Formula One 2012

[Roy]

Did you see when Mark got out of the car and was walking to the back of the podium he stopped and spoke with Anne for about a minute. I bet the conversaton went along the lines of "how good do you feel...now imagine the last race of the season as WDC"

Mark is looking stronger than he was in 2010!

Romain had an amazing race too considering he had an unscheduled stop for a front wing

[Owgasm]

Just need nando to flop a race or two for him to lower the margin.

[Dani Boi]

I feel awkward when he's standing there listening to the national anthem, drags on forever.

[sh@un]

Just need nando to flop a race or two for him to lower the margin.

this is looking increasingly unlikely

what we need is some classic Ferrari-engine (un) reliability to kick in, stat

[Roy]

I feel awkward when he's standing there listening to the national anthem, drags on forever.

What are you on about?

Alonso has been very consistent...he is due for a bit of bad luck. There will be a few surprises from here yet. The main thing is whether we can count Hamo out after the next few GPs of McLaren find some pace. My money is on McLaren not being a factor as I thik Lotus are a bigger threat to the top 3 getting results in the future. You get the feeling that once they get a win they will start to flow from there...Grosjean had amazing pace all race in light of his first 5 laps

[Missileman]

this is looking increasingly unlikely

what we need is some classic Ferrari-engine (un) reliability to kick in, stat

or just pray he qualifies close to Maldonado

Edited July 9, 2012 by Missileman

[Nee-san]

I have made money two GP's in a row now, Ferrari and RBR bringing home the love.

[Angus Smart]

I need Tiger to win the golf next week and hello $160 from $2

[Nee-san]

multibet ? haha

[hrd-hr30]

What are you on about?

Alonso has been very consistent...he is due for a bit of bad luck. There will be a few surprises from here yet. The main thing is whether we can count Hamo out after the next few GPs of McLaren find some pace. My money is on McLaren not being a factor as I thik Lotus are a bigger threat to the top 3 getting results in the future. You get the feeling that once they get a win they will start to flow from there...Grosjean had amazing pace all race in light of his first 5 laps

It looked that way at first glance, but IMO it was a whole lot of luck that went his way:

1) lucky his over-ambitious early move didn't end his race

2) lucky that whole incident only cost him 8 seconds

3) lucky he started on the Softs so he could get rid of them and run the rest of the race on the faster Hard tyre, which is where he made a gain over the rest of the field who did a stint on the Softs

4) lucky the Pirellis didn't fall off the cliff for anyone that weekend for some reason, which made their revised long stint strategy work.

Looking at the lap charts on F1fanatic he was no faster than Kimi overall, and it was Kimi who set the fastest lap of the race, a quarter of a second faster than Romain. The main reason for his net gain over the field was that he didn't waste a whole session on the slower Soft tyres.

[Roy]

1) lucky his over-ambitious early move didn't end his race

Lay down the crack pipe! Did you actually see the accident post race when they went over it? He was doing a good job, minding his own business, shanging wide and back so not to get into any bother and then DiResta moved wide to avoid Hulk and clipped his wing giving himself a flat. There was no attempt at an opportunistic move...its was just one of those things you sometimes get in close first laps.

2) lucky that whole incident only cost him 8 seconds

Yep, and put him out with clean air for a good many laps to use his tyres for lap speed rather then keeping up with slower cars in turbulent air.

4) lucky the Pirellis didn't fall off the cliff for anyone that weekend for some reason, which made their revised long stint strategy work.

Looking at the lap charts on F1fanatic he was no faster than Kimi overall, and it was Kimi who set the fastest lap of the race, a quarter of a second faster than Romain. The main reason for his net gain over the field was that he didn't waste a whole session on the slower Soft tyres.

Agree, but he has shown a few times now he can be quick without stressing his tyres. Considering the amount of fight back and traffic he had to contend with mid race I think he did an excellent job to be on Kimi's bum at end of the race with good speed. Kimi just needs to get the car qualified well and a clean first lap and will be interesting..

[Angus Smart]

multibet ? haha

Hells yeah!

[hrd-hr30]

Lay down the crack pipe! Did you actually see the accident post race when they went over it? He was doing a good job, minding his own business, shanging wide and back so not to get into any bother and then DiResta moved wide to avoid Hulk and clipped his wing giving himself a flat. There was no attempt at an opportunistic move...its was just one of those things you sometimes get in close first laps.

must be my memory failing me - I thought he was the one clambering over the kerbs up the inside of a couple of other cars...

[wolverine]

That was Raikkonen

[hrd-hr30]

ah, in that case it was a good agressive move! lol

[Nee-san]

Hells yeah!

Le sportsbet ?

[Roy]

ah, in that case it was a good agressive move! lol

If it was Vettel or Hamo I would be abusing them...since it was Kimi I was screaming "get in there you good thing!"

[Roy]

And in news today. Webber signed for 2013 to RBR. He has confirmed there have been talks with Ferrari but wants the continuity of RBR, plus they still look the strongest team.

I was also thinking, since he is 16 points clear of Vettel, driving well and 2nd in the Championship...he is in the hunt for the 2012 WDC. Even if he wanted to go to Ferrari with an amazing deal, the minute he didn't sign an offered RBR contract you know that any support in the team was going to get pulled and even more support going to Vettel. They wouldn't allow a departing Webber to win the 2012 WDC and take the No.1 to Ferrari.

[tweety bird]

good news there.

edit here is the q&a.

Q. Was signing with Red Bull Racing for 2013 an easy decision?

Mark Webber: In the end, yes it was. It's been an interesting few months, but overall the continuity and desire for me to continue at Red Bull Racing was very strong. My main focus is on this year's championship, which is very important. In addition it's an amazing bunch of guys and girls at Red Bull Racing and I really, really like working with them. That has a huge effect on me and how I perform in the car and it helped me in my decision.

Q. You mention the people, what else is it that you like about the team and Red Bull?

MW: Well, we have gone through plenty together here. We went from the days when Red Bull had not long owned the team to what it is now. The team really changed when we started to get successful, in terms of getting the balance right between being extremely professional on all fronts to still keeping that laid back and approachable attitude that the team still has within reason. It is just one nice big family now in many ways and we have grown so much. We've come a long way and I think it's clear that I fit well here and that's what I really like about it.

Q. Were you tempted to think about moving elsewhere?

MW: There were discussions with Ferrari, but my decision was to stay here.

Q. What's the benefit of staying with Red Bull Racing?

MW: I virtually know everyone's shoe size! I know everyone's names, I know how everyone ticks and I know all the departments which is very, very important for a driver. There's a whole raft of factors.

Q. And how is working with the team and with Sebastian Vettel?

MW: Very good. Obviously with Seb, we've worked very, very close together for a long period of time now. I think no one would really have envisaged how long we have worked together, so that's probably been a bit of a surprise. There are not many team-mates staying together for that long in Formula 1, but it's proved to be a successful partnership with both of us working very hard with the key technical members of the team. It's been a potent operation. We're still competitive when we hit the track, no question about it, especially in 2010 and this year. Last year there wasn't much racing between Sebastian and I, but in 2009, 2010 and this year, there have been some great battles. That's been enjoyable for the team, sometimes stressful too as it's not easy for both of us to be at the front and I can understand that, as both of us are thinking about ourselves sometimes, but ultimately we know that we need to get the cars home and get the best results for us and the team.

Q. Does it help to have contracts sorted earlier in the season?

MW: Yes it does and that's another reason to just get it to bed. I've been hearing different rumours and reasons for a long time now. At the end of the day I know everything that has been going on. You want to make sure your focus is clearly on driving the car and the guys that you're working with. It's important the team knows you're 100 per cent with them, which, of course, I am.

Q. Will 2013 be your last season in F1?

MW: I've been asked this question for the past four years and my answer remains the same. It's a results-based sport at the front of the grid so the future lies in my own hands. It's down to me to deliver the on-track results.

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/101119

[wolverine]

It would have been a mission to fit The Chin in the Fez anyway. Good news for Perez methinks.

I wonder how Helmut is coping after calling MW's retirement prematurely.