FORMULA 1 - 2016

[MIKA27]

Steiner: We took him on for a reason

Receiving plenty of praise after the Australian Grand Prix, Haas F1 Team boss Guenther Steiner has expressed his delight at the team's decision to recruit Romain Grosjean for their debut season.

The Frenchman finished the race in an unexpected 6th place, which he described as good as a win, and proved that despite being a brand new team on the grid they can still compete with the more experienced constructors.

Steiner revealed that Grosjean's pace matched with his experience in the sport makes it a real coup for their American-based team.

"We took him on for this reason," he told f1i.com.

"He's fast but he’s experienced. He can manage the tyres, he's known for that.

"He did all what we took him on for, he delivered, that's why we took Romain. He delivered at the perfect level."

Spreading the applause, Steiner also complimented the entire team for their relentless hard work they put in to get their cars ready for the 2016 season.

"Absolutely, I mean everybody did a great job. I mean, the last two months I wouldn’t like to have been any of these guys," he said.

"They worked day and night, but continuously, it wasn't like they did it once. No, we built the car, we went testing, day and night, then we went to the factory to rebuild the cars, then we came here and we had some gremlins and some problems.

"Then it rained, we didn't do any testing and I think our drivers maybe each did seven timed laps before going in to the race, it's quite amazing. But it happens, so we take it."

[MIKA27]

Analysis: What the Mexican GP really brought to a nation

After rave reviews following its return to the F1 calendar last year, the Mexican GP promoter tells Motorsport.com’s Editor in Chief Charles Bradley what it meant financially to the nation.

The economics of staging a world-class sporting event, such as a Formula 1 Grand Prix, is pretty astronomical. Literally hundreds of millions of dollars are required to be pumped in, but the benefits – apart from the spectacle of some cars racing around a track – can be difficult to appreciate at first.

Last year Mexico was added to the F1 calendar following a huge push from many big players in the region, not least Carlos Slim Domit – a huge patron of the sport. He’s a super-smart guy, and could see the big picture of the benefits, despite the huge outlay.

Last week, the results of the economic impact of the event were released – and the numbers make interesting reading.

Over 300,000 attendees, a $232million contribution to the economy, plus $277million global media exposure, equalling a $510million economic impact. Then there was the reconstruction of the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez itself, a one-off $242million project which is now there for the benefit of other events, such as the FIA’s World Endurance Championship and Formula E too.

The promoter’s view

Alejandro Soberon, the President and CEO of event promoters CIE, gave Motorsport.com an exclusive insight into the findings of the report.

“All the results of the economical impact in Mexico that we received from two agencies were very consistent, so we’re very happy with the effect that it has had for the country,” he said.

“It’s very important with a private and public collaboration, when you’re dealing with an event of this size, to keep your eye on the fundamental impact. More than that business and economics of the race itself, what it really brings is added value for the country.

“We all agreed an ambition of an average of $400million benefit in Mexico, for each race. We’re very happy that the figure for the first year was above $750million [in total].

“Of course, that involves the remodelling of the circuit – a one-time cost of $240million – but even excluding that, we add well over $500million per year for the Mexican economy, which is great.”

Building on a strong base

After all the hard work, and a successful execution of the race weekend, the plaudits rained down. Niki Lauda hailed it as “unbelievable” and even Bernie Ecclestone told European promoters to “come to Mexico and see how it should be done”.

“It was very strong for us, wonderful to see and hear the approval of what we had done,” added Soberon. “It was a very tough year, we had to rebuild the track and do all the construction work – at the same time create the business model – we had 13,000 people working.

“That included 6,000 who were temporary workers, so we had to get them up to the right level of service. It was challenging, but we were very proud that Mexico was about to surprise the world.”

The future

As reported on Motorsport.com, extra capacity could be added this year as the demand for tickets appears as strong as Year 1. And if it can deliver again this season, it opens the door to a long-term – rather than medium-term – future for the event.

“There’s a business plan for five years – that was the commitment between all the parties,” he added. “We need to prove that we can deliver the first two grands prix, looking at the results and the experience, before we can consider to expand the contract in the longer term.

“Many corporate sponsors are interested and are going to build conventions around the Mexican Grand Prix. We are just fine-tuning today, and we’re very optimistic as we’ll have two Mexican drivers – the addition of Esteban [Gutierrez] is a bonus for the Grand Prix.”

And for the regular local fans?

He added: “We have a system in which we give a benefit for the ‘early birds’ to pay in instalments over six months, interest free, rather than one payment. It’s a great incentive for pre-sales.

“So far, everything looks fine, just great. The profile of the event has created a lot of awareness, and we truly believe that the concept of the race in Mexico was a winner – such as integrating the stadium into the fan experience, that worked out very well.”

[MIKA27]

Horner thinks Red Bull could catch Ferrari with Canada engine upgrade

Red Bull boss Christian Horner believes a planned Renault engine upgrade coming for the Canadian Grand Prix could help his team get within striking range of Ferrari over the second half of the campaign.

The Milton Keynes-based outfit showed its potential in the Australian Grand Prix last weekend with a fourth place finish for Daniel Ricciardo, with its long-run pace being particularly strong.

And that early potential, allied to what Renault has in the pipeline for later in the season, has left Horner enthusiastic about what is possible this season.

"The pace that we had in the race was really encouraging," said Horner looking at the Melbourne race.

"If you look at pace on the different sets of tyre compounds, we looked pretty competitive.

"Certainly we were the third fastest car in the race, and not too far from Ferrari kind of pace."

Qualifying key

Red Bull was helped by the shuffling of order caused by various strategies being played out after the red flag in Australia.

But Horner is aware that with Renault's qualifying form needing a boost, there is scope for it to do much better later in the year.

"I think for sure we made a bit of progress, particularly in the race conditions," he said about the Renault power unit. "It's less so in quali, but particularly in the race.

"So I think if we get the next step that we're all hoping for, then that's going to move us into a more competitive position.

"But fundamentally the chassis is working very well. The degradation on the tyres has been very good. Our stint lengths seemed as long as the best, and we were competitive when Ricciardo was on the same tyre in clear air: he was doing the same times as Seb."

Ferrari target

Although Ferrari appears to have everything it needs to challenge Mercedes more this season, Horner is not ruling out putting the Maranello outfit under some pressure.

"Ferrari isn't a huge amount ahead," he said. "So if we can keep our heads down and keep pushing, it's not infeasible that in the second half of the year we can be taking it to them a bit."

[MIKA27]

Symonds doubts Haas approach is right for F1

Formula 1 is heading in the wrong direction with the way Haas has arrived in F1 despite its brilliant point-scoring debut, says Williams technical chief Pat Symonds.

Haas produced one of the biggest surprises of the season opener when good timing for a tyre change during the red flag period helped Romain Grosjean secure a sixth place finish.

But despite the delight many felt at the Haas team's debut performance, Symonds has questioned if it is right that teams should be heading down the 'customer car' route.

"I think that the status of being a constructor is being gradually eroded," said Symonds. "And some would like it completely eroded.

"I think what Haas has done is good for him, but I don't know if that's the way F1 should be going.

"It is totally legal, but is it really what F1 wants? I'm not sure."

Listed parts

Haas has formed a close technical partnership with Ferrari, which as well as engines includes it buying as many Ferrari car components as are allowed under the 'listed parts' regulations.

Symonds thinks that expanding what teams are allowed to share could ultimately spell the demise of constructor teams.

"I think that when we had the listed parts, the original listed parts, it was quite pragmatic," he said.

"It allowed you to sell a few sensible things like transmissions that are high value, low performance impact. But it got whittled away, and some wanted it whittled even further.

"I would prefer F1 to have more of an emphasis on constructors."

MIKA: Where the hell are the works and constructors teams? Where's AUDI, VW, PORSCHE, BMW?

It's teams like Haas that make up the grid and often seen as the underdogs. Look at Force India, for so long they were back markers and now top 5 in the WDC. I think it's great to see new teams like Haas, especially in this instance where they are competitive already, help or no help from Ferrari, who cares IMO.

I'm a Formula 1 fan and I'm pleased to see the likes of Haas in F1.

[MIKA27]

Drivers call for overhaul of F1's 'ill-structured' governance

Formula One drivers have called on their sport to restructure its governance, arguing that the current rule making process has proved itself to be "obsolete and ill-structured".

An open letter issued by the Grand Prix Drivers Association (GPDA) on Wednesday took aim at recent rule changes that the drivers believe lack coherent direction. Instead they have called on F1 to restructure its decision-making process and come up with a clear "master plan" for the future.

"We feel that some recent rule changes - on both the sporting and technical side, and including some business directions - are disruptive, do not address the bigger issues our sport is facing and in some cases could jeopardise its future success," read a section of the letter. "We know that among the leaders of the sport - be it the owners, their representatives, the governing body, the teams or other stakeholders - every individual acts with the very best intentions.

"Therefore, the drivers have come to the conclusion that the decision-making process in the sport is obsolete and ill-structured and prevents progress being made. Indeed, it can sometimes lead to just the opposite, a gridlock. This reflects negatively on our sport, prevents it being fit for the next generation of fans and compromises further global growth.

"We would like to request and urge the owners and all stakeholders of Formula One to consider restructuring its own governance. The future directions and decisions of F1, be they short or long term, sporting, technical or business orientated should be based on a clear master plan. Such plan should reflect the principles and core values of Formula One."

The letter comes one week after F1's new qualifying system for 2016 came under fire from fans and drivers alike. The drivers had warned against going ahead with the plans before Saturday's debut, but F1's decision-making bodies followed through with the new system regardless. Following confusion in Q1 and an anti-climactic Q3, team bosses agreed the next day to revert to the old system ahead of the the next race in Bahrain.

F1's drivers have no official voting power on new regulations, which are devised by F1's Strategy Group, voted on by the F1 Commission and rubber-stamped by the FIA's World Motor Sport Council. The process has come under fire in recent years because of the self-interest of those involved, but this is the first time the GPDA has openly criticised the sport's governance.

The open letter in full:

Dear Formula One stakeholders, followers and fans,

The Grand Prix drivers would like to state our following position: We drivers love our sport! Since childhood, we dreamed of racing the fastest race cars from the top teams on the coolest tracks against the best drivers in the world. We seek competition and love F1 almost unconditionally, which makes us most probably the people with the purest interest for Formula One, beside our fans.

Formula One is currently challenged by a difficult global economic environment, a swift change in fan and consumer behaviour, and a decisive shift in the TV and media landscape. This makes it fundamental that the sport's leaders make smart and well considered adjustments.

We feel that some recent rule changes - on both the sporting and technical side, and including some business directions - are disruptive, do not address the bigger issues our sport is facing and in some cases could jeopardise its future success. We know that among the leaders of the sport - be it the owners, their representatives, the governing body, the teams or other stakeholders - every individual acts with the very best intentions.

Therefore, the drivers have come to the conclusion that the decision-making process in the sport is obsolete and ill-structured and prevents progress being made. Indeed, it can sometimes lead to just the opposite, a gridlock. This reflects negatively on our sport, prevents it being fit for the next generation of fans and compromises further global growth.

We would like to request and urge the owners and all stakeholders of Formula One to consider restructuring its own governance. The future directions and decisions of F1, be they short or long term, sporting, technical or business orientated should be based on a clear master plan. Such plan should reflect the principles and core values of Formula One.

We need to ensure that F1 remains a sport, a closely-fought competition between the best drivers in extraordinary machines on the coolest race tracks. F1 should be home only to the best teams, drivers and circuits, with partners and suppliers fit for such an elite championship.

Formula One has undoubtedly established itself as the pinnacle of motorsport and as such one of the most viewed and popular sports around the world. We drivers stand united, offer our help and support for F1 to keep it as such, and further to make it fit and exciting for many years and generations to come.

It is important to state that this open letter is intended in the best interests of all and should not be seen as blind and disrespectful attack. Thank you for your attention and granting us the liberty to put our thoughts into words.

Best regards, Jenson Button, Sebastian Vettel, Alex Wurz, on behalf of the Grand Prix Drivers

[MIKA27]

Lewis Hamilton on how to improve F1

Reigning world champion Lewis Hamilton says Formula One needs to focus on encouraging wheel-to-wheel racing above all else if it is to improve the sport next year.

Hamilton raised his concerns about Formula One's proposed changes for 2017 earlier this year, arguing the sport is getting its priorities wrong by targeting more downforce and heavier cars. After struggling to overtake Toro Rossos during Sunday's Australian Grand Prix, Hamilton reiterated his belief that the sport should be focusing on overtaking rather than reducing overall lap time.

"I felt today [sunday] was no different to any race that I've generally had in the last years in terms of how we follow here in Albert Park," Hamilton said. "It's such a great circuit, but you can't get close.

"I was looking at a cool picture of the old cars, I think it was Estoril, the start at Turn 1, I think the Williams might be ahead and the two McLaren's I think it was [Ayrton] Senna and [Mika] Hakkinen maybe.

"Wide cars, the wheels look great -- the rear wheels should always be way bigger than the front wheels I feel -- but we need more mechanical grip and less weight so that we can get close. At the minute you just see us sliding around because we don't actually have a lot of grip as it is on these tyres and then we lose with the weight, there's just nothing you can do.

"We are all capable of racing much closer if we were able to get closer so there needs to be changes to enable us to do that and we don't seem to be making those changes. If you give us five seconds more downforce it will be exactly the same just five seconds faster, but they won't listen to what I say on that or what us drivers say on that, they'll make something else happen.

"They'll probably give us more downforce and the tyres won't be any better and you'll see the exact seem race next year."

Hamilton said the main problem stems from losing downforce while travelling in the turbulent air of the car in front, which in turn puts more stress on the tyres and forces drivers to back off until their next pit stop.

"For example, look at my first stint [in Australia]. I just wanted to attack and attack the guys up front and spend the 12 laps or 15 laps or whatever just going for hell to get pass the guy in front but I couldn't do that because I would damage my race, so then I had to back off and just look after my tyres to get to the target, but then people don't get to see a race and that's always the same.

"When we did the restart I couldn't afford to go and spend the life of the tyres trying to get past [Carlos] Sainz because then I won't see it until the end of the race on the strategy. The closer I get I am sliding around so it's a domino effect and they do get hot and you slide around and burn rubber."

Pirelli has agreed to make more resilient tyres for 2017 and the wider cars that have been proposed should offer more mechanical grip, but Hamilton is concerned the changes have been proposed by people who do not fully understand the limitations the drivers face.

"It's interesting, [FIA race director] Charlie Whiting has called for some meetings, and generally I didn't go because at the time I was just focused on doing my work with the engineers but also it's very rare that in any our conversations that any of what we say really gets taken notice of.

"Most likely if I go, Sebastian [Vettel] is the only one really going to be doing the talking, so there is no point of me being there. I feel that it's only a benefit to the hierarchy who are making decision to at least ask the driver 'what is your issue in the car?' 'Does making one paddle for the start make it harder or less?', because it makes it no harder for me.

"Things like that, because we know the ergonomics of the car, we know what's happening in the car. They've never asked us what our limitation is when we are behind another car, but they can rely on us for those things.

"In terms of making decisions and coming up with ideas, that's not our job. At the top end, there are probably way too many people making decisions, who, for one, probably don't have a lot of understanding of what it's like in the car.

"But the problem is as it is right now, all the people making the decisions have different opinions and if they don't all agree then something doesn't get done. My understanding is that there are teams with more budget and more say than perhaps the lower ones and the problem is for us drivers, half of us will say one thing and half will say another, will all have different opinions. I don't know what the answer is but there needs to be less people making the decisions and hopefully making the right ones."

Hamilton made clear that he still loves F1, but after a weekend in which the sport's new qualifying format failed to deliver, he is praying the sport makes the right decisions for the future.

"When you report or however you've interpreted what I've said, I love this sport, I love racing and in the car I've just had so much fun this weekend. Today I had a race, I was behind people and I had to race, I had to strategise and that's what I live for and ultimately I don't know all the changes that should be made but whatever decisions have been made, it's definitely not making the spectacle better, and not making the racing better from the drivers point of view.

"How we are going to come to that, I don't know, but I really hope and pray for the sport that eventually they will take the right turn, but I can't see that happening at the moment."

[MIKA27]

Gene Haas: What we did on Sunday took five years in NASCAR

Gene Haas says it took five years in NASCAR to achieve a result comparable to his F1 team's sixth-place finish on its debut at the Australian Grand Prix.

Romain Grosjean exceeded expectations in Melbourne by making use of a single tyre change under a red flag on lap 18 to finish sixth ahead of much more experienced teams. Haas has raced in NASCAR since 2003, winning two drivers' titles and 33 races in that time, but team owner Gene Haas said it took five years in stock cars to achieve a result comparable to Grosjean's sixth place.

"We spent a lot of years racing in NASCAR and never accomplished anything, we'd lead a few laps but that was about the best," he said. "What we did today took five years in NASCAR, but learning what I did in NASCAR is there's just certain things you put together. You've got to get the right people, the best equipment you can get and that's how you win. It's a formula that we learned the hard way and now we're trying to repeat it."

Haas said Sunday's result would be good for the team as it embarks on the rest of the season, but is keeping his expectations in check.

"I don't think we had a lot of expectations for the season and it could still be a long hard season -- quite frankly, one race doesn't define a season. The team is good and the guys worked well together. There was a lot of learning about how to communicate, but we had a lot of adversity and they pulled together and worked. They had great results and they will feel confident when they come to the next race and that will have great benefits.

"Ultimately I think it's the team -- and that goes from the owner, to the driver, to the mechanics and the people that put the pieces together -- they are all important and it's about making them feel that they are all wanted. I think that Grosjean did that today, he made them feel like a team."

[mgravito]

MIKA: [/color]Where the hell are the works and constructors teams? Where's AUDI, VW, PORSCHE, BMW?

It's teams like Haas that make up the grid and often seen as the underdogs. Look at Force India, for so long they were back markers and now top 5 in the WDC. I think it's great to see new teams like Haas, especially in this instance where they are competitive already, help or no help from Ferrari, who cares IMO.

I'm a Formula 1 fan and I'm pleased to see the likes of Haas in F1.

I agree. A lot of these constructors started off as basically customer cars in the first place and a partnership with a works team comes along later. New competitive teams with good staffs end up becoming works teams, see: Mercedes, Red Bull ( for a year or two at least with Renault)

Sent from my Nexus 5X using Tapatalk

[MIKA27]

Guys - FYI, I'm away on a short break with my son so may not be posting as much for the week. Will update where possible.

Happy Easter and be safe

[MIKA27]

F1 QUALIFYING WILL NOT CHANGE FOR BAHRAIN

Formula One’s much-criticised new qualifying format will stay in place for the forthcoming Bahrain Grand Prix but could change after that, commercial supremo Bernie Ecclestone said on Thursday.

“The outcome I think is that we are going to stay as we are,” he told Reuters after a vote by the sport’s Strategy Group that agrees what to put forward to the broader Formula One Commission. “After Bahrain, we’re going to have a look at it.”

The Formula One commission, which includes all the teams, race promoters and sponsors as well as the governing FIA and Ecclestone’s commercial rights holders Formula One management, had yet to complete their voting process.

However, any change to the existing rules has to be unanimous at this stage. Bahrain is the second race of the season.

The sport’s stakeholders all agreed unanimously to change the qualifying format, even though many fans felt there was nothing wrong with it, only weeks before the season’s opening race in Australia last weekend.

They then agreed, initially with a similar degree of solidarity, that it had not worked in Melbourne.

The new format, based on racers being progressively eliminated during the three sessions rather than at the end of each, was intended to add excitement but instead took away any suspense with no cars on track in the final minutes.

“I’m the first one to say we shouldn’t be speaking bad about things on TV, but I think the new qualifying format is pretty rubbish,” Mercedes motorsport director Toto Wolff told Sky Sports last weekend.

However, divisions soon emerged, with Force India deputy principal Bob Fernley suggesting it should be given more time and that the sport should refrain from knee-jerk reactions.

Some called for the first two new phases to be retained before reverting to the old format, while others wanted to go back to the familiar 2015 version.

In a sign of the dissatisfaction around the sport, Formula One drivers issued an open letter on Wednesday calling for a change in governance and to abandon “obsolete and ill-structured’ decision-making processes.

Ecclestone replied to them with his own letter on Thursday, saying he agreed that change was needed, “It is not always easy to agree with you but you are correct. We must, as you have stated, urge the owners and all stakeholders of F1 to consider restructuring its governance.”

Speaking to Reuters, he added that he felt the real problem was that Ferrari and champions Mercedes, who between them provide engines to eight of the 11 teams, had too much power.

“We could easily enough change it,” he said. “It’s loaded too much in favour of the wrong people… Mercedes and Ferrari can buy votes. That’s not really the way to go.”

[MIKA27]

WOLFF: NICO IS PART OF THE MERCEDES FAMILY

Nico Rosberg is first in the queue to race with Mercedes in 2017, confirmed team boss Toto Wolff, with media reports in Germany declaring that the Australian Grand Prix winner’s current deal is definitely expiring late this year.

“Nico is part of the Mercedes family,” Wolff told Sport Bild. “So he will be the first person we speak with. Then he has to tell us what he imagines also.”

It is clear that, not far behind 31 year old Rosberg in the queue is Pascal Wehrlein, the strongly Mercedes-backed reigning DTM champion who has been placed at Manor this year for his F1 debut.

“Pascal has been given the responsibility at a young age to lead the Manor team,” Wolff said. “We will watch him closely and then decide how to proceed with his career.”

Rosberg joined Mercedes, from Williams, in 2010 when the team returned to the sport as a fully fledged works outfit, with Michael Schumacher as his teammate.

Since then Rosberg enjoyed his most fruitful years in Formula 1, winning his first grand prix in China in 2012, and since then notching up a total of 15 F1 career wins and twice (2014 and 2015) finishing runner-up to teammate Lewis Hamilton in the world championship.

Rosberg started his 2016 championship campaign in the best way possible, by winning the season opener in Melborune, prompting Mercedes F1 team chairman Niki Lauda to comment, “You need this to have a good start to the season because it gives confidence.”

“For him this race was important to mentally stay strong and have a good baseline for the next one. It’s good for him and for us, because the more they fight each other the better it is for me!” added Lauda.

[MIKA27]

JOCK CLEAR: SCHUMACHER ALWAYS BOASTED ABOUT SEBASTIAN

Formula 1 legend Michael Schumacher was “absolutely right” to have urged Ferrari to sign up Sebastian Vettel for the future.

Well-known F1 engineer Jock Clear has returned from a year of ‘gardening leave’ to take up a leading position at Ferrari, where Vettel is now regarded as the Maranello’s great hope of reviving the Schumacher-esque glory days.

And Clear knows Schumacher well, having worked with him at Mercedes until the great German’s second and final retirement from the sport.

“Michael Schumacher always boasted about Sebastian,” the Briton is quoted as saying by Speed Week. “And he was absolutely right.

“Now that I work with Sebastian at Ferrari, I can confirm that nothing Michael had said about him was exaggerated,” added Clear.

“It is especially his incredible loyalty to detail that Vettel has that brings the best out of all the staff and drives the team forward. His contribution is invaluable, and the nature of his work is precisely the difference between a four-time world champion and other drivers in the pitlane,” he said.

Clear says he is happy to have returned to F1, after a full year away, “It’s not easy to go from being at every race for 21 years to suddenly sitting at home on the sofa and watching on TV — it’s not fun.”

“I also found it remarkable how quickly you lose the pace of the decision-making that goes on in F1. I am still getting back up to speed — qualifying and the race were a shock,” he smiled. “Luckily I have great people around me.”

[MIKA27]

WILLIAMS PLAYS DOWN HONDA REUNIFICATION TALK

Speculation that Williams is considering a switch to customer Honda power as from 2017 have been played down by Honda and the Gorve team’s current supplier Mercedes.

After a woeful 2015, Honda has made a step forward with its exclusive works partner McLaren this year, new director Yusuke Hasegawa says.

“We had reliability and both drivers were happy with the car,” he is quoted by Laola1 after the Australian grand prix. “The power unit is not yet strong enough so we need to increase the performance.”

And the Japanese admitted that until Honda steps forward some more, “no customer will want our engines”.

That, however, has not stopped speculation it could be Williams who is eyeing the switch to Honda, even though McLaren’s Ron Dennis seems defiant in defending McLaren’s exclusive deal.

But even Mercedes boss Toto Wolff ruled out Honda engines for Williams, given the team’s contract with the German carmaker.

“No,” the Austrian told Auto Bild. “They (Williams) have a contract with Mercedes until 2020.”

It is understood Force India’s Mercedes deal also runs through 2020.

[capitalpg]

TYRE RULES HAVE SPICED UP F1 SAYS PIRELLI BOSS

In the aftermath of an intriguing season opening Australian Grand Prix, Pirelli chief Paul Hembery is sure the new tyre selection rules have succeeded in spicing up Formula 1.

Although the rules are complex, teams and drivers are essentially now allowed to choose three compounds of tyres for each grand prix.

Towards the chequered flag in Melbourne, for instance, it resulted in a fascinating battle between the Mercedes cars on the medium compound and Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel on the super-soft.

“This goes to show how the new regulations have helped to open up a number of different approaches to strategy, with nine of the 16 finishers taking advantage of all three compounds on offer and five completely different strategies covering the top six places,” said Hembery.

And an interesting battle could take place once again in Bahrain next weekend, when the medium, soft and super-soft tyres will once again be seen.

That is because while Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg have each selected just one medium compound for the weekend, the Ferrari drivers will have three.

It means the Ferraris will instead have two fewer sets of the soft tyres apiece than their silver-clad title rivals, with La Gazzetta dello Sport describing Mercedes’ approach as “aggressive”.

Here we go again.... Race number two, and I won't be able to relax anticipating a tire selection error! Hoping some thought actually goes into the decision this time.

[skalls]

Wish the weather was going to be nicer this weekend. But i get to watch an Indycar race Saturday night (I know it's an oval, but watching their cars whip around a 1 mile oval at 190+ mph is still interesting) and a formula 1 race Sunday that isn't at an obscene time.

Mercedes is still a quantum leap ahead of Ferrari which is a quantum leap ahead of the rest. But the rest of the pack is so much tighter than last year. And as we all know with racing, anything can happen. The ferrari boys seem to be pretty damn good off the grid. Nico and Lewis have struggled a bit with their starts.

Still wish spring would actually get here since a cigar and a formula 1 race would hit the spot sunday morning.

[skalls]

Entertaining qualifying. They need to ditch the format though. Last years (and what, the past 5 years or so) format was fine and needed no changing.

Grosjean had a solid time at p9. Ricardo is 5th (please for the love of god Red Bull stfu about engines. The Renault engine combined with your chassis looks so damn solid). Williams is disappointing so far this year, really expected them to be faster.

Rosberg came out blazing fast 1:29 in his first lap during q3. Hamilton looked like he had a better time but went wide in the last turn, but then set a lap record his next lap.

Ferrari has the speed but I'm betting one of their engines goes on fire again tomorrow.

[skalls]

Another fun race. Start of the race felt like a Nascar race.

Overall another fun race weekend. Indycar race last night was also fun.

The qualifying format just has to go away and go back to last years. I'd be OK with them doing an aggregate of 2 laps though.

[rckymtn22]

Skalls you were right about Ferrari engine issues, good call!

[skalls]

No joke, before the procession lap I said I bet Vettel's engine dies.

Wasn't expecting a great start from Hamilton but wasn't really expecting him to get t-boned either lol.

And Haas. Man oh man. Just wish Guiterrez didn't have rotten luck. He'd been a top 10 finish today too.

[MIKA27]

Thanks for holding the fort Skalls!!!

[MIKA27]

BAHRAIN GRAND PRIX: HIGH FIVE FOR ROSBERG

Nico Rosberg powered to his fifth consecutive Formula 1 victory, two out of two so far this year, when he cruised to a comprehensive victory in the Bahrain Grand Prix while his main title rivals tripped over themselves.

As he did in the season opener, Rosberg made a good start relative to pole sitter and teammate Lewis Hamilton. The German making a clean getaway, unchallenged into and out of Turn 1 he took the lead and was never again headed during the course of the evening.

Thereafter Rosberg was always in control of proceedings, establishing a handy gap which varied little throughout the race. Perhaps the only glitch in an otherwise flawless performance was a tardy pitstop which cost him a couple of seconds.

But in the end no drama for him as he stretched his lead over Hamilton at the top of the standings to 17 points after two races.

The win was the 16th of the German’s career, lifting him level in the all-time lists with British great Stirling Moss, and the eighth in a row for champions Mercedes.

Rosberg said on the podium, “For sure, it’s been an awesome weekend. The key was the start. i had a great getaway and from there I was just trying to control the race.”

It was a bittersweet night for Ferrari, from who much was expected in Bahrain. Sebastian Vettel’s race ended before it even started, as his car sighed a huge puff of smoke midway through the formation lap forcing its driver to park up between Turn 13 and Turn 14.

The onus thus fell on Kimi Raikkonen in the sister car to salvaged a result for the Reds. The Finn botched his start, was mugged in the drag race to Turn 1 and slipped down the order early on. But credit to him as he proceeded to fight back and muscle his way up to second place by mid-race where he remained until the end.

As per his trademark the Iceman appeared on the podium as if he was attending his best friends funeral, struggling to crack a smile while looking as if he was about to burst into tears and mumbling these pearls of wisdom: “I had a bad start. We did what we could and tried to recover and had a pretty good result.”

Beaten off the line by his teammate, Hamilton was swamped from the back and got clattered into by the Williams of Valtteri Bottas as they tussled for the same piece of tarmac in Turn 1, bits and pieces flew off the Silver Arrows as it got gobbled up by the pack.

By the time the dust had settled – and there was plenty of it as a number of cars made contact – the world champion was in eighth and the race for him would be all about damage limitation. And this he did by picking his way back up to third place by the time the chequered flag waved.

Hamilton said afterwards, “Again, damage limitation. Congratulations to Nico. The team was hoping that potentially there would be a safety car. I had so much damage to the car, I couldn’t fight with Kimi.”

All but the top six cars were lapped, with 17 finishers.

Red Bull’s Australian Daniel Ricciardo was fourth for the second race running, with Frenchman Romain Grosjean performing more heroics for the new Haas team by finishing fifth after sixth in Australia.

Dutch teenager Max Verstappen finished sixth for Toro Rosso, with Russian Daniil Kvyat seventh for sister team Red Bull and Felipe Massa eighth for Williams ahead of Bottas.

Belgian rookie Stoffel Vandoorne, standing in for Fernando Alonso at McLaren after the Spaniard was ruled out on medical grounds after his big crash in Melbourne, scored on his debut with 10th place.

The points were McLaren’s first of the season and capped a great weekend for the reigning GP2 champion, who also out-qualified 2009 world champion team mate Jenson Button. The Briton retired on lap seven.

With Vettel and Alonso not starting, that left three of the sport’s five active world champions watching from the sidelines.

Manor rookie Rio Haryanto became the first Indonesian to finish a Formula 1 race, in 17th and last place.

Although there were several memorable duels throughout the field – during the course of the evening at the pristine floodlit venue albeit alarmingly devoid of spectators – the 2016 edition of the Bahrain Grand Prix will go down as a pretty mundane affair not helped by Vettel’s no show and the early assault on Hamilton.

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RAIKKONEN: NOT TOO BAD

After his teammate retired before the race even started, Kimi Raikkonen salvaged Ferrari pride as he battled it out with the Mercedes duo at the Bahrain Grand Prix, where the Finn endured a bad start off the grid but in the end did well to recover and finish second on the night. He spoke afterwards.

As was mentioned in the introductions, your fifth second place here, you were second here last year. It’s a good circuit for you. Just lacking that last little bit of pace this afternoon but it bodes well for the season?

Kimi Raikkonen: Yeah, obviously not too bad. I made a bad start and after a few laps we were one straight behind Nico, so it’s pretty difficult to recover from there, but we did what we could and we had pretty good speed. Not enough to win, but we’ll take second today and try to improve from there.

What is it about this circuit that brings out the best in you? You do seem to have a good run here…

KR: I don’t think there are any special things we do. It seems to be happening here. There’s maybe some circuits that we seem to have all the time bad luck. But I’ll take it, but still we know… it was unfortunate for the team that the other car had an issue. We have some work to be done.

Just over six seconds behind at the end. If you reflect on where you were coming out of Turn Two on the opening lap, do you think with a cleaner start you might have been able to give Nico a run for his money today?

KR: It’s not possible to say. Obviously this is the end result and we had pretty okay speed in the race. Obviously bad start, I don’t know exactly what happened, if I had some issue or did some mistake. I just got wheelspin in the end. Obviously got surprised, managed to hold quite a good position after such a bad start, so it was a nice thing in the first two corners, didn’t lose too much. Then managed to pass cars, so that was a key point – but once I was second place I was already one full straight behind Nico so, obviously not an awful lot to do after that – but we managed to catch up little-by-little and I think we did the maximum that we could after that start. Not ideal for the team. We had some issue with the other car before the race even started, so yeah, we have quite a bit of work to be done – but the speed is more or less there and we just need to fix certain things.

Are you worried that the latest reliability issues could prevent Ferrari from fighting for the championship?

KR: I don’t know what happened to the other car. Obviously something went wrong. We had some issue… I had an issue in the last race. Seb had something here. It’s not ideal but, like I said, we have some work to be done and you never want to have a retirement and it’s going to cost points in the drivers’ plus the teams’. It’s an unfortunate part of the game.

You have eight podiums here. If you could, would you like to change it to one victory, and how do you rate your record?

KR: Obviously we always try to do our maximum and this is the end result. There’s no point in wondering if and… We had some second places, some third places, no win but like today I take second place and go from here and see what happens.

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HAMILTON: AGAIN DAMAGE LIMITATION

Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton recovered from a bad start and contact as the field rushed into Turn 1 to finish third in the 2016 Bahrain Grand Prix, he spoke after a challenging evning in the cockpit.

It seemed to me that it all went wrong at the start again. We saw a little hiccup in Melbourne, another little hiccup here, any relation or two separate incidents?

Lewis Hamilton: I think two separate incidents, but both equally as painful, perhaps this one today more painful. Nonetheless, we still managed to get back up there and at least get some points. So again, damage limitation. Congratulations to Nico, kind of an easy race for him I assume, but I’m glad that it wasn’t more points…

Just tell us about that last pit stop. It seemed like you stayed out a bit longer. You were five seconds behind Kimi at one point and then you dropped to more than 12 seconds, so what was the thinking behind that?

LH: Well, the team was hoping that was potentially a safety car or something. I had so much damage on the car that I couldn’t keep up with Kimi. I was fighting but the rear end was nowhere. I did what I could with it and at the end I was just keeping the tyres in case I get an opportunity with the safety car, but it didn’t come.

We saw you arriving this morning in traditional dress. You obviously love being here in Bahrain…

LH: I do and as you can see… a big thank you to the fans that came here this weekend. I’ve got some incredible support here. I was trying to enjoy the festivities here and I’ve been so well taken care of, so a big thanks to the Crown Prince and I look forward to coming back next year.

Another recovery drive two weeks after Melbourne. Obviously this one a bit more difficult I imagine because you seemed to have quite a bit of damage on the car. How did that feel to you, trying to make your way through the field? Maybe you could give us a little detail on the start and that first corner with Bottas…

LH: Yeah, obviously I just lost a lot of performance with the car and I’m not quite sure what happened at Turn One – whoever was on the inside was in my blindspot so I didn’t see them. It was a racing incident – those kind of things happen. After that just trying to manage the tyres, obviously with a lot less rear end and trying to get as many points as possible. I did the best I could with it.

Had there been a problem at the getaway, at the start, and then when did you realise that Bottas was too late on the brakes and you could be in trouble?

LH: I don’t really know what was at the start. I don’t think there was any particular real issue. I think it was just not a good getaway by myself and nothing technical or anything like that. Yeah, as I said, it was in a blind spot, I didn’t know if anyone was there, I didn’t know what had happened but I’m glad that I didn’t spin. At least I could keep going. At least I managed to continue and still have some performance left in the car that I could get back into the top three.

Did you have to run a more aggressive mode during the race to compensate for the lack of downforce?

LH: We just run the normal race mode, we don’t have any more… We just did the same as we normally do.

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VETTEL’S RACE GOES UP IN SMOKE BEFORE IT EVEN STARTS

Sebastian Vettel’s Bahrain Grand Prix hopes ended in a cloud of smoke as his Ferrari’s engine packed up on the warm-up lap.

The four-time former world champion was well placed in third on the grid to mount a serious challenge to Mercedes duo Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg on the front row.

But the German’s premature exit left Kimi Raikkonen, starting from fourth, flying the Ferrari flag in this second round of the 2016 season.

Once safely back in the pits Vettel told BBC Radio 5 that his car’s race-ending problem “was very sudden”.

He added: “We didn’t expect to have any problems. Now let’s push on Kimi’s car and see after the race what happened. “I think we have reason to be confident but it caught us by surprise today.”

Raikkonen salvaged some pride for the Maranello outfit by recovering from a bad start to finish second, ten seconds behind Rosberg and twenty seconds ahead of Hamilton.

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ALONSO CONFRONTS AND BERATES HERBERT LIVE ON TV

Fernando Alonso gatecrashed live British television on Saturday to slam former F1 driver turned pundit Johnny Herbert.

Earlier, the veteran of 165 grands prix, 51-year-old former Benetton and Sauber driver Herbert, had advised Alonso to use his chest injuries as a final excuse to retire.

“I don’t think Fernando should come back,” Herbert told Sky.

He claims Alonso’s teammate Jenson Button has “done a better job” for McLaren-Honda, that Alonso has “given up on the chance of winning” a third title and “seems to be out of motivation” driving a generation of cars he doesn’t enjoy.

“We don’t see that passion from him to want to drive and push himself to the limit when he is in an F1 car,” Herbert added. “The things he says, the things that have happened on track, his qualifying pace, and that error in Australia, to me they say it is time for him to hang up his helmet.”

But Alonso, recovering from fractured ribs, hit back with fury on Saturday as Herbert was reporting live for Sky from the Bahrain paddock.

The McLaren-Honda driver unexpectedly gatecrashed the TV proceedings to shake Herbert’s hand and declare: “I will not retire. No, I’m world champion.

“You ended up as a commentator because you’re not world champion,” Alonso told Herbert, who won three grands prix during his twelve-year F1 career.

As Alonso walked off, a clearly uncomfortable Herbert replied: “Thank you very much, that’s good. I wasn’t world champion. Happy man.”