22/05/2011
NEWS STORY
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Over the years the Circuit de Catalunya has earned a reputation for producing snorefests, though this has had more to do with the teams' and drivers' familiarity with the track more than anything, what with the endless amount of testing that has been carried out here.
The new rules mean that there is less testing these days, while in recent years there has been a tendency to tinker with the layout.
Ahead of this weekend's big race, it was widely claimed that the track's reputation for producing dull non-events would be put to the test, perhaps even consigned to history, as the new rules and tyres promised overtaking aplenty and almost unlimited pit-stops.
However, as fans prepare to go see the new movie Senna, it is worth remembering that the Circuit de Catalunya produced one of the most iconic images of the modern era - we refer, of course, to the time the legendary Brazilian went head-to-head with Nigel Mansell in 1991 going into the first corner and essentially 'bottled it'.
Whether today's race will produce such a classic moment remains to be seen, however, in terms of strategy, a mixed up grid, tyres and even the threat of protests, we can expect some fun and games.
Pirelli has introduced a new hard compound here, and while far more durable than its predecessor it is around 2s a lap slower. In other words, if you're on the hards while your rival is on softs you'll be left for dead.
One of the men to watch this afternoon therefore will be Michael Schumacher. The German suffered a KERS failure in Q3 and was therefore unable to post a time. This mean that he is free to choose what tyres he starts the race on while the nine men in front of him will all be on worn softs. Indeed, Lewis Hamilton will be on a flat-spotted set of softs.
With tyre strategy so important here, perhaps Jim Casey has a point when he tips Jenson Button to take a surprise win however, we cannot help but feel that this will be another Red Bull walkover.
Mark Webber did well to take pole - albeit helped by his teammate suffering a KERS problem - and it would be good for everyone to see someone other that Sebastian Vettel on the top step of the podium later - no disrespect intended. Other than a major shock - and The Rapture has already passed us by - it is difficult to imagine anyone other than a Red Bull driver winning this afternoon.
Hamilton has given 100% for much of the weekend but clearly hates the new hard tyres, and it is clear that, in normal circumstances, the McLaren is no match for the Red Bull at present.
Having just signed a contract that commits him to Ferrari until the end of 2016, it's hard to believe that Fernando Alonso and the Italian outfit could get quite so excited about securing fourth place on the grid, however, that's a measure not only of the Spaniard's effort yesterday but, more importantly, the task they face in catching the Red Bulls far less beating them.
Another driver who continues to dig deep is Vitaly Petrov, the Russian really rising to the occasion in the absence of Robert Kubica. Sadly, when Nick Heidfeld was sent out to do a hot lap he took the team at its word and as a result of the fire that damaged his Renault will be starting from the back row today.
Mercedes continues to make progress and Rosberg must surely be due another handful of points. However, as we said earlier, keep an eye on that wily old teammate of his, providing he can keep out of trouble.
Felipe Massa has looked uncomfortable here since the opening session, the Brazilian not happy with the new hard tyres or the FIA's decision to ban his team's new rear wing. Expect another long afternoon for the 2008 runner-up.
Pastor Maldonado can feel justifiably proud with his achievement of getting his Williams into Q3 and starting ahead of the legendary Schumacher. All that remains to be seen is whether he can keep the car on track this afternoon and keep out of trouble.
The midfield battle threatens to be as fun as ever, with Sauber and Toro Rosso fighting for the points scraps left behind by the big guns.
Heikki Kovalainen did well not only to get into Q2 but to put his Lotus ahead of the two Force Indias. However, unless the Silverstone based team has totally dropped the ball we expect Paul di Resta and Adrian Sutil to be snapping on the heels of the Saubers and Toro Rossos after a couple of laps. Nonetheless a superb effort by the Finn and his team.
Rubens Barrichello is always worth watching and it should be fun to note his progress this afternoon, the Brazilian veteran determined not to let his rookie Venezuelan teammate steal the limelight. It will also be good to watch Nick Heidfeld.
For the last 10 years, the pole man has gone on to win the race here, whether Webber can continue the 'tradition' remains to be seen.
The pitlane is open and one by one the drivers make their way to the grid. Some make their way straight to the grid others complete a lap, driver down the pitlane and then carry out a practice start.
As the field prepares to head off on the parade lap, the air temperature is 27 degrees C, while the track temperature is 32 degrees. Clear blue skies and bright sunshine, a perfect day for a Grand Prix.
It's expected that the majority of drivers will be making three or even four stops, opting to be on the hard compound for as little time as necessary.
Surprisingly, Schumacher is starting on the option tyre, while fellow German Heidfeld is on hard.
They're away, Vettel all over the place as he pursues Webber, however, Alonso comes up the outside and takes the lead into Turn 1. Vettel nails Webber to take second. Poor start from Button, great start from Schumacher.
With no silliness, at the end of lap 1, it's Alonso, Vettel, Webber, Hamilton, Petrov, Schumacher, Rosberg, Massa, Buemi and Button. Kobayashi pits after suffering a puncture.
On the second lap, Vettel goes quickest (30.633) as he hangs on to the back of Alonso. Button is all over Buemi, the Swiss refusing to yield.
Replay shows what a brilliant start Schumacher made, as Webber goes quickest (30.082).
After 4 laps, Alonso leads by 0.8s with Webber just 0.6s down on Vettel. Hamilton, in fourth, has 4.9s over Petrov who heads Schumacher by 2.3s.
Frustrated by Alonso, the Red Bulls are seriously losing out to the opposition, even Hamilton is quicker. Indeed, the leading three are covered by 1.3s.
Button finally gets past Buemi and sets off after Massa, the Brazilian, hot on the heels of Rosberg, uses his DRS to stay ahead of the charging McLaren driver.
On lap 7 Alonso goes quickest (30.007) however, he is unable to extend the gap to Vettel. Elsewhere, Perez is the first driver to make a regular pit stop.
"Safety car window is open," Alonso is told as Perez rejoins the race and is immediately involved in a battle with Liuzzi, the Italian giving the Sauber driver a good run for his money.
Maldonado pits at the end of lap 8, the 3-stoppers expected to pit around lap 12.
Vettel pits at the end of lap 9, which appears to indicate that he's on a 4-stop strategy. He rejoins in ninth behind Button. Buemi also pits.
Vettel makes short work of Button, immediately setting about disposing of Massa which he does with relative ease.
Next time around Alonso, Webber and Schumacher all pit, rejoining in third, seventh and thirteenth.
At the end of lap 11, Hamilton, Petrov, Rosberg, Massa and Alguersuari all pit. Sadly the driver tracker is not working - it hasn't been since the start of the race.
As in China and Turkey, it's absolutely manic, almost impossible to follow. However, after 12 laps it's Alonso, Vettel, Hamilton and Webber. Button is in fifth but hasn't stopped, nor has sixth placed di Resta.
Vettel is told to use all of his KERS on every lap, which, if nothing else, tells us that the German has the device at his disposal today.
Button pits at the end of lap 14, the McLaren driver rejoining in seventh ahead of Petrov. The top four now covered by 3.6s.
Schumacher is all over di Resta who has yet to stop, who finally pits at the end of lap 15. Trulli also pits.
Button makes mincemeat of Schumacher, leaving the seven-time champ for dust. "Good job," the Englishman is told over the radio. He responds by posting a new fastest lap (28.792). Elsewhere, Kovalainen, now running in fifteenth, pits, as do Liuzzi and Glock.
"Webber is one stop ahead of you," Button is told, "but we can still beat him."
After 17 laps, it's: Alonso, Vettel, Hamilton, Webber, Button, Schumacher, Rosberg, Petrov, Massa and Buemi. No retirements.
Suffering from understeer, Vettel dives into the pits again at the end of lap 18, fitting a new sets of options he rejoins in fourth. D'Ambrosio also pitted.
Will thee change of strategy from Red Bull force Ferrari to react - yes it does, Alonso stopping next time around as does Webber. Clever move or another Abu Dhabi?
Alonso leaves the pitlane to see Vettel - now in second - disappearing into the distance, the Spaniard's heart sinks as do the hopes of the partisan crowd.
Out front, Hamilton posts a new fastest lap (28.024) as Vettel is warned that he will need to "under cut" the McLaren driver, much like he did with Alonso. Elsewhere, the two Mercedes are battling for sixth with Rosberg all over his teammate.
Massa pits at the end of lap 21, the Ferrari, as predicted, having a long afternoon that is unlikely to result in many points. Heidfeld also pits.
Now 14.4s down on the race leader, but 5.5s clear of Alonso, Vettel goes quickest with a 27.394. Hamilton is losing a second a lap as his tyres begin to degrade.
At the end of lap 23, Hamilton finally pits as Webber closes in on Alonso. The McLaren driver leaves the pits still in second, ahead of the Alonso/Webber battle.
Consequently, after 24 laps, Vettel leads Hamilton by 4.9s with Alonso a further 1.5s down the road just ahead of Webber. Button is fifth, 6.6s down on the second Red Bull, having only made the one stop. Schumacher sixth, ahead of Rosberg, Petrov, Buemi, Massa and di Resta.
Neither Barrichello nor Heidfeld are carving through the field as expected, after 25 laps they are running in twentieth and seventeenth, respectively. Interestingly, Kobayashi is nineteenth having made two stops - only one of tem a regular stop.
At the end of lap 26, Schumacher and Petrov make their second stops of the afternoon. Next time around Rosberg pits, rejoining a couple of seconds behind his Mercedes teammate.
Despite his teammate getting all the attention yesterday, it's worth noting that Trulli is currently running in fourteenth.
At the end of lap 29, Alonso and Webber both pit, the two battle all the way down the pit lane, the Red Bull crew having performed a very rapid stop. They rejoin in third and fourth, both on hards.
Next time around Button pits, the Englishman rejoining in fifth on softs. "A minimum of 13 laps the McLaren driver is told."
Alonso, using his DRS and KERS to great effect, continues to frustrate Webber. Nothing like the walkover we expected today.
As Webber continues to hassle Alonso, Trulli has made his second stop and is now in eighteenth.
At half distance, it's: Vettel, Hamilton, Alonso, Webber, Button, Massa, Schumacher, Rosberg, Petrov, di Resta, Buemi and Alguersuari.
As Vettel pits, Webber passes Alonso under braking but the Spaniard immediately retakes the position. Vettel rejoins in second as Liuzzi becomes the first retirement of the day, pulling off track in S2.
Race leader Hamilton pits at the end of lap 35, rejoining, as expected, in second. The McLaren driver now on hards.
Fully focussed on his battle with Alonso, Webber fails to notice that Button is right on his tail. The Englishman makes short work of the Red Bull, courtesy of his DRS and his soft tyres. Just a few corners later the McLaren driver makes similarly short work of Alonso. Brilliant stuff from the 2009 champion.
Massa, Barrichello and d'Ambrosio all pit at the end of lap 26, as the replay shows just how helpless Alonso was when Button made his move. However, its swings and roundabout as Button still needs to switch to the hard rubber.
Shortly after a slow-mo shot which reveals massive blisters on the left-front tyre on Massa's Ferrari, the Brazilian spins. However, he is able to continue.
Alonso makes his fourth stop at the end of lap 39, leaving him 26 laps to go on the horrible hard tyres. Elsewhere, Schumacher makes life difficult for his Mercedes teammate.
Webber goes quickest in S1, the Australian the quickest of the leading five at this stage.
Schumacher pits at the end of lap 41, having done his stint on hards the German could still overhaul Alonso. Petrov also pits, his teammate just having passed Maldonado for fourteenth.
Next time around, Rosberg pits, the German on the same strategy as his teammate. Kovalainen also stops.
Hamilton loses time behind Karthikeyan, the Englishman clearly frustrated. Once through however, the McLaren driver immediately goes quickest in S1.
"KERS six, two clicks rearwards and do not discharge," Vettel is told. The German is under increasing pressure from Hamilton who is informed that the race leader probably no longer has KERS available to him.
After 46 laps of 66, it's: Vettel, Hamilton, Button, Webber, Alonso, Schumacher, Rosberg, Massa, di Resta, Perez, Heidfeld, Petrov, Maldonado, Sutil, Buemi, Alguersuari, Kobayashi, Barrichello, Trulli, Kovalainen, Glock, d'Ambrosio and Karthikeyan. Everyone up to Rosberg has been lapped by the leading duo.
Webber makes his fourth stop at the end of 47 as Hamilton is told that he needs to stay out. One cannot help but feel that we are in for a few more surprises this afternoon.
Next time around it's Vettel's turn to stop, the German, like his teammate, taking on the hard tyres. Button and Perez also pit.
The McLaren crew remain in the pitlane and sure enough at the end of lap 49 the Englishman pits for a new set of hards. He rejoins in second 2s down on Vettel.
"KERS, two clicks forwards, use KJERS," Vettel is told. Elsewhere, Kovalainen has gone off between Turns 7 and 8, the Finn doing quite a bit of damage to the front of his car. A sad end to what was shaping up to be a great weekend.
Webber, now 4.7s down on Button, goes quickest with a 27.187. Elsewhere, Heidfeld and Alguersuari pit.
Now 1.3s down on Vettel, Hamilton posts a 26.727, the Englishman clearly sensing a win here. Webber is also posting some very fast sector times.
From out of nowhere, Kobayashi (thirteenth) goes quickest in S1. The Saubers quickest through the main speedtrap.
After 53 laps, and with Alonso 24.3s behind the leaders, it appears we have two straight battles, Vettel and Hamilton for the win and Button and Webber for third. It would take a brave man to call either of them.
Hamilton closes in as Vettel prepares to lap Schumacher, the Mercedes driver pulling aside for the race leaders. They sweep by and immediately resume their titanic battle.
"Use your yellow button if you wish to," Hamilton is told, conjuring up thoughts of a James Bond type scenario. "It might be worth all your KERS for the start-finish line," is the follow up.
Having led the first few laps, Alonso is now looking to be in great danger of being lapped. Another strategic nightmare for the Maranello outfit. Thing is, they cannot bring him for fresh rubber without sacrificing fifth place. To add to the misery, Massa loses positions to Perez and then Heidfeld.
With 6 laps remaining, Vettel has just an 0.7s advantage over Hamilton while Button maintains a 2.9s cushion to Webber. Elsewhere, Massa runs wide into the gravel and opts to pork the car. Heidfeld all over Perez for eighth, the German having started at the very back of the grid.
Hamilton gets a little out of shape as Heidfeld passes Perez, a great performance from the Renault driver who posts personal bests in all three sectors.
"Try and shake him off," Vettel is told. Well duh! Elsewhere, Massa walks down the pitlane, helmet firmly in place.
With 4 laps remaining, the leading pair finally lap local hero Alonso, 2017 must seem like a very long time away right now. Onboard graphics suggest Vettel is without KERS yet again.
Webber is now 6.6s down on Button who appears to have third place sewn up - then again, the McLaren driver is 35s behind the race leader.
Vettel takes the win, crossing the line just 0.630s ahead of Hamilton. Fantastic drives from the pair of them. Button takes a well deserved third while Webber is left wondering here it all went wrong.
Alonso struggles home in fifth, ahead of Schumacher, Rosberg, Heidfeld, Perez and Kobayashi.
Petrov takes eleventh, the Russian leading home di Resta, Sutil, Buemi, Maldonado, Alguersuari, Barrichello, Trulli, Glock, d'Ambrosio and Karthikeyan.
A late clash sees Buemi and Maldonado clash with the Williams driver appearing to strike back oat the Toro Rosso driver in retaliation. Might be one for the stewards.
While Vettel extends his championship lead, and Webber brings to an end the ten-year tradition of pole-sitters winning here, it's interesting to note that it wasn't KERS that dominated today's race but Pirelli.
After years of complaining about the lack of overtaking, some are now saying that there is too much. However, the fact is that strategy, particularly in terms of tyres, is now turning Q3 into a bit of a non-event and one cannot help but feel that perhaps the races are being similarly effected. After such a brilliant start, did Alonso really deserve to be lapped by race end - is the Ferrari really that far off the pace?
Monaco usually produces a few surprises and one can only hope that this year is not the exception. While Hamilton gave a tremendous performance today, getting 100% from himself and the MP4-26, let's not forget that the reigning world champion has won four of five races and has only dropped seven points.
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