Button takes the title, Webber wins in Brazil!
The opening laps of the Brazilian Grand Prix certainly made life easier for Jenson Button in his championship quest, but when Brawn Mercedes team-mate Rubens Barrichello exited the pits behind both Mark Webber and Robert Kubica, Button all but had the title.
As Felipe Massa waved the chequered flag on lap 71, Button crossed the line in fifth position and claimed the drivers’ championship for himself and the constructors’ championship for the Brawn Mercedes team.
“That deserved it, that race,” beamed the delighted Button. “I love winning but I never expected to be world champion in F1, but we did it today.”
The championship had been a long time coming for Button, but an aggressive drive from 14th position on grid featuring great passing on a day when Barrichello was unable to capitalise on his pole position, sealed his title.
Mark Webber claimed his second career victory in sunny Interlagos having started second behind Barrichello. The Red Bull racer shadowed the Brazilian veteran during the first stint of the race and while Barrichello was able to pull a three-second gap, his early stop cost him dearly as both Webber and Robert Kubica exited the pits ahead of the home-town hero.
Webber drove a flawless performance to add Brazil to his Nurburgring victory, taking the chequered flag eight seconds clear of Kubica in his BMW Sauber. Fittingly, the out-going champion Lewis Hamilton also put in a great performance from 17th position on the grid to finish in third position.
"It’s nice to get another one, but probably Nurburgring was a little bit better, because it was a big relief more than anything," Webber said. "This one was more of a controlled fashion I suppose.
"Every car has its strengths and weaknesses and Brawn, obviously, have some strengths and a few weaknesses here and there. JB’s done a good job, so I’d like to congratulate him and Brawn as well. I think he will sleep better now, because he’s been incredibly nervous, there’s no question about that. He’s been absolutely bricking himself the last few weeks, so he can sleep better now, and all of us can go to Abu Dhabi and just enjoy the new race there."
The start of the race saw Heikki Kovalainen tipped into a spin Sebastian Vettel at the second turn forcing Giancarlo Fisichella to take to the grass. Further up the road, Kimi Raikkonen had made a lightening getaway from fifth position on the grid to slot into third position.
Still using the KERS advantage, Raikkonen ducked out to pass second-placed Webber heading for turn four only for the Australian to block his path. With his front wing badly damaged and the left rear tyre deflating, Raikkonen was forced to back off, slowing Adrian Sutil.
Sniffing a chance of progress, Jarno Trulli tried to pass the Force India driver around the outside at turn five but struck the back of the VJM02. Trulli was out of the race on the spot as Sutil careered back onto the circuit, eliminating the innocent Fernando Alonso and bringing out the sole safety car period of the race.
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This was good news for Hamilton who was able to pit, switch to the more durable prime tyres and importantly top off on fuel. In the first lap chaos, Kovalainen returned to the pits for fuel, but exited his pit box with the fuel hose still attached and spraying the unfortunate Raikkonen with fuel as he made his way down the pit lane.
A brief flash fire that engulfed the Ferrari did not deter Raikkonen as he continued on his way to an impressive sixth position while Kovalainen was given a helping hand by the Brawn mechanics to send him on his way to an eventful ninth place finish.
Sebastian Vettel charged from 16th position on the grid to finish in fourth position, but his slim championship hopes were effectively dashed in the rain during Saturday's qualifying while Button finished the race in fifth position ahead of Raikkonen. Vettel’s charge however moved him second in the championship, but that is unlikely to mean a great deal to the German racer.
Sebastien Buemi drove a great race for Toro Rosso to finish in seventh position ahead of the ever unfortunate Barrichello.
Exiting the pits in third position, Barrichello knew his championship hopes were all but over, while his middle stint of the race saw his pace drop over half a second a lap allowing Hamilton to pass for the final podium position. Light contact between the two saw Barrichello heading back to the pits with a left rear puncture on lap 64 and the title chase was all over for the popular Brazilian who finished eight.
With Kovalainen ninth, Kamui Kobayashi made an impressive debut for Toyota and has arguably cemented his position in the team for next season with a tenth place finish. Aggressive from the outset, the Japanese driver fended off the attentions of Button early in the race with good effect. His defensive tactics may have been questionable as countryman Kazuki Nakajima found out, as he lost his front wing and subsequently crashed his Williams out of the race.
Giancarlo Fisichella was 11th in his penultimate race and based on his recent performance, he is looking forward to retirement from competition at Ferrari. Tonio Liuzzi finished 12th ahead of Romain Grosjean and Jaime Alguersuari.
It was a perfect day for race winner Webber but on Sunday afternoon, Button’s dreams came true as he clinched the Formula One World Champion with one race to spare.
"It's really amazing," said Button, who sang We are the champions over his radio after crossing the finish line, and then began yelling at the top of his lungs out of sheer joy: "My voice has gone!"
Jenson Button - World Champion!
Earl ALEXANDER
© CAPSIS International
Japan GP - Race: Suzuka - 04/10/2009
Vettel victory keeps championship race open.
Sebastian Vettel dominated the 53-lap Japanese Grand Prix from pole position to keep himself in championship contention on a day that Rubens Barrichello and Jenson Button could only record the final points paying positions.
Vettel converted his pole into a comfortable race lead at the start, even managing to save a little fuel on his first stint and manage the gap back to the fast-starting Lewis Hamilton. The defending champion made best use of KERS off the line to pass Jarno Trulli for second position but was never able to shake off the determined Toyota racer.
Trulli kept the pressure on Hamilton and was able to regain second position in the second and final round of pitstops to take a well-deserved second position at his paymaster's home grand prix. Exiting the pits for the second time, Hamilton lost a fraction of a second as he either selected neutral rather than the pit lane speed limiter, or the car suffered a minor software glitch. Either way, it is debatable whether he would have been able to stop the rapid Trulli swooping though for second position.
Kimi Raikkonen pushed hard in the second stint and was rewarded with fourth position as he got the jump on Nick Heidfeld. The BMW Sauber driver lost time in his second stop as with a sticking wheel nut. This, combined with Raikkonen's charge, lost him a possible fourth position.
Nico Rosberg ran a long first stint in his Williams Toyota from seventh position on the grid and made a second timely pit stop just as the safety car came out on lap 46 to claim fifth position ahead of the unfortunate Heidfeld.
Rubens Barrichello started the event 15 points behind main title rival Jenson Button but struggled for pace on his second set of tyres and was unable to make progress. Indeed, the Brazilian veteran slipped back and came under intense pressure from his team-mate in the final five lap dash to the chequered flag.
After a tardy getaway, Button pushed hard and made up ground to Barrichello in the middle-segment of the race and his quest for points was helped by Heikki Kovalainen who tipped Adrian Sutil into a spin early in the race. This gave the championship leader two easy positions and from that point he was able to close the gap to his team-mate from over 12 seconds to less than a second.
With two points for seventh position, Barrichello heads to Interlagos 14 points behind eighth placed finisher Button, while Vettel is now just two points behind Barrichello and 16 behind Button. Brawn Mercedes have not wrapped up the constructors championship. They have a 35.5 point advantage over Red Bull with two rounds remaining with 36 still available.
Robert Kubica will be disappointed to start and finish in ninth position in the second BMW Sauber. He pushed Button hard for the final point in the closing laps but despite a few looks down the inside, was unable to make a pass.
Fernando Alonso started back in 16th and made best use of a one stop strategy to finish in tenth position in what was a disappointing weekend for Renault. Team-mate Romain Grosjean made little impression but at least went the distance to finish in 16th.
Heikki Kovalainen started and finished in 11th position in the second McLaren Mercedes. It was another tough race for the Finn who tangled with Sutil early in the race, but he redeemed himself somewhat with an excellent pass on Giancarlo Fisichella exiting the pits late in the race.
Tonio Liuzzi finished 14th just behind Force India team-mate Adrian Sutil and ahead of the one-stopping Kazuki Nakajima in the second Williams. Mark Webber started from the pit lane as a result of his Saturday practice crash but multiple pitstops to secure the cockpit surround ended any chance of a fight back. The only silver-lining for Webber was his fastest lap of the race.
The Toro Rosso duo of Jaime Alguersuari and Sebastien Buemi were the only retirements, the former crashing heavily after running wide into the fast 130R turn. Alguersuari was unhurt in the incident but the accident triggered the only safety car period of the race. Buemi meanwhile struggled to get off the line at the start of the race and retired shortly after with a clutch problem.
Subject to penalties, both the drivers and constructors championships go on to Brazil with Vettel flying high after a flawless Sunday afternoon drive at Suzuka.
Earl ALEXANDER
CAPSIS International
Sebastian Vettel dominated the 53-lap Japanese Grand Prix from pole position to keep himself in championship contention on a day that Rubens Barrichello and Jenson Button could only record the final points paying positions.
Vettel converted his pole into a comfortable race lead at the start, even managing to save a little fuel on his first stint and manage the gap back to the fast-starting Lewis Hamilton. The defending champion made best use of KERS off the line to pass Jarno Trulli for second position but was never able to shake off the determined Toyota racer.
Trulli kept the pressure on Hamilton and was able to regain second position in the second and final round of pitstops to take a well-deserved second position at his paymaster's home grand prix. Exiting the pits for the second time, Hamilton lost a fraction of a second as he either selected neutral rather than the pit lane speed limiter, or the car suffered a minor software glitch. Either way, it is debatable whether he would have been able to stop the rapid Trulli swooping though for second position.
Kimi Raikkonen pushed hard in the second stint and was rewarded with fourth position as he got the jump on Nick Heidfeld. The BMW Sauber driver lost time in his second stop as with a sticking wheel nut. This, combined with Raikkonen's charge, lost him a possible fourth position.
Nico Rosberg ran a long first stint in his Williams Toyota from seventh position on the grid and made a second timely pit stop just as the safety car came out on lap 46 to claim fifth position ahead of the unfortunate Heidfeld.
Rubens Barrichello started the event 15 points behind main title rival Jenson Button but struggled for pace on his second set of tyres and was unable to make progress. Indeed, the Brazilian veteran slipped back and came under intense pressure from his team-mate in the final five lap dash to the chequered flag.
After a tardy getaway, Button pushed hard and made up ground to Barrichello in the middle-segment of the race and his quest for points was helped by Heikki Kovalainen who tipped Adrian Sutil into a spin early in the race. This gave the championship leader two easy positions and from that point he was able to close the gap to his team-mate from over 12 seconds to less than a second.
With two points for seventh position, Barrichello heads to Interlagos 14 points behind eighth placed finisher Button, while Vettel is now just two points behind Barrichello and 16 behind Button. Brawn Mercedes have not wrapped up the constructors championship. They have a 35.5 point advantage over Red Bull with two rounds remaining with 36 still available.
Robert Kubica will be disappointed to start and finish in ninth position in the second BMW Sauber. He pushed Button hard for the final point in the closing laps but despite a few looks down the inside, was unable to make a pass.
Fernando Alonso started back in 16th and made best use of a one stop strategy to finish in tenth position in what was a disappointing weekend for Renault. Team-mate Romain Grosjean made little impression but at least went the distance to finish in 16th.
Heikki Kovalainen started and finished in 11th position in the second McLaren Mercedes. It was another tough race for the Finn who tangled with Sutil early in the race, but he redeemed himself somewhat with an excellent pass on Giancarlo Fisichella exiting the pits late in the race.
Tonio Liuzzi finished 14th just behind Force India team-mate Adrian Sutil and ahead of the one-stopping Kazuki Nakajima in the second Williams. Mark Webber started from the pit lane as a result of his Saturday practice crash but multiple pitstops to secure the cockpit surround ended any chance of a fight back. The only silver-lining for Webber was his fastest lap of the race.
The Toro Rosso duo of Jaime Alguersuari and Sebastien Buemi were the only retirements, the former crashing heavily after running wide into the fast 130R turn. Alguersuari was unhurt in the incident but the accident triggered the only safety car period of the race. Buemi meanwhile struggled to get off the line at the start of the race and retired shortly after with a clutch problem.
Subject to penalties, both the drivers and constructors championships go on to Brazil with Vettel flying high after a flawless Sunday afternoon drive at Suzuka.
Earl ALEXANDER
CAPSIS International
Singapore GP - Race: Singapore - 27/09/2009
Penalties give Hamilton an easy ride in Singapore
Lewis Hamilton dominated the 61 lap Singapore Grand Prix to take the chequered flag ten seconds clear of Timo Glock on a day when his main race rivals eliminated themselves from contention after making mistakes.
Hamilton�s second race win of the season, his 11th with McLaren Mercedes, was sealed when first Nico Rosberg and then Sebastian Vettel were handed penalties for errors exiting and entering the pit lane. From the point, the Hungarian winner was able to back off, conserve the car and a relatively easy victory.
"It has been an incredible weekend in terms of the whole show," said Hamilton. "Obviously not a perfect Friday but Saturday was great. I have my Dad and my step-mum, Linda, here. I have my girlfriend here and I have got a friend of mine here. I got to meet Beyoncé here, so it has been overall an incredible weekend. A great experience. I am very, very happy and I look forward to the celebration tonight."
Timo Glock put in his most impressive race in a long while from sixth position on the grid. He made best of a battle between Mark Webber and Fernando Alonso on the first lap to move ahead and run in fourth position. When both Rosberg and Vettel took drive through penalties, the German racer was able to take a comfortable runner up position and end his recent points drought.
"It was a really good race for me," said Glock. "The start was a bit of a mess up in the first corner. I had to attack quite a lot but then I had a good first stint. But I knew I could not go the pace of the first two or three guys, so I just settled down for me and concentrated on it and saw what I can do with my car, keep it on 100%.
"Before I came to Singapore I knew that last year we were good here. The driver can make a difference here and I just pushed as hard as possible. My team did not say where I am and then suddenly they said you are safe for P2 and I was really surprised and just brought it home at the weekend."
Fernando Alonso recorded the fastest lap of the race on his way to third position, his and Renault�s first podium position of the season. Alonso was never in a position to challenge the front-runners, but he achieved his pre-race objective of maintaining his position and surpassed his predictions with third position. He dedicated the result to former Renault managing director Flavio Briatore.
"It was fantastic obviously and the result is great for us to be in the first podium of the season," said Alonso. "We did not have the pace all weekend to be on the podium and we have the podium, so much better than we expected. It has been a difficult time for the team. Now we put that behind us and we concentrate on the remaining races. I dedicate this podium to Flavio at home as he is part of the success we had today."
Hamilton started the race from pole position and made a great getaway off the grid as Rosberg slotted into second position ahead of Vettel. The trio quickly pulled away from Glock in fourth position with Rosberg keeping the pressure on Hamilton until the first pit stop.
Exiting the pits after routine service on lap 19, Rosberg slid wide on the pit exit, crossing the white line before ducking back into a legal position.
The error however cost the Williams driver an almost certain second position and a possible race win as he was handed a drive through penalty for crossing the white line.
Rosberg was especially unfortunate in that he was forced to take his drive through penalty just after the safety car had bunched up the field. He went on to finished 11th.
With Rosberg out of contention, it was down to Vettel to take the challenge to Hamilton. However, on his second pitstop, the Red Bull driver was found guilty of speeding in the pit lane and he too was handed a drive through penalty. Vettel also ran wide and damaged his diffuser on the high kerbing, but still managed to recover to finish in fourth position.
Jenson Button and Rubens Barrichello finished fifth and sixth for Brawn Mercedes, Button getting the jump on his team-mate in the final round of stops and then nursing a brake problem to the chequered flag. Heading to Japan next weekend, Button has a 15 point advantage over Barrichello while Brawn has all but clinched the constructors� championship.
It was another poor race for Heikki Kovalainen who started in eighth position and finished in seventh in the second McLaren Mercedes ahead of Robert Kubica in the surviving BMW Sauber. Team-mate Nick Heidfeld was eliminated from the race as Adrian Sutil spun his Force India and then clipped the F1.09 trying to resume his race. This brought out the sole safety car period of the race, the one that cost Rosberg any hopes of a points paying finish.
Kazuki Nakajima finished just out of the points in ninth position in his Williams, unable to find a way to pass Kubica in the closing stages, but able to hold off Kimi Raikkonen in the leading Ferrari. Jarno Trulli finished a distant 12th in the second Toyota and was never a factor while Giancarlo Fisichella and Tonio Liuzzi were the final runners in 13th and 14th.
As expected, there were a number of retirements with Romain Grosjean first to call it a day with a brake issue on his Renault, swiftly followed by Heidfeld who was unceremoniously eliminated from the race by Sutil.
Mark Webber ran as high as fourth in the opening laps before he was forced to concede positions to both Alonso and Glock for passing after running wide and off the circuit on lap one. The Nurburgring winner lost pace as the race progressed and then spun into retirement following a front right brake failure.
Braking issues also eliminated Sebastien Buemi in his Toro Rosso Ferrari, while team-mate Jaime Alguersuari attempted to leave the pits before his refuelling was complete and later retired with a gearbox failure.
The F1 circus packs up tonight in Singapore and heads straight to Suzuka for next weekend�s Japanese Grand Prix. Sadly Formula One did not provide much of a show in terms of racing once again, but the event organisers made up for that with a truly sensational grand prix facility that hopefully the sport will do justice to next season.
Earl ALEXANDER
© CAPSIS International
Lewis Hamilton dominated the 61 lap Singapore Grand Prix to take the chequered flag ten seconds clear of Timo Glock on a day when his main race rivals eliminated themselves from contention after making mistakes.
Hamilton�s second race win of the season, his 11th with McLaren Mercedes, was sealed when first Nico Rosberg and then Sebastian Vettel were handed penalties for errors exiting and entering the pit lane. From the point, the Hungarian winner was able to back off, conserve the car and a relatively easy victory.
"It has been an incredible weekend in terms of the whole show," said Hamilton. "Obviously not a perfect Friday but Saturday was great. I have my Dad and my step-mum, Linda, here. I have my girlfriend here and I have got a friend of mine here. I got to meet Beyoncé here, so it has been overall an incredible weekend. A great experience. I am very, very happy and I look forward to the celebration tonight."
Timo Glock put in his most impressive race in a long while from sixth position on the grid. He made best of a battle between Mark Webber and Fernando Alonso on the first lap to move ahead and run in fourth position. When both Rosberg and Vettel took drive through penalties, the German racer was able to take a comfortable runner up position and end his recent points drought.
"It was a really good race for me," said Glock. "The start was a bit of a mess up in the first corner. I had to attack quite a lot but then I had a good first stint. But I knew I could not go the pace of the first two or three guys, so I just settled down for me and concentrated on it and saw what I can do with my car, keep it on 100%.
"Before I came to Singapore I knew that last year we were good here. The driver can make a difference here and I just pushed as hard as possible. My team did not say where I am and then suddenly they said you are safe for P2 and I was really surprised and just brought it home at the weekend."
Fernando Alonso recorded the fastest lap of the race on his way to third position, his and Renault�s first podium position of the season. Alonso was never in a position to challenge the front-runners, but he achieved his pre-race objective of maintaining his position and surpassed his predictions with third position. He dedicated the result to former Renault managing director Flavio Briatore.
"It was fantastic obviously and the result is great for us to be in the first podium of the season," said Alonso. "We did not have the pace all weekend to be on the podium and we have the podium, so much better than we expected. It has been a difficult time for the team. Now we put that behind us and we concentrate on the remaining races. I dedicate this podium to Flavio at home as he is part of the success we had today."
Hamilton started the race from pole position and made a great getaway off the grid as Rosberg slotted into second position ahead of Vettel. The trio quickly pulled away from Glock in fourth position with Rosberg keeping the pressure on Hamilton until the first pit stop.
Exiting the pits after routine service on lap 19, Rosberg slid wide on the pit exit, crossing the white line before ducking back into a legal position.
The error however cost the Williams driver an almost certain second position and a possible race win as he was handed a drive through penalty for crossing the white line.
Rosberg was especially unfortunate in that he was forced to take his drive through penalty just after the safety car had bunched up the field. He went on to finished 11th.
With Rosberg out of contention, it was down to Vettel to take the challenge to Hamilton. However, on his second pitstop, the Red Bull driver was found guilty of speeding in the pit lane and he too was handed a drive through penalty. Vettel also ran wide and damaged his diffuser on the high kerbing, but still managed to recover to finish in fourth position.
Jenson Button and Rubens Barrichello finished fifth and sixth for Brawn Mercedes, Button getting the jump on his team-mate in the final round of stops and then nursing a brake problem to the chequered flag. Heading to Japan next weekend, Button has a 15 point advantage over Barrichello while Brawn has all but clinched the constructors� championship.
It was another poor race for Heikki Kovalainen who started in eighth position and finished in seventh in the second McLaren Mercedes ahead of Robert Kubica in the surviving BMW Sauber. Team-mate Nick Heidfeld was eliminated from the race as Adrian Sutil spun his Force India and then clipped the F1.09 trying to resume his race. This brought out the sole safety car period of the race, the one that cost Rosberg any hopes of a points paying finish.
Kazuki Nakajima finished just out of the points in ninth position in his Williams, unable to find a way to pass Kubica in the closing stages, but able to hold off Kimi Raikkonen in the leading Ferrari. Jarno Trulli finished a distant 12th in the second Toyota and was never a factor while Giancarlo Fisichella and Tonio Liuzzi were the final runners in 13th and 14th.
As expected, there were a number of retirements with Romain Grosjean first to call it a day with a brake issue on his Renault, swiftly followed by Heidfeld who was unceremoniously eliminated from the race by Sutil.
Mark Webber ran as high as fourth in the opening laps before he was forced to concede positions to both Alonso and Glock for passing after running wide and off the circuit on lap one. The Nurburgring winner lost pace as the race progressed and then spun into retirement following a front right brake failure.
Braking issues also eliminated Sebastien Buemi in his Toro Rosso Ferrari, while team-mate Jaime Alguersuari attempted to leave the pits before his refuelling was complete and later retired with a gearbox failure.
The F1 circus packs up tonight in Singapore and heads straight to Suzuka for next weekend�s Japanese Grand Prix. Sadly Formula One did not provide much of a show in terms of racing once again, but the event organisers made up for that with a truly sensational grand prix facility that hopefully the sport will do justice to next season.
Earl ALEXANDER
© CAPSIS International
Italy GP - Race: Monza - 13/09/2009
One-Stopper Seals Brawn 1-2
Brawn GP's decision to put both Rubens Barrichello and Jenson Button on a one-stopper may not have given them cause for celebrations after qualifying but they got to spray the champagne when it counted most - after the race.
The one-stop strategy saw both Barrichello and Button move ahead of the leading trio of two-stoppers to take the victory and hand Brawn GP the 1-2.
It also put a rest to cries that the team's Championship leader is starting to crack under pressure as when the pressure was on Button it was Lewis Hamilton who crashed.
Chasing down his fellow Brit, Hamilton had the gap down to less than a second only to put his car into the wall on the very last lap in a rather mean looking accident. Hamilton, though, did walk away unhurt.
The McLaren driver's accident saw Kimi Raikkonen climb onto the podium with the Brawn drivers after the Ferrari driver, for the second successive race, held off a long and arduous chase from Force India's Adrian Sutil.
Fernando Alonso, Heikki Kovalainen, Nick Heidfeld and Sebastian Vettel completed the points.
Results
01 R. Barrichello Brawn GP 1:16.21.706
02 J. Button Brawn GP + 2.866
03 K. Räikkönen Ferrari + 30.664
04 A. Sutil Force India F1 + 31.131
05 F. Alonso Renault + 59.182
06 H. Kovalainen McLaren + 1:00.693
07 N. Heidfeld BMW + 1:02.412
08 S. Vettel Red Bull + 1:05.407
09 G. Fisichella Ferrari + 1:06.856
10 K. Nakajima Williams + 2:42.163
11 T. Glock Toyota + 2:43.925
12 L. Hamilton McLaren + 1 lap(s)
13 S. Buemi Scuderia Toro Rosso + 1 lap(s)
14 J. Trulli Toyota + 1 lap(s)
15 R. Grosjean Renault + 1 lap(s)
16 N. Rosberg Williams + 2 lap(s)
Did not finish
17 V. Liuzzi Force India F1 + 31 lap(s)
18 J. Alguersuari Scuderia Toro Rosso + 34 lap(s)
19 R. Kubica BMW + 38 lap(s)
20 M. Webber Red Bull + 53 lap(s)
PlanetF1.com
Belgium GP - Race: Spa-Franc. - 30/08/2009
Raikkonen holds off Fisichella for the Spa win!
The old saying claims that race cannot be won on the first lap but it can certainly be lost. For Kimi Raikkonen that rule does not apply, while for four drivers in the midfield the adage is completely appropriate.
Kimi Raikkonen started the 44-lap Belgian Grand Prix from sixth position on the grid and used his KERS advantage to perfection to vault second on the run up to Les Combes on the first lap behind pole sitter Giancarlo Fisichella. Behind Romain Grosjean triggered a four car accident at the same turn bringing out the safety car.
Leaning heavily on KERS once again at the restart, the 2007 world champion blasted by Fisichella to take the lead and despite the best efforts of the Force India driver, Raikkonen was able to maintain a slender advantage all the way to the chequered flag and record his fourth victory at the Spa Francorchamps circuit.
While Raikkonen recorded the first Ferrari victory of the season, the driver of the day was undoubtedly Fisichella who pushed all race long, keeping the gap below a second for most of the race before taking the chequered flag just 0.9 seconds adrift.
While Ferrari celebrates its first win of the season and Force India Mercedes revel in their first points position of the season and its first podium position, it was a so-so day for the championship leaders with Sebastian Vettel making best of a long first stint to move third by the chequered flag following the final pit stop.
Jenson Button started the race in 14th position and was tipped into a spin by rookie Romain Grosjean at Les Combes with Lewis Hamilton and Jaime Alguersuari also being eliminated in the incident. While Button may be struggling on track, his off track luck is holding up well as his main rival Rubens Barrichello made a terrible getaway from fourth position on the grid and dropped to tail of the field while Mark Webber earned himself a drive through penalty to take him out of the points.
Robert Kubica got the jump on BMW Sauber team-mate Nick Heidfeld at La Source on the first lap when the German racer lost momentum exiting the corner and the duo battled throughout the race to finish in fourth and fifth position ahead of Heikki Kovalainen who made best use of a one stop strategy to finish in sixth position from 15th on the grid.
Following his slow start with the anti-stall working overtime, Barrichello made an early stop behind the safety car and this put him back into points contention.
The Brazilian veteran raced hard and with three laps to go it seemed that his race could be over as smoke started to billow from the right hand bank of the Mercedes V8. Fortunately for Barrichello, the engine lasted the distance and he finished in seventh position to take two points, closing the gap to 16 to team-mate Button.
Nico Rosberg took the final points in his Williams Toyota to extend his scoring streak to eight straight races. Team-mate Kazuki Nakajima was 13th.
Mark Webber could have finished in third or fourth position as he fought with Heidfeld in the early laps of the race. However his first stop saw the Red Bull team release him into the path of the BMW Sauber driver and a drive through penalty soon followed. The Australian fought back but was out of the points in ninth.
Toyota could have secured a great points haul in Belgium, but the first lap saw second placed Trulli run into the back of the slow Heidfeld at the first turn and break the front wing. The Italian would run at the back before a fuel rig problem further hampered his race before an eventual retirement. Timo Glock also suffered a long first pit stop with a refuelling problem and this dropped Glock out of the points and tenth at the chequered flag.
Adrian Sutil started and finished in 11th position but had a strong race, making up positions after a pitstop on lap one after contact with Fernando Alonso. The Force India racer took a new front wing and lapped close to the pace of the race leaders throughout the race.
Luca Badoer finished 14th and last in the second Ferrari after another forgettable race while Alonso was forced to retire after running as high as third ahead of his one and only stop. However, his lap one contact with Sutil had damaged the front left corner of the R29 leading the team to call him into retire.
The Raikkonen victory can be put down to the KERS advantage but behind the Belgian Grand Prix proved as entertaining as ever with battles throughout the field. Luckily for the championship leader, his rivals continue to make mistakes and he heads to Monza with his championship lead pretty much intact.
Earl ALEXANDER
© CAPSIS International
Europe GP - Race: Valencia - 23/08/2009
Rubens Barrichello made best of a heavy fuel load, superb tactics and a critical error from McLaren Mercedes to win the 57-lap European Grand Prix in Valencia, the tenth of his career and his first since Shanghai 2004. Wearing a tribute to the injured Felipe Massa on his crash helmet the emotional Brazilian took the chequered flag two seconds clear of pole-sitter Hamilton and in doing so moves second in the championship race, 18 points behind Brawn Mercedes team-mate Jenson Button.
Lewis Hamilton looked to be in complete control of the race in the early stages as he stormed away from the pole position with team-mate Heikki Kovalainen backing up Barrichello and allowing the Hungarian winner to pull a small advantage. Barrichello however was able to run close behind Kovalainen and with his heavier fuel load was able to gain second position following the first round of stops.
With his rear gunner now consigned to third, Hamilton pushed hard to keep the gap to the Brawn racer between three and four seconds. However it was all for nothing as on lap 38 Hamilton peeled off into the pit lane only to find the team had not prepared the tyres. As the crew scrambled around, the valuable seconds ticked by and after 14 seconds Hamilton was back in the race. Barrichello by this point was now six seconds up the road and the race was lost for McLaren.
It was a superb drive from Barrichello who may well have taken the victory regardless of Hamilton’s problem, but it would have been a whole lot closer. With Red Bull enduring an awful race weekend, Barrichello moves ahead of Mark Webber in the championship as the Australian finished ninth and out of the points, while Sebastian Vettel suffered a fuelling problem and then another engine failure to record his second straight failure to finish.
Kimi Raikkonen qualified sixth and made best of KERS off the line to vault fourth by the first corner. From this point the 2007 champion drove his usual solid race, gaining third from Kovalainen in the second and final stop. Team-mate Luca Badoer had reasonable pace in race conditions, but his return after a decade on the sidelines in place of the injured Felipe Massa was littered with small errors leaving him 17th at the chequered flag.
Kovalainen will be disappointed with fourth position after running second through the first stint but the Finn held off the charging Nico Rosberg to the line and recorded his best finish, in what has been a difficult second season with McLaren Mercedes.
Rosberg continued his string of points scoring results with a fine fifth while team-mate Kazuki Nakajima’s race was compromised in qualifying with the mechanical and then destroyed in the race by a right rear puncture. The Japanese racer has yet to score this year.
Fernando Alonso chased Rosberg for much of the race before settling for sixth position at his home Grand Prix in the leading Renault while championship leader Jenson Button had a poor race to seventh position and just two championship points.
Starting fifth, Button made a good start to the race to run alongside Sebastian Vettel into the first turn. Perhaps with his large championship lead in his mind, Button backed off and this allowed four cars to stream through. The Brawn racer soon passed Mark Webber, but was judged to have cut a chicane to gain an unfair advantage and was forced to relinquish the position. The British driver would gain the place from Webber in the final round of pit stops, but it was a poor drive from a driver aiming for the ultimate prize.
Robert Kubica claimed the final point for the BMW Sauber team with a solid run to eighth position while Webber looked lost all weekend and finished a dismal ninth and out of the points. Red Bull Renault therefore leaves Valencia having failed to score and are now 27.5 points behind Brawn Mercedes in the constructors’ championship.
Adrian Sutil and Giancarlo Fisichella showed good race pace to finish tenth and 12th for Force India Mercedes with Nick Heidfeld between in the second BMW Sauber. The Toyota duo of Jarno Trulli and Timo Glock were both involved in lap one incidents, the former with Romain Grosjean and the latter with Sebastien Buemi, but went on to finish 13th and 14th.
Grosjean’s first Grand Prix was compromised by his contact with Trulli at the start of the race and a spin later in the race as he took 15th ahead of Jaime Alguersuari who really struggled in his second start with Toro Rosso. Team-mate Buemi was forced to pit for a new front wing after contact with Glock on the first lap and later spun out of the race with a front left brake failure.
The Formula One circus packs up and heads to the Eifel Mountains for the Belgian Grand Prix at the fabled Spa Francorchamps circuit. Red Bull needs to bounce back after a dismal Valencia weekend while Barrichello may be on a late season roll just at the time when his team-mate is losing his form...
Earl ALEXANDER
© CAPSIS International
Hungary GP - Race: Hungaroring - 26/07/200
Hamilton rides high with Hungarian GP victory
Lewis Hamilton dominated the 24th running of the Hungarian Grand Prix to claim his first victory of the season and the tenth of his career. Starting fourth, the defending champion made short work of Sebastian Vettel and then passed Mark Webber before taking the lead when Renault and Fernando Alonso faltered. From that point on Hamilton controlled his pace and took the chequered flag 11.5 seconds clear of Kimi Raikkonen while Mark Webber finished third.
As expected the KERS-equipped McLaren Mercedes proved rapid off the line at the start of the 70-lap marathon, as Hamilton briefly secured second position before running wide at the first turn. This allowed Webber to regain the position but on lap four Hamilton pressured Webber into a defensive line into the first turn and took the position at the next corner with an aggressive pass around the outside.
At this point pole-sitter Fernando Alonso was three seconds up the road on his light fuel load. The double world champion pitted as expected on lap 13 but the team did not fit the front right wheel correctly and the Spaniard was soon three-wheeling his way back to the pits and a few laps later into retirement.
Out front, Hamilton quickly pulled an advantage from Webber who opted to take the harder prime tyre for this second stint. This cost the German Grand Prix winner pace but that would prove academic anyway as a slow pit stop had already allowed Kimi Raikkonen through into second position.
Raikkonen kept the pressure on Hamilton with the gap steady at six or seven seconds until the second round of stops and then controlled his pace to the chequered flag to record his best result of the season and to make a little history as he and Hamilton celebrate a KERS one-two result.
Nico Rosberg finished in fourth position to extend his points run with the Williams Toyota team while Heikki Kovalainen secured his third points finish of the season with fifth position in the second McLaren Mercedes.
Toyota used long first stints to really push Timo Glock and Jarno Trulli up the order after a poor run in qualifying.
Glock finished sixth in his TF109 as he chased Kovalainen across the line while Trulli took the final point in eighth position.
Jenson Button started seventh in his championship leading Brawn Mercedes and finished one place higher. It was not a good race weekend for the team as Alonso’s early exit helped him up one position as he and the team continue to mention ‘tyres’ as the reason in their recent decline in performance. Perhaps it is the problem, but Button’s championship advantage is trimmed to 18.5 points from Webber ahead of the summer break.
Kazuki Nakajima battled hard but was just out of the points once again in his Williams as he chased Trulli for the final point in the closing laps. Rubens Barrichello was unable to make up much ground after his qualifying problems yesterday in the second Brawn as he finished tenth.
Other notables included Sebastian Vettel who started on the front-row of the grid alongside Alonso but made a poor start and dropped down the order. Battling with Raikkonen exiting the first turn his front left wheel came into contact with Raikkonen’s right rear and this would later force his retirement with suspension damage. Vettel’s DNF, his fourth of the season, combined with team-mate Webber finishing third sees him drop to third in the standings.
Jaime Alguersuari meanwhile made his Grand Prix debut and achieved his objective of finishing his first race with the Toro Rosso team. Not only that, the youngest ever Grand Prix driver finished ahead of team-mate Sebastien Buemi. Mission accomplished for the Red Bull protégé.
Today however was all about Hamilton’s stunning return to the top step of the podium with McLaren Mercedes ahead of the looming summer break and then back-to-back races in Valencia and Spa Francorchamps. The championship is far from over…
Earl ALEXANDER
© CAPSIS International
Germany GP - Race: Nurburgring - 12/07/2009
Webber takes maiden victory in style.
Mark Webber overcame a questionable drive through penalty in a thrilling German Grand Prix to record his first victory by some margin from Red Bull Renault team-mate Sebastian Vettel. Significantly, the Milton Keynes-based team secured their second straight one-two result as rivals Brawn Mercedes continue to struggle at this critical mid-season point.
It was not a straightforward victory for Webber however as the start saw fellow front-row starter Rubens Barrichello pull alongside the Red Bull on the run to turn one. Webber moved to his right and light contact was made. It was a racing incident but a few laps later the team were informed that Webber, running second at the time to Barrichello, must take a drive through penalty for his actions.
A little good fortune would come to his aid however as Barrichello made his stop and found himself stuck behind Felipe Massa who was running a long first stint and therefore relatively heavy on fuel. This allowed Webber to lap quickly at the front of the field ahead of his own first stop for fuel and fresh rubber.
Webber’s impressive pace allowed him to exit the pits close behind Barrichello and ahead of Button and when it became apparent that the Brawn Mercedes team were three-stopping both drivers, Webber knew the race was his for the taking.
“It’s an incredible day,” Webber stated. “I wanted to win so badly after Silverstone, as I thought I had a good chance there, then after yesterday’s pole I knew I was in a good position to try and win the race today.
“It was a difficult winter, Sebastian showed in winter testing what the car could do, so that kept my motivation very high when I was hurting a lot with all the rehab,” he continued with reference to his cycling accident that left him with a badly broken leg ahead of the season. “I had great people around me to recover from all the injuries I had and the team have been incredibly patient with me as well.
“It’s just an incredible day for all the people who have helped me get to where I am today.”
While Webber celebrates his well deserved first victory, team-mate Sebastian Vettel took second position having recovered from a poor start. The one-two result moves the British Grand Prix winner second in the championship with Webber now up to third. Barrichello drops to fourth position while Button’s advantage at the head of the field is trimmed down to a still considerable 21 points with eight rounds remaining.
Felipe Massa finished third in his Ferrari after another canny tactical drive with a long first stint. The Brazilian finished six seconds behind Vettel and five seconds ahead of Nico Rosberg who made best of a fast start and strategy after a poor qualifying run to secure points for Williams Toyota once again, gaining no less than 11 positions during the race.
Jenson Button vaulted Barrichello in the final round of stops to finish in fifth position with his Brawn team-mate taking the chequered flag less than a second behind. However it is clear that the team's early season performance advantage has been eroded and now surpassed by the Red Bull team.
The BGP 001 did not have particularly good race pace despite the rather odd three stop strategy and the team will be looking ahead to the scheduled aerodynamic enhancements that should come on stream for the next Grand Prix in Hungary. Brawn still lead the constructors’ championship but the gap to Red Bull has now been trimmed down to 19.5 points and the latter now has momentum on their side.
To make matter worse, Barrichello is clearly unhappy with the team’s performance and made his feeling clearly known to the media and general public with a surprising post-race outburst.
Fernando Alonso spun his R29 on the parade lap as he tried to warm the tyres but started 12th as planned and finished seventh in his Renault after a low-key start to the race followed by a very impressive second and third stint. The double world champion chased and hounded the Brawn pair over the final laps but could not find a way to pass. Team-mate Nelson Piquet finished 13th.
Heikki Kovalainen took the final point on what was a disappointing day for the McLaren Mercedes team. Team-mate Lewis Hamilton made a very fast start from fifth position on the grid and looked to be challenging for the lead into the first turn. Sadly for the defending champion, his eagerness to make up ground from the outset saw his McLaren clip Webber’s Red Bull, puncturing the right rear tyre in the process.
Hamilton subsequently pitted for a fresh set of tyres and then ran at the back of the field to the chequered flag. Kovalainen meanwhile had also made a good start and ran as high as third in the opening stint. However his MP4-24, which does not feature all of the updates enjoyed by Hamilton this weekend, was off the pace of the front runners and the Finn would slip down the order as the race progressed.
Kovalainen was forced to fight very hard for the final point and to his credit, made no mistakes to take the chequered flag ahead of Toyota racer Timo Glock who had started the race from the pitlane.
Nick Heidfeld finished tenth in the leading BMW Sauber with team-mate Robert Kubica back in 14th while Giancarlo Fisichella ran well in his Force India Mercedes to finish 11th. While the Silverstone-based team will be happy with Fisichella’s performance, they will be most disappointed to see Sutil well out of the top ten after a terrific drive.
Sutil started seventh after a great run in the mixed qualifying conditions and ran as high as second in the race during the pitstops. Battling with Kimi Raikkonen over sixth position, Vettel exited the pits and ran side-by-side with the 2007 champion into the first turn. Contact was made and it was Sutil who lost his front wing and with it any hopes of securing the team their first points of the season. The German finished a disappointed 15th.
Kazuki Nakajima’s point-less season continues with Williams Toyota as he finished 12th following a trip through the gravel trap on lap one and then losing a position to Fisichella on the very final lap of the race. Sebastien Buemi was 16th in the surviving Toro Rosso behind Nakajima, Piquet and Sutil while an early stop for a new front wing saw Jarno Trulli just 17th ahead of Hamilton at the chequered flag in the second Toyota.
Kimi Raikkonen looked set for points this afternoon before his F60 lost power and he was forced to retire while Sebastien Bourdais also failed to go the distance in the second Toro Rosso Ferrari due to hydraulics failure. The Frenchman may deny it, but the body language and exchange on the pit wall seemed to confirm that it was indeed his last Grand Prix for the team.
After the weeks of politics and infighting, Formula One fans were finally treated to a great race this afternoon and a very worth winner…
Earl ALEXANDER
© CAPSIS International
Great-Britain GP - Race: Silverstone - 21/06/2009
Vettel crushes the opposition!
The final scheduled Grand Prix at Silverstone was completely dominated by Sebastian Vettel who recorded his second victory of the season and with the Red Bull Renault team as well as his first dry win of his short Formula One career.
Starting from pole position Vettel made a clean start and simply drove away from the field to establish a 20 second lead ahead of the first round of pitstops. From that point onwards, the German star controlled the pace at the front of the field and took the chequered flag on lap 60 some 15 seconds clear of team-mate Mark Webber.
Vettel’s victory, on a day when championship leader Jenson Button was unable to challenge the front-runners, sees him close the championship gap to Rubens Barrichello to just two points and 25 behind Button.
Starting third Mark Webber had been looking to get the jump on front-row starter Barrichello into turn one, but despite the Australian’s best efforts, trailed the Brawn Mercedes into Copse and was then forced to wait until the first round of pit stops to gain the position. By that time however, his team-mate was already 20 seconds up the road and the race for victory was over.
Barrichello pushed hard in the Brawn Mercedes but the car was no match for the dominant Red Bull Renault package at this circuit. The Brazilian veteran held on to take the final step of the podium, but at 26 seconds behind Webber and 41 behind the race winner, it is clear that the RB5 was the car to have this weekend in the cooler Silverstone conditions.
Felipe Massa made best of a long first stint from 11th position on the grid to take the chequered flag in an impressive fourth position, just four seconds behind Barrichello. Massa pitted on lap 23 and when he exited the pit lane he had passed Jarno Trulli, team-mate Kimi Raikkonen, Jenson Button and Kazuki Nakajima. Massa’s second and final stop saw him exit ahead of Nico Rosberg and claim fourth position. Impressive pace when needed from last year’s championship runner-up.
Nico Rosberg will be disappointed to lose a position late in the race, but still finished in fifth position on a day where team-mate Kazuki Nakajima ran as high as fourth only to slip out of the points. Still, Williams move fifth in the constructors’ standings ahead of McLaren Mercedes.
Championship leader Jenson Button was unable to make progress from sixth position on the grid and slipped down the field from the start. Running eighth ahead of the final stops the British racer picked up two positions following the final service and then rapidly closed the gap to Rosberg but was unable to make the pass for position. Button may be disappointed with the result, but he leaves Silverstone with a healthy 23 point margin over team-mate Barrichello.
Jarno Trulli started fourth in the leading Toyota but lost ground at the start. The Italian finished in seventh position 22 seconds behind Button while holding off Kimi Raikkonen in the second Ferrari to the flag.
Timo Glock was just out of the points in the second Toyota as he chased Raikkonen to the line and taking the chequer just 0.2 seconds behind the Finn. Right behind Glock was arguably the driver of the day – Vettel aside – as Giancarlo Fisichella put in a brilliant run in his Force India Mercedes to finish tenth, just two positions and two seconds out of the points.
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Following a good start from 16th position on the grid, Fisichella found himself stuck behind Nick Heidfeld and Fernando Alonso as they battled for 12th position. As the duo fought for position, both ran wide into Stowe and in one swoop the Italian veteran passed both and quickly pulled a 24 second cushion on the struggling Heidfeld.
After running in fourth position, Kazuki Nakajima lost three positions in his first stop. With a light fuel load on board courtesy of his qualifying tactics, the Japanese racer found himself demoted to seventh and then following his second stop to 11th. The Williams driver did not make any errors, but it proves that the aggressive strategy in qualifying does not always work, especially when looking at the progress made by Massa with his conservative strategy in the leading Ferrari.
Nelson Piquet finished 12th in the leading Renault with team-mate Fernando Alonso a disappointing 14th after a slow start and then losing time behind Heidfeld. Robert Kubica was 13th between the Renault pair while Heidfeld lost time with a damaged front wing in the first stint and took the flag in 15th.
It was a dismal day for the McLaren Mercedes team. Despite the best efforts of 2008 race winner Lewis Hamilton, the team recorded a 16th position and a failure to finish. Hamilton did battle hard with some terrific wheel to wheel action with former team-mate Alonso. However a spin at Club late in the race dropped him back down the order but the car was never capable of delivering points today.
Adrian Sutil started from the pit lane in the second Force India Mercedes following his qualifying crash yesterday and finished 17th ahead of Sebastien Buemi in the Toro Rosso Ferrari.
The only drivers who failed to finish were Sebastien Bourdais and Heikki Kovalainen who made contact which resulted in their subsequent retirement. Kovalainen has just exited the pits ahead of Hamilton and soon let the champion pass into Stowe. Still of the pace on relatively cold tyres, the Finn saw Bourdais homing in and looking for the position into Club. Kovalainen moved across one time too many under braking and Bourdais made solid contact.
Bourdais pitted for a new front wing while Kovalainen took service to replace the sliced left rear. A few laps later however both pulled in to retire with further damage.
Today however was all about Vettel. Pole position, fastest lap and the race win at the mid-point of the season gives the team and the driver some hope of clawing their way back into the championship fight.
The race was also the final Grand Prix scheduled for Silverstone with the race moving a little way up the M1 to Donington Park should renovations be completed on time to host the 2010 British Grand Prix. It may be the end of an era for Silverstone, but for British fans the overriding issue that there will at least be a round on the race calendar.
Earl ALEXANDER
© CAPSIS International
Turkey GP - Race: Istanbul - 07.06.2009
Button takes Turkey, one hand on the title?
Jenson Button secured his sixth win from seven races today in Turkey to extend his championship lead to 26 points over team-mate Rubens Barrichello who failed to finish after a dramatic day. With title rival Sebastian Vettel finishing in third position, Button surely now is in a very commanding position as he aims for the championship with Brawn Mercedes.
The start of an entertaining Turkish Grand Prix saw Vettel make a good getaway from his pole position with Button slotting in behind. Starting third, Barrichello almost stalled his Brawn and plummeted down the field allowing a fastest starting Jarno Trulli up to third position with Mark Webber right behind.
Vettel’s one error came on that first lap as he ran wide through turn nine and with his momentum lost, Button breezed by to take the lead, one he would never relinquish.
The Red Bull Renault team has opted to run Vettel with a slightly lighter fuel load than both Button and Webber in the second RB5 but opted not to switch from three stops to two once the Chinese Grand Prix winner lost the lead. This error would prove critical in the latter stages of the race as Vettel dropped behind Webber and the race for second was effectively over.
Webber drove a strong race and fully deserved his runner-up position to close within 1.5 points of Vettel in the battle for third in the championship. After being jumped by Trulli off the line, the Australian racer soon forced his way ahead and then ran 20 seconds or so behind eventual winner Button until the final laps. Conserving his Brawn Mercedes, the championship leader allowed the gap to tumble to seven seconds at the chequered flag.
Jarno Trulli has a very solid race for Toyota. After losing position to Webber early in the race, the Toyota racer found himself behind Nico Rosberg following the first round of stops. The Italian veteran pressed on and regained the position in the second and final stop.
Rosberg duly finished fifth in his Williams Toyota, his best result of the season, but lost may have lost time behind team-mate Kazuki Nakajima ahead of his second stop and this could have cost him the fourth position. Nakajima himself ran well and was challenging for points until problems fitting the front-left wheel in the final stop dropped him down the order.
Felipe Massa had a quiet race to fifth in the leading Ferrari as he trailed Rosberg by eight seconds across the line while Robert Kubica secured his first points of the season with a seventh place finish in his BMW Sauber.
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The team are still a long way from being a front-runner, but at least they made gains this weekend following the disastrous Monaco showing. Kubica held off a charging drive from Timo Glock in the second Toyota who made best of a long first stint to beat some big names.
Kimi Raikkonen lost ground at the start and then made light contact with Fernando Alonso to damage his front right wing endplate. It mattered little as the F60 had little race pace and the 2007 champion finished out of the points in ninth position.
Another champion was out of the points and that was Renault star Fernando Alonso. With a light fuel load from eighth position on the grid, it was always going to be a tough race and the Spaniard duly finished in tenth position.
Nick Heidfeld finished 11th in the second BMW Sauber ahead of Nakajima and the McLaren Mercedes duo of Lewis Hamilton and Heikki Kovalainen. The Turkish Grand Prix was a disaster for the Woking-based team with the flaws in the MP4-24 package cruelly exposed through the long four-apex turn eight. Hamilton at least made best of a one stop strategy to finish on the lead lap.
Sebastien Buemi led the Toro Rosso team to 15th position ahead of Nelson Piquet in the second Renault, Adrian Sutil in the surviving Force India and finally Sebastien Bourdais who was the final finisher in 18th.
Giancarlo Fisichella retired from 18th early in the race with a recurring braking issue while Barrichello had a most entertaining race.
Starting third, Barrichello’s Brawn Mercedes almost stalled off the line dropping the Brazilian down the order. By lap nine of 58 Barrichello found himself in a great tussle for 11th place with Kovalainen and after a few moments, contact was made dropping him behind Hamilton. The Brawn racer made a clean pass on the defending champion and then was overly optimistic on a pass on Sutil. After a stop for a new front wing he resumed before retiring on lap 49 with a gearbox problem.
Barrichello’s problems is good news for Button as he really does now enjoy a commanding championship lead heading to his home Grand Prix at Silverstone in two weeks time.
Earl ALEXANDER
© CAPSIS International
Monaco GP - Race: Monaco - 24.05.2009
Button dominates the Monaco Grand Prix
Jenson Button absolutely dominated the 78-lap Monaco Grand Prix from pole position to record his fifth win from six races and to extend his championship lead over team-mate Rubens Barrichello to 16 points.
The largely incident free race was determined in the opening laps as the championship leader made a good start from the pole position with Kimi Raikkonen making a slower getaway, allowing Barrichello through into second.
The Brazilian veteran made a race of it in the opening laps keeping Button within a second until his super soft option tyres dramatically faded. The gap very quickly extended to 15 seconds as he defended his second position from Raikkonen and from that point, all Button had to do was mirror the pace of those behind him and control the pace to the chequered flag.
Barrichello retained his second position in the critical first round of pit stops much to the frustration of Ferrari who started both Raikkonen and team-mate Felipe Massa on the harder prime tyre, very much the more durable rubber this afternoon in Monte Carlo.
Back on the prime tyre and Barrichello was able to lap at a similar pace to race leader Button – who did not suffer the massive performance drop off experienced by his team-mate - but the damage had been done and there was nothing he could do to stop his Brawn Mercedes team-mate taking the chequered flag eight second ahead.
With 86 points from six races, Brawn Mercedes now have the same number of points as Red Bull Renault, Toyota and Ferrari combined.
Raikkonen drove a strong race, his start aside, keeping the pressure on Barrichello until the second and final round of pit stops. Taking the super soft option tyre for the final stint the 2007 champion fell back five seconds and duly recorded his first podium position of the season.
Felipe Massa started fifth and battled hard with Sebastian Vettel in the early laps. The Red Bull Renault racer started the race on a very light fuel load with the option tyre but by lap seven, it was clear that the Chinese Grand Prix runner had destroyed his tyres.
Massa tried a pass exiting the tunnel into the chicane but out-braked himself and cut the chicane. The Brazilian was forced to yield the position back to Vettel only for Nico Rosberg to sneak through as well.
While Vettel pitted on lap 11 for tyres and soon after planted the Red Bull Renault into the tyre barrier at Sainte Devote, Massa was able to regain fourth position in the stops from Rosberg, a position he retained to the flag, crossing the line less than two seconds behind Ferrari team-mate Raikkonen. The result moves Ferrari fourth in the standings.
Mark Webber vaulted both Rosberg and Heikki Kovalainen in the first round of stops and then drove a solid race in the surviving Red Bull to finish less than a second behind Massa while Rosberg finished sixth nearly 18 seconds adrift.
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Williams now move ahead of the struggling BMW Sauber team in the championship.
Fernando Alonso started ninth and finished seventh courtesy of two of the rivals ahead of him on the grid making contact with the tyres or Armco while team-mate Nelson Piquet made a good start from 12th position on the grid only to be taken out by Sebastien Buemi ten laps into the race.
The final point went to Sebastien Bourdais after a solid run in his Toro Rosso Ferrari. Under pressure for much of the race from Giancarlo Fisichella, the Frenchman kept his cool to score a valuable point for himself and the team.
Fisichella drove a great race in his Force India Mercedes. Starting a fine 13th and like Bourdais on a one stop strategy, the Italian veteran kept Fernando Alonso behind him during the Spaniard’s second stint and then chased Bourdais across the line to finish in ninth position, his and the Silverstone-based team’s best result of the season.
Kazuki Nakajima was on target for a tenth place finish in the second Williams Toyota, but on the very final lap of the race the Japanese driver made an error and nosed his FW31 into the tyres at Mirabeau. The unforced error dropped him to 15th and promoted the lapped Timo Glock to tenth on the leading Toyota.
Nick Heidfeld struggled around to finish 11th in his BMW Sauber while team-mate Robert Kubica suffered a puncture following contact with Lewis Hamilton and was forced to pit for a new right rear tyre on lap three.
Kubica continued at the back of the field before retiring the BMW Sauber less than a third of the way into the race.
It was a poor race from the McLaren Mercedes team with Heikki Kovalainen running seventh before losing his MP4-24 and crashing out at the swimming pool while Hamilton started at the back of the field on a two stop strategy. Why the team did not start him from the pit lane on heavy fuel load is a mystery.
The 2008 race winner ran ahead of just Adrian Sutil for a majority of the race, eventually passing Jarno Trulli to take 12th position ahead of the Toyota racer and Sutil in the second Force India.
It was a processional affair with little passing but that’s the Monaco Grand prix for you. With a commanding lead at the head of the championship, Button celebrates his latest success as the field starts preparations for the Turkish Grand Prix in two weeks time.
Earl ALEXANDER
© CAPSIS International
Spain GP - Race: Barcelona - 12.05.2009
Button makes it four from five with a Brawn one-two in Spain
Race winner Jenson Button (GBR) Brawn Grand Prix celebrates on the podium. Formula One World Championship, Rd 5, Spanish Grand Prix, Race, Barcelona, Spain, Sunday, 10 May 2009 (L to R): Matt Deane (GBR) Brawn Grand Prix Engineer with Rubens Barrichello (BRA) Brawn Grand Prix, Jenson Button (GBR) Brawn Grand Prix and Mark Webber (AUS) Red Bull Racing on the podium. Formula One World Championship, Rd 5, Spanish Grand Prix, Race, Barcelona, Spain, Sunday, 10 May 2009 Sebastien Buemi (SUI) Scuderia Toro Rosso STR4 crashed out at the start of the race. Formula One World Championship, Rd 5, Spanish Grand Prix, Race, Barcelona, Spain, Sunday, 10 May 2009
Brawn GP’s Jenson Button drove a pluperfect two-stop race to take his fourth victory in five races in Sunday afternoon’s Spanish Grand Prix, leading home early leader and three-stopping partner Rubens Barrichello by 13 seconds.
It was a resounding success for Brawn, but Barrichello had Mark Webber right on his tail at the finish as the Australian headed a Red Bull 3-4. His team mate Sebastian Vettel had been trapped behind Felipe Massa’s fast-starting Ferrari from the outset, but finally slipped ahead in the closing stages as the Brazilian was ordered to back off to conserve fuel. On the final lap the red car fell victim to Fernando Alonso’s Renault, as poor Massa was obliged to slow down even further.
The result gives Button 41 points to Barrichello’s 27, Vettel’s 23 and Webber’s 15.5. In the constructors’ stakes, Brawn have 68 to Red Bull’s 38.5.
Nick Heidfeld drove a tough and defensive race to net two points for BMW Sauber with seventh place, and Nico Rosberg completed the points scorers with eighth for Williams.
An accident at the first corner influenced the race. Rosberg eased slow-starting Jarno Trulli off in the second, left-handed corner, and as the Italian’s Toyota spun out of the gravel and back on to the track it collected Adrian Sutil, who had just short-cut the corner over on the left-hand side. In the confusion the two Toro Rosso’s collided, resulting in retirement for all four and a five-lap safety car period.
Barrichello resumed the lead he had taken from Button off the grid when the racing restarted on lap six, but later fell behind his team mate as his three-stop strategy proved inferior.
Lewis Hamilton had a frustrating afternoon for McLaren, finishing ninth ahead of Toyota’s Timo Glock, who ran well initially but fell back with an early refuelling stop. BMW Sauber’s Robert Kubica led Renault’s Nelson Piquet home for 11th, with Williams’ Kazuki Nakajima and Force India’s Giancarlo Fisichella rounding out the finishers.
The other retirements were Kimi Raikkonen, whose Ferrari ground to a halt with suspected electrical problems on lap 18, and fellow Finn Heikki Kovalainen who fell victim to gearbox gremlins on his McLaren.
http://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/2009/5/9341.html
A1 GP Brands Hatch - Feature Race - 03/05/09
Ireland wins A1GP title in style
A1 Team Ireland lifted the A1GP World Cup of Motorsport trophy high above Brands Hatch today after the perfect weekend for the team and its driver, Adam Carroll. They completely dominated the weekend from the time they took to the track on Friday.
Two poles, victory in the Sprint race and then another lights-to-flag win in the Feature race was the perfect end for them to the 2008/09 championship, which culminated with their maiden A1GP title.
After an aborted start when South Africa's Alan van der Merwe stalled on the grid, the race finally got underway with Carroll getting off the line to lead into Paddock Hill Bend. As the field came through the first corner an incident involving China, USA and India left China and India in the gravel and out the race and brought out the Safety Car as the cars came round to complete the first lap. USA's John R. Hildebrand Jr limped back to the pits for a new nose cone but rejoined the race.
The order behind the Safety Car was Ireland from Monaco, Netherlands, Switzerland, Portugal, New Zealand, Australia, France, Great Britain and Italy.
Ireland had a good run out of the final corner on the restart to come across the line 0.653 seconds ahead of the chasing pack. Further down the field Mexico's Salvador Duran took tenth from Italy's Vitantonio Liuzzi.
By the end of lap five Carroll had a 1.424-second lead before New Zealand's Earl Bamber spun Black Beauty into the gravel and out of the race at Westfield.
As the pit window opened for the first round of stops, race leader Ireland was the first to dive in, closely followed by Portugal. Another slick pit stop from the Irish crew saw Carroll safely back out in the lead. Switzerland and Netherlands came in a lap later with Monaco opting to stay out a lap extra. The strategy didn't work however, as Clivio Piccione fell to fifth after the stops.
Mexico had a good stop to get out in front of Australia with the order on lap fifteen now Ireland 6.956 seconds from Netherlands, Switzerland, Portugal, Monaco, Mexico, Australia, Great Britain, Italy and Lebanon.
Great Britain's Dan Clarke was flying on home soil placing his car perfectly on the inside of Paddock Hill Bend to take seventh from John Martin. He then began attacking Mexico for sixth while Netherlands started to close the gap to Ireland up ahead.
On lap 26 Germany's Michael Ammerm�ller rolled to a halt bringing his season to an early end. Ireland was now being held up by USA's Hildebrand as Carroll came round to lap the American car.
Malaysia's Aaron Lim ran wide and crashed out at Druids bringing a disappointing end to his weekend just as the second mandatory pit window opened.
Ireland was first to come in again to get a new set of tyres along with South Africa, Lebanon, Indonesia and Mexico. Great Britain and the Netherlands made their stops a lap later with the orange car remaining in second despite Ireland having a slightly slower stop this time around.
John Martin was flying in Jackeroo giving Australia the fastest lap, with a 1m 12.754s, which he beat a couple of laps later, recording a 1m 12.698s.
Ireland was in control at the front but there was a great battle for third with Switzerland holding off Monaco and Portugal. Great Britain's Dan Clarke was also putting pressure on Mexico for sixth.
With five laps to go the order was Ireland from Netherlands, Switzerland, Monaco, Portugal, Mexico, Great Britain, Australia, Italy and France.
Carroll held his nerve to bring the Celtic Tiger across the line to take victory by 10.156 seconds from the Netherlands and Switzerland, and with it sealed the team's maiden A1GP title. Ireland had been in control all weekend, claiming two pole positions yesterday which were both converted into wins today.
After an amazing season of A1GP racing the title went right down to the final race with A1GP Chairman, Tony Teixeira, presenting A1 Team Ireland's seat holder Mark Gallagher and an elated Adam Carroll with the A1GP World Cup of Motorsport trophy in front of the cheering crowds.
Neel Jani's third-place finish secured the runner-up spot for Switzerland in this year's championship. Portugal's Filipe Albuquerque came home in fifth to give them third place in the final championship rankings.
Ireland's Adam Carroll said: "It was a perfect weekend for us, it's what we needed to come here to do, it was the plan so it really did come through.
We knew by the pace we set in Portugal that if we came here and everything worked out OK we would be really hard to beat, and that was the way it worked out so it couldn't have been better."
"I didn't get a great start again, it's really hard to start from pole, but I knew if I stayed where I was there wouldn't be any bumping into each other."
"In the second pit stop the team were nothing to do with why we were slow, the guys did their job but had to hold me because Switzerland was coming in and if they had let me go it would have been very dangerous so we lost some time."
"The team are just unbelievable, they are the best team on the face of this Earth in motorsport and I believe that fully. Their commitment is second to none and we are the best in this pit lane. These guys left on Friday night after 29 hours in the pit lane, that says it all."
Jereon Bleekemolen, who came in second today said: "We started working together with Ireland this season and obviously they are very strong, but I think we have a great group of people too. It was great working with them and I think we both took advantage of that. We have had some bad luck and I've been sharing a car with Robert Doornbos. If it goes your way you are fighting for the championship, but we've had a few races that didn't go our way although we can be happy with the season."
Switzerland's Neel Jani said: "It was bad luck in the Feature, but on the other hand I am happy because we finally found some pace this weekend as we have been struggling since Friday. This morning we were way too slow to win any championship in the world so I am really happy that in the end this afternoon we were somewhere around even though we had a broken exhaust."
"It had been interesting, lots of close battles, especially within the points. I knew it would be hard to win the title here against Ireland because last year they were very quick and we struggled. I would have liked to have come here with a bigger points lead and I think one of the biggest mistakes was in Malaysia in the Feature race when I spun it. Ireland did a great job though, they had a fantastic year and if I don't win, I don't mind if they win."
Brands Hatch - Feature Race results:
Pos A1 Team Driver Laps Time
1 IRELAND Adam CARROLL 49 1:04:14.970
2 NETHERLANDS Jeroen BLEEKEMOLEN 49 +10.156
3 SWITZERLAND Neel JANI 49 +13.564
4 MONACO Clivio PICCIONE 49 +14.293
5 PORTUGAL Filipe ALBUQUERQUE 49 +16.484
6 MEXICO Salvador DURAN 49 +21.81
7 GREAT BRITAIN Daniel CLARKE 49 +23.409
8 AUSTRALIA John MARTIN 49 +24.493
9 ITALY Vitantonio LIUZZI 49 +46.004
10 FRANCE Nicolas PROST 49 +49.094
11 SOUTH AFRICA Alan VAN DER MERWE 49 +1:13.905
12 LEBANON Daniel MORAD 49 +1:16.257
13 INDONESIA Satrio HERMANTO 48 1 Lap
14 USA John R. HILDEBRAND JR. 48 1 Lap
15 MALAYSIA Aaron LIM 27 22 Laps
16 GERMANY Michael AMMERMULLER 26 23 Laps
17 NEW ZEALAND Earl BAMBER 6 43 Laps
18 CHINA Congfu CHENG 0 49 Laps
19 INDIA Narain KARTHIKEYAN 0 49 Laps
- BRAZIL Felipe GUIMARAES - -
Fastest lap: A1 Team Australia set the fastest lap (1m12.698s) of the Feature Race with a speed of 183.4kph on lap 36.
Final 2008/09 A1GP World Cup of Motorsport points standings:
Pos A1 Team Points
1 Ireland 112
2 Switzerland 95
3 Portugal 92
4 Netherlands 75
5 France 47
6 Malaysia 43
7 New Zealand 36
8 Australia 36
9 Monaco 35
10 Great Britain 28
11 USA 24
12 India 19
13 Mexico 19
14 South Africa 19
15 Brazil 18
16 Italy 17
17 Lebanon 8
18 China 7
19 Korea 4
20 Indonesia 3
21 Germany 2
D.B. � CAPSIS International
A1 Team Ireland lifted the A1GP World Cup of Motorsport trophy high above Brands Hatch today after the perfect weekend for the team and its driver, Adam Carroll. They completely dominated the weekend from the time they took to the track on Friday.
Two poles, victory in the Sprint race and then another lights-to-flag win in the Feature race was the perfect end for them to the 2008/09 championship, which culminated with their maiden A1GP title.
After an aborted start when South Africa's Alan van der Merwe stalled on the grid, the race finally got underway with Carroll getting off the line to lead into Paddock Hill Bend. As the field came through the first corner an incident involving China, USA and India left China and India in the gravel and out the race and brought out the Safety Car as the cars came round to complete the first lap. USA's John R. Hildebrand Jr limped back to the pits for a new nose cone but rejoined the race.
The order behind the Safety Car was Ireland from Monaco, Netherlands, Switzerland, Portugal, New Zealand, Australia, France, Great Britain and Italy.
Ireland had a good run out of the final corner on the restart to come across the line 0.653 seconds ahead of the chasing pack. Further down the field Mexico's Salvador Duran took tenth from Italy's Vitantonio Liuzzi.
By the end of lap five Carroll had a 1.424-second lead before New Zealand's Earl Bamber spun Black Beauty into the gravel and out of the race at Westfield.
As the pit window opened for the first round of stops, race leader Ireland was the first to dive in, closely followed by Portugal. Another slick pit stop from the Irish crew saw Carroll safely back out in the lead. Switzerland and Netherlands came in a lap later with Monaco opting to stay out a lap extra. The strategy didn't work however, as Clivio Piccione fell to fifth after the stops.
Mexico had a good stop to get out in front of Australia with the order on lap fifteen now Ireland 6.956 seconds from Netherlands, Switzerland, Portugal, Monaco, Mexico, Australia, Great Britain, Italy and Lebanon.
Great Britain's Dan Clarke was flying on home soil placing his car perfectly on the inside of Paddock Hill Bend to take seventh from John Martin. He then began attacking Mexico for sixth while Netherlands started to close the gap to Ireland up ahead.
On lap 26 Germany's Michael Ammerm�ller rolled to a halt bringing his season to an early end. Ireland was now being held up by USA's Hildebrand as Carroll came round to lap the American car.
Malaysia's Aaron Lim ran wide and crashed out at Druids bringing a disappointing end to his weekend just as the second mandatory pit window opened.
Ireland was first to come in again to get a new set of tyres along with South Africa, Lebanon, Indonesia and Mexico. Great Britain and the Netherlands made their stops a lap later with the orange car remaining in second despite Ireland having a slightly slower stop this time around.
John Martin was flying in Jackeroo giving Australia the fastest lap, with a 1m 12.754s, which he beat a couple of laps later, recording a 1m 12.698s.
Ireland was in control at the front but there was a great battle for third with Switzerland holding off Monaco and Portugal. Great Britain's Dan Clarke was also putting pressure on Mexico for sixth.
With five laps to go the order was Ireland from Netherlands, Switzerland, Monaco, Portugal, Mexico, Great Britain, Australia, Italy and France.
Carroll held his nerve to bring the Celtic Tiger across the line to take victory by 10.156 seconds from the Netherlands and Switzerland, and with it sealed the team's maiden A1GP title. Ireland had been in control all weekend, claiming two pole positions yesterday which were both converted into wins today.
After an amazing season of A1GP racing the title went right down to the final race with A1GP Chairman, Tony Teixeira, presenting A1 Team Ireland's seat holder Mark Gallagher and an elated Adam Carroll with the A1GP World Cup of Motorsport trophy in front of the cheering crowds.
Neel Jani's third-place finish secured the runner-up spot for Switzerland in this year's championship. Portugal's Filipe Albuquerque came home in fifth to give them third place in the final championship rankings.
Ireland's Adam Carroll said: "It was a perfect weekend for us, it's what we needed to come here to do, it was the plan so it really did come through.
We knew by the pace we set in Portugal that if we came here and everything worked out OK we would be really hard to beat, and that was the way it worked out so it couldn't have been better."
"I didn't get a great start again, it's really hard to start from pole, but I knew if I stayed where I was there wouldn't be any bumping into each other."
"In the second pit stop the team were nothing to do with why we were slow, the guys did their job but had to hold me because Switzerland was coming in and if they had let me go it would have been very dangerous so we lost some time."
"The team are just unbelievable, they are the best team on the face of this Earth in motorsport and I believe that fully. Their commitment is second to none and we are the best in this pit lane. These guys left on Friday night after 29 hours in the pit lane, that says it all."
Jereon Bleekemolen, who came in second today said: "We started working together with Ireland this season and obviously they are very strong, but I think we have a great group of people too. It was great working with them and I think we both took advantage of that. We have had some bad luck and I've been sharing a car with Robert Doornbos. If it goes your way you are fighting for the championship, but we've had a few races that didn't go our way although we can be happy with the season."
Switzerland's Neel Jani said: "It was bad luck in the Feature, but on the other hand I am happy because we finally found some pace this weekend as we have been struggling since Friday. This morning we were way too slow to win any championship in the world so I am really happy that in the end this afternoon we were somewhere around even though we had a broken exhaust."
"It had been interesting, lots of close battles, especially within the points. I knew it would be hard to win the title here against Ireland because last year they were very quick and we struggled. I would have liked to have come here with a bigger points lead and I think one of the biggest mistakes was in Malaysia in the Feature race when I spun it. Ireland did a great job though, they had a fantastic year and if I don't win, I don't mind if they win."
Brands Hatch - Feature Race results:
Pos A1 Team Driver Laps Time
1 IRELAND Adam CARROLL 49 1:04:14.970
2 NETHERLANDS Jeroen BLEEKEMOLEN 49 +10.156
3 SWITZERLAND Neel JANI 49 +13.564
4 MONACO Clivio PICCIONE 49 +14.293
5 PORTUGAL Filipe ALBUQUERQUE 49 +16.484
6 MEXICO Salvador DURAN 49 +21.81
7 GREAT BRITAIN Daniel CLARKE 49 +23.409
8 AUSTRALIA John MARTIN 49 +24.493
9 ITALY Vitantonio LIUZZI 49 +46.004
10 FRANCE Nicolas PROST 49 +49.094
11 SOUTH AFRICA Alan VAN DER MERWE 49 +1:13.905
12 LEBANON Daniel MORAD 49 +1:16.257
13 INDONESIA Satrio HERMANTO 48 1 Lap
14 USA John R. HILDEBRAND JR. 48 1 Lap
15 MALAYSIA Aaron LIM 27 22 Laps
16 GERMANY Michael AMMERMULLER 26 23 Laps
17 NEW ZEALAND Earl BAMBER 6 43 Laps
18 CHINA Congfu CHENG 0 49 Laps
19 INDIA Narain KARTHIKEYAN 0 49 Laps
- BRAZIL Felipe GUIMARAES - -
Fastest lap: A1 Team Australia set the fastest lap (1m12.698s) of the Feature Race with a speed of 183.4kph on lap 36.
Final 2008/09 A1GP World Cup of Motorsport points standings:
Pos A1 Team Points
1 Ireland 112
2 Switzerland 95
3 Portugal 92
4 Netherlands 75
5 France 47
6 Malaysia 43
7 New Zealand 36
8 Australia 36
9 Monaco 35
10 Great Britain 28
11 USA 24
12 India 19
13 Mexico 19
14 South Africa 19
15 Brazil 18
16 Italy 17
17 Lebanon 8
18 China 7
19 Korea 4
20 Indonesia 3
21 Germany 2
D.B. � CAPSIS International
A1 GP Brands Hatch - Sprint Race - 03/05/09
Ireland takes Sprint victory
1 Team Ireland and Adam Carroll moved one step closer to the team's maiden title after taking victory in this morning's Sprint race at A1GP Brands Hatch, Great Britain.
India's Narain Karthikeyan finished second with Mexico's Salvador Duran taking the final podium position.
Ireland got a good start but Mexico had a better run into Paddock Hill, taking the lead around the outside through the first corner. Ireland settled into second from USA, Portugal, India and Netherlands, New Zealand and Switzerland.
Australia's John Martin took advantage of a mistake by Switzerland's Neel Jani to take eighth place before the mandatory pit stop window opened.
India made the decision to pit early alongside Lebanon, Germany and Malaysia. A lap later Mexico and Ireland made their way into the pits but after an incredibly quick stop by the Irish team, Adam Carroll regained the lead with India taking second.
John R. Hildebrand continued his good weekend form in his first race for A1 Team USA today by moving up to third after the pit stops, pushing Mexico down to fourth. Monaco's Clivio Piccione had problems leaving the pits, rolling to a stop at the pit lane exit.
On lap nine the order was Ireland from India, USA, Mexico, Portugal, Netherlands, Australia and Switzerland.
Duran was then able to capitalise on a mistake from Hildebrand at the final corner which gave the Mexican a good run to take third into the first corner.
Carroll now had a 3.867-second lead from India but still kept the fans on the edge of their seats, kicking up the dust and showing no sign of easing off the pace.
On lap 15 Lebanon's Daniel Morad lost the back end and spun into the gravel at Paddock Hill Bend with New Zealand's Earl Bamber also going into the gravel to avoid hitting the Lebanese car, leaving both cars out of the race.
Carroll took victory with a comfortable 7.230-second margin over India. Mexico's Duran settled for the final podium position.
A1 Team Brazil did not make the start after being unable to repair the car in time for this morning's Sprint race. The team is still working hard and hopes to have the car ready in time for this afternoon's Feature race.
Portugal's Filipe Albuquerque finished fifth with Switzerland's Jani taking a single point for eighth. Ireland now leads the championship with 97 points from Switzerland (89) and Portugal (86).
Ireland needs to finish fifth or better in this afternoon's Feature race to guarantee them the A1GP World Cup of Motorsport title.
"It's never easy," said Ireland's Adam Carroll.
Click here to find out more!
"Sprint races are always quite strange, they're tougher than the Feature race for some reason. I could see Mexico pushing very hard so just let then get on with it and hoped the boys would come up with the goods in the pit stop and they did. It's a relief for this race to be over and once this afternoon is done we can relax."
India's Narain Karthikeyan said: "It was difficult after a small mistake in qualifying as we should have been further up the grid. The car is working well so I think we are looking good for another podium this afternoon."
Mexico's Salvador Duran said: "I did a small mistake put still the team did a great job and put me out in a podium position. To achieve a podium is great for us and it's a developing project for next season."
Brands Hatch - Sprint Race:
Pos A1 Team Driver Laps Time
1 IRELAND Adam CARROLL 18 22:32.704
2 INDIA Narain KARTHIKEYAN 18 +7.23
3 MEXICO Salvador DURAN 18 +12.34
4 USA John R. HILDEBRAND JR. 18 +12.689
5 PORTUGAL Filipe ALBUQUERQUE 18 +13.018
6 NETHERLANDS Jeroen BLEEKEMOLEN 18 +13.783
7 AUSTRALIA John MARTIN 18 +15.208
8 SWITZERLAND Neel JANI 18 +22.22
9 FRANCE Nicolas PROST 18 +22.945
10 ITALY Vitantonio LIUZZI 18 +27.062
11 GERMANY Michael AMMERMULLER 18 +31.947
12 INDONESIA Satrio HERMANTO 18 +33.159
13 GREAT BRITAIN Daniel CLARKE 18 +33.541
14 CHINA Congfu CHENG 18 +34.963
15 SOUTH AFRICA Alan VAN DER MERWE 18 +40.488
16 MALAYSIA Aaron LIM 18 +41.528
17 LEBANON Daniel MORAD 13 +5 Laps
18 NEW ZEALAND Earl BAMBER 13 +5 Laps
19 MONACO Clivio PICCIONE 8 +10 Laps
- BRAZIL Felipe GUIMARAES 0 -
Fastest lap: A1 Team Ireland set the fastest lap (1m12.276s) of the Sprint race with a speed of 184.4kph on lap 8.
� CAPSIS International
1 Team Ireland and Adam Carroll moved one step closer to the team's maiden title after taking victory in this morning's Sprint race at A1GP Brands Hatch, Great Britain.
India's Narain Karthikeyan finished second with Mexico's Salvador Duran taking the final podium position.
Ireland got a good start but Mexico had a better run into Paddock Hill, taking the lead around the outside through the first corner. Ireland settled into second from USA, Portugal, India and Netherlands, New Zealand and Switzerland.
Australia's John Martin took advantage of a mistake by Switzerland's Neel Jani to take eighth place before the mandatory pit stop window opened.
India made the decision to pit early alongside Lebanon, Germany and Malaysia. A lap later Mexico and Ireland made their way into the pits but after an incredibly quick stop by the Irish team, Adam Carroll regained the lead with India taking second.
John R. Hildebrand continued his good weekend form in his first race for A1 Team USA today by moving up to third after the pit stops, pushing Mexico down to fourth. Monaco's Clivio Piccione had problems leaving the pits, rolling to a stop at the pit lane exit.
On lap nine the order was Ireland from India, USA, Mexico, Portugal, Netherlands, Australia and Switzerland.
Duran was then able to capitalise on a mistake from Hildebrand at the final corner which gave the Mexican a good run to take third into the first corner.
Carroll now had a 3.867-second lead from India but still kept the fans on the edge of their seats, kicking up the dust and showing no sign of easing off the pace.
On lap 15 Lebanon's Daniel Morad lost the back end and spun into the gravel at Paddock Hill Bend with New Zealand's Earl Bamber also going into the gravel to avoid hitting the Lebanese car, leaving both cars out of the race.
Carroll took victory with a comfortable 7.230-second margin over India. Mexico's Duran settled for the final podium position.
A1 Team Brazil did not make the start after being unable to repair the car in time for this morning's Sprint race. The team is still working hard and hopes to have the car ready in time for this afternoon's Feature race.
Portugal's Filipe Albuquerque finished fifth with Switzerland's Jani taking a single point for eighth. Ireland now leads the championship with 97 points from Switzerland (89) and Portugal (86).
Ireland needs to finish fifth or better in this afternoon's Feature race to guarantee them the A1GP World Cup of Motorsport title.
"It's never easy," said Ireland's Adam Carroll.
Click here to find out more!
"Sprint races are always quite strange, they're tougher than the Feature race for some reason. I could see Mexico pushing very hard so just let then get on with it and hoped the boys would come up with the goods in the pit stop and they did. It's a relief for this race to be over and once this afternoon is done we can relax."
India's Narain Karthikeyan said: "It was difficult after a small mistake in qualifying as we should have been further up the grid. The car is working well so I think we are looking good for another podium this afternoon."
Mexico's Salvador Duran said: "I did a small mistake put still the team did a great job and put me out in a podium position. To achieve a podium is great for us and it's a developing project for next season."
Brands Hatch - Sprint Race:
Pos A1 Team Driver Laps Time
1 IRELAND Adam CARROLL 18 22:32.704
2 INDIA Narain KARTHIKEYAN 18 +7.23
3 MEXICO Salvador DURAN 18 +12.34
4 USA John R. HILDEBRAND JR. 18 +12.689
5 PORTUGAL Filipe ALBUQUERQUE 18 +13.018
6 NETHERLANDS Jeroen BLEEKEMOLEN 18 +13.783
7 AUSTRALIA John MARTIN 18 +15.208
8 SWITZERLAND Neel JANI 18 +22.22
9 FRANCE Nicolas PROST 18 +22.945
10 ITALY Vitantonio LIUZZI 18 +27.062
11 GERMANY Michael AMMERMULLER 18 +31.947
12 INDONESIA Satrio HERMANTO 18 +33.159
13 GREAT BRITAIN Daniel CLARKE 18 +33.541
14 CHINA Congfu CHENG 18 +34.963
15 SOUTH AFRICA Alan VAN DER MERWE 18 +40.488
16 MALAYSIA Aaron LIM 18 +41.528
17 LEBANON Daniel MORAD 13 +5 Laps
18 NEW ZEALAND Earl BAMBER 13 +5 Laps
19 MONACO Clivio PICCIONE 8 +10 Laps
- BRAZIL Felipe GUIMARAES 0 -
Fastest lap: A1 Team Ireland set the fastest lap (1m12.276s) of the Sprint race with a speed of 184.4kph on lap 8.
� CAPSIS International
Bahrain GP - Race: Sakhir - 26.04.2009
Button dominates as Toyota fade
Toyota aced the front row with Jarno Trulli claiming their first pole position since the Japanese Grand Prix four years ago ahead of team-mate Timo Glock. As expected however, both TF109’s were lightly fuelled and it was Jenson Button who made best of the situation to take control of the Bahrain Grand Prix following the first round of pitstops.
It was a fairly routine race, the first of the season not to feature at least one safety car period, but the battle for the race victory was fairly straight forward for Button as Glock got the jump on Trulli and led the field in the early stages but then Toyota opted to run the harder prime tyres during the second stint and both Glock and Trulli quickly fell away from the leading Brawn Mercedes.
Toyota’s strategy not only cost them any chance of a race victory but also allowed Sebastian Vettel to get the jump on Trulli in the second and final stop and the Red Bull Renault racer would go on to finish in second position, withstanding the late race pressure from Trulli back on the softer (faster) option tyre.
The opening lap of the 57-lap race was key to Button’s success as he initially lost position to Lewis Hamilton who made best of his KERS-equipped McLaren Mercedes off the line, but a brave move from the Brawn driver later in the lap saw him regain the position and therefore allow him to tail the Toyota duo to the first round of stops.
Trulli finished in third position for Toyota after a strong race only compromised by strategy, while Lewis Hamilton kept the battle for second and third in his view until the closing stages when the McLaren Mercedes driver dropped away on the harder prime tyre.
Rubens Barrichello and Brawn Mercedes opted to switch to a three stop strategy on his way to fifth position and the extra stop did not seem to cost – or gain – the Brazilian veteran in anyway.
Kimi Raikkonen started from tenth position in his Ferrari and took the chequered flag in sixth making good use of his long first stint to vault a number of his rivals. Sixth position may not be a great result in the long history of Ferrari, but it was a good run from Raikkonen as he secured the team their first points of the so-far difficult season.
Timo Glock will be disappointed to finish seventh after leading the early laps of 57-lap event but it was the decision to switch to the harder prime tyre for the second stint that really cost him, combined with his very light fuel load heading into the race.
Fernando Alonso started from seventh position in the leading Renault and took the chequered flag in eighth position after a pretty lonely race. The double world champion lost out to Raikkonen who made up ground with his long first stint.
Williams Toyota leave Bahrain disappointed as Nico Rosberg started ninth and finished in the same position.
Click here to find out more!
Team-mate Kazuki Nakajima was forced to pit for a new front wing at the end of the first lap and his race was effectively over at that point as he dropped towards the rear of the field to battle with the struggling BMW Sauber team. He later retired the FW31, the only driver not to complete the distance.
Nelson Piquet had an error free and fairly strong race in the second Renault to finish in tenth position ahead of Mark Webber who was very aggressive in the opening laps following his qualifying disappointment on Saturday. However, as Webber suggested on Saturday, starting 18th was always going to make it all but impossible to challenge for points.
Heikki Kovalainen started 11th and finished 12th in his McLaren Mercedes after plummeting down the field early on having opted to start the race on the harder prime tyre, while Sebastien Bourdais finished in 13th after a strong race in the leading Toro Rosso Ferrari, chasing Kovalainen across the line.
Felipe Massa’s rotten season continued at Sakhir as he pitted early in the race for a new front wing following the slightest of contact with team-mate Raikkonen at the start. With reported problems with KERS on his F60, it was then just a case of finishing the race for the unhappy Massa.
Giancarlo Fisichella led home Force India Mercedes team-mate Adrian Sutil in 15th with Sebastien Buemi next up in the second Toro Rosso Ferrari. BMW Sauber’s season hit an all time low today with Kubica and Nick Heidfeld both pitting with minor accent damage at the start of the race and then circulating at the back of the field for the remainder of the race. The team effectively opted to end Kubica’s championship challenge last year to focus on this F1.09 package, and it is pretty clear the car is a turkey.
Button remains at the head of the drivers’ standings with 31 points ahead of Barrichello on 19 and Vettel on 18. Brawn Mercedes extend their lead in the constructors’ championship as they now have 50 points to the 27.5 of Red Bull Renault and the 26.5 of Toyota.
The teams now pack up and head back to their European bases with many working hard to add new aerodynamic packages to the cars ahead of the Spanish Grand Prix in two weeks time. McLaren Mercedes meanwhile head to Paris to face charges of bringing the sport into disrepute. As ever, it never stops in Formula One...
Earl ALEXANDER
© CAPSIS International
Chinese GP - Race: Shanghai - 19.04.2009
Victorious Vettel leads home Red Bull one-two!
The predicted rain arrived ahead of the start of the Chinese Grand Prix resulting in the race starting behind the safety car, very reminiscent to the Japanese Grand Prix of 2007. After claiming pole position yesterday in style, Sebastian Vettel took advantage of his position at the head of the field and went on to dominate the 56-lap race.
It was however a far from easy victory for Vettel, who led home team-mate Mark Webber to record Red Bull Renault’s first win, as the persistent rain ensured that the result was far from certain until the very second he took the chequered flag almost two hours after the race first began.
After eight laps behind the safety car the race got underway properly on lap nine with Fernando Alonso having already relinquished his second position with a very early pit stop. The Red Bull duo of Vettel and Webber were quickly able to establish a gap over Jenson Button who passed his Brawn Mercedes team-mate Rubens Barrichello early in the race.
With an 11 second advantage at the head of the field Vettel pitted on lap 15 and Webber shortly repeated the procedure leaving Button at the head of the field. Further back down the order Jarno Trulli was really struggling in the conditions and heading to the final turn on lap 18 was hit hard from behind by Robert Kubica’s BMW Sauber. Trulli’s Toyota was extensively damaged and he was out of the race and the safety car was deployed.
Jenson Button’s 14 second lead at the head of the pack was immediately negated to nothing as he headed to the pits for this first stop. From that point onwards, Vettel and Webber dominated at the front as they traded fastest laps and eased away to a comfortable victory from Button.
Webber finished 11 seconds behind Vettel and kept the pressure on his young team-mate and while he will be happy with the result for the team, having your team-mate record the team’s first victory will be tough to take.
Jenson Button took the chequered flag in third position, 34 seconds behind Vettel, while Rubens Barrichello had a low-key race in the second Brawn Mercedes and was never really on the pace of the front runners. The decision not to change his wet tyres in the second and final pit stop put him under pressure from those close behind, but the Brazilian veteran held on to retain the position.
Button remains at the head of the drivers’ championship with 21 points with Barrichello on 15 and Vettel vaulting up to third with his ten point haul from today. Brawn Mercedes lead Red Bull Renault in the constructors’ championship by 16.5 points.
Behind the Red Bull/Brawn drivers the battle for fifth was completely open. In the end it was Heikki Kovalainen who drove an error free race to take the position in his McLaren Mercedes ahead of team-mate Lewis Hamilton who suffered several spins on his way to sixth.
Timo Glock started the race from the pit lane and despite a brush with Nick Heidfeld early in the race and then a later pitstop for a new front wing, the Toyota driver managed to battle on to finish in seventh position.
Sebastien Buemi is proving he really does deserve his place in the series as he capitalised on his fine qualifying form to finish eighth in the leading Toro Rosso Ferrari.
It was another dismal day for the Renault team following the qualifying boost of yesterday. Light on fuel, Alonso pitted whilst still under safety car conditions early in the race and dropped down the order. The double world champion would battle back to fifth position before a high-speed spin exiting turn 13 sent him back down the order once again. Alonso finished ninth and out of the points.
Kimi Raikkonen and Ferrari leave the third round of the championship without any points again. The Finn ran as high as fifth before pitting on lap 28 but the team opted to move to a one stop strategy. From here Raikkonen never had the pace to recover and he struggled around to finish tenth. Felipe Massa meanwhile ran in the points before his F60 coasted to a halt on the back straight with an electrical problem. Strategy and reliability issues again for the Italian team.
Sebastien Bourdais finished in 11th position in the second Toro Rosso Ferrari after an eventful day. The Frenchman got the better of Nick Heidfeld right at the end of the race to claim the position from the struggling BMW Sauber driver.
Following his high-speed incident with Trulli early in the race and then another pit stop for a new front wing, Robert Kubica rounded off BMW Sauber’s dismal Chinese performance with a 13th place finish.
While Giancarlo Fisichella was classified 14th and Adrian Sutil 17th, it was a disappointing day for Force India Mercedes. Sutil ran in sixth position but with the rain coming down hard in the closing stages, lost control of his VJM02 and nosed the car heavily into the barriers at turn five. It was a real shame for Sutil and the hard-working Force India team.
Williams Toyota had a poor Grand Prix with Nico Rosberg slithering to 15th position following a gamble to switch to intermediate tyres failed, while Kazuki Nakajima spent much of his race running off track before parking the FW31 with a gearbox problem.
Nelson Piquet had a predictably troubled race in the second Renault as he suffered numerous spins resulting in two stops for replacement wings. Piquet was classified two laps down in 16th ahead of the unfortunate Sutil.
The Formula One circus now packs up and head off to Sakhir for next Sunday’s Bahrain Grand Prix.
Earl ALEXANDER
© CAPSIS International
A1 GP Algarve, Portugal - 12/04/09
Jani wins dramatic Portuguese Feature Raceani wins dramatic Portuguese Feature Race
Switzerland's Neel Jani emerged victorious from an action-packed Feature Race at A1GP Algarve, Portugal this afternoon. The result means Jani now has ten A1GP victories to his name – more than any other driver in the history of the sport.
Portugal's Filipe Albuquerque drove a fantastic race to come through to second, while Fairuz Fauzy was third for Malaysia. Ireland's Adam Carroll finished second on the road, but a subsequent penalty dropped him to fifth.
The drama started before the race had even begun as pole-man Robert Doornbos stopped his A1 Team Netherlands car out on track while the field were coming to line up on the grid. The wiring loom chafing ended the Dutchman's hopes of leaving the team on a high on his last A1GP race of the season.
Effectively on pole now, Carroll also had drama as his crew were last off the grid after trouble getting his car started. Brazil was absent from fifth on the grid after being unable to repair the car after crashing out of the Sprint race earlier in the day.
As the race finally got underway, Ireland led the pack into turn one while USA's Marco Andretti made a fantastic start to move ahead of Malaysia and Portugal into fourth. Albuquerque responded immediately with a great move to re-take fourth from the American driver.
As the cars came around to complete the first racing lap the order was Ireland from Switzerland, South Africa, Portugal, USA, New Zealand, Italy, Malaysia, Mexico and Lebanon.
Lebanon and Mexico made contact resulting in a puncture for Lebanon's Daniel Morad, whose race then ended in the gravel at Turn Six. Australia's John Martin had a problem at the first turn which dropped him down the order.
By lap three, Ireland had a 1.8-second advantage over Switzerland with the pair beginning to pull away from the rest of the field.
A great battle was continuing further down the field for the final points-paying positions between Malaysia, Monaco, Mexico, Great Britain and India, with Monaco's Clivio Piccione pushing hard to pass the Malaysian car.
On lap seven there was bad news for the Irish squad as Adam Carroll was given a drive-through penalty for a jump start. With the order now Ireland from Switzerland, South Africa, Portugal, USA, New Zealand, Italy, Monaco, Malaysia and Mexico, the window opened for the first round of pit stops.
Portugal, Italy and South Africa were among the first to pit while Ireland came through for its penalty. A lap later the Celtic Tiger was back in for its mandatory pit stop but with time lost had dropped right down the field. Switzerland made a clean stop to remain out in front while New Zealand had a fantastic stop boosting Earl Bamber up to an effective third ahead of both Portugal and the USA.
Monaco rejoined ahead of USA but came out on cold tyres, Clivio Piccione made an error and lets Marco Andretti through into what was sixth after everyone pitted.
Black Beauty was now flying in the hands of Bamber who was right on the back of South Africa. Zaugg was under immense pressure but defended well coming down the main straight. However, going into turn three Bamber appeared to lock up and crashed into the rear of South Africa. Portugal narrowly avoided the collision up ahead thanks to Albuquerque's lightening reactions as the incident brought the Safety Car out on lap 15.
As Switzerland's 15-second lead disappeared, the field closed up with the order behind Jani now Portugal, Italy, USA, Mexico, Monaco, Malaysia, India, Germany and Ireland. The incident brought Ireland right back into contention.
The race re-started on lap 19 and Filipe Albuquerque made a brilliant manoeuvre around the outside of Jani at Turn One to take the lead in front of the roaring crowds. USA made a move on Italy and as Tonio Liuzzi tried to come back on the inside at Turn Nine, the pair touched, with the Italian car spinning into the innocent car of Monaco leaving all three out of the race.
The Safety Car was straight back out with the order now Portugal leading from Switzerland, Mexico, Malaysia, India, Australia, Ireland, Germany, France and Indonesia.
On lap 23 the race was back underway with Portugal under immense pressure from Switzerland. The second pit stop window opened on lap 27 with Portugal, Malaysia, India and Ireland coming straight in. Ireland jumped both India and Malaysia after a stunning stop from the Irish team getting Adam Carroll out just behind Portugal.
A lap later Switzerland pitted and a quick stop from the Swiss team got their man out comfortably in the lead. Mexico's Salvador Duran was running an impressive third after great pit stop strategy from the Mexican squad.
With 12 laps to go Albuquerque's mirrors were full of the emerald green car as Jani continued to pull away in the lead. On lap 32 the timing screens flashed with more bad news as Ireland was awarded another drive-through penalty for overtaking behind the Safety Car.
The stewards then made the decision to investigate the incident after the race, allowing Ireland to continue racing. Germany also had bad news as Andre Lotterer was given a drive-through penalty also for overtaking under Safety Car conditions.
As Mexico came in for its final stop of the day, Ireland finally made a move on Portugal to take second. In the closing stages of the race, India's Narain Karthikeyan spun into retirement while Australia retired in the pits.
Ireland now had the gap to Switzerland down to 0.6-seconds as Carroll chased the win in the dying stages of the race. Switzerland held on to victory, making Jani the driver who has won the most races in A1GP history with ten victories to his name.
Portugal's Filipe Albuquerque drove a fantastic race to come through from seventh on the grid to take the final podium position in front of his home fans.The 23-year-old bowed down and thanked the crowd for their support this weekend to an almost deafening cheer.
The final race order at the flag was Switzerland from Ireland, Portugal, Malaysia, Mexico, France, Great Britain, China, Germany and Indonesia. However, following a stewards' enquiry, Ireland's penalty was upheld. The team had a 25-second time penalty applied for overtaking Australia under the Safety Car just before a re-start which dropped it down to fifth in the order.
Switzerland therefore regained its championship lead with 88 points from Ireland (86) and Portugal (82), however if dropped scores were taken into account at this stage, Ireland would still remain at the top of the championship by two points.
Race winner Neel Jani said: "There was everything in it (the race). Coming from third, having second, then to the pit stop and getting the lead, losing the lead and having Adam really put me under pressure at the end. We were a bit lucky today and we were very unlucky yesterday so it's a balance."
"On the restart he (Albuquerque) caught me down the straight and I just thought I can't hold it, so don't fight him too much and just try to get him on the second pit stop, which worked well."
"I saw cars going off and I thought 'oh that's another position for Adam coming from the back.' I think it was a great race for us. We can be really happy with what we have achieved today. I had to fight quite hard because Adam (Carroll) was really quick and Portugal too, so I think it will be between the three of us in the end," mentioned Jani.
"It was very hard at the beginning," said local hero Filipe Albuquerque. "We then had a really poor pit stop – another car was coming and didn't let me out. I still pushed with the new tyres, but I was really disappointed with the third stint – I think the pressures were too high on the tyres."
"I am very proud and coming from P7 I was very lucky and had to fight a lot," he added. "I was in the middle of all the battles. I lost my left mirror so I couldn't see the crash between New Zealand and South Africa. I am pleased to get a podium. It's good for the standings in the championship. Getting two podiums on home soil is just perfect."
Malaysia's Fairuz Fauzy commented: "Taking our third podium finish of the season today is a good result for us. It has moved us into sixth place of the overall standings, but we're only three points behind France, so we can fight for this as well. We had a good car and this, combined with our teamwork and a strong race strategy – and a little bit of good fortune - ensured we took a top three spot."
Portugal - Feature Race results:
Pos A1 Team Driver Laps Time/Gap
1. SWITZERLAND Neel JANI 42 10:45.011
2. PORTUGAL Filipe ALBUQUERQUE 42 6.786
3. MALAYSIA Fairuz FAUZY 42 9.705
4. MEXICO Salvador DURAN 42 16.332
5. IRELAND Adam CARROLL 42 25.411
6. FRANCE Nicolas PROST 42 27.322
7. GREAT BRITAIN Daniel CLARKE 42 29.88
8. CHINA Ho Pin TUNG 42 34.586
9. GERMANY Andre LOTTERER 42 43.97
10. INDONESIA Zahir ALI 42 +1:13.993
11. INDIA Narain KARTHIKEYAN 39 3 Laps
12. AUSTRALIA John MARTIN 38 4 Laps
13. ITALY Tonio LIUZZI 18 24 Laps
14. USA Marco ANDRETTI 18 24 Laps
15. MONACO Clivio PICCIONE 18 24 Laps
16. SOUTH AFRICA Adrian ZAUGG 15 27 Laps
17. NEW ZEALAND Earl BAMBER 15 27 Laps
18. LEBANON Daniel MORAD 1 41 Laps
- BRAZIL Felipe GUIMARAES 0
- NETHERLANDS Robert DOORNBOS 0
Fastest lap: A1 Team Ireland set the fastest lap (1m31.453s) of the Feature Race with a speed of 184.5kph on lap 35.
2008/09 A1GP World Cup of Motorsport points standings:
1. Switzerland 88
2. Ireland 86
3. Portugal 82
4. Netherlands 66
5. France 46
6. Malaysia 43
7. New Zealand 36
8. Australia 30
9. Monaco 27
10. Great Britain 24
11. USA 19
12. South Africa 19
13. Brazil 18
14. Italy 15
15. India 11
16. Mexico 8
17. Lebanon 8
18. China 7
19. Korea 4
20. Indonesia 3
21. Germany 2
D.B. © CAPSIS International
Switzerland's Neel Jani emerged victorious from an action-packed Feature Race at A1GP Algarve, Portugal this afternoon. The result means Jani now has ten A1GP victories to his name – more than any other driver in the history of the sport.
Portugal's Filipe Albuquerque drove a fantastic race to come through to second, while Fairuz Fauzy was third for Malaysia. Ireland's Adam Carroll finished second on the road, but a subsequent penalty dropped him to fifth.
The drama started before the race had even begun as pole-man Robert Doornbos stopped his A1 Team Netherlands car out on track while the field were coming to line up on the grid. The wiring loom chafing ended the Dutchman's hopes of leaving the team on a high on his last A1GP race of the season.
Effectively on pole now, Carroll also had drama as his crew were last off the grid after trouble getting his car started. Brazil was absent from fifth on the grid after being unable to repair the car after crashing out of the Sprint race earlier in the day.
As the race finally got underway, Ireland led the pack into turn one while USA's Marco Andretti made a fantastic start to move ahead of Malaysia and Portugal into fourth. Albuquerque responded immediately with a great move to re-take fourth from the American driver.
As the cars came around to complete the first racing lap the order was Ireland from Switzerland, South Africa, Portugal, USA, New Zealand, Italy, Malaysia, Mexico and Lebanon.
Lebanon and Mexico made contact resulting in a puncture for Lebanon's Daniel Morad, whose race then ended in the gravel at Turn Six. Australia's John Martin had a problem at the first turn which dropped him down the order.
By lap three, Ireland had a 1.8-second advantage over Switzerland with the pair beginning to pull away from the rest of the field.
A great battle was continuing further down the field for the final points-paying positions between Malaysia, Monaco, Mexico, Great Britain and India, with Monaco's Clivio Piccione pushing hard to pass the Malaysian car.
On lap seven there was bad news for the Irish squad as Adam Carroll was given a drive-through penalty for a jump start. With the order now Ireland from Switzerland, South Africa, Portugal, USA, New Zealand, Italy, Monaco, Malaysia and Mexico, the window opened for the first round of pit stops.
Portugal, Italy and South Africa were among the first to pit while Ireland came through for its penalty. A lap later the Celtic Tiger was back in for its mandatory pit stop but with time lost had dropped right down the field. Switzerland made a clean stop to remain out in front while New Zealand had a fantastic stop boosting Earl Bamber up to an effective third ahead of both Portugal and the USA.
Monaco rejoined ahead of USA but came out on cold tyres, Clivio Piccione made an error and lets Marco Andretti through into what was sixth after everyone pitted.
Black Beauty was now flying in the hands of Bamber who was right on the back of South Africa. Zaugg was under immense pressure but defended well coming down the main straight. However, going into turn three Bamber appeared to lock up and crashed into the rear of South Africa. Portugal narrowly avoided the collision up ahead thanks to Albuquerque's lightening reactions as the incident brought the Safety Car out on lap 15.
As Switzerland's 15-second lead disappeared, the field closed up with the order behind Jani now Portugal, Italy, USA, Mexico, Monaco, Malaysia, India, Germany and Ireland. The incident brought Ireland right back into contention.
The race re-started on lap 19 and Filipe Albuquerque made a brilliant manoeuvre around the outside of Jani at Turn One to take the lead in front of the roaring crowds. USA made a move on Italy and as Tonio Liuzzi tried to come back on the inside at Turn Nine, the pair touched, with the Italian car spinning into the innocent car of Monaco leaving all three out of the race.
The Safety Car was straight back out with the order now Portugal leading from Switzerland, Mexico, Malaysia, India, Australia, Ireland, Germany, France and Indonesia.
On lap 23 the race was back underway with Portugal under immense pressure from Switzerland. The second pit stop window opened on lap 27 with Portugal, Malaysia, India and Ireland coming straight in. Ireland jumped both India and Malaysia after a stunning stop from the Irish team getting Adam Carroll out just behind Portugal.
A lap later Switzerland pitted and a quick stop from the Swiss team got their man out comfortably in the lead. Mexico's Salvador Duran was running an impressive third after great pit stop strategy from the Mexican squad.
With 12 laps to go Albuquerque's mirrors were full of the emerald green car as Jani continued to pull away in the lead. On lap 32 the timing screens flashed with more bad news as Ireland was awarded another drive-through penalty for overtaking behind the Safety Car.
The stewards then made the decision to investigate the incident after the race, allowing Ireland to continue racing. Germany also had bad news as Andre Lotterer was given a drive-through penalty also for overtaking under Safety Car conditions.
As Mexico came in for its final stop of the day, Ireland finally made a move on Portugal to take second. In the closing stages of the race, India's Narain Karthikeyan spun into retirement while Australia retired in the pits.
Ireland now had the gap to Switzerland down to 0.6-seconds as Carroll chased the win in the dying stages of the race. Switzerland held on to victory, making Jani the driver who has won the most races in A1GP history with ten victories to his name.
Portugal's Filipe Albuquerque drove a fantastic race to come through from seventh on the grid to take the final podium position in front of his home fans.The 23-year-old bowed down and thanked the crowd for their support this weekend to an almost deafening cheer.
The final race order at the flag was Switzerland from Ireland, Portugal, Malaysia, Mexico, France, Great Britain, China, Germany and Indonesia. However, following a stewards' enquiry, Ireland's penalty was upheld. The team had a 25-second time penalty applied for overtaking Australia under the Safety Car just before a re-start which dropped it down to fifth in the order.
Switzerland therefore regained its championship lead with 88 points from Ireland (86) and Portugal (82), however if dropped scores were taken into account at this stage, Ireland would still remain at the top of the championship by two points.
Race winner Neel Jani said: "There was everything in it (the race). Coming from third, having second, then to the pit stop and getting the lead, losing the lead and having Adam really put me under pressure at the end. We were a bit lucky today and we were very unlucky yesterday so it's a balance."
"On the restart he (Albuquerque) caught me down the straight and I just thought I can't hold it, so don't fight him too much and just try to get him on the second pit stop, which worked well."
"I saw cars going off and I thought 'oh that's another position for Adam coming from the back.' I think it was a great race for us. We can be really happy with what we have achieved today. I had to fight quite hard because Adam (Carroll) was really quick and Portugal too, so I think it will be between the three of us in the end," mentioned Jani.
"It was very hard at the beginning," said local hero Filipe Albuquerque. "We then had a really poor pit stop – another car was coming and didn't let me out. I still pushed with the new tyres, but I was really disappointed with the third stint – I think the pressures were too high on the tyres."
"I am very proud and coming from P7 I was very lucky and had to fight a lot," he added. "I was in the middle of all the battles. I lost my left mirror so I couldn't see the crash between New Zealand and South Africa. I am pleased to get a podium. It's good for the standings in the championship. Getting two podiums on home soil is just perfect."
Malaysia's Fairuz Fauzy commented: "Taking our third podium finish of the season today is a good result for us. It has moved us into sixth place of the overall standings, but we're only three points behind France, so we can fight for this as well. We had a good car and this, combined with our teamwork and a strong race strategy – and a little bit of good fortune - ensured we took a top three spot."
Portugal - Feature Race results:
Pos A1 Team Driver Laps Time/Gap
1. SWITZERLAND Neel JANI 42 10:45.011
2. PORTUGAL Filipe ALBUQUERQUE 42 6.786
3. MALAYSIA Fairuz FAUZY 42 9.705
4. MEXICO Salvador DURAN 42 16.332
5. IRELAND Adam CARROLL 42 25.411
6. FRANCE Nicolas PROST 42 27.322
7. GREAT BRITAIN Daniel CLARKE 42 29.88
8. CHINA Ho Pin TUNG 42 34.586
9. GERMANY Andre LOTTERER 42 43.97
10. INDONESIA Zahir ALI 42 +1:13.993
11. INDIA Narain KARTHIKEYAN 39 3 Laps
12. AUSTRALIA John MARTIN 38 4 Laps
13. ITALY Tonio LIUZZI 18 24 Laps
14. USA Marco ANDRETTI 18 24 Laps
15. MONACO Clivio PICCIONE 18 24 Laps
16. SOUTH AFRICA Adrian ZAUGG 15 27 Laps
17. NEW ZEALAND Earl BAMBER 15 27 Laps
18. LEBANON Daniel MORAD 1 41 Laps
- BRAZIL Felipe GUIMARAES 0
- NETHERLANDS Robert DOORNBOS 0
Fastest lap: A1 Team Ireland set the fastest lap (1m31.453s) of the Feature Race with a speed of 184.5kph on lap 35.
2008/09 A1GP World Cup of Motorsport points standings:
1. Switzerland 88
2. Ireland 86
3. Portugal 82
4. Netherlands 66
5. France 46
6. Malaysia 43
7. New Zealand 36
8. Australia 30
9. Monaco 27
10. Great Britain 24
11. USA 19
12. South Africa 19
13. Brazil 18
14. Italy 15
15. India 11
16. Mexico 8
17. Lebanon 8
18. China 7
19. Korea 4
20. Indonesia 3
21. Germany 2
D.B. © CAPSIS International
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