Sandstorm hits Bahrain as testing continues

The four day test in Jerez and Bahrain continued on Wednesday as, to nobodies surprise, Sebastien Buemi took to the top of the time sheets in his 2008 Toro Rosso at Jerez as he completed a full race simulation, whilst Heikki Kovalainen improved the pace from the previous day, and set the fastest time in an ’09 car.

Mark Webber took over from Sebastian Vettel at Red Bull and was just over half a second behind the McLaren in his first appearance in an F1 car after breaking his leg. Of the days testing he had this to say: “I’m very relieved of course. It has been a tough few months for me, but I’ve had good people around me and the team have been fantastic as well. There were a lot of questions asked going into today, but I answered some questions for myself and it turned out to be okay.” Nelson Piquet Jr once again sat at the bottom of the times, behind Williams and Kazuki Nakajima, who had taken over from Nico Hulkenburg and did the most running of anyone in a 2009 racer.

Meanwhile in Bahrain an unexpeted sandstorm severly reduced testing in the desert, where teams had headed to avoid bad weather, albeit rain, in the first place. Felipe Massa was fastest, but was only able to complete 14 laps. Robert Kubica and Timo Glock were out for BMW and Toyota, but all three now have some catching up to do.

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Ferrari F60 revealed in Italy

Ferrari became the first to reveal their 2009 challenger, after launching the Ferrari F60 on Monday. The launch took place at Mugello, having been moved from Ferrari’s test track at Firoano due to poor weather conditions. The F60 is the first of the new generation of F1 cars launched, featuring a radically different design to last year as required by the 2009 FIA technical regulations designed to make racing more exciting.

Both Kimi Raikkonen and Felipe Massa were present at the launch, with the 2008 runner-up taking the F60 for it’s first few laps of Mugello. Team principle Stefano Domenicali said the season will be “stimulating from all points of view” and that the drivers will play a much bigger role in their success. He was quick to play down expectations of Ferrari though, saying their project for the upcoming season is very complicated and their aim is to stay among the top teams, citing McLaren, BMW and Renualt as their rivals. Technical director Aldo Costa spoke of the shift of development from 08 to 09 saying: “It’s a completely new car, starting from a white piece of paper. Fundamentally the biggest changes come from the new rules from an aerodynamic point of view and the introduction of new technology, which is the KERS system. Because of that we had to start work pretty early and to review the main concept of the car, so it was a very very intense and long job.” Massa has said that his last-lap failure to win the championship has only made him “more eager to win”, whilst Raikkonen said he has put 2008 behind him, and is heading into this season confidently and with the aim of winning a second world title.

Another change comes in the pattern of which Ferrari’s cars are named, with the title ‘F60’ adopted in recognition of the 60 years the Italian team have been competing for. Toyota are the next team to launch their new car, the TF109.

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Ferrari win constructors’ championship

Despite the heartbreak of Felipe Massa coming so close to becoming a champion and failing, Ferrari do have a reason to celebrate after winning their 16th constructors’ championship. With Massa finishing first and Kimi Raikkonen finishing third, the Italian squad easily clinched the title from McLaren by 21 points, despite BMW making it the closest constructors’ battle in recent years.

This is the teams second consecutive title since the downfall of Renault, and their eighth since 1999. The rest of their wins come from 1961, 1964, 1975-77, 1979 and 1982-83. Williams are the closest rival to Ferrari’s tally of 16, having won 9 titles.

A full list of constructors champions can be found here.

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Emotional win for Massa at Brazilian GP

Felipe Massa has won his home race, the Brazilian Grand Prix, after a flawless drive. Massa was also on course to win the 2008 F1 championship until Lewis Hamilton passed Timo Glock at the last corner of the race, and beat Massa to the title by one point, leaving emotional scenes on the podium for the local hero. Fernando Alonso finished second, as one of the most dramatic races in F1 history unfolded at Interlagos.

The race began with a sudden unexpected downpour of rain which caught everyone by surprise whilst the drivers were just getting ready to go off on the parade lap. The race start was delayed 10 minutes, and almost every driver switched to the wet tyres. Most of the pack got away cleanly at the start, with the front-runners staying in position (Massa first, Hamilton fourth). David Coulthard’s final F1 race came to an abrupt end after Nico Rosberg spun his Red Bull into the path of Kazuki Nakajima, ending their races. Nelson Piquet made it past the first two corners but also retired by the time his Renault got to turn 3. The safety car was deployed and Giancarlo Fisichella was the first to enter the pits for dry tyres, pushing his Force India right up to fifth place. Sebastian Vettel and Fernando Alonso pitted on lap eight, Massa on lap nine, and Hamilton on lap ten. McLaren were waitng to see what Massa did but it was a bad move as Hamilton found himself seventh at the restart. The positions ahead of him were now occupied by Massa, Vettel, Alonso, Kimi Raikkonen, Fisichella and Jarno Trulli.

Trulli went wide at turn one and Hamilton got the better of him. The Toyota driver, after his second place start, now found himself in seventh. Hamilton then made a bold move on Fisichella and pulled it off, now back into the fifth place he required to take the championship. Vettel was putting as much pressure on Massa for the race lead as he could, but was forced to pit and Alonso was promoted to second, Raikkonen to third and Hamilton to fourth. Timo Glock was starting to put pressure on Hamilton’s fourth, but also pitted. Massa was next in and Ferrari fuelled him to the end of the race. The rest of the race leaders then pitted for the final fuel stint. Vettel then pitted for the third time and fell to fifth behind Hamilton. The championship looking likely to go Hamilton’s way now. That was until more rain was predicted.

5 laps to go and the first drops of rain begin to fall. Everyone comes in for wet tyres, with Hamilton only just ahead of Vettel but knowing he could let the German past, retain fifth, and win the championship. That was until Timo Glock decided to not pit and stay on the dry tyres. Glock moved up to fourth, and Hamilton left the pits in fifth with Vettel right behind him and lapping faster. The race order now Massa, Alonso, Raikkonen, Glock and Hamilton just hanging on to a championship winning position, with Vettel trying to get past and demote him to sixth, which would give Massa the title.

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Massa on pole for deciding race in Brazil

Felipe Massa has taken pole position at his home race which will decide whether the championship goes in his favour or not. Jarno Trulli made a surprise in qualifying and will line up on the front row for the first time since 2005. Lewis Hamilton, meanwhile, will start the race from fourth on the grid. Massa’s pole lap of 1:12.368 was a full four tenths of a second faster than Trulli’s and a further one tenth better than Hamilton’s.

Kimi Raikkonen is also on hand to help Massa’s title bid in third place, with Hamilton’s teammate in fifth. Fernando Alonso proved to be best of the rest in sixth and both Toro Rosso’s again made it to Q3, with Sebastian Vettel and Sebastien Bourdais lining up seventh and ninth for the race. Nick Heidfeld managed to slot in between the Toro Rosso’s and Timo Glock rounded up the top ten. Nelson Piquet Jr couldn’t quite make it into Q3 and will start from eleventh ahead of Red Bull’s Mark Webber and BMW’s Robert Kubica. David Coulthard will start his final F1 race from fourteenth. Rubens Barrichello just scraped through to Q2 but could do no more and settled for fifteenth. Both Williams failed to get past the first qualifying session so Kazuki Nakajima, Jenson Button, Nico Rosberg, Giancarlo Fisichella and Adrian Sutil will start the race from the back of the grid.

Massa has done all he can to try and secure the championship, and with Trulli and Raikkonen behind him, he looks likely to take the win. The question is, can Hamilton make no mistakes under pressure and not fall behind fifth place? The 2008 Formula 1 championship will be wrapped up in the next 24 hours and everyone is on the edge of their seats. The sport is waiting to find it’s 30th drivers’ champion, and it could still go either way. It all comes down to the chequered flag in Interlagos tomorrow and there can only be one winner.

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Massa leads Brazilian first practice

Felipe Massa has set the fastest time during the first practice session ahead of this Sunday’s Brazilian Grand Prix. He edged ahead of his championship rival, Lewis Hamilton, by just under two tenths of a second, with a lap of 1:12.305.

Reigning world champion, Kimi Raikkonen, secured the third fastest lap, while his rival for third place in the championship, Robert Kubica, set the fourth fastest lap. Heikki Kovalainen was just over four tenths of a second behind his teammate in fifth, and sixth place went to the Renault of Fernando Alonso. Mark Webber took seventh with a lap of 1:13.298, faster than Nelson Piquet Jr, Nick Heidfeld, Timo Glock, Jarno Trulli and Nico Rosberg. Toro Rosso had a poor showing in the first session with Sebastien Bourdais in thirteenth and Sebastian Vettel just under two tenths of a second slower in seventeenth. The Hondas finished in fourteenth and fifteenth, despite showing promising pace earlier in the session, and David Coulthard started his final race weekend ahead of just the Force Inidas.

Felipe Massa and Lewis Hamilton look like they will be inseparable all weekend, but will someone else join the battle in the second Friday practice session?

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Massa closes in after Bourdais penalty

Sebastien Bourdais has had 25 seconds added to his Japanese Grand Prix finishing time after making contact with Ferrari’s Felipe Massa on lap 52. The penalty demotes him to 10th place, after finishing the race in sixth, meaning he looses three world championship points.

The incident occurred as Bourdais was leaving the pit lane. He entered the first turn at the same time as Massa, who was setting fastest laps to try and get past his rivals in the pits at the time. The French driver tried to get out of the Ferrari’s way, but the two made contact and Massa spun round, losing the time he had made up in the previous laps.

Crucially, this gives Massa an extra point in the race, which decreases Lewis Hamilton’s championship lead to five points. Sebastian Vettel, Mark Webber and Nick Heidfeld also benefit from the decision, promoted to sixth, eighth and ninth.

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Massa storms to Singapore pole

Ferrari’s Felipe Massa has taken pole position for Sunday’s Singapore Grand Prix by a huge margin in Qualifying at the Marina Bay street circuit. His time of 1:44.801 was a full six tenths of a second faster than McLaren’s Lewis Hamilton, who will line up on the front row with him.

Hamilton was lucky to get through to the third session of qualifying, after abandoning two vital laps in Q2 and scraping through in tenth. Third place for the race start goes to Kimi Raikkonen, who appears to have found some pace again, despite now being 21 points behind the championship leader. Robert Kubica lines up in fourth ahead of Heikki Kovalainen, Nick Heidfeld, Sebastian Vettel, Timo Glock and Nico Rosberg. Kazuki Nakajima made it into Q3 for the first time in his career. Jarno Trulli was off the pace in qualifying and will start from eleventh, just in front of Honda’s Jenson Button who was punching above his weight to achieve twelfth. Red Bull were hoping for more than only thirteenth and fourteenth. The biggest disappointment came from Fernando Alonso, who was one of the favourites for pole position after his stunning pace in practice, but suffered a fuel supply problem that forced him to retire from Q2.

Nelson Piquet Jr failed to get past Q1 and will start behind his teammate, whilst Sebastien Bourdais severely dropped off the pace and qualified seventeenth. Rubens Barrichello will start ahead of the Force Inidas, with Adrian Sutil being over a second slower whilst Giancarlo Fisichella failed to set a time after hitting the barriers.

The championship battle is well and truly on, with the top six in the standings starting from the top six spots one the grid. With overtaking a difficulty, how much advance does Massa have in a race that promises to be incident-packed?

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Hamilton stripped of Belgian win

Lewis Hamilton has been stripped of his win and demoted to third in the aftermath of this years Belgian Grand Prix.  The McLaren driver has been given a 25 second penalty, handing Ferrari’s Felipe Massa the race win and promoting Nick Heidfeld to second.

Hamilton was penalised for cutting the chicane and gaining an advantage on lap 41 whilst battling with eventual retiree, Kimi Raikkonen. This means Hamiltons championship lead is now down to only 2 points as Massa takes the full 10 points from the race. McLaren have announced their intention to appeal against the decision.

Toyota’s Timo Glock has also been given a timed penalty of 25 seconds, effectively an post race drive-though. He passed Mark Webber for eighth even though yellow flags were being waved for Raikkonen’s stricken Ferrari. The penalty puts him down to ninth.

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Ferrari lead the way at first Spa practice

Felipe Massa finished top of the timesheets at the end of free practice one ahead of this weekends Belgain Grand Prix. He completed 26 laps ending up 0.3 seconds ahead of his teammate, Kimi Raikkonen, as Ferrari started their weekend perfectly. McLaren were just behind, a further 0.2 seconds off the Ferrari’s pace.

Fernando Alonso proved to be best of the rest, sitting in fifth, followed by another Renault powered car of Mark Webber. Toro Rosso continued their incredible pace, with Sebastien Bourdais beating Red-Bull bound Sebastain Vettel to seventh. BMW dropped out of the top ten, whilst Honda continued to run at the back.

The overcast conditions at Spa saw Lewis Hamilton heading off track a couple of times, whilst Bourdais came to a strange hault in his Toro Rosso after the practice starts at the end of the session. Kubica made his feelings clear, staiting over the radio that the car was “nowhere” and Jarno Trulli spent the majority of the session in the pits.

Ferrari are clearly on top for now, but can they stay there? And, if so, can Raikkonen get past his teammate?

Results

1.	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	1m47.284s	26 Laps
2.	Kimi Raikkonen	Ferrari	1m47.623s	26 Laps
3.	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	1m47.878s	27 Laps
4.	Heikki Kovalainen	McLaren	1m47.932s	24 Laps
5.	Fernando Alonso	Renault	1m48.104s	26 Laps
6.	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	1m48.428s	29 Laps
7.	Sebastien Bourdais	Scuderia Toro Rosso	1m48.557s	31 Laps
8.	Sebastian Vettel	Scuderia Toro Rosso	1m48.958s	24 Laps
9.	Timo Glock	Toyota	1m48.997s	26 Laps
10.	Nelson Piquet Jr.	Renault	1m49.068s	25 Laps
11.	Robert Kubica	BMW	1m49.139s	25 Laps
12.	Nick Heidfeld	BMW	1m49.185s	26 Laps
13.	Nico Rosberg	Williams	1m49.611s	30 Laps
14.	Jarno Trulli	Toyota	1m49.625s	14 Laps
15.	David Coulthard	Red Bull Racing	1m49.849s	18 Laps
16.	Giancarlo Fisichella	Force India	1m49.986s	27 Laps
17.	Adrian Sutil	Force India	1m50.117s	19 Laps
18.	Kazuki Nakajima	Williams	1m50.125s	30 Laps
19.	Jenson Button	Honda	1m50.464s	25 Laps
20.	Rubens Barrichello	Honda	1m50.905s	25 Laps

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