Malaysian GP - Alonso: “Rain will make it a more stressful weekend”

Noise from torrential rain hitting the roof of the Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro hospitality unit here at the Sepang track almost drowned out the words of Fernando Alonso when he faced the media for the first time this weekend. The first topic was a look back at events in Australia a fortnight ago.

“We carried out investigations and we now understand what happened in terms of our performance in Melbourne and where we have to work,” began Fernando. “It’s true we need to improve the car, but we should also see how the next two or three races go, to see if the situation we experienced in Melbourne was the real thing, as the circuit there has unique characteristics and a special layout, so performances you see there are not repeated during the rest of the season. From our side, we believe we can be much more competitive and we will start by trying to have a better weekend here in Malaysia. I did not go to Melbourne expecting anything in particular, because from winter testing you can never be really sure what the situation is. However, we did expect to be fighting for pole and fighting for the win and that was not the case, so we were disappointed with our performance.”

There was plenty of talk about Ferrari’s lack of pace being related to tyre performance, but the Spaniard dismissed this notion. “I am not a fan of saying the car performance was poor because the tyres did not work properly. It’s simple, if your car works properly, then it has to be good with soft tyres or hard ones, in cold conditions and in hot. Having said that, maybe the fact that race day was a warmer sunnier day had something to do with the fact we had a better pace on Sunday than on Saturday. In the race, we were fighting with Button and Webber, something that seemed very far away on Saturday.”

Asked what was the most important factor to do better this weekend, Fernando began by repeating that the Melbourne result was not so bad. “Everyone is saying it was a disaster, but I disagree: we came fourth and finished ahead of Button and Webber. If we want to do better here and get on the podium, we have to do a better job and, as at every track, the most important thing is to have good balance in the car, especially here in Sepang, where like in Barcelona, you need downforce in the car produced by good aerodynamics. Tomorrow, we need to work to set up the car as well as possible and optimise the aerodynamics on the car.”

One cannot talk about Sepang without mentioning the weather and the prospect of rain storms seemingly timed to coincide with qualifying and the race! “Sure, the rain will make it a more stressful weekend,” agreed the Spaniard. “You need to be ready for all eventualities and it would be useful if the opportunity arose on Friday to try the extreme and intermediate rain tyres to see how they work and in any case, information gathered from running the tyres in high temperatures will also be useful as we never did this in winter testing. It could be an unknown situation and a very interesting one, but that’s nothing to worry about as it will be the same for everybody.”

Source: Ferrari.com

Rosberg quickest at a very wet Barcelona

The final day of pre-season testing at Barcelona was a washout as only three of the five drivers set lap times due to the heavy rain

The action began on time at the Spanish circuit with Fernando Alonso, Michael Schumacher and Pastor Maldonado braving the conditions.

However, both Alonso and Schumacher only completed five laps each with neither setting a time as they went in and out of the pits.

Lewis Hamilton joined the action for McLaren and was the pace-setter at the lunch break with a 1:50.280.

It should be noted, though, that the 2008 World Champion was also the only driver to set a time in the morning session, which saw a total of just 28 laps completed.

Nico Rosberg, meanwhile, replaced Schumacher just before lunch and continued through into the afternoon.

And with the rain continuing throughout the day, the German proved to the quickest in the wet, taking advantage of a slight let-up late in the day.

Rosberg, who covered 35 laps, clocked a 1:43.814 to edge Maldonado by 0.519s.

And although Hamilton improved to a 1:44.560, he had to settle for third place.

Ferrari opted to pack up early with Alonso not running at all in the afternoon.

Times
01. Nico Rosberg Mercedes 1:43.814 35 laps
02. Pastor Maldonado Williams 1:44.333 + 0.519 23 laps
03. Lewis Hamilton McLaren 1:44.560 + 0.746 33 laps
04. Michael Schumacher Mercedes 5 laps
05. Fernando Alonso Ferrari 5 laps

Source: Planet-F1

Mark Webber unhappy with Ecclestone's 'fake rain' idea

Mark Webber has dismissed Formula 1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone's idea to liven up grands prix with sprinklers to make tracks artificially wet

"No and no," Red Bull driver Webber told the BBC when asked whether the sport needed such measures and whether he was in favour of them.

"It wouldn't be the most sophisticated way to make the show more entertaining," added the Australian.

Mercedes GP boss Nick Fry was also unconvinced with the idea.

"I think Bernie's putting forward some entertaining ideas but Formula 1 is about contending with the conditions that prevail at the time," said Fry.

"I think that fiddling with those conditions artificially is not the nature of Formula 1.

"The beauty of Formula 1 is that there is now huge variety. We have races in the evening and during the day and halfway between the two and I don't think anyone could say that last year was boring.

"It was tremendous and I'm sure that this year will be better still."

Webber added: "It can be more exciting when we have some different weather conditions, that does happen. But you just try and think of Jimmy Clark, and Jackie Stewart and (Ayrton) Senna and those guys, masters in the wet.

"Jackie's still here but the other two would be turning in their graves if they thought we'd have sprinklers and hoses lined up around the track."

Ecclestone suggested the sprinklers could be switched on with no more than a two-minute warning to ensure suspense.

"I'm happy to make it happen," the 80-year-old told the BBC on Thursday.

"My idea is that we should make a programme that nobody knows exactly which programme is going to be used and it would start at some time during the race. It would be raining effectively.

"It would maybe stop and maybe rain again later. Or maybe not. So nobody would know."

Ecclestone did find some support from Paul Hembery, motorsport director of Formula 1's new tyre supplier Pirelli.

"I thought Bernie Ecclestone's comments were quite interesting," he told autosport.com.

"Straight after our recent successful (wet-weather) Abu Dhabi test I saw him and said, 'Why don't we do an artificial wet race?' The technology is such that you can wet a circuit with a sprinkler system, so the idea is not as daft as it sounds."

Source: BBC Sport

Rain forecast for Brazilian qualifying

Red Bull's opponents are looking to the skies, grateful to see the rain falling on Saturday morning at the Interlagos circuit

They feel the rain could be the only way they will be able to close the gap to the season's most dominant team in the race that could decide the Formula One title.

"Yes, we need rain," Lewis Hamilton said. "In terms of pure pace in the dry we can't really compete with the Red Bulls, they are ahead."

He added: "Our car is quite good in the wet so hopefully it will make it a little easier for us."

The Bulls were quickest in the dry on Friday with Sebastian Vettel leading Mark Webber in both practice sessions.

However, Fernando Alonso, who is leading the title chase ahead of Webber and Hamilton, wasn't too far off, finishing in third place.

But still, he is also hoping for more rain in qualifying.

"I think a wet day can be an advantage for us," Alonso said. "There is very little to lose for us at the moment."

Saturday's final practice looks set to start on a wet track while the radars have more rain coming through Sao Paolo later in the day.

Source: Planet-F1

Rain set for Interlagos yet again

Formula One teams and drivers are braced for a third consecutive grand prix to be disrupted by rain.

Initial forecasts predict a chance of showers over Interlagos on Friday and Saturday with a reduced chance of rain during Sunday's race.

Adverse weather conditions affected the consecutive Japanese and Korean grand prix weekends, adding to the sense of excitement and unpredictability.

Last year's Brazilian Grand Prix qualifying session was badly affected by rain, as was the famous 2008 race which saw Lewis Hamilton snatch the world title on the final corner of the final lap.

And as teams began to set up station at Interlagos on Monday, workers scrambled for cover when a rain storm struck.

Source: ESPNF1

Wet weather possible for Korea F1 event

There is a chance of another rain-affected Grand Prix event this weekend

The forecast for the city of Mokpo - the closest to the Yeongam venue in Korea's Jeollanam-do province - is not predicting the kind of extreme conditions that caused qualifying for the recent Japanese Grand Prix to be postponed.

But the skies above the Korean International Circuit will be cool, cloudy and breezy for much of the weekend, with the chance of showers increasing late on Saturday and into the small hours of Sunday.

And some reports are forecasting a definitely wet day in Mokpo on Monday, the after the inaugural South Korean event, with the accuracy of that prediction clouded by the super-typhoon 'Megi' off China.

"I think we have a very interesting weekend ahead," said Virgin team boss John Booth.

Local reports say as few as 60,000 tickets have been sold for the three-day event so far, with the Yeongam venue still essentially under construction and the F1 event lacking a naming sponsor.

"Frankly, we have not been prepared well for our F1 debut," said Yoon Keun-Sang, the PR director for the race organiser.

"If we host this year's event successfully, the situation will be far different next year," he is quoted by the Bangkok Post.

Source: Motorsport.com

Qualifying rain begins at Suzuka

Just before 6.30pm at Suzuka on Friday evening, the Japanese skies were raining heavily.

The rain, forecast to essentially keep falling until late on Saturday, could dump as much as an incredible 85mm on the high speed venue between now and sundown after the third practice and qualifying action.

Qualifying rain almost always mixes up the natural grid order, meaning that the prediction of a dry race on Sunday is an exciting prospect.

"It seems we are set for a fun weekend," said Toro Rosso engineer Laurent Mekies.

Source: Motorsport.com

Drivers concerned about rain

A handful of Formula One drivers have admitted they are concerned about the prospect of rain at this weekend's night race in Singapore.

In its two year history, the floodlit grand prix has not had a wet session but thunderstorms are forecast throughout the weekend.

Nico Rosberg said he is "definitely worried" about the weekend's weather. "It's going to be rather interesting if it rains, but I hope it doesn't because it will be quite messy."

F1's most experienced driver Rubens Barrichello added: "It is a very slippery track and luckily they have done a good enough job for the track not to be as bumpy as it was. We have no experience in the wet whatsoever here so we need to understand what the tyres will do and the visibility more than anything. Not so much from the spray but the wet coming onto the visor. I've never driven in the rain at night. I really don't know what to say about that. We just have to wait and see."

Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel was also unsure what would happen: "We've yet to experience any wet running on a floodlit track, so it will be interesting if that happens."

The concern is that the bright overhead lights will reflect off the wet surface of the track and the rain droplets themselves. There was a huge downpour in the Marina Bay area on Wednesday, and on Thursday another severe storm rolled in.

"It [Wednesday's rain] was so heavy that rivers of water flooded the track to a point where the tyres can't deal with it," said Sir Jackie Stewart. "In daylight, we can see beyond the track if we're heading into rain. But here, the light is contained on the circuit and everything else is dark. So it'll be very challenging on the drivers' peripheral vision."

Source: ESPNF1

Hamilton hoping for rain

Lewis Hamilton is confident his McLaren can perform in the wet

Lewis Hamilton reckons McLaren can be competitive if it rains at this weekend's Belgian Grand Prix but stopped short of making any predictions ahead of qualifying.

He finished Friday practice third fastest overall, just 0.216 seconds off pacesetter Fernando Alonso and ahead of both Red Bulls. The car is especially competitive in the high-speed first and third sectors but off the pace in sector two.

"We're definitely making small steps forward," Hamilton said. "This track does seem to suit our car better [than in Hungary], but let's not get ahead of ourselves. If it rains, then we seem to be competitive, but we have realistic expectations for this weekend - I didn't score in the last race, so it's important that we get more points on the board on Sunday."

He said that his programme had been restricted by the allocation of wet tyres during Friday's sessions.

"The weather made it a bit of an up-and-down day," Hamilton added. "It started off very wet, so we didn't do too much running in the morning. But we got a few more laps this afternoon on the Intermediates and then the option tyre.

"Because the rules don't allow us to use too many wet-weather tyres - we only have three Extremes and four Intermediates - we really need to look after them, so we were very cautious, just in case we need to use them later on in the weekend."

Source: ESPNF1

Wet weather forecast for Monaco GP

A week of bad weather could lead into a wet 2010 Monaco Grand Prix.

Weather forecasts said rain in the Principality is expected to persist intermittently throughout the entire race weekend.

Lewis Hamilton said on Monday that McLaren's forecast is also for "extremely unpredictable" weather and likely "heavy rain".

The 2008 world champion is also quoted widely as worrying about the effect slow backmarkers will have this weekend on the twisty Armco-barrier lined circuit.

One calculation has shown that if the entire field was evenly spread around the famous street layout, there would be less than 140 metres between each car.

"Even if it doesn't rain on the Sunday, the possibility of heavily disrupted practice and qualifying sessions means that we'll probably go into the race with a chance of one of the most exciting and unpredictable Monaco grands prix for many years," said Hamilton.

Source: Motorsport

Rain forecast for Chinese GP weekend

After inclement weather spiced up the recent Australian and Malaysian grands prix, more rain is expected in the region of this weekend's Chinese round near Shanghai.

In the wake of the Bahrain season opener, whose processional race was blamed on the new refuelling ban, rain in both Melbourne and Sepang was credited for the much more exciting races.

This weekend, the Formula One circus is at the Shanghai circuit in the Jiading district, about a half-hour drive from the city centre.

Longer-range weather forecasts last weekend were predicting up to a 85 per cent chance of rain for Sunday afternoon, with the race scheduled to begin at 3pm local time.

The chance of rain on Sunday has now diminished, but a cool week - with almost definite rain expected on Wednesday and Thursday - is still forecast.

As for the F1 weekend, Friday and Saturday should be both sunnier and warmer, and a more than 50 per cent chance of showers throughout Sunday is predicted.

Source: Motorsport