Thoughts on the European GP 24/08/2009 The race in Valencia went some way to redeeming its reputation as worst circuit of the year, I thought. Although this was one of those races decided by pit stop strategy rather than on the track, the battle between the McLarens and Barrichello was so finely balanced that it provided plenty of interest and scope for guessing at possibilities.Champagne for Rubens at lastAfter a start in which only Raikkonen made major gains to slot into fourth, things seemed to being going according to plan for McLaren. But it soon became apparent that Rubens was at least as quick as Kovalainen ahead of him and, having a considerably heavier fuel load, he was bound to leapfrog the Finn during the pit stops. What remained to be seen was whether he could also get by Hamilton, who was pulling away gradually at the front but not sufficiently for his own comfort.Lewis did emerge in front after the stops but Barrichello was past Heikki and very close to the leading McLaren. Now all depended on the last stops and things began to look very good for Rubens, fueled to go further in the second stint too. As Hamilton's stop approached, the team called for "qualifying laps from Rubens and he duly obliged; even so, it would have been a very close thing had not Lewis suffered a botched wheel change. Only a few seconds were lost but, especially when coupled with the local yellow at the time of Rubens' final re-fueling, it was enough and Barrichello came out to a comfortable lead.Hamilton closed on him in the final laps but Rubens was managing his lead like the old hand he is - he never looked threatened. And one has to say that his victory was well-deserved after a drive of real excellence. All weekend he was quicker than Button and it was a joy to watch his confident and clean laps throughout.So why did Button find it impossible to match Barrichello in Valencia? I would guess that the changes made to the Brawn have brought it closer to the kind of car Rubens likes and it is taking a while for Jenson to get the hang of it. As the race went on, Button became quicker and his fastest lap was actually better than Rubens'. But that was overshadowed by the enigma of Glock setting fastest lap of all.Through practice and qualfying the Toyotas appeared to go backwards, slipping down the order as time went on. And in the race they were anonymous until Timo went on a sudden rampage towards the end. It made no sense, one of the slowest cars in the field suddenly finding speed and being quickest of all. Whatever the cause, it sets the team a serious problem as they search for an answer to their slow pre-race form. The speed is in the car, that is obvious; but how to extract it in all situations?Kovalainen dropped from second to fourth through the pit stops and one must assign his final position to a McLaren fuel strategy that was slightly off optimum. It did not help that Raikkonen was definitely present for this race, his performance in a car that was not the best being the equal of Barrichello's. It is as though the absence of Massa has suddenly freed Kimi to put in the kind of race we saw in his McLaren days - he has been all speed and accuracy in the last two races.Rosberg, too, put in an good drive, not quite able to come to grips with the Ferrari in front but holding a respectable gap to Alonso. Button was part of this chasing pack, as were Kubica and Webber. Their team mates had all the bad luck going, however. Nakajima was moving up through the field when a puncture ruined his race, Vettel suffered another Renault engine failure and Heidfeld, who had managed to get ahead of Kubica at the start, found his pit stop times dropped him down into traffic.So the BMWs are back in midfield but still need to improve if they are going to put on a decent show as a farewell to F1 and Red Bull have more proof that their car is better suited to fast circuits than slow. But Renault continue to be a one-car team, only Alonso able to trouble the leading five or six cars and his team mate getting into trouble amongst traffic. There is a sign of hope for Alguersuari, however - his fastest lap was quicker than Alonso's.Real progress has been made by Force India and they must be counted as midfield runners rather than back markers now. Both drivers had sound races and should not be ashamed of their final tenth and twelfth places. Points must follow, surely.Toro Rosso performed tail end duties, assuming the role vacated so recently by Force India, and Badoer demonstrated how hard it is to return to the sport after years of nothing but testing. Ferrari is giving him one more race to improve but I wonder whether that might just be rubbing salt into the wound. A better option might have been to give a recent driver a chance, Bourdais perhaps. With something to prove, the motivation in such a driver might be a little fiercer.I can understand Ferrari wanting to reward their long-serving test driver but one race would have been enough. This is one team that cannot afford to have its second car bumbling around at the back of the field.Overall, the race was not bad, a needle match of closely-matched cars and drivers. Casual viewers may have found it boring but there was sufficient to interest most fans, I think. And we can look forward to a great race in only a week's time when the circus goes to Spa. Red Bull will be back, no doubt, but now there will be opposition from McLaren and Ferrari, as well as Brawn GP.
Clive
michael 1:38.991 Glock's qualification time in second shootout - 1:38.683 Glock fastest lap time in Valencia. It seems the Toyota ain't no one-lap-wonder. So Hamilton's botched stop took 13.4 sec's. Whitmarsh says he only lost two seconds. I wonder whether McLaren was planning a ten second stop or thereabouts? Whitmarsh is loosing out on sympathies in all the forums he sounds more and more like that salesman one just wants to give a right'ol kick up the rear.Clive you and your BMW's :-)Who would've thought Barichello would stuff it to Button - like that? Great day great drive and Hamilton seems to have learned a thing or two he is letting the media do his fighting. Date Added: 24/08/2009
aracerdude I would attribute Toyota's faster race pace to the fact it was a street course and the longer the racing goes, the more rubber gets laid down in the racing groove.There were many fine drives towards the front. Certainly, all those on the podium did a fine job of racing. Rubens, Lewis, Kimi, and Nico all did a remarkable job on a difficult track. Kovalianan and Button could not come to grips with their teammates pace over the weekend. Neither did the Red Bull team, interesting enough.So now, Ferrari is in danger of being overhauled by McLaren for 3rd in the Contsructor's race. They certainly would have had a better chance had Massa still been motoring around collecting points. It only seems to reason if Kimi can get on the podium, Felipe would have had the same chances to do so. Date Added: 24/08/2009
Pink Peril I am really pleased that Rubens won, he deserves a good result. But all the action came from the pitstops really, and I still can't say I'd lose a wink of sleep if we never see Valencia again. It really is the dullest track, possibly even worse than Bahrain. Still, Spa should more than make up for it. I think Ferrari are making a mistake by getting Badoer to drive again in Spa. He just didn't look up to the task, and I can't imagine he will fare any better next time out. Why didn't they draft in someone like Villeneuve or Sato? There are plenty of out of work-F1 drivers out there who I am sure would be happy for a chance to drive one of the red cars for a few races. Date Added: 25/08/2009
Steve Ellis I have been watching F1 regularly since 1986 and for the first time ever I turned the tv off with the race still going on. What an insipid track. It has all of the excitement of Monaco without the glamour. That's not praise. All I can do is hope that in five more years this travesty will be relegated to the garbage bin. Other then Turkey, has any track come online within the past few years that has any redeeming value? Can anyone build an interesting track anymore or are we to be subjected to this garbage from now on? Date Added: 25/08/2009
scottyd Hey Cham, when ya coming over to GPW? We miss ya! Date Added: 25/08/2009
Clive Michael: In his blog, Gavin Brown gives an excellent analysis of the situation at the second McLaren pit stop and it seems pretty conclusive that Hamilton was going to lose the lead to Barrichello anyway.Barrichello has had the upper hand on Jenson for a few races now but it's all in the fortunes of the sport. We have some fast circuits coming up and it would not surprise me to see Button trouncing his team mate again. Judging by Button's latest comments, he knows he is going to have to try harder anyway!As for BMW, I have supported them for a couple of years now and might as well see them through to the end. ;) Date Added: 25/08/2009
Clive Aracer: A funny thought struck me about the Toyotas during the race. Seeing that they get faster and fast as time wears on, maybe we should turn everything around and have the race as qualifying with a quick blast of three or four laps on Sunday as the GP! They say qualifying is more exciting than the race these days, anyway...Agree with your points regarding quality of the driving in Valencia and especially that Massa may well have done even better than Kimi. Date Added: 25/08/2009
Clive Peril: I am a bit easier than yourself on Valencia - it's difficult to pass there, yes, but the same can be said of plenty of circuits. And, strange as I am, I detect a certain beauty in the industrial backdrop too. It may not have the glamour of Monaco but it is a very distinctive street circuit. Date Added: 25/08/2009
David Steve: “Can anyone build an interesting track anymore or are we to be subjected to this garbage from now on?”I imagine there are many that could, but not while Hermann Tilke has an undisclosed franchise to do so. Hermann’s destruction of Hockenheim alone should have seen him ousted from the scene, but he’s still there, screwing up everything he touches. We can thank God he hasn’t gotten his grubby little hands on Spa ... yet! Date Added: 25/08/2009
Clive Steve: I guess my previous comment was for you too. Although I agree that there are too many sterile and featureless GPs on the calendar these days, I don't think Valencia is the worst. I just keep hoping that it will rain one year! Date Added: 25/08/2009
Clive Scotty: Sorry about that - I needed a break from F1 so desperately that I avoided all mention of it for a while. Things have returned to normal, however, and I will be back to the forum very soon, I promise! Date Added: 25/08/2009
Nick Goodspeed I'm sure if Massa had been racing he might very well have done better, though very possibly since he would have been given the "A" car, and Raikonen the "B" car. To be truthful, the scenery, backdrop or whatever is quite low on what makes for an interesting race (in my opinion). If they couldn't pass at Indianapolis it would only be a gigantic merry-go-round and If they couldn't pass at Monaco it would be boring. Sorry, I forgot. Monaco is boring. ;-) Date Added: 25/08/2009
Clive Sacrilege - Monaco is anything but boring! Date Added: 26/08/2009
Steve Ellis Well Clive we'll have to agree to disagree on this one. I find Valencia to be the worst track ever. It's atrocious! Just for the record, which tracks do you find to be worse then Valencia? Date Added: 26/08/2009
Clive David: Hear, hear. Date Added: 26/08/2009
Clive Steve: Ah, now you're asking. I guess Bahrain would be one, although it is nearly rescued by the acres of weirdly coloured run-off areas. But the Tilke-emasculated Hockenheim is another. It was never a great circuit but the setting and long straights gave it a certain distinctiveness (a sort of Spa for those who don't like corners). Now it is more like a go-kart track than anything else.Certainly, we can agree to disagree, however - I know I'm in the minority when it comes to Valencia! Date Added: 26/08/2009
Steve Ellis Clive, I agree with you on Hockenheim. Why Tilke gets to design all these newer tracks is beyond me. Date Added: 27/08/2009
Nick Goodspeed Tilke designs around profitability for Ecclestone & the rich minority who sit in the VIP boxes. What they want to see is the cars parade by intermittently while they vaunt themselves and their wares. Not around enjoyability for the fans or good racing. Date Added: 27/08/2009
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