FORMULA 1 2009

[IceChant]

Not being able to test drive the cars crippled few of the teams but I think it'll pass as we go on in the season.

[MIKA27]

Not being able to test drive the cars crippled few of the teams but I think it'll pass as we go on in the season.

That is so very true....

The exception and this is what makes it so great is Braun. Because of Honda pulling out of F1 at such short notice, team Braun really had no time to conduct testing. The success of this team is amazing and it's so rewarding to see them do so well!

[MIKA27]

'Stupid' problem has Ferrari scratching their heads

Felipe Massa has bemoaned Ferrari's bad luck after a "very small and stupid problem" forced him to retire from last weekend's Chinese Grand Prix.

The Scuderia are under pressure to start producing after Massa and team-mate Kimi Raikkonen failed to pick up a single point in the opening three races of the season.

Neither Ferrari driver finished the season opener in Australia while Raikkonen was forced to stop due of a KERS-related problem in Malaysia. Things didn't get much better for the team in China as Massa was forced to park his car on lap 21.

The Brazilian says electrical problem which forced him to stop in China was "a failure we had never seen before".

"At the factory, we continue to push very hard to overcome these reliability problems. The electrical fault that forced me to stop at the side of the track was, once again, a failure we had never seen before.

"It has to be said that luck doesn't seem to be on our side at the moment, as it was a very small and stupid problem that made the car stop, because it was simply a faulty reading within the on board data that indicated to the control unit that the throttle should be shut down.

"So, even though there was actually nothing wrong, the car's computer decided to shut down the throttle and I had to park it."

Massa and his team will hope they can turn their fortunes around at this weekend's Bahrain Grand Prix. The Brazilian is searching for a hat-trick of wins at Sakhir.

"I have always gone well at the Sakhir circuit, winning for the last two years, so I hope this is a good sign," he said. "In more practical terms, we tested here during the winter and the car was not too bad to be honest and the tyres seemed to suit the package we have.

"I really do expect to be more competitive, especially if we have KERS, as it should be a significant advantage at this track. I hope that finally we can make life difficult for the other teams and fight for a very good result.

"I am very motivated, despite the difficult times until now. But change must come and hopefully that will start this weekend."

MIKA: Well, that's motor sport and it goes to show that money isn't everything when a team like Ferrari have the most money to spend, yet they can over look a 'glitch' in the system.

I dp hope they can start winning races and or get some points to start mixing amongst Red bull, Williams and Braun.

[MIKA27]

DC expects Ferrari will catch up sooner or later

Despite their worst start to a season in 27 years, Ferrari will catch up with the rest of the pack sooner or later, according to David Coulthard.

Ferrari are bottom of the Constructors' Championship after they failed to pick up any points in the three opening races of the season. There have already been suggestions that the Scuderia could write off the 2009 season if their fortunes don't improve at next month's Spanish Grand Prix.

Coulthard, currently working at the BBC as commentator, believes the Italian outfit may be paying the penalty for going the extra mile during last year's World Championship battle with McLaren.

"Ferrari have designed a car that does not make the most of this year's huge regulation changes," Coulthard wrote in The Telegraph.

"It is slow and unreliable. Perhaps they spent too long last year fighting with McLaren for the Drivers' Title and missed the boat in terms of development for 2009.

"Then again, perhaps not. I suspect they simply haven't been as sharp as other teams. However, cars can be modified; it will cost time and money, but sooner or later they will catch up."

Michael Schumacher was always actively involved in the development of cars when he was with Ferrari and Coulthard suspects the team are struggling with the lack of input from Raikkonen.

"Raikkonen is a former team-mate of mine and the Finn has never shown me he can lead a car's development," he added.

"Sure, he has blistering natural speed, but I suspect Ferrari will improve dramatically if and when Fernando Alonso arrives."

MIKA: DC is spot on about Kimi. Having blistering speed doesn't guarantee you a win. It's being a complete driver like Michael Schumacher amongst many other greats that will win you races as well as winning you a great team who will be happy to work for and with you in developing a great ride.

It's sad to see DC out of F1... He too is one of the greats in my book.

Alonso at Ferrari......?

I don't know, is he any better?

At McLaren he wasn't the best to work with. He sulked alot of p*ssed the team off.

[MIKA27]

Briatore upbeat over Renault progress

A bullish Flavio Briatore is adamant Renault are on the rise again despite their sluggish start to the current Formula One season.

Renault currently have just four points from three races courtesy of Fernando Alonso's fifth-placed finish in the opening Australian Grand Prix.

Alonso and team-mate Nelson Piquet then struggled in the atrocious wet conditions that dominated in Malaysia and China.

Double world champion Alonso did qualify second on a dry Shanghai track, albeit on a light fuel load that compromised his race due to the fact it started behind the safety car.

A degree of normality should return for Sunday's Bahrain Grand Prix as it is set to be hot and dry, although the occasional sandstorm has been known to blow over the desert track.

Renault boss Briatore, though, firmly believes Renault are ready to prove they have what it takes to return to the top.

"The race in China was not a normal race, and it's a pity that we couldn't really see the potential of the car," said Briatore.

"The conditions were difficult and everyone seemed to struggle, except for the top three.

"But Fernando showed with his qualifying performance that the car is improving. Unfortunately we were penalised by the bad weather.

"But the car is getting better and more competitive, and this weekend we will have new parts on both cars.

"We saw a great effort by the team, here and back at the factory, to get the new improvements on Fernando's car for China.

"The championship is long and I'm confident from Bahrain things will get better for us."

[MIKA27]

Schumi: Never write Ferrari off

Michael Schumacher has warned that it would be foolish to write Ferrari off so early in the season.

The Scuderia have made their worst start to a Formula One season in 27 years after Felipe Massa and Kimi Raikkonen failed to pick up any points in the first three races of the season.

Schumacher, who won five World Championships with Ferrari, insists the team can still come good this season.

"We recognise the situation, but we are not giving up," Schumacher said in an interview with German news agency DPA.

"Ferrari never did that in the past. You should never write off Ferrari. That's the good thing about Formula One, there is no time for frustration, you always look ahead.

"Of course the situation doesn't look good at the moment, but the gaps are not that big that it wouldn't allow the team to establish itself in the upper tiers again."

Schumacher admits he has been impressed by the reliability which Brawn GP showed during the first three races of the season.

"Ross [brawn] has an extreme knowledge," he said. "He is a great man... It is stunning to see who quickly the transition from a Honda to a Mercedes engine was achieved.

"On the first day of testing shortly before the season they went a full race distance and have been reliable at a top level from then on. This reliability is the most astonishing thing I have ever seen."

MIKA: This comming from an absolute legend, the likes of which I dont believe we will ever see again. Ferrari was the 'Legend' that it was because of Schumi. It seems people tend to think that it's just the team that create a car and anyone can be placed within it and win a world championship, let alone 5 world titles.

M.Schumacher is a master at his craft and whilst yes, it is important to have a reliable and fast car with an overall good package, you really also need a great driver.

Massa is good but reckless at times by losing concentration and consistency whilst Kimi is fast and thats it! Kimi has potential to be as great as Mika Hakkinen, Michael Schumacher and many others but he just doesn't seem to care?

[MIKA27]

Lola eye return to Formula One

British company Lola are considering a return to next year's newly streamlined Formula One World Championship.

The Huntingdon-based motorsport specialists have not been involved since the failure of their works team in 1997, but the cost-cutting measures set to be implemented for 2010 have tempted them to reconsider.

"The announcement that Formula One teams may opt for a prudent, financially responsible cost-capped regime from 2010 has resulted in us deciding to fully evaluate the opportunity to develop a car to compete in the FIA Formula One World Championship," said Lola Group executive chairman Martin Birrane.

Lola were a consistent presence in the Formula One paddock from the 1960s, and they have entered discussions with several parties over the development of a car for next year.

They are well positioned to design and build a car given their expertise gleaned from other forms of motorsport, and Lola also possess key facilities such as a wind tunnel.

"The current necessity for Formula One to adopt a responsible approach in times of economic uncertainty has created the ideal conditions for us to consider developing a car for the World Championship," added Birrane, who bought the group in 1997.

"Lola possesses the technical resources, capability and know-how to develop cars capable of competing at the very highest levels of international motor sport, including Formula One."

MIKA: "Great news for F1 if this happens. Lola have a real racing pedigree, and substantial technological expertise, which should allow them to be at least midfield runners fairly quickly. Fingers crossed it all comes about."

[MIKA27]

'McLaren could be forced to quit if sponsors withdraw'

Agents for McLaren's sponsors have reportedly approached the FIA pleading for leniency at next week's WMSC hearing, fearing a "disproportionately large" punishment could see the Woking team forced out of F1.

McLaren will face the World Motor Sport Council for the second time in just 19 months on April 29th to answer five charges relating to the 'Liargate' scandal, one of which is bringing the sport into disrupt. It's the second time in recent years that the team has faced such charge, with the FIA imposing a $100 million fine and throwing McLaren out of the Constructors' Championship two years ago for their part in the 'Stepneygate' spy scandal.

McLaren, though, have already taken steps in the hope of lessening their potential punishment this year, sacking sporting director Dave Ryan, the man they hold responsible for misleading the Australian race stewards, and bidding farewell to CEO Ron Dennis, who has long been at loggerheads with the FIA.

But such is the seriousness of the team's position that, according to The Daily Telegraph, representatives of some of their sponsors have also 'approached the FIA and Bernie Ecclestone's Formula One Management company to impress upon them the gravity of the situation if McLaren are suspended by the FIA's world council at a hearing in Paris next Wednesday.'

A source described as 'close to one of McLaren's sponsors' is quoted as saying: "I can say that if a disproportionately large penalty were given to McLaren on April 29 then the sponsor that I am associated with might leave. But the punishment must fit the crime. If there is an irrefutable case of corporate deception then fair enough.

"I think we all know the subtext here; the FIA wanted to oust Ron Dennis. I believe the governing body have allowed this situation to escalate and it is doing no one any good - not McLaren, not the FIA and certainly not the sport. Apart from anything else, it is dissuading other potential sponsors from entering Formula One."

Yet it is the threat of the team's current sponsors leaving F1 that will be exercising minds both at Woking and at the FIA. The Telegraph claims that 'clauses in the contracts of the team's major sponsors, such as Vodafone and Diageo, which owns Johnnie Walker whisky label, would allow them to walk away from McLaren, leaving one of the sport's largest teams without full financial backing during a worldwide recession.

From the perspective of McLaren and their apparently-disenchanted sponsors, the timing of next week's hearing could not be more unfortunate. Were the team to suffer a two-race suspension - as meted out to BAR in 2005 - then they would be ruled out of the Barcelona and Monaco grands prix. While the latter is the crown jewel of the F1 calendar, Spain carries particular significance to Banco de Santander, one of McLaren's principal backers.

MIKA: If McLaren were to be forced to leave F1 due to a few dishonest people, it is indeed sad for the world of F1....

[MIKA27]

Jense: Britain needs a grand prix

Jenson Button believes it would be a "disaster" if there was no British Grand Prix from next year.

Further doubt has been cast on Donington Park's ability to showcase the event following yesterday's launch of a legal battle.

Circuit owner Tom Wheatcroft has started proceedings against Simon Gillett's company, Donington Ventures Leisure Ltd, who have a 150-year lease of the East Midlands venue.

Wheatcroft is seeking £2.47million in rent arrears from DVLL, who are due to stage the race from next season, as well as forfeiture of the track lease.

It is an unsavoury fight just nine months after Gillett agreed a 10-year deal with Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone to stage the blue-riband event.

There is now every chance the race could be lost, which would come as a bitter blow for current championship leader Button.

"As a British driver, and motor sport is very British, it would be very disappointing not to race in my home country," said Button.

"I don't live in the UK, I live in Monaco, but I'm very British and very patriotic, and it would be a disaster.

"It is a GP that is very hectic for a British driver because it's a very busy schedule.

"But in a way that's what I love about it. It's great driving in and seeing all the Union Jacks. It's a great feeling for a driver."

Ecclestone has previously made it clear if Donington Park does not come up to scratch, then there will be no British Grand Prix.

The 78-year-old is adamant there is no going back to Silverstone, which hosts its last race race on June 21, the 60th anniversary of F1's oldest grand prix.

Speaking in Bahrain ahead of Sunday's race, Ecclestone reiterated his threat, stating: "If Donington can't put on the British Grand Prix then that's it. We will be leaving Britain.

"There is no question of us going back to Silverstone. They have had enough chances and have not delivered what they promised."

However, there is hope on the horizon as Ecclestone may yet turn out to be a knight in shining armour and come to Gillett's rescue.

"I've been in talks with Simon and we've been talking through the money situation," added Ecclestone.

"I'm trying to help him sort things out. What he really needs is an investor, that's the best hope of saving the race."

Ecclestone, though, stopped short of confirming he would invest or promote the race, even though he is close friends with Wheatcroft.

"I'm too busy," insisted Ecclestone.

"Anyway, we have a promoter and the people (Gillett) there already."

Given the crisis, Ecclestone again criticised the Government for not offering their support, in particular given the positive impact the race has on the British car industry.

"It's a disgrace the British Government does not step in to help," chided Ecclestone.

"They are throwing billions (of pounds) at the London Olympics.

"They could do what is needed to save the race by putting in a fraction of it, 0.002 per cent."

MIKA: You know what!?

I dispise Bernie but in this instance he is right. The British GP is one of the greats on the F1 calendar and why have the British government ignored this by not helping out?

[OZCUBAN]

Well said Mika there is to much politics in the sport at the moment they have sacked Ryan/ Dennis is gone and Lewis has publicly apologized and lost his points for Melbourne so in my opinion lets just leave it at that...

If I was the F.I.A I would be more interested in making F-1 more user friendly for teams and sponsors alike especially in the light of the economic climate

Good post mate keep it up

OZ

[MIKA27]

Kimi: Ferrari a second off the pace

Heading into the fourth race of the season, Kimi Raikkonen reckons Ferrari are still as much as a full second behind the likes of Brawn GP and Red Bull Racing.

Brawn and Red Bull have shared the spoils amongst themselves in the opening three events of the Championship while Ferrari have yet to even score a single point - never mind win a race.

And, rather ominously for the Scuderia, Raikkonen believes it's still going to be quite some time before Ferrari can catch the 2009 race winners as their F60 is a much as a full second off the pace.

"We are probably one second behind them, so I think it depends a bit from circuit to circuit but that's more or less where we are and we know that," the 2007 World Champ said during Thursday's press conference in Bahrain.

"We are aiming to catch them up and of course, when you're once behind, it's not easy because everybody is also going forward, so it's hard to catch up completely but for sure we are going to get much closer next race.

"All the people are working one hundred percent, they know what they're doing. It's more the time that's against us than anything else."

The Finn, though, denied that he is under added pressure to score Ferrari's first points of the season at this weekend's Bahrain GP.

"For sure I want to score points but I don't feel any pressure. We try to do our best every time and unfortunately we haven't managed to score any points so far.

"We are all one team and we all don't feel so good when we have bad races but that's how it is right now unfortunately. We do the best that we can here and hopefully we get some points."

MIKA; No pressure!?

It seems to me that ever since Kimi left mcLaren, he has under performed.

He was fantastic at McLaren, a real driver/fighter and yes, whilst he won his world Chammpionship in '07 at Ferrari, he only did that by a whisker... Ever since though, he just seems to have lost that 'Edge' and I can't help but feel that there are too many chiefs and not enough indians at Ferrari who have their fingers in the same pie.

Maybe being at Ferrari is a distraction for Kimi?

[MIKA27]

Well said Mika there is to much politics in the sport at the moment they have sacked Ryan/ Dennis is gone and Lewis has publicly apologized and lost his points for Melbourne so in my opinion lets just leave it at that...

If I was the F.I.A I would be more interested in making F-1 more user friendly for teams and sponsors alike especially in the light of the economic climate

Good post mate keep it up

OZ

Thanks very much OZ.

As from next year, F1 will have new rules when it comes to financing and as such, 'ALL' teams will have a 'cap' of I believe $43 Million. (I could be wrong on that figure) but in saying that, it is because of this, the likes of Audi, US racing & Team Lola are showing their interest in joining the F1.

Lola have always had a great racing heritage and it will be great to see them return.

It's good for us, the viewers and fans and it's great for F1.

Thanks for reading mate.

Mika.

[OZCUBAN]

Maybe Ferrari are going "back to the future"

[OZCUBAN]

Couldn't agree more

[OZCUBAN]

Bring back Mansell i reckon

[MIKA27]

Aston Martin also considering cut-price F1

Aston Martin, headed by former BAR team boss Dave Richards, could be persuaded to enter F1 next season in the wake of F1's proposed budget cap.

According to The Times, 'As many as eight candidates are vying for three places on the grid' next season and, hot on the heels of news that Lola are eyeing a return to the sport, the newspaper reports that Richards, chairman of Aston Martin, 'is waiting for Max Mosley, president of the FIA, motor sport's world governing body, to push through next week radical financial reforms that will cap the annual budgets of teams at £30 million. If Mosley gets his way for the start of a cut-price Formula One - and the president is most persuasive - Richards will push the button to enter a new team next season.'

This isn't the first time that Richards has made a play to enter F1 with his own team, as his Prodrive squad were set to join the sport in 2008 as the then-12th team. But the plan never came to fruition as spiralling costs and a ban on customer cars saw Richards pull out. This time, though, he's confident that competing in the sport could be viable so long as Mosley sticks to his plans for a budget cap.

"This is a great time to come in," Richards said. "If budgets are capped to a sensible level, everybody will benefit. Instead of Formula One being a contest of the teams with the most money, it will become a Championship for engineers with ingenuity and great drivers who can show their skill, as it was years ago."

The Aston chairman is now set to have talks with his Middle Eastern backer in the hope that they will once again consider the idea of F1.

"Nothing is decided yet," he said. "But the key to all of this is the financial reality that the budget cap will bring. Take a £300 million budget and, in reality, all you really need is a tenth of that. Things just got hopelessly out of control. What Max has come up with is not just eminently sensible but crucial to the survival of the sport. This way, new teams can become involved at a sensible price and with a chance of being competitive."

MIKA; "Bring it on!!!"

[MIKA27]

Bring back Mansell i reckon

Mansel wouldn't fit in the cockpit OZ!

Even in his day, he barely managed to fit as he was the tallest bloke in F1.

[OZCUBAN]

and widest but still a talent

[MIKA27]

and widest but still a talent

That he was mate.

I really hate it when champions get older and retire....

[MIKA27]

Massa: Definitely not a good day

Felipe Massa has conceded that Friday's running in Bahrain was "definitely not a good day" for himself and Ferrari.

Ferrari are in Bahrain this weekend hoping to avoid an unwanted record as, should they finish Sunday's grand prix without a World Championship point, it will be the first time in the team's history that they have failed to score a single point in the opening four races of a season.

And, after Friday's running, it can only be said that Ferrari are heading towards that record as both Massa and Kimi Raikkonen struggled for pace with Massa finishing down in 16th place, 1.2s off the pace - and he was the quicker of the two.

"This was definitely not a good day. We worked a lot towards the race, but we have to try and improve the handling of the car to move up the order for tomorrow and Sunday," Massa said.

"The harder tyre is very difficult to use, while the soft one seems to be the best, not just in terms of outright performance but also over a distance. The KERS helps: without it, I would have certainly been slower.

"I made a mistake at the final turn on my last set of soft tyres, which cost me at least three tenths. We must be patient at the moment and try to do the best possible in these conditions."

Meanwhile, Raikkonen, who was 18th quickest, admits that Friday's results were pretty much what Ferrari had expected heading to Bahrain.

"Even if we don't know what fuel loads the other teams had, it's clear that we are not as quick as we would like, but we have to try and make the best of this situation. Anyway, we knew that the picture for this race would be no different to what we've seen in previous ones," said the Finn.

MIKA: What else can you do but do the best with what you got....

[MIKA27]

Fri: Red Bull, Brawn, Force India

There were top ten places in Friday's Bahrain practice for both Red Bull and Brawn GP drivers as well as Force India's Adrian Sutil.

Red Bull

Sebastian Vettel: "So, obviously it's back to normal now. Last weekend was fantastic, but we have to carry on as there's a lot of work to do! So, our minds are now set to focus on Bahrain. It was a normal Friday, we were more or less able to do our full programme and had no issues with the car. Performance wise, it's difficult to comment, but the car feels alright. We were struggling to find a good balance this morning, but it was better this afternoon. Now we have to look at the data and try to improve for tomorrow. I think everyone was surprised how hot it is when you leave the pits in the car, it's like someone's blowing a heat gun in your face. It's better with the visor closed than open, otherwise you just get more hot air blowing at you."

Mark Webber: "It's obviously different conditions here, compared to when we drove on Sunday in Shanghai. We have very dry conditions and, as usual, Bahrain throws up its challenge with car balance. We had a productive Friday, running on both tyres and the car ran faultlessly. In terms of pace it's always hard to say who's where on Friday - but hopefully we're in good shape again to get some good results on Sunday."

Brawn GP:

Jenson Button: "A pretty standard programme for us today on what has been a very hot Friday in Bahrain. We have successfully completed our scheduled test items and evaluated a number of set-up options to find the best balance for our car around this track. The heat is intense however we are well prepared for this and looking forward to the novelty of a dry race weekend. The pace looks good from our initial evaluations and I am sure it will be a closely fought battle in qualifying tomorrow."

Rubens Barrichello: "We had different set-ups running on both cars today to gather as much information as possible and compensate for our lack of testing before the season began. It's very hot here in Bahrain obviously and it was quite difficult to find a good balance today but overall I am comfortable with the work that we have achieved. We are running quite competitively but have further work to do before qualifying tomorrow as other cars around us were also quick."

Force India:

Adrian Sutil: "The second session was quite a bit better as the track was very dirty and sandy in the morning. We also tried the softer tyre that seemed to help a lot with the stability. It's quite good balance-wise for a Friday, we can still tweak the general set-up and we still have to look at the brakes as I'm not 100% comfortable right now. I think the update package has helped us - if I look at my position in the afternoon, I think it is the best position I have been in ever on a Friday. Although it's difficult to draw conclusions from this, the car feels good so let's see how we go tomorrow."

Giancarlo Fisichella: "Today I am happier and more comfortable with the car: it feels like we have made a step forward with the new updates. The car is more consistent and I think we have reduced the gap to the others but let's see tomorrow. The team did a fantastic job to have this package here and I look forward to tomorrow to seeing where we are on the grid."

[MIKA27]

Fri: McLaren, STR, Ferrari, BMW

None of the McLaren, Toro Rosso, Ferrari or BMW drivers had the pace to make it into the top ten in Friday's Bahrain GP practice.

McLaren

Lewis Hamilton: "We've definitely got a very well-balanced car around here. The track felt very grippy from the start of the session and our work on the prime tyre was very consistent. Both sessions were consistent and very productive. The whole field looks very tight, but we are definitely taking steps forward. While we haven't made significant progress - we didn't bring anything new here this weekend - our goal remains to score some more points."

Heikki Kovalainen: "The track was surprisingly grippy at the start of practice, but the pitlane was quite dusty and slippery, making it easy to lock wheels. I feel more comfortable with the older-spec front wing, but maybe we still need to evaluate it. We once again made progress and have made improvements to the car since Shanghai. The big stops and long straights of this circuit really suit our package. My KERS stopped towards the end of the final session, which meant my times weren't as competitive as they could have been. But I definitely think we'll be more competitive in qualifying."

Toro Rosso:

Sebastien Buemi: ""I think these high temperatures will make life difficult for everyone, but we are making sure we are as well prepared as possible to deal with the heat. At the moment, I feel good in the car although we still need to work to improve, even though it is difficult to say what our lap times mean, as we don't know what fuel loads the others were running. I am happy with the car, even if it can always be better, as I lacked traction coming out of the slow corners and occasionally, I locked the front wheels under braking."

Sebastien Bourdais: "The track has changed a lot from the morning to the afternoon session and that has made it difficult to assess the two types of tyre. It seems that the difference in behaviour between the Prime and the Option is very much related to the track temperature increase. Therefore, this afternoon it was difficult to assess the effect of changes we made to the car as the conditions changed. But as always on a Friday, it is nearly impossible to evaluate where you are compared to the others, until qualifying. 13th and 14th is not where we want to be tomorrow, but we will work hard now and then see what happens."

Ferrari

Felipe Massa: This was definitely not a good day. We worked a lot towards the race, but we have to try and improve the handling of the car to move up the order for tomorrow and Sunday. The harder tyre is very difficult to use, while the soft one seems to be the best, not just in terms of outright performance but also over a distance. The KERS helps: without it, I would have certainly been slower. I made a mistake at the final turn on my last set of soft tyres, which cost me at least three tenths. We must be patient at the moment and try to do the best possible in these conditions."

Kimi Raikkonen: "Even if we don't know what fuel loads the other teams had, it's clear that we are not as quick as we would like, but we have to try and make the best of this situation. Anyway, we knew that the picture for this race would be no different to what we've seen in previous ones. Today we opted to run in two different configurations and did a lot of work on finding the best set-up for the car. We collected a lot of data which we will now analyse, to be as well prepared as possible for the race. We can expect a difficult weekend, but we were never in any doubt about that."

BMW

Robert Kubica: "It was a usual Friday for us. We compared the tyre compounds and worked on the car balance. Additionally we worked on the KERS set-up, which is challenging as the temperatures here are quite high. We will now analyse the data and try to improve for tomorrow."

Nick Heidfeld: "Obviously we looked better in the morning session than we did in the afternoon. The difference in the balance with the softer Option tyres compared to the harder Prime tyres is quite big here, which makes it really difficult to set-up the car. I also had a lack of brake stability and the track didn't have much grip, but this is rather normal on a Friday in Bahrain. We will now look into all the data and see what we will do tomorrow."

[MIKA27]

Fri: Williams, Renault, Toyota

Nico Rosberg once again led the way in Friday practice as the Williams driver edged out Fernando Alonso and Jarno Trulli in Bahrain.

Williams:

Nico Rosberg: "You can only ever compare your performance to other race weekends so, relatively, I think we are looking ok. We've done a lot of set-up work today and I am quite happy with everything so we've made good progress. The team brought some new parts to Bahrain and they seem to be working well so thanks to our aero guys for their continuing hard work in developing the car. I am really convinced that we will be able to do something positive at this race and to get the points that the car is worth."

Kazuki Nakajima: "Today didn't go too badly but we are lacking some pace compared to Nico. I'll now de-brief with my engineers to try to find out where I'm losing that time so I can make it up in tomorrow's qualifying. The circuit is getting better and better the more laps we do, which is good. It's also really hot out there, but fortunately it's bearable."

Renault

Fernando Alonso: "We had very hot track and ambient conditions today - even hotter than we had in Malaysia. We therefore concentrated on evaluating the brake cooling for race conditions and also compared the tyre compounds to make sure that the tyres work well in these temperatures. We're happy with the work we have done today and managed to complete our programme."

Nelson Piquet Jr: "I've had a solid start to the weekend and ran with the new diffuser for the first time today, although it's difficult to know how much extra performance it gives the car. I think we still need to improve the car in the final practice session tomorrow, but we managed to get some good data today. I hope I can have a strong qualifying session tomorrow, but I think it will be tough to reach the top ten shootout."

Toyota:

Jarno Trulli: "We collected a lot of data here during our winter tests at this circuit but the conditions today were very different. So we had to change some of our set-up in order to suit the car to these temperatures, which are much hotter. There is also quite a lot more sliding around than we had in the winter but I guess that's the same for everyone. We spent the day going through our usual programme of tyre testing and set-up work. We still need to find a bit more driveability in the car but it's not a bad start to the weekend."

Timo Glock: "During our winter tests at this circuit we had a good, consistent pace but so far today I've found the car quite hard to drive. The lap times aren't bad but I've been struggling for balance. So we'll have to work overnight to sort out our direction for tomorrow and to get the car back to where it should be. If we can do that then I'm sure we can keep up our strong start to the year."

[MIKA27]

It seems to me that alot of the teams are having a hard time at the Bahrain track.

Most drivers seem to believe that some of their '08 aero packages such as their older spec front wings etc, are more suited compared to the newer specs.

It'll be interesting to see how everyone holds up as even the more experienced seem to have trouble with grip and consistancy.

It still is anyones race.

[OZCUBAN]

Go Webber that's what I think .he deserves his first win