F1 Bahrain Race

Here we go for the first race of the 2010 season and anticipation is very high for the first race as well as all the excitement to come. The new Mercedes SLS course car looks a mean machine and I have no doubt we shall hear the roar of this beast many times during the season.

It is great to have Ayrton's nephew, Bruno Senna on the grid and what an evocative name back in the sport along with Lotus and didn't it look spooky as he opened his visa when he broke down, I am sure we all wish them well. It was also nice to see the line up of F1 previous world champions and Martin spoke to Emerson Fittipaldi, Nigel Mansell and Mario Andretti on the grid and Damon was seen many times over the weekend. Names like Nicki Lauda, John Surtees, Jacques Villeneuve, Michael Schumacher are evocative names in the world of F1.

At the second longest circuit of the season at 3.94 miles, the full tanks will mean the cars go faster as the race develops over the 49 laps. The lap record of 1.33.43 from 2009 will stand after this race due to the changes to the circuit and with a track temperature of 39 and air temperature of 36 it is going to be a hot race for all concerned.

The flag dropped and Sebastian shot into the lead from pole but Fernando passed Felipe at turn 2 in a classic overtaking move, Nico passed Lewis as he made a mistake running wide and mayhem happened behind at the back of the grid. It appears to me the plumes of smoke that, for some reason appeared from the back of Mark's Red Bull put off the followers and apart from dropping him back it also lost Robert many places.

Unfortunately then it became somewhat of a procession and it appears to me the drivers appeared to be driving very conservatively to protect their tyres and fuel loads. I sincerely hope this is not the case or this season could become a Fernando benefit.

So Sebastian held his lead followed by Fernando, Felipe, Nico, Lewis, Michael, Jenson and Mark but not particularly close and not really competing with each other. At the first tyre stop Lewis nipped in front of Nico and that was that done for Lewis but he never really got on terms with Felipe.

At the back we lost the unfortunate Karun Chandruk (HRT Cosworth) after only 1 lap with an accident across the bump, then Lucas di Grassi (Virgin Cosworth) went next. Then came a rash of failures including Kamui 11 Laps (Sauber Ferrari), Vitaly Petrov 13 Laps (Renault), Timo 16 Laps (Virgin Cosworth), Bruno Senna 17 Laps and finally Pedro de la Rosa 28 Laps (Sauber Ferrari).

However, Lotus did a fantastic job in their first GP for many years with both cars there at the finish so well done Heikki and Jarno. Williams also did a great job with Rubens in 10th and Nico Hulkenberg finishing 14th. It is fair to suggest there was more swapping and changing amongst the last 10 on the grid and at times, although we didn't see that much of it, it was quite exciting.

So back to the front and all seemed well but all of a sudden Sebastian started to slow slightly dropping a couple of seconds and it became apparent he had a broken exhaust. So, Fernando pounced into the lead that he was never to lose. Felipe kept in contention as he also passed Sebastian who forlornly pressed on.

I must pay tribute to Felipe as it is fantastic for us all to see him back and to come 2nd in his first race since his tragic accident can only be called fantastic for him, his fans, for us and Ferrari. Well done Felipe and we wish you all the best for the future and in your fight with Fernando.

Then Lewis passed the lonely Sebastian and that was basically the end of the race really albeit Nico was closing fast on Sebastian but all in vain as he failed by a short margin.

All the talk prior to the start was obviously about the comeback king Michael Schumacher and I suppose by his standards he didn't have a good weekend. In this sport the first thing you must do is beat your team mate and he was .5 secs behind Nico Rosberg all weekend.

So the final grid was Fernando (25), Felipe (18), Lewis (15), Sebastian (12), Nico (10), Michael (8), Jenson (6), Mark (4), Vitantonio (2) and last in the top 10 and points scorer Rubens (1).

So what have we learnt from today:

In the top team mate war: Fernando and Felipe very close, Lewis well in front of Jenson, Nico well in front of Michael, Sebastian far in front Mark.

Concern must be expressed about the new tyre and refuelling regulations as it could bring boring racing as the drivers have no alternative but to protect the cars. Engines now have to last 3 races, tyres are more restricted through race day and fuel has obviously to be conserved or the cars wouldn't reach the flag.

So congratulations to Fernando and Felipe and the Ferrari team but let us hope this is not the start of a procession as has happened in the past with Ferrari in Michael's hands!

F1 Quali Bahrain

Well, the first quali of 2010 has been and gone and what an interesting start to the new season. Firstly a new team appeared on the grid in the shape of HRT Cosworth with drivers Bruno Senna and Karun Chandrock. The late entries didn't have much running but at least they qualified.

To clear something up is the question of fuel for quali and now we know the teams run their own fuel levels for quali which don't affect race fuel as all cars now start on full tanks as no refuelling throughout the race. The new front tyres are also 20mm narrower than last season and on the Green walled tyres they were causing problems during quali as they were going off quickly.

As all the talk will be about Michael Schumacher's return it does put pressure on him knowing the worlds press is watching and Nico Rosberg has a lot to prove albeit he has been 0.05 secs quicker than Michael all weekend.

So the new 24 car grid launched itself at 1100 Saturday full of anticipation of who was to be the leading light for the start of the season. Alonso was forecast to be that light but things always have a habit of changing in this sport.

Quali 1 was a bit of a procession really as the top teams didn't have to try very hard to beat the new teams who are not on the case yet. There was criticism of HRT as they haven't had any pre season testing and it was thought they shouldn't be on the grid at all.

So with 7 to lose in quali 1 and as projected we lost both Lotus's, both Virgin's, both HRT's and Jamie Alguersauri in the STR Ferrari. The first leading light so show his hand was Sebastian Vettel with a stunning 1.55.00 but was eclipsed by Fernando on a 54.6 who held that to the flag.

He was followed by Sebastian, Adrian Sutil, Felipe, Lewis, and Mark tied on 55.3 and then Nico and Robert Kubica tied on 55.5. Michael came in with a 55.6 and Jenson on 55.7. It was so close.

So into quali 2 and the ante went up as the remainder targeted quali 3 and with only a second between them. So we were to lose another 5 but no predictions as the remainder fought hammer and tongue.

At the sharp end Sebastian, Felipe, Fernando & Nico swapped places regularly. The times came tumbling down again but Sebastian put in a stunner at 1.53.9 which wasn't headed. He was followed by Fernando on 54.2, Felipe & Mark on 54.3, Lewis & Nico on 54.7 and last on a 55.00 was Adrian again in the Force India.

So the 10 going forward were Sebastian, Fernando, Felipe, Mark, Lewis, Nico, Michael, Jenson, Robert and finally Adrian. Out came the gladiators and with a long lap care had to be taken as to when they went out, came in and when or if tyres were changed. Accepting the tyres used in quali 3 had to go forward to the first part of the race.

Into quali 3 and the times were so close with only 2 secs covering the whole 10. Sebastian put in a 54.1 and that was good enough to give him pole albeit it wasn't as quick as his 53.9 in quali 2. Only a 10th behind on a 54.2 was Felipe, Fernando in the other Ferrari was third on a 54.6 and then Lewis on a 55.2 struggling for pace it seems.

5th was Nico in the leading Mercedes on a 55.2 the same as Lewis and Mark on a 55.3. So the top 6 were covered by only 1.2 secs. It is unusual for us to say that Michael was in the bottom half of the top 10 but he was only 7th on a 55.5 which by his standards will be a blow as Nico, his team mate was up in 5th, interesting.

Jenson was lucky to have got into quali 3 but he improved to 8th from 10th with a 55.7 so on the fourth row but 1.3 secs off the pace. Robert followed Jenson on a 55.9 and 10th was the incredible Adrian on a 56.3. So the gladiators fought and the first leading light is Sebastian following on from winning the last 3 races of the 2009 season.

My disappointment was Kamui Kobayashi didn't progress past quali 2 but we will see what he can do in the race. I am not sure what is meant by BMW Sauber Ferrari as I was under the impression BMW had gone so would this suggest they still have a financial investment. Strange though that BMW would allow their name to be on the team with Ferrari or even vice versa.

It appears some of the teams have an issue with Mclaren and and a duct on the top of the front body panel which as it can be opened or closed by the driver is deemed by some to be a mechanical device barred by the FIA. However, the fitment has been passed by the FIA but is it being suggested complaints may come. Not again boys, lets have a season without controversy for a change.

So, the new season has got off to a flying start in the desert of Bahrain and the new rules don't appear at this stage to be causing any problems. The cars look great which to some was a worry, the new teams are very enthusiastic with better to come hopefully and we can only wait to see how the drivers deal with the new fuel regs.

The new points allocation is also interesting giving a higher boost for the winner of each race. So the points allocation is 25 points for 1st, followed by 18, 15, 12, 10, 8, 6, 4, 2, and 1. So, for the first time we have points down to 10th place which gives more drivers to earn points which gives monies from FIA fund management.

So, a good start and let us hope the season gives us as much pleasure as 2009.

F1 Driver Line up 2010

Well here we go and only 5 days before the weekends are again full of our favourite sport. The circus starts in Bahrain for a change this season with Australia coming second. Below is the final line-up of drivers teams as of Monday 8 March 2010.

This looks a very interesting line up with new cars, new teams and new stars which should be a very interesting season. Competition will run rife amongst team mates with the likes of partnerships such as Lewis/Jenson, Michael/Nico, Felipe/Fernando, Mark/Sebastian and the other top starts such as Rubens & Robert there to prove points make prizes.

Great also to see Peter Sauber back where he belongs on the pit wall with a strong driver line up including the star of the last 2 races in 2009, Kamui Kobayashi. Let us hope they have a great yet safe season and we wll wish them well.

The F1 Drivers and Teams:

Jenson Button

Lewis Hamilton

Vodafone Mclaren Mercedes

Nico Rosberg

Michael Schumacher

Brawn GP F1 Team Mercedes

Sebastian Vettel

Mark Webber

Red Bull Racing Renault

Felipe Massa

Fernando Alonso

Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro

Rubens Barrichello

Nico Hulkenberg

AT & T Williams Cosworth

Robert Kubica

Vitaly Petrov

Renault F1 Team

Adrian Sutil

Vitantonio Liuzzi

Force Indai F1 Team Mercedes

Sebastian Buemi

Jamie Alguersuari

Scuderia Toro Rosso Ferrari - TBA

Jarno Trulli

Heikki Kovalainen

TBA Lotus F1 Racing Cosworth

Pedro De La Rosa

Kamui Kobayashi

Sauber

Karun Chandhok

Bruno Senna

Campos Meta

Timo Glock

Lucas Di Grassi

Virgin Racing - Manor Grand Prix Cosworth