Метка: Chinese GP

Leclerc start battle cost Ferrari in F1 China GP

Опубликовано от ASPPA IMAGES ANO


Leclerc and Sainz lined up sixth and seventh respectively, but both lost positions to Mercedes driver George Russell and Haas man Nico Hulkenberg as they crossed paths in Shanghai’s first corner complex.

Sainz was pushed wide in Turn 2 by an understeering Leclerc, who visibly struggled to get his tyres up to temperature, further illustrated by a huge moment for the Monegasque in the second sector.

While Hulkenberg was easy prey for both, Russell proved a tougher nut to crack. Leclerc finally passed him on lap 9, while Sainz had to wait for the Briton to pit before being released into clear air until the mid-race safety car.

«It was a bit of a crazy race. What we did at the start cost both Charles and I one or two positions and that cost us a lot in the race,» Sainz said about the intra-team battle to Spanish broadcaster DAZN.

«Then we tried to follow the Mercedes, we tried to overtake him but he stopped and then we stopped, we put the hard tyres on very early.

«In the last stint, I had to go very long, but we still managed to hang on for fifth, which I think was the maximum we could do.»

Ferrari was tipped to do well in Shanghai, but that didn’t prove to be the case as it struggled for pace on the harder Pirelli compound.

Photo by: Andy Hone / Motorsport Images

«Honestly, we weren’t very fast this weekend, when you qualify sixth and seventh there’s not a lot of pace in the car,» said Sainz.

«In the race, we expected to be better but we weren’t, so clearly this is the circuit where we suffered the most.

«We need to check if we’ve done everything we could with the set-up and if not, it’s time to work on the car because this type of circuit didn’t go well for us.»

«I just focused on getting to the end and making sure Russell didn’t pass me on new tyres, and we managed to do that.»

Earlier in the weekend Leclerc felt Sainz «went a bit over the limit» defending his position to his team-mate in the sprint race, before declaring the matter was cleared up internally.

Sainz is F1’s highest-profile free agent on the 2025 driver market, as he is set to leave Ferrari at the end of the season following the Scuderia’s signing of Lewis Hamilton.



Source link

F1’s new points system looks on course to get support it needs

Опубликовано от ASPPA IMAGES ANO


As exclusively revealed by Autosport ahead of the Chinese Grand Prix, F1’s teams are due to discuss with the FIA and FOM the idea of revising the points system for 2025 to offer rewards down to 12th place.

Amid concerns that the effective current lock-out of the top ten positions by the leading five teams is unduly impacting the midfield battle, as there are so few opportunities to score, a proposal will be put to a meeting of the F1 Commission this week to change the points system.

The current allocation of points for the top seven positions will remain unchanged if the change is made (see table at bottom of story), but things will shuffle around from eighth and below.

The points shake-up has been framed in a way that it should not impact the leading teams from a competitive viewpoint, plus will not mean they score more, which could increase the points-based entry fee they must pay to the FIA each year.

For the proposal to go ahead and get implemented for the 2025 season, it will need to earn a simple majority support from the teams – so requires five outfits to approve it as well as being supported by the FIA and FOM.

And while it is not impossible for teams to say one thing in public and act another way when it comes to a vote, the indications are that even top outfits are not minded to move to block the change.

Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur said: “I’m not against. And coming from Alfa Romeo, I perfectly understand sometimes the frustration that you are doing a mega weekend, but if there is no DNF in front of you then you finish P11 and the reward is zero.

Zhou Guanyu, Kick Sauber C44, Pierre Gasly, Alpine A524, Kevin Magnussen, Haas VF-24

Zhou Guanyu, Kick Sauber C44, Pierre Gasly, Alpine A524, Kevin Magnussen, Haas VF-24

Photo by: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Images

“[At the moment] you can finish P11 or P 20 and it is the same, so I can understand the frustration for this.”

Red Bull team principal Christian Horner added: “It feels like there are two groups in Formula 1 at the moment, and the teams from six to 10 are in as hard a fight as one to five.

“I think it’s one of those things where you’ve just got to run the numbers and look at the analytics and say: what would it actually change? So I’m impartial to it.”

Those teams that are locked in that midfield battle for the minor points positions are especially eager to see the change.

RB team principal Laurent Mekies told Autosport that he saw no negatives to the new system – which he felt would deliver an improvement for F1 as a whole.

“Of course, I will support that,” he said. “There are no backmarkers any more. There are six OEMs in F1, plus Red Bull Racing, so it’s like seven top teams.

“Even the bottom five teams are large organisations now and it’s very difficult to explain to the outside world, to our partners, and to our fans, that we battle for a P11 that actually grants zero points.

Daniel Ricciardo, RB F1 Team VCARB 01, Yuki Tsunoda, RB F1 Team VCARB 01, Kevin Magnussen, Haas VF-24

Daniel Ricciardo, RB F1 Team VCARB 01, Yuki Tsunoda, RB F1 Team VCARB 01, Kevin Magnussen, Haas VF-24

Photo by: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Images

“If you look at the level of competitiveness of the top five teams and the reliability level of the cars, it means that most of the race you’re battling theoretically for zero points, and we don’t think this is right.

“We also think it’s more meritocratic because, if you score points up until P12, you will avoid the effect where if something completely stunning happens and somebody scores a P5 or P4 in the rain, it means the other guys can stay home for 10 races.

“We think it’s ticking all the boxes with virtually no downside, so hopefully it will go through.”

Haas team boss Ayao Komatsu added: “What’s the downside? Currently, we have three teams with zero points and I don’t think that’s good for sport.

“If somebody was awarded points for P11, P12, there will be less people with zero points. So, I think it’s clearer for the fans and for the motivation of everybody working in a team as well. It’s much better to come out with P12 with one point, P11 with two points — it’s a reward.”

The new F1 points structure proposal 

Finishing position

Current points

Proposed points

1

25

25

2

18

18

3

15

15

4

12

12

5

10

10

6

8

8

7

6

6

8

4

5

9

2

4

10

1

3

11

0

2

12

0

1

Fastest lap

1  (top 10 finishers only)

1  (top 12 finishers only)

Additional quotes from Oleg Karpov and Erwin Jaeggi



Source link

Stroll penalty «very harsh» after F1 China «chain reaction»

Опубликовано от ASPPA IMAGES ANO


Stroll hit Ricciardo under the safety car as the field bunched up in the penultimate corner for a lap 27 restart.

The stewards wholly blamed Stroll for not taking more care to avoid the contact and handed him a 10-second penalty and two penalty points, which Stroll felt was «a joke».

His team boss Krack backed the Canadian and questioned why such a snap verdict was issued soon after the incident.

«A very, very quick verdict without really understanding… I thought it was very, very fast and very harsh, very quick decision,» Krack said when Autosport quizzed him about the punishment.

«I think it was a chain reaction at the end of the day. You saw Fernando [Alonso] locking and another car behind and I think everybody was a little bit caught out there.

«I would have liked that this would have been looked at in a little bit more detailed way. We tried to discuss it, but the verdict was very quickly that Lance was to blame. And he got a 10-second penalty, additional to the front wing damage.»

Mike Krack, Team Principal, Aston Martin F1 Team

Mike Krack, Team Principal, Aston Martin F1 Team

Photo by: Zak Mauger / Motorsport Images

Ricciardo was particularly frustrated with Stroll ducking responsibility for the clash despite pointing out the Aston driver was looking at the apex of Turn 14 rather than what was happening ahead of him.

«These situations are created in the front,» Krack responded. «Now, you can always say, you need to be more careful.

«But, on the other hand, if you’re too careful, and you have the restart and you lose more than one car length — everybody says ‘are you asleep?’

«Things like that happen at different tracks. You remember the incident we had in Mugello [at the 2020 Tuscan GP], where there were a lot of cars involved.

«This is always the erratic movement that happens on a safety car restart. And we have some of these every year and will continue to.»



Source link

Stroll explains why F1 China penalty for Ricciardo contact felt like «a joke»

Опубликовано от ASPPA IMAGES ANO


With the field bunching up before the hairpin as the race was restarted on Lap 27, Stroll went into the back of Ricciardo, lifting the RB car up in the air and causing terminal damage to the Australian’s car.
Ricciardo was pushed into McLaren driver Oscar Piastri, who also sustained damage that compromised the rest of his race.

The stewards swiftly exacted judgment on the incident, fully attributing blame to Stroll. The Canadian received a 10-second penalty and two penalty points, bringing his tally up to seven for the past 12 months.

«We determined that Car 18 ought to have anticipated the pace of the cars in front, particularly Car 3 and should have prepared to brake accordingly,» the FIA race stewards judged.

«Had it done that, it would have avoided the collision. Hence Car 18 was predominantly to blame for the collision that ultimately led to Car 3 having to retire from the race.»

Stroll’s actions were also slammed by Ricciardo, who said the Canadian’s lack of responsibility «made my blood boil».

But Stroll said he felt the stewards should have taken into account that the field bunched up very quickly, which ended up being caused by his team-mate Fernando Alonso locking up his front tyres.
Lance Stroll, Aston Martin AMR24

Lance Stroll, Aston Martin AMR24

Photo by: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Images

«I think it’s just because of the fact that I hit the guy,» Stroll said when asked by Autosport why he said the penalty was a joke on his team radio.

«I got a penalty because of the end result that I hit Ricciardo, but it’s not like everything was normal and I just slammed into the back of him.

«There was a really odd concertina effect that I would have liked to see the stewards take into consideration maybe a little bit more.

«Someone braked at the front of the pack and then everyone stops. The car in front of me just stopped from like 60 to zero. It was one of those stupid incidents.

«I was in his gearbox and ready for the restart, and just very unlucky. We were having a good race so then so it’s a shame.»

Stroll said he was otherwise on for a decent result as Aston is still finding it hard to compete with McLaren, Ferrari and Mercedes.

Alonso finished seventh after trying to make a three-stop work, but his progress through the field in the final stint halted when he got up to seventh.

Daniel Ricciardo, RB F1 Team VCARB 01

Daniel Ricciardo, RB F1 Team VCARB 01

Photo by: Zak Mauger / Motorsport Images

«We were on for eighth or ninth, so pretty normal for where the car is,» Stroll said.

«We’re not bad, we’re making progress. We seem to bit stronger on a Saturday than a Sunday.

«We have to keep bringing upgrades and trying to get a little bit quicker every weekend, but we can fight.»



Source link

Aston Martin F1 should not apologise for being “too fast” in qualifying

Опубликовано от ASPPA IMAGES ANO


The Spaniard has proved the progress that his squad is making as he emerged from qualifying for the Chinese Grand Prix in third position as Red Bull’s closest rival.

And although the characteristics of his AMR24 car, which appears better in single-lap pace than long runs, means he is not expecting to hold on to his place in the Shanghai race, he says it is a situation he and the team cannot be too unhappy about.

“I expect a difficult race,” he said. “We are slower than the Ferraris, slower than the McLarens and probably the Mercedes. We are outqualifying them often and then in the race we just need to wait and see when they come, how fast they come and how many laps we can defend those positions.

“It happened so far in the first four races, so I guess this fifth race is going to be no different. So yeah, I expect a race that is going to be difficult for us.

“But we can’t say sorry for being too fast in qualifying, so let’s take it.”

Alonso had run third for most of the Shanghai sprint, as he held off the attacking Ferraris until the closing stages.

It has opened the prospect of an intense battle to keep Red Bull’s most consistent challenger back again in the race.

Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz said he was braced for a pretty tough time for the Maranello squad in recovering from a difficult qualifying, as he ended up seventh on the grid, one spot behind team-mate Charles Leclerc.

Asked about the chances of gunning for the front, Sainz said: “I think we need to focus on more than the Red Bull and just see how, in terms of race pace, we can overcome the two McLarens and the Aston.

“They’ve shown better pace over one lap this weekend, but over a full race distance I am hoping we will get our chances. The problem is it’s three cars to overtake.

“Normally in a race, like if look at me in Suzuka — to overtake Lando I had to extend two stints to get one car. To overtake three cars you really need to show proper race pace so it will be tricky, because you wear a lot the tyres while trying to overtake one car, then you need to overtake another… So let’s see.

“My feeling is we can come back, but we need to show much better pace than [the sprint].”

Read Also:



Source link

Ricciardo could feel new F1 chassis difference in China

Опубликовано от ASPPA IMAGES ANO


The Australian had come into the Chinese Grand Prix off the back of a difficult start to the season, where he had been struggling for pace against team-mate Yuki Tsunoda and facing questions over his future.

With no obvious explanation for his difficulties, the team believed a well-timed change of chassis for this weekend would at least be able to tick that issue off as a factor in his form.

And having delivered perhaps his strongest weekend of the year against Tsunoda, who has been struggling to find a good set-up, Ricciardo says he has noticed things feeling different this weekend.

However, he believed it was far too early to make a judgement immediately on whether the chassis change was behind the gains or if it was something else.

“It feels like a more normal weekend,” said Ricciardo, who has qualified 12th for Sunday’s Chinese GP.

“I would say from the get-go, from yesterday morning, we kind of just felt like we’re in a better place and everything came — I don’t want to say easier, because that sounds too easy — but yeah, it just kind of came a bit more seamlessly so far this weekend. It’s encouraging, obviously.

“We did change chassis, [but] I don’t want to jump on that yet and be like, it’s definitely that. Obviously, we need to prove that over the course of a few races. But yeah, there was obviously something with the change this weekend.

“So far, it’s been my best weekend of the year. So, whether it’s that or whether it’s just I’ve always kind of done well around here, we’ll see. We’ll see in Miami, and Imola and maybe the next few [races] if it continues.”

With the team having been convinced that there was nothing wrong with the chassis that Ricciardo started the season with, the Australian says that if things stay at this level for the next few events he may have to accept that he will never know what the problem was.

“If the next five completely do this kind of 180, so to speak, then I would have confidence in saying alright, well, maybe we will never know what it was.

“Something didn’t make me feel right with obviously the previous chassis I was racing.

“I would love to be here in five races’ time and say that, because then it means the season has definitely turned around and I’ve kind of got that monkey off our back.

“We’ll see. But I’m encouraged so far with the two days we’ve had here.”

Shanghai is not a normal track, with its long slow corners making it particularly challenging on the front tyres.

But Ricciardo said that despite the unique aspects, there had been no need for a dramatic change of approach in how he was dealing with his car.

“This circuit is typically a bit more of a front-limited circuit, so it is a little different to probably the majority of tracks in terms of the set-up and that.

“But I’d be lying if I said we changed much this weekend. It was a little few tweaks here and there, but it’s nothing crazy. So yeah, let’s see.

“So far, it feels everything’s gone more normal. And right now normal is good.”



Source link

F1 teams to discuss change to jump start regulations

Опубликовано от ASPPA IMAGES ANO


Autosport can reveal that one of the items up for discussion at next week’s meeting of the Formula 1 Commission is whether or not the way the jump start regulations are currently framed is fit for purpose.

At the moment, a jump start is defined entirely based on whether or not any movement is detected by FIA-supplied transponders before the start signal is given.

However, there have been several occasions where it has appeared that cars did move before the red lights went out but were not sanctioned because the sensors did not detect it.

The most recent famous example of this, with Lando Norris at this year’s Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, is understood to have triggered the debate about whether or not the regulations should be updated.

In Jeddah, while Norris was visibly seen to have moved forward and then stopped before the lights changed, the FIA stewards ruled that he had been within the rules because the sensor had not been triggered.

A statement issued at the time said: “The stewards reviewed positioning/marshalling system data, video and determined that the video appeared to show that car 4 [Norris] moved before the start signal was given.

«However, the FIA-approved and supplied transponder fitted on the car did not indicate a jump start.

Sir Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes F1 W15, leads Lando Norris, McLaren MCL38, Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin AMR24, Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing RB20, and the rest of the field at the start of the Sprint

Sir Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes F1 W15, leads Lando Norris, McLaren MCL38, Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin AMR24, Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing RB20, and the rest of the field at the start of the Sprint

Photo by: Zak Mauger / Motorsport Images

«Article 48.1 a) of the Formula One Sporting Regulations states clearly that the judgment of whether or not there was a jump start is to be made in accordance with the transponder, which did not show a jump start. In the circumstances, we took no further action.»

Subsequent discussions between team managers and the FIA in recent weeks, including at this weekend’s Chinese Grand Prix, have triggered the idea that there could be grounds to tweak the rules going forward.

So, beyond the transponders remaining in place to detect illegal movement, jump starts could also be deemed to have taken place if F1 race control has video evidence that clearly shows the car moving even if it has not been picked up by the sensors.

Although it is unclear how much support there is for a change, it is understood that if the F1 Commission hits a super-majority – which requires eight teams backing it beyond the FIA and FOM – then the rule tweak could come into force for as early as the Miami Grand Prix.

Sources suggest that not all outfits are in favour though, with some expressing concern about jump starts becoming a subjective matter based on the opinion of individuals.

Instead, they suggest that efforts should be more focused on improving the sensitivity and accuracy of the sensors to ensure they are better able to detect all movements.

The issue of drivers appearing to jump the start but the sensors not being triggered has cropped up several times in recent years.

Valtteri Bottas was previously cleared for a jump start in the 2020 Hungarian Grand Prix while one year earlier, then Ferrari driver Sebastian Vettel similarly escaped punishment in Japan.



Source link

Shanghai F1 grass fire mystery remains; emergency team on standby

Опубликовано от ASPPA IMAGES ANO


The FIA began a detailed probe on Friday night after two separate fires on the same area of grass inside Turn 7 disrupted running on the opening day of track action.

First practice for the Chinese Grand Prix on Friday morning had to be red-flagged after a blaze erupted on the grass before the same section later caught fire at the end of the first session of sprint qualifying.

While there was no red flag this time, because session running had already ended, it did trigger a delay to the start of SQ2.

The FIA sent personnel to the area on Friday evening to conduct an analysis of what was causing the problems, but there has been no firm conclusion.

While it seems certain that flying sparks from F1 cars are being thrown into the grass, triggering the fires, what isn’t known is what is causing things to burn so much.

It is understood that there is no sign of there being a flammable material or chemicals on the grass – which could perhaps have been discarded there in the build up to the weekend.

There have been theories about the fires being fuelled by methane gas seeping up through the ground and then getting ignited.

Photo by: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Images

The Shanghai circuit is built on a swamp, which could be a cause of a build-up of gas. There are also understood to be various pipes that run underneath the venue too, so it could be that one has cracked.

However, the FIA inspections did not trigger any obvious evidence of gas being present, further adding to the mystery over what is happening.

But while there are no answers, the FIA has taken measures to ensure that the fire problem does not cause trouble if it repeats itself again.

A short statement from the FIA said the grass had been watered down and extra precautions taken with fire vehicles in attendance.

“Although we are still uncertain why grass fires occurred in yesterday’s sessions, we are taking pre-emptive measures ahead of today’s track activities,” said the statement.

“We will be watering the grass in the affected areas and will have an emergency fire response team on standby at Turn 7.”



Source link

Norris’ F1 China sprint pole lap down to «all or nothing» approach

Опубликовано от ASPPA IMAGES ANO


Norris had his penultimate timed lap deleted for track limits at Turn 16, but his 1m57.940s follow-up ultimately proved unbeatable during a wet and slippery final part of sprint qualifying — which yielded multiple mistakes across the field.

This lap was initially chalked off for track limits as well, suspected to be a result of Norris going off at the final corner of the previous lap, but it was successfully demonstrated that he lost time at the start of that lap and he had it reinstated.

Norris explained that he had to continue pressing on despite the treacherous conditions, as tyre temperature was vital to finding any purchase on a recently resurfaced Shanghai circuit.

«It was tricky,» Norris reflected after the session. «You’re always nervous going into a session like this, especially for quali when you know it’s going to rain. I know I was quite happy with how it was in the dry; I think we have had good pace all weekend so far.

«So I got a bit nervous but the conditions were you have just got to risk a lot, you have got to push, build tyre temperature and so forth.

«But I was quick, I just kept catching the Ferrari, so I had to keep backing off. I didn’t do the first few two laps like well at all and I got a good final one: a good enough one for pole. So I’m happy. Sad it is not for proper qualifying, but good enough.

«The first two I aborted on both, so I was like: the last lap was all or nothing. But it’s getting wetter and wetter. So actually the conditions for the final two laps were a lot worse than the second lap at least.

Lando Norris, McLaren MCL38

Lando Norris, McLaren MCL38

Photo by: Mark Sutton

«I was a little bit nervous that I made a few mistakes, started to aquaplane quite a bit. But it’s good fun. It gets your heart going. To end up on top is exactly what we wanted.»

Norris explained that he had «not a clue» what to expect in Saturday’s sprint, especially given the minimal practice on offer during a sprint weekend.

He felt that if further rain emerged, then McLaren would be in a good position, but that the team had managed to hone in on a decent setup for all weathers despite tentative expectations to struggle in China.

«We did some of our homework this morning; we did some consecutive laps to try and understand but depends what the weather is. There’s still a chance of rain tomorrow.

«If it’s like this then I think the chances are relatively decent. But the race is still very different to qualifying.

«I’m sure everyone’s going to catch up a bit tomorrow. But the pace is good whether it’s wet or dry and I think we’re in a good position. It’s a bit of a surprise, but I’m very happy the team have done a good job, the car is feeling good. And so am I. And it’s paying off.»



Source link