Grand Prix 2012 Canadian Grand Prix Practice, Qualifying & Race Discussion

Going into the 7th race of the season we are now hitting new territory as far as different race winners are concerned as for the first time in history 6 different drivers have won the first 6 races with 5 different constructors as Red Bull are the only team to have had more than one driver win a race with victories in Bahrain and Monaco, the way things are going there could easily be 10 winners from 10 races with people like Hamilton, Raikkonen, Grosjean and Schumacher yet to win this season, and with Canada pretty much being Hamilton's best track, it could easily be 7 winners from 7 even though McLaren have been floundering in recent weeks.

Despite this downturn in form, Lewis Hamilton lies just 13 points off Fernando Alonso who no-one would have predicted to have been leading the championship after 6 races going into the opening race where Ferrari had a car which struggled to even get near the top 10 let alone fight for wins and podiums, but improvements with the car allied with supreme driving and consistency from Alonso has seen him top the table from Vettel who's clever strategy in Monaco nearly get him onto the podium despite starting from 10th on the grid.

While Ferrari have made the biggest improvements (even Massa has been better, even though one race a season does not make) it seems McLaren have surprisingly made the biggest backwards step. In Melbourne they had the quickest car and they romped to a comfortable 1-2 and many wondered if they were going to have a Red Bull type domination season, but Button hasn't won since that race and Hamilton hasn't won at all even though he has 3 pole positions so far (2 if you discount the one in Spain) but while Hamilton has made the best of a bad job on the Sunday it has gone even worse for Button who is struggling to even make the points and his performances are a shadow of his 2011 form. Hamilton has improved considerably but surely the pit stop problems and other issues will be getting to him if it costs him a shot at the title, it'll be 5 years since he won the title if the 2012 title slips away and with contracts soon to be under negotiation it could play a part in what he decides to do.

If the 2012 Canadian Grand Prix is even half as good as the 2011 race we are in for a treat, I dont think there will be a race like the 2011 Canadian Grand Prix ever again and ranks up there as one of the best I have ever watched and the 4 hour marathon was certainly worth the 2 hour rain delay in the middle. But even in the dry Canada serves up great racing with recent years being a testament to that and with the unpredictable nature of 2012 so far this seasons race will not be an exception and while overtakes in Monaco were only just in the teens, there could be nearly 10 times that in Montreal. Some say that this seasons unpredictability can be a bad thing, but really, it's so much better than the Schumacher years of the early 2000s and even better than 2011 as while there was very exciting racing in 2011, for a lot of races so far this year that action has been extended to the very front as well which is where the casual viewer could determine the entertainment value of a certain race.

For Galahad 's superb circuit write up - http://cliptheapex.com/pages/circuit-gilles-villeneuve/
 
Today we have clearly seen that the penalties are not equal for all the teams and drivers....
I really hope that this situation could will improve in the future...
Crashdo Maldonado on Twitter.
It is going to be dry don't worry! And maybe some strong winds!
 
The length of time it took to change Jenson's gearbox was ridiculous and it seems Gary Anderson was not too impressed either. It looks like they got the original diagnosis wrong. Also apparently they've brought a new 'Ferrari style front jack' so the guy can step to the side immediately after jacking the car but again they've been having all sorts of problems with it so don't expect any quick pits stops any time soon. Anyway I think this has Hamilton on pole written all over it.
 
The length of time it took to change Jenson's gearbox was ridiculous and it seems Gary Anderson was not too impressed either. It looks like they got the original diagnosis wrong.

You need to read what Johnathan Neale has got to say on Planet F1. He accuses Gary Anderson of being out of touch with a modern F1 car and says on average it takes about an hour and three quarters to change a gearbox. They had to change Buttons twice due to a secondary issue that wasn't initially evident. Sounds like Gary Anderson needs to do his homework before he starts mouthing off criticizing McLaren. :(
 
I'm surprised no one has mentioned Ferrari and Alonso on this thread since 2nd practice. I've had my money on Alonso since the beginning of the season despite their problems. Ever since they had to abandon their original exhaust configuration due to problems with it, they said after further development they would reintroduce it shortly after their return to Europe. They have, and it appears they have found the final two or three tenths they needed to get themselves up at the front of the grid. Even if Alonso doesn't gain pole I wouldn't count him out in the race. My belief remains the same. Alonso is looking the most likely to break clear of the rest during the second half of the season, maybe sooner. Considering the difficulties Ferrari have had there's no way Alonso should be leading the championship, I can't imagine what he's likely to achieve if the gains they've made with their car turn out to be real and consistent.
 
You need to read what Johnathan Neale has got to say on Planet F1. He accuses Gary Anderson of being out of touch with a modern F1 car and says on average it takes about an hour and three quarters to change a gearbox. They had to change Buttons twice due to a secondary issue that wasn't initially evident. Sounds like Gary Anderson needs to do his homework before he starts mouthing off criticizing McLaren. :(
Although Neale would naturally be defensive of his teams' work, so you would expect him to criticise Anderson anyway, if Anderson criticises his team. Anderson has shown himself to be competent with the technical regulations, and he only stepped out of designing F1 cars about ten years ago, so alot of the technology used in F1 cars in the 2000's would still be in place now, so for Neale to call Anderson out of touch is a bit harsh.
EDIT: Now I have Actualy read the article, PF1 seem to be making alot of the quotes.
 
mjo......Neale pointed out that the level of integration between the gearbox and powertrain makes changing a gearbox far less straight forward than it was even relatively recently. We should all remember, and that includes Gary Anderson, that F1 technology moves forward at an alarming rate, hence his comment that Gary Anderson is out of touch. Just the fact that he said it should only take half an hour to change a gearbox when the average is an hour and three quarters indicates just how out of touch he is. Neale also pointed out just to start an F1 engine from laptop from cold takes an hour and a half. Is it any wonder Button lost so much time. Neale was clearly a little angry at feeling the need to defend McLaren against unjustified criticism. I don't blame him.

RESPONSE TO YOUR EDIT. The fact they're quoting Johnathan Neale is the essence of the entire article so I don't see how that makes any difference. The criticism leveled at McLaren by Gary Anderson regards time taken to get Jenson back on track. Surely Neale's defense was correct and justified.
 
Caterham practically rebuilt Kovalainen's car in that time (probably including at least part of the gearbox) do Mclaren, really should have changed it faster. But it's only themselves they're penalising.
 
I see little point in arguing about this, I simply pointed you to an explanation from Johathan Neale which I would consider 100% reliable. Incidentally the damage to Kovalainen's car appeared to be confined to the front and rear suspension. Second guessing that the gearbox may have needed attention is just that, a guess, and I would suggest not a very good guess.
 
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