Tag: Lewis Hamilton

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Formula 1 Mercedes-Benz Red Bull Racing

2013 Japanese GP: Qualifying report

2013 Japanese Grand Prix

Mark Webber’s F1 farewell tour finally has a highlight after he claimed pole position for the Japanese Grand Prix this afternoon. It’s the first time he’s out qualified Sebastian Vettel this year and is the twelfth pole position of his career.

Webber (1:30.915) was the only driver to lap the much loved Suzuka circuit under 1:31 and he was almost two tenths quicker than Vettel (1:31.089). For a change it was Vettel who struggled today with a KERS issue, which first arose during the morning practice session and reappeared during Q3.

It was a fact acknowledged by Mark in the post-race press conference. “Sebastian had a problem in qualifying, so a little bit of a hollow pole position if you like, because he still did a phenomenal lap, but I’m happy to be on pole,” Mark said. “You’ve got to grab the opportunities when you can and still put the laps in.”

It’s clear that Mark and all the other drivers love Suzuka and it would be a great result if Webber is able to convert his pole into a race win. The good news for Mark is that a Red Bull driver has been on pole for the last four starts at Suzuka and he has gone on to win the race three times. The bad news is “he” is Sebastian Vettel, who will be doing his best to get into the first corner ahead of Mark and control the race.

Lewis Hamilton (1:31.253) has been on the pace all weekend for Mercedes AMG and he will line up on the second row, with a resurgent Romain Grosjean (1:31.365).

Speaking of resurgent, Felipe Massa (1:31.378) has out qualified Fernando Alonso (1:31.665) again and the soon-to-be unemployed Brazilian will start from P5. Nico Rosberg (1:31.397) will line up from P6.

It was not a good day for Toro Rosso, Daniel Ricciardo (1:32.485) will start from P16. Although, he had better luck than Jean-Eric Vergne (1:33.357) who was forced out of Q1 after his rear brakes caught on fire.

“That wasn’t a good session for us,” Daniel said. “Which is disappointing as yesterday was one of the best Fridays we have had in a while.

“The wind has played a bit of a part today, but we definitely should have been further up than that. I would have liked a better result of course, but we will have to see what we can do in the race.”

The full transcript of the post-quali press conference featuring the first three drivers can be read after the break.

[Pics: Red Bull/Getty Images]

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Formula 1 Mercedes-Benz Red Bull Racing

Even Lewis is booing Sebastian

Lewis Hamilton

Booing and Sebastian Vettel have been appearing in the same sentence, well, for years really, but especially in the last couple of months. Now, Mercedes AMG driver, Lewis Hamilton is joining in the chorus suggesting Vettel’s success may be sending fans away from the sport.

The 2008 world champion has drawn a new comparison with seven-time world champion Michael Schumacher, referring to his early years following F1: “I remember waking up to watch the start of the race then going to sleep and waking up when it ended because I knew what would happen,” said Hamilton. “I am pretty sure a lot of people are doing that today.”

Vettel has won the last four grands prix in a row, bringing his season total to eight. In the other six races he has finished, third, fourth, fourth, second, DNF and third. He’s on track for a fourth consecutive world title and currently holds a 77 point lead over Fernando Alonso.

It’s possible for Vettel to be crowned world champion at Suzuka this weekend. If he wins the Japanese Grand Prix and Alonso is ninth or lower the drivers’ championship will be on the way to the Red Bull garage once more.

[Source: BBC | Pic: Mercedes AMG]

UPDATE: Lewis has taken to twitter to make it 100% clear he loves all things Sebastian Vettel. Check out his tweets below.

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Formula 1 Mercedes-Benz Red Bull Racing

2013 Korean GP: Qualifying report

2013 Korean Grand Prix

The Sebastian Vettel show successfully filed another episode this afternoon when the Red Bull champ claimed his 42nd career pole position.

Vettel (1:37.202) was two tenths faster than Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes AMG, 1:37.420) who had set the pace in the first two practice sessions. Close behind was Mark Webber (Red Bull, 1:37.464).

Sadly for Mark, he’ll be lining up from P13 tomorrow after his 10-place grid penalty handed down after his reprimand in Singapore.

“We had to take a bit of pace out of the car for qualifying, not much, but it was about how we would compromise between qualifying and the race tomorrow,” Mark explained. “I’m pretty happy, I could be two positions further up but that would mean, with the penalty, I would be 11th rather than 13th. It was a pretty tight qualifying with the two Mercedes, Seb and myself. Tomorrow’s race will be interesting, I will be out of position, but we’ll fight and come back through.”

Romain Grosjean (Lotus, 1:37.531) benefits from Mark’s penalty and will start the race from P3. Nico Rosberg (Mercedes AMG, 1:37.679) and Fernando Alonso (Ferrari, 1:38.038) will line up on the third row.

Felipe Massa (Ferrari, 1:38.223) edged out the two Saubers of Nico Hulkenberg (1:38.237) and Esteban Gutierrez (1:38.405).

Daniel Ricciardo (Toro Rosso, 1:38.417) couldn’t crack the top 10 for qualifying—he missed by less than a tenth of a second—and will start from P12 after Webber’s penalty. But he did continue to outpace his teammate Jean-Eric Vergne (1:38.781).

“I’m definitely not happy with my position and when the gap to the top ten is so small, you have to also be disappointed,” Daniel said. “I would have liked to have been in the car for the full hour. However, compared to where we were yesterday, we have managed to improve the car, but we have not been able to make enough progress to be more competitive than this.”

The full transcript of the post-quali press conference featuring the first three drivers can be read after the break.

[Pic: Red Bull/Getty Images]

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2013 Belgian GP: Post-race press conference

2013 Belgian Grand Prix

Sebastian Vettel explains the tale of Belgian Grand Prix victory lay in a good opening lap. “It helped the first lap to have the tow off Lewis through Eau Rouge and then I was flying,” he said. “Once I passed him we had incredible pace and really could control the race until the end.”

Finishing in fifth place wasn’t part of Mark Webber’s plans in his final F1 appearance at Spa. “The two practice starts before the race weren’t great and so we were a bit worried about the clutch going to the start, which put us on to the back foot,” Mark said. “We tried our best, but lost a couple of rows off the line which is not good. We then had to try and clear people on the track, which was difficult, as we had set up the top gear to race in clean air, rather than to pass. The bad start put us out of position and it snowballs from there, as you use up the tyres trying to getting to back into position.”

Meanwhile Daniel Ricciardo was happy to finish in the points after starting from P19. “It was nice to get that point! We ran a long first stint on the Hards and I think that helped us build a good base to have a strong pace in the final stints on the Medium,” Daniel explained. “I felt much more comfortable on the Option tyre and that’s when my race really started. With the last set of tyres I was knocking out maybe ten or so qualifying laps and managed to pick off some cars in front to bring home that crucial point.”

The full transcript of the post-race press conference featuring the first three drivers can be read after the break.

[Pic: Red Bull/Getty Images]

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Ferrari Formula 1 Mercedes-Benz Red Bull Racing

Sebastian Vettel wins 2013 Belgian GP

Sebastian Vettel wins 2013 Belgian Grand Prix

Sebastian Vettel cruised to an easy victory at the 2013 Belgian Grand Prix. The Red Bull ace had to work hard on the first lap to overtake pole sitter Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes AMG) but once that was done he remained unchallenged.

Fernando Alonso (Ferrari) was the big improver the head of the field, finishing second after starting from P9. Lewis Hamilton had to content himself with P3.

Nico Rosberg (Mercedes AMG) finished where he started in P4, while Mark Webber (Red Bull) dropped two places to finish fifth. Although, there was word just before the race began that Webber had clutch issues which may explain his slow getaway off the line and why he dropped three places after the first lap.

Toro Rosso will be pleased that their drivers made good ground after their qualifying woes. Starting from P19 Daniel Ricciardo managed to fight his way to P10 to claim a championship point, while Jean-Eric Vergne improved from P18 to P12.

Aside from a bit of a kerfuffle with Pastor Maldonado (Williams) and the two Force India drivers which sent Paul di Resta in for an early shower not much else happened.

Tonight’s win is Vettel’s 31st career victory which places him equal fifth on the all-time tally alongside Nigel Mansell. What odds he’ll join Fernando Alonso on 32 wins at Monza in a couple of weeks?

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Formula 1 Mercedes-Benz Red Bull Racing

2013 Belgian GP: Qualifying report

2013 Belgian Grand Prix

Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes AMG) surprised himself to finish on top after qualifying at the Belgian Grand Prix overnight. It was an exciting session in which constantly changing weather conditions kept drivers and teams on their toes.

Starting with Q1, all teams began on intermediate tyres and a natural order was taking place. Rain stopped falling during Q1 and the track began to dry out. Late in the session Giedo van der Garde (Caterham) risked slick tyres, putting on a set of new mediums. It resulted in him setting the third fastest time in Q1. Casualties, failing to proceed to Q2, were both Williams and the Toro Rosso pairing, including Daniel Ricciardo.

“That was down to bad timing more than anything else,” explained Daniel. “We went out too early for that second run and by the second lap, the tyres were already worn and that was when the track conditions were at their best. Obviously, it’s very frustrating, but now all we can do is put it behind us and concentrate on tomorrow. We have to learn from this and make sure we get it right next time.”

The middle session was dry and there were no surprises as to who made the final 10. But Q3 was when the real fun began. All drivers, except Paul di Resta (Force India), went out on slicks and by the end of their out laps all nine drivers came straight back in for inters as the rain began to fall. Meanwhile, di Resta was out in what was expected to be the best of the conditions and with the track to himself he set a time he hoped would be enough for pole (2:02.332).

For a while that seemed to be the case as well, for the next few minutes no drivers really got close. Nico Rosberg (Mercedes AMG, 2:02.332)  posted a quality lap to just pip di Resta and then the track began to dry again. It was still wet enough for intermediate tyres and as the final three drivers crossed the line all indications were they would be fighting for pole.

First to cross the line was Mark Webber (Red Bull, 2:01.325) who claimed provisional pole. Moments later that was bettered by his teammate Sebastian Vettel (2:01.200), whose time in the spotlight lasted until Lewis Hamilton (2:01.012) crossed the line and claimed his fourth consecutive pole position. It’s Lewis’ fifth pole for the year and the 31st of his career.

The full post-quali transcript with the top three drivers can be read after the break.

[Pic: Mercedes AMG]

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2013 Hungarian GP: Post-race press conference

2013 Hungarian Grand Prix

Lewis Hamilton rated his win in the 2013 Hungarian Grand Prix very highly. When interviewed on the podium by Martin Brundle he declared: “I think this is probably one of the most important grand prix wins of my career. To move to a new team and to win for Mercedes-Benz is just a real privilege.”

Clearly, Lewis was pretty happy with his day’s work, and so he should be. He drove a strong race and deserved the win.

Mark Webber was also pleased with his result, even though, he’d much prefer fighting for higher honours that P4.

“I think we had the right strategy,” Webber said. “We knew there was a lot of pressure on getting a good first lap and I got some clear air, which worked well. The start was okay and the first sector was very good, I was able to put a bit of pressure on Kimi and then we just settled in.

“I don’t think we could have got much more than that result today. The strategy was pretty solid and you have to pace the option tyres until the end.”

Daniel Ricciardo wasn’t quite so pleased with his day and think the mid-30 degree temperatures may not suit the Toro Rosso STR8.

“Right from the start, it was clear we weren’t really quick,” admitted Ricciardo. “I tried to hold position as long as I could but we were way too slow. I tried my best in terms of trying to maintain a good pace and look after the tyres, but today it was not enough to go looking for points. We got a bit more out of the car in qualifying yesterday, but it’s hard to repeat that for seventy laps.

“We struggled at Nürburgring as well, so the heat has got something to do with it. We could not match our competitors today, just lacking speed when we have a heavy fuel load, which is the opposite of what we tended to see with last year’s car.”

The full post-race press conference transcript featuring the first three drivers can be read after the break.

[Pic: Mercedes AMG]

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Lewis Hamilton wins 2013 Hungarian GP

Lewis Hamilton wins 2013 Hungarian Grand Prix

Lewis Hamilton said he couldn’t win the Hungarian Grand Prix, despite starting from pole position. But he made a quick start off the line to hold P1 and managed to hang on for a well deserved win—his first for Mercedes AMG.

We were also told that the Hungaroring is notoriously difficult to pass on but we saw some great overtaking moves during this race right through the field.

The closing laps saw a great scrap between Kimi Raikkonen (Lotus) and Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull) for the minor podium positions. Kimi was able to hold Sebastian at bay to finish the race in P2.

Making his second great start in a row Mark Webber (Red Bull) started from P10 and improved to P7 by the end of the first lap. He bagn the race on new medium compound tyres, while all those in front were on used softs. Fresh tyres allowed Mark to stay out much longer on his opening stint and he led the race for several laps before making his first of three tyre stops.

With 10 laps to go, while in second place, Webber pitted for the final time taking on a brand new set of soft tyres. He rejoined the track in P4 some 12 seconds behind the Raikkonen–Vettel scrap but was unable to close enough ground to fight for a podium finish. Still, after his qualifying woes he should be happy with fourth.

Fernando Alonso (Ferrari) had a non-descript race and was never really in the hunt, in that context he may be happy with P5 today. However, we’re certain he won’t be happy with Ferrari’s current form.

In P6 was Romain Grosjean (Lotus) who, we think, was a little unlucky to be penalised for a great overtaking move on Jenson Button (McLaren). To complete the move Grosjean had all four wheels off the race track, ever so slightly, and was given a drive through penalty for his sins. He had shown good pace all race and had the package to fight for more.

Daniel Ricciardo (Toro Rosso) was barely sighted on the television feed all race and dropped from his starting position of eighth down to thirteenth. Crucially, he finished one place behind teammate Jean-Eric Vergne.

Formula 1 now heads into its mid-season break and will return for the Belgian Grand Prix in the last weekend of August.

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Formula 1 Lotus Mercedes-Benz Red Bull Racing

2013 Hungarian GP: Qualifying report

2013 Hungarian Grand Prix

Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes AMG) collected his third pole position in succession after setting the fastest time in qualifying for the 2013 Hungarian Grand Prix. Hamilton (1:19.388) was genuinely surprised to have edged out Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull, 1:19.426), who had been the benchmark all weekend.

Romain Grosjean (Lotus, 1:19.595) qualified third and in doing so reminded us that, when switched on, he has the talent to mix it with the best in the sport. If he can rid himself of his brain fades he could forge an enviable F1 career. Nico Rosberg (Mercedes AMG, 1:19.720) will start form P4 alongside Grosjean.

Fernando Alonso (Ferrari, 1:19.791) and Kimi Raikkonen (Lotus, 1:19.851) occupy the third row of the grid.

For Australian fans their hopes will be pinned on Daniel Riccardo (Toro Rosso, 1:20.641) who will start from P8, once again making it into Q3 while his teammate, Jean-Eric Vergne, was left behind in Q2 and will line up on P14.

“It was good to get into Q3 again. We seem to make a habit of finding a little bit extra for qualifying,” Ricciardo said after qualifying. “Athough ideally, I’d like to be on the pace right from Friday and chip away at the lap times within the top ten. We made some set-up changes overnight and they seem to have worked, although we had a bit of work to do to get to Q3 today.”

Meanwhile, Mark Webber (Red Bull) did well to get himself into Q3 with a car that had ever present issues, namely a KERS failure and hampered performance from his gearbox. He elected not to go out at all in Q3 and will start from P10 and has the luxury to choose the tyres he wants to start with. Although, that’s not much of a compensation for Mark who was clearly frustrated after hopping out of his car while Q3 was still underway.

“Massively frustrating. We look stupid, it’s embarrassing and it’s a brutal circuit to be out of position on,” Webber said. “We should be challenging for the front row and we’re 10th.”

Expectations for the race are that Mercedes, again, won’t have the pace to challenge for the win, which leaves the likely result another win for Sebastian Vettel. The Hungaoring is notoriously difficult to overtake on and while Webber might have the car able to challenge for a podium it will be a mighty result if he can achieve that.

[Pic: Mercedes AMG]

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2013 Canadian GP: Post-race press conference

2013 Canadian Grand Prix

Back whenever it was that the FIA started to interview the drivers on the podium after each race (2012 British Grand Prix) we thought it was a clumsy approach. To be fair, there were some teething problems and it did get better. It’s true, also, that fans at the track probably deserve to hear from the drivers they have paid, in many cases, several hundred dollars to watch.

And yet, when you read the transcript below, you won’t really get too much of a clue that all the while during Eddie Jordan’s interview with Sebastian Vettel the German was being booed while Fernando Alonso was being cheered along.

To be fair, the transcript does read a little odd and Jordan seems to cut-off Vettel. In fact he did cut-off the race winner mid-sentence partly to stop the jeering from the crowd we suspect. It was a bad look all around and perhaps the FIA may have cause to reconsider the practice of on-track interviews.

For now, we expect the status quo will remain, as it probably should, but as much as we dislike Vettel at times, he deserved better than the Canadian crowd gave him.

[Pic: Red Bull/Getty Images]

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Formula 1 McLaren

Lewis and Jenson star in new cartoon

McLaren cartoon animation

This animated cartoon, featuring McLaren drivers Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button, was broadcast by Sky TV in the build up to last week’s British Grand Prix. It’s the first of a 12-part series called Tooned and has been produced by Framestore.

As cringeworthy as your first impression to this series may be, it’s actually not that bad. You can watch the premiere episode, “Wheel Nuts”, after the break.

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Formula 1 McLaren Red Bull Racing Renault

2010 Belgian GP – post-race press conference

2010 Belgian Grand Prix

Lewis Hamilton (McLaren) won the Belgian Grand Prix overnight. Mark Webber (Red Bull Racing), who started the race from pole position, finished second. While Robert Kubica (Renault) capped off a great weekend for him with third place, although it could have been more. The full text from the post-race press conference is available below. A picture gallery from the race will follow soon.

[Source: FIA]

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