Grand Prix 2011 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix Practice, Qualifying & Race Discussion

This one's gonna be a classic.......

After the utterly amazing Indian Grand Prix where it's facilities wowed pretty much everyone worldwide and to be honest we are so lucky to have an Indian Grand Prix at the moment........

Thats would you would think if you were the BBC or any major commentator, for the fans it was a pretty dour race with little or no action throughout apart from the now routine crash between Hamilton and Massa and the rather humerous reaction of Rowan Atkinson in the Mclaren pitlane.

Sebastian Vettel continues to dominate the 2011 season with yet another win in the old jewel of the British Empire with Button consolidating his position in the WDC with another second place as his stock at Mclaren continues to rise.

However at the other side of the garage things aren't quite so rosy with Hamilton adding to his list of high profile accidents which included yet another crash with Felipe Massa. But this time it was Massa who was given a penalty as it was perceived by the stewards that he had turned in on the Mclaren, a decision which bemused the Brazilian as he felt he had given Hamilton enough room and he had the racing line, but both sides (and fans) have differing opinions and a definitive answer is unlikely to come any time soon.

Ferrari and Alonso continue to go through the motions as they wind down and focus on their 2012 after a poor season by their standards, while the car hasn't been awful like their 2009 car, Fernando is rarely anywhere other than third or fourth come the chequered flag. Ferrari have been a team that has been caught out my the ever changing EBD rules and clarity over this for 2012 should help them regain top end competitiveness at the start of next season.

In the midfield it is still close as drivers are fighting for championship places and also contract extensions as very little has been agreed for 2012 although we are now in November and approaching the second last race of a very long season. At Toro Rosso Jaime Alguesuari continued his impressive turnaround with yet more points in India to take his season haul to 26, more than Paul Di Resta and 11 more than his team mate Buemi which could be crucial with the likes of Ricciardo waiting in the wings for a possible seat and there is always the possibility of a Red Bull seat at some point in the future as there is still a question mark about Webbers future, particularly past 2012.

We go to Abu Dhabi for the third time and while the first two races have been pretty lacklustre with a lack of action and overtaking (just ask Alonso), with DRS maybe we might have more this weekend, but then, we can only hope really, just like we can hope Vettel isn't top of the podium by Sunday evening, but that usually ends up to be false hope as I expect another dominating performance from the young German.

For Galahads supreme circuit write up, see here http://cliptheapex.com/pages/yas-marina-circuit/

 

[Mephistopheles]

Yes you are right of course, I apologize.

 

[GermanF1]

I'd just about manage ich libie dich formula eins

If you wanted to express that you love formula 1 then everything would be fine..."Ich liebe dich Formel Eins". Thanks dude for defending me, I just didn't use the proper word...sorry

 

[ExtremeNinja]

Personally I don't think there would have been a fight between Seb & Lewis, Seb had pulled out a good second lead before he hit turn two.

It did look a good gap but I watched it a few times and, on review, it is clear that this was due to starting on the right side of the grid which gave him a much better line into and out of the first corner. The advantage there was due to his qualifying spot rather than an amazing getaway off the line and I don't think could be justified as being indicative of the potential outcome of the race ahead.

 

[RasputinLives]

I think it would have been close but would have been a brave man to bet against Sebastian this year!

 

[Quintessentially]

You've heard about this magic one lap button that Redbull have and Whitmarsh alluded to when questioned on Vettel's tyre incident. It may well all be a myth but Vettel was visibly pulling away at an alarming rate and not for the first time this season. Had he stayed on track I think he would've been hard to catch. McLaren's race pace also doesn't appear to be as strong as their pace in quali whereas Ferrari somehow come alive during the race. I have a strong feeling any higher than 5th (in terms of grid slot) and Alonso may well have sneaked the win.

 

[RasputinLives]

when did Martin Whitmarsh allude to it? Be interested to hear it if its on You Tube somewhere as only ever heard it talked about on forums.

 

[ExtremeNinja]

It may well all be a myth but Vettel was visibly pulling away at an alarming rate and not for the first time this season. Had he stayed on track I think he would've been hard to catch. McLaren's race pace also doesn't appear to be as strong as their pace in quali whereas Ferrari somehow come alive during the race. I have a strong feeling any higher than 5th (in terms of grid slot) and Alonso may well have sneaked the win.

I disagree with every single statement in this post. Apart from the bits that are baseless or falsified, the other conclusions do not correlate with any of the facts. If only we had a "dislike" feature.

[EDIT] Don't take that the wrong way. I just want to make it clear that I absolutely disagree.

 

[RasputinLives]

Q - wasn't having a go. I'd be genuinally interested to hear what Whitmarsh said

 

[Quintessentially]

Throughout the season when Vettel has managed to retain the lead from the start, he’s consistently pulled a considerable gap in the first lap and I feel this was obvious once again this weekend, even in the few hundred metres of track he managed to negotiate. Whitmarsh suggested after the race that Redbull were doing something to their car in the first lap (possibly using some extreme modes) when he asked about the tyre incident and said they were bound to pay the price at some point. Vettel did have a great start it must be said notwithstanding his grid slot, but if the latter was so much of a significant factor, Jenson would’ve been on Hamilton’s tail, but we know he was shortly passed by Alonso.

 

[ExtremeNinja]

Throughout the season when Vettel has managed to retain the lead from the start, he’s consistently pulled a considerable gap in the first lap and I feel this was obvious once again this weekend, even in the few hundred metres of track he managed to negotiate. Whitmarsh suggested Redbull were doing something to their car in the first lap (possibly using some extreme modes) when he asked about the tyre incident and said they were bound to pay the price at some point. Vettel did have a great start it must be said notwithstanding his grid slot, but if the latter was so much of a significant factor, Jenson would’ve been on Hamilton’s tail, but we know he was shortly passed by Alonso.

OK. I'd like a Whitmarsh quote because I haven't seen or heard him at any point that either 1st lap pace or punctures on the Red Bull are activated by buttons or are the consequence of pressing a button. I'm not calling you a liar, I just wonder what your source is.

Button was on the back of Hamilton round the first and second corner. Alonso overtook Button on turn 9.

(I thought this might be a good time to explain why I disagree.)

 

[Brogan]

Lap time chart.

Which lap did Button lose KERS on?

 

[ExtremeNinja]

Wow. I hadn't noticed that Lewis had got four more laps out of his second set of soft tyres than Button managed.

 

[teabagyokel]

I think that would suggest that Lewis had the legs on him.

 

[FB]

Button lost KERS on lap 10.

 

[Quintessentially]

The Whimarsh interview I'm referring to was right after the race watching it live. You''ll find part of it towards the end of this interview http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/formula_one/15713537.stm

Also, Alonso was close to Button right from the outset before subsequently making the pass, having already passed Webber. This is why I question whether gird slot was a major factor. Effectively turn one is a 3rd gear 130kph corner, I am not sure you gain that sort of lead by having a good line in and out,.

 

[teabagyokel]

For comparison:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/motorsport/formula_one/8336810.stm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/motorsport/formula_one/9188265.stm

 

[ExtremeNinja]

Interview is at about 2:40 on the iPlayer full coverage.

I can't believe I had to do the work on that. That was really up to you to back up your statement there. You definitely didn't hear Martin say anything of the sort or even on a similar topic anywhere on the BBC program. What a waste of my time.

I haven't posted a link because I am on my iPad.


As for the start. Go and watch the video. It is a lot more reliable than memory. The advantage of the line into turn 1 is visually evident. I'm not asking you to take my word for it.

 

[The Pits]

Just for a little balance, and acknowledging that Lewis was the faster of the McLarens all week, if as has been mentioned that KERS was around 0.3-0.5 seconds per lap, add in the uncertainty of not knowing if KERS is working or not when braking for a corner, coupled with my perception that in most races Jenson tends to be relatively slower at the start of a stint versus the end, I believe that it would have been a lot closer had he not had the KERS issues, maybe even enough to keep Alonso honest. Maybe, maybe not, but I think it is all too easy to dismiss.

 

[RasputinLives]

In my opinion Jenson would still have been third but I think he'd have been seriously closing down on Fernando come the end and it may have encouraged Lewis to increase his pace some what too.

but its all if's and maybe's ain't it?

 

[Quintessentially]

No need for the aggressive tone. I've posted you a link above and I used the word 'alluded' for a reason. Whitmarsh - "Sebastian was trying to pull a few seconds gap and you know do that startling first lap, when you do that you play a bit of a risk and i think he did and he paid for it".
I doubt this was the first time Redbull's one lap mode/button call it whatever you want has been mentioned. Amongst the many reasons why Vettel had a considerable advantage coming out of turn one, grid slot was least glaring. Arguably, he gained more from the good start and Hamilton drove conservatively possibly to avoid contact. If grid slot was such a major factor, Alonso would not have been third within the first lap or was it just great driving.