Because F1

Malaysian Friday

2010-04-02T17:01:00.004+08:00

Looking forward to the race day on Sunday. Got a grandstand ticket and will be watching this year F1 race live in Sepang.

Looking outside my office windows (my office is less than 20km away from Sepang F1 Circuit), suddenly I felt that I made a wrong decision by getting the ticket for Sunday race.

Not only raining here, is pouring and the thunder storm is so loud that I can hear it with my headphone on. If this happen during the race, I am sure that we will see red flag and the race will not be able to complete like last year... The team should consider put in 3/4 of fuel so that can qualify better.

Since two weeks ago, the weather timing is more accurate that a chronometer watch. Right on the dot, 10 minutes before 5 start pouring. And I bet today rain will start at 6pm.

F1 2009 Turkish GP Race Result

2009-06-08T17:15:00.001+08:00

Pos	No	Driver	Team	Laps	Time/Retired	Grid	Pts
1	22	Jenson Button	Brawn-Mercedes	58	1:26:24.848	2	10
2	14	Mark Webber	RBR-Renault	58	+6.7 secs	4	8
3	15	Sebastian Vettel	RBR-Renault	58	+7.4 secs	1	6
4	9	Jarno Trulli	Toyota	58	+27.8 secs	5	5
5	16	Nico Rosberg	Williams-Toyota	58	+31.5 secs	9	4
6	3	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	58	+39.9 secs	9	3
7	5	Robert Kubica	BMW Sauber	58	+46.2 secs	10	2
8	10	Timo Glock	Toyota	58	+46.9 secs	13	1
9	4	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	58	+50.2 secs	6
10	7	Fernando Alonso	Renault	58	+62.4 secs	8
11	6	Nick Heidfeld	BMW Sauber	58	+64.3 secs	11
12	17	Kazuki Nakajima	Williams-Toyota	58	+66.3 secs	12
13	1	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren-Mercedes	58	+80.4 secs	16
14	2	Heikki Kovalainen	McLaren-Mercedes	57	+1 Lap	14
15	12	Sebastien Buemi	STR-Ferrari	57	+1 Lap	18
16	8	Nelsinho Piquet	Renault	57	+1 Lap	17
17	20	Adrian Sutil	Force India-Mercedes	57	+1 Lap	15
18	11	Sebastien Bourdais	STR-Ferrari	57	+1 Lap	20
Ret	23	Rubens Barrichello	Brawn-Mercedes	47	Gearbox	3
Ret	21	Giancarlo Fisichella	Force India-Mercedes	4	Brakes	19

2009 Monaco Monte Carlo GP Race Result

2009-05-25T09:05:00.002+08:00

Pos	No	Driver	Team	Laps	Time/Retired	Grid	Pts
1	22	Jenson Button	Brawn-Mercedes	78	1:40:44.282	1	10
2	23	Rubens Barrichello	Brawn-Mercedes	78	+7.6 secs	3	8
3	4	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	78	+13.4 secs	2	6
4	3	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	78	+15.1 secs	5	5
5	14	Mark Webber	RBR-Renault	78	+15.7 secs	8	4
6	16	Nico Rosberg	Williams-Toyota	78	+33.5 secs	6	3
7	7	Fernando Alonso	Renault	78	+37.8 secs	9	2
8	11	Sebastien Bourdais	STR-Ferrari	78	+63.1 secs	14	1
9	21	Giancarlo Fisichella	Force India-Mercedes	78	+65.0 secs	13
10	10	Timo Glock	Toyota	77	+1 Lap	19
11	6	Nick Heidfeld	BMW Sauber	77	+1 Lap	16
12	1	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren-Mercedes	77	+1 Lap	20
13	9	Jarno Trulli	Toyota	77	+1 Lap	18
14	20	Adrian Sutil	Force India-Mercedes	77	+1 Lap	15
15	17	Kazuki Nakajima	Williams-Toyota	76	+2 Laps	10
Ret	2	Heikki Kovalainen	McLaren-Mercedes	51	Accident	7
Ret	5	Robert Kubica	BMW Sauber	28	Brakes	17
Ret	15	Sebastian Vettel	RBR-Renault	15	Accident	4
Ret	8	Nelsinho Piquet	Renault	10	Accident damage	12
Ret	12	Sebastien Buemi	STR-Ferrari	10	Accident	11

F1 2009 Spain GP Race Result

2009-05-10T23:39:00.001+08:00

Pos	No	Driver	Team	Laps	Time/Retired	Grid	Pts
1	22	Jenson Button	Brawn-Mercedes	66	1:37:19.202	1	10
2	23	Rubens Barrichello	Brawn-Mercedes	66	+13.0 secs	3	8
3	14	Mark Webber	RBR-Renault	66	+13.9 secs	5	6
4	15	Sebastian Vettel	RBR-Renault	66	+18.9 secs	2	5
5	7	Fernando Alonso	Renault	66	+43.1 secs	8	4
6	3	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	66	+50.8 secs	4	3
7	6	Nick Heidfeld	BMW Sauber	66	+52.3 secs	13	2
8	16	Nico Rosberg	Williams-Toyota	66	+65.2 secs	9	1
9	1	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren-Mercedes	65	+1 Lap	14
10	10	Timo Glock	Toyota	65	+1 Lap	6
11	5	Robert Kubica	BMW Sauber	65	+1 Lap	10
12	8	Nelsinho Piquet	Renault	65	+1 Lap	12
13	17	Kazuki Nakajima	Williams-Toyota	65	+1 Lap	11
14	21	Giancarlo Fisichella	Force India-Mercedes	65	+1 Lap	20
Ret	4	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	17	+49 Laps	16
Ret	2	Heikki Kovalainen	McLaren-Mercedes	7	Gearbox	18
Ret	9	Jarno Trulli	Toyota	0	Accident	7
Ret	12	Sebastien Buemi	STR-Ferrari	0	Accident	15
Ret	11	Sebastien Bourdais	STR-Ferrari	0	Accident	17
Ret	20	Adrian Sutil	Force India-Mercedes	0	Accident	19

Who will win in Spain

2009-05-10T11:02:00.001+08:00

Brawn (Terminator) dominate once again, this time in Spain, Jenson Button clocked the fastest time 1:20.527 beating Sebastian Vettel by 0.133 seconds, that’s faster than a blink on your eye :D

FIA making the car weight public:

Jenson Button, Brawn GP, 646kg
Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull, 651.5
Rubens Barrichello, Brawn GP, 649.5
Felipe Massa, Ferrari, 655
Mark Webber, Red Bull, 651.5
Timo Glock, Toyota, 646.5
Jarno Trulli, Toyota, 655.5
Fernando Alonso, Renault, 645
Nico Rosberg, Williams, 668
Robert Kubica, BMW Sauber, 660
Kazuki Nakajima, Williams, 676.6
Nelson Piquet, Renault, 677.4
Nick Heidfeld, BMW Sauber, 676.3
Lewis Hamilton, McLaren, 683
Sebastien Buemi, Toro Rosso, 678
Kimi Raikkonen, Ferrari, 673
Sebastien Bourdais, Toro Rosso, 669
Heikki Kovalainen, McLaren, 657
Adrian Sutil, Force India, 675
Giancarlo Fisichella, Force India, 656

Jenson Button was the lightest among the top 5. Watch out Felipe Massa and his KERS, the KERS is able to produce 80bhp more on during the start, very likely Barrchello will be overtaken in the first corner.

Ferrari shows that their cars have improved but on the other hand, the strategy still did not quite work out. Can you imagine they make the same mistake twice.

They thought Kimi’s time was able to bring him to the Q2, they were wrong. While Jarno Trulli pushing him out of Q2, Kimi Raikonnen was sitting in the garage. Boooo to Ferrari!!

Renault promise a lot, but they did not make a good progress, look at the Fernando Alonso’s car weight, he is the lightest among the 20 cars, but only managed 8th place, a disappointing one for him.

My prediction for this race, Button will be first, as out of 14 races in the past, 13 of the race winner was on pole (for this circuit), as Button having the best grid, I think he will be able to take his 4th win.

Second Felipe Massa, third Ruben Barrichello. :p

Three Race Ban to Troubled McLaren

2009-04-30T09:46:00.001+08:00

The FIA finally bring this issue to an end by handing a three race ban to McLaren F1 Team for bringing the sport into disrepute after they were found to have misled race steward at the Australia GP.

However three race ban will be allow to be executed in the period of 12 months.

Formula One 2009 – The Beginning of European Races

2009-04-28T15:10:00.002+08:00

After four races, Jenson Button leading the result sheet scoring 31 point (10, 5, 8, 10). Three wins out of four races, pretty impressive.

From the past performance on various races, I noticed that the rest of the field are improving significantly. The upcoming races will definitely be more exciting and you can expect more wheel to wheel actions.

Team running without the legalized double diffuser will upgrade their car, most of them will have their new parts fitted onto the machine on the Spanish grand prix. Renault made a quick upgrade on their car and shows quite a promising improvement. This definitely will be worthwhile investing R & D effort into this area.

Brawn was designed to run without KERS, their machine carried a much larger fuel tank compared the others. Will they invest their time in KERS? Never know, of course the more power a car can produce, a better chance of overtaking and winning. On the other hand, the more gadget you put in, the chances of causing problem will be higher as well. Personally I don’t think that is necessary for Brawn at the moment.

When Ferrari will pick up the pace? They did score their first point on the last race. Good upgrades have to come quick before it is too late.

Testing are restricted this year, as for Brawn they did not have the time to perform enough testing. Don’t forget the team got the approval almost last minute to be allowed to race in the 2009 season.

Toyota will be a strong contender, they have not win a single race. Despite that, the chances of stepping on the top step of podium is high. Trulli able to score on the Saturday qualifying session, lets hope he is able to hold on the position during the race.

Despite the advantage is fading, Brawn and Button still my favourite. Oh ya, I would like to see the oldest driver win the race as well. Barrichello is driver a race winning machine, he might be able to pocket one or two win this year!? :D

2009 F1 Bahrain GP – Race Result

2009-04-26T23:20:00.001+08:00

My favourite on top!

Pos	No	Driver	Team	Laps	Time/Retired	Grid	Pts
1	22	Jenson Button	Brawn-Mercedes	57	1:31:48.182	4	10
2	15	Sebastian Vettel	RBR-Renault	57	+7.1 secs	3	8
3	9	Jarno Trulli	Toyota	57	+9.1 secs	1	6
4	1	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren-Mercedes	57	+22.0 secs	5	5
5	23	Rubens Barrichello	Brawn-Mercedes	57	+37.7 secs	6	4
6	4	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	57	+42.0 secs	10	3
7	10	Timo Glock	Toyota	57	+42.8 secs	2	2
8	7	Fernando Alonso	Renault	57	+52.7 secs	7	1
9	16	Nico Rosberg	Williams-Toyota	57	+58.1 secs	9
10	8	Nelsinho Piquet	Renault	57	+65.1 secs	15
11	14	Mark Webber	RBR-Renault	57	+67.6 secs	18
12	2	Heikki Kovalainen	McLaren-Mercedes	57	+77.8 secs	11
13	11	Sebastien Bourdais	STR-Ferrari	57	+78.8 secs	20
14	3	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	56	+1 Lap	8
15	21	Giancarlo Fisichella	Force India-Mercedes	56	+1 Lap	17
16	20	Adrian Sutil	Force India-Mercedes	56	+1 Lap	19
17	12	Sebastien Buemi	STR-Ferrari	56	+1 Lap	16
18	5	Robert Kubica	BMW Sauber	56	+1 Lap	13
19	6	Nick Heidfeld	BMW Sauber	56	+1 Lap	14
Ret	17	Kazuki Nakajima	Williams-Toyota	48	Oil pressure	12

F1 2009 China GP Result

2009-04-20T11:33:00.001+08:00

Pos	No	Driver	Team	Laps	Time/Retired	Grid	Pts
1	15	Sebastian Vettel	RBR-Renault	56	1:57:43.485	1	10
2	14	Mark Webber	RBR-Renault	56	+10.9 secs	3	8
3	22	Jenson Button	Brawn-Mercedes	56	+44.9 secs	5	6
4	23	Rubens Barrichello	Brawn-Mercedes	56	+63.7 secs	4	5
5	2	Heikki Kovalainen	McLaren-Mercedes	56	+65.1 secs	12	4
6	1	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren-Mercedes	56	+71.8 secs	9	3
7	10	Timo Glock	Toyota	56	+74.4 secs	19	2
8	12	Sebastien Buemi	STR-Ferrari	56	+76.4 secs	10	1
9	7	Fernando Alonso	Renault	56	+84.3 secs	2
10	4	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	56	+91.7 secs	8
11	11	Sebastien Bourdais	STR-Ferrari	56	+94.1 secs	15
12	6	Nick Heidfeld	BMW Sauber	56	+95.8 secs	11
13	5	Robert Kubica	BMW Sauber	56	+ 106.8 secs	17
14	21	Giancarlo Fisichella	Force India-Mercedes	55	+1 Lap	20
15	16	Nico Rosberg	Williams-Toyota	55	+1 Lap	7
16	8	Nelsinho Piquet	Renault	53	+2 Laps	16
17	20	Adrian Sutil	Force India-Mercedes	50	Accident	18
Ret	17	Kazuki Nakajima	Williams-Toyota	43	Transmission	14
Ret	3	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	20	Electrical	13
Ret	9	Jarno Trulli	Toyota	18	Accident damage	6

F1 2009 China GP Result - Redbull One Two

2009-04-19T17:00:00.001+08:00

Brawn Three and Four. Sebastian Vettel is the new rain master, he drove a fantastic race. He deserved it!

He won first race for Toro Rosso, and now won the first race for Redbull, and not just winning the race, he started on pole and finish first. Mark Webber get the job done by scoring second place.

Perfect race for Redbull!

Wet Race for China GP

2009-04-19T15:10:00.001+08:00

Rolling start for China GP, Alonso with very light fuel load bad for him. Brawn duo will have advantage as they are on more heavy fuel load, however, Brawn cars have not experience prolong wet condition.

Very wet condition, the real racing will kick start when the safety switches off the light. We’ll see…

More after the break

F1 2009 Prediction - China GP

2009-04-18T19:58:00.000+08:00

Renault powered engine sweep the top 3 position in Shanghai circuit. Sebastian Vettel scoring his first ever pole position, with Fernando Alonso second and Mark Webber on the 3 spot.

Ruben Barichello will start at the third row as well, whereas Jenson Button will start on the forth alongside with Jarno Trulli sixth on the grid.

I believe that both Brawn and Toyota are in the similar strategy, they will have slightly longer first stint the other top 3 car will have short ones.

The result very much depend on the first pit stop, despite Ruben Barichello and Jenson Button start forth and fifth on the grid, my money will still be with Brawn. Renault powered machine will be a strong contender especially Fernando Alonso, he is famous for his swift start up, he might be leading the field for awhile, we will see.

Brawn, Toyota and Williams Diffuser are Legal

2009-04-16T09:22:00.001+08:00

After a series of appeals and protests, FIA Court of Appeal (ICA) has rejected it all and concluded the “double decker” designs comply the 2009 regulations.

This diffuser had gone through the race stewards both in Australia and Malaysia, now ICA. Meaning that these three teams will have peaceful mind on the following race.

On the other hand, Ferrari having a headache as they are going to modified the existing F60 design. They reckon that with the “double decker” design, the race machine will gain 0.5 second a lap. However, it going to take time and involve R & D investment, we will not be seeing the revamped Ferrari in this coming China GP, probably in Catalunya, Spain or Monte Carlo which is 2 to 3 races from now, the soonest.

What will happen to the rest of the teams, perhaps they are not as rich as Ferrari, but I believe that with the clearance given by the FIA, the rest of the field will at least invest some time to improve their car on these. We’ll see…

Jenson Button and Sir Richard Branson in Fight over Jessica Michibata

2009-04-12T23:47:00.001+08:00

It does not matter how much you pay to stuck your logo on my car, just don’t touch my girlfriend!!

Melbourne Grand Prix celebrations turned sour last month when winning driver Jenson Button had a bust-up with billionaire sponsor Sir Richard Branson over his lingerie model girlfriend.

The pair clashed when Button thought the Virgin boss was coming on to his 24-year-old partner Jessica Michibata, during a boozy dinner at upmarket Melbourne restaurant Nobu.

"Richard was clearly very, very drunk and took a shine to Jessica during the evening," a source said.

"But there was a misunderstanding and Jenson became angry. The whole thing got very, very heated.

"Richard thought Jenson was over-reacting, and gave as good back. Both of them were livid."

Brawn team officials and Virgin executives watched the confrontation in "stunned silence".

The blow-up reportedly happened only hours after Sir Richard, 58, announced a sponsorship deal to put Virgin's logo on the side of Button's car.

Button, 29, won in Melbourne and in Malaysia a week later to help improve relations with his new sponsor.

"This was before Jenson and the Brawn GP team won in Melbourne and Malaysia, and they were an untested team looking for sponsorship," the source said.

"So for Jenson to lose his rag at Richard, it was serious. But things were fine by the next day."

Sir Richard, worth more than $6 billion, is married but frequently surrounds himself with glamorous women to promote the Virgin brand.

McLaren – Still the same old McLaren

2009-04-08T14:00:00.002+08:00

From spy scandal to false report… McLaren Mercedes reputation is falling, I believe lots of people will lose interest in this team. Myself is one of them, the way they do things is just unethical. The current world champion so what? There are rumours saying Lewis wanted to quick racing with them… Ferrari is dirty? You have not seen McLaren….

They are invited to WMSC by the FIA, below are the statement release by FIA:

"Vodafone McLaren Mercedes has been invited to appear before an extraordinary meeting of the FIA World Motor Sport Council in Paris on Wednesday, 29 April, 2009, to answer charges that, in breach of Article 151c of the International Sporting Code, it

- on 29 March, 2009, told the stewards of the Australian Grand Prix that no instructions were given to Hamilton in Car No. 1 to allow Trulli in Car no. 9 to pass when both cars were behind the safety car, knowing this statement to be untrue;

- procured its driver Hamilton the current World Champion, to support and confirm this untrue statement to the stewards;

- although knowing that as a direct result of its untrue statement to the stewards, another driver and a rival team had been unfairly penalised, made no attempt to rectify the situation either by contacting the FIA or otherwise;

- on 2 April, 2009, at a second hearing before the stewards of the Australian Grand Prix, (meeting in Malaysia) made no attempt to correct the untrue statement of 29 March but, on the contrary, continued to maintain that the statement was true, despite being allowed to listen to a recording of the team instructing Hamilton to let Trulli past and despite being given more than one opportunity to correct its false statement;

- on 2 April, 2009, at the second stewards' hearing, procured its driver Hamilton to continue to assert the truth of the false statement given to the stewards on 29 March, while knowing that what he was saying to the stewards was not true."

In response, McLaren issued the following press release:
"McLaren acknowledges receipt of an invitation to appear at an FIA World Motor Sport Council meeting in Paris on April 29, received this afternoon. We undertake to co-operate fully with all WMSC processes, and welcome the opportunity to work with the FIA in the best interests of Formula 1.

"This afternoon McLaren and its former sporting director, Dave Ryan, have formally parted company. As a result, he is no longer an employee of any of the constituent companies of the McLaren Group."

Source: http://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/2009/4/9159.html

Ferrari – Not the old Ferrari

2009-04-07T16:25:00.001+08:00

After the departure of Michael Schumacher, Ross Brawn, and Jon Todt, the Ferrari we seeing now is not the old Ferrari anymore.

The matter of fact, Michael Schumacher still with the prancing horse as an advisor occasionally test driver, but it seems that things are not moving in the right direction for Ferrari.

On Malaysian GP Saturday qualifying session, Ferrari pace was not that far off. But Felipe Massa failed to progress beyond Q1 after the team mistakenly assumed his time would be quick enough to progress into the second qualifying phase.

On Sunday itself, Kimi Raikonnen was running a set of full wet tyres on a practically dry track expecting the rain to fall, another silly assumption.

At the moment Ferrari is not the fastest car but they definitely can do better than this, score some point Ferrari!

2009 Malaysian GP Result

2009-04-05T23:43:00.001+08:00

Pos	No	Driver	Team	Laps	Time/Retired	Grid	Pts
1	22	Jenson Button	Brawn-Mercedes	31	55:30.622	1	5
2	6	Nick Heidfeld	BMW Sauber	31	+22.7 secs	10	4
3	10	Timo Glock	Toyota	31	+23.5 secs	3	3
4	9	Jarno Trulli	Toyota	31	+46.1 secs	2	2.5
5	23	Rubens Barrichello	Brawn-Mercedes	31	+47.3 secs	8	2
6	14	Mark Webber	RBR-Renault	31	+52.3 secs	5	1.5
7	1	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren-Mercedes	31	+60.7 secs	12	1
8	16	Nico Rosberg	Williams-Toyota	31	+71.5 secs	4	.5
9	3	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	31	+76.9 secs	16
10	11	Sebastien Bourdais	STR-Ferrari	31	+102.164 secs	15
11	7	Fernando Alonso	Renault	31	+109.422 secs	9
12	17	Kazuki Nakajima	Williams-Toyota	31	+116.130 secs	11
13	8	Nelsinho Piquet	Renault	31	+116.713 secs	17
14	4	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	31	+142.841 secs	7
15	15	Sebastian Vettel	RBR-Renault	30	Spin	13
16	12	Sebastien Buemi	STR-Ferrari	30	Spin	20
17	20	Adrian Sutil	Force India-Mercedes	30	+1 Lap	19
18	21	Giancarlo Fisichella	Force India-Mercedes	29	Spin	18
Ret	5	Robert Kubica	BMW Sauber	1	Engine	6
Ret	2	Heikki Kovalainen	McLaren-Mercedes	0	Spin	14

Race stop with 23 laps remaining due to extremely heavy down pour. Less than 75% of lap completed, all awarded point will be multiply by 0.5

No Restart – Half point awarded

2009-04-05T18:54:00.001+08:00

Dramatic event, back to back victory for Brawn GP.

More update coming after the break…

Race Suspended In Sepang due to heavy downpour

2009-04-05T18:07:00.001+08:00

With 23 laps remaining, extremely wet. Race track turning into river, cars spinning…. Felipe Massa losing his temper!? That’s why.

Jenson Button leading at the moment, Timo Glock second, Nick Heidfeld third. I have not seen anything quite like this before, lets see what will happen next

Malaysia GP Qualifying – Q3

2009-04-04T18:05:00.001+08:00

Jenson Button on pole, Jarno Trulli Second.

Sebastian Vettel and Ruben Barrichello set a good time as well (third and forth)

But Vettel got 10-place grid penalty, and Barichello 5-place grid penalty for changing his gear box on practice.

Malaysia GP Qualifying - Q2

2009-04-04T17:45:00.001+08:00

Jenson Button first, both ~~Liar Team~~ McLaren were out.

Toyota has got pace as well, second for Jarno Trulli.

Q3 after the break…

Malaysia GP Qualifying – Q1

2009-04-04T17:28:00.001+08:00

Massa unable to squeeze himself into Q2, silly mistake by Ferrari. Ferrari practically parked their cars in the pit try to save another set of tyres, bad decision.

Kimi Raikonnen was in a dangerous position too, 14th. Luckily he made it to Q2

More to come after the break….

Hamilton Disqualified – Trulli Retain Third Place

2009-04-03T10:00:00.001+08:00

This was the story: (All these happened under the safety car period)

The Toyota driven by Jarno Trulli went wide at the second corner Lewis Hamilton overtook him. The McLaren Team gave an order to Hamilton to allow the Toyota through.

Hamilton obey the team order, allow Trulli to pass. Hamilton was confused and realized that he need not let him past he should be able to take that position back, if Trulli made a mistake.

The team ask him to hold position and get ready to overtake when the safety car light if off as the KERS is fully charge at that point.

When the race end, the FIA steward penalized Trulli for overtaking under the safety car. They question both the drivers and teams.
Trulli mentioned: “Lewis slow down and allow me to pass, I have not choice but to pass him”.

During the hearing, held approximately one hour after the end of the race, the Stewards and the Race Director questioned Lewis Hamilton and his Team Manager David Ryan specifically about whether there had been an instruction given to Hamilton to allow Trulli to overtake. Both the driver and the Team Manager stated that no such instruction had been given. The Race Director specifically asked Hamilton whether he had consciously allowed Trulli to overtake. Hamilton insisted that he had not done so.

Trulli telling the truth, McLaren and Lewis Hamilton are lying. They shouldn’t have done that, Hamilton could be at the podium or in worse case a forth place. After all these lies, he and the team were disqualified.

"Nonetheless, the Vodafone McLaren Mercedes Team now regrets that it did not do so, accepts the Stewards' decision and will not appeal."

The new results (Full Australia GP Result):

Jenson Button
Rubens Barrichello
Jarno Trulli
Timo Glock
Fernando Alonso
Nico Rosberg
Sebastien Buemi
Sebastien Bourdais

2009 Malaysia F1 GP - Prediction

2009-04-02T10:55:00.001+08:00

Malaysia, my home. The race will be held on this Sunday 5th of April 2009. For me, it will be different from last year, I will be stuck in front of the television monitoring all corners on Sepang F1 Circuit. Sadly, I will not joining the crowd on the track this year, its ok at least I will not suffering from sun-burned (sour-grape)

Malaysia GP expecting to be a hot and humid race, apart from the speed, engine reliability is the key to success in the race.

Everyone is expecting Brawn GP to dominate again, I will think so too, but definitely will be a closer, tougher fight compare to Melbourne last weekend.

Renault will be competitive, watch out for Alonso.

I don’t think the big boys (McLaren Mercedes and Ferrari) can do wonders in one week time, but Ferrari should perform better than McLaren team. We will see.

Williams-Toyota and Toyota themselves should continue the great performance last weekend, too bad that crashed at the closing stage of last race.

Red Bull Sebastian Vettel should perform will, but due to the 10-place grid penalty as the incident with Robert Kubica, it will be a tough race for him.

Last but not least, BMW Sauber. This will be home of major sponsor Petronas, and do not forget, last year they collected 11 points in total in this same circuit

The teams running KERS - Ferrari, McLaren, BMW Sauber and Renault - may enjoy more of an advantage here thanks to those long straights, but now that air extraction chimneys have been banned, the heat may prove too challenging for those teams that have marginalised their cooling systems in the interest of aerodynamic efficiency.

Brawn will still be running without KERS, if the car is fast enough to win the race, they can take their time.

Little bit on KERS…

2009 Malaysia GP - Promotion Event

2009-04-01T11:38:00.002+08:00

Some of the photo taken from shopping mall in Malaysia. The heat is not as great as last year for some reason.

2008 Renault – This car collected 80 solid point home for the last F1 season

Front view – As you can see, no one is interested in this car

Top view – ING is going to pull out at the end of 2009 season

From a higher angle – The floor is deserted (sort of)

In a separate place, Petronas Malaysia did a larger scale of promotion in Suria KLCC shopping complex.

BMW Sauber booth

2009 BMW Sauber – 135 was the total points collected by this machine

Black face – Not so professional model standing next to the car (she’s not even smiling!)

Rear View – This rear wing design is a history

Apart from displaying the F1 machine, there was a challenge event as well. The prize was a watch from Cortina watch worth RM1500. I was too late, no change on participating the event (last year I did!)

And the challenge was…

Refuelling Challenge (refuelling or refueling… who cares)

Acrylic F1 car and refuelling simulator, all the way from Germany

Front view – Fragile! Handle with care!

The “Real” Fuel hose

Fill it up, the light will be lighted up when the fuel hose touches the sensor.

When the lights reach the top (the white triangle piece), pull it out place it on the stage and you are done.

The score board. 10 seconds of fuel, this one is an incomplete cycle

Answer behind the BRAWN logo

2009-03-30T16:08:00.001+08:00

This is definitely an coincident, but I am not sure if anyone have discover this.

Why the BRAWN logo looks like this? The BR is separated with AWN, and the AWN is italic for some reason.

BRAWN GP, taken from the team principle’s name Ross Brawn (British) based in Brackley, UK. Currently (should I say sole sponsor) sponsored by Richard Branson (British) the founder of Virgin Group.

The team powered by Mercedes, pilot by the two talented driver Ruben Barichello and Jenson Button, from Brazil and British respectively. No doubt about it, the team is running on Bridgestone tyres as well the sole tyres supplier for the year 2009 season.

If you pay more attention on the above paragraphs, you will notice there are some link between these words. Lets make it clearer.

BRwan – the team principle

BRitish – the nationality of Ross Brawn

BRackley – the base of the team

BRanson – the sole sponsor

BRitish – the nationality of Richard Branson

BRazil – the nationality of Ruben Barichello

BRitish – the nationality of Jenson Button

BRidgestone – the name of the tyres on Brawn’s machine, last but not least,

BRilliant – the brilliant engineers behind this fantastic machine.

These words above are making sense, the BRAWN logo probably design it with these “terms” in mind?!

What do you think?

2009 Australia GP Race Result

2009-03-29T23:40:00.001+08:00

Pos	No	Driver	Team	Laps	Time/Retired	Grid	Pts
1	22	Jenson Button	Brawn-Mercedes	58	1:34:15.784	1	10
2	23	Rubens Barrichello	Brawn-Mercedes	58	+0.8 secs	2	8
3	9	Jarno Trulli	Toyota	58	+1.6 secs	20	6
4	10	Timo Glock	Toyota	58	+4.4 secs	19	5
5	7	Fernando Alonso	Renault	58	+4.8 secs	10	4
6	16	Nico Rosberg	Williams-Toyota	58	+5.7 secs	5	3
7	12	Sebastien Buemi	STR-Ferrari	58	+6.0 secs	13	2
8	11	Sebastien Bourdais	STR-Ferrari	58	+6.2 secs	17	1
9	20	Adrian Sutil	Force India-Mercedes	58	+6.3 secs	16
10	6	Nick Heidfeld	BMW Sauber	58	+7.0 secs	9
11	21	Giancarlo Fisichella	Force India-Mercedes	58	+7.3 secs	15
13	14	Mark Webber	RBR-Renault	57	+1 Lap	8
14	15	Sebastian Vettel	RBR-Renault	56	Accident	3
15	5	Robert Kubica	BMW Sauber	55	Accident	4
16	4	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	55	Differential	7
Ret	3	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	45	Suspension	6
Ret	8	Nelsinho Piquet	Renault	24	Spin	14
Ret	17	Kazuki Nakajima	Williams-Toyota	17	Accident	11
Ret	2	Heikki Kovalainen	McLaren-Mercedes	0	Accident damage	12
DSQ	1	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren-Mercedes	58	+2.9 secs (DQ)	18

Hamilton finished fourth, was promoted to third after Trulli was penalised for passing him under the safety car, but was ultimately disqualified after stewards decided he and McLaren had provided 'misleading' evidence relating to the incident.

Albert Park – Penalty Causing Race Result Changed

2009-03-29T23:12:00.001+08:00

Updates: Trulli retain third place, Hamilton and McLaren disqualified

The celebration lasted less than a day.

Jarno Trulli was penalized by the steward due to the overtaking under the safety car.

I saw it on the television, before the safety car came out, Lewis Hamilton was third. After that Hamilton and Trulli’s position switched, I was wondering for awhile. But this is how Jarno Trulli quoted:

"I can't say how disappointed I am to finish third but have the result questioned," he said. "When the safety car came out towards the end of the race Lewis passed me but soon after he suddenly slowed down and pulled over to the side of the road. I thought he had a problem so I overtook him as there was nothing else I could do."

This is very disappointing for Toyota, and Jarno Trulli. He drove a fantastic race despite starting from the pit.

After applying the penalty of ~~10 seconds~~ 25 seconds (as it happened within the last five laps), third place stripped from Trulli and dropped to 12th place, the final podium slot was passed down to Lewis Hamilton who starting grid was 18.

Apart from that, Sebastian Vettel was penalized as well for the collision with Robert Kubica. The clumsy move cause Robert Kubica third place, cause himself a second place and 10-place grid penalty on Malaysia Grand Prix, which will be held on 5th April.

Touched - Robert Kubica on the left, Sebastian Vettel on the right

BRAWN ONE TWO – Australian GP

2009-03-29T15:49:00.001+08:00

Jenson Button is the driver of the day no doubt about it. Thanks to the the Sebastian Vettel And Robert Kubica, Ruben Barichello took the second step of the podium. Another driver benefit from the stunt was ~~Lewis Hamilton~~ Jarno Trulli, the final driver to complete the podium.

What a dramatic event in Albert’s Park. The race was sort of completed under the safety car (the safety car put off its light on the final corner), but do not forget the first appearance of Brawn GP!

Big smile on Ross Brawn and Richard Branson face!

Do not forget Sebastian Vettel, he did a fantastic job as well until the last 3 laps of the race. Clumsy, the only word can be used to describe his move to defends his second position from Robert Kubica.

I was still watching the television while I blogging this post. Trulli was talking to Ross Brawn, Jenson Button and Ruben Barichello. I am very happy with you guys, and Barichello was delighted screaming “ONE TWO?!” to Ross Brawn. Brawn just cool, smiling to both of the driver.

First Debut One two after year 1954! Same engine manufacturer! Amazing!

2 British, 1 Brazilian, Bridgestone tyres, a group of Brilliant team member and a Brawn team… That’s how you spell BRAWN!

Go-ahead – Taller diffuser

2009-03-27T10:16:00.001+08:00

Albert Park stewards have rejected the protest against the diffusers on the Brawn GP, Toyota and Williams machine. These three teams race car design will remain unchanged and will be free to compete in this weekend.

Ferrari, Renault and Red Bull have confirmed that they will now take the matter to the FIA Court of Appeal, which cannot convene until next weekend’s Malaysian Grand Prix has been run. Thus the outcome of the opening two races could be in doubt.

This is how F1 works, if you can’t beat them on track try off-track…

Protest on taller diffuser

2009-03-26T16:51:00.001+08:00

Brawn, Toyota and Williams managed to exploit the rule of Formula One having to run a taller diffuser. Clearly it must have certain extend of advantages.

The rest of the teams have objected, questioning legality on their designs.

The stewards must now decide whether to allow the cars in question to race in their current form.

Malaysian GP - Trophy

2009-03-26T10:20:00.001+08:00

Check out the 2009 Malaysian Sepang F1 GP trophy…

Brawn back on top

2009-03-18T10:02:00.001+08:00

2009 Season has not started, but the team are start racing already. Brawn BGP001 was beaten in Jerez day two testing, but Jenson Button managed to climb back to the top of the timesheet.

The only driver clocked under 1 min 18sec.

Renault will be very strong as well, the second driver set a quite competitive time as well

Unofficial Tuesday times from Jerez: (Day 3)
1. Jenson Button, Brawn BGP 001, 1:17.844
2. Nico Rosberg, Williams FW31, 1:18.071
3. Nelson Piquet, Renault R29, 1:18.382
4. Lewis Hamilton, McLaren MP4-24, 1:19.121

Brawn threat is genuine

2009-03-17T09:54:00.001+08:00

There will be many surprises this year (2009) Formula One season. Change of rules, new technologies implementation, the return of slick tyres, new driver and “new” team.

The best of all changes – the new team. Brawn GP F1 Team.

Less than 2 weeks in test, Brawn already posts a threat to all the teams by clocking fastest time 3 days in a role. As the team formerly owned by Honda, the 2 experience drivers remain unchanged. With their experience, can they (one of them) be the championship contender this year?

My favourite this year: Jenson Button

In various interview sessions, we can clearly see that others are paying attention on this dark-horse and tag Brawn as a team to beat in the 2009 season.

Extracted from Formula1.com

Q: The Brawn clocked a fantastic time. Would you be able to do something similar when going for a qualifying lap?
Felipe Massa: No. And I think nobody can do.

Q: Do you think this time was genuine, or were they running on low fuel?
FM: Many people were running on a low fuel load, not just them. I think their lap time is just much quicker than everybody else can do.

Q: Having now seen all your rivals on the track, who do you think will be your biggest challenger?
Robert Kubica: On one hand I feel surprised, and on the other I feel happy to see it is Brawn Grand Prix. They are performing really well. There is speculation that they are running very light, but I don’t think that it is a fuel issue. They simply look very competitive…

Everything looks perfect for Brawn, until Fernando Alonso snatched the top of the list chalked the fastest time in Jerez Day 2. But still, Brawn duo managed to booked second and third place in the time sheet, it looks really promising…

Unofficial Sunday times from Jerez: (DAY 1)
1. Rubens Barrichello, Brawn BGP 001, 1:19.236
2. Fernando Alonso, Renault R29, 1:19.819
3. Nico Hulkenberg, Williams FW31, 1:20.015

Unofficial Monday times from Jerez: (DAY 2)
1. Fernando Alonso, Renault R29, 1:18.343
2. Rubens Barrichello, Brawn BGP 001, 1:18.398
3. Jenson Button, Brawn BGP 001, 1:18.892
4. Lewis Hamilton, McLaren MP4-24, 1:19.513
5. Nico Rosberg, Williams FW31, 1:19.783

F1 Team to watch - Brawn GP F1 Team

2009-03-13T10:02:00.001+08:00

“I am happy, really happy!”

“I felt very good”

“This one was born really nicely”

“It is a good combination with the engine, in terms of power and drivability”

“This year is going to be a happy one.”

“Now we are a very well prepared group”

“We have a good chance to have a car to surprise”

“I think we will be the surprise of the year.”

These are the reactions by Ruben Barrichello after clocking the fastest time in Barcelona Day 4 testing.

2 days in a row, 2 different driver, 1 team. Brawn BGP 001 and the team proved that they have the package to be on top of the list. It will be too soon to say, but Brawn GP F1 team definitely is the team to watch in 2009 season.

The car still empty without any sponsorship (other than the tyres supplier Bridgestone), but I believe that despite the current economy situation, they will still attract big money from the sponsors. (Do we have the word “recession” in Formula One dictionary?)

Unofficial Thursday times from Barcelona:
1. Rubens Barrichello, Brawn BGP 001, 1:18.926
2. Nico Rosberg, Williams FW31, 1:19.774
3. Timo Glock, Toyota TF109, 1:20.091
4. Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull RB5, 1:20.576
5. Fernando Alonso, Renault R29, 1:20.664
6. Felipe Massa, Ferrari F60, 1:20.677
7. Robert Kubica, BMW Sauber F1.09, 1:20.740
8. Lewis Hamilton, McLaren MP4-24, 1:20.869
9. Sebastien Buemi, Toro Rosso STR4, 1:21.013
10. Giancarlo Fisichella, Force India VJM02, 1:21.045
11. Sebastien Bourdais, Toro Rosso STR4, 1:21.629

Team to watch in 2009 – Brawn GP Formula One Team

2009-03-12T09:17:00.001+08:00

After securing the future of former Honda team, with ownership passing to team principal Brawn with immediate effect. Subject to FIA approval, the team will become known as the Brawn GP Formula One Team.

In such a short turn-over period, Button manage to clock the fastest time with Brawn GP 001 in Day 3 practice in Barcelona, more than a second faster than the nearest competitor Felipe Massa.

Plain white racing suit, car with no sponsorship logo on it….

Still looks cool…

Unofficial Wednesday times from Barcelona:
1. Jenson Button, Brawn BGP 001, 1:19.127
2. Felipe Massa, Ferrari F60, 1:20.168
3. Robert Kubica, BMW Sauber F1.09, 1:20.217
4. Timo Glock, Toyota TF109, 1:20.410
5. Fernando Alonso, Renault R29, 1:20.863
6. Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull RB5, 1:21.165
7. Nico Rosberg, Williams FW31, 1:21.324
8. Giancarlo Fisichella, Force India VJM02, 1:21.545
9. Sebastien Buemi, Toro Rosso STR4, 1:21.569
10. Lewis Hamilton, McLaren MP4-24, 1:21.657

2009 Driver Line Up

2009-01-13T09:45:00.001+08:00

McLaren Mercedes
1 Lewis Hamilton (GB)
2 Heikki Kovalainen (FIN)

Ferrari
3 Kimi Raikkonen (FIN)
4 Felipe Massa (BR)

BMW Sauber
5 Robert Kubica (PL)
6 Nick Heidfeld (D)

Renault
7 Fernando Alonso (E)
8 Nelson Piquet (BR)

Toyota
9 Jarno Trulli (I)
10 Timo Glock (D)

STR Ferrari
11 Sebastien Buemi (CH)
12 Sebastien Bourdais (FR)

Red Bull Renault
14 Mark Webber (AUS)
15 Sebastian Vettel (D)

Williams Toyota
16 Nico Rosberg (D)
17 Kazuki Nakajima (J)

Brawn GP * updated
18 Jenson Button * updated
19 Ruben Barrichello * updated

Force India Mercedes
20 Adrian Sutil (D)
21 Giancarlo Fisichella (I)

Brazilian GP - Race Result

2008-11-03T08:52:00.001+08:00

Pos	No	Driver	Team	Laps	Time/Retired
1	2	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	71	1:34:11.435
2	5	Fernando Alonso	Renault	71	+13.2 secs
3	1	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	71	+16.2 secs
4	15	Sebastian Vettel	STR-Ferrari	71	+38.0 secs
5	22	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren-Mercedes	71	+38.9 secs
6	12	Timo Glock	Toyota	71	+44.3 secs
7	23	Heikki Kovalainen	McLaren-Mercedes	71	+55.0 secs
8	11	Jarno Trulli	Toyota	71	+68.4 secs
9	10	Mark Webber	Red Bull-Renault	71	+79.6 secs
10	3	Nick Heidfeld	BMW Sauber	70	+1 Lap
11	4	Robert Kubica	BMW Sauber	70	+1 Lap
12	7	Nico Rosberg	Williams-Toyota	70	+1 Lap
13	16	Jenson Button	Honda	70	+1 Lap
14	14	Sebastien Bourdais	STR-Ferrari	70	+1 Lap
15	17	Rubens Barrichello	Honda	70	+1 Lap
16	20	Adrian Sutil	Force India-Ferrari	69	+2 Laps
17	8	Kazuki Nakajima	Williams-Toyota	69	+2 Laps
18	21	Giancarlo Fisichella	Force India-Ferrari	69	+2 Laps
Ret	6	Nelsinho Piquet	Renault	0	Accident
Ret	9	David Coulthard	Red Bull-Renault	0	Accident

All decided on the last corner of the last lap of the last race

2008-11-03T08:39:00.001+08:00

Lewis Hamilton is the champion!

McLaren’s Lewis Hamilton is the 30th - and youngest-ever - world champion. Lady Luck was on his side after title rival Felipe Massa dominated at Interlagos. The Brazilian crossed the line first after a pluperfect performance - and seemed to have achieved the impossible - as Hamilton trailed in sixth.

Rain in the closing stages had prompted the first five - Massa, Renault’s Fernando Alonso, Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen, Hamilton and Toro Rosso’s Sebastian Vettel - to pit for wet tyres. Crucially, Timo Glock, running sixth for Toyota, did not.

Massa, Alonso and Raikkonen resumed in first to third places, but Hamilton and Vettel fell behind Glock. That was still good enough for Hamilton. But then, under pressure on the 70th lap, he made a crucial mistake and slid wide. It was all Vettel needed and the Toro Rosso driver pushed through to snatch away the fifth place that Hamilton needed to become champion.

More...

Race Result - Shanghai GP

2008-10-20T00:02:00.000+08:00

Pos	No	Driver	Team	Laps	Time/Retired
1	22	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren-Mercedes	56	1:31:57.403
2	2	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	56	+14.9 secs
3	1	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	56	+16.4 secs
4	5	Fernando Alonso	Renault	56	+18.3 secs
5	3	Nick Heidfeld	BMW Sauber	56	+28.9 secs
6	4	Robert Kubica	BMW Sauber	56	+33.2 secs
7	12	Timo Glock	Toyota	56	+41.7 secs
8	6	Nelsinho Piquet	Renault	56	+56.6 secs
9	15	Sebastian Vettel	STR-Ferrari	56	+64.3 secs
10	9	David Coulthard	Red Bull-Renault	56	+74.8 secs
11	17	Rubens Barrichello	Honda	56	+85.0 secs
12	8	Kazuki Nakajima	Williams-Toyota	56	+90.8 secs
13	14	Sebastien Bourdais	STR-Ferrari	56	+91.4 secs
14	10	Mark Webber	Red Bull-Renault	56	+92.4 secs
15	7	Nico Rosberg	Williams-Toyota	55	+1 Lap
16	16	Jenson Button	Honda	55	+1 Lap
17	21	Giancarlo Fisichella	Force India-Ferrari	55	+1 Lap
Ret	23	Heikki Kovalainen	McLaren-Mercedes	49	Pneumatic
Ret	20	Adrian Sutil	Force India-Ferrari	13	Gearbox
Ret	11	Jarno Trulli	Toyota	2	Accident damage

Race Result - Fuji Speedway Japan

2008-10-12T23:53:00.000+08:00

Pos	No	Driver	Team	Laps	Time/Retired
1	5	Fernando Alonso	Renault	67	1:30:21.892
2	4	Robert Kubica	BMW Sauber	67	+5.2 secs
3	1	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	67	+6.4 secs
4	6	Nelsinho Piquet	Renault	67	+20.5 secs
5	11	Jarno Trulli	Toyota	67	+23.7 secs
6	15	Sebastian Vettel	STR-Ferrari	67	+39.2 secs
7	2	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	67	+46.1 secs
8	10	Mark Webber	Red Bull-Renault	67	+50.8 secs
9	3	Nick Heidfeld	BMW Sauber	67	+54.1 secs
10	14	Sebastien Bourdais	STR-Ferrari	67	+59.0 secs
11	7	Nico Rosberg	Williams-Toyota	67	+62.0 secs
12	22	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren-Mercedes	67	+78.9 secs
13	17	Rubens Barrichello	Honda	66	+1 Lap
14	16	Jenson Button	Honda	66	+1 Lap
15	8	Kazuki Nakajima	Williams-Toyota	66	+1 Lap
Ret	21	Giancarlo Fisichella	Force India-Ferrari	21	Gearbox
Ret	23	Heikki Kovalainen	McLaren-Mercedes	16	Engine
Ret	20	Adrian Sutil	Force India-Ferrari	8	Puncture
Ret	12	Timo Glock	Toyota	6	Accident damage
Ret	9	David Coulthard	Red Bull-Renault	0	Accident

Alonso Shines at Night

2008-09-29T09:13:00.001+08:00

Renault’s Fernando Alonso scored a surprise success just when he most needed it, in one of the most eagerly anticipated Grand Prix in Formula One history, under the lights of Singapore on Sunday. And he owed much of it to team mate Nelson Piquet, whose crash on the 14th lap changed the face of the race.

Ferrari’s Felipe Massa led from pole position from McLaren’s Lewis Hamilton and Kimi Raikkonen in the second Ferrari, and Alonso dropped way back when he was the first to stop as the result of an aggressive opening stint. Then Piquet had his shunt and out came the safety car. Fourth-placed Robert Kubica for BMW Sauber and Williams’ Nico Rosberg both pitted before the pit lane was officially opened, and when it was on the 17th lap, Massa’s race fell apart as he led Hamilton, Raikkonen, Toro Rosso’s Sebastian Vettel and Toyota’s Timo Glock.

The green light within his cockpit told Massa he could restart, but the refuelling hose was still attached to his car. He knocked over a mechanic as the hose tore away, and fuel spewed everywhere. Subsequently he was given a drive-through penalty for another unsafe exit in front of the Force India of Adrian Sutil.

Race Result - Singapore Grand Prix

2008-09-29T09:03:00.001+08:00

Pos	No	Driver	Team	Laps	Time/Retired
1	5	Fernando Alonso	Renault	61	1:57:16.304
2	7	Nico Rosberg	Williams-Toyota	61	+2.9 secs
3	22	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren-Mercedes	61	+5.9 secs
4	12	Timo Glock	Toyota	61	+8.1 secs
5	15	Sebastian Vettel	STR-Ferrari	61	+10.2 secs
6	3	Nick Heidfeld	BMW Sauber	61	+11.1 secs
7	9	David Coulthard	Red Bull-Renault	61	+16.3 secs
8	8	Kazuki Nakajima	Williams-Toyota	61	+18.4 secs
9	16	Jenson Button	Honda	61	+19.8 secs
10	23	Heikki Kovalainen	McLaren-Mercedes	61	+26.9 secs
11	4	Robert Kubica	BMW Sauber	61	+27.9 secs
12	14	Sebastien Bourdais	STR-Ferrari	61	+29.4 secs
13	2	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	61	+35.1 secs
14	21	Giancarlo Fisichella	Force India-Ferrari	61	+43.5 secs
15	1	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	57	Accident
Ret	11	Jarno Trulli	Toyota	50	Hydraulics
Ret	20	Adrian Sutil	Force India-Ferrari	49	Accident
Ret	10	Mark Webber	Red Bull-Renault	29	Transmission
Ret	17	Rubens Barrichello	Honda	14	Engine
Ret	6	Nelsinho Piquet	Renault	13	Accident

Race Result - Italian Grand Prix

2008-09-16T09:12:00.001+08:00

The youngest pole sitter became the youngest F1 race winner, another new name recorded in F1 record book. Sebastian Vettel wins the wet Italian grand prix, the fastest track in F1 calendar.

Pos	No	Driver	Team	Laps	Time/Retired
1	15	Sebastian Vettel	STR-Ferrari	53	1:26:47.494
2	23	Heikki Kovalainen	McLaren-Mercedes	53	+12.5 secs
3	4	Robert Kubica	BMW Sauber	53	+20.4 secs
4	5	Fernando Alonso	Renault	53	+23.9 secs
5	3	Nick Heidfeld	BMW Sauber	53	+27.7 secs
6	2	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	53	+28.8 secs
7	22	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren-Mercedes	53	+29.9 secs
8	10	Mark Webber	Red Bull-Renault	53	+32.0 secs
9	1	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	53	+39.4 secs
10	6	Nelsinho Piquet	Renault	53	+54.4 secs
11	12	Timo Glock	Toyota	53	+58.8 secs
12	8	Kazuki Nakajima	Williams-Toyota	53	+62.0 secs
13	11	Jarno Trulli	Toyota	53	+65.9 secs
14	7	Nico Rosberg	Williams-Toyota	53	+68.6 secs
15	16	Jenson Button	Honda	53	+73.3 secs
16	9	David Coulthard	Red Bull-Renault	52	+1 Lap
17	17	Rubens Barrichello	Honda	52	+1 Lap
18	14	Sebastien Bourdais	STR-Ferrari	52	+1 Lap
19	20	Adrian Sutil	Force India-Ferrari	51	+2 Laps
Ret	21	Giancarlo Fisichella	Force India-Ferrari	11	Accident

They laughed when Sebastian Vettel and Toro Rosso snatched pole position in qualifying - but that turned to cheers of admiration on Sunday when the 21 year-old German became Formula One’s youngest ever winner after a brilliant wet-weather victory at Monza.

Neither Vettel nor the underdog team put a wheel wrong, as superb driving, strategy and pit work brought them home comfortably clear of McLaren’s Heikki Kovalainen and BMW Sauber’s Robert Kubica.

In Vettel’s wake, team mate Sebastien Bourdais was left on the grid as the race started behind the safety car because of the rain that started half an hour before the kick-off. But even without his wingman, Vettel never had a problem in this one. Kovalainen’s expected challenge never materialised, leaving the Finn sorely disappointed. Kubica’s single pit stop was timed to absolute perfection, as he was able to refuel and switch from Bridgestone’s extreme wets to normal wets at the same time. Both Vettel and Kovalainen stopped twice.

Extracted from: http://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/2008/9/8385.html

2008 Belgian GP Race Result

2008-09-08T09:40:00.001+08:00

Pos	No	Driver	Team	Laps	Time/Retired
1	2	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	44	1:22:59.394
2	3	Nick Heidfeld	BMW Sauber	44	+9.3 secs
3	22	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren-Mercedes	44	+10.5 secs
4	5	Fernando Alonso	Renault	44	+14.4 secs
5	15	Sebastian Vettel	STR-Ferrari	44	+14.5 secs
6	4	Robert Kubica	BMW Sauber	44	+15.0 secs
7	14	Sebastien Bourdais	STR-Ferrari	44	+16.7 secs
8	10	Mark Webber	Red Bull-Renault	44	+42.7 secs
9	12	Timo Glock	Toyota	44	+67.0 secs
10	23	Heikki Kovalainen	McLaren-Mercedes	43	Transmission
11	9	David Coulthard	Red Bull-Renault	43	+1 Lap
12	7	Nico Rosberg	Williams-Toyota	43	+1 Lap
13	20	Adrian Sutil	Force India-Ferrari	43	+1 Lap
14	8	Kazuki Nakajima	Williams-Toyota	43	+1 Lap
15	16	Jenson Button	Honda	43	+1 Lap
16	11	Jarno Trulli	Toyota	43	+1 Lap
17	21	Giancarlo Fisichella	Force India-Ferrari	43	+1 Lap
18	1	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	42	Accident
Ret	17	Rubens Barrichello	Honda	19	Gearbox
Ret	6	Nelsinho Piquet	Renault	13	Accident

Hamilton was initially classified first, but had 25 seconds added to his race time for gaining an advantage through cutting the final chicane. Glock was initially classified eighth, but had 25 seconds added to his race time for passing under yellow flags.

Massa wins Belgian GP, Hamilton penalised

2008-09-08T09:35:00.001+08:00

Ferrari’s Felipe Massa has been declared the winner of Sunday’s Belgian Grand Prix after McLaren’ Lewis Hamilton was handed a 25-second time penalty following the race. Hamilton drops to third place as a result, with BMW Sauber’s Nick Heidfeld moving up to second. McLaren plan to appeal the decision.

Hamilton was penalised after stewards decided he had gained an advantage by cutting the final chicane in his late-race battle with Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen. Raikkonen crashed out shortly after the incident, having the led the bulk of the race up to that point.

"I have often said that the race is not over until the official results are published and that was the case today," said Ferrari team principal Stefano Domenicali. "As usual, Ferrari will not comment on the stewards' decision. After the race, we were called to the stewards and we explained our position.

25 second penalty for Lewis Hamilton

Full story: http://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/2008/9/8334.html

Race Result - Valencia GP

2008-08-25T10:20:00.001+08:00

Pos	No	Driver	Team	Laps	Time/Retired
1	2	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	57	1:35:32.339
2	22	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren-Mercedes	57	+5.6 secs
3	4	Robert Kubica	BMW Sauber	57	+37.3 secs
4	23	Heikki Kovalainen	McLaren-Mercedes	57	+39.7 secs
5	11	Jarno Trulli	Toyota	57	+50.6 secs
6	15	Sebastian Vettel	STR-Ferrari	57	+52.6 secs
7	12	Timo Glock	Toyota	57	+67.9 secs
8	7	Nico Rosberg	Williams-Toyota	57	+71.4 secs
9	3	Nick Heidfeld	BMW Sauber	57	+82.1 secs
10	14	Sebastien Bourdais	STR-Ferrari	57	+89.7 secs
11	6	Nelsinho Piquet	Renault	57	+92.7 secs
12	10	Mark Webber	Red Bull-Renault	56	+1 Lap
13	16	Jenson Button	Honda	56	+1 Lap
14	21	Giancarlo Fisichella	Force India-Ferrari	56	+1 Lap
15	8	Kazuki Nakajima	Williams-Toyota	56	+1 Lap
16	17	Rubens Barrichello	Honda	56	+1 Lap
17	9	David Coulthard	Red Bull-Renault	56	+1 Lap
Ret	1	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	45	Engine
Ret	20	Adrian Sutil	Force India-Ferrari	41	Accident
Ret	5	Fernando Alonso	Renault	0	Accident damage

F1 2008 Hungarian Grand Prix Race Result

2008-08-04T09:41:00.001+08:00

Pos	No	Driver	Team	Laps	Time/Retired
1	23	Heikki Kovalainen	McLaren-Mercedes	70	1:37:27.067
2	12	Timo Glock	Toyota	70	+11.0 secs
3	1	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	70	+16.8 secs
4	5	Fernando Alonso	Renault	70	+21.6 secs
5	22	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren-Mercedes	70	+23.0 secs
6	6	Nelsinho Piquet	Renault	70	+32.2 secs
7	11	Jarno Trulli	Toyota	70	+36.4 secs
8	4	Robert Kubica	BMW Sauber	70	+48.3 secs
9	10	Mark Webber	Red Bull-Renault	70	+58.8 secs
10	3	Nick Heidfeld	BMW Sauber	70	+67.7 secs
11	9	David Coulthard	Red Bull-Renault	70	+70.4 secs
12	16	Jenson Button	Honda	69	+1 Lap
13	8	Kazuki Nakajima	Williams-Toyota	69	+1 Lap
14	7	Nico Rosberg	Williams-Toyota	69	+1 Lap
15	21	Giancarlo Fisichella	Force India-Ferrari	69	+1 Lap
16	17	Rubens Barrichello	Honda	68	+2 Laps
17	2	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	67	Engine
18	14	Sebastien Bourdais	STR-Ferrari	67	+3 Laps
Ret	20	Adrian Sutil	Force India-Ferrari	62	+8 Laps
Ret	15	Sebastian Vettel	STR-Ferrari	22	+48 Laps

German Grand Prix Race Result

2008-07-21T09:45:00.001+08:00

Pos	No	Driver	Team	Laps	Time/Retired
1	22	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren-Mercedes	67	1:31:20.874
2	6	Nelsinho Piquet	Renault	67	+5.5 secs
3	2	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	67	+9.3 secs
4	3	Nick Heidfeld	BMW Sauber	67	+9.8 secs
5	23	Heikki Kovalainen	McLaren-Mercedes	67	+12.4 secs
6	1	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	67	+14.4 secs
7	4	Robert Kubica	BMW Sauber	67	+22.6 secs
8	15	Sebastian Vettel	STR-Ferrari	67	+33.2 secs
9	11	Jarno Trulli	Toyota	67	+37.1 secs
10	7	Nico Rosberg	Williams-Toyota	67	+37.6 secs
11	5	Fernando Alonso	Renault	67	+38.6 secs
12	14	Sebastien Bourdais	STR-Ferrari	67	+39.1 secs
13	9	David Coulthard	Red Bull-Renault	67	+54.9 secs
14	8	Kazuki Nakajima	Williams-Toyota	67	+60.0 secs
15	20	Adrian Sutil	Force India-Ferrari	67	+69.4 secs
16	21	Giancarlo Fisichella	Force India-Ferrari	67	+84.0 secs
17	16	Jenson Button	Honda	66	+1 Lap
Ret	17	Rubens Barrichello	Honda	50	Accident damage
Ret	10	Mark Webber	Red Bull-Renault	40	Oil leak
Ret	12	Timo Glock	Toyota	35	Accident

British GP Race Result

2008-07-07T09:48:00.001+08:00

Pos	No	Driver	Team	Laps	Time/Retired
1	22	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren-Mercedes	60	1:39:09.440
2	3	Nick Heidfeld	BMW Sauber	60	+68.5 secs
3	17	Rubens Barrichello	Honda	60	+82.2 secs
4	1	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	59	+1 Lap
5	23	Heikki Kovalainen	McLaren-Mercedes	59	+1 Lap
6	5	Fernando Alonso	Renault	59	+1 Lap
7	11	Jarno Trulli	Toyota	59	+1 Lap
8	8	Kazuki Nakajima	Williams-Toyota	59	+1 Lap
9	7	Nico Rosberg	Williams-Toyota	59	+1 Lap
10	10	Mark Webber	Red Bull-Renault	59	+1 Lap
11	14	Sebastien Bourdais	STR-Ferrari	59	+1 Lap
12	12	Timo Glock	Toyota	59	+1 Lap
13	2	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	58	+2 Laps
Ret	4	Robert Kubica	BMW Sauber	39	Spin
Ret	16	Jenson Button	Honda	38	Spin
Ret	6	Nelsinho Piquet	Renault	35	Spin
Ret	21	Giancarlo Fisichella	Force India-Ferrari	26	Spin
Ret	20	Adrian Sutil	Force India-Ferrari	10	Spin
Ret	15	Sebastian Vettel	STR-Ferrari	0	Spin
Ret	9	David Coulthard	Red Bull-Renault	0	Spin

Hamilton, Heidfeld, Barrichello dominant in Silverstone

2008-07-07T09:42:00.001+08:00

McLaren’s Lewis Hamilton gave his adoring fans exactly what they came to see at a sodden Silverstone on Sunday. A brilliant British Grand Prix victory in often treacherous conditions lifted him right back into contention for the world championship, on a day when Kimi Raikkonen failed to shine and Ferrari team mate Felipe Massa and BMW Sauber’s Robert Kubica were the ones who came home pointless.

The race started on a damp track, with the promise of more rain to come. Hamilton touched wheels with pole-sitting team mate Heikki Kovalainen on lap one at Copse after making a terrific start, and edged ahead of him at Becketts on the fifth lap. Thereafter it was his race to lose, and the most crucial point came when both he and Raikkonen, an apparent threat at this stage, pitted on the 21st lap. But where McLaren gave their man another set of standard wet-weather Bridgestones, Ferrari kept theirs on the same set. Hamilton rocketed away from the red car, and Raikkonen slipped steadily down the order as strong mid-race performances from Nick Heidfeld and Robert Kubica put BMW Sauber into the frame for podium finishes.

Heavy rain in the middle of the race created further havoc, however, as driver after driver slipped and slid off the road. This was where clever strategic thinking by Ross Brawn at Honda saw the team risk bringing in both Rubens Barrichello and Jenson Button for extreme wet tyres on the 35th lap. The Brazilian made great use of them and was able to push up into second place until a late switch back to intermediates. As Heidfeld clung on to a good second place, after making the right call for fresh intermediates at his first stop, Barrichello recovered to a podium finish that was a great boost to the Japanese team.

Behind them, Raikkonen finally fought his way out of a late-race battle with Renault’s Fernando Alonso and Kovalainen to finish fourth.

Full report: http://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/2008/7/8058.html

France - Magny-Cours Race Result

2008-06-23T10:02:00.001+08:00

Pos	No	Driver	Team	Laps	Time/Retired
1	2	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	70	1:31:50.245
2	1	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	70	+17.9 secs
3	11	Jarno Trulli	Toyota	70	+28.2 secs
4	23	Heikki Kovalainen	McLaren-Mercedes	70	+28.9 secs
5	4	Robert Kubica	BMW Sauber	70	+30.5 secs
6	10	Mark Webber	Red Bull-Renault	70	+40.3 secs
7	6	Nelsinho Piquet	Renault	70	+41.0 secs
8	5	Fernando Alonso	Renault	70	+43.3 secs
9	9	David Coulthard	Red Bull-Renault	70	+51.0 secs
10	22	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren-Mercedes	70	+54.5 secs
11	12	Timo Glock	Toyota	70	+57.7 secs
12	15	Sebastian Vettel	STR-Ferrari	70	+58.0 secs
13	3	Nick Heidfeld	BMW Sauber	70	+62.0 secs
14	17	Rubens Barrichello	Honda	69	+1 Lap
15	8	Kazuki Nakajima	Williams-Toyota	69	+1 Lap
16	7	Nico Rosberg	Williams-Toyota	69	+1 Lap
17	14	Sebastien Bourdais	STR-Ferrari	69	+1 Lap
18	21	Giancarlo Fisichella	Force India-Ferrari	69	+1 Lap
19	20	Adrian Sutil	Force India-Ferrari	69	+1 Lap
Ret	16	Jenson Button	Honda	16	Accident damage

Massa on the top step of podium, thanks to Raikkonen exhaust

2008-06-23T09:56:00.001+08:00

Felipe Massa took the lead of the drivers’ championship after a decisive victory for Ferrari at Magny-Cours on Sunday. The Brazilian trailed team mate Kimi Raikkonen for the first 38 of the 70 laps, but moved ahead decisively as the Finn’s F2008 developed an exhaust problem. The latter cost Raikkonen the win, but nobody else ever got close enough to the red cars for this to be a problem to the team.

Jarno Trulli might have been able to catch Raikkonen, but had his hands full fending off a strong late-race challenge from McLaren’s Heikki Kovalainen. The Finn nearly squeezed by on the penultimate lap, but as the Toyota moved over they briefly rubbed wheels and Kovalainen went over a chicane and had to concede his challenge. It gave Toyota their first podium since 2005.

Behind them, Robert Kubica clung on for second place in the championship chase thanks to a fifth place finish, well ahead of the scrap for the final points between Mark Webber’s Red Bull and the Renault drivers. When Fernando Alonso slid wide lapping Giancarlo Fisichella with three laps left, Nelson Piquet moved ahead of his team leader and was hounding Webber by the flag in a drive that gave him his first championship points and might arguably have saved his career.

It was a disastrous afternoon for McLaren’s Lewis Hamilton, who had worked his way up to ninth place when he had to serve a drive-through penalty on the 13th lap after the stewards adjudged him to have gained an advantage on the opening lap by going over a chicane to overtake Sebastian Vettel. The Englishman finally finished 10th, behind David Coulthard’s Red Bull.

Full report: http://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/2008/6/7978.html

Canada GP - Robert Kubica Led Nick Heidfeld One-two Finish

2008-06-09T09:58:00.001+08:00

From left: Nick Heidfeld, Dr Mario Theissen, Robert Kubica and David Coulthard

BMW Sauber finally took their long overdue maiden victory in Montreal on Sunday, as Robert Kubica led Nick Heidfeld home in a fabulous one-two on a day when early leader Lewis Hamilton inadvertently crashed his McLaren into Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen in a pit-lane collision during the first round of refuelling stops.

As a result of his first win, Kubica now leads the world championship fight with 42 points to Hamilton and Massa’s 38 and Raikkonen’s 35.
At the start Hamilton sprinted away from pole position, leaving Kubica to fend off Raikkonen. But the safety car neutralised that when it was deployed to recover Adrian Sutil’s Force India from a dangerous position on the 17th lap.

All of the leaders pitted on Lap 19, and as Hamilton rejoined, having dropped behind Raikkonen and Kubica after a longer stop, he ran into the back of the Finn, whom he suddenly realised was stopped by the red pit-lane exit light. Both the Ferrari and the McLaren were too damaged to continue. Nico Rosberg also damaged his Williams by running into the rear of Hamilton in the incident. An additional pit visit for a new nose thus dropped the German out of contention after running fourth early on.

Full Report: http://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/2008/6/7900.html

Canadian Montreal Race Result

2008-06-09T09:49:00.001+08:00

Pos	No	Driver	Team	Laps	Time/Retired	Grid	Pts
1	4	Robert Kubica	BMW Sauber	70	1:36:24.447	2	10
2	3	Nick Heidfeld	BMW Sauber	70	+16.4 secs	8	8
3	9	David Coulthard	Red Bull-Renault	70	+23.3 secs	13	6
4	12	Timo Glock	Toyota	70	+42.6 secs	11	5
5	2	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	70	+43.9 secs	6	4
6	11	Jarno Trulli	Toyota	70	+47.7 secs	14	3
7	17	Rubens Barrichello	Honda	70	+53.5 secs	9	2
8	15	Sebastian Vettel	STR-Ferrari	70	+54.1 secs	19	1
9	23	Heikki Kovalainen	McLaren-Mercedes	70	+54.4 secs	7
10	7	Nico Rosberg	Williams-Toyota	70	+57.7 secs	5
11	16	Jenson Button	Honda	70	+67.5 secs	20
12	10	Mark Webber	Red Bull-Renault	70	+71.2 secs	10
13	14	Sebastien Bourdais	STR-Ferrari	69	+1 Lap	18
Ret	21	Giancarlo Fisichella	Force India-Ferrari	51	Accident	17
Ret	8	Kazuki Nakajima	Williams-Toyota	46	Accident	12
Ret	5	Fernando Alonso	Renault	44	Accident	4
Ret	6	Nelsinho Piquet	Renault	39	Brakes	15
Ret	1	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	19	Accident	3
Ret	22	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren-Mercedes	19	Accident	1
Ret	20	Adrian Sutil	Force India-Ferrari	13	Gearbox	16

Monaco GP - Race Result

2008-05-26T10:06:00.001+08:00

Pos	Driver	Team	Laps	Time/Retired
1	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren-Mercedes	76	2:00:42.742
2	Robert Kubica	BMW Sauber	76	+3.0 secs
3	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	76	+4.8 secs
4	Mark Webber	Red Bull-Renault	76	+19.2 secs
5	Sebastian Vettel	STR-Ferrari	76	+24.6 secs
6	Rubens Barrichello	Honda	76	+28.4 secs
7	Kazuki Nakajima	Williams-Toyota	76	+30.1 secs
8	Heikki Kovalainen	McLaren-Mercedes	76	+33.1 secs
9	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	76	+33.7 secs
10	Fernando Alonso	Renault	75	+1 Lap
11	Jenson Button	Honda	75	+1 Lap
12	Timo Glock	Toyota	75	+1 Lap
13	Jarno Trulli	Toyota	75	+1 Lap
14	Nick Heidfeld	BMW Sauber	72	+4 Laps
Ret	Adrian Sutil	Force India-Ferrari	67	Accident damage
Ret	Nico Rosberg	Williams-Toyota	59	Accident
Ret	Nelsinho Piquet	Renault	47	Accident
Ret	Giancarlo Fisichella	Force India-Ferrari	36	Gearbox
Ret	David Coulthard	Red Bull-Renault	7	Accident
Ret	Sebastien Bourdais	STR-Ferrari	7	Accident

Hamilton Wins the Monaco GP

2008-05-26T10:00:00.001+08:00

When Ferrari wrapped up the front row of the grid for the Monaco Grand Prix, Lewis Hamilton’s only real hope of victory seemed to lie in the hands of the weather gods. It duly rained before the start, but after six laps the Englishman walloped the wall hard on the exit to the Swimming Pool, while trailing poleman Felipe Massa’s Ferrari. Into the pits he came, and at that stage the race seemed to belong to the Brazilian.

McLaren, however, brimmed the MP4-23 with fuel, and Hamilton caught his first break when the safety car was deployed on the eighth lap after Red Bull’s David Coulthard and Toro Rosso’s Sebastien Bourdais went off at Massenet.

The racing resumed on the 11th lap, and two laps later Kimi Raikkonen dropped out of second place when he had to serve a drive-through penalty for having his tyres fitted too late in the grid. Now BMW Sauber’s Robert Kubica moved up to push Massa, and was able to snatch the lead when the latter slid momentarily up the escape road at Ste Devote on the 16th lap. Hamilton was chasing hard after them, with Raikkonen now trailing in fourth place.

Kubica stayed ahead until he refuelled on the 26th lap, whereupon Massa went back into the lead until his stop on the 33rd lap. By then Hamilton was up to second, and after moving into the lead… he just kept going.

He did not have to refuel until the 54th lap, and that lengthy stint proved absolutely crucial. Kubica had already stopped for the second time a lap earlier, so was no further threat, and having built a lead of 37.6s Hamilton could refuel, switch to Bridgestone’s soft tyres, and resume still in the lead.

Still he was not home and dry, however. He was 40 seconds ahead when Nico Rosberg, running a lap down after two pits stops to replace damaged noses, tanked his Williams hard into the walls on the exit to the Swimming Pool on the 61st lap. Out came the safety car again, and suddenly Hamilton’s huge advantage had been eroded completely. He kept his head when the race restarted on the 68th lap, however, and was able to pull away to what he described as “a very emotional triumph. The highlight of my career.”

Behind him, Kubica had no trouble fending off Massa for second for BMW Sauber.

Adrian Sutil could have finished fourth for Force India - yes, that’s right - having driven a superb race with a heavy fuel load. But he was the biggest loser in the second safety-car incident. He had been comfortably ahead of Raikkonen’s Ferrari when Rosberg crashed, and was later assaulted by the red car going into the chicane as the race resumed. Raikkonen had got into the same sort of tank-slapper as David Coulthard did in qualifying, and though the Finn kept control of his car he smacked hard enough into the back of Sutil’s car to remove his own front wing and put the unfortunate German out of the greatest race of his life. Stewards subsequently investigated the incident, but decided no action was necessary.

Detail report: http://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/2008/5/7838.html