FORMULA 1

[MIKA27]

McLaren: Start of 2018 "definitely" harder than expected

McLaren has admitted the start of the 2018 Formula 1 season has been harder than expected despite being third in the constructors' championship.
The Woking team ended its troubled three-year relationship with Honda and switched to Renault power this year, but suffered reliability problems in testing.

McLaren was embroiled in a tight midfield battle in the season-opening Australian Grand Prix and slipped down the pecking order in Bahrain qualifying, which left racing director Eric Boullier “astonished”.

Fernando Alonso and Stoffel Vandoorne fought back to score a second double-points finish in two races but Boullier told Motorsport.com it was “definitely” a harder start than anticipated.

“We have good race pace, which helps us to recover, but we have been benefitting from race circumstances,” he said.

“We took points we had to take, we did a good job to recover on reliability [from pre-season], so the guys did a good job at the factory.

“Now we need to put everything in place on Saturday and Sunday.”

McLaren’s results have been boosted by teams like Red Bull and Haas throwing away big point-scoring opportunities.

Boullier admitted it was a slightly “funny” position to be third in the championship and said “in some way I should be relieved” with the result.

However, after the race he was “still unhappy” with the team’s second successive poor Bahrain GP, the home race for its biggest shareholder, Mumtalakat Holding Company - Bahrain's sovereign wealth fund.

“We just miscalculated the weekend in terms of set-up,” said Boullier. “It’s a mistake we’ve done and we don’t want to repeat it.

“We need to be where we believe we should be and can’t have too many mistakes like this.”

Alonso declared after Australia that McLaren could forget the midfield and target Red Bull, but admitted in Bahrain that would not be possible until the MCL33 received crucial developments.

“The car we have here on the track and the car we are developing at the factory is different,” said Alonso.

“That car is fixing all our weakness, so we need to bring that car as soon as possible.”

Boullier insisted he had “100%” confidence in McLaren’s technical team, and explained that part of its Bahrain troubles was getting the most out of the tyres and the cars carrying too much downforce.

McLaren’s pre-season reliability woe forced it to alter its updates schedule, and Boullier added: “That’s why we have a lot to come and that’s why I think Fernando is so positive in terms of upgrades and the next few races.

“Hopefully that will be enough to clear it [the midfield].”

McLaren’s old engine partner Honda scored the best finish of its F1 return with Toro Rosso’s fourth place, besting any result in McLaren-Honda’s three years together.

“We always said we wish the best for Honda and they had a good car [in Bahrain],” said Boullier.

“They made no mistakes and they were fourth, which is good. Well done.”

[MIKA27]

Tech analysis: Red Bull's vital F1 floor tweaks

Red Bull introduced a floor upgrade to its Formula 1 car at last weekend’s Bahrain Grand Prix, altering the detail of the outer edges and rear corner area in front of the rear tyre.
This area is critical to the performance of the underfloor, which contributes a significant proportion of the car’s downforce.

Normally the low pressure created under the car will try to pull air flow in underneath the car reducing the performance of the diffuser and in turn that reduces the performance of the underfloor.

Toro Rosso (inset) ran something similar in this area last year with a part introduced at September’s Italian Grand Prix.

These vanes on the outer edge of the floor and the detail of the rear corner of the floor work like a skirt, sealing that area from leakage.

The airflow being displaced by the rear tyre rotating onto the track surface connects up to this area and this displaced air pulls the airflow across the top of the floor through the vanes and out around the outside of the tyre contact patch.

In the past, sealing the tyre and floor gap was critical and some teams even used the maximum floor deflection they could get away with in this area to help seal the underfloor.

[MIKA27]

Hamilton urges better communication after Bahrain "no man's land"

Lewis Hamilton says that Mercedes has to work on improving in-race communication with its Formula 1 drivers on the back of two frustrating races in Melbourne and Bahrain.
Hamilton lost the Australian GP due to a miscalculation on how much of a gap he needed to have to Sebastian Vettel, and then in Bahrain found himself in what he called “no man’s land” as he tried to comprehend what was happening in the race, and how hard he had to push at any given time.

Matters were complicated by Mercedes assuming that Vettel would stop a second time before coming to realise that he might not, and also by problems with Hamilton’s microphone, which meant that the pitwall could not always hear what he was saying.

“It was just difficult to know how hard to lean on the tyres in the early phases,” Hamilton explained. “Because at one point I understood that the [Ferrari] guys were doing two stops, and there’s no way they’re going to get to the end on the one stop.

"And I’ve got to save tyres so that when we’re at the end and he catches me I can still fight.

“Or I’ve got to catch him while the tyres are still good and close the gap to the best of my ability, because they’re doing a one-stop. I didn’t have that information, so there was lots of driving around in no man’s land for a while. But that’s just something we need to work on.

“The radio wasn’t working properly, and in the heat of the moment it’s difficult to know what information you need to give.

“They couldn’t hear me. I could hear them, but they were always coming back saying 'I can’t hear you'. And when you’re trying to give feedback out of a corner, you’re taking your mind off driving the perfect line.”

Hamilton said the team would be reviewing his communications with race engineer Peter Bonnington, while stressing how busy races can be for the guys in the hot seats on the pitwall.

“We’re going to sit down and discuss the last two races. Different drivers like different feedback. I don’t have a ton. There are times you need more.

“If you haven’t spoken about it and set up a strategy to action what you need, the guys are stressed in the garage because they have messages from the pitwall, messages coming from both sides, it’s stressful for someone like ‘Bono’ – and then I come in.

“We’re going to sit down and discuss it and try to work on the points and improve, and I have no doubt we will.

"I don’t want them to talk to me all the time when they don’t need to. It’s just working out a rapport that works best. It’s even more important that it’s precise information.”

Hamilton admitted that the battle with Ferrari is so close that there is no margin for error.

“It’s very marginal now, so it really highlights or magnifies the importance of communications and these small little things that can make a difference of seven points or not. If you look at the last race, we should have won that race.

“And through struggling to understand how we operate, communicate, we did lose the race. I think looking back there were things we could have done to make sure we came out ahead. And then I’m not sure how it was for Valtteri [Bottas], I think it was not ideal for him either.

“These races we can’t afford to be losing to Ferrari. And so we need to get ourselves in a place where we’re not only strong in our operations in the car, but also in the race."

[MIKA27]

Whiting ‘perplexed’ by Ferrari’s pit stop issue

FIA race director Charlie Whiting was left “perplexed” by Ferrari’s pit stop blunder in Bahrain in which the rear left tyre wasn’t changed and Kimi Raikkonen hit his mechanic.

This year’s championship has already seen three drivers retire from races because of pit stop issues.

In Australia both Haas drivers were released with loose wheels while in Bahrain Raikkonen was forced to stop in the pits as his rear left tyre hadn’t even been changed.

“The two instances in Melbourne were quite clearly wheel gun operator error,” Whiting told the Express.

“They cross-threaded the nuts, thought it was tight, came off, then realised a little bit too late that it wasn’t.

“The guy hadn’t even taken the wheel off [before the car was released] which is slightly perplexing.”

Raikkonen’s incident also put one of his pit stop crew, Francesco Cigarini, in the hospital as the Finn accidentally hit him as he was given the go-ahead to leave his pit box.

However, the race incidents haven’t been the only ones this season as the pre-season began with Fernando Alonso loosing a wheel during testing.

Whiting added: “Alonso lost a wheel in testing and we went through it all with McLaren.

“They gave us a report, we discussed it with the Technical Working Group to understand, make sure everyone else realises these things can happen [and] everyone tries to learn from it.”

[MIKA27]

Alonso downplays Toro Rosso-Honda performance

Fernando Alonso isn’t at all worried about Toro Rosso-Honda’s pace in Bahrain, after all he wasn’t asked questions about it in Australia.

McLaren split with Honda at the end of last season, bringing to an end three years of painful performances.

Instead McLaren moved onto Renault power while Toro Rosso signed up with Honda.

The new partnership resulted in a P4 in Sunday’s Bahrain Grand Prix for Pierre Gasly while Alonso was McLaren’s highest finisher in seventh place.

Asked about Toro Rosso’s performance in Bahrain, he told BBC: “It was great – but you didn’t ask about Toro Rosso in Australia.

“Because, I mean, if the Toro Rosso question will become a normality, I hope it becomes a normality at all 21 races – because the championship is 21 races.”

As for Stoffel Vandoorne, who was eighth in Bahrain, he said: “[Honda] did their job well and took a big step forward.

“Now it’s up to us to catch them.”

[MIKA27]

BLUNDELL: BOTTAS LACKS AGGRESSION AND A BIT OF FIGHT

The final laps of the Bahrain Grand Prix were riveting but in the end anti-climatic, with the Ferrari of Sebastian Vettel on soft Pirelli tyres, almost down to the canvas, hunted down by the Mercedes of Valtteri Bottas but a decisive attack race winning attack never came.

In fact, the only real try Bottas had was a half-hearted attempt heading in to Turn 1 on the final lap. It was a submissive stab rather than a guns-a-blazing ambush instead he settled for second place despite that sniff of victory.

Former F1 driver Mark Blundell believes that Bottas lacks a killer’s instinct and told Sky Sports, “He bottled it. He had the car underneath him, he had the tyres underneath him with the performance left in them. He saw the opportunity but I don’t think he took it.”

“If it had been Hamilton, I think you would have seen that move at least attempted. I think he is a fantastic driver but he lacks some aggression and a little bit of fight. I think there are other drivers that have capabilities that could sit alongside Hamilton.”

Bottas was drafted into the Silver Arrows at the start of last year to replace retiring Nico Rosberg. He got off to a solid start with the world champion team, but in the latter half of the season, he simply could not match Hamilton.

The Finn’s deal with the team has been on a year-by-year basis suggesting, that despite his tight connection to Toto Wolff, he has yet to convince them he is the real deal for the long term.

Blundell continued, “You have got to consider, you are placing somebody alongside Lewis. In my eyes, there are not many people who are going to match Lewis, so it’s always going to be a difficult choice to make.”

“Bottas is solid, but in that kind of situation I think he should have gone for it and there were points, and a win, left on the table.”

By Vettel’s own admission he was handed a healthy dollop of luck in Australia and to a certain extent that good fortune carried on to Bahrain for his side of the Ferrari pit garage.

But Blundell is not convinced that fortune has had much to do with how things have panned ahead of round three in China, “I don’t think there’s any luck there. Ferrari did what they needed to do and it’s great to see them winning races again.”

“For Sebastian Vettel to be leading the world championship for Ferrari, and for Mercedes to now be on the back foot and trying to now compete is fantastic for the sport.”

“Ferrari put some work in over the winter, that’s clear to see and they’ve definitely made some inroads on the performance side. I think Mercedes have maybe just been sitting on their laurels a little bit and Ferrari have come out and been strong.”

“Now you have given Vettel confidence and he can see light at the end of the tunnel with a world championship, he’s going to be a tough act to follow,” warned Blundell who competed in Formula 1 from 1991 to 1995 with Brabham, Ligier, Tyrrell and McLaren.

[MIKA27]

VIDEO: HALO VERSUS AEROSCREEN

Formula 1 has introduced the Halo for 2018, whilst IndyCar has opted for the AeroScreen, following years of research by both series into increased head protection for drivers.

Mobil 1 The Grid asked Aston Martin Red Bull Racing drivers Daniel Ricciardo and Max Verstappen, as well as Chip Ganassi Racing’s Scott Dixon, for their thoughts on the respective devices, both of which are being implemented for the first time in F1 & IndyCar this 2018 season.

[MIKA27]

The FIA are set investigate whether there are any issues with wheel guns

While the paddock continues to send their best wishes for a speedy recovery to Ferrari mechanic Francesco Cigorini after the horrific pit stop incident that saw Kimi Räikkönen’s SF-71H run him over and break his leg, questions are being raised about whether the wheel guns (the same model is used by all teams) are fit for purpose or not.

Ahead of this weekend’s Chinese Grand Prix FIA Race Director Charlie Whiting has joined in the discussions, saying that the FIA will now be looking into wheel guns and their technology after the latest Ferrari incident. Citing earlier issues during pre-season testing with McLaren as well as the double failure of both Haas cars in Melbourne, he admitted that these incidents are "looking like less and less like a coincidence," and was asked if an investigation will now be carried out.

"[Yes] absolutely. [Fernando] Alonso lost a wheel in testing and we went through it all with McLaren, they gave us a report in the week. We discussed it with the technical working group to understand it all, to make sure everybody else realizes these things can happen, everyone tries to learn from them.

"What actually happened was that the design of the nose piece that goes into the axle, that is the thing that holds the two-stage retention mechanism, but the way that is fixed into the axle was not quite strong enough so the wheel was a little bit loose – it worked itself loose because it had done four laps prior to that.

"So when the wheel started to tip a little bit, it put abnormal loads into the things that were holding the nose in and once the nose came out, there was no retention, so a lesson to be learned there.

"That was shared with everyone in the technical working group so that they can all look at that and make sure their designs aren't similar. Of course they said, 'Ours won't do that.'"

[MIKA27]

Whiting: Grosjean's flying bodywork was dangerous

While everyone agreed that last Sunday’s Bahrain Grand Prix was one of the best races for a very long time, a fair amount of the in-race entertainment came from the way that Romain Grosjean’s Haas VF-17 started to deconstruct itself during the race.

Clearly Grosjean did make contact with other cars but the damage to the Hass was not immediately apparent. Only later in the race did fans and viewers at home see large parts of the turning vanes around the sidepods flying high into the air as the cars raced down the main straight.

Whilst nothing was immediately said during the race and the stewards deciding not to show the #8 a black and orange flag (driver to report to his pits as his car is mechanically unsafe), FIA Race Director (and Safety Delegate) Charlie Whiting has now spoken out on the matter ahead of this weekend’s Chinese Grand Prix

"It's potentially dangerous, I agree," Whiting said of Grosjean’s Haas. "When anything comes off the car it's potentially dangerous but with all this so called furniture, as some people call it, it doesn't take much to make it weaker. Contact will probably make it weaker then it will start to disintegrate, which is what happened with Grosjean.

"One bit fell off; luckily it went onto the grass. A couple of more bits came off and on their third pit stop they removed another bit. It's not very satisfactory to be quite honest and I think we really need to make sure all these things are well attached, as there's so many of them. I mean, some of the stuff that comes off, even if it's not very big could do a lot of damage."

The matter will be sure to be on the agenda during the weekend, both during the obligatory driver briefing ahead of the race as well during any briefings made by the race stewards, headed up this weekend by former Tyrrell F1 driver and IndyCar 500 winner Danny Sullivan.

[MIKA27]

Leclerc: Ericsson making first GPs difficult

Charles Leclerc has admitted his first Formula 1 race weekends have been made more difficult by Sauber teammate Marcus Ericsson's performances.
While the highly-rated Leclerc is beginning his first year of grand prix racing after graduating as Formula 2 champion, Ericsson is in his fifth season of F1 and his fourth with Sauber.

Ericsson scored Sauber's first points of the season last weekend in Bahrain with a strong drive from 17th to ninth, and has outqualified Leclerc in opening two races.

"I honestly think he's a very good driver," Leclerc told Motorsport.com.

"He has a bad reputation but I don't think he deserves it at all. In Melbourne and in Bahrain, he's very fast, and it's difficult for me.

"But I can learn a lot from him. This is good, and I hope it stays like that."

Ericsson's results have been muted thanks to back-of-the-grid machinery, although he did score points in five races when Sauber was more competitive in 2015.

He is one of the tallest drivers on the grid and last year was held back by a 10kg weight penalty to then-fellow Sauber driver Pascal Wehrlein.

Ericsson adopted a strict diet and fitness plan over the winter, spent January and February in Spain with his trainer and drafted in expert help to work out how to lose weight without compromising strength.

He shed 5kg in body weight and, with Sauber's car also no longer 5-8kg overweight, Ericsson says he is at the target level for the first time.

"It's been a tough winter for me but I've been working my ass off," he told Motorsport.com.

"All my F1 career I've had a weight disadvantage to my teammate. It's difficult to go up against, you try to say it to people but they don't really take it into account.

"Charles is the strongest teammate I've ever had. He's very, very fast, but I feel I've stepped it up a lot as well.

"I see this as my big opportunity to show what I can do and how much I've developed over the years as a driver."

Ericsson could have set a record for consecutive F1 starts without a points' finish later this season, having gone 49 races without scoring before Bahrain.

However, his two-point haul means Heikki Kovalainen's 62-start streak remains an unwanted benchmark.

"It's a great relief because I had some very difficult years," said Ericsson. "You can feel a weight lifting from your shoulders because even though you know the car has not been there to score points, it's what we're here for."

Leclerc's race was compromised when he pit on lap three after flat spotting a tyre and gambled on a one-stop strategy.

He suffered high degradation on the mediums and made a second stop after all, finishing 12th.

"They saw I was pushing for it [a one-stop strategy] so we tried it," Leclerc revealed. "I paid for it the hard way because my teammate scored points with a normal strategy."

[MIKA27]

How McLaren has followed Red Bull's Ferrari copy

For all of its talk about the start of a new era, McLaren's MCL33 arrived in Melbourne in an aerodynamic trim very much akin to its predecessor.
However, having clearly had a chassis that appeared so strong in the corners, it was little surprise that the team opted for evolution over revolution.

The lack of big change at the team had also been impacted by a difficult pre-season testing programme, which meant the focus switched to curing cooling issues rather than fast-tracking updates.

The Australian GP came and went, and apart from a few optimisations to the floor ahead of the rear tyre, plus tweaks to the diffuser, not much was different on the car from testing.

But with Australia having given it a platform to move forward, last weekend's Bahrain Grand Prix offered us a first glimpse of McLaren's new development and the concept path it is looking at taking in 2018.

Wing tweaks

The front wing used by both drivers in Bahrain featured revised supports near the tips, as the designers looked to reduce the flutter generated at high speed as this can negatively impact aerodynamic performance downstream.

Getting this area of the car right is critical for optimising the Y250 vortex upon which the performance of various aerodynamic structure depends.

Red Bull path

But other changes that were spotted hinted that McLaren could well be plotting a route down the same path that Red Bull went last year as it played catch up with its RB13.

It has been noticeable that in the area of the bargeboards, sidepods, deflectors and even the leading edge of the floor, McLaren has appeared lean in its developments compared to other teams.

If we compare McLaren's development trajectory with Red Bull for example, as they share the closest chassis kinship and now operate the same power unit, the Woking-based team is certainly a few steps behind.

Last year, Adrian Newey's redeployment at Red Bull saw the team revise an area of the car that he's had difficulty with maximising in the past – and it became a key focus of the team's development push.

Numerous iterations of its sidepod and bargeboards led the team towards a point where the RB13 actually became a challenger for Mercedes and Ferrari.

This was a multi-stepped programme, with Red Bull progressively improving the area ahead of the sidepods, with numerous bargeboard iterations being raced between Australia and Great Britain (right insets). It was Hungary, however, that was considered the biggest step forward for this area.

Reb Bull Racing RB13 sidepod bargeboard comparsion

As part of a significant update the team introduced for the Hungaroring, new sidepod bodywork (red arrow), not only improved cooling capabilities but also resolved some aerodynamic inefficiencies it had been carrying.

In a similar vein it utilised a solution first seen on the Mercedes with three strakes placed on the floor's leading edge (blue arrow) in order to reduce the turbulence created by the front tyre. This solution has now been found on numerous teams up and down the grid.

Red Bull RB13 and Ferrari SF70H bargeboards comparison

In Singapore, Red Bull introduced a design of sidepod deflector that was almost identical to Ferrari (image above) – and prompted Sebastian Vettel to suggest the team had copied his own outfit.

McLaren MCL33 deflector comparsion

Now, coincidentally or not, the new sidepod deflector that ran on only Alonso's car bore an uncanny resemblance to the very idea that Ferrari started and Red Bull copied.

This could point to McLaren pushing down an identical development path that Red Bull went through last season – where it eventually unlocked some great potential but it took a while to get there.

It is no wonder then that Fernando Alonso is not talking about a miraculous quick turnaround for McLaren but instead of a crucial two months to get things in order.

[MIKA27]

CHINESE GRAND PRIX TECHNICAL PREVIEW

The Shanghai International Circuit provides teams with a very different set of requirements compared to the first two races in Australia and Bahrain.

Firstly, the track is more extreme in terms of what it requires from a car – Aerodynamic performance is far more important, with more medium-high speed corners.

As in Bahrain, the tyres will play a crucial role in the outcome of the race, but this track is front-limited, in contrast to most other tracks on the calendar where the rear tyres give up first.

Downforce vs Drag

One area that will be similar to Australia and Bahrain is the downforce-drag trade-off. The back straight, measuring over 1 km in length suggests taking wing off would be beneficial to laptime. However, cars need front downforce especially for the high speed corners as well as to reduce understeer, which destroys the front tyres in Shanghai.

The front wing is less drag inducing than the rear wing, so expect teams to run with a higher front to rear downforce ratio than normal, while being aware of unbalancing the car. The full throttle percentage is not particularly high here, and certainly lower than for Albert Park and Bahrain, so teams can perhaps get away with a little more downforce than at either of those tracks.

Car Strengths Needed

Probably the most crucial car characteristic for Shanghai is a good change of direction, with the aforementioned lack of understeer also vastly improving lap times. This track is not hard on the brakes, but aside from the run into Turn 14, there are reasonable stops into Turns 6 and 11, where gains can be made with a stable car under deceleration. It is clear from the track map that the power unit will still play a noticeable role in terms of pure lap time, as well as enhancing the ability to overtake during the race.

Key Corners

The Shanghai track is unique in the sense that many of the corners are combined such that there are key sequences that must be mastered for a competitive showing. The first of these is the Turns 1/2 complex, which consists of an extremely long high hander that spirals 270 degrees, putting the front left tyre under stress.

The initial turn in is crucial, with a bump at this point, in order to set up the remainder of the sequence. After that, it is all about scrubbing off speed without being too ambitious and running wide. Due to the time spent in this corner, a good car here will be highly beneficial to laptime.

Further on, Turns 7/8 also stress the front tyres, but also require very strong Aerodynamics, with this high-speed section necessitating a good change of direction. Lastly, Turns 12/13 are similar to turn one, but the corner unwinds, as opposed to tightening, on to the long straight. Nailing this area is critical as any losses will be carried all the way down the ensuing straight.

Tyres and Strategy

Pirelli has taken an intriguing approach to selecting its tyres for the Chinese GP, choosing to skip a compound, thereby not selecting three consecutive ones. This year’s Medium corresponds exactly to last year’s Soft, the 2018 Soft roughly to the 2017 SuperSoft, while the 2018 UltraSoft is around half a step softer than the same tyre from last year.

It is difficult to get a totally accurate read on strategy from 2017 as the race began in wet conditions and therefore, running on a dry track was slightly unrepresentative.

However, it should be noted that Ericsson ran for 54 laps on the Soft tyres, setting his personal best towards the end of the race. Nobody else ran for more than 40 laps on this tyre, but given the improvements, teams make from year to year on tyre management via suspension design and set-up, it appears as if this tyre should last at least 90% of the race distance.

In 2017, the SuperSoft was capable of doing the last 30 laps of the race, albeit with a performance drop-off at the end, so a stint of this length should be fairly comfortable in 2018. The unknown is the UltraSoft, which could only last for a single-digit number of laps.

In light of this, it is perhaps surprising that teams have not favoured the Medium tyre more heavily in order to confirm the possibility of an Ultrasoft/ Medium one stop, although they will have data from 2017 to use.

An Ultrasoft/ Medium strategy does not look viable, especially given the decent overtaking opportunities around the circuit. The alternative looks to be a two-stop, using only the UltraSoft and Soft compounds.

Overtaking/DRS

The long back straight, aided by DRS, provides a very good overtaking opportunity in China, although other chances are into Turns 1 and 6, the latter requiring a late braking manoeuvre. After lengthening the main DRS zone in Bahrain by 100 metres, it will be interesting to see if the FIA takes the same approach to decrease the delta between cars necessary for an overtake.

Weather

Currently, the weather looks unpredictable on Friday with a chance of showers, whereas, qualifying and the race look set to take place in dry conditions. The possibility of a wet Friday could scupper run programmes, limiting both set-up time and tyre data, critical aspects of any weekend. As is usually the case in China, conditions will be cool, placing low cooling demands on the cars, but potentially introducing graining on the tyres despite the reduction seen since the new regulations were introduced in 2017.

Form Guide

Mercedes will once again enter as favourites, having had the fastest race car for the past two races, and the quickest over one lap in Melbourne. Albert Park provides a stronger indication of performance for China than Bahrain, owing to its greater front tyre sensitivity.

It has been suggested that Ferrari will bring a new floor to cure some of the weakness it has found in its launch car, while Red Bull will hope to finally put together a clean race to show its true pace. The low full throttle percentage could play into their hands this weekend.

Elsewhere, the midfield battle will be as intense as ever, with Toro Rosso, Haas, Renault and McLaren all looking strong in the race on Sunday, while the interesting tyre situation could allow some different strategies, bringing Williams, Force India and Sauber into the mix.

[MIKA27]

CHINESE GRAND PRIX FACTS & STATISTICS

Facts and statistics ahead of the Chinese Grand Prix weekend, Round 3 of the 2018 Formula 1 World Championship, at Shanghai International Circuit.

The Shanghai International Circuit was designed as the race circuit for the new millennium. And the modern track, with its stunning architecture, has achieved its goal of becoming China’s gateway to the world of Formula One racing since it debuted on the calendar in 2004.

Circuit architects Hermann Tilke and Peter Wahl on their creation: “The 5.4 kilometre racing track is shaped like the Chinese character ‘shang’, which stands for ‘high’ or ‘above’.

Other symbols represented in the architecture originate from Chinese history, such as the team buildings arranged like pavilions in a lake to resemble the ancient Yuyan-Garden in Shanghai. Here, nature and technology are carefully used to create harmony between the elements.”

Not only is the course remarkable for its change of acceleration and deceleration within different winding turns, making high demands on the driver as well as the car, but also for its high-speed straights. These offer crucial overtaking opportunities and give an intense and exciting motorsport experience to the spectators. The main grandstand with 29,000 seats provides a spectacular view of almost 80 percent of the circuit.

Track Facts

• Lap distance: 5.451km. Total distance: 305.066km (56 laps)
• 2017 pole: Lewis Hamilton (Britain) Mercedes — One minute 31.678 seconds.
• 2017 winner: Hamilton
• Race lap record: Michael Schumacher (Germany) Ferrari 1:32.238 (2004)
• Start time: 0610 GMT (1410 local)

The Essentials

• Toughest corner Turn One, a 270-degree right-hander. The cars turn in at 300km/h/186mph and scrub off speed as the drivers increase the steering angle towards a late-apex. The drivers are also braking through here; as the aerodynamic load comes off the car they have to be careful not to lock the unloaded inside front wheel
• Unique difficulty Balancing straight-line speed with braking stability and cornering grip. The 1.17km/0.727-mile back straight is the longest of the season and to be competitive in the race, a high top-speed is vital. But take off too much downforce and the car will slide in the corners and wear out its tyres
• Biggest challenge Keeping the tyres in their correct temperature range will be particularly difficult this year. Pirelli is bringing an eclectic range of tyre compounds: the Ultrasoft will act as a qualifying tyre, but there will be no Supersoft rubber and the cars will be forced to jump to a much harder compound at the pit-stops

Engineer’s Lowdown

• Braking There are eight braking events around the lap, which is relatively high, including one of the most severe braking zones of the season, into Turn 14, where longitudinal forces peak at 7g. But the long straights allow the brakes to cool, and that makes it a relatively easy race in terms of brake wear
• Power The cars use 1.7kg of fuel per lap, which is average for the season. But such is the increase in full throttle this year, due to the increased aerodynamic downforce produced by the cars, every race is marginal on fuel without a Safety Car period
• Aero The long straights encourage the teams to take off downforce. That makes the two 270-degree corners very tough, because a precise front-end is crucial to a good lap-time

Race Victories

• Hamilton has 62 victories from 210 races and is second in the all-time list behind seven-times world champion Michael Schumacher (91). Vettel has 49.
• Ferrari have won 231 races since 1950, McLaren 182, Williams 114, Mercedes 76 and Red Bull 55. Former champions McLaren and Williams have not won since 2012.
• Vettel has won the first two races of the season. The last Ferrari driver to do that was Schumacher in 2004.

Pole-Position

• Hamilton has a record 73 career poles. Vettel has 51.
• Max Verstappen, at 20 years old, can become the youngest ever pole sitter this season. The current youngest is Vettel, who did it at the age of 21.

Podium

• Hamilton has 119 career podiums and is second on the all-time list behind Schumacher (155). Vettel has 101, Kimi Raikkonen 92.

Points

• Hamilton can set an all-time Formula One record of 28 scoring finishes in a row, having equalled Raikkonen’s previous best of 27.
• Three drivers on the grid have yet to score points in their F1 careers: Rookies Charles Leclerc (Sauber) and Sergey Sirotkin (Williams) and Toro Rosso’s Brendon Hartley.
• Pierre Gasly’s fourth place in Bahrain for Toro Rosso was his first top-10 finish.
• Sauber’s Marcus Ericsson also scored his first points since 2015 in that race.

Chinese Grand Prix

• The race made its debut on the calendar in 2004 and nine of the 14 Chinese Grands Prix have been won from pole.
• Hamilton is the most successful with five wins (2008, 2011, 2014, 2015, 2017), and is the only driver to have won two years in a row.
• Fernando Alonso has won twice in China (2005, 2013), Vettel and team mate Kimi Raikkonen once each.
• Mercedes have won five times, Ferrari four.
• The circuit saw Red Bull’s first F1 win in 2009.

Milestones

• Vettel won in Bahrain on his 200th start.
• Mercedes’ Valtteri Bottas will be making his 100th race start this weekend.
• McLaren have now gone 100 races since their last victory in 2012.

[Lotusguy]

MERCEDES HEAD TO CHINA SEEKING REVENGE

For the second race in a row, Sebastian Vettel celebrated on victory at the Bahrain Grand Prix while Formula 1 world champions Mercedes and Lewis Hamilton rued yet another one that got away and head to China with revenge vital.
By winning at Sakhir, after his season-opening success in Australia, the German became the first Ferrari driver since Michael Schumacher in 2004 to take the first two races of a season.
Since 1982, when Alain Prost started strongly but lost out in the title race to Keke Rosberg, every driver who has won the first two races of a season has been crowned champion at year-end.
But Vettel, a four times world champion and keen student of F1 history, knows the battle is just beginning and he cannot put too much faith in statistics.
“They had less races in 1982, so probably…I don’t believe in all those things,” the German said after the floodlit race at Sakhir. “Sometimes they work for you, sometimes against you.
“We have a very very long season ahead of us. It’s clear that we need to improve, we have to improve our car, our package. I guess everybody’s trying to do the same so the competition is very high.”
Vettel will also be well aware that the calendar has possibly flattered him.
The Ferrari driver also won in Australia and Bahrain last season, when China was the second round of the championship rather than the third, but his title challenge imploded later in the campaign.
Hamilton was second in Australia and Bahrain last year, however, compared with a second and third so far.
If Hamilton loses out again next weekend in Shanghai, a race that he has won five times previously and that Mercedes has won in five of the last six years, then there will be serious concern in Brackley and Stuttgart.
In Bahrain, Valtteri Bottas finished second for Mercedes after chasing down Vettel in the closing laps when the Ferrari driver was on badly worn soft tyres. The gap at the end was 0.699 of a second; close but not close enough.
Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff told reporters afterwards that his team felt sure they had a winning tyre strategy.
That was because Bottas and Hamilton were on mediums that could go to the end whereas Vettel had to decide whether to pit again and lose the lead or stay out and risk running out of rubber.
“This was the moment where I would say probably 90 percent probability was on us winning and we lost that,” said Wolff.
He recognised however that Ferrari had swept the front row in qualifying when Mercedes were not good enough, with Hamilton also having a five place penalty for a gearbox change that left him lining up in ninth.
That setback cost Hamilton – who missed out on victory in Australia after a virtual safety car period played into Ferrari’s hands – any chance of winning.
And that was cause for concern for a team that have won the past four drivers’ and constructors’ titles but are now second behind Ferrari.
“The points that you don’t make are the ones that could decide the championship,” added Wolff.
MIKA: I'm a Mercedes man, but I enjoy seeing Ferrari and other teams competing with these guys so far. I still hope Mercedes do well, but it's nice to see teams making Mercedes work and earn the points thus far.

Anything that wipes the smile of Niki Lauda’s face is good in my book. I can’t stand the guy.

[MIKA27]

3 minutes ago, Lotusguy said:

 

Anything that wipes the smile of Niki Lauda’s face is good in my book. I can’t stand the guy.

 

I have nothing against Lauda, but I also don't see what his purpose is at the team.

[Squarehead]

7 hours ago, Lotusguy said:

 

Anything that wipes the smile of Niki Lauda’s face is good in my book. I can’t stand the guy.

 

X2 I'm with you Claus.After all Mercedes hails from our hometown

[MIKA27]

RICCIARDO: IF THAT WAS ME ON THE LAST LAP I WAS GOING FOR IT

Many believe that Valtteri Bottas did not do enough to try and steal victory on the final lap of the Bahrain Grand Prix, his final attack of eventual race winner Sebastian Vettel was feeble and ace overtaker Daniel Ricciardo said he would have had a proper go at the lead given the same circumstances.

Speaking to Sky Sports in Shanghai ahead of the Chinese Grand Prix weekend, “If that was me on the last lap you can bet everything that I was going for it.”

“I definitely would have sent it, 100 percent. I would have gone. There’s a gap, you’re finishing second anyway if you overshoot you’re finishing second. Last lap, for the win, you have to go. You have to go. Take them both out [if it goes wrong].”

“How the race would have gone, I don’t know. I don’t want to say I would have won, but if that was me on the last lap you can bet everything that I was going for it,” insisted Ricciardo.

Bottas, who finished second on the day, has no regrets, “I have reviewed everything and if I could relive the situation again, I wouldn’t do anything differently.”

“Afterwards and from the outside, it is easy to say: You should have done this, you should have done that. We analysed all the scenarios and it is nearly impossible to say what would have been the best.”

“From each race, there is always something you can do better and probably in the middle stint we could have tried to pressurise Sebastian a bit more because we had a decent pace. But what would have happened in the end with the tyres, that is a question mark,” added Bottas.

[MIKA27]

LOWE: TWO YOUNG DRIVERS DOES NOT MAKE OUR TASK EASIER

Even Paddy Loew is stumped by the underperformance of the Williams FW41, designed under his watch by former Ferrari engineer Dirk de Beer, which has simply not delivered and right now the team are not sure where exactly to start looking for the problem/s that have relegated them to bottom of the pecking order.

After way below par performances for the Grove outfit in the opening two races of the season, Lance Stroll said “we have the slowest car” and rookie teammate Sergey Sirotkin added, “we looked like idiots from outside.”

Ahead of the Chinese Grand Prix, Lowe was asked by reporters why the team was in such a state, he replied, “Everyone in the field has their problems, but we have bigger ones. The car was not as fast as we wanted during the winter tests.”

“Our data gave us good reason to believe that we would be in around sixth or seventh place. That’s why we’re surprised that Melbourne and especially Bahrain failed to confirm our expectations.”

Indeed Lowe seemed somewhat aloof in Bahrain, at one point in the paddock he was photographed, poker-faced and demure, listening to an animated Lawrence Stroll, who perhaps was asking what exactly is going on with the team in which he has invested a substantial amount of money to get his son on the F1 grid.

But Lowe cannot explain, “We do not understand why we have done so poorly on this track. At the moment we are not racing against others, but only against ourselves. We have to dig deep to find out what is slowing us down, even compared to Melbourne.”

Lowe also revealed that they have upgrades for the next three races, but the question is: Do their drivers have the ability to provide feedback so their team can try engineer their way out of this diabolical situation? Time will tell…

Ironically, right now the team and Stroll could do with the experience and know-how of Felipe Massa who the team ditched in favour of Sirotkin and the $15-million the Russian brought to the programme this year.

Stroll is 22 races into his Formula 1 career while Sirotkin has one real grand prix under his belt, on his debut in Melbourne he was out of the running after four laps, so that hardly counts as a race, hardly the pedigree to kick-start a turnaround.

Lowe added, “Two young drivers in the team does not make the task easier if the car does not perform.”

Asked if giving extra seat time to the team’s more experienced reserve Robert Kubica, for instance giving the Pole some outing in FP1, Lowe responded, “That would take away important track time away from Sergey, but he needs every kilometre.”

Which puts into perspective how unprepared rookies are to step up to the top flight, they simply do not have the mileage under their belts in Formula 1, a decade ago this would not have been a problem as testing was unrestricted.

But today with so little seat time for drivers, any loss of track time is a blow especially to rookies. Plus pay drivers have forked out big amounts of money to drive the car, therefore sitting out a session or two is hardly an option.

Lowe knows Williams need to come up with a solution very fast, “It would be wrong to become depressed now. Only if we work purposefully can we reverse the trend.”

What has caused this rapid downward trend for the third most successful team in F1 history? If they knew that then they would not be where they are now…

MIKA: The last time I checked, Toro Rosso also have a very young driver line-up.... they seem to be doing far better and with a smaller budget.

[MIKA27]

HAMILTON: MAX, I’M SORRY ABOUT THE LAST RACE

In the wake of their collision in Bahrain last week, Lewis Hamilton apologised and was photographed (above) shaking Max Verstappen’s hand as the pair signed autographs for fans ahead of the Chinese Grand Prix weekend in Shanghai.

A war of words between the pair was a big talking point after the intriguing Bahrain Grand Prix, after which Hamilton called the Dutchman a “d!ckhead” who lacks respect while Verstappen said that the Briton took the easy way out by taking it out on young drivers.

In Shanghai, the pair met during the autograph session with fans and they shook hands, after which Hamilton told reporters, “I generally do my talking on the track. Obviously, after this incident, I didn’t, but I just saw Max now.”

“It’s always good to show respect and being that I’m the older driver, I felt it was important that I went to him. So just as we were signing just now I shook his hand and I was like: “look, I’m sorry about the last race.”

Regardless of whether it is his fault or my fault, it doesn’t really matter. It’s in the past. Hopefully, that sign of respect shows a lot and helps you move forwards racing each other. Hopefully, it keeps respect between you because I think it’s important between drivers.”

Earlier in the drivers’ press conference, Verstappen was asked if he had spoken to Hamilton since the incident, he replied: “No. I might have a talk with him if it is really necessary but I won’t change my style of driving. It was racing, it happens.”

Asked how Verstappen reacted to the handshake, Hamilton said, “I don’t really know because there was a lot of noise around us, but he acknowledged it.”

[MIKA27]

VETTEL: MERCEDES IS STILL THE FAVOURITE

Although Sebastian Vettel has won the first two races of the 2018 Formula 1 World Championship and as a result leads the points standings by 17 points, but the Ferrari is adamant that Mercedes are still the team to beat as they square up for round three in Shanghai.

Cool conditions are predicted for the Chinese Grand Prix which Vettel believes will favour Mercedes, “I’ve seen the forecast, but you never know. It’s obviously cooler. It’s a different track, so I think, honestly, the first two races have been quite different, so it’s not that straightforward to predict the third one.”

“I think overall if you take into account all the testing we did, then Mercedes is still the favourite going in. Certainly, we’ll try to have a different outcome than that. I think if we do our homework, if we get the car balance right and we get everything together, then it should be a good weekend – I don’t see why not.”

Looking back on the season opener Vettel said, “I think something that happened in Australia can happen. It happened to us last year the other way around. I don’t think it has anything to do with being smart. I think we know our numbers, and I think – not to go in detail too much and get lost.”

“I think some of the systems we have can be a bit tricky. I think every team is aware of that. Then I think for Bahrain obviously we had a different plan going into the race, but we wanted to win, so we had to change it, and it worked out.”

“I think in the position that we were we, in a way, had nothing to lose – falling back to third was the worst possible result – so we took the risk and it paid off, so I don’t think, again, there was anything Mercedes could’ve done massively different.”

“In the end, we did everything we could, we did everything right, and that was important,” added Vettel who will be looking for his second win in China, to add to the triumph he enjoyed at the venue in 2009 with Red Bull.

[MIKA27]

Fernando Alonso's karting school to build 40 tracks in China

Fernando Alonso’s karting school has announced plans to expand into the Chinese market, with 40 new circuits set to be constructed across the next five years.

Alonso has a karting facility in his native Spain – adjacent to the museum that houses the cars he has driven during his career – which has held CIK-FIA European Championship events.

China has been an expanding market in recent years, with the country joining the calendar in 2004 at a purpose-built circuit outside of Shanghai.

The event will remain on the calendar until at least 2020, but local participation on a global scale has so far been limited to just Ma Qing Hua.

Ma participated in four Formula 1 free practice sessions with HRT in 2012 and made an appearance on home territory for Caterham a year later, for whose GP2 team he started just one race.

Ma’s Formula 1 journey lasted no longer, instead switching focus to Formula E and touring cars, where he won two races.

Ferrari currently has Formula 3 racer Guan Yu Zhou on its Driver Academy, while Renault has Sun Yue Yang under its wing, who competes in BRDC Formula 3.

“We will be in China on long-term project to find the Chinese F1 champion of the future,” Alonso posted on social media.

“On the next five years, 40 race tracks will be built, giving the opportunity to the best talents in the country to follow their dreams.”

The news was announced ahead of this weekend’s Chinese Grand Prix, an event Alonso won in 2005.

[MIKA27]

McLaren's start 'very good' if you look at the facts - Fernando Alonso

Fernando Alonso insists McLaren have enjoyed a "very good start" to the 2018 season when only the facts are taken into account.

Although the team haven't enjoyed the best results, particularly in qualifying, stronger race pace and better reliability than their rivals sees McLaren sitting third in the Constructors' Standings with 22 points after just two races – McLaren failed to score in the opening seven races last year.

Alonso believes expectations were set too high pre-season and supporters are therefore disappointed by what they've seen so far, but when looking at the facts, the Spaniard says their start has actually been "very good".

"I don't know what exactly people were expecting from one season to another where the regulations stay the same," Alonso said on Thursday.

"There were three teams ahead of everyone last year and this year they stayed ahead of everyone.

"Last year in three races we had zero points. Last year Stoffel [Vandoorne] didn't even make the start in Bahrain, he was pulling the car into the pitlane, so this year from two races four cars to the checkered flag and third in the constructors' championship.

"If we look at the facts, not the feelings or the wishes or the dreams, if we see the facts, this is a very good start."

Alonso also hailed the fact McLaren has yet to encounter any reliability problems unlike its rivals, which have suffered from pit stop mistakes, engine failures, gearbox failures and poor strategy calls, which is in part why McLaren sit so high in the standings despite a best result of fifth.

"We didn't have any mechanical failures or operational failures and I think we are the only team, no? I think there's only one team remaining with no issues at all in two weekends and that's only McLaren because even Mercedes they changed the gearbox already a couple of times. It's only McLaren.

"This could change quite quickly, unfortunately, but I think so far the start of the season has been very positive. But I understand that the expectations are always difficult to meet and a potential championship fight."

[MIKA27]

2018 China - Drivers Press Conference

 

[MIKA27]

Raikkonen: Ferrari pit-stops ‘are questionable’

Kimi Raikkonen has said "a lot of things are questionable" about Ferrari's pit-stop procedure and that it is something the team need to "improve" on.

Ferrari were fined 50,000 Euros for their second unsafe release of Raikkonen's at the Bahrain Grand Prix, which resulted in him retiring from the race and breaking the leg of Ferrari mechanic Francesco Cigarini in the process.

And Raikkonen has said a review is needed into how Ferrari go about their business in the pit lane, as he will always, always go once the light is green.

“I think a lot of things are questionable,” Raikkonen said.

“We are always trying to gain on everything, but unfortunately it was far from ideal, and the end result was one of our guys got hurt, but my only job is to follow the lights and go when it’s green.

“Even if it goes green for, I don’t know, one second, I’m gone already, there’s nothing that you can do to turn back to red.

“There are probably a lot of things that could’ve been done differently, but this is what happened, and we paid the price for it.

“I don’t know if it’s unlucky.

"I don’t think it’s anything to do with the luck, really, to be honest. Maybe at the safety car you can argue it’s unlucky, but it happens, and it can happen to you.

“I don’t think it’s anything to do with luck; it’s purely things that we have to improve on. It’s disappointing obviously to have that early in the season such a bad result."

As for Ferrari's chances in China, Raikkonen did not have any definitive answer given that it is yet another race which is vastly different from the likes of Australia and Bahrain.

He added: "It’s a bit hard to say exactly where we’re going to be [in China], because to be honest the first two races are quite different from each other and this is again not necessarily the most normal circuit, so let’s see.

"It’s hard to imagine it’s going to be a lot different than it has been in the last races, so it will be pretty interesting.”

[MIKA27]

Honda form "amazing" for Formula 1 - Grosjean

Romain Grosjean says Toro Rosso-Honda’s surprise form is “amazing” for Formula 1, because it proves new manufacturers can come in and be successful.
After a difficult first race of 2018 in Australia, Pierre Gasly was best of the midfield F1 runners in the Bahrain Grand Prix, recording Honda's best result since it returned to F1 in 2015 by finishing fourth.

Grosjean said the recent success stories of his Haas team and Honda's new partnership with STR shows what's possible in Formula 1 if you keep working hard and don't give up.

"I wasn't happy they were in front of us, but I'm happy that Honda, with a good collaboration with Toro Rosso, managed to get such a good result," Grosjean said.

"Qualifying everyone was like 'oh in the race they're gonna fall down', but actually no, they finished fourth.

"For Formula 1 in general it is amazing. It shows a constructor, like the Haas project, can be successful after three years. I think it's great for Formula 1. It shows you can do it."

Former Toro Rosso driver Carlos Sainz agreed, saying STR deserved the result for working so hard to adapt its car to the Honda engine.

"I saw the mechanics, I went down to shake hands with them and congratulate them," he said.

"It's good for them, they deserve it – they've pushed hard over the winter to get that engine back into the car, redesign the car. I think it's a good story for Formula 1."

Grosjean said the current unpredictability of form behind Mercedes, Ferrari and Red Bull made it "super exciting" to be involved in F1's current midfield fight.

"In Melbourne it was Haas, Renault, McLaren, Toro Rosso; In Bahrain it was Toro Rosso, us, Renault, McLaren," Grosjean added.

manufacturers can come in and be successful.
After a difficult first race of 2018 in Australia, Pierre Gasly was best of the midfield F1 runners in the Bahrain Grand Prix, recording Honda's best result since it returned to F1 in 2015 by finishing fourth.

Grosjean said the recent success stories of his Haas team and Honda's new partnership with STR shows what's possible in Formula 1 if you keep working hard and don't give up.

"I wasn't happy they were in front of us, but I'm happy that Honda, with a good collaboration with Toro Rosso, managed to get such a good result," Grosjean said.

"Qualifying everyone was like 'oh in the race they're gonna fall down', but actually no, they finished fourth.

"For Formula 1 in general it is amazing. It shows a constructor, like the Haas project, can be successful after three years. I think it's great for Formula 1. It shows you can do it."

Former Toro Rosso driver Carlos Sainz agreed, saying STR deserved the result for working so hard to adapt its car to the Honda engine.

"I saw the mechanics, I went down to shake hands with them and congratulate them," he said.

"It's good for them, they deserve it – they've pushed hard over the winter to get that engine back into the car, redesign the car. I think it's a good story for Formula 1."

Grosjean said the current unpredictability of form behind Mercedes, Ferrari and Red Bull made it "super exciting" to be involved in F1's current midfield fight.

"In Melbourne it was Haas, Renault, McLaren, Toro Rosso; In Bahrain it was Toro Rosso, us, Renault, McLaren," Grosjean added.

"It's super tight and super exciting, and even in qualifying you know you need to get things right, and the same thing in the race.

"Hopefully we can stay in front and have a good season."

Bad communication caused Magnussen mix-up

Grosjean endured a difficult race in Bahrain, thanks to a damaged car, while teammate Kevin Magnussen finished fifth behind Gasly.

But Grosjean and Magnussen almost collided at Turn 2 when Magnussen mistakenly thought Grosjean was letting him through, and the Dane reacted furiously over team radio.

Grosjean explained the incident was the result of him being focused on racing Esteban Ocon's Force India, plus the "unfortunate timing" of Magnussen's second pitstop and "bad communication" from the team.

Grosjean said the situation had been reviewed and resolved by Haas internally.

Team boss Gunther Steiner said: "We didn't give clear instruction what to do, so there was confusion, therefore it came over very badly.

"We just got a little bit slow in reacting to it. I wouldn't say it was wrong, we just need to be more clear about it."

Magnussen added: "We've talked many times about what we do in those kind of situations. There's a clear set of guidelines, so we've just got to stick to those."