Troféu Nakajima!
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Depois de Nico Rosberg obter a primeira vitória da carreira, no GP da
China, a expectativa era de mais uma corrida brigando pelas primeiras
posições, no Bahrein. Mas o piloto da Mercedes fez uma prova discreta e
só chamou a atenção com duas manobras imprudentes. Na 10ª volta, o
alemão espremeu Hamilton, que precisou sair da pista para realizar a
ultrapassagem. Quinze voltas depois, Rosberg repetiu a dose no mesmo
lugar, dessa vez empurrando Fernando Alonso para fora.
Fonte: Globo Esporte
Fonte: Globo Esporte
Sem punição, Rosberg se defende de críticas de Alonso: "boas manobras"
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A análise dos comissários do Grande Prêmio do Bahrein de Fórmula 1 após
as polêmicas fechadas de Nico Rosberg contra Lewis Hamilton e Fernando
Alonso serviu como uma aprovação para o alemão. O piloto da Mercedes se
defendeu das críticas feitas pelo espanhol da Ferrari e classificou sua
atitude na pista como "boas manobras", segundo publica nesta
segunda-feira o site da revista Autosport.
Rosberg afirmou que os incidentes com Hamilton e Alonso representaram "definitivamente" um "bom automobilismo". O companheiro de equipe de Michael Schumacher admitiu que precisou conversar com os comissários depois das manobras e agradeceu por eles terem julgado que foram manobras "duras, mas OK".
O alemão, que largou e terminou no quinto lugar da prova, defendeu-se de forma agressiva, mas de forma legal nas palavras dos comissários, "seguindo uma linha reta constante e contínua". O regulamento da F1 assinala que um corredor não pode defender sua posição mudando duas vezes de direção.
No Bahrein, Rosberg primeiro fechou a porta para Hamilton, que passou pela areia e mesmo assim conseguiu fazer a ultrapassagem, por fora da pista. Alonso também saiu do traçado ideal e tocou a areia ao tentar superar o representante da Mercedes, deixando de ganhar a colocação.
No momento da fechada, o espanhol protestou bastante conversando por rádio com a Ferrari e levantando o braço direito. Depois, em entrevista aos repórteres, o bicampeão mundial disse que "um par de pilotos" poderia estar no hospital se houvesse um muro no lugar em que disputou posição com o alemão em vez de uma via de escape.
No domingo, Alonso ainda se comunicou no Twitter, mandando um recado em tom de ironia aos fãs após ser informado sobre a decisão dos comissários: "creio que vocês vão se divertir nas próximas corridas! Pode-se defender como quiser e pode-se ultrapassar por fora da pista! Vamos desfrutar!".
Fonte: Terra Esportes
Hahahahaha
Euri!
É claro que Nicolete não vai se safar desta, isso, eu tenho certeza, aliás seu Nico é bom não mexer na juba de um leonino como o Alonso, pois leoninos dp primeiro decanato são vingativos!!!
Shummy nem se achou né?! Foi lá conversar com os comissário dando um de advogado dodiabo Nico!
Rosberg afirmou que os incidentes com Hamilton e Alonso representaram "definitivamente" um "bom automobilismo". O companheiro de equipe de Michael Schumacher admitiu que precisou conversar com os comissários depois das manobras e agradeceu por eles terem julgado que foram manobras "duras, mas OK".
O alemão, que largou e terminou no quinto lugar da prova, defendeu-se de forma agressiva, mas de forma legal nas palavras dos comissários, "seguindo uma linha reta constante e contínua". O regulamento da F1 assinala que um corredor não pode defender sua posição mudando duas vezes de direção.
No Bahrein, Rosberg primeiro fechou a porta para Hamilton, que passou pela areia e mesmo assim conseguiu fazer a ultrapassagem, por fora da pista. Alonso também saiu do traçado ideal e tocou a areia ao tentar superar o representante da Mercedes, deixando de ganhar a colocação.
No momento da fechada, o espanhol protestou bastante conversando por rádio com a Ferrari e levantando o braço direito. Depois, em entrevista aos repórteres, o bicampeão mundial disse que "um par de pilotos" poderia estar no hospital se houvesse um muro no lugar em que disputou posição com o alemão em vez de uma via de escape.
No domingo, Alonso ainda se comunicou no Twitter, mandando um recado em tom de ironia aos fãs após ser informado sobre a decisão dos comissários: "creio que vocês vão se divertir nas próximas corridas! Pode-se defender como quiser e pode-se ultrapassar por fora da pista! Vamos desfrutar!".
Fonte: Terra Esportes
Hahahahaha
Euri!
É claro que Nicolete não vai se safar desta, isso, eu tenho certeza, aliás seu Nico é bom não mexer na juba de um leonino como o Alonso, pois leoninos dp primeiro decanato são vingativos!!!
Shummy nem se achou né?! Foi lá conversar com os comissário dando um de advogado do
Rosberg não é punido por incidentes com Hamilton e Alonso
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Nico Rosberg escapou de qualquer punição após os incidentes envolvendo
Lewis Hamilton e Fernando Alonso no GP do Bahrain. O piloto da
Mercedes, que passou por dupla investigação após a corrida, jogou duro
nas duas disputas e os rivais de McLaren e Ferrari tiveram que sair do
traçado para evitar colisões.
Segundo os comissários, em ambos os casos, Rosberg moveu o seu carro para a direita de maneira constante e em linha reta, e os pilotos estavam atrás e não ao lado dele. A manobra envolvendo Hamilton terminou na ultrapassagem do piloto inglês, enquanto o espanhol não teve a mesma sorte.
Fonte: Autoracing
Segundo os comissários, em ambos os casos, Rosberg moveu o seu carro para a direita de maneira constante e em linha reta, e os pilotos estavam atrás e não ao lado dele. A manobra envolvendo Hamilton terminou na ultrapassagem do piloto inglês, enquanto o espanhol não teve a mesma sorte.
Fonte: Autoracing
Rosberg e Schumacher ficam satisfeitos com progresso da Mercedes
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Nico só lamenta primeira volta ruim, enquanto Michael destaca cuidado com os pneus para sair de 22º para 10º
Mesmo com um final de semana bem menos feliz do que no GP da China,
quando conquistou as primeiras pole e vitória, Nico Rosberg ficou feliz
com o ritmo demonstrado pela Mercedes, que não sofreu tanto quanto nas
primeiras corridas em um asfalto mais quente.
“Tive uma péssima primeira volta hoje, mas consegui me recuperar e maximizar a corrida. Tive uma boa estratégia e o ritmo do carro estava muito forte comparado com o início da temporada, ainda que fosse difícil progredir no meio do pelotão. No fim das contas, estou muito feliz com nosso final de semana, já que a quinta posição me dá mais pontos e posso ver que estamos progredindo.”
Depois de largar em 22º devido a uma troca de câmbio e uma asa traseira quebrada na classificação ainda no Q1, Michael Schumacher comemorou o décima colocação e seu segundo ponto no campeonato.
“Considerando onde larguei hoje, é algo positivo que tenha conseguido lutar até a décima posição, marcar um ponto e completar uma corrida no seco nesta temporada. Os pneus obviamente tiveram um grande papel na corrida hoje e tivemos de adaptar o estilo de pilotagem para manter os pneus funcionando.”
Fonte: TotalRace
“Tive uma péssima primeira volta hoje, mas consegui me recuperar e maximizar a corrida. Tive uma boa estratégia e o ritmo do carro estava muito forte comparado com o início da temporada, ainda que fosse difícil progredir no meio do pelotão. No fim das contas, estou muito feliz com nosso final de semana, já que a quinta posição me dá mais pontos e posso ver que estamos progredindo.”
Depois de largar em 22º devido a uma troca de câmbio e uma asa traseira quebrada na classificação ainda no Q1, Michael Schumacher comemorou o décima colocação e seu segundo ponto no campeonato.
“Considerando onde larguei hoje, é algo positivo que tenha conseguido lutar até a décima posição, marcar um ponto e completar uma corrida no seco nesta temporada. Os pneus obviamente tiveram um grande papel na corrida hoje e tivemos de adaptar o estilo de pilotagem para manter os pneus funcionando.”
Fonte: TotalRace
Rosberg reage à tarde e fecha sexta-feira na frente no Bahrein
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Nico Rosberg marcou, com folga, o melhor tempo desta sexta-feira, dia dos primeiros treinos livres para o GP do Bahrein.
Quarto colocado na sessão da manhã, o piloto da Mercedes reagiu no período vespertino com uma volta quase meio segundo mais veloz que a de Mark Webber, da Red Bull, que fechou em segundo na tabela de tempos.
Rosberg encaixou sua melhor passagem em meados do treino, quando os pilotos das principais equipes do grid passaram a usar os compostos macios da Pirelli. Nessas condições, onde a Mercedes têm mostrado força desde o início da temporada, o alemão registrou 1min32s816, marca que ficou sem ameaças até o término da sessão.
O vencedor do GP da China ficou imediatamente à frente dos pilotos da Red Bull, Mark Webber e Sebastian Vettel, que, respectivamente, terminaram em segundo e terceiro. Mesmo que a diferença no cronômetro tenha sido considerável, o cenário não se apresenta tão negativo para o time austríaco, já que os pilotos ditaram o ritmo da sessão quando utilizava-se pneus médios – que, devido ao nível de desgaste, deverão ser os mais usados durante a corrida.
A McLaren, que liderou o primeiro treino livre com Lewis Hamilton, se apresentou como a terceira força ao término da sexta-feira. O campeão mundial de 2008 fechou o dia na quarta posição, quase um segundo atrás de Rosberg, enquanto Jenson Button foi o sexto colocado.
No mais, a relação de forças não mostrou grandes mudanças em relação às corridas anteriores. Kamui Kobayashi colocou a Sauber na sétima posição, enquanto o outro piloto do time, Sergio Pérez, também ficou entre os dez melhores. Fernando Alonso, da Ferrari, também integrou o “top 10”, em oitavo, repetindo o cenário do GP da China.
Felipe Massa, por sua vez, ficou em 12º lugar, quase meio segundo atrás de seu companheiro de equipe. Ele, assim como o espanhol, voltaram a sofrer com a dirigibilidade do F2012 nas curvas de Sakhir, sendo que a dupla foi protagonista de algumas das escapadas de pista vistas no treino.
Outro brasileiro na sessão, Bruno Senna ficou em uma discreta 18ª posição. O piloto da Williams, que atuou somente no segundo treino (já que, no primeiro, cedeu seu carro a Valtteri Bottas), não conseguiu encaixar uma volta limpa com o pneu macio. Ele foi o único a ter, como melhor volta, sua marca obtida com compostos médios. No restante do treino, focou no rendimento do carro com tanque cheio, completando, no total, 30 voltas pelo circuito.
Quarto colocado na sessão da manhã, o piloto da Mercedes reagiu no período vespertino com uma volta quase meio segundo mais veloz que a de Mark Webber, da Red Bull, que fechou em segundo na tabela de tempos.
Rosberg encaixou sua melhor passagem em meados do treino, quando os pilotos das principais equipes do grid passaram a usar os compostos macios da Pirelli. Nessas condições, onde a Mercedes têm mostrado força desde o início da temporada, o alemão registrou 1min32s816, marca que ficou sem ameaças até o término da sessão.
O vencedor do GP da China ficou imediatamente à frente dos pilotos da Red Bull, Mark Webber e Sebastian Vettel, que, respectivamente, terminaram em segundo e terceiro. Mesmo que a diferença no cronômetro tenha sido considerável, o cenário não se apresenta tão negativo para o time austríaco, já que os pilotos ditaram o ritmo da sessão quando utilizava-se pneus médios – que, devido ao nível de desgaste, deverão ser os mais usados durante a corrida.
A McLaren, que liderou o primeiro treino livre com Lewis Hamilton, se apresentou como a terceira força ao término da sexta-feira. O campeão mundial de 2008 fechou o dia na quarta posição, quase um segundo atrás de Rosberg, enquanto Jenson Button foi o sexto colocado.
No mais, a relação de forças não mostrou grandes mudanças em relação às corridas anteriores. Kamui Kobayashi colocou a Sauber na sétima posição, enquanto o outro piloto do time, Sergio Pérez, também ficou entre os dez melhores. Fernando Alonso, da Ferrari, também integrou o “top 10”, em oitavo, repetindo o cenário do GP da China.
Felipe Massa, por sua vez, ficou em 12º lugar, quase meio segundo atrás de seu companheiro de equipe. Ele, assim como o espanhol, voltaram a sofrer com a dirigibilidade do F2012 nas curvas de Sakhir, sendo que a dupla foi protagonista de algumas das escapadas de pista vistas no treino.
Outro brasileiro na sessão, Bruno Senna ficou em uma discreta 18ª posição. O piloto da Williams, que atuou somente no segundo treino (já que, no primeiro, cedeu seu carro a Valtteri Bottas), não conseguiu encaixar uma volta limpa com o pneu macio. Ele foi o único a ter, como melhor volta, sua marca obtida com compostos médios. No restante do treino, focou no rendimento do carro com tanque cheio, completando, no total, 30 voltas pelo circuito.
20/04/2012
Nico Rosberg believes Mercedes has room for improvement on tyre management
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Nico Rosberg believes Mercedes still has room for improvement in
unlocking the secrets to Pirelli's tyres, despite its dominant victory
in the Chinese Grand Prix.
Although the Brackley-based team bounced back from tyre troubles in the first two races of the season to deliver a triumph in Shanghai, Rosberg says that it is not yet in a position to feel it has cracked its previous problems.
"For sure we have learned a lot, but it is such a complex issue that we are not done with learning that is for sure," Rosberg told AUTOSPORT. "And it is a key point for the season: who is going to understand the tyres best?"
Rosberg says that a better picture of Mercedes' form will become evident in Bahrain - where higher temperatures and the Sakhir's characteristics that make it a rear tyre-limited venue, will expose any weaknesses in its package.
"We really need to be careful because we had massive problems in the previous two races," explained the German. "We worked hard and improved things, but I don't think we were able to completely sort everything and all of a sudden we are absolutely the quickest team by far. I don't think that is the case.
"We need to be a bit more careful. It will definitely be more difficult here, and it is so difficult to predict how problematic is it going to be. It will be for sure very problematic but will it be as problematic for other teams or not?"
Rosberg reckons, however, that his triumph in China was less of a shock than the tyre problems he suffered in Australia.
When asked which event surprised him more, Rosberg said: "Both really. Although probably more Australia. Pre-season, in testing, we did think we would be pretty strong, so definitely Australia was the one that was more the bigger surprise."
Having now won a grand prix, Rosberg admitted that his attitude to the season was far more positive than it had been before.
"I feel a little bit happier at the moment because I know I have a car where I can look forward to doing well in my sport in the weeks to come," he said. "And that is a nicer feeling to before when we were not looking too good in the races, in Malaysia and Australia. That is the only difference really."
Fonte: Autosport
Although the Brackley-based team bounced back from tyre troubles in the first two races of the season to deliver a triumph in Shanghai, Rosberg says that it is not yet in a position to feel it has cracked its previous problems.
"For sure we have learned a lot, but it is such a complex issue that we are not done with learning that is for sure," Rosberg told AUTOSPORT. "And it is a key point for the season: who is going to understand the tyres best?"
Rosberg says that a better picture of Mercedes' form will become evident in Bahrain - where higher temperatures and the Sakhir's characteristics that make it a rear tyre-limited venue, will expose any weaknesses in its package.
"We really need to be careful because we had massive problems in the previous two races," explained the German. "We worked hard and improved things, but I don't think we were able to completely sort everything and all of a sudden we are absolutely the quickest team by far. I don't think that is the case.
"We need to be a bit more careful. It will definitely be more difficult here, and it is so difficult to predict how problematic is it going to be. It will be for sure very problematic but will it be as problematic for other teams or not?"
Rosberg reckons, however, that his triumph in China was less of a shock than the tyre problems he suffered in Australia.
When asked which event surprised him more, Rosberg said: "Both really. Although probably more Australia. Pre-season, in testing, we did think we would be pretty strong, so definitely Australia was the one that was more the bigger surprise."
Having now won a grand prix, Rosberg admitted that his attitude to the season was far more positive than it had been before.
"I feel a little bit happier at the moment because I know I have a car where I can look forward to doing well in my sport in the weeks to come," he said. "And that is a nicer feeling to before when we were not looking too good in the races, in Malaysia and Australia. That is the only difference really."
Fonte: Autosport
4º na primeira sessão
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Pos Driver Team Time Laps 1. Lewis Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes 1m33.572 11 2. Sebastian Vettel Red Bull-Renault 1m33.877s + 0.305 21 3. Paul di Resta Force India-Mercedes 1m34.150s + 0.578 26 4. Nico Rosberg Mercedes 1m34.249s + 0.677 23 5. Jenson Button McLaren-Mercedes 1m34.277s + 0.705 14 6. Nico Hulkenberg Force India-Mercedes 1m34.344s + 0.772 26 7. Michael Schumacher Mercedes 1m34.483s + 0.911 17 8. Mark Webber Red Bull-Renault 1m34.552s + 0.980 22 9. Kimi Raikkonen Lotus-Renault 1m34.609s + 1.037 17 10. Romain Grosjean Lotus-Renault 1m34.847s + 1.275 20 11. Sergio Perez Sauber-Ferrari 1m35.024s + 1.452 22 12. Pastor Maldonado Williams-Renault 1m35.268s + 1.696 24 13. Fernando Alonso Ferrari 1m35.436s + 1.864 21 14. Valtteri Bottas Williams-Renault 1m35.497s + 1.925 24 15. Felipe Massa Ferrari 1m35.719s + 2.147 19 16. Kamui Kobayashi Sauber-Ferrari 1m35.929s + 2.357 24 17. Jean-Eric Vergne Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1m36.195s + 2.623 20 18. Heikki Kovalainen Caterham-Renault 1m36.330s + 2.758 11 19. Vitaly Petrov Caterham-Renault 1m36.484s + 2.912 18 20. Daniel Ricciardo Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1m36.591s + 3.019 20 21. Charles Pic Marussia-Cosworth 1m37.467s + 3.895 17 22. Timo Glock Marussia-Cosworth 1m38.006s + 4.434 18 23. Pedro de la Rosa HRT-Cosworth 1m38.877s + 5.305 19 24. Narain Karthikeyan HRT-Cosworth 1m39.996s + 6.424 23
Thursday's press conference - Bahrain
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DRIVERS - Heikki KOVALAINEN (Caterham), Romain GROSJEAN (Lotus),
Timo GLOCK (Marussia), Lewis HAMILTON (McLaren), Nico ROSBERG
(Mercedes), Felipe MASSA (Ferrari)
PRESS CONFERENCE
Q. Heikki, it's been a difficult start to the season for you. What were you expecting from these first three or four races?
Heikki KOVALAINEN: Well, obviously we're hoping for better finishes. I think we've had some issues pretty much every race, but we're working on them and we're trying to make sure that those kind of troubles that we've had don't happen again. We've done everything we can; everything we could do in this short time to make sure that we have a trouble-free race.
Q. Are you expecting a big step forwards, therefore, for Barcelona?
HK: We have upgrades coming, not only for Barcelona, but all the way through the season. We are still catching up. We have not yet joined the midfield, so we're still targeting that. Obviously everybody's bringing updates, so how much we will be able to make a rapid gain remains to be seen. But I think we're working flat out and strengthening the team in every area to be able to do that.
Q. So, what are your hopes for this weekend then?
HK: Hopefully to have a trouble-free weekend, without any incidents, especially in the race. To have smooth pit stops without any extra incidents. Hopefully we can get everything out of the team and out of the car. Like we've shown in the last couple of race, especially in China, we were able race a few cars for quite a long time in the race. Hopefully we can carry on doing that.
Q. Romain, now 26-years-old, happy birthday! This is a circuit you know well, you've been talking about your GP2 races here and I think you had a 'full house' here if you understand what that means.
Romain GROSJEAN: Yeah, well, it's a circuit I know quite well, from racing in GP2 and testing with Pirelli for the development of the tyres. I think it's a nice circuit, I quite like it and think we can have a good car here. The weather will be, for once, stable, with some decent temperature and hopefully we can have a clear qualifying and a clear race altogether and achieve an even better result than what we had in the previous race.
Q. In China you got the result you were waiting for, or maybe you were hoping for even better?
RG: You always hope for better! In a way what you want to achieve whenever you start the race is to win. That's the goal for every driver on the grid. But China was a good race, I think it was very tight, some good battles and we were showing that we were able to carry through the race with good pace and some good moves and to be able to be gentle with the tyres. That was the key in China and I think that will the key one more time here.
Q. But this is such a different circuit and the temperatures and conditions are going to be so different.
RG: Yes, but I hate the cold, so I feel better here. The tyre strategy will be different and the tyre usage will be different here as we have these temperatures but as well I don't think we are not going to struggle with warm-up issues or making the work, which will help us to set up the car in a good way.
Q. Timo, obviously the team has been playing catch-up since the start of the season but how do you feel they've been getting on? It seems to be a very steep learning curve.
Timo GLOCK: Yes, absolutely. If you do 200kms of testing before the first race, every lap, every kilometre you do is like a learning process for us at the moment. I'm quite happy with the past races, I think we've closed the gap quite significantly: last qualifying we were three seconds behind; first race we had five and a half seconds, so there's a clear step forward and that's good.
Q. The results seem positive and the car's reliable as well, how far can you go, do you feel?
TG: I hope we can continue like this in terms of improvements but it will be difficult. European season everyone comes with new updates so we just have to work hard and continue the process we're doing at the moment. It would be great to have at every race a step like we had in China, so we have to see what we can do. We have some little parts here, which could improve the car again, so we're looking forward to it. I think we have a good baseline to really catch-up.
Q. Is the big update coming at Barcelona like most people?
TG: Yeah, we're working on it. It's not definite how much we will get out of it but at the moment we're getting new parts every race. If that continues I don't care how big the update is in Barcelona. If you can keep it up through the whole year that's more important.
Q. Lewis, did you expect to be leading the Championship with three third places after three races?
Lewis HAMILTON: Good afternoon everyone, no, definitely not. The target every year I think is to have consistency and sometimes it just doesn't go to plan but this year I think we've been quite fortunate. Finishing on the podium for the first three races has been fantastic for us. Obviously it's very early in the season. In previous seasons you've seen Championship leaders swapping and changing throughout the year so it doesn't really mean too much at the moment.
Q. Do you feel your car is suited to this circuit? I mean it seems that the game has changed this year with less downforce. The tyres are just so, so important, even more than they have been before – is that the case?
LH: I personally don't think they're much more important than in the past, I think last year we had similar tyre degradation and we had to manage the tyres in a similar way. If you look at the last race the people on a two-stop were slow at the end of the race and people on three stop were overtaking them. It was the same last year – that's how I won the race. This year the tyre window, the working range is slightly narrower than it was last year, which is making it a little more difficult for people to warm-up the tyres in qualifying, for example. It is a little more challenging but it's providing good racing.
Q. And who is your main competitor? Is he [Nico] your main competitor having been the winner of the last race, or your team-mate? It's difficult to say, isn't it?
LH: It is very difficult to say. You know, when you look at qualifying we're competitive there, Mercedes is now the quickest but it's quite close between a lot of the cars, but in the race pace then you look at the Red Bull being very quick, the Mercedes is very quick, we are quick, even Sauber's quick. It's a real mixture at the moment and it's just about trying to stay consistent and trying to maximise every opportunity you have.
Q. Nico, sadly only a few days to enjoy the win from last weekend but very interesting, this is a circuit that you've done very well on in F3, in GP2, made your F1 debut here and had fastest lap – you must be looking forward to this weekend?
Nico ROSBERG: Yeah, for sure. This is a track I really enjoy, I've had some very good memories here but again it's just difficult to know where we're going to be exactly. In Shanghai of course we did very well but previously we did have a few issues in the races, so it's possible it's going to be a bit more difficult here.
Q. You mentioned those issues, which were tyre-related, and yet you seemed to get it absolutely right in China, can it just go back to square one again here? Is that how difficult it is to get it right?
NR: Well at the same time the engineers and everybody have really been making some good progress on the car, setup-wise and things like that. So we're learning very quickly, so it wasn't a coincidence that we were fast in Shanghai. No, we did a good job and got the best out of it – but the situation could be different here with the temperatures and that might prove a little bit more of a challenge but I don't know.
Q. The emphasis more on setup than it used to be?
NR: Tyre management is more of a problem in the races than it used to be. That's definitely the case and that can be influenced with setup and various other things.
Q. Felipe, this has been a good circuit for you in the past: two wins here, three times qualified second. Do you feel that you're on an upward curve now?
Felipe MASSA: Yeah, for sure it's a very nice track. I have had a great time here. I would expect to have a good race here, the best of the season – so far. I'm just looking forward to having a nice race, scoring good points and working now on having a better race all the time.
Q. Did you feel you had made progress in Shanghai?
FM: Yes, definitely, even if the result at the end was not very satisfying for the team, for Fernando or for me, it was a normal race in terms of race pace, in terms of qualifying and everything. Everything was normal. For sure it was a much more different race in Shanghai compared to the first two races.
Q. And will these temperatures, even though they are very different to Shanghai, will they be more suited to the car?
FM: I hope so. For sure it's a different track, very different to Shanghai but in a way, we're still working to improve the car, still working to make the car more competitive and the car here is not very different to the car in Shanghai, so we will see how the behaviour of the car is on this track in qualifying, but also in the race and see if we can do something different, be more competitive than in Shanghai.
QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR
Q. (Julien Febreau – L'Equipe) Lewis, it seems that you're even stronger as a person than last year. Do you feel that way and if so, do you feel that your challenging season last year has helped you?
LH: I definitely think that the last three years have added to where I am today. I think there have been a lot of lessons learned and a lot of good and bad experiences which of course definitely help you when you have a good car and when you're in a much better position. Yeah, as for all athletes, I think you have to get your mind set in a certain way and there are many things that can affect that. For example, look at Tiger Woods. He's there and sometimes he's not and he's the best out there. It's really a massive mental game which is about trying to get your mind on the right path. But I feel that I'm there or thereabouts at the moment, still working hard.
Q. (Alex Popov – RTR) Romain, you had a very intense race last Sunday in Shanghai. Your personal battle with Maldonado was perhaps even more than intense. Do you personally see it as revenge for Melbourne?
RG: No, it's not revenge. I made a mistake with Mark Webber which is why I had to fight with Pastor Maldonado. I think that the fight was a little bit tight. Honestly, I wish we hadn't touched each other's cars, but at the end, I ended up in front of him and then I could pull away and finish my race at my own pace and even overtook the second Williams to score more points but that's what I was glad of.
Q. (Alex Popov – RTR) Romain, did you have a lot to say to your engineer about your strategy during the race? Is there a lot of communication?
RG: Well, there is a lot of briefing before the race when there is time to go through the strategies. We had two options basically: either two stops or three stops. The question arose during the second stint: either you really want to push and try to go for three stops, or you make your tyres last for the 20 or 25 laps that you need and you just go for two stops. I think our set-up was pretty good and the car was working very well on the prime tyres. The second stint was very good and we had pitted to cover Sebastian Vettel, if not, we could have done more laps in the second stint which would have made the third one even easier, but at the end of the story, my engineers did a good job, they helped me to save the tyres and make them last longer. When you are fighting with other cars, it's always difficult to save them. You have to realise that the race is long and that you still have a few laps to go.
Q. (Thomas Hanratty – Gulf Daily News) Obviously there's been a lot of media hype in the build-up to this weekend; has it been much of a distraction for you, in terms of your preparations, or have you just been able to block everything out and keep focused?
HK: It hasn't had the slightest influence on my preparation. I've prepared for the Grand Prix, physically and mentally, the same way that I do any other race. That's all I can answer to that question.
RG: Well, we've been preparing for the event as well as we can. As you say, we can't ignore the situation but in another way, I hope the race may make a clear vision and help the situation and I think the Grand Prix will be nice.
TG: No, we have made the same preparation as all the other races.
LH: They've said it all. The team has just been focusing on preparing ourselves for the best way of trying to get some wins.
NR: No, we have been preparing to the best of my possibilities and the team's also.
FM: Yeah, the same preparation as always. We came here for the sport, that's the best thing to do, it's a sport.
Q. (Gary Meenaghan – The National) Nico, now that you've tasted the taste of success, do you think it's going to be harder for you to cope if you're not racing... if you're not fighting for the win at every race?
NR: Niki Lauda said right after the race, 'Nico, believe me, the first win is by the far the most difficult and after that it becomes much easier.' So I'll go for that, he should know.
HK: I got a message from Bernie (Ecclestone) after the first race (win) which said that 'now it's downhill', so there's also that option.
Q. (Alex Popov – RTR) Nico, after qualifying in Shanghai you explained the huge gap of half a second by the drop in temperature by a few degrees, that you had changed the set-up between Q2 and Q3 etc etc, but in the race itself, after the first ten laps, the gap was five seconds, so it never reached the same half a second, so how do you explain that? Was that you?
NR: No, definitely not. It was just that everything came together. I was on top of my game for the weekend in qualifying and the race, but also the set-up – the car was working very well still, I think, in qualifying. Even in Shanghai, we were stronger eventually in the race but of course it was enough to win by some margin. All in all, it was a really strong weekend.
PRESS CONFERENCE
Q. Heikki, it's been a difficult start to the season for you. What were you expecting from these first three or four races?
Heikki KOVALAINEN: Well, obviously we're hoping for better finishes. I think we've had some issues pretty much every race, but we're working on them and we're trying to make sure that those kind of troubles that we've had don't happen again. We've done everything we can; everything we could do in this short time to make sure that we have a trouble-free race.
Q. Are you expecting a big step forwards, therefore, for Barcelona?
HK: We have upgrades coming, not only for Barcelona, but all the way through the season. We are still catching up. We have not yet joined the midfield, so we're still targeting that. Obviously everybody's bringing updates, so how much we will be able to make a rapid gain remains to be seen. But I think we're working flat out and strengthening the team in every area to be able to do that.
Q. So, what are your hopes for this weekend then?
HK: Hopefully to have a trouble-free weekend, without any incidents, especially in the race. To have smooth pit stops without any extra incidents. Hopefully we can get everything out of the team and out of the car. Like we've shown in the last couple of race, especially in China, we were able race a few cars for quite a long time in the race. Hopefully we can carry on doing that.
Q. Romain, now 26-years-old, happy birthday! This is a circuit you know well, you've been talking about your GP2 races here and I think you had a 'full house' here if you understand what that means.
Romain GROSJEAN: Yeah, well, it's a circuit I know quite well, from racing in GP2 and testing with Pirelli for the development of the tyres. I think it's a nice circuit, I quite like it and think we can have a good car here. The weather will be, for once, stable, with some decent temperature and hopefully we can have a clear qualifying and a clear race altogether and achieve an even better result than what we had in the previous race.
Q. In China you got the result you were waiting for, or maybe you were hoping for even better?
RG: You always hope for better! In a way what you want to achieve whenever you start the race is to win. That's the goal for every driver on the grid. But China was a good race, I think it was very tight, some good battles and we were showing that we were able to carry through the race with good pace and some good moves and to be able to be gentle with the tyres. That was the key in China and I think that will the key one more time here.
Q. But this is such a different circuit and the temperatures and conditions are going to be so different.
RG: Yes, but I hate the cold, so I feel better here. The tyre strategy will be different and the tyre usage will be different here as we have these temperatures but as well I don't think we are not going to struggle with warm-up issues or making the work, which will help us to set up the car in a good way.
Q. Timo, obviously the team has been playing catch-up since the start of the season but how do you feel they've been getting on? It seems to be a very steep learning curve.
Timo GLOCK: Yes, absolutely. If you do 200kms of testing before the first race, every lap, every kilometre you do is like a learning process for us at the moment. I'm quite happy with the past races, I think we've closed the gap quite significantly: last qualifying we were three seconds behind; first race we had five and a half seconds, so there's a clear step forward and that's good.
Q. The results seem positive and the car's reliable as well, how far can you go, do you feel?
TG: I hope we can continue like this in terms of improvements but it will be difficult. European season everyone comes with new updates so we just have to work hard and continue the process we're doing at the moment. It would be great to have at every race a step like we had in China, so we have to see what we can do. We have some little parts here, which could improve the car again, so we're looking forward to it. I think we have a good baseline to really catch-up.
Q. Is the big update coming at Barcelona like most people?
TG: Yeah, we're working on it. It's not definite how much we will get out of it but at the moment we're getting new parts every race. If that continues I don't care how big the update is in Barcelona. If you can keep it up through the whole year that's more important.
Q. Lewis, did you expect to be leading the Championship with three third places after three races?
Lewis HAMILTON: Good afternoon everyone, no, definitely not. The target every year I think is to have consistency and sometimes it just doesn't go to plan but this year I think we've been quite fortunate. Finishing on the podium for the first three races has been fantastic for us. Obviously it's very early in the season. In previous seasons you've seen Championship leaders swapping and changing throughout the year so it doesn't really mean too much at the moment.
Q. Do you feel your car is suited to this circuit? I mean it seems that the game has changed this year with less downforce. The tyres are just so, so important, even more than they have been before – is that the case?
LH: I personally don't think they're much more important than in the past, I think last year we had similar tyre degradation and we had to manage the tyres in a similar way. If you look at the last race the people on a two-stop were slow at the end of the race and people on three stop were overtaking them. It was the same last year – that's how I won the race. This year the tyre window, the working range is slightly narrower than it was last year, which is making it a little more difficult for people to warm-up the tyres in qualifying, for example. It is a little more challenging but it's providing good racing.
Q. And who is your main competitor? Is he [Nico] your main competitor having been the winner of the last race, or your team-mate? It's difficult to say, isn't it?
LH: It is very difficult to say. You know, when you look at qualifying we're competitive there, Mercedes is now the quickest but it's quite close between a lot of the cars, but in the race pace then you look at the Red Bull being very quick, the Mercedes is very quick, we are quick, even Sauber's quick. It's a real mixture at the moment and it's just about trying to stay consistent and trying to maximise every opportunity you have.
Q. Nico, sadly only a few days to enjoy the win from last weekend but very interesting, this is a circuit that you've done very well on in F3, in GP2, made your F1 debut here and had fastest lap – you must be looking forward to this weekend?
Nico ROSBERG: Yeah, for sure. This is a track I really enjoy, I've had some very good memories here but again it's just difficult to know where we're going to be exactly. In Shanghai of course we did very well but previously we did have a few issues in the races, so it's possible it's going to be a bit more difficult here.
Q. You mentioned those issues, which were tyre-related, and yet you seemed to get it absolutely right in China, can it just go back to square one again here? Is that how difficult it is to get it right?
NR: Well at the same time the engineers and everybody have really been making some good progress on the car, setup-wise and things like that. So we're learning very quickly, so it wasn't a coincidence that we were fast in Shanghai. No, we did a good job and got the best out of it – but the situation could be different here with the temperatures and that might prove a little bit more of a challenge but I don't know.
Q. The emphasis more on setup than it used to be?
NR: Tyre management is more of a problem in the races than it used to be. That's definitely the case and that can be influenced with setup and various other things.
Q. Felipe, this has been a good circuit for you in the past: two wins here, three times qualified second. Do you feel that you're on an upward curve now?
Felipe MASSA: Yeah, for sure it's a very nice track. I have had a great time here. I would expect to have a good race here, the best of the season – so far. I'm just looking forward to having a nice race, scoring good points and working now on having a better race all the time.
Q. Did you feel you had made progress in Shanghai?
FM: Yes, definitely, even if the result at the end was not very satisfying for the team, for Fernando or for me, it was a normal race in terms of race pace, in terms of qualifying and everything. Everything was normal. For sure it was a much more different race in Shanghai compared to the first two races.
Q. And will these temperatures, even though they are very different to Shanghai, will they be more suited to the car?
FM: I hope so. For sure it's a different track, very different to Shanghai but in a way, we're still working to improve the car, still working to make the car more competitive and the car here is not very different to the car in Shanghai, so we will see how the behaviour of the car is on this track in qualifying, but also in the race and see if we can do something different, be more competitive than in Shanghai.
QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR
Q. (Julien Febreau – L'Equipe) Lewis, it seems that you're even stronger as a person than last year. Do you feel that way and if so, do you feel that your challenging season last year has helped you?
LH: I definitely think that the last three years have added to where I am today. I think there have been a lot of lessons learned and a lot of good and bad experiences which of course definitely help you when you have a good car and when you're in a much better position. Yeah, as for all athletes, I think you have to get your mind set in a certain way and there are many things that can affect that. For example, look at Tiger Woods. He's there and sometimes he's not and he's the best out there. It's really a massive mental game which is about trying to get your mind on the right path. But I feel that I'm there or thereabouts at the moment, still working hard.
Q. (Alex Popov – RTR) Romain, you had a very intense race last Sunday in Shanghai. Your personal battle with Maldonado was perhaps even more than intense. Do you personally see it as revenge for Melbourne?
RG: No, it's not revenge. I made a mistake with Mark Webber which is why I had to fight with Pastor Maldonado. I think that the fight was a little bit tight. Honestly, I wish we hadn't touched each other's cars, but at the end, I ended up in front of him and then I could pull away and finish my race at my own pace and even overtook the second Williams to score more points but that's what I was glad of.
Q. (Alex Popov – RTR) Romain, did you have a lot to say to your engineer about your strategy during the race? Is there a lot of communication?
RG: Well, there is a lot of briefing before the race when there is time to go through the strategies. We had two options basically: either two stops or three stops. The question arose during the second stint: either you really want to push and try to go for three stops, or you make your tyres last for the 20 or 25 laps that you need and you just go for two stops. I think our set-up was pretty good and the car was working very well on the prime tyres. The second stint was very good and we had pitted to cover Sebastian Vettel, if not, we could have done more laps in the second stint which would have made the third one even easier, but at the end of the story, my engineers did a good job, they helped me to save the tyres and make them last longer. When you are fighting with other cars, it's always difficult to save them. You have to realise that the race is long and that you still have a few laps to go.
Q. (Thomas Hanratty – Gulf Daily News) Obviously there's been a lot of media hype in the build-up to this weekend; has it been much of a distraction for you, in terms of your preparations, or have you just been able to block everything out and keep focused?
HK: It hasn't had the slightest influence on my preparation. I've prepared for the Grand Prix, physically and mentally, the same way that I do any other race. That's all I can answer to that question.
RG: Well, we've been preparing for the event as well as we can. As you say, we can't ignore the situation but in another way, I hope the race may make a clear vision and help the situation and I think the Grand Prix will be nice.
TG: No, we have made the same preparation as all the other races.
LH: They've said it all. The team has just been focusing on preparing ourselves for the best way of trying to get some wins.
NR: No, we have been preparing to the best of my possibilities and the team's also.
FM: Yeah, the same preparation as always. We came here for the sport, that's the best thing to do, it's a sport.
Q. (Gary Meenaghan – The National) Nico, now that you've tasted the taste of success, do you think it's going to be harder for you to cope if you're not racing... if you're not fighting for the win at every race?
NR: Niki Lauda said right after the race, 'Nico, believe me, the first win is by the far the most difficult and after that it becomes much easier.' So I'll go for that, he should know.
HK: I got a message from Bernie (Ecclestone) after the first race (win) which said that 'now it's downhill', so there's also that option.
Q. (Alex Popov – RTR) Nico, after qualifying in Shanghai you explained the huge gap of half a second by the drop in temperature by a few degrees, that you had changed the set-up between Q2 and Q3 etc etc, but in the race itself, after the first ten laps, the gap was five seconds, so it never reached the same half a second, so how do you explain that? Was that you?
NR: No, definitely not. It was just that everything came together. I was on top of my game for the weekend in qualifying and the race, but also the set-up – the car was working very well still, I think, in qualifying. Even in Shanghai, we were stronger eventually in the race but of course it was enough to win by some margin. All in all, it was a really strong weekend.
Chinese GP winner Nico Rosberg is expecting tougher time in Bahrain
|
Nico Rosberg believes Mercedes may have a tougher time trying to repeat in Bahrain the kind of performance it put on in China.
The German driver secured his maiden pole position and his first
race win in Formula 1 in Shanghai, as his car proved to be the class of
the field.
But with hotter track temperatures predicted for Bahrain this weekend, Rosberg admitted it was hard to know what to expect, despite Mercedes having made progress on tyre management.
"This is a track I really enjoy," Rosberg told a news conference in Bahrain. "I have some very good memories here, but it's difficult to know where we are going to be.
"In Shanghai we did very well, but previously we did have issues in the races, so it's possible it could be a bit more difficult here."
He added: "The engineers have been making good progress. We are learning very quickly. We did a good job and got the best out of it. The situation is different here with the temperatures and that might mean a bit more of a challenge."
The Mercedes driver, who won by over 20 seconds in China, conceded everything had gone his way in Shanghai.
"Everything came together. I was on top of my game all weekend. The car and the set-up were working quite well, it was enough to win by some margin. All in all it was a really strong weekend."
Fonte: Autosport
But with hotter track temperatures predicted for Bahrain this weekend, Rosberg admitted it was hard to know what to expect, despite Mercedes having made progress on tyre management.
"This is a track I really enjoy," Rosberg told a news conference in Bahrain. "I have some very good memories here, but it's difficult to know where we are going to be.
"In Shanghai we did very well, but previously we did have issues in the races, so it's possible it could be a bit more difficult here."
He added: "The engineers have been making good progress. We are learning very quickly. We did a good job and got the best out of it. The situation is different here with the temperatures and that might mean a bit more of a challenge."
The Mercedes driver, who won by over 20 seconds in China, conceded everything had gone his way in Shanghai.
"Everything came together. I was on top of my game all weekend. The car and the set-up were working quite well, it was enough to win by some margin. All in all it was a really strong weekend."
Fonte: Autosport
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