China - Round 3

[J.Clark]

It would have been great to see McLaren in Q2, but progress is evident.  Their performance for most of the weekend has been better it seems.

Vettel must have had an near perfect lap to be up on Kimi by so much and both Williams sandwiched between them.  The start should be quite interesting.

I simply hope Williams pit stops are improved.  It was a factor for both drivers in Malaysia, but cost Massa enough that Bottas could catch and pass him.

During practice, the talking heads were discussing the rather unsettled rear of the Ferrari compared to Williams.  I don't think I ever heard anything on the long runs regarding race pace/tire wear.  That would be helpful information if anyone saw that somewhere.

All in all, it looks like it should be a good race from P-3 on back through the points positions. 

[cosworth151]

I have everything organized and should be at the track by about 9:00 (not that there will be anything to see but I am going to make a full day of it!).

There's always something to see at an F1 race! See if you can find the paddock gate that the teams use. It's always a good spot to see drivers/crew/team officials......   

[Monty]

 Well I made it. Not a great race but a fantastic day. Arrived just after 9:00. There were literately a few dozen people there. The food stalls were excited to see anyone keen to buy a drink!
Went to the grandstand for the first race and there were only about 10 people in seats.
The track is good and the facilities were fine but there is nothing to entertain the spectators (when they finally arrive).
The Porsche race was really good with lots of overtaking.
Finally the time for the race arrived and suddenly the grandstands filled.
The view was good. Hamilton controlled the race from the start. To be honest the only excitement was Button racing Maldonado. To end under a pointless safety car was a real shame but all in all a day to remember.

[J.Clark]

I'm so happy for you Monty.  Even a not so good race is always a good place to be when you are there.

It was a snoozer though 

The full results:
1. Hamilton   Mercedes   
2. Rosberg      Mercedes   
3. Vettel      Ferrari
4. Raikkonen   Ferrari   
5. Massa      Williams   
6. Bottas      Williams
7. Grosjean      Lotus
8. Nasr      Sauber   
9. Ricciardo      Red Bull   
10. Ericsson   Sauber   +1 lap

11. Perez      Force India   +1 lap
12. Alonso      McLaren   +1 lap
13. Sainz Jr      Toro Rosso   +1 lap
14. Button      McLaren   +1 lap 
15. Stevens   Manor   +2 laps
16. Merhi      Manor   +2 laps 

Rtd Verstappen    Toro Rosso   53 laps completed engine
Rtd Maldonado   Lotus    50 laps completed accident damage
Rtd Kvyat      Red Bull   16 laps completed engine
Rtd Hulkenberg   Force India    9 laps completed gearbox

Hamilton appeared to have it in complete control from the time the lights went out, right to the checkered flag and neither Nico, nor Seb could anything about that.
Kimi was catching up to Vettel at the end, but catching and passing are two very different things, and I doubt he could have passed and made it stick.

Massa seemed to have his teammate under control as well.  There was a good part of the first stint where it looked as though Bottas had a shot at an overtake, even if in the pit stops, but that was not to be.  It was a good confidence builder for Felipe I think, and he was even widening the gap a little each lap following the first round of stops.

Grojean did well and has to feel good with his result, getting a points finish.

Ricciardo may have had engine worries, but did well to collect a points finish.

Sauber has to be pleased to once again have both cars finish in the points, even if one was a lap down.

McLaren, while still looking for the points finish, should be fairly happy to have both cars coming home without any real problems.

Manor are the stars however, with both cars finishing the race.  One must keep in mind that they hadn't so much as fired up an engine before Australia a few weeks ago.

[Scott]

Holy cow...I had 7/8 in the top 8 and 5 in the right order.  Stupid Safety Car and whoever was driving that STR that the marshals kept banging into the wall while they were trying to get it off track. 

Would have been a good week to double...smart that guy KM 

[Scott]

Heroes:

Hamilton.  Pole to flag, perfect race.  Surprised still that the Ferraris are so close to the Mercs, and I hope it just tightens up through the season.

Both Ferraris.  If Kimi had managed to get into DRS range early on, it might have been a different Ferrari driver on the podium.  But he let Vettel get away early, and his chances were blown.  He might have managed it at the end, but Vettels tires weren't as bad as they could have been (maybe Vettel wasn't pushing hard enough to get Rosberg  ).

Nasr - After the disastrous season opener, they are showing that perhaps it WAS a good decision they made on drivers.  Too bad for Ericsson, but he has also shown speed this season.

Williams for a strong showing, but I'm still perplexed that they haven't managed to match the Ferraris.  They have a stronger engine and at times last year seemed to have superior aero to the rest of the field. 

Both Mclarens for finishing.  Rumours are that the engine is tuned way down so they can complete races and get valuable laps in, so perhaps there is potential for more speed once they work out the reliability issues.

Zeroes

Rosberg.  Look, you make your own luck.  If you qualify in front of Lewis, then chances are good you will win the race, but when you qualify behind him, you just don't seem to have it in you to get close to him.  So either improve your game or just accept that Lewis is better and stop with all the self righteous whining.  Lewis is in front and can drive however he wants.  Your job is to drive at least as fast.

RBR - It's really not JUST the engine.  Kvyatt had gearbox problems.  Give the boys a car they can push in, and then discuss the hp problem.

The jokers who tried to push Verstappen's car out of the way and banged it into the wall 5-6 times.  It was so hopeless that Charlie had to call out the SC and cost me a point!

[Jericoke]

I'm so happy for you Monty.  Even a not so good race is always a good place to be when you are there.

It was a snoozer though 

It's too bad that motorracing is one of the few sports where a dominant performance is ultimately dull.  Watching Hamilton open up a gap over 3 laps is exciting.  Watching him manage it for 50 is not.

[Irisado]

That completely unnecessary safety car cost me a point too.  Verstappen's car was not in a dangerous place, and they could have even left it there for two laps.  Failing that, they could have moved it with double waved yellows, had the marshals been more competent.

The race itself was woefully dull, enlivened only by engine blow ups (Kvyat and Verstappen), Verstappen's passes (he's doing much better than I expected him to), Maldonado's battle with Button, Maldonado's spin in the pit entry, and both Manor's finishing, with much better pace than they had shown in practice and qualifying.

Everything else was a tedious procession, and I was not on the edge of my seat.

[lkjohnson1950]

I fell asleep. Nuff said.

[John S]

Ah C'mon guys!    It was a bit dull I grant you but there was some great action and wheel banging down in the minor places and beyond. How will we ever forget Jens and Pastor at it for several laps, plus a rare mistake from old 'cool hand Luke' Jens ending the duel. Also a fine example from Jens after the race in accepting the blame absolutely, just what we would expect from a proper driver.

Reports suggest racegoers in particular like Monty and all us others were starved of a fight at the front not by the safety car but by Merc team orders carried out a little too ruthlessly by one Lewis Hamilton.    See my post in the F1 teams thread 'Rosberg starting to crack'.

Can't help feeling the TV director was in on the secret, TV coverage seemed almost entirely focussed on the battles for 7th place and below 90% of the time - or maybe that was just the bits I stayed awake for. 

[cosworth151]

I thought the Safety Car was necessary simply because of the mishandling of Max V's car. With personnel on the course, there was no other choice. It got me a point, too. The only reason I picked S/C was I fully expected a power plant to grenade on track.

One thing I missed until today was that Merhi was hit with a 5 second penalty for failing to stay above the minimum time mandated by the FIA while running behind the safety car.

[Jericoke]

I thought the Safety Car was necessary simply because of the mishandling of Max V's car. With personnel on the course, there was no other choice. It got me a point, too. The only reason I picked S/C was I fully expected a power plant to grenade on track.

One thing I missed until today was that Merhi was hit with a 5 second penalty for failing to stay above the minimum time mandated by the FIA while running behind the safety car.

After Bianchi's accident, I'm sure that for the entire season if there is any question at all, the safety car will be deployed.  And rightly so.  The show is important, but safety is job 1.

I would love for F1 track workers to be professionals instead of volunteers, but shudder to think who would pay for their training, lodging and transportation.

[Alianora La Canta]

I get the impression I had the better idea. During the F1 race, I was eating breakfast and then planning my Silverstone WEC autograph session strategy with some friends...