Posted on Saturday, March 25, 2017

Vettel tops final practice session

Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel set the quickest time in the third practice session on Saturday, whose fast lap of 1:23.380 was .479 of a second better than his nearest pursuer, Mercedes’ Valtteri Bottas. Vettel broke the all-time lap record at the Albert Park Circuit in the process, bettering it by .149 of a second. It was Vettel who held the previous record – a 1:23.529 set during qualifying in 2011 when he was with Red Bull.  Third free practice results: 1.        S. Vettel  […]

Posted on Friday, March 24, 2017

Mercedes leads Friday practice sessions

  After two weeks of testing at Circuit de Barcelona – Catalunya, it was finally go time Friday at the Albert Park Circuit in Melbourne as teams prepared for the season-opening Australian Grand Prix on Sunday.  The start of the 2017 FIA Formula One World Championship began with two, 90-minute practice sessions – FP1 and FP2 – which saw the new-for-2017 technical regulations in real-time action on the 5.303-kilometer, 16-turn track. The advanced aerodynamic package for this year’s car was put in place to create […]

Posted on Sunday, November 13, 2016

Hamilton wins accident-ridden Interlagos thriller

Lewis Hamilton finally broke his duck at Interlagos with a lights-to-flag victory in a heavily disrupted Brazilian Grand Prix, but Nico Rosberg took second place to remain the hot favourite for the world championship. The race started behind the safety car, following a ten-minute delay amidst the torrential rain, after Romain Grosjean lost control of his Haas and crashed on his reconnaissance lap. Hamilton maintained his lead when the race finally got under way, but it was Max Verstappen on the charge as he got […]

Posted on Saturday, November 12, 2016

Hamilton prevails qualifying showdown 

Lewis Hamilton continued his scintillating form with a hard-fought pole position for the Brazilian Grand Prix at Interlagos as Mercedes eclipsed the all-time record for pole positions in a single season. Hamilton topped all three qualifying sessions and clocked a 1:10.736 to grab pole, with team-mate and championship leader Rosberg, who can clinch the title with victory on Sunday, just a tenth adrift. Mercedes were in a league of their own, with the forecast rain failing to materialise and their nearest challenger Kimi Raikkonen nearly […]

Posted on Sunday, October 30, 2016

Hamilton keeps title hopes alive with Mexico win

Lewis Hamilton moved level with Alain Prost on the all-time winners' list with a dominant victory at the Mexican Grand Prix after a turn-one scare, but championship leader Nico Rosberg limited the damage by taking second. Hamilton locked-up into the first corner and ran across the grass, but retained his lead, while Rosberg too held station despite being forced off the track by Max Verstappen. Hamilton was unchallenged thereafter, crossing the line more than eight seconds clear of his team-mate, but the German's 19-point championship […]

Posted on Saturday, October 29, 2016

Hamilton on pole as Rosberg pips Red Bulls

Lewis Hamilton eased to his tenth pole position of 2016 season in qualifying for the Mexican Grand Prix, but team-mate Nico Rosberg crucially grabbed second place at the death after struggling throughout the session. Hamilton put in a 1:18.704 on his first run in Q3, and though he just missed out on an improvement with his final flying lap, he wound up fastest by two and a half tenths. Rosberg was fourth heading into the closing stages of Q3 after a tricky afternoon for the […]

Posted on Friday, October 7, 2016

Mercedes set the pace on Friday sessions

Nico Rosberg topped both practice sessions at Suzuka on Friday with Lewis Hamilton coming second on both occasions. Mercedes drivers ran the hard and the soft compound tyres in the morning session. Rosberg ran the medium and the soft tyre in the afternoon, whilst Hamilton ran the hard and the soft tyre. “It’s been a case of finding my way today. It began with quite a lot of under-steer and we had to work through the setup in order to find a better balance on […]

Posted on Sunday, October 2, 2016

Ricciardo wins dramatic Malaysian GP

Daniel Ricciardo held off Red Bull team-mate Max Verstappen to take victory in a breathtaking Malaysia GP and end Mercedes' ten-race winning streak as Lewis Hamilton suffered a costly retirement. Ricciardo snatched the lead on Lap 40 as pole-sitter Hamilton, who held a comfortable advantage, saw his race come to a fiery and devastating end as he ground to a halt at Turn 1 following an engine failure. The Aussie had superbly defended from Verstappen a few laps earlier, holding his own as they sensationally […]

Posted on Saturday, October 1, 2016

Hamilton storms to Sepang pole

An inspired Lewis Hamilton romped to a dominant pole position for the Malaysian Grand Prix as Mercedes team-mate Nico Rosberg pipped the Red Bulls to take 2nd. Hamilton had set a blistering pace in practice, and he carried that momentum into qualifying, topping all three sessions. The Briton clocked a scintillating 1:32.8 in Q3, winding up four tenths quicker than title rival Rosberg. The German, though, will be relieved to be on the front row after an error-strewn first run meant he was only fifth […]

Posted on Friday, September 30, 2016

Mercedes leads the way in Friday practice

Lewis Hamilton established himself as the man to beat heading into the Malaysia GP weekend as he topped second practice at the Sepang International Circuit after team-mate Nico Rosberg was fastest in FP1. Rosberg wound up half a second quicker than his team-mate and title rival in the opening practice session, though he did his set his fastest time on the soft compound tyre, with Hamilton on the slower medium rubber. It was a dominant start for the Silver Arrows, their tenth 1-2 in the […]

Posted on Sunday, September 18, 2016

Rosberg hangs on for Singapore victory

Mercedes driver Nico Rosberg held off a charging Daniel Ricciardo in an enthralling climax to win the Singapore Grand Prix and regain the championship lead. Rosberg crucially retained his lead at the start and was on course for a comfortable victory, despite persistent brake issues, before Red Bull rolled the dice by bringing Ricciardo in for a fresh set of supersofts in the closing stages. The Aussie then proceeded to slash Rosberg's comfortable advantage but agonisingly missed out, finishing just four tenths adrift. Victory for […]

Posted on Saturday, September 17, 2016

Rosberg takes pole ahead of Ricciardo

Nico Rosberg's title bid received a fresh boost as the German put in a sensational lap to secure a crucial pole position for the Singapore Grand Prix as Daniel Ricciardo managed to split the Mercedes. Rosberg put in a superb 1:42.584 on his first run in Q3 to ultimately take pole by half a second ahead of Red Bull's Ricciardo, who promoted himself to P2 with a mighty final sector right at the death. After a scruffy pair of practice sessions, Lewis Hamilton was unable […]