FORMULA 1 - 2013

[MIKA27]

Chinese GP: Ma Qing Hua gets Caterham seat for Friday practice

Ma Qing Hua will return to Formula 1 action on Friday when he takes part in first practice for the Chinese Grand Prix with Caterham.

It will be the fifth practice outing for the Chinese driver, who had already driven for the HRT team in Italy, Singapore, Abu Dhabi and USA last year, but his debut in the Caterham F1 car.

Ma will become the first Chinese driver to take part in his home grand prix weekend when he replaces Charles Pic for the session.

The 25-year-old is currently competing with Caterham in GP2. He finished in 21st position in the opening race of the season in Malaysia before withdrawing from the event due to illness.

AUTOSPORT understands that Caterham protege Alexander Rossi will be in Friday action for the team in Bahrain next weekend.

[MIKA27]

Mercedes boss Brawn doesn't fear FRIC suspension tech war

Mercedes team principal Ross Brawn has played down talk that development of new ultra-sophisticated suspension systems could lead to a spending war in Formula 1.

Brawn's squad and Lotus are believed to be the first F1 teams to get fully get to grips with the latest must-have technical development: front and rear interconnected suspension (FRIC).

The concept, which both teams have worked on for several seasons, uses hydraulics to connect the front and rear suspension so that the car's ride height is kept constant through braking, acceleration and cornering.

With a number of other outfits already believed to be testing their own FRIC suspension, there has been talk that the quest to fast-track its introduction could prove expensive at a time when teams are already juggling the switch to the 2014 regulations.

But Brawn is adamant that there is no danger of teams being priced out of the development.

Asked if a spending war was on the cards, Brawn replied: "I don't think so. Ever since F1 cars have been invented and aerodynamics were understood, the compromise between suspension and aerodynamics has always been that - a compromise.

"You want a nice softly sprung car, but you cannot do that because you compromise the aerodynamics too much.

"So every year I have been in F1 I have always tried to seek that ideal balance between suspension performance and aerodynamic performance, and it is no different today to how it has been for many years."

Although the early 1990s method of overcoming that compromise through active suspension was banned, the FRIC concept is allowed because the hydraulic system is completely passive as no on-board computers are reacting to what the car is doing.

Alongside its aerodynamic benefits, more pliable suspension should make FRIC cars better at tyre conservation.

FRIC NOT DECIDING FACTOR

After 2012's often wide-open competition, this year the frontrunning teams have jumped clear of the midfield pack, despite regulation stability.

Brawn does not think that the leaders' pursuit of FRIC suspension is a major factor in that change.

"I think it is too early to draw any conclusions," he said. "I don't know if the pecking order has been established yet and I don't know what the other teams are doing.

"I feel we have made good progress with the car compared to what we had last year but it is very difficult to judge what other people are doing, why they are doing and whether it is contributing to their performance.

"We have improved in lots of areas and that has at least given us a step forward this year. It is not enough but it is a step forward."

[MIKA27]

McLaren announces partnership with Gillette

Vodafone McLaren Mercedes and Gillette, the world’s leading men’s shaving and lifestyle brand, have agreed on an innovative and dynamic marketing partnership that will kick off at this weekend’s Chinese Grand Prix in Shanghai.

The partnership will reinforce both brands’ quest for the most superior technology, design and performance in their respective fields. Activation throughout 2013 will include dedicated television spots, an innovative digital campaign and in-store events throughout Asia to highlight and promote the partnership.

Vodafone McLaren Mercedes team principal Martin Whitmarsh said: “As one of the most successful teams in Formula 1, Vodafone McLaren Mercedes has a long history of attracting and partnering with the world’s top brands.

“Indeed, the ongoing relationship we enjoy with so many of our partners is not only a testament to the incredible return on investment we are able to deliver for them, but also to the shared values and loyalties that we’ve built together over many successful years.

“For Vodafone McLaren Mercedes to initiate a new partnership with a major multi-national blue-chip brand like Gillette is a terrific opportunity for global promotional activity. Indeed, we are already planning to implement a number of innovative activation strategies across key territories throughout the year.

“Formula 1 has already seen several large multi-national corporations come onboard this year, so this partnership once again underlines the inherent and ongoing opportunity and value of entering one of the most popular and watched sports in the world – and with one of grand prix racing’s best established and most consistently competitive teams.”

Max Menozzi, General Manager ShaveCare Asia, Procter & Gamble, said: “This new partnership between Vodafone McLaren Mercedes and Gillette in Asia is a great match: both are world-class brands and both share a passion for winning performance and superior engineering. Together we will now collaborate during the Formula 1 season, and beyond, on a series of exciting initiatives targeted at men across Asia, such as innovative in-store activation, limited-edition razors and a number of other special offers.”

[MIKA27]

Kubica admits that F1 return might not happen

Former BMW and Renault F1 driver Robert Kubica has admitted he might never return to Formula 1.

After his new foray in the second-tier world rally championship was announced recently, the former BMW and Renault driver said he saw “tiny lights in the tunnel” that he might be able to resume his Formula 1 career at some point in the future.

But the 28-year-old Pole, badly injured in a pre-2011 season rallying crash, has now told the Sun: “Of course I would like to come back in Formula 1, but I know that it might not happen.

“Rally I think will help me get back to the sport and it will definitely keep my head up.”

The reason Kubica has come back to rallying rather than single seater racing is because of the limited movement of his right arm, which was almost severed in his near-fatal crash.

The FIA has allowed Citroen, his new employer, to modify the controls of his car for 2013.

“We had permission from FIA, which I would like to thank, for a pad on the left side,” he said.

“I’m not really limited when I’m driving, it’s more outside of the car that I’m more limited,” added Kubica.

[MIKA27]

Williams announces partnership with Dom Reilly Limited

Williams F1 Team announced that it has signed a partnership agreement with Dom Reilly Limited, which has become an Official Supplier of the team. The partnership will see a range of Dom Reilly luggage and luxury accessories used by all race team personnel as they travel the world.

The Founder and CEO, Dominic Reilly, spent many years as part of the Williams F1 Team. During that period of travelling the world, the idea for the Dom Reilly brand was born. The brand combines the highest standards of traditional quality with the leading-edge design capabilities of a Formula One team. The Dom Reilly logo will be present on the team’s media notepaper, trucks and transporters, motorhome and garage wallboards.

Dominic commented; “One of the first tasks the Dom Reilly brand undertook was to create a range of luggage and leather accessories for the iconic Williams F1 Team, and the result has been a unique collaboration of bold and innovative products for the race team to use. There is no better proving ground for a range of travel accessories than on the road with a Formula One team so I’m delighted that Williams have chosen to use my new range and very much look forward to working closely with them this season.”

Sir Frank Williams, Team Principal of the Williams F1 Team, added; “We are delighted to have Dominic supplying the team this year with luggage and accessories, an important piece of equipment for the team. My co-founder, Patrick Head, is also involved in Dominic’s company so you can be sure that all the products will have great attention to detail.”

[MIKA27]

The Big Preview: Chinese Grand Prix at Shanghai International Circuit

After a two-week hiatus, Formula One fires up again as China and the Shanghai International Circuit play host to the third round of the 2013 FIA F1 World Championship.

The tenth year of the Chinese Grand Prix sees teams arriving at the expansive SIC paddock with as many questions as answers generated by the first two grands prix of 2013.

Uppermost in many minds is the perennial early-season issue of tyre degradation. In recent years race strategies here have been on the cusp between two and three stops, leading to out-of-sequence racing and grands prix that remain tense right up until the closing laps.

As was the case in 2012, Pirelli will bring the white-banded medium and yellow-banded soft compounds to Shanghai. While the medium tyre has been used already this year both in Malaysia and Australia, this weekend is the first time the new soft compound has been seen at a race. While this tyre was used extensively during testing, the differences of temperature, track configuration and surface construction render that data largely irrelevent: teams will need to develop their understanding over the weekend.

Even without that particular complication, SIC has the capacity to deliver captivating grands prix. Its long start-finish and back straights, in combination with the hairpin and tight ‘snail’ corner complexes, provide great overtaking opportunities, with or without the assistance of DRS.

The opening two rounds of the 2013 Championship have provided intrigue rather than a definitive form guide for the season ahead. Kimi Räikkönen’s win for Lotus in Australia was an assured performance but the much different conditions of track and temperature in Malaysia saw Red Bull return to dominance.

The Shanghai International Circuit will be different again, equally capable of providing a strong indication of form or shuffling the pack further.

Shanghai International Circuit Data

• Length of lap: 5.451km
  
• Lap record 1:32.238 (Michael Schumacher, Ferrari, 2004)
  
• Total number of race laps: 56
  
• Total race distance: 305.066km
  
• Pitlane speed limits: 60km/h during practice and qualifying; 100km/h during race
  

Changes to the circuit since 2012

• The final kerb section at the exit to turn 13 (a beveled section, after a serrated negative part) has a 400mm chamfer added to the rear.
  
• The top and back edge of all exit kerbs have been rounded and chamfered with the intention of preventing tyre damage.
  
• Grass around the outside of turns one, two, three, six and eight has been replaced with Grass-Crete (similar to that around the outside of turn 11) and then painted green (with non-slip paint).
  

DRS Zone

• The Shanghai International Circuit will feature DRS zones on the back straight and the start-finish straight. They will have individual detection points.
  

Chinese Grand Prix Fast Facts

• The nine Chinese Grands Prix held to date at the Shanghai International Circuit have produced eight different winners. Only Lewis Hamilton (2008 and 2011) has triumphed more than once.
  
• Only three times has the winning constructor in China gone on to lift the Constructors’ Championship trophy at the end of the season (Ferrari 2004, 2007, Renault 2005), and only three times has the winning driver gone on to win the Drivers’ Championship (Fernando Alonso 2005, Kimi Räikkönen 2007, Hamilton, 2008).
  
• Defending champions have faired even worse: McLaren’s Jenson Button is the only driver to win in China with the number one on his car; Ferrari (2004) are the only defending constructors’ champion to win the race.
  
• Ferrari (2004, 2006, 2007) and McLaren (2008, 2010, 2011) share the honours as constructors, they have each won three times in Shanghai. Red Bull (2009), Renault (2005) and Mercedes (2012) have each won the race on a single occasion.
  
• Nico Rosberg’s maiden pole and first victory were the standout performances of the 2012 race. Rosberg became the third Mercedes works driver to win in the F1 World Championship, following in the footsteps of Juan Manuel Fangio and Stirling Moss. It was Mercedes’ first (and to date only) victory since returning as a manufacturer in 2010, and therefore their solitary F1 win since 1955.
  
• Rosberg was the first new entry for three seasons on the list of grand prix winners. For the previous top-step debutant one has to look back to the German Grand Prix of 2009, won by Mark Webber. Both Webber and Rosberg took their first victory from their first pole position, a distinction shared in the current field by Sebastian Vettel (Italy 2008), Hamilton (Canada 2007), Felipe Massa (Turkey 2006) and Pastor Maldonado, the latter joining this select group in Spain, two races after Rosberg – albeit thanks to Hamilton’s demotion to the back of the grid.
  
• Despite SIC providing good overtaking opportunities, only once has a podium finisher started from outside the top ten (2011, Webber 18th to third).
  
• The braking zone for the hairpin at turn 14 sees drivers experience the highest g-forces of the year. With around three seconds on the brakes, the cars decelerate from maximum speed down to around 60kph for the slow corner.
  
• SIC is built on reclaimed marshland. It is supported by a buoyant polystyrene sandwich, which sits atop more than 40,000 concrete pilings, some of which go 80m deep into the soft earth.The circuit has been vulnerable to subsidence, requiring extensive resurfacing work over the years to even out bumps in the track.
  

Reuters statistics for the Chinese Grand Prix

• Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso (30 victories) has won the most races of active drivers. Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel has 27, Mercedes’s Lewis Hamilton 21, Lotus’s Kimi Raikkonen 20 and McLaren’s Jenson Button 15.
  
• Another win for Alonso would take him level with Britain’s 1992 champion Nigel Mansell as fourth equal in the all-time list. Vettel’s win in Malaysia pulled him level with triple champion Jackie Stewart.
  
• One more win for Raikkonen would make him the most successful Finnish driver in terms of race wins.
  
• Ferrari have won 219 races since the championship started in 1950, McLaren 182, Williams 114 and Red Bull 35.
  
• Red Bull are now fifth equal and level with Brabham in the all-time lists.
  
• Vettel has 38 poles to his credit, putting him third in the all-time list (Schumacher had 68 and Ayrton Senna 65). Hamilton has 26 and Alonso 22.
  
• Caterham and Marussia have yet to score a point after three seasons in Formula One.
  
• None of the five rookies have scored points so far.
  
• Five of the nine Chinese Grands Prix to date have been won from pole.
  
• No driver has ever won in China two years in a row. Hamilton is the only driver with two wins there (2008 and 2011).
  
• Ferrari and McLaren have both won three times in Shanghai.
  
• Red Bull celebrated their first win in Formula One in Shanghai in 2009, with Vettel triumphant. Mercedes won with Rosberg last season in what remains their only success as a works team since 1955 (having returned only in 2010).
  
• Button, Alonso and Red Bull’s Mark Webber are the only drivers to have finished every Chinese Grand Prix.
  
• Only three times has the winner in China gone on to take the world title (Alonso 2005, Raikkonen 2007, Hamilton 2008). Button is the only driver to have won in China while reigning champion (2010).
  
• Only once has a podium finisher started from outside the top 10 (Webber from 18th on the grid to third in 2011).
  
• The slow turn 14 imposes the highest G-forces a driver will experience all season, with cars decelerating from top speed to 60kph in about three seconds.
  
• Sunday will be the 10th Chinese Grand Prix.
  

Chinese Grand Prix Race Stewards Biographies

• Garry Connelly has been involved in motor sport since the late 1960s. A long-time rally competitor, Connelly was instrumental in bringing the World Rally Championship to Australia in 1988 and served as Chairman of the Organising Committee, Board member and Clerk of Course of Rally Australia until December 2002. He has been an FIA Steward and FIA Observer since 1989, covering the FIA’s World Rally Championship, World Touring Car Championship and Formula One Championship. He is a director of the Australian Institute of Motor Sport Safety and a member of the FIA World Motor Sport Council.
  
• Steven Chopping began participating in motorsports in the 1960’s. He competed as a driver in various karting, Formula Ford, Australian Formula 2, Sports and Production Car competitions from the early seventies until 1990. Chopping was a steward at the Australian Rally Championship from 1997-2004 and Chairman of the Stewards at the Australian Production Car Rally Championship from 2001-2004. He has been a permanent steward at the V8 Supercar Championship in Australia since 2004, national steward at the Australian Grand Prix from 2005 and marked his debut as an international FIA F1 steward at the Belgium Grand Prix of 2012.
  
• Mark Blundell raced for McLaren, Tyrrell, Ligier and Brabham in an F1 career that encompassed 61 grands prix between 1991 and 1995 and included three podium finishes. He is a three-time winner in IndyCars and won the Le Mans 24 Hours endurance race in 1992, driving for Peugeot.
  
• While still occassionally seen behind the wheel of a racing car in endurance events, the 21st Century has seen Blundell forge a second career as a TV commentator and analyst. He first appeared as a driver steward in F1 at the Spanish Grand Prix of 2011.
  

[MIKA27]

New Mercedes role for Schumacher

The Mercedes-Benz and Michael Schumacher partnership will continue with the seven-time World Champion being confirmed as an ambassador for the German manufacturer.

Schumacher quit Formula One at the end of last season after three unsuccessful seasons with the Brackley-based Mercedes, but he won't be lost to the team as they have announced that he will from here on in be involved in 'with topics relating to the future, in particular the further development of the Mercedes-Benz safety and comfort systems "Intelligent Drive", and represent them as an ambassador'.

"The future interests me much more than the present and past," Schumacher said in a statement. "During my Formula 1 time I always believed that you must not allow yourself to rest on your laurels, but that you must continuously try to improve.

"In so doing I was very often able to rely on the help of all the technologies available to me in the car and use them to my advantage. That is why I am a declared supporter of driving assistance systems both in the racing car and in the road-going car."

Dr Joachim Schmidt, executive vice-president Mercedes-Benz cars, sales and marketing, added: "We are proud that Michael Schumacher, the most successful and best-known racing driver in the world, is again joining us as our partner. Right from the time when he was a Mercedes-Benz junior and of course in the last three years as a driver in our Formula 1 team, Michael Schumacher has always been committed to our company's projects.

"This is why it is only logical for both sides to pool their expertise and know-how and to use them, for instance, for enhancing driver assistance systems and thus improve safety on the roads within a partnership."

[MIKA27]

Toro Rosso addresses exhaust burning for Chinese Grand Prix

Toro Rosso will introduce a modified exhaust at the Chinese Grand Prix to prevent a repeat of the overheating problems that forced Daniel Ricciardo to retire from the opening two races of the season.

Ricciardo stopped in both Australia and Malaysia because the exhaust was burning parts of the car, a problem that also afflicted team-mate Jean-Eric Vergne's machine to a lesser degree.

The Australian believes that the three-week gap since Malaysia has given the team enough time to solve its problem.

"The break came at a good time, giving the guys some time to work because after Australia it was always going to be difficult to find a real solution in a few days," said Ricciardo.

"The team has changed a few things with the form of the exhaust, the structure, and hopefully that will hold up.

"[The changes] are mainly focused on reliability for now.

"When it was burning stuff in the car, we were losing performance, but when the exhaust is working as it should I don't think we'll get [extra] performance at the moment."

Team-mate Jean Eric Vergne is more hopeful that even though the exhaust tweak is relatively minor, there will also be a performance gain.

He expects improvements in both downforce and consistency of the rear end of the car.

"We had an exhaust in the first two races that was not working as we were expecting so we found better solutions for this weekend to make it work as we want it to.

"It's nothing special, a little [change] but one that makes a bigger difference than what you see with your eyes.

"With the exhaust you are always trying to get more downforce from it but also to get it more consistent, you don't want it to be peaky."

[MIKA27]

Fernando Alonso laughs off Felipe Massa's qualifying edge

Fernando Alonso has laughed off suggestions that Ferrari team-mate Felipe Massa has the upper hand in qualifying now.

The Spanish driver has not qualified ahead of the Brazilian since last year's Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, and if Massa manages the feat again this weekend in China it would be the first time Alonso has been outqualified five times in a row in Formula 1.

Alonso conceded Massa was back at his best now, but made it clear he was far from worried about the situation.

"I haven't slept since Australia. I'm only eating white rice. I'm losing my hair. A huge drama," joked Alonso when asked about his qualifying defeats in a press conference with Spanish reporters.

"After 200 races, it's very surprising that two qualifying sessions matter so much. I'm pleased that it's so important, because it means that when I finish ahead of him it will mean I have done an stratospheric lap.

"We'll see if I can pull that magic here or later this year..."

Alonso added: "He's doing a fantastic job. It's true that for these calculations you are using strange numbers, with races from last year, races from this year.

"In Australia qualifying was with dry tyres on a wet track, in Malaysia we qualified with inters on a dry track, so I don't think they were completely normal tracks."

The two-time champion, who retired from the Malaysian Grand Prix after contact with Sebastian Vettel at the start, believes qualifying strongly has become less important since Pirelli returned to F1.

"Qualifying this year is less important. It has been losing importance year after year," Alonso said.

"There were years when it was vital to start from the first row or from pole position, but since Pirelli arrived qualifying has become less and less important.

"In the first two races of the season Kimi [Raikkonen] won pretty easily in Australia starting from seventh and anyone could have won in Malaysia. But there is a tendency for qualifying to become less important."

[Skyfall]

I assume you have seen this:

http://movies.yahoo.com/video/rush-trailer-205036805.html

[OZCUBAN]

I assume you have seen this:

http://movies.yahoo.com/video/rush-trailer-205036805.html

Thanks for that ,really looking forward to this film ,Ron Howard doesn't make crap films

[CanuckSARTech]

I assume you have seen this:

http://movies.yahoo....-205036805.html

Looks amazing.

[MIKA27]

Yes indeed. James Hunt vs Niki Lauda, classic and much anticipated movie for me.

[MIKA27]

Prac One: Nico back on top in China

Nico Rosberg picked up where he left off in China, claiming yet another P1, although this time a year later and on a Friday morning.

The defending Chinese Grand Prix winner posted a 1:36.717 to beat team-mate Lewis Hamilton in the opening practice session at the Shanghai circuit.

The feuding Red Bull drivers were next in line with Mark Webber quicker than Sebastian Vettel, which would pose an interesting conundrum should that be the case come Sunday's grand prix.

The session took a while to get going as the dusty surface dissuaded the teams from being the first to clean it. However, in the end someone had to do it and it was Sauber's Esteban Gutierrez. He posted a 1:43.097, which was easily pipped by McLaren's Jenson Button.

The duo traded blows for a few laps before Button begun to put some distance between himself and the Mexican rookie. The Brit lowered the benchmark to a 1:38.262 as Valtteri Bottas slotted into second place and Pastor Maldonado third.

Both McLaren and Williams are desperate for a massive improvement this weekend. McLaren are running updates this weekend including a less aggressive rear bodywork design that the team is hoping will stop the MP4-28 from eating its tyres.

Halfway through the session only 13 drivers had posted times while Force India's Adrian Sutil was leading the way on a 1:38.125.

Button was second with Kimi Raikkonen third.

Raikkonen became the first spinner of the morning as the Finn lost the back end of his E21 after touching the astroturf at Turn 9.

The Lotus driver kept the engine going and headed back to the pits.

On just his fifth lap of the morning, Felipe Massa let Rob Smedley know he has a bit of graining on his front Pirelli tyres after his engineer informed him that the recently pitted Raikkonen had some. Massa then went quickest with a 1:38.095.

Nico Rosberg was the next to lead the way and then Mark Webber while Lewis Hamilton, who was down in 17th place, had a serious lock up before running wide and off the track. The Brit improved to second place as Sebastian Vettel broke into the top four, kicking up dirt at the final corner as he attempted to close which was being controlled by Rosberg's 1:36.904.

The Mercedes driver lowered the benchmark to a 1:36.717 while Gutierrez joined the list of those succumbing to the dust as he ran wide and through the gravel before finding a piece of asphalt on which to plot his escape.

The final 20 minutes saw few changes to the timesheets as the drivers opted not to swap to the soft tyres while the mediums they had been running in the session were well past their prime.

As such Rosberg finished quickest of all with his 1:36.717, Hamilton was second, 0.454s down, while Webber was third, almost a full second behind the leading Mercedes driver.

Sergio Perez had a late moment as he went off in the gravel and hit the barriers nose first. Not a great way to end the session for the Mexican driver.

Times

1 Nico Rosberg Mercedes 1:36.717 21 laps

2 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 1:37.171 0.454 20 laps

3 Mark Webber Red Bull 1:37.658 0.941 21 laps

4 Sebastian Vettel Red Bull 1:37.942 1.225 20 laps

5 Fernando Alonso Ferrari 1:37.965 1.248 17 laps

6 Jenson Button McLaren 1:38.069 1.352 24 laps

7 Felipe Massa Ferrari 1:38.095 1.378 14 laps

8 Adrian Sutil Force India 1:38.125 1.408 21 laps

9 Romain Grosjean Lotus 1:38.398 1.681 17 laps

10 Paul di Resta Force India 1:38.561 1.844 15 laps

11 Kimi Raikkonen Lotus 1:38.790 2.073 16 laps

12 Jean-Eric Vergne Toro Rosso 1:39.057 2.340 19 laps

13 Pastor Maldonado Williams 1:39.158 2.441 22 laps

14 Nico Hulkenberg Sauber 1:39.180 2.463 21 laps

15 Daniel Ricciardo Toro Rosso 1:39.336 2.619 19 laps

16 Sergio Perez McLaren 1:39.360 2.643 20 laps

17 Valtteri Bottas Williams 1:39.392 2.675 21 laps

18 Esteban Gutierrez Sauber 1:40.032 3.315 22 laps

19 Jules Bianchi Marussia 1:41.966 5.249 16 laps

20 Max Chilton Marussia 1:42.056 5.339 18 laps

21 Giedo van der Garde Caterham 1:42.083 5.366 21 laps

22 Ma Qing Hua Caterham 1:43.545 6.828 20 laps

[MIKA27]

Chinese GP: McLaren plays down Sergio Perez's practice pit crash

Sergio Perez's crash in the pit entry after the chequered flag in Friday morning practice for the Chinese Grand Prix was caused by a loss of front tyre temperature, according to McLaren sporting director Sam Michael.

The Mexican understeered through the gravel and into the tyre barrier while returning to the pits after this morning's session, an accident reminiscent of Lewis Hamilton's off at the same place in the 2007 Chinese GP.

"The main problem was that the tyres were quite worn out and he had done a slow sector so the front tyre temperatures had dropped significantly and he just lost a lot of grip," said Michael.

"To be honest, we probably should have warned him on the in-lap as well."

Despite the crash damaging the front wing and nose, this was an old-specification part that had been fitted late in the session.

This means that the crash will have no knock-on effect for McLaren's weekend.

"The front wing and nose, which was a spare one, [were damaged], so it's quite good actually - not that we wanted to do that.

"Fortunately, it was an old-spec wing so no big damage and he'll be ready to go for the second session."

[MIKA27]

Hamilton laments' hardcore' softs

Lewis Hamilton reckons Pirelli may have brought the wrong tyres to Shanghai after the softs "disintegrated" in Friday's practice.

Swapping from the medium to the soft Pirelli tyres for the final hour of running on Friday, the drivers quickly ran into trouble.

Lotus and Ferrari both found graining after just five laps on the soft tyres while Mercedes were also hit with severe degradation.

"I've never seen the tyres behave this way," the Brit told his Mercedes pit wall over the radio during the latter stages of the session.

Hamilton finished Friday's practices for the Chinese GP in seventh place, 1.156s adrift of Felipe Massa's P1 time.

"I did a couple of laps and the tyre just disintegrated," Hamilton complained to Sky Sports News. "The soft are hardcore, it just doesn't feel like the right type of tyre for this circuit."

The Mercedes duo, though, did have the pace earlier in the day on the medium compounds when Nico Rosberg and Hamilton finished first and second.

"Mine and Nico's pace was quite competitive today," Hamilton said. "I think we are there or thereabouts."

[MIKA27]

Massa: It's like driving different cars

The difference between the medium and soft compound Pirelli tyres is so great that it completely changes a car's handling says Felipe Massa.

The Brazilian was seventh fastest in Friday's first practice for the Chinese Grand Prix, 1.378 seconds off the pace of Nico Rosberg's Mercedes. All the teams ran on medium compound tyres during the session and Massa immediately complained of graining on his front right tyre.

However, with a switch to soft tyres for the second session, the Ferrari's came to the fore with Massa topping the charts and Fernando Alonso third fastest.

While unhappy with the F138's performance on the medium compound, the 31-year-old believes that the results on the soft tyres give the team reason to be optimistic ahead of Sunday's race.

"Today, I immediately had a good feeling in the car and even if, at the start, I was not completely happy with the performance of the Medium compound and we were not as quick as our rivals, the times were good all the same," he explained.

"When I fitted the Softs, the car improved a lot and this meant I was able to set the fastest time of the day. It was impressive, like driving two completely different cars.

"Our race pace looks competitive, the car is handling well on both types of tyre and degradation was not excessive, even if the higher wear rate of the Soft compared to the Medium compound will be an important factor when it comes to choosing the right strategy. I feel confident and hope that the whole weekend can keep moving in this direction".

Given the variance in the tyre performance, Alonso believes that the grand prix will be won and lost by race strategy.

"Once again, tyres will play a key role in this Grand Prix because of the high level of degradation over a long run. We will have to ensure we pick the right strategy for Sunday, as well as deciding on which of the new parts we tried this morning to fit to the car. As usual, we can expect a long evening studying the data," said the Spaniard.

[MIKA27]

Button: Better but not by much

Although it appears McLaren have taken a step forward in China, Jenson Button fears it is not as big as the team had expected.

McLaren arrived in Shanghai with various updates for their MP4-28 including a revised rear that is not as aggressive as its predecessor.

Button finished Friday's running sixth on the timesheets with a 1:36.432, which put him 1.092s off the pace.

"We can't yet conclusively tell if the upgrades we brought to this race have improved the car," said the 2009 World Champion.

"They're perhaps not as big a step forward as we'd expected - the issues with the car are still there - but the car does feel a little bit better.

"We've worked very hard over the last few weeks to bring the new parts here - which is great.

"Today's been all about putting mileage on those parts; now we need to sit down and look at the data this evening - there's a lot to look through."

The Brit weighed in on Pirelli's tyre choice for the weekend, revealing that the pace with the soft tyres drops off after just one lap.

"I feel we'll be using the Prime tyre quite a lot in the race. The Option tyre transforms the car completely; over one lap, there's a lot more grip, but then you start to lose time over each successive lap."

The tyres also caused the McLaren driver a minor problem when his front left delaminated 15 minutes before the end of FP2.

"My puncture happened after I'd already decided to pit. I got to the braking zone at Turn 14, locked up the front left and the tyre just punctured - there was a hole through it.

"It's a good job that corner is just before the pits. I don't think we'll be fighting at the front this weekend, but we'll definitely be fighting someone."

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Alonso 'optimistic' after Chinese win

Fernando Alonso is optimistic for the rest of the season after securing his first victory of the Championship in China.

The double World Champion made a flying start to Sunday's 56-lap grand prix at the Shanghai circuit and proved to be one of the best at handling his Pirelli tyres.

Setting fastest lap times on the medium tyres, Alonso edged away from the chasing pack to win the grand prix by more than 10 seconds over Kimi Raikkonen.

"It was a fantastic race for us from the start to the end without any big problems from the car," he said.

"The tyre degradation was better than expected so we managed the pace.

"It feels great after the retirement in Malaysia because we had some pressure to finish the race."

The Spaniard's victory - his second podium result of this Championship - has pushed him up to third in the Drivers' Championship, nine points behind Sebastian Vettel and six behind Raikkonen.

Having lost the title to Vettel last season by three points, Alonso says he is optimistic about going one better this season.

"In the two races we've finished we have got second place and victory so our start of the 2013 season is very good. We are very optimistic for the rest of the season."

Alonso, though, downplayed talk of Ferrari having an advantage over their rivals despite his display in Shanghai.

"I think at the moment Lotus and Red Bull and Mercedes they are in the same position as us.

"I don't see anyone having a clear advantage. Maybe Red Bull was very dominant in Australia and in the race they were suffering a little bit deg but very fast, in Malaysia a bit more in the group and here similar to others, so let's wait and see on the updates every car brings and we'll see how the luck happens."

Whether he can again close the gap to Vettel and Raikkonen in Bahrain remains to be seen as Alonso admits the race in the desert will be very different to this Sunday's event.

"We expect a tough race again and I think in Bahrain we will see maybe different conditions.

"Who knows how competitive anyone can be but definitely, as I said before, the races that we've finished this year the car seems to be able to be on the podium again in Bahrain."

Meanwhile team boss Stefano Domenicalli, who saw both Ferraris finish in the points with Felipe Massa sixth, hailed the "extraordinary" Alonso.

"I'm not surprised by the advantage we got today," said the Italian. "Fernando was extraordinary

" Our pace was really strong, the team performed well and we tried to manage the gaps with our main competitors. But today was just one win - now we need to focus on the next race."

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Hamilton admits Merc down on pace

Lewis Hamilton admits Mercedes still have to work to do after failing to match Ferrari and Lotus in Sunday's Shanghai GP.

The final few laps of Hamilton's grand prix was one of the highlights in China as the Mercedes driver, on worn medium tyres, was hunted down by Sebastian Vettel and his fresh soft rubber.

With Vettel closing in at over two seconds a lap - and right on Hamilton's rear wing for the final one - the Brit did well to hold off the Red Bull racer to secure his second podium finish in as many races.

"Sebastian was getting bigger and bigger in my mirrors in the final laps," he said. "It was close but I'm still happy."

But while Vettel was closing in on Hamilton, the 28-year-old was also losing ground to Fernando Alonso and Kimi Raikkonen. The Ferrari driver won the race by 10 seconds ahead of Raikkonen, who in turn was 2.2s up on Hamilton.

"We would have loved to win," Hamilton said, "but Fernando was excellent and we don't have the same race pace as Ferrari or Lotus.

"We have got some work to do but it is a blessing to be as high as we are."

Pressed on the issue during the post-race press conference, the 2008 World Champ conceded there were several areas where Merc needed to focus on their W04.

"I am not really sure where we are losing out.

"Today just the overall pace was not there and there are definitely a couple of areas we can focus on on the car.

"We have some updates and need to keep improving. We have to work out where we are losing the time, try and zone in on that and improve that."

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Penalties aplenty in Shanghai

Mark Webber and Esteban Gutierrez have both received grid penalties for next weekend's Bahrain GP.

Webber has been given a three-place grid penalty for his collision with Jean-Eric Vergne after the Red Bull driver looked to sneak down the inside of Vergne into Turn 6.

However, the Toro Rosso driver tried to defend by turning back in and the two drivers collided, with Vergne spinning and Webber sustaining damage to his front wing.

It initially appeared that Webber would be able to limp back to the pits but his right rear tyre came loose on track.

The Australian believes he was not necessarily to blame but the stewards have ruled otherwise.

"One view looks like Jean-Eric [Vergne] is giving me the line, the other looks more like it is me. It compounds an amazing weekend for me..." commented Webber.

There certainly seemed no doubt about Gutierrez's culpability in the coming together that ended his race as well as that of Adrian Sutil.

The young Mexcian has been given a five-place grid penalty after he rammed his Sauber into the back of Sutil after over-shooting a corner.

Gutierrez was quick to take full responsibility for the incident.

"I had Checo [Perez] fighting behind me, and I approached the corner too fast," he explained.

"I was braking at the same place where I usually brake, however, I didn't anticipate the loss of downforce and the amount of speed I had.

"I tried my best to stop, but didn't succeed. It was definitely my fault, and I apologise to Adrian and to his team."

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Vettel backs Bulls' strategy

Sebastian Vettel insists that his fourth-place finish in Shanghai was the best he could have hoped for.

The defending World Champion gambled in qualifying by bringing out a set of medium-compound tyres in Q3 rather trying to secure pole by persisting with the faster soft tyres.

This strategy allowed the Red Bull driver to start on the medium tyres and do a longer first run. However, while it looked at one point like the plan may work out, the medium tyres did not give a sufficient advantage to propel Vettel into a podium position.

Despite this, Vettel believes that the team did not make a mistake with their strategy, with Alonso's Ferrari simply too fast on the day.

"Our strategy seemed to work today," he asserted. "We knew it was crucial to get clear laps at the start, but we did not.

"I was behind Nico [Rosberg] and if you follow another car too much it's bad for the tyres. It was hard to find the right compromise.

"If you look at the strategy, they started in clean air, they finished in clean air. I didn't," he added of the Ferraris.

"I'm not blaming anyone, it's just how it is when you start further back.

"We have to be fair, Fernando was too quick. But if you look at practice, he wasn't too far out of reach. With more clean laps at the beginning, we could have had a chance."

Vettel switched to soft tyres with five laps to go and the new set nearly saw him pip Lewis Hamilton to third as he produced a string of fastest laps. However, a gap of 11 seconds proved too much to overhaul.

"When I came onto the long straight for the first time and saw Lewis at the hairpin, I thought I was too far away, but we had more speed on the tyres," he said.

"It's a little disappointing to lose out at the end. A few more corners and we could've tried something."

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Button looks for positives

Despite leading for much of the Chinese Grand Prix, Jenson Button believes that a fifth place finish is a good result.

Button's two-stop strategy meant that he headed the field for a large portion of the race only to fall down the pecking order once he pitted late on to move to the option tyres.

The McLaren driver eventually came home in fifth, 35 seconds off the pace of race winner Fernando Alonso.

"For me, it is quite strange because we led a lot of the race. We did well, we had to try something different because we knew we didn't have the pace to finish in the top five on a three or four stop strategy. We had to go long which was tricky with everyone jumping all over each other," Button said of the team's strategy.

"We couldn't block or fight people which was frustrating and is not the most exciting racing. But it's what we had to do and we came away with the 10 points. Fifth place is pretty good and we beat a Ferrari and a Lotus."

The result is a marked improvement for the Woking outfit, with ninth spot for Button in Australia and for Sergio Perez in the Malaysia their previous best performances.

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Webber: Vergne knew I was there

Mark Webber thought Jean-Eric Vergne had "opened the corner" for him before shutting it, resulting in the two colliding.

Having started from the pitlane after changes were made to his RB9 overnight, Webber's day went from bad to worse as he attempted to work his way through the field.

Chasing down Toro Rosso's Vergne, the Aussie dived up the inside only to have Vergne slam that door shut with the impact resulting in Webber needing a new front wing.

"I was regrouping and coming through the field and got to Jean-Eric," the frustrated Red Bull driver told Autosport.

"I was coming from a reasonable distance back but he knew I was there.

"He was really, really wide and looking like he opened the corner and was giving me the line.

"But we got to the apex and he took it.

"It's disappointing. He was entitled to do that, but if he'd just gone around the outside we would've both survived."

However, Webber's day then turned into a disaster when, laps later, he was forced to retire after his right rear wheel came off while out on track.

"[The collision] wasn't the end of the world as we were only a couple of laps off stopping for tyres anyway.

"The guys thought the wheel was done, but it came off on the out-lap."

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Kimi: Perez pushed me wide

Chinese GP runner-up Kimi Raikkonen has blamed Sergio Perez for their coming together, saying it cost him understeer.

After being bogged down at the start of the 56-lap grand prix, Raikkonen fought his way back up to the front.

However, with tyre strategy, pit stops and DRS all playing a role in Sunday's race, the Lotus driver was forced to cut his way through the traffic on several occasions.

And one of those put him in direct contact with McLaren's Perez.

Trying to pass the Mexican driver, Raikkonen reckons Perez pushed him wide, resulting in the two touching and a broken nose for Raikkonen.

Despite the damage, he continued, working his way up to front where he finished second behind Fernando Alonso.

"I think in the end it was an OK result," Raikkonen said. "Obviously we want to win.

"After a bad start, the car was handling well.

"Overtaking Perez, I was next to him and he just pushed me on the kerb. I tried to avoid him and when on the grass and I hit him.

"It damaged the nose but luckily it didn't damage too much the handling, just a bit of understeer.

"Anyhow, good points and we try to do better next time."