FORMULA 1

[MIKA27]

HULKENBERG: IT WAS NASTY, IT’S MY BAD, MY MISTAKE

After directly wiping out two rivals and compromising the Belgian Grand Prix for another two, Renault driver Nico Hulkenberg has been handed a 10-place grid penalty for his role in the spectacular shunt on the opening lap of the Belgian Grand Prix.

Hulkenberg ran too hot in the drag race to the Spa-Francorchamps Turn 1 hairpin, on the outside of the track he got on the brakes way too late rammed the McLaren of Fernando Alonso who launched over the Sauber of Charles Leclerc and tapped the Red Bull of Daniel Ricciardo who tagged the Ferrari of Kimi Raikkonen – neither five drivers finished the race.

Credit to the German, a respected and competitor, who immediately put up his hand to take full blame for the nasty incident, “I basically misjudged the grip level. It was nasty, it doesn’t look great. It’s my bad, my mistake. Today it went wrong quite badly. I’ll accept it and move on.”

“I’m forever finding out how sensitive these cars are. I locked up the front wheels and then slid into Fernando. It was a misjudgment on my behalf and I was too slow on the brakes and then hit him,” added the German.

Hulkenberg will serve his 10-place grid penalty next Sunday at the Italian Grand Prix and has also had three penalty points applied to his race licence.

At the start of the 2012 Belgian Grand Prix, Romain Grosjean (then with Lotus) triggered a very similar shunt at the Hairpin and was handed a one race ban for causing the accident.

At the time the Frenchman was a regular victim of his own red mist and the Spa incident the proverbial straw that broke the camel’s back for the FIA Stewards who handed him the ban.

 

[MIKA27]

HALO DOES THE JOB IN BELGIAN GRAND PRIX START SHUNT

The Belgian Grand Prix was marred by a first lap Turn 1 incident, at the daunting Spa-Francorchamps circuit which eliminated Fernando Alonso, Charles Leclerc and Nico Hulkenberg, while somehow causing damage to the Ferrari of Kimi Raikkonen and the Red Bull of Daniel Ricciardo in a domino effect kind of way.

The day at Spa-Francorchamps will be remembered for yet another time Formula 1 could breathe a sigh of relief and thank the lucky stars that the Halo was introduced this year…

As the field powered off the start line into the tight Turn 1 hairpin Hulkenberg miscalculated his braking point, the Renault locked up and rammed the McLaren which was launched by the impact and flew over the Sauber of Leclerc, scraping over the halo in the process, causing extensive damage to all three cars.

All three drivers climbed out of their wrecks unaided and a safety car period was initiated to recover the cars and clear the debris. Their grand prix was run.

Raikkonen suffered a puncture and damage, and was forced to limp back to the pits where the Ferrari repaired the car and sent him out, but by the eighth lap they retired the car.

In the Red Bull, Ricciardo also suffered damage which compromised his race and led to him pulling out of the race 20 laps later.

The accident was reminiscent to the one triggered by Romain Grosjean at the same place on the circuit, at the 2012 edition of the race.

The Frenchman received a one race ban for his waywardness, his mistake on that day was very similar to Hulkenberg’s misjudgement today.

[MIKA27]

Whiting "amused" by Hamilton's Ferrari "tricks" comments

FIA race director Charlie Whiting says he was "amused" by Lewis Hamilton's suggestion after the Belgian GP that Ferrari has "trick things" on its cars.
The world champion later clarified that he didn't mean to imply that the Italian team was doing anything illegal, but nevertheless his comments caused a stir.

Whiting says that Hamilton couldn't know what Ferrari is doing, while confirming that the FIA is up to speed.

"I'm quite amused by it really," he said. "Because we know quite a lot about the Ferrari car, and there is no way that Lewis would know anything about the Ferrari car.

"They're doing a good job at the moment, and Mercedes have got to try and counter that, haven't they?

"That particular comment doesn't actually say anything. If he says they've got a few tricks going on on that car, clearly they have got some things on the car which are giving it performance, which we're all aware of – all us in the FIA are aware of – and obviously we are happy with."

Mercedes F1 boss Toto Wolff admitted that it is always frustrating for a team to try to work out what a rival is doing, but he insisted that he trusted the FIA to police the sport.

"It is a completely human nature that if you are being outperformed on track then you are hopefully looking at yourself," said the Austrian.

"Then you are looking at your competitors, and if you haven't got the explanation, then you are trying to imagine all the nasty things.

"I haven't got any information but I have a real faith in the FIA.

"There is a great group of people around Olivier [Hulot – head of F1 electronics, and Cedrik [Staudohar – F1 data analyst] and Nikolas [Tombazis – head of single seater technical matters] that are on top of things and control each and every team, that are open minded and this is goes for all the teams.

"Everybody will try to innovate and will try to find additional performance and they are far as I am concerned are doing the right things. They, as in FIA."

[MIKA27]

Bottas penalised for first-lap Sirotkin clash

Mercedes Formula 1 driver Valtteri Bottas has picked up a time penalty and two penalty points on his license for colliding with Sergey Sirotkin at the start of the Belgian Grand Prix.
Bottas piled into the back of Sirotkin's FW41 on the approach to La Source after the start, damaging his own front wing in the collision.

A safety car brought out by the big crash involving Nico Hulkenberg, Fernando Alonso and Charles Leclerc at the same corner allowed Bottas to pit for repairs without losing too much time, and the Finn was able to fight his way through the pack to finish fourth.

Sirotkin, whose car seemingly escaped without major damage, was 12th at the chequered flag.

While the incident had no major consequences for either driver's grand prix, the FIA stewards summoned Bottas after the race and elected to give the Finn a five-second penalty.

The penalty did not impact Bottas' Belgian GP result, as he'd finished over seven seconds ahead of fifth-placed Sergio Perez.

“The driver of car 77 [Bottas] admitted the collision was his fault, that he had completely misjudged the situation and that the braking of car 35 [Sirotkin] caught him by surprise and that he should've left more margin,” the stewards' notes for the verdict read.

Bottas was also handed two penalty points on his license, taking him to fourth points overall for current 12-month period.

[MIKA27]

Raikkonen blames poor qualifying for first-lap Ricciardo collision

In Sunday's enormous first-corner crash at Spa, most viewers’ eyes were drawn to the Sauber of Charles Leclerc as it was vaulted by Fernando Alonso's McLaren – but many didn’t spot Daniel Ricciardo’s Red Bull getting caught up in the action too...

As Alonso’s MCL33 sailed through the air, his front wing tagged Ricciardo’s rear, as shown in the video above. The impact put the Red Bull into a slide, leaving the Australian to connect with Kimi Raikkonen’s Ferrari in front – with the Finn having had to back off to avoid hitting the back of Kevin Magnussen’s Haas as the cars concertinaed up behind Ricciardo’s team mate Max Verstappen.

Ricciardo pitted for new front and rear wings before being sent out two laps down on the leaders, while Raikkonen was forced to complete a lap with a punctured right-rear tyre and damage to his car. The Ferrari star eventually retired on lap nine, while Ricciardo battled on until Red Bull decided to park him on lap 31.

“[Ricciardo] hit me on the rear and I had a lot of damage,” said Raikkonen after his race was run. “Also on the floor [and] rear wing, as I needed to do the full lap with a flat tyre. Then it ended up being so bad that the DRS opened itself all the time, so obviously there was no point in carrying on. Obviously it was far from ideal.”

“I remember sliding and next minute I was in the back of Kimi,” was Ricciardo’s appraisal of the incident. “It all happened pretty quick but what I remember was getting a hit initially and then looking and then I’m basically in the back of Kimi on the exit.

“The rear wing was pretty much ripped off. The mechanics tried to get me out there before we went a lap down but we just missed that but they did all they could. We tried to go [out] and wait for a safety car, because then we would of got a lap back so it would have put us on the lead lap. So we were trying but we couldn’t obviously keep racing and hoping till the end, so we packed it up.”

The incident capped a frustrating weekend for both drivers. Although team mate Sebastian Vettel ended up claiming the race win in Belgium, Raikkonen had arguably looked to be the faster of the two Ferrari drivers up until the final part of qualifying. However, in the mixed conditions of Q3 he ended up too light on fuel to make it back onto a track that improved throughout the segment, winding up in P6.

Ricciardo, meanwhile, managed just a handful of laps in Free Practice 1 as his Red Bull team struggled to fix an engine injector issue. That left him on the back foot throughout the weekend, and he ended up P8 on the grid as a result.

Asked for his view on the causes of the Lap 1 incident – for which the stewards decided to take no further action – Raikkonen responded bluntly: “It’s what you get when you’ve had a bad qualifying. People start doing things that obviously don’t work very well. I got hit and that’s it.”

[MIKA27]

Force India claim 18 points after ‘almost perfect’ Spa weekend

Given Force India’s troubles of late, few would have bet on them recording a strong result in Belgium. But as they’ve done so often in the past, the Silverstone squad confounded the odds on Sunday to record their biggest points haul of 2018.

Coming into this weekend, Force India’s new championship entry – under their new Racing Point owners – meant they lost all of their previous constructors’ points for this season. But Sergio Perez’s and Esteban Ocon’s fifth and sixth places at Spa-Francorchamps mean they have already claimed back 18, to go ninth in the standings.

“It’s a great performance by the team today and I think we executed an almost perfect weekend,” said Perez, who started fourth on the grid, one place behind team mate Ocon.

“My only disappointment is from yesterday because I think pole position was within reach, but we can definitely be happy about the points we have scored.”

Both pink cars were involved in spectacular scenes on the opening lap, as Perez and Ocon challenged Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel and Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton for the lead on the run down to Les Combes.

Ultimately neither could quite get ahead of the title protagonists, and a perhaps overly-ambitious move from Ocon meant the Frenchman saw Perez move ahead into third position.

“I made a good start and I was on the inside of Sebastian at Turn 1,” explained Ocon. “He had better traction, but I was very quick on the straight and tried to get the lead on the Kemmel straight.

“I had a good run down, slipstreaming both Vettel and Lewis and I tried to find a way on the inside, but in the end I lost a place to Sergio. It was good, fair racing all around.”

From there, the only cars to come past the Force India duo were Max Verstappen’s Force India and the recovering Mercedes of Valtteri Bottas. And with a comfortable margin over their Haas rivals, the team were a clear ‘best of the rest’ behind the top three.

“To come away from Spa with 18 points feels pretty good,” said Team Principal, Otmar Szafnauer. “We have been quick all weekend and it was important to convert our potential into a strong result today.

“Picking up fifth and sixth is just what we needed and it’s a credit to all 405 members of staff who have showed great resolve in recent weeks. I congratulate them all and look forward to scoring more points in the races to come.”

Perez, whose recent legal action prompted the administration process which led to Force India’s purchase by the Lawrence Stroll-led Racing Point consortium, said Sunday’s results was the perfect morale boost after the uncertainty the team have faced of late.

“It is a great start, especially given all the troubles we have had in the past few months,” commented the Mexican driver. “A really fresh start and I want everyone involved in the team to feel very proud of what we have achieved today - I think there are great things coming to this team.”

[MIKA27]

2018 Belgian Grand Prix | Race Highlights

 

[avaldes]

It was an interesting race to watch. I enjoyed how effective DRS and drafting was on the long straight after Eau Rouge. It was fun to see cars passing and passing back. I thought the Q3 on Saturday was a complete cluster. I am just shocked at how poorly some of the drivers were prepared for the wet. It was good to hear Sergio Marchionne take responsibility for Kimi's qualifying snafu, but it can't come down to one guy on a team like Ferarri.

[MIKA27]

1 hour ago, avaldes said:

It was an interesting race to watch. I enjoyed how effective DRS and drafting was on the long straight after Eau Rouge. It was fun to see cars passing and passing back. I thought the Q3 on Saturday was a complete cluster. I am just shocked at how poorly some of the drivers were prepared for the wet. It was good to hear Sergio Marchionne take responsibility for Kimi's qualifying snafu, but it can't come down to one guy on a team like Ferarri.

Spa is my favorite race of the season. It was a pretty good race though at times, still processional. 

Regarding Kimi's qualifying, you're probably referring to Maurizio Arrivabene as Sergio recently passed away, but I agree, great that he took responsibility on behalf of the team.  

Ferrari were MEGA fast at Spa.

[MIKA27]

F1 2018 Belgian GP - Post Race Reaction - Part 1

F1 2018 Belgian GP - Post Race Reaction - Part 2

F1 2018 Belgian GP - Post Race Reaction - Part 3

MIKA: I'm a Mercedes fan but it always baffles me whenever Hamilton comes anything below P1, he almost looks as if he's about to burst in tears!

Ferrari did the better job, their development is clearly better this half of the season which is good for the sport. Hamilton is not a humble chap, he gives all this Stevie Wonder speeches about being positive, love, blah, blah, blah, but when things go South, he is clearly cut. 

[skalls]

That turn 1 crash was nasty.  I hate the Halo but have to admit it probably saved leclerc from serious injury.

I think vettel is going to win it this year.  The Ferrari is just a better car.  Merc doesn't have the best engine anymore and I think they got away with some questionable choices making their car.

Should be an interesting end to the season.  Kinda hoping both titles come down to the last race.

[avaldes]

Bah, you're right...Maurizio, not Sergio!

[TheGipper]

This was a fun moment.

[MIKA27]

ABITEBOUL: HULKENBERG DOES NOT USUALLY MAKE MISTAKES LIKE THAT

Cyril Abiteboul believes Nico Hulkenberg will move on from the huge first turn, first lap crash he triggered at the start of the Belgian Grand Prix, the Renault chief pointing out, somewhat erroneously, that the German seldom makes such errors.

But in truth, Speedweek reports, stats show that Hulkenberg in his 148 grand prix starts has been involved in no fewer than ten first lap shunts that ended in DNF for him.

In the history of the sport, only four F1 drivers have crashed out of the race on the opening lap more times than Hulkenberg, they are: Jarno Trulli (14), Rubens Barrichello (13), Andrea de Cesaris (12) and Kimi Raikkonen (11).

As a result of DNFs the Renault driver has covered the least race mileage so far this season, with 2,806 km on his odometer compared to Charles Leclerc, with the next least racing distance on 3066 km.

After the nasty incident at Spa on Sunday, Hulkenberg acknowledged his mistake and explained, “When I hit the brakes, it locked up the front wheels and I slid.”

“These cars are aerodynamically sensitive, especially with cars bunching up ahead as you lose a lot of grip and load. I have to admit it caught me by surprise.”

“It was probably a misjudgement from my side as I was a bit late on the brakes, so it’s frustrating for me, the team, and the other drivers caught up in the incident. That’s racing and unfortunately, these things happen.”

“We have Monza next weekend, so I want to get this out of the system as soon as possible and focus on that,” added the German.

[MIKA27]

HAAS: WE FEEL WE’VE BEEN SLIGHTED SOMEWHAT

While the Formula 1 world celebrates the saving of Force India by the Sporting Point consortium led by billionaire Lance Stroll but, although relieved that a rival team has survived closure, Gene Haas believes that the new outfit got favourable treatment compared to his start-up efforts not long ago.

Speaking to ESPN, Haas F1 team owner Gene Haas wore his heart on his sleeve when he said, “I’m a little frustrated but you certainly can’t blame Lawrence Stroll for putting together an awesome deal in a very very short time.”

“They made a lot of decisions, and made the best decisions for himself, but we feel that as a new team that we didn’t get treated the same and he seems to have gotten preferential treatment which we all think isn’t fair. We just have to kinda really see how it all sorts out. Obviously, there’s a lot of disgruntled teams.”

“We feel we’ve been slighted somewhat. I think Lawrence has done a good job, he’s obviously preserved the team, preserved a lot of jobs but that still doesn’t still overstep the legal rights of everybody else too. I think it needs to be sorted out, we will see how it all comes out.”

“Obviously, a lot of things happened in a very short time and I think not everybody was given their due process.”

The new investors have saved the beleaguered team and with it the 300 or so jobs at their Silverstone base, but Haas believes it sends the wrong message, “I don’t think the jobs factor can overcome legal precedent.”

“You have contracts, you have property rights, you have due process. It’s important to preserve the jobs but they still don’t take right over people’s rights and contractual rights. I think that’s where the problems are right now is that we have to sort all that out.”

“My own opinion is that we feel like we were treated differently as a team then let’s say Lawrence Stroll is being treated as a new team if indeed he is a new team. They seem to think they’re not really a new team but from a legal standpoint it sounds like they are a new team,” added Haas.

[MIKA27]

WOLFF: AFTER MONZA WE WILL DECIDE ON TEAM ORDERS

Valtteri Bottas seethed at the suggestion last month that he was a “wingman” for Mercedes teammate and championship leader Lewis Hamilton but the Finn may soon find he has no choice in the matter.

Hamilton is now 87 points ahead of his fourth-placed teammate — a tally equivalent to some three and a half race wins — with only eight rounds of the campaign remaining.

Asked whether it was now time for Bottas to play a supporting role, with Ferrari on the rise and the Italian team firmly focused on Sebastian Vettel ahead of teammate Kimi Raikkonen, Mercedes boss Toto Wolff insisted, “I hate to do that.”

“It’s completely against my racing instinct and we try to be always very neutral to both drivers and we haven’t done it yet, the Mercedes chief told reporters after Vettel won Sunday’s Belgian Grand Prix with Hamilton a powerless second.

“We haven’t discussed it, let’s see how Monza pans out and how it goes and then we will address the question whether we need to put all force behind one driver,” added the Austrian, referring to next weekend’s Italian Grand Prix.

“But at the moment we owe it to the two men and to Formula 1 to not interfere into the racing.”

Vettel and Hamilton both have five victories this season while their Finnish teammates have had to make do with regular podium appearances.

Hamilton is 17 points ahead of Vettel but that advantage is in danger of being whittled down in the coming races, with Ferrari possibly enjoying a speed advantage at Monza and fancying their chances for Singapore.

Wolff called Bottas a “sensational wingman” after holding off the Ferraris while Hamilton won last month’s Hungarian Grand Prix, a description that stung the unsmiling Finn.

“First of all, wingman hurts,” he said, while recognising that the points gap was big.

Bottas finished fourth in Belgium and now has 144 points to Hamilton’s 231. Raikkonen, who retired on Sunday, has 146 — 68 less than Vettel, whose number one status is unquestioned.

MIKA: Toto needs to stop the charade because team orders have been in effect this whole season at Mercedes. 

[MIKA27]

Massa slams IndyCar safety standards, Graham Rahal responds

Former Formula 1 driver Felipe Massa has slammed IndyCar safety standards claiming the series isn't doing much to help the drivers in the series.

The Brazilian's comments come after witnessing former Ferrari team-mate Fernando Alonso get launched over the Sauber of Charles Leclerc hitting his halo at the start of the Belgian Grand Prix.

Just one week prior IndyCar's Robert Wickens slammed into the catch fencing after colliding with Ryan-Hunter Reay, trying to make a pass on the inside of Turn 2. The Canadian's health is improving all the time as he is now breathing unaided and talking to those around him.

He has since had titanium rods and screws put into his spine in order to help his recovery although the full extent of his injuries is still yet to be determined.

Massa himself suffered a horrendous accident during qualifying for the 2009 Hungarian Grand Prix after a spring which fell of Rubens Barrichello's Brawn hit Massa's helmet at high speed, the development of the halo has been helped by the subsequent investigations to prevent such incidents happening again.

He said: "When you see all the accidents that happen in F1 and IndyCar in the last years. We can say that F1 is always trying to improve with (HALO, Track Changes, virtual safety car etc to improve safety) and IndyCar is not doing much...

"It’s unbelievable to see a circuit like Pocono, average speed around 360km and you see the walls lower like that, with the fences, so so dangerous for the safety!!! Sorry to say that, but they need to look for the safety of the drivers..."

Current IndyCar driver Graham Rahal replied to the comments made by Massa by pointing out how important it is for drivers on oval circuits to maintain an unobstructed view and how drivers with injuries come to see IndyCar safety consultant Dr Terry Trammel.

Rahal added: "It's a little easier to do things when your budget is 100s of millions a year, new chassis every year built in-house etc. IndyCar is working hard, the new windscreen will not only work as well (better from the standpoint no open areas) but will be far more aesthetically pleasing!

"For oval racing, you need 100% unobstructed views, halo wouldn’t provide that to us. Also, note open frontal areas would still allow debris to get in the cockpit, new windscreen will not.

"Let’s also not forget the HUGE impact that IndyCar and our doctors such as Dr. Trammel have had on F1, in fact, last I checked when many of them get injured they STILL come to the US to see Dr T! IndyCar has done a hell of a lot for international motorsports safety!"

Massa will drive for the Venturi Formula E team in Season 5 which begins in Saudi Arabia in December.

MIKA: So... Rahal has basically admitted Indy car isn't as safe as Formula 1.

His argument is that at least they have a doctor that has experience due to Indy accidents that even F1 use his services as a result of frequent accidents. Doesn't sound right does it?

[MIKA27]

Car versatility key to title ambitions - Sebastian Vettel

Sebastian Vettel says the strength of Ferrari’s SF71H at an array of different venues this year acts as a boost for his Formula 1 title ambitions.

Vettel challenged for overall honours in 2017 but ultimately missed out amid a sequence of errors and reliability setbacks, as Mercedes eventually asserted its authority.

This year Vettel and Ferrari have re-emerged as a renewed threat, regularly holding the fastest package in dry conditions, taking five wins so far – the same as in the whole of 2017.

Vettel also missed out on potential victories in China, Azerbaijan, Germany and Hungary, owing to errors, strategic decisions and circumstance.

“We had our deficits last year, I think we had a car that worked really well on twisty tracks where a lot of downforce was required,” said Vettel after triumphing at the Belgian Grand Prix.

“But we were missing out on tracks where the car needs to be more efficient like [at Spa], like Silverstone usually and a couple of other tracks.

“This year the car seems to be more robust in that regard and seems to work everywhere.

“Needless to say we improved the package as well - the power unit - so on all fronts I think we’ve done a step forward.

“But yes, it is a key to have a car that works everywhere because that has been our weakness and I think we tackled it fairly well.

“I don’t think the car was there right from the beginning but I think we’ve got it now to a point where it seems to work everywhere and we are competitive.”

Vettel will head to Ferrari’s home race at Monza 17 points behind title rival Lewis Hamilton.

[MIKA27]

Daniel Ricciardo a victim of 'chain reaction' crash

Daniel Ricciardo says he was “just circulating” in the wake of getting caught up in the first-lap pile-up at Formula 1’s Belgian Grand Prix.

Ricciardo struggled for pace through much of the weekend and lined up only eighth after Red Bull misjudged its fuelling tactics during a rain-affected Q3 session.

Ricciardo’s rear wing was clipped by the airborne Fernando Alonso at the La Source hairpin and he was forced into the garage while repairs were undertaken.

Ricciardo re-joined two laps down and circulated at the rear of the field before ultimately pulling into the pits with a quarter of the race remaining.

“I don’t know exactly what happened at the start, but I felt a tap and to be honest I just remember sliding and the next minute I hit the back of Kimi [Raikkonen],” said Ricciardo.

“It was just a Turn 1 incident and apologies to Kimi if his retirement was down to me, but I’m pretty sure it all started behind me and was a chain reaction.

“My rear wing was pretty much ripped off and the mechanics tried to get me back out with a new wing before we went a lap down; we just missed that but they did all they could.

“We tried to stay out and hope for a Safety Car so we could get back on the lead lap, but we couldn’t just keep racing and hoping until the end, so we chose to retire with 14 laps remaining to save mileage on the engine and gearbox.

“After the rear wing change there was still some damage on my car as they had to fix it so quickly, we overtook quite a few cars but we weren’t really that fast and we were just circulating.

“Just one of those Sundays I guess. A lot of people would love my bad days, there you go, perspective.”

[MIKA27]

Haas lifted by ‘important’ Belgium points

Haas F1 believe they scored vital points during the Belgian Grand Prix which has raised morale as they try to hunt down Renault in the Constructors' Championship.

Both Romain Grosjean and Kevin Magnussen chased both Force Indias to the chequered flag race around the Spa-Francorchamps circuit to finish seventh and eighth respectively, scoring points where their nearest rivals in Renault failed to do so.

"That was about what we expected," said Grosjean. "We knew the Force Indias had the same pace, if not a bit quicker, so it was difficult to stay with them. They were quick on a straight line.

"I’m pretty happy with how the race went, and I’m happy Kevin was there as well. We did the best we could. Two cars in the points – in seventh and eighth – that’s really good for the constructors’ championship.

"It was a lot of points for us and zero for some others, so that’s a positive from this race."

Kevin Magnussen felt despite losing time during his pit stop, there wasn't much of a chance to chase down the Force India pair in front, but was happy to continue the team's point-scoring streak to help make up ground on his former team.

"We scored points with both cars, which was the goal," added Magnussen.

We did everything we could. In the race, I lost a lot of time around the pit stops, which was unfortunate but, even so, I don’t think I could have fought the Force Indias.

"It would probably have just been a swap between me and Romain. We’re catching up on Renault, and that’s the target. I’m really just happy for the team. We can be pleased with the result. Scoring 10 points on a day when Renault didn’t score any points – that’s important."

The gap in the Constructors' Championship to fourth-placed Renault has been closed down to six points after the French manufacturer failed to score.

[MIKA27]

Max Verstappen delights in 'home' podium after previous setbacks

Red Bull’s Max Verstappen expressed satisfaction at recovering from previous Belgian Grand Prix setbacks to deliver a podium at his ‘home’ event.

Verstappen started only seventh on the grid in the wake of Red Bull light-fuelling both cars in Q3 in anticipation of rain intensifying, only for matters to improve, denying Verstappen the optimum track conditions.

Verstappen avoided the melee at the start to move into fifth, and swiftly picked off both Force India drivers to claim third spot, a position he retained through to the chequered flag.

The podium came after two failures to score in his previous Belgian Grand Prix starts with Red Bull, having been caught up in a first-lap collision in 2016 prior to an engine problem last season.

“After a bit of bad luck here in Spa in the past I’m very pleased to finally be coming away with a podium,” said Verstappen.

“There was a bit of first lap chaos to contend with but we made it through cleanly and managed to settle into a good pace right away.

“From there on I managed to pass [Romain] Grosjean up the hill and concentrate on chasing the Force Indias. I knew I would have to be patient and in the end I got close enough.

“I was surprised by their pace, I thought with DRS I would be able to get by easily but they were very strong. This made it a bit more enjoyable to try and pass.

“After this little battle it was quite a lonely race, it was good to push the car and learn from it but there wasn’t a lot more action for me.

“Seb [Vettel] and Lewis [Hamilton] were once again too quick for us but in terms of balance the car felt really good.

“It is always good to be on the podium but being on it here in Spa with so many Dutch fans is really special. On the last lap I was able to take in the orange crowd and enjoy it.”

Red Bull team-mate Daniel Ricciardo retired after spending much of the race at the back following his rear wing damage in the first-lap pile-up.

[MIKA27]

Kimi Raikkonen: DRS issue behind early Belgian GP exit

Kimi Raikkonen has revealed that a problem with his DRS was behind his Belgian Grand Prix exit, having also sustained substantial car damage on the opening lap.

Raikkonen challenged for the leading positions through practice, topping Friday’s running, but lost out in a Q3 session that took place in mixed conditions.

Raikkonen was light-fuelled, with Ferrari splitting strategies in order to cover the weather, meaning he missed the best track conditions, and was shuffled down to sixth place.

Raikkonen was clipped at La Source by Daniel Ricciardo – who had been hit by Fernando Alonso’s flying McLaren – and sustained a right-rear puncture.

Raikkonen eventually returned to the pit lane for repairs and re-joined at the back of the pack, but withdrew shortly after in the wake of the rear-wing problem.

“Somebody hit me on the rear, got a puncture, so that’s all I know,” he said.

“I had a lot of damage also on the floor, rear wing, as I needed to do the full lap with a flat tyre, and then it ended up being so bad that the DRS opened itself all the time.

“Obviously there was no point in carrying on. Obviously it was far from ideal.”

Expanding further on the misfortune of getting involved in the La Source collision, Raikkonen said: “It is what you get when you’ve got a bad qualifying. People start doing things that obviously don’t work very well. I got hit and that’s it.”

Raikkonen retained third place in the Drivers’ Championship in spite of his retirement but now holds only a two-point lead over Valtteri Bottas.

[MIKA27]

Whiting elaborates on Hulkenberg/Grosjean crash comparison

Formula 1 race director Charlie Whiting has elaborated on why Nico Hulkenberg did not receive as harsh a penalty as Romain Grosjean was given after a similar incident at Spa six years ago.
Grosjean was handed a one-race ban after triggering the crash at La Source in the 2012 Belgian Grand Prix.

On Sunday, Hulkenberg received a 10-place grid penalty for the next race at Monza.

Grosjean had already been involved in a series of controversial incidents that season, and that's what led the stewards to impose the ban from the Italian GP.

That in turn led the FIA to create a formal penalty points system so that multiple indiscretions now automatically lead to a ban, although thus far no driver has reached the limit of 12 points within a 12-month period.

The stewards were aware that comparisons would be made with Grosjean and took the unusual step of referencing the incident in the Hulkenberg decision.

"I think they looked back at the similar type of accident that was caused with Romain in 2012, if I remember," said Whiting.

"The accident was in fact what gave rise to the penalty points system. I think it was clearly Nico's fault, he said he was completely to blame for it, and he took three, arguably four cars out, or destroyed their races.

"I think that came into it. I think the points are exactly right, and I think the 10-place grid penalty is pretty much what he expected, he didn't say too much after it apparently.

"When you go back to the Grosjean accident and the accidents that preceded it, the whole idea of the penalty points system was to try and say – I think Grosjean had four different incidents – the idea was that if he'd had those accidents, and each had attracted three points, then we would be quite justified to ban him for a race.

"So that was the way that it was made 12 points, so in the future if that sort of thing happened, that would be the result."

Hulkenberg admitted responsibility in TV interviews and later when he met the stewards.

"I think it does play a part in the stewards' decision but I don't think it would have been any different had he said, 'Well it wasn't really my fault.' I don't think he could have done that to be honest," Whiting added.

Valtteri Bottas received a five-second time penalty and two points for rear-ending Sergey Sirotkin on the first lap at La Source, and thus received the same penalty that Sirotkin himself earned when he hit Sergio Perez in Azerbaijan.

Whiting acknowledged that it would have been considered a first-lap racing incident if the Williams driver had braked suddenly and caught Bottas out.

"I think if something had been happening in front of Sirotkin, yes. But it wasn't, and I think Valtteri said, 'Hands up, it was my fault,' and it was almost a direct comparison to what I think Sirotkin did to Perez in Baku."

[TheGipper]

Well, there's only been two non-oval track deaths in Indy/CART in 50+ years (Krosnoff 1996, Rodriguez 1999).  Personally I think Rahal could stated it better to point out that the large high-speed ovals are inherently more dangerous than road courses.  The big ovals are the tracks where the serious injuries and deaths occur almost exclusively in Indy.

Whether or not F1 has better safety technology than Indy is obviously debatable, and I personally don't have an opinion on that.  But the Wickens crash is the sort of one you unfortunately get at the high speed ovals, and no car-mounted technology would help much.  Somewhat similar to Wheldon's crash at Las Vegas.  I kind of doubt Massa's 80 foot (or whatever he's proposing) high walls will be seen at tracks over here any time soon.

[Bartolomeo]

On 8/26/2018 at 10:07 PM, MIKA27 said:

Raikkonen blames poor qualifying for first-lap Ricciardo collision

In Sunday's enormous first-corner crash at Spa, most viewers’ eyes were drawn to the Sauber of Charles Leclerc as it was vaulted by Fernando Alonso's McLaren – but many didn’t spot Daniel Ricciardo’s Red Bull getting caught up in the action too...

As Alonso’s MCL33 sailed through the air, his front wing tagged Ricciardo’s rear, as shown in the video above. The impact put the Red Bull into a slide, leaving the Australian to connect with Kimi Raikkonen’s Ferrari in front – with the Finn having had to back off to avoid hitting the back of Kevin Magnussen’s Haas as the cars concertinaed up behind Ricciardo’s team mate Max Verstappen.

Ricciardo pitted for new front and rear wings before being sent out two laps down on the leaders, while Raikkonen was forced to complete a lap with a punctured right-rear tyre and damage to his car. The Ferrari star eventually retired on lap nine, while Ricciardo battled on until Red Bull decided to park him on lap 31.

“[Ricciardo] hit me on the rear and I had a lot of damage,” said Raikkonen after his race was run. “Also on the floor [and] rear wing, as I needed to do the full lap with a flat tyre. Then it ended up being so bad that the DRS opened itself all the time, so obviously there was no point in carrying on. Obviously it was far from ideal.”

“I remember sliding and next minute I was in the back of Kimi,” was Ricciardo’s appraisal of the incident. “It all happened pretty quick but what I remember was getting a hit initially and then looking and then I’m basically in the back of Kimi on the exit.

“The rear wing was pretty much ripped off. The mechanics tried to get me out there before we went a lap down but we just missed that but they did all they could. We tried to go [out] and wait for a safety car, because then we would of got a lap back so it would have put us on the lead lap. So we were trying but we couldn’t obviously keep racing and hoping till the end, so we packed it up.”

The incident capped a frustrating weekend for both drivers. Although team mate Sebastian Vettel ended up claiming the race win in Belgium, Raikkonen had arguably looked to be the faster of the two Ferrari drivers up until the final part of qualifying. However, in the mixed conditions of Q3 he ended up too light on fuel to make it back onto a track that improved throughout the segment, winding up in P6.

Ricciardo, meanwhile, managed just a handful of laps in Free Practice 1 as his Red Bull team struggled to fix an engine injector issue. That left him on the back foot throughout the weekend, and he ended up P8 on the grid as a result.

Asked for his view on the causes of the Lap 1 incident – for which the stewards decided to take no further action – Raikkonen responded bluntly: “It’s what you get when you’ve had a bad qualifying. People start doing things that obviously don’t work very well. I got hit and that’s it.”

I agree, if he qualified decently on Sat then he wouldn’t be in the position he was in the pack to get in an incident.....poor planning on Ferrari’s part w lack of fuel....Forza Ferrari!