Singapore F1 Grand Prix

This year, I chose to stay at home and watch the Singapore Singtel Grand Prix on TV. I must say that the feeling is just not the same. Last year, I bought tickets and experienced the F1 by the trackside. You just do not feel the vibration when watching it on TV.

The race started with much incident with Hamilton in the lead at Turn 1, and the rest of the pack made their way round Turn 1 safely. The 2 Brawn cars made up some track position after a good start. Compared to last year, the Safety car was called upon only once. This was when Adrian Sutil had spun his car and poor Nick Heidfeld's car crashed into the Force India's car. Heidfeld damaged his right rear wheel and was forced to retire, while Sutil was still able to drive his "noseless" car into the pits. Safety car was out for a number of laps and it took a brave track marshal to clear the Force India's nose off the track.

After the Safety Car returned to the pit lane, Vettel was applying good pressure on Hamilton, till he had to do a drive-through penalty for pit lane speeding. Mark Webber crashed his car when his car's brakes failed.

After the 61 laps, it was not a driver or team in the chase for the championship titles . The podium was filled by McLaren (Hamilton), Toyota (Glock) and Renault (Alonso).

I think Alonso did a fantastic race, putting behind him the crashgate scandal. It was a well deserved 3rd place for Alonso. Rumours has it that Alonso will be driving for Ferrari next season ... Can't wait to see him in the red car.

Really missed the loud engine noises ... think I will buy myself tickets next year.

Practice Sessions on 25 Sep 2009 - Singapore F1 GP

The practice sessions got on the way on 25 Sep 09 at 6pm and 10pm.

It was Deja Vu for Renault .... Grojean crash at exactly the same spot .. Turn 17 ... during Practice 1. Luckily for Renault, the incident happened during practice session. If it was during the race, then it would have been suspected to be another crashgate scandal. There was bad news for Renault, though. Their major sponsor, ING, pulled out.

There was also drama during practice 2. Mark Webber crashed at Turn 23, as he lost control of his car while coming out of Turn 23 onto the Start/Finish straight. It seems like the car hit some dust on the track and lost traction. Or there was a lot of stress on the tires. I guess the teams would be looking at ways to preserve tires during the actual race. This circuit can be quite tough on the tires.

Next up ... qualifying on 26 Sep 09.

Renault cheated?

Seems like Renault has thrown in the towel and decided not to fight the allegations of fixing the 1st ever Singapore Grand Prix. Top 2 men resigned and that could mean that Renault is admitting to the allegations.

Fernando Alonso won the first ever Singapore night race, after surprising everyone with a really early pitstop on lap 12. Renault had earlier (before the race start) hoped for a safety car incident on a very unfamiliar track, so that Alonso could take advantage of an early pitstop. Coincidentally, Piguet Jr crashed on Lap 14, bringing out the Safety Car. From then on, everything played to the Renault's tune.

Fernando Alonso claims he does not know that and now he has an uphill task of trying to defend his Singapore GP crown under all these allegations.

For me, I am hoping that Ferrari could get onto the podium to overcome the disappointment at the 1st Singapore night race.

Go Ferrari !!!

Ferrari wins at Spa, Force India scores

Finally, a Ferrari made it to the top of the podium. Kimi Raikkonen brought his Ferrari home after fending off a challenge from Force India's Giancarlo Fisichella. Kimi made a good start, overtaking a stationary Ruben Barrichello at the start of the race. The Ferrari's KERS was put into good use on lap 4 (after the Safety Car went back into the pits), as Kimi overtook Fisichella.

Giancarlo Fisichella surprised everyone when he qualified in pole position, giving Force India their first pole position. By finishing 2nd, he also earned Force India their first constructor's points. It is truely a remarkable day for Force India.

This was one race where Ferrari finished first and last, with Badoer coming in last. It was evident that Badoer lacks experience as Barrichello easily overtook him when Badoer left a big gap at one of the turns.

All in all, this was a great race for Kimi and Ferrari. Next stop, Italy.

Waiting for the Singapore F1 GP ...

It's about 1 more month to the Singapore F1 Night race. I am really looking forward to that, though I have not gotten my tickets. Still hesitating.

It was nice to see Ruben win the Spanish GP and Kimi taking the last podium spot for Ferrari. Badoer was a bit disappointing to watch. Given the many years he had as a Ferrari test driver, I was expecting him to do much better. Imagine this ... he was testing cars to ensure the cars are perfect for Schumi and other Ferrari drivers, and he kinda screwed up on his debut. Nonetheless, hope to see Badoer do better in the next race.

Schumi is not coming back ...

So sad that Michael Schumacher is not making his comeback. That's because of his neck injury.

I was really looking forward to seeing him race in Spain and hopefully in Singapore !!! But his health is far more important than making a comeback to help keep Ferrari's season afloat. Now that job will fall on the shoulders of Ferrari's test driver.

At the same, hope Massa is recovering well.

Schumi could be back for Ferrari in Spanish GP

It was really unfortunate that Messa was injured during the last race. That was a really freak accident. Thank goodness for the helmet. But improving the design of helmets is definitely a must. Hope Messa will recover soon.

Meanwhile, with the Spanish F1 GP coming up in Valencia, Ferrari is one driver short. Guess who has been activated to come out of retirement? It's no other than the seven-time F1 Champion, Michael Schumacher.

Schumi has less than a month now to prepare himself for the race. He has not raced at Valencia and he has not driven the F60 before. With the ban on F1 testing, Schumi could not drive the F60 until practice sessions start in Spain.

It would be great to see the great Michael Schumacher back behind the steering wheel of the F60. He is always exciting to watch. Who knows? He might just turn up in Singapore to race in his first ever night race !!!!!!

Mark Webber wins his first F1 race

It happened in Germany ... Mark Webber became the first Australian driver to win a F1 race when he overcame a drive through penalty to win the race from start to finish. Ferrari got their first podium finish with Felipe Massa coming in third behind Sebastian Vettel.

But the day, undeniably, belonged to Mark Webber. Well done Mark Webber !!!

1st Mark Webber (Red Bull), 1h36m43.310s;
2nd Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull), 1h36m52.562s;
3rd Felipe Massa (Ferrari), 1h36m59.216s.

British F1 GP - The Bull charges to victory

Red Bull did a 1-2 finish with Vettel at the top of the podium and Webber coming in 2nd. It was a wekend which Red Bull dominated with Vettel being the fastest in Qualifiers.

Vettel had a good start and lead from start to finish. In a crushingly dominant drive, which underlined the major step forward that the Red Bull team have made on high-speed circuits, Vettel pulled away from Rubens Barrichello's Brawn by as much as a second a lap in a series of quick tours, and never looked remotely challenged.

Both Ferraris managed to finish in the points, though I was hoping that they could do better.

Final results:

1st Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull), 1h22m49.328s;
2nd Mark Webber (Red Bull), 1h23m04.516s;
3rd Rubens Barrichello (Brawn GP), 1h23m30.503s.

Turkish F1 GP - Results

1st Jenson Button (Brawn GP), 1h26m24.848s;
2nd Mark Webber (Red Bull), 1h26m31.562s;
3rd Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull), 1h26m32.309s.


Looks like only one of my podium prediction was correct. Jenson Button once again finishing first ... extending his lead in the Driver's Championship race and Brawn's grip on the Constructor's Championship.

Turkish F1 GP

Next up .... Turkey !!!!!

Yep, this weekend 7 Jun is the Turkish F1 Grand Prix. This weekend’s race round Turkey’s Istanbul Park Circuit could show the direction in which the world championship battle will go over the next few Grands Prix. The unusual track, which runs anti-clockwise, places a premium on aerodynamic performance and that is bound to favour the Brawns.

The Ferraris will be strong here, and the team are feeling buoyed after their competitive performances in Spain and Monaco.

Championship leader Jenson Button starts favourite. However, I expect Ferrari to make a challenge if they can get the cars to the first 2 rows of the starting grid.

My prediction for this race is Jenson, Kimi, Rubens for the podium.

Monaco F1 GP - Button does it again

Yep .. Jenson Button wins again. Brawn finished in the top 2 positions for the Monaco F1 Grand Prix. Thus extending the lead that Brawn has over the other teams in the Constructor's Championship race.

Finishing in 3rd and 4th is Ferrari, Kimi and Massa. Looks like Ferrari is finally making a challenge ... if they can get their cars to start in the first couple of rows. But that's progress, the way I see it.

Let's hope Ferrari can do better in the next race in Turkey.

Shell V-Power at 98 Octane prices

It's here again .. Shell Petrol Stations are offerring Shell V-Power at 98 octane prices between 7pm to 11pm from 21 May to 24 May 09. Feel the power in your car this weekend.

Shanghai F1 GP - Red Bull in maiden 1-2 finish

Sebastian Vettel started started from pole position in China on Sunday afternoon, and this time he led team mate Mark Webber home in a superb one-two.

In wet and windy conditions, it was the Mercedes-Benz safety car which led the field for the first eight laps. The safety car had already done more laps this season that Heikki Kovalainen! When the safety car pulled in after the first eight laps, the Red Bulls led until their first refuelling stops, Webber on Lap 14, Vettel on 15.

WIth the wet weather, it was again an exciting race with lots of cars spinning due to less grip. Again, Ferrari finished without the points, thus extending their worst start to the F1 season.

Button extends his championship lead to 21 points, ahead of Barrichello on 15, Vettel on 10 and Webber on 9.5.

The constructor's championship stands as follows:

1. Brawn-Mercedes - 36
2. RBR-Renault - 19.5
3. Toyota - 18.5
4. McLaren-Mercedes - 8
5. BMW Sauber - 4
6. Renault - 4
7. STR-Ferrari - 4
8. Williams-Toyota - 3.5
9. Ferrari - 0
10. Force India-Mercedes - 0

Ferrari is suddenly found in Force India's territory in the constructor's point standing ... that must be very unfamiliar territory for Ferrari.

Malaysian F1 GP - Results

What a race!!! First the timing of the race was shifted back to about 5pm so that more viewers from Europe can watch the race. Second, the race did not even finish!!!! The heavy downpour suspended the race. If they had not shifted the timing of the race back by 2 hours, the race would have completed in perfect weather ....

I was watching the race on TV, and must say that it was really bad weather when the rain came down on Sepang. There was hardly any visibility at all. How did the drivers know there was a bend when I can't even see the track via a car camera!!!! What a crazy race!!!.

When the red flag came out on lap 32, the order read: Button, Glock, Heidfeld (a long way behind after a spin), Trulli, Barrichello, Hamilton, Rosberg, Webber, Massa, Bourdais, Alonso, Nakajima, Piquet, Raikkonen, Sutil, Vettel, Buemi and Fisichella (who had spun twice).

At 18.52 hours (or 6.52pm) the race directors finally called it off. Button had won, it was just a matter of deciding how far they would go back to decide the order behind him. In the end, that was lap 31, giving a race finishing order of:

Button, Heidfeld, Glock; Trulli, Barrichello, Webber, Hamilton and Rosberg as the points scorers. Then: Massa, Bourdais, Alonso, Nakajima, Piquet, Raikkonen, Vettel, Buemi, Sutil and Fisichella.

Since the race had gone past the 50 percent mark but not 75 percent, half points were awarded. But for Button, it was the chance to extend his championship lead from 10 points to 15, with Barrichello next on 10 from Trulli on 8.5. In the constructors' championship, Brawn have 25 to Toyota's 16.5.

For Ferrari, the season has started really bad for them, scoring nothing after 2 races. Hope they will pick up some points soon ... starting with the Shanghai GP.

Malaysian F1 GP - Qualifying

Once again, Brawn GP has shown its speed and strength by taking the pole position in the Malaysian GP.

Brawn GP's Jenson Button and Toyota's Jarno Trulli fought a tense battle for supremacy in Sepang qualifying on Saturday afternoon, with pole position finally falling to the Briton in 1m 35.181s. Trulli's final effort yielded 1m 35.273s, good enough to take second place from Sebastian Vettel's Red Bull, which the German had lapped in 1m 35.518s.

Rubens Barrichello was fourth on 1m 35.651s, ahead of Timo Glock on 1m 35.690s, Nico Rosberg in the Williams on 1m 35.750s, Mark Webber in the second Red Bull on 1m 35.797s and Robert Kubica in the lead BMW Sauber on 1m 36.106s.

It was not a great day for Ferrari, with Kimi Raikkonen their best runner in ninth on 1m 36.170s, ahead of Fernando Alonso who only did one run for 1m 37.659s in the Renault.

Lewis Hamilton and Heikki Kovalainen in the McLarens on 1m 34.905s and 1m 34.924s respectively. Sebastien Bourdais was 15th on 1m 35.431s.

As the final times were posted in Q1, the shock sank in that Felipe Massa had missed the cut for Ferrari, finishing a glum 16th on 1m 35.642s as he was unable to generate good tyre temperature.

Factor in Vettel's 10-grid place drop from Australia, and Barrichello's five-place drop after his gearbox change on Friday, and the starting order reads:

Button, Trulli; Glock, Rosberg; Webber, Kubica; Raikkonen, Barrichello; Alonso, Heidfeld; Nakajima, Hamilton; Vettel, Kovalainen; Bourdais, Massa; Piquet, Fisichella; Sutil, Buemi.

Malaysian F1 GP - Practice 2

Kimi Raikkonen led team mate Felipe Massa in a Ferrari one-two in Friday afternoon’s second practice session for the Malaysian Grand Prix at Sepang. The Finn dipped below Massa’s 2008 pole time of 1m 35.748s with 1m 35.707s, and the Brazilian was just 0.125s slower on 1m 35.832s.

The Ferraris took control halfway through, and Sebastian Vettel in the Red Bull got closest to them as Williams and Brawn lacked the sheer pace they have shown of late. Rubens Barrichello and Jenson Button clocked 1m 36.161s and 1m 36.254s respectively.

It looks like things are going fine for Ferrari so far ... let's see how they do for qualifying.

Malaysian F1 GP

The 2nd race of the 2009 season will be in Malaysia, Sepang circuit. Based on what was seen during the Australian F1 GP, it seems that the Brawn GP will once again be the team to look out for.

Hamilton was disqualified for the Austalian GP after investigations revealed that McLaren had instructed Hamilton to let Trulli pass when the safety car was out on the tracks.

Sepang circuit has always be one of the favourite circuit of many F1 drivers, despite the intense heat.

Once again, I would be rooting for Ferrari to finish on the podium, despite their struggles during the Australian GP.

Australian F1 GP - Guess who won?

Not Ferrari, not McLaren. It's Brawn GP !!!!

Who would have expected a team, which few months back was practically non-existent after Honda announced its withdrawal from F1 GP, would emerged winners and taking the top 2 spots on the podium.

Imagine ... with Honda pulling out, both Jenson and Ruben were practically looking at losing their job in the driver's seat. Then came Brawn GP, with their sponsor Virgin. With their new technical director, Ross Brawn at the helm, the car was blowing away its competition during the testing phase.

Despite the official protest on the Brawn's car diffuser design, Jenson Button led the race from start to finish. This was a historical win for Brawn. Its maiden F1 GP race and Brawn clinched the top 2 spot on the podium. This car is really looking to be way ahead of the rest of the field.

Ferrari clearly struggled during the race with steering problems (Massa) and tyre problems (Raikkonen).

Looks like Brawn GP will be giving Ferrari and McLaren a run for their money this 2009 season. Next stop ..... Malaysian F1 GP at Sepang.

Driver numbers for 2009 F1 season

The FIA issued a revised entry list for the 2009 FIA Formula One World Championship, with driver number changes at three teams.

The full entry list of constructors and drivers is as follows:

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

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

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 Bourdais (F)
12 Sebastien Buemi (CH)

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

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

Force India Mercedes
18 Adrian Sutil (D)
19 Giancarlo Fisichella (I)

Brawn Mercedes
20 Jenson Button (GB)
21 Rubens Barrichello (BR)

2009 Changes for F1 races and cars

This season, there are major changes implemented for F1 cars. Major changes are aimed at enhancing the F1 race by allowing more overtaking opportunities while at the same time reducing costs.

The most significant changes is to the aerodynamics of the F1 cars, with smaller rear wings and wider front wings which, may be adjusted by the driver, twice per lap. Another major change is the implementation of KERS, the Kinetic Energy Recovery Systems which can give drivers up to an additional 85 horsepower for 6.6 seconds a lap. This is available via a steering-wheel mounted ‘boost button’. Then there is the return to slick tyres, a ban on testing once the season has started, and the requirement that engines have to cover twice the mileage that they were allowed in 2008.

KERS represents largely uncharted territory, while giving F1 a crucial green edge to its activities. While it offers a calculable performance advantage, KERS also presents significant problems with packaging, since KERS will affect a car’s crucial weight distribution. Then there is the issue of deploying KERS, which has an effect on a car’s handling and balance at critical times during each lap. With KERS the problem is exacerbated by the weight of the system, and the fact that it has to be mounted towards the rear of the car, thus complicating weight distribution.

Safety car - The pit lane will now remain open throughout any safety-car period, allowing drivers to refuel without penalty. However, to ensure that drivers are not tempted to speed back to the pit lane, a new software system which employs GPS and the cars’ standard ECU has been introduced. When the safety car is deployed, each driver is given a minimum ‘back to pit’ time based on his position on track. If he arrives in the pit lane before that time he will be penalised.

Singapore F1 Marina Bay Circuit - 3 corners named.

A contest "It's Your Turn" was held to get the public to suggest names for 3 of the corners of the Singapore F1 Marina Bay circuit. Judges had to pick the winning names from a total of 1440 entries.

Turn 1 of the Marina Bay street circuit after the start-finish straight has been named Sheares, after the Benjamin Sheares Bridge which runs over it.

Turn 7, the scene of many a thrilling overtaking manoeuvre near the War Memorial, will now be known as Memorial. Imagine you (the driver) being overtaken at this corner by your rival .... you can bet both drivers will remember that moment.

The tricky 10th corner has been christened Singapore Sling. Tackle this turn well and drivers will "slingshot" ahead of the chasing pack.

Australian F1 GP - 27-29 March 2009

Time flies .. and it is the month of March already. That means that we are coming to the start of the 2009 F1 Grand Prix season.

The 2009 season will start with the race in Australia on the 27 Mar 2009, with the actual race on 29 Mar 2009. Can't wait for it to start. I hope that the red car will triumph this season.

Season's race schedule: http://singaporef1gp.blogspot.com/2008/11/latest-2009-schedule.html

Changes to Singapore F1 Marina Circuit .... More overtaking chances, safer and hopefully more exciting

Following the huge success of last year’s inaugural Singapore Grand Prix, organisers announced that the layout of the Marina Bay circuit will be improved further ahead of the 2009 event.

Following consultation with the FIA and the teams, minor changes will be made to Turns One, 13 and 14 to further increase the potential for overtaking. Road surface improvements will be mnade to Turns Five, Six and Seven. Changes will also be made to the pit-lane entry and exit as well as the Turn 22 runoff area.

The changes to Turn One will result in slower cornering speed so that it provides potential overtaking opportunities in the braking zone at the approach to the corner. Turn 13, the tight left-handed hairpin after the historic Anderson Bridge, will see increased cornering speed, and more opportunity for overtaking in the braking zone at Turn 14. With this revision, the cars are likely to reach speeds of approximately 275km/h along Esplanade Drive. Wow !!! Capturing the cars on camera at such speeds wil be a real challenge.

During the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix, cars entering the pit lane and cars lapping the track travelled at vastly different speeds. To improve safety, a dedicated pit-lane entry will be constructed. The pit exit will also be changed. Following suggestions from the FIA, the pit lane will be realigned and lengthened for 2009, exiting on the drivers’ left at Turn Two, away from the racing line and onto a part of the circuit where the cars will all be accelerating. .

The 2009 Singapore Grand Prix will take place from September 25-27. Let's hope this year's race will be even more exciting, and I personally hope that a Ferrari will win the race.

Ferrari unveils F60

Ferrari was the first team to officially launch their 2009 car after unveiling the F60. It is the car that will be driven by Felipe Massa and Kimi Raikkonen as they defend the Italian squad's 2008 constructors' title.

The F60 features a lower, wider front wing and a taller, narrower rear wing. Its name commemorates what will be Ferrari’s 60th F1 campaign. The F60 is the 55th single-seater produced by Ferrari to contest the world championship and it made its track debut at the team's Mugello circuit, with Massa behind the wheel. The new car has far fewer aerodynamic appendages on its bodywork compared to its predecessor, due to the rule changes designed to cut downforce and promote more overtaking.

The F60’s design also takes into account two other major rule changes - the return of slick tyres and the option to use a Kinetic Energy Recovery System (KERS). Ferrari’s KERS has been designed in collaboration with Magneti Marelli and is centrally mounted on the engine under the rear part of the chassis.The car’s seven-speed transmission has been redesigned to optimise its aerodynamic efficiency, while Ferrari’s Type 056 V8 has been modified in accordance with the new ruling that requires engines to last for three Grand Prix meetings from 2009, with rev limits cut from 19,000 to 18,000 rpm.

Follow the below link to see official photos of the new Ferrari's F60.
http://www.formula1.com/gallery/launches/2009/342.html