FORMULA 1 - 2013

[MIKA27]

In season testing set to return as of 2014

Formula One in-season testing is returning for the 2014 season, according to La Gazzetta dello Sport.

However, Auto Motor und Sport reported recently that a proposal by Ferrari to trade wind tunnel hours, straightline running and promotional days for actual circuit testing was voted down.

But Red Bull team boss Christian Horner is said to have told La Gazzetta, the authoritative sports daily, that an agreement to bring back testing was actually agreed in Monaco.

A report on the Italiaracing website said that the agreement is for four two-day tests, to take place during the 2014 world championship season on European circuits.

“This will make Pirelli happy,” read the report, “because they will have the chance to work on the tyres in the best way.”

“And also the motor engineers [will be happy], as they will be able to develop the new turbo V6s,” it added.

Nonetheless, AM&S insists that some teams – and not just the smallest ones – are opposed to the idea of extensive in-season testing.

“With 19 or 20 races a year,” an unnamed voice in the paddock is quoted, “and 12 days of testing before the season, an extra 9 days of testing would require a [seperate] test team.

“Such a team costs € 5 to 10 million extra, no matter how much is saved elsewhere,”

[MIKA27]

Petrov targets Formula One return in 2014

Even without a manager or any Russian sponsors, Vitaly Petrov is still determined to return to Formula One, in 2014.

Since losing his Caterham seat at the end of last year, 28-year-old Petrov has split with his long-time manager Oksana Kosachenko, who is now Caterham’s commercial director.

Petrov also admits that his own search for new Russian backing has proved frustrating.

“Unfortunately only companies from the west have contacted us so far,” he is quoted by Speed Week, “which is a shame, because ideally I’d like to go back to F1 with Russian partners.”

Nevertheless, Petrov insisted that his focus remains on an F1 comeback for 2014.

“The negotiations are in progress and I’m working hard,” he is quoted.

“I have received many offers from other series and attended their races,” added Petrov, “but F1 is my priority.

“I will use all my strength to go back to F1, because it’s my life,” he said.

[PaulP]

Canadian GP Grid

Times

01. Sebastian Vettel Red Bull 1m25.425

02. Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 1m25.512 +0.087

03. Valtteri Bottas Williams 1m25.897 +0.472

04. Nico Rosberg Mercedes 1m26.008 +0.583

05. Mark Webber Red Bull 1m26.208 +0.783

06. Fernando Alonso Ferrari 1m26.504 +1.079

07. Jean-Eric Vergne Toro Rosso 1m26.543 +1.118

08. Adrian Sutil Force India 1m27.348 +1.923

09. Kimi Raikkonen Lotus 1m27.432 +2.007

10. Daniel Ricciardo Toro Rosso 1m27.946 +2.521

11. Nico Hulkenberg Sauber 1m29.435

12. Sergio Perez McLaren 1m29.761

13. Pastor Maldonado Williams 1m29.917

14. Jenson Button McLaren 1m30.068

15. Esteban Gutierrez Sauber 1m30.315

16. Felipe Massa Ferrari 1m30.354

17. Paul di Resta Force India 1m24.908

18. Charles Pic Caterham 1m25.626

19. Romain Grosjean Lotus 1m25.716

20. Jules Bianchi Marussia 1m26.508

21. Max Chilton Marussia 1m27.062

22. Giedo van der Garde Caterham 1m27.110

[PaulP]

Pos. # Driver Team

1 1 Sebastian Vettel Red Bull

2 3 Fernando Alonso Ferrari

3 10 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes

4 2 Mark Webber Red Bull

5 9 Nico Rosberg Mercedes

6 18 Jean-Eric Vergne Toro Rosso

7 14 Paul di Resta Force India

8 4 Felipe Massa Ferrari

9 7 Kimi Raikkonen Lotus

10 15 Adrian Sutil Force India

11 6 Sergio Perez McLaren

12 5 Jenson Button McLaren

13 8 Romain Grosjean Lotus

14 17 Valtteri Bottas Williams

15 19 Daniel Ricciardo Toro Rosso

16 16 Pastor Maldonado Williams

17 22 Jules Bianchi Marussia

18 20 Charles Pic Caterham

19 23 Max Chilton Marussia

20 12 Esteban Gutierrez Sauber

[Bartolomeo]

Congrats to Vett but a fairly boring race IMHO

[PaulP]

  On 6/10/2013 at 1:10 AM, Bartolomeo said:

Congrats to Vett but a fairly boring race IMHO

Agreed, Vettel start to finish, with a 20 sec lead at one point. Some of the battles down the grid were somewhat interesting. Alonso drove the wheels off the Ferrari.

[Lotusguy]

Boring race but my favorite driver won

[stargazer14]

Ha, I was at Canada a few times and saw the groundhog shenanagins, especially down at the hairpin.

Have a few shot somewhere of one little guy dodging F1 cars.

[MIKA27]

Was an 'Ok' race but marred by the unfortunate passing of a Race Marshall.

Thanks for posting gents, I moved house 3 weeks ago and still waiting for my internet to be connected so haven't been able to post as much as I'd like to keep the news updated.

[MIKA27]

Vettel and fellow F1 drivers lead tributes to dead marshal

Formula 1 World Champion Sebastian Vettel has led other drivers in paying tribute to a Canadian Grand Prix marshal who died after being run over by a mobile crane during Sunday’s race in Montreal.

“The work of marshals is not always seen, but it is vital to our sport and without their commitment, time and dedication, there would be no motorsport,” Red Bull’s race winner said on his website on Monday.

“I am very, very sad to hear this news and my thoughts are with his family and friends,” added the German.

The marshal, as yet unnamed, died in hospital from injuries sustained while removing the Sauber of Mexican rookie Esteban Gutierrez, who crashed out seven laps from the end of the race.

The International Automobile Federation (FIA) said in a statement that the track worker had dropped his radio and attempted to pick it up. In doing so, he stumbled and was hit and run over by the recovery vehicle.

The marshal was the third to die at a grand prix since the turn of the century but the first since Graham Beveridge was killed by a loose tyre that flew through a gap in the safety fence at the 2001 Australian Grand Prix.

Italian fire marshal Paolo Ghislimberti died when he was hit by a wheel at the 2000 Italian Grand Prix at Monza, prompting a review of safety at race tracks and the introduction of improved measures to protect circuit workers.

Every Formula 1 ticket carries a warning that motorsport is dangerous but the fact that it had been more than a decade since the last fatality, despite marshals performing some of the riskiest roles, is partly as a result of ongoing efforts to improve safety.

The last driver fatality at a race weekend was Brazilian triple champion Ayrton Senna at Imola in 1994.

“My dearest condolences to the family of the marshal who lost his life today, our prayers for him & his family. RIP,” Gutierrez wrote on his Twitter account.

“Shocked & saddened by the news that a marshal who is there to keep us safe has lost his life during our race today. Rest in peace my friend,” said McLaren’s Jenson Button, winner at this circuit in 2011.

“Today there is nothing to celebrate. Terrible news arrive with the death of a marshal this race. Very sad. R.I.P,” added Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso, the double world champion who was runner-up to Vettel on Sunday.

While the marshal’s death appeared to be a ‘freak’ accident, there has long been concern about the use of such cranes while the race is still going on – but more from the point of view of driver safety.

Former racer Martin Brundle, now a commentator with Britain’s Sky television, observed during Sunday’s grand prix – before the accident with the marshal – that it might have been safer to leave the car where it was rather than hurrying to remove it.

Now-retired seven times world champion Michael Schumacher was fortunate to escape serious injury in Brazil in 2003 when a recovery crane was deployed during a rain-hit race and his Ferrari skidded off line and almost crashed into it.

MIKA: R.I.P

[MIKA27]

Last lap; Roquelin to Vettel on the radio: Monaco, 1988, Senna.

Red Bull pulled Sebastian Vettel back into line, as he was about to set the fastest lap of the race, with three simple words on the very last lap of the Canadian Grand Prix.

The reigning world champion is famous for not only wanting to win races, but also secure the fastest lap of a grand prix.

So, at the start of his final tour of the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve en route to victory on Sunday, Vettel began his quest with the fastest – or ‘purple’ – first sector of the entire race.

“I wasn’t surprised,” Red Bull team boss Christian Horner is quoted by Auto Motor und Sport, “but I told his race engineer to bring him under control.”

In the past, engineer Guillaume ‘Rocky’ Roquelin’s instructions to Vettel about giving up the pointless quest for fastest laps have gone mostly unheeded.

So ‘Rocky’ tried a different strategy in Canada. Three words: “Monaco, 1988, Senna”.

Like many in Formula 1, Vettel knows well the tale of how legend Ayrton Senna threw away certain victory at Monaco 25 years ago when he lost focus and crashed.

Vettel, duly backing off for a safer cruise to the chequered flag, replied to his engineer: “OK, OK – I’m just kidding.”

Perhaps the 25-year-old thought in that moment about the state of the world championship, where in his quest for an ultra-rare fourth consecutive drivers’ title he stood to stretch his points lead to Fernando Alonso to 36 points.

Ferrari’s Alonso, however, said afterwards that he’s not panicking yet.

Asked what points deficit will make him worry, the Spaniard answered on Sunday: “I think (when) we are 80 or 85 points behind.

“(That) will be a very critical situation, which is [a points gap of] more than three races.”

[MIKA27]

McLaren endure bleak day at one of their happiest hunting grounds

Over the years the Canadian Grand Prix has been a happy hunting ground for McLaren but this year’s edition of the race marked a low for the legendary Formula 1 team.

At the same Montreal street circuit where McLaren has produced four of the last five winners, there was only disappointment.

For the first time in 65 races, a span dating back to November 2009, the once invincible team failed to claim a single point after both drivers finished outside the top 10.

“It was a weekend that I think we will try and quickly forget,” said McLaren team principal Martin Whitmarsh.

“Qualifying was poor and then in the race, looking back at it with the data we’ve got, we made mistakes. We weren’t quick enough, that’s the starting point. But I think we should have been able to get into the points.”

The surprise was not so much that the team missed out on the points in an already difficult season for them, but the manner in which they did. Neither car was involved in a crash. Both finished, just way behind.

Mexican Sergio Perez finished 11th and 2009 champion Jenson Button was 12th, both a lap down on Red Bull’s race winner Sebastian Vettel.

Even in qualifying, the team were unusually slow, failing to advance to the last session for the 10 fastest cars.

“We’ve won the last three here. This weekend nothing’s really gone right,” said Whitmarsh.

“The car isn’t quick enough but we could have done a better job than we’ve done.

“Both drivers are driving well, but we’re not giving them quite the car that they need to go out and get the job done.”

To try and save time after the disappointment of qualifying, Button gambled on a one-stop pit strategy but the Englishman said it made no difference because the car was just not up to speed.

The Briton hopes that the car will be better for his home race, the next up at Silverstone, but conceded that there were unlikely to be any quick fixes.

“We got lapped today and easily. So [there's] a lot of work to do and it’s very difficult to know where to look,” he said.

“It’s a big gap. We do have some things for Silverstone which are positive. We tried them here and they didn’t work for this type of circuit. But they should help us set the car up a bit easier in Silverstone.”

[MIKA27]

Bottas gets a reality check in Canada after qualifying heroics

Reality hit hard for Valtteri Bottas at the Canadian Grand Prix. Just a day after he enhanced his reputation as one of the rising stars of Formula 1 by upstaging some of the biggest names in the sport to qualify third, he came back to Earth.

The rain that had helped him on Saturday stayed away and with the sun shining brightly on the Montreal street circuit, his Williams car could not keep up and drifted back through the field to finish 14th.

“We fought hard to try and secure some points today but ultimately we just didn’t have the pace in the car,” he said.

“I didn’t get a great start which allowed a few cars to jump me on the first lap, and in the dry conditions we simply couldn’t match the level of competitiveness we showed yesterday.”

Despite his disappointment, the 23-year-old rookie from Finland, competing in just his seventh race, was still buoyed by the improved performance in qualifying.

“I have learnt a lot from the race today and as a team we can take positives from the weekend,” he said.

Once an unstoppable force in Formula One, winning nine constructors’ championships and seven drivers’ titles, the British-based team has fallen on hard times. They have failed to score a single point all season.

Bottas, who won the GP3 title in 2011 and spent last year as Williams reserve driver, gave the team a real boost with his performance on Saturday but technical director Mike Coughlan said it was a false dawn.

“We knew Valtteri’s grid position was not representative of our current pace, but we had hoped to be able to challenge for some points,” he said.

“Valtteri drove a solid race without making any mistakes, but ultimately the pace wasn’t in the car to enable him to hold a top ten position today.”

[MIKA27]

Alonso: Second place has a victory taste because we scored good points

Fernando Alonso did what he does best by slugging his way from sixth on the grid to second place on the podium after a tense and hard fought Canadian Grand Prix, the Ferrari driver making the most of a car which was clearly not the pick of the bunch. He spoke afterwards.

You said that you thought you may have a chance to come from sixth position to hopefully get a win here, I was saying ‘how’s he going to try and do that?’ And you nearly did it. Magic, magic tenacious drive.

Fernando Alonso: Yesterday obviously we didn’t have a good qualifying, I didn’t put the lap together and also the conditions didn’t help but we knew that the pace in dry conditions of the car on Friday was good, so we had some hopes. Obviously we are fighting with top drivers and I have a very good fight with Mark, with Nico, with Lewis at the end. And it’s not easy. Even if you have a little bit more pace, they are super-talented ones and it was difficult race. But at the end I think the second place has a victory taste because we scored some good points after a very difficult weekend.

You had some great battles and it took quite a while to get past Lewis. Was it just the speed coming out of the hairpin? It took quite a while, even with DRS.

FA: I think it was the pace difference was very, very small. With other battles we did maybe I was a little bit more fast, a little bit faster than the people I was catching. With Lewis we were really very close on the pace and there was some moments going out of turn eight to see who had the detection point and then in turn 10 the same thing, at the last chicane, so there was some action there. But it was nice to have these battles, particularly this race with so talented drivers, so intelligent drivers, that, you know, you fight wheel-to-wheel at 315km/h and you feel safe. You feel you are racing and you are competing. It can go your way or it can go the other way, but this is real racing. So, very happy to see this back after Monaco. It’s a little bit different.

How much did qualifying hurt you because starting sixth getting to second was a big race. Could you have done better, do you think, if you had started on the first or second row?

FA: I don’t know really. I think you will never know. Qualifying is qualifying and it’s better to be on pole position but I think the last pole position in dry conditions was September 2010 so it’s not the strong point of the team. On Sunday, we normally pick up the pace a little bit about which we are happy because the points are gained on Sunday, but it’s true that at some races, if you start too far behind, it’s difficult to recover, but we will try to improve next time.

In Monte Carlo we talked to one another and you were very confident for Montreal, and you said to me ‘I’m going to be on the podium.’ Congratulations, and I would like you to say something to the Italian community here because there’s a very very big Italian community.

FA: In Monaco we were not competitive for different reasons. In a way, we were not competitive here on Saturday, maybe for the same reasons, for the conditions that we need to do a better job compared to the others. In some conditions we are not competitive enough, so we need to work on that. And then for the Italian people here in Montreal, I think they support Ferrari all the time, they enjoy Formula One. You see the atmosphere in this race is very very unique, not only here on the track but from the time you land at the airport, you see a very enthusiastic people about this race. You put the TV on, they are talking about the meteo for the Grand Prix. They’re talking about the qualifying, the practice, the shops on the streets are full of flags, Ferrari flags etc, so it’s very nice to race here. We didn’t give them a win today but I think we put on a good show for everybody and hopefully we give a win for them in the next one when they are watching TV.

Are you worried for the British Grand Prix, with your pace in qualifying because normally it’s cold weather; do you believe you can be OK in Silverstone?

FA: I believe so. I think it’s a different circuit, completely different asphalt, generating a lot of stress in the tyre: Silverstone, Nurburgring compared with very easy tracks on tyres like Monaco, Canada where you are looking for one or two stops. Silverstone will be different, I think. We know that the temperature is not helping us at the moment, but we cannot say anything because there are other people going very fast in those conditions, so it’s up to us to improve. We have some ideas and hopefully at Silverstone we can improve on that.

When do things started getting desperate? Seb seems to be gaining points at every race now and you’re falling further and further behind. When do you really have to start winning?

FA: I think we are eighty or eight-five points behind. It will be a very critical situation, which is more than three races. In the past – I touched on this in Australia or Malaysia – in the last six or eight years, there were people recovering from more than 30 points on the old points, which is three races so it’s 75 or 80 points. So hopefully we’re going to arrive to that number.

[MIKA27]

Hamilton: We just need to keep pushing to close the gaps to these guys

In the aftermath of the Canadian Grand Prix, Lewis Hamilton cut a forlorn figure despite finishing third in the race, suggesting that something is amiss with the Mercedes driver. Nevertheless he spoke after a tense afternoon at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in Montreal.

You seem to have a lot of fans here Lewis…

Lewis Hamilton: I have a great time here every year, and thank you for all the support, I have a great time.

We all were enthralled how clean, how correct and yet how exciting the fight was with Fernando. What did you damage on the car?

LH: I think some small part of my wing came off. It was very, very close, we had a good battle, he was very, very fair and I hope we can get a bit quicker in the next race.

You qualified in front of your team-mate, you raced in front of your team-mate. That must have been a bit of a help after Monaco, I presume. You feel really good about going forward with this team?

LH: Yes, the car’s getting better and the guys are doing a fantastic job, so we just need to keep pushing to close the gaps to these guys.

Once again on the podium here in Canada. We thought you might be trying to get Fernando back again. Was that a possibility?

LH: Clearly not, because I didn’t get him. He was massively quick and it was very difficult to keep him behind. I tried my best. I got close once he got past me, but he was just generally took quick for me. But you know, it’s still a good result for me considering that these guys are massively quick.

Earlier this week you talked to us about your brakes. How were they in this race, maybe the best they’ve been all season?

LH: No. Not really. Generally, again, very similar to other races. Still need to improve and that’s where Fernando was really catching me everywhere.

Mercedes dominated second position for 63 laps of today’s 70 lap race and then you lost out with seven to go to Fernando. Was there any one thing that you didn’t have that meant to you lost that position with so little time left?

LH: I guess it’s just grip, just lack of grip. The car was fantastic, I’m assuming those guys had even better than that. But generally it’s been really good. I was just lacking a little bit of grip in the lower speed… perhaps the chicane. Fernando seemed to be particularly quick in the lower speed corners.

The last two circuits were not demanding in terms of tyre wear. It looked like Mercedes made a step forward in terms of the tyre wear, that was the weakest point you had. Can you explain this development you’ve made on the car, what happened exactly to make this step forward?

LH: I think it’s just been a work in progress. We haven’t really… we haven’t cured anything, it’s not been a long period of time since Barcelona where there was big trouble. I guess we’ve just been to two tracks where it’s not got high speed corners, so therefore it’s not really been a problem. We’ve worked on a couple of techniques to look after the tyres a bit more, brake cooling and all that kind of stuff has been added as well, which helps.

[MIKA27]

Vergne takes lead in the race for Webber’s Red Bull seat

Jean-Eric Vergne has moved to the top of the list in the race to replace Mark Webber at Red Bull next year, after putting in impressive performances for the energy drink company’s junior team Toro Rosso in Monaco and Canada.

Previously, it was believed that the Frenchman’s teammate Daniel Ricciardo was the more likely of the duo to be in the running to partner world champion Sebastian Vettel next year.

But in Canada, 23-year-old Vergne finished sixth, and he was quick to point out that it was Toro Rosso’s best result since Vettel’s feats at the Faenza based team in 2008.

“Jean-Eric Vergne impressed with his performance in Monaco and here in Montreal he was even better,” agreed Red Bull’s influential driver manager, Helmut Marko.

“The result was even better than we had expected, and I hope he can continue that way,” he is quoted by Speed Week.

Marko is also quoted by France’s RMC: “It was not just a good race, he was very quick all weekend.

“In qualifying he made no mistakes in the rain and during the race I saw him fight with talented drivers.”

Asked about Vergne’s future, Marko answered: “This is his second year in Formula 1, and for the second year it’s really impressive.

“But what we are looking for is drivers who can win grands prix. For the moment, he is on the right track.”

[MIKA27]

Punches allegedly flew in aftermath of Di Resta’s poor qualifying

Reports of a pit garage fight, with punches flying, have emerged to dampen Force India’s 100th Grand Prix weekend celebrations.

In Monaco, angry with the Silverstone based team’s qualifying strategy, Paul di Resta said publicly: “I’m not going to say much because I’ll say something I probably shouldn’t.”

But two weeks later, on Saturday in the wake of qualifying in Montreal, the 27-year-old Scot allowed his frustration to spill over.

He said that Force India’s handling of the session which left him 17th on the grid was “clearly not acceptable”, accusing his team of leaving him stranded in the pits with a minor problem when the track was at its driest.

A day later, rumours were swirling in the paddock of the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve of fisticuffs in the Force India garage, the daily Mail reporting that it might have been between di Resta’s trainer and a team mechanic.

Telegraph correspondent Tom Cary said Force India “admitted that a disagreement had occurred”, but denied it was related to di Resta’s criticisms.

MIKA: Sutil is clearly doing a better job for Force India thus far, he seems to have more momentum that Di Resta.

[MIKA27]

Massa looks set to keep Ferrari race seat in 2014

It appears increasingly likely that Felipe Massa will keep his race seat at Ferrari beyond the end of 2013 when his contract with the Maranello outfit is set to expire.

That is the news of the famous Italian team’s boss Stefano Domenicali, following speculation about 32-year-old Brazilian Massa’s future in the wake of three high-speed crashes in Monaco and Canada.

Domenicali, however, told O Estado de S.Paulo newspaper that Massa’s return to speed in recent months is the real key to his future.

“If Felipe keeps going as he has been, I do not see any problem for the future,” he said, following speculation that Ferrari may even be eyeing Mercedes’ Nico Rosberg.

“As far as our drivers go for 2014, I’m calm,” Domenicali added.

Told, however, that driver choice for 2014 could be more important than ever as Formula 1 prepares for the radical new engine rules, he laughed: “This [the driver lineup] is one of the easiest decisions to be taken for next season.

“What is complex is the technical challenge we face with so many changes.

“We will arrive early next year with so many unknowns and only three tests before the start of the season, so there’s no guarantee we will understand everything.

“This is a theme for deep reflections. About the drivers, everybody knows that Fernando [Alonso] has a long-term contract and Felipe, despite all that [has been] said, is still with us.”

Asked to say specifically that Massa will still be with Ferrari in 2014, Domenicali obliged: “Absolutely.”

Meanwhile, following his third-placed qualifying effort in Montreal, it appears that the future of Williams rookie Valtteri Bottas is also safe for now.

“I am convinced,” team deputy principal Claire Williams is quoted by Kolner Express newspaper, “that we have a future world champion on our hands.”

[MIKA27]

Webber puzzled by van der Garde driving

Mark Webber was left puzzled by Giedo van der Garde's driving during the Canadian Grand Prix.

The Red Bull driver looked set for an intense battle with Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso for the final two podium positions behind Sebastian Vettel, but he had to settle for fourth place in the end after his front wing was damaged midway through the race by the Caterham driver.

Webber was left scratching his head after his race was compromised when he made contact with van der Garde.

"It was pretty knackered to be fair, it didn't help from then on, I don't know what he [ Van der Garde] was doing, we had blue flags there but in the end he kept trying to make the apex but I don't know. Some guys maybe have their eye too much on their drive," he is quoted as saying by BBC Sport.

Webber also had a nice battle with Nico Rosberg during the early stages of the race over P3, but he admits he didn't have much of a chance once he had his run-in with van der Garde.

"The car was very hot so we had to stay out of the slipstream. The car was tough in traffic but when I got past him it was all okay, but I didn't have long before I then suffered the damage."

[MIKA27]

Van der Garde penalised

Giedo van der Garde was handed a five-place grid penalty for the British GP after being found guilty of taking out Nico Hulkenberg in Canada.

Van der Garde has an incident-packed grand prix on Sunday in Montreal during which he was hit with a drive-through penalty for ignoring blue flags and hitting Mark Webber.

That, though, wasn't his only incident and later he crashed into Hulkenberg.

As the Sauber driver came up to lap him at the final chicane, van der Garde again ignored the blue flags with the two making contact. Both drivers were forced to retire.

Van der Garde was later called before the stewards and handed a five-place grid penalty for the next race at Silverstone.

He insists it was Hulkenberg's fault.

"I was heading towards the hairpin with Hulkenberg alongside," he explained. "I moved over for him but he turned in in front of me in the braking zone and we made contact and that was the end of my race."

[MIKA27]

Sutil laments 'inconsistent' penalties

Adrian Sutil was frustrated after a drive-through penalty for ignoring blue flags cost him points in the Canadian Grand Prix.

Despite leaving Montreal with a World Championship point, the F1 returnee had an afternoon to forget.

Starting with a spin when he attempted to pass Valtteri Bottas, Sutil's VJM06 was later damaged by Pastor Maldonado when the Williams driver - "as he always does" - drove into the rear.

However, his woes were not over.

Racing Kimi Raikkonen, Sutil was judged to have ignored the blue flags being waved as Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso came up behind him.

As a result the Force India driver was hit with a drive-through penalty, which he reckons was a piece of inconsistent stewarding from the men in Montreal.

"I saw a chance to overtake Bottas after he had a bad exit out of Turn Two. We were side-by-side but I was on the kerb and it spun me around. It was a racing incident - unlucky, but lucky because I was able to turn the car around and go on," Sutil explained to Sky Sports F1.

"Then I was in the back of the field and Maldonado missed his braking point - again, as he always does - and he hit my rear. That had a big effect with damage on my car.

"And then I was quite disappointed with the drive-through. I was just racing [Kimi] Raikkonen, trying to push on.

"I tried to give them the straight to pass me, and that is where Hamilton overtook me with the DRS as well. I thought 'ok, they were behind me for one lap, but that's usual around this type of circuit.

"I've spent many laps behind lapped cars until I got past. It's just so inconsistent from the FIA and something I don't understand."

[MIKA27]

Jensen Button: "I've never been so pleased to get out of a car" after the Canadian Grand Prix:

McLaren’s Jenson Button said he has “never been so pleased to get out of a car” after he finished a lowly 12th in Sunday’s Canadian Grand Prix, once place behind his team-mate Sergio Perez.

The result ended McLaren’s impressive 64-race streak in the points and highlighted their current plight. The team are sixth in the constructors’ championship, 164 points behind leaders Red Bull while neither Button or Perez has come close to scoring a podium.

Button, the 2009 world champion, tried a one-stop strategy in Montreal, while his team-mate Sergio Perez did two stops, however both drivers struggled and finished just three seconds apart.

There were long faces among the McLaren management – team principal Martin Whitmarsh, managing director Jonathan Neale and sporting director Sam Michael – at the airport last night.

The car does have underlying pace, though. In the race, the McLaren was 0.5 seconds faster than Toro Rosso and lapping around the same pace as Force India.

However, while Toro Rosso’s Jean-Eric Vergne achieved sixth and Force’s Paul di Resta and Adrian Sutil seventh and 10th respectively, McLaren failed to score and Button never ran higher than 10th.

Button said: “It was just one of those difficult days that you have. The team told me a lap time to follow so that we could be sure of keeping the tyres alive long enough to stay on a one-stop schedule, but it turned out that they lasted a lot better than we thought and that I could have been going a lot quicker.”

Whitmarsh admitted the team had made mistakes. “We got it wrong. With Jenson, we should have started on the prime tyre. We really stayed out on the option too long, stayed in traffic and lost a lot of time.

“In the case of Jenson, we set him lap time targets which were too slow – and he could have gone much faster. He could have pushed into the points. It was one weekend where we didn’t get it right. We were not quick enough to be at the front but we should have been able to get in the points.”

Button, 33, added: “It was quite painful out there. We got lapped, easily lapped. It was like we were in a different category.”

But the Briton remained positive ahead of his home race at Silverstone on 28-30 June. He said: “I’m still looking forward to my home grand prix. Are we going to be quicker there? Yes. We’re not going to be on the podium I don’t think, but getting into high points has got to be our aim.”

[MIKA27]

Canadian GP: Maldonado thinks Sutil clash penalty was unfair

Pastor Maldonado believes his drive-through penalty for colliding with Adrian Sutil during the Canadian Grand Prix was undeserved.

The Williams driver hit the back of the Force India under braking for the Turn 10 hairpin during the early stages of the race.

He expressed his mystification regarding the matter and suggests it was unfair that he was penalised. Both cars sustained minor damage but did not need to pit for repairs.

"I locked up in my braking point," said Maldonado. "I think the [penalty] decision was wrong because he didn't lose a position, but I lost a place.

"It was not a mistake. It was normal racing contact - I didn't push him off the track or whatever."

Asked if he felt the stewards had been harder on him because of his reputation for incidents, Maldonado replied: "I don't know. It's difficult to say."

Sutil said the incident had little bearing on his race.

"He missed his braking point and damaged my rear," said the German. "I lost a little bit of downforce at the rear. It was a bit difficult under braking but I gained top speed, so I still had a decent pace."

[Colt45]

I enjoy all kinds of motorsports, but don't really participate in this discussion. One thing I've noticed over the years is that racers (not just F1) rarely take responsibility for track mishaps, and seemingly always look to blame someone else.

A track marshall was killed at the 2013 Canadian GP.......

[Bartolomeo]

  On 6/11/2013 at 4:56 PM, Colt45 said:

I enjoy all kinds of motorsports, but don't really participate in this discussion. One thing I've noticed over the years is that racers (not just F1) rarely take responsibility for track mishaps, and seemingly always look to blame someone else.

A track marshall was killed at the 2013 Canadian GP.......

It was addressed in post 1036

Very sad