as organisers appear to have cut seat capacity in the face of the financial crisis in Spain.

One JA on F1 reader, Ben Miller, wrote in today,

“I am taking my girlfriend to Valencia this weekend for the F1 but we haven’t received the tickets. Simplytheticket.com were not contactable last week and over the weekend the website was taken down and tweets suggest it has gone bust.

“I am not flavour of the month because its her first GP, and worse still her friends another couple, copied us in purchasing tickets from the same site.

“I have booked tickets through websites all across Europe and never had any problems, but its my fault for not going to the official site. I will have to take it on the chin and learn by my mistake, if I can buy replacements when I’m over there I will be relieved.”

You can read the Twitter stream on this story HERE

[MIKA27]

Pirelli tipping Schumacher for Valencia

Paul Hembery is backing Michael Schumacher, one of Pirelli's first critics, to achieve success at the upcoming European GP in Valencia.

Schumacher was vocal in his criticism of the Pirelli tyres even before it become common place to slate the Italian tyre manufacturer, slamming them back in April and again in May when he said they were like driving on "raw eggs."

Later that month, though, Schumacher drove his Mercedes W03 to pole position at Monaco and Hembery reckons there's no reason why he can't put in a repeat at Valencia and carry that form though to the Sunday.

"I think you have to look at someone like, maybe Michael getting the pole position," the Pirelli motorsport director told Autosport.

"He probably would have won Monaco if he hadn't been penalised, so why not there? Michael for Valencia, that's where the money needs to go."

Hembery added his voice to those speaking about the importance of a good qualifying session for the European GP, saying that starting at the front of the grid is the key to success.

"We know Valencia is a tough track to create an exciting race. It's hard to overtake and it's got elements of Monaco from that point of view.

"There will be some high temperatures, of course, and we're going there with the soft and medium tyre, so we should have less degradation.

"There will not be the challenge that we had in Canada, with the super soft being pushed to its limit, so that is why track position is going to be fundamental. You've got to really get a good qualifying in Valencia."

[MIKA27]

Button: Not whinging, developing

Jenson Button has denied that he's a bit of a whinger, saying it's not complaining when he talks to the team over the radio.

In recent weeks, Button has often been heard telling his team over the radio that his car has too much oversteer or understeer.

And although these comments are often reported as Button complaining to his team, the Brit insists he's not moaning. Rather, he says, he's offering comments on what needs fixing with the car.

"It's not moaning," the 32-year-old told the Daily Mirror.

"People say, 'He always whinges'. You are not whinging. It is about developing a car through the race. It is what drivers do.

"If you drove round and didn't say anything for the whole race, you are doing something wrong.

"If you complain about oversteer, understeer or an issue, it is to improve for the next stint of the race.

"At the pit stop, you can raise the tyre pressures, add front wing, you go out and it should be better. A driver doesn't just drive the car, he engineers the car with his engineers.

"If you have an issue, you try to solve it in the race. You don't wait until the end and say, 'First stint I had massive understeer'!

"If you do that the engineers will say, 'Why didn't you tell us? We could have solved it for the next stint'."

[MIKA27]

FIA drops second DRS zone for European GP

The FIA has opted to drop the second drag-reduction zone for the European Grand Prix after reviewing its effectiveness from last season.

Instead the race will feature the one zone between turns 10 and 12.

Detection has yet to be confirmed but will likely remain in the same place as 2011, just before turn eight where the following driver must be within a second of the car ahead.

As the car approaches the sweeping bend that is T11, they can activate the rear-wing to provide an additional 7-8 kph boost along the straight before the wing automatically closes in the braking zone for turn 12.

[MIKA27]

FERRARI DESIGNER TOMBAZIS PLEASE WITH "BIG IMPROVEMENT"

Ferrari’s Chief Designer Nikolas Tombazis says the team has found “a big improvement in car performance” following intensive work on the F2012 and it goes into the European Grand Prix this weekend with confidence.

Valencia’s street track plays host to F1 for the fifth time this weekend. It is a track similar in some characteristics to the two previous races in Monaco and Montreal; low speed traction being pivotal to performance there. This was a weakness of the Ferrari at the start of the season, with the first round at Melbourne being a race in which neither car managed to reach Q3. But following a strong showing in Monaco and Montreal for both drivers the Maranello squad feel they are now on the right track.

“It’s all down to a huge amount of work, from a large number of people, with particular emphasis on aerodynamics, design and production,” said Tombazis. “It’s been intense over the past few months resulting in a big improvement in car performance. We have worked with determination to deal with all the negative points we picked up right from the first test in the winter.”

The Monaco Grand Prix was a race that Ferrari could have won, had it been for a slightly braver strategy for Alonso with a longer first stint. Along with this Felipe Massa had his strongest showing of the year, proving the car was ready to win more races. Then in Montreal Alonso took third on the grid and although it failed to win him the race he was able to lead the majority of the GP, making just one stop and proving that the car’s traction and sensitivity for the new Pirelli tyres has vastly improved.

“At the moment, we are reasonably satisfied with the point we are at now, given where we started from, however, we cannot be totally happy, as we are not in a position to dominate races,” added Tombazis.

The most recent cause for this increased performance came from reverting back to a variant of the team’s earlier exhaust configuration for the Montreal Grand Prix. “The exhaust layout in Montreal was a cousin of the one we tested in Jerez at the launch,” said Tombazis. “The former one was more complicated and created various problems for us which meant it did not contribute much in terms of lap time or making the driver feel it was a benefit. We therefore abandoned it.”

Barring Alonso’s victory in the mixed conditions of the Malaysian Grand Prix, the Italian squad were still unsettled and unable to compete with the race winners until the Spanish GP. However since then Ferrari have always been in the mix to add to that sole victory and this weekend should see further upgrades aid in giving Alonso a home win, or awarding Massa with his second win in Valencia.

“Our work is continuing at the same intensity and, our plan is to introduce developments at every race, starting with Valencia: this weekend we will be experimenting with the front wing and the floor, while having further evolutions of the exhausts,” added Tombazis.

[MIKA27]

MALLAYA: TIME FOR FORCE INDIA TO JOIN THE PODIUM PARTY:

Vijay Mallya has set his Force India team the target of emulating the feats of perennial midfield rivals Sauber and Williams in achieving podium finishes this year so not to be left behind in the constructors’ championship.

Force India went into this season appearing to be the most upwardly mobile of Formula 1’s midfield teams after a strong points-scoring run in the second half of last year secured them their best finishing position under Mallya’s control, sixth, and also nearly overhaul the team now known as Lotus. But in addition to seeing Lotus regroup over the winter and remerge as bona-fide front runners, Force India has also seen major steps forward from two teams it finished ahead of in 2011, with Williams winning in Barcelona and Sauber claiming two podium finishes with Sergio Perez.

Force India’s best result, meanwhile, is Paul di Resta’s sixth place in Bahrain and the team is already 30 points adrift of Sauber in sixth place in the standings. Mallya insists such statistics must change soon if the team are to have a hope of at least matching its final result from last season.

“I think Canada showed once again that Formula One is hard to predict at the moment,” the team principal said. “It’s seriously competitive with seven different winners in seven races, all of which is great for the sport – I would certainly go along with that. But while it’s hard to predict, we still need to lift our game, especially if we want to target fifth or sixth in the constructors’ championship. Yes, we’ve had one of our best starts to a season ever in terms of points scored, but the teams around us have also performed exceptionally well.

“The teams that we have been comparable with in the past few years like Sauber and Williams have been on the podium, and I’m sure our time will come, as long as we get things right.”

Mallya, who was disappointed how a potentially big result last time out in Canada slipped through the team’s fingers after a strong start to the race with di Resta, added that it was vital that Force India started making the most of the VJM05′s potential before it was too late: “It’s something we need to do sooner rather than later because we are quickly approaching the midway point of the season. I hope we can recapture our form in Valencia, return to the points and demonstrate our potential.”

[MIKA27]

BRAWN PREDICTS EIGHTH DIFFERENT F1 RACE WINNER AT VALENCIA:

Mercedes F1 boss Ross Brawn says that there is every reason to believe that the sport will see its eighth different winner this weekend in Valencia, tipping his own driver Michael Schumacher to be a possible victor along with the Lotus drivers.

“With the tyre situation predictions are very difficult, but I expect Valencia to be a good track for us and I expect us to be competitive as we have been at most of the races this season,” said Brawn in an interview on Mercedes

.

“There’s every opportunity that at the next race in Valencia we’re going to have an eighth winner. There are some very quick drivers in very quick cars who have not won a race yet – think of Michael in our car. The Lotus is a good car and they haven’t won, Sauber have had some great results and they’ve not won. So I think we’re going to see and eighth winner and it’s going to be amazing.”

Brawn acknowledged that the finishing record of Michael Schumacher is a source of “huge frustration” to the team. The German has only finished twice in seven starts and has just two points on the board. When they were together at Ferrari in the early 2000s, Brawn introduced a high level quality control system which meant that Schumacher suffered very few reliability issues.

In Montreal Schumacher retired once again with what Brawn reveals was a hydraulic coupling issue, which jammed his DRS wing open. The team has modified the part for this weekend’s race.

“It’s peculiar we have had one car do every lap of every race and one with so many problems. Our standards are very high,” he said. “We haven’t changed anything or let our standards slip on any way, so it has been highly frustrating that we have had so many problems.”

Research by German magazine Auto Motor und Sport shows that while the Mercedes has been the second fastest car in qualifying with average Q2 lap times less than two hundredths of a second off the average pace of the McLaren, which has been the quickest qualifying car so far. But in the race, the story is very different with Mercedes almost a second slower per lap on average than the Red Bull, which has been the fastest race car, according to the research, based on an average of all the lap times. This is a harder figure to calculate than the Q2 time, because some teams have gone for ‘slower’ strategies with fewer stops on occasions so lap times will not be directly comparable in all cases.

However Brawn points out that despite the promise not being fulfilled, “Nico is only one race win away from leading the world championship,” which shows how wide open this championship is due to the spread of different winners and podium finishers.

[MIKA27]

MCLAREN CONFIDENT CORNER WAS TURNED WITH CANADA WIN:

McLaren heads into the middle phase of the season hopeful it has finally turned a corner with its pit stops and strategy in wake of Lewis Hamilton’s victory in Canada, operations director Simon Roberts has said today.

The team’s attempts to capitalise on the MP4-27’s generally strong pace since Jenson Button’s season-opening victory in Australia had been hampered by repeated errors in pit stops in particular but a change to its processes and personnel since Spain have steadily improved the situation, with analysis on this website showing that, while McLaren’s fastest pit stop remained behind those of chief rivals’ Ferrari, Mercedes and Red Bull in Montreal, the difference between the quartet’s respective times was a mere couple of tenths of a second.

Sporting director Sam Michael has targeted average stop times of 3s going forward and speaking with journalists in the latest Vodafone phone-in on Wednesday afternoon, Roberts said the team were now far more content with the situation. “We’re very conscious and we made changes to the way we do things. Obviously you can inadvertently increase level or risk or just get people slightly out of position. So the guys on the race team have done a huge amount of work all season really on trying to refine the pit-stop strategy and even the way we approach qualifying.

“So I think we were fairly pleased in Canada. Hopefully that’s turned the corner. We’re not planning anything different going forward. So no big changes but hopefully we can just consolidate on what we’ve been doing and keep it in the sweet spot.”

While McLaren’s execution of Lewis Hamilton’s Canada win was all-but error-free, a sticky right-rear wheel nut at the key second stop aside, the team’s overriding concern ahead of this weekend’s return to action has been trying to establish what has sent Jenson Button’s form so badly awry in recent races, a slump which culminated in the 2009 world champion’s worst race finish for four years last time out.

Roberts said that analysis back at the factory had shown there to be no fundamental differences between Hamilton’s race-winning MP4-27 and the one Button struggled so badly with, and instead pointed to “subtleties” with Button’s car that he was optimistic wouldn’t prove too difficult for the team to correct.

“We’re pretty sure at the moment that there was nothing untoward with Jenson’s car and actually nothing fundamentally wrong with the set-up,” Roberts explained. “But in the subtlety of these cars as they are at the moment there are differences and going into Valencia I think we’re quite optimistic that having identified that we can have a slightly different way of getting Jenson’s car under him for the qualifying and for the race.

He added: “This isn’t big stuff like fundamentally running a different aero balance or anything like this. This is absolutely down buried in the detail. We think we’re a step nearer to understanding it all, whether we’ve got it cracked it only time will tell. But a painful and interesting learning exercise for us.”

[MIKA27]

Lotus remain fully behind Raikkonen

Lotus team principal Eric Boullier insists that he has no doubts about Kimi Raikkonen's ability to succeed once more in F1.

The Finn's highly-anticipated return to the sport after a two-year absence has not yet proved quite as spectacular as many had hoped, although perhaps realistically podium finishes in Bahrain and Spain are a significant achievement.

Questions have also been raised about the former World Champion's attitude, though, after he decided against running during first practice at Monaco because he did not like the feel of the car. This was one of many occasions in which he has been unhappy with the handling of the E20.

Despite this, Boullier insists that the team are simply undergoing a teething process as they adapt to having two new drivers.

"It is all part of the understanding between team and driver," Boullier told Autosport. "We had two new drivers in the team and each driver has his own driving style and characteristics.

"It is just part of the learning process - and teams like McLaren, Red Bull Racing and Ferrari, they have driver line-ups that they are used to working with.

"This year we had two new drivers - which included one nearly complete rookie. And with Kimi, we just had to take time to adjust. It has just been part of the process to understand his driving style and make adjustments to know how best to work together."

Raikkonen and Romain Grosjean have spoken of their belief that a Lotus could be powered to victory this weekend in Valencia, and it is not totally out of the question with the Enstone outfit having challenged for wins in previous races.

In the past, challenging for wins and grabbing podiums may have been enough for the team, but such has been the strength of the team's running and the up and down nature of the season, the lack of a win could be viewed as a disappointment. Boullier for one feels that this is not the case.

"There is certainly no frustration," he said of the team's failure to stand on the top step of the podium.

"I think we have to be proud of what we achieved so far, and I can only praise the efforts of factory and all the guys. There is no frustration to have - it is a new cycle, new drivers, and we knew we cannot have the perfect style from race one. You always have to improve yourself.

"Our car was coming from a little bit further back than the others, so it took time to get the package working. But it is nice to have some good expectations."

[MIKA27]

Webber expects Red Bull stay in 2013

Mark Webber insists his future at Red Bull relies solely on his performances this season, which up until now have been relatively positive according to the Australian.

Webber's current contract with the energy drinks team expires at the end of the current year, and whilst rumours have suggested he may be off to Ferrari, the 35-year-old has rubbished such suggestions and expects to continue as is.

"[The results] have been very inconsistent this year. Up to the Monaco Grand Prix I hadn't even been on the podium, then I won," Webber told Autosprint. "As far as I'm concerned, I'm driving very well, and I see no difference with last year's situation.

"At the moment I don't have a contract for next year, just like at this time last year and just like the year before that," he added. "My agreements are only valid from one season to the next one, and at each expiry we have never really gone on the market, in the sense that in the end we have always renewed with Red Bull.

"Let's see how it ends up, but it can be the same again this year. That's what I mean, we don't need to go on the market because results speak for themselves."

Webber added that no contact has yet taken place between himself and Ferrari, despite the speculation.

"I have no offers from Ferrari. I know people were talking a lot about that, at least until Felipe had a good weekend in Monte Carlo.

"But if it was all true, then Ferrari would need to field eight cars next year! That's not possible, as there are just two cars."

[MIKA27]

Vettel 'flattered' by Ferrari praise

Sebastian Vettel may be "flattered" by Ferrari's high opinion of him but insists he is "very happy" at Red Bull Racing.

The German is once again being linked to a Ferrari race-seat after the Italian stable's team boss Stefano Domenicali said he believes Vettel and Fernando Alonso could make a good pairing.

"I think they are both intelligent guys and they could easily coexist together," the Italian told Auto Bild.

Vettel, though, says that while it's "nice" to receive comments like that, he's still happy with Red Bull Racing.

"It's very nice to hear that. I respect Ferrari a lot, I respect Fernando a lot. I see it as a compliment," the reigning World Champ said.

"I'm flattered, obviously. I've always said that Ferrari is a great team with a great history, a great tradition, in Formula 1 in particular.

"But as I've said before, I'm very happy with where I am at the moment."

[MIKA27]

Button to copy Hamilton's set-up

Jenson Button has revealed he will copy McLaren team-mate Lewis Hamilton's set-up in Valencia as he bids to turn his fortunes around.

Button's form has slumped in recent weeks resulting in the Brit scoring just two points in four grands prix.

The 32-year-old's dismal results have caused a great deal of confusion with Button lamenting after Canada that he couldn't understand his lack of pace.

Now in bid to turn it around in Valencia, the McLaren driver says he will look to follow Hamilton's lead - at least in Friday's first practice.

"I guess the first thing you do is set-up the car like the other car, and that's what we'll do initially," Button said.

"There will be settings that Lewis prefers more than anybody else does because that's how he sets it up.

"I won't be as quick as him on those settings, but then we can work from there and find a set-up that works for me."

Button added that is confident a solution will be found to his current woes.

"I've won a race this year, won many races before and that's where I feel I should be.

"You do have bad races, so it becomes about pulling together and working out the reasons, and we will.

"We will understand because this is a great team which has won many races and World Championships, and we've won many great races together, so we will work out what the issue is.

"I will solve the issues - or we will solve the issues together."

[MIKA27]

Alonso: 'I have a say in who's my team-mate'

Fernando Alonso revealed on Thursday during the FIA press conference, that he has a say in who partners him at Ferrari.

The Spaniard was posed the question of who could be his next team-mate with Ferrari looking likely to replace Felipe Massa. Speculation has linked several drivers to the seat and Alonso insists any driver would be welcome.

"Every time is the same with Ferrari: whatever team-mate comes in the future will be welcome, he will be part of the team and part of Ferrari," he said. "Whatever team-mate comes in the future it will not be a problem and we will try to work as we are doing now with Felipe."

The 30-year-old then confirmed what many in the paddock had suspected - that he has a say as to who sits in the second Ferrari.

"In the past, never. Now in Ferrari, yes," he added. "I am in Italy every week when we are there. Sometimes I see the president, I see Stefano and we talk about development of the car.

"We talk about the future en F1, about Corse Clienti, owners who have old F1 cars that want us to be there in some circuits to teach some senior drivers, and also about future and team-mates, etc."

The double world champion also insisted he would have "no problem" partnering Lewis Hamilton again - who happened to be sat to his left in the press conference.

[MIKA27]

Thailand could be F1's next night race

If Thailand joins the F1 calendar in 2014, the southeast Asian country's grand prix could be staged under lights, it has emerged.

Thailand made its intentions clear recently by successfully bidding to host this December's end-of-season Race of Champions, and talks have also taken place about bringing formula one to the country.

"Our discussions with Bernie Ecclestone have gone smoothly. We expect to get rights to host a grand prix from 2014 onwards," Kanokphand Chulakasem, governor of the Sports Authority of Thailand, said recently.

Asiancorrespondent.com now quotes Chulaksem as also saying: "The race might be held at night to accommodate viewers in Europe and help earn more in sponsorship."

F1's only artificially-lit races are in Singapore and Abu Dhabi.

There is speculation Thailand's grand prix could be held on the streets of the capital Bangkok, on an upgraded Bira circuit 165km from Bangkok, or at a new purpose-built F1 facility.

[MIKA27]

Massa not ruling out return to Sauber

Felipe Massa has not ruled out returning to Sauber next year if he is forced to leave Ferrari.

Brazilian Massa, now 31, made his debut with the Swiss team in 2002 and then returned for the 2004-5 seasons following an interlude as Ferrari's official test driver.

He moved to the famous Maranello based team to be Michael Schumacher's teammate in 2006, but high speculation this year suggests he could be replaced at the end of the season by Ferrari's top development driver Sergio Perez.

Mexican Perez's promotion would create a key vacancy at Sauber, the Swiss team with historically political links to Ferrari and a customer of the fabled Italian squad's engine, gearbox and KERS.

Fernando Alonso on Thursday revealed he will have a say on whether or not Massa is retained in 2013.

"Fernando is very respected within Ferrari because of his results so it's natural that he participates in the decision about the drivers," Massa is quoted by Brazil's O Estado de S.Paulo on Thursday.

"We have a good relationship, I know he supports me, but what really matters is my results," he insisted.

"That is what will make Ferrari either keep me or whether I will have to go to another team."

Massa refused to say if he has been in contact with McLaren, whose Lewis Hamilton is yet to renew his deal for 2013.

"My best option now is to get results," he answered.

Massa said recently he would rather "do something else" rather than sign with a "small" team in 2013.

Is Sauber 'small'? Massa answered in Valencia: "Medium."

Journalist Livio Oricchio commented: "It (Sauber) could be an option, but I don't think so.

"I have great relationships with the team, we travel together on Swissair -- from what I hear, it would be surprising to see Massa there."

[MIKA27]

Rivals suggest Cosworth set to quit F1

Cosworth could be set to exit formula one.

Currently, with F1's existing V8 formula facing its final season in 2013, there are four engine suppliers on the grid -- Ferrari, Mercedes, Renault and Cosworth, the British independent.

But the rules are changing radically, as from 2014 cars and drivers must be powered by turbo V6s complemented by sophisticated KERS systems.

Late in 2011, there were rumblings Cosworth - left with just two customers this year in the form of struggling Marussia and HRT - might not be able to commit to expensive V6 research and development.

Indeed, even the viability of Cosworth staying around for the final V8 season has been the subject of recent paddock speculation.

"Cosworth, for sure, are finished," Renault's Jean-Francois Caubet is quoted now by German-language website motorsport-total.com.

And Craig Pollock, whose new PURE foray is developing a V6 for 2014, agreed: "Cosworth cannot be there in 2014.

"They just can't make it in time now, no matter what anybody says," he told the Dutch website gpupdate.net. "It's an absolute impossibility."

Recently, Cosworth lost its best customers - Williams and Caterham - to Renault, as the French supplier pushes harder for the FIA to further relax the rules about how many partners each carmaker can supply.

"I am pushing for an open market because we are in formula one and regulations cannot solve all the problems," Caubet was quoted as saying last year.

[MIKA27]

VETTEL CRUISES TO VALENCIA POLE, BUT LOTUS LOOK LIKE CONTENDERS:

Sebastian Vettel needed just one lap at the end of qualifying to claim a sensational pole position in Valencia ahead of Lewis Hamilton and Pastor Maldonado.

The Red Bull driver had struggled in an ultra competitive Q2 session and used up two sets of option tyres getting into Q3, leaving him with only one new set for Q3. But he managed the situation and pulled out his usual optimum lap to grab the pole.

But the Lotus cars are poised to play a role in the outcome of the Grand Prix, when track conditions are expected to be hot and with the car’s ability to make one stop less than its immediate rivals, it could make for a very interesting strategic race tomorrow. Vettel looks very strong in the Red Bull, but both Lotus drivers could have a say in the podium, so Vettel and Hamilton will have to work hard tomorrow.

“It will be a difficult race and difficult to predict,” said Vettel. “We have seen too much this year to sit here on Saturday afternoon and predict what is going to happen. It will be hotter tomorrow and there will be a lot of cars to look out for.”

In a session where Vettel showed the kind of qualifying confidence he had in 2011, the Red Bull driver claimed his 33rd pole position, 0.3 seconds clear of Hamilton, to prove that widespread changes to the RB8 have very much given the team a step forward. The same can not be said for the sister Red Bull of Mark Webber who carried a technical issue with the hydraulics operating his DRS wing from practice in to qualifying and could not make his way out of Q1 with just one run on the option tyres and will start the race in 19th position. He was 7/10ths slower than Vettel despite having no DRS wing, which he reckoned to be worth 1.3 seconds a lap.

The Ferraris of Fernando Alonso and Felipe Massa were disappointed, both eliminated in Q2, along with Michael Schumacher in the Mercedes and they will start the race from outside the top ten. It was an extremely closely fought Q2, at the climax of which the top seven drivers were covered by just 0.1 seconds. Alonso and Massa both used a set of prime tyres for their first run in Q2 where all others opted for the option compound. When they made their second run, this time with the option compound, they were unable to find the necessary time to make their way in to Q3. They were only 2/10ths off the fastest time in Q2, but so close was the field, it wasn’t enough to take them through. Although the ability to have a free choice of tyres for tomorrows Grand Prix may soften the blow.

“We were not quick enough,” Alonso said. “Normally if you get into Q3 it is because you deserve it and because you do the job. We will try to recover tomorrow and try to gain some positions.”

In the final minutes of the top-ten shootout pole position changed hands many times as Nico Rosberg’s provisional pole was beaten by Romain Grosjean and then Maldonado before Vettel followed up on his practice pace to take his third pole of 2012.

Hamilton was the best of the rest, pipping Maldonado to continue his consistency of front-row starts. The McLaren driver once again outshone Jenson Button with the pacesetter in this morning’s final practice only managing ninth place, after a tricky build up to the race for McLaren,

“I expected to be a lot further back,” said Hamilton. “We struggled all weekend and into qualifying I had to make some guesses as to what set-up I wanted, and it seems to work. I’m really, really surprised. The guys did a great job to get me a good lap and the car felt pretty good. The gap is still quite big so it will be quite a tough race tomorrow as always.”

Joining Maldonado on the second row is Grosjean in the Lotus. Both cars had threatened to take pole position but will both be more than satisfied with their afternoon’s work, particularly Grosjean who also showed very good race pace during the longer runs in free practice.

The third row is occupied by Kimi Raikkonen and Nico Rosberg, with Raikkonen’s result confirming that Lotus have turned around their qualifying performance. Rosberg was near the head of the field for the duration of the session, however he failed to improve on his Q2 time where Vettel found 0.5 seconds. He claimed Hamilton had blocked him, but the stewards went through it with Hamilton and found nothing wrong with the McLaren driver’s conduct.

Kamui Kobayashi and Nico Hulkenberg both beat their respective team-mates to claim seventh and eighth positions. Kobayashi in particular putting in a very good performance just 0.3 off a front row start.

Paul Di Resta completed the top ten, after briefly setting the fastest first sector time in Q3. A mistake in Turn 17 meant that a possible top six qualifying slot went begging and Di Resta was very disappointed.

It was a good day for Caterham and Heikki Kovalainen, who qualified ahead of both Toro Rosso cars, with Jean Eric Vergne having dropped out of qualifying at the first stage for the fifth time in seven races. It was the second time this season, after Bahrain, where Kovalainen made it into Q2.

Timo Glock was forced to miss the session due to a stomach bug and will take a view tomorrow on whether to start the race from the back of the grid.

EUROPEAN GRAND PRIX, Valencia, Qualifying

1. Sebastian Vettel Red Bull 1m38.086s

2. Lewis Hamilton McLaren 1m38.410s + 0.324

3. Pastor Maldonado Williams 1m38.475s + 0.389

4. Romain Grosjean Lotus 1m38.505s + 0.419

5. Kimi Raikkonen Lotus 1m38.513s + 0.427

6. Nico Rosberg Mercedes 1m38.623s + 0.537

7. Kamui Kobayashi Sauber 1m38.741s + 0.655

8. Nico Hulkenberg Force India 1m38.752s + 0.666

9. Jenson Button McLaren 1m38.801s + 0.715

10. Paul di Resta Force India 1m38.992s + 0.906

11. Fernando Alonso Ferrari 1m38.707s + 0.218

12. Michael Schumacher Mercedes 1m38.770s + 0.281

13. Felipe Massa Ferrari 1m38.780s + 0.291

14. Bruno Senna Williams 1m39.207s + 0.718

15. Sergio Perez Sauber 1m39.358s + 0.869

16. Heikki Kovalainen Caterham 1m40.295s + 1.806

17. Daniel Ricciardo Toro Rosso 1m40.358s + 1.869

18. Jean-Eric Vergne Toro Rosso 1m40.203s + 1.378

19. Mark Webber Red Bull 1m40.395s + 1.570

20. Vitaly Petrov Caterham 1m40.457s + 1.632

21. Pedro de la Rosa HRT 1m42.171s + 3.346

22. Narain Karthikeyan HRT 1m42.527s + 3.702

23. Charles Pic Marussia 1m42.675s + 3.850

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WHY THE CLOSE FIELD MEANS SOMETIME A GAMBLE WILL NOT DO:

Today in qualifying we saw an intense moment in Q2 which is worth taking a moment to consider.

So close was the front end of the field, with 1st to 11th separated by just over 2/10ths of a second, that several leading drivers, including Sebastian Vettel were forced to use an extra set of soft tyres to make sure they made it through into the Top Ten shootout. Ferrari didn’t do that and Fernando Alonso starts 11th, five rows back from his two main championship rivals. Felipe Massa lines up 13th.

All season long we have been hearing the message that this year it’s about consistency and as things get every tighter, this consistency has to be there at every crucial step. This weekend, Q2 was one such vital step.

After qualifying Alonso’s comment was telling, “It’s easy to say now that with two runs on Softs in Q2 we would have made the cut, but maybe now we would be here lamenting the fact that we did not have two for Q3,” he said. “It’s always easy to judge things after the fact. However, we were not quick enough to be in the top ten in the second part of qualifying and now the race will naturally be tougher. The podium is out of reach and clearly, with Hamilton on the front row, it’s easy to expect that we will lose ground to him.”

It’s all the more interesting as Alonso had spelled out quite clearly on Thursday that his mindset was that he was man-to-man marking Hamilton, aiming to finish ahead of him this weekend, but feeling that Vettel was likely to leave Valencia in the championship lead, so he would be targeting him at Silverstone.

Massa had a similar sentiment, “With hindsight, it’s easy to say that if we had used two sets of Soft in Q2, we could have made the cut, but we wanted to be in the best possible shape for Q3 and Q1 had shown that we were even quick on the Medium tyre.”

It’s a situation other title protagonists have found themselves in; Vettel has been forced to use up sets of qualifying tyres in Q2 a couple of times, failed to make the cut too and he recovered to score points, but not podiums. But it’s not been as close as today before.

Alonso and Ferrari gambled that 2/10ths would be close enough to get through, but with the Lotus and Force India cars in there as well as Maldonado and Kobayashi, it didn’t work out. And it was awkward that this happened on a day when Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo had come to praise his team on their renaissance.

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Glock out of the Valencia GP

Marussia have confirmed that Timo Glock will not contest Sunday's European GP due to a stomach bug.

Glock had been feeling unwell since arriving in Valencia and although he contested the practice session, sat out Saturday's qualifying.

The German underwent tests at a local hospital before a decision was made for him to sit out the European GP.

"Further to the medical problem which prevented Timo Glock from participating in yesterday's qualifying session for the European Grand Prix in Valencia, the Marussia F1 Team can confirm that Timo is unable to compete in today's race," Marussia said in a statement.

"Timo received medical guidance yesterday afternoon and his symptoms suggest that he is suffering from an intestinal infection. He has been advised that it would be unwise for him to race given the severity of the complaint and that he should focus instead on recuperating.

"Timo spent the evening resting at his hotel in Valencia and is in good spirits. He will return home later today."

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Rosberg frustrated with Hamilton

Nico Rosberg was not happy with Lewis Hamilton after qualifying, saying the McLaren driver ruined his final flying lap.

Rosberg qualified in sixth place for Sunday's European Grand Prix, however, believes he could have done better had it not been for Hamilton.

"We had a lot of potential going into qualifying, but unfortunately I can't be happy with the outcome today," said the Mercedes driver.

"We were quick throughout but when I was just about to start my final lap, Lewis was slowing down in the last corner. I had to start my quick lap behind him which made it impossible to improve my time.

"We know it's tricky in the last sector here and there is an agreement in place to stop things like this happening so it's frustrating."

And although it is notoriously difficult to overtake on the Valencia street circuit, Rosberg is hoping he will find a way to make up positions.

"It will be an interesting race tomorrow from a strategy perspective, and I hope there will be the opportunity to make up some places."

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Schumacher: This one is on me

Michael Schumacher admits he has only himself to blame for not making it into Q3 in what was a close second qualifying segment in Valencia.

The seven-time World Champ was one of the favourites ahead of the weekend with some even predicting he could become F1's eighth different in eight races.

Schumacher, though, faces a tough task to even come close to achieving that after a disappointing Saturday afternoon.

The Mercedes driver clocked a 1:38.770 in Q2, which although only 0.281s short of the P1 time, proved to be too slow to make it into the final segment.

The German will line-up 12th on Sunday's European Grand Prix grid.

"What a close qualifying session. Of course, I'm not particularly happy about not making it through Q2 but that was clearly down to me - I didn't get my lap together," Schumacher said.

"On my first run, I was too aggressive in turn 12 on my first timed lap, then had to abort the second lap and pit because the tyres were no longer in good enough condition to improve. After that, I was a bit too conservative on the second run and that cost us, because the times were so close today."

Schumacher, though, was at least able to find some positives ahead of Sunday's European Grand Prix.

"On the other hand, my starting position opens up strategic possibilities for tomorrow.

"I have new sets of tyres available which is the positive aspect of my situation. We will certainly make the most of them."