Formula 1 General Chat & Discussion

Result of the 1st practice session :

Nico Rosberg leads in FP1 :

1 Nico Rosberg - Mercedes - 1m26.828s
2 Lewis Hamilton - Mercedes - 1m26.898s + 0.070s
3 Sebastian Vettel - Ferrari -1m27.806s + 0.978s
4 Kimi Raikkonen - Ferrari - 1m27.832s + 1.004s
5 Carlos Sainz jr. - Toro Rosso/Renault -1m28.132s + 1.304s
6 Max Verstappen - Toro Rosso/Renault - 1m28.529s + 1.701s
7 Daniil Kvyat - Red Bull/Renault - 1m28.785s + 1.957s
8 Felipe Massa - Williams/Mercedes - 1m28.831s + 2.003s
9 Daniel Ricciardo - Red Bull/Renault - 1m29.075s + 2.247s
10 Felipe Nasr - Sauber/Ferrari - 1m29.140s + 2.312s
11 Nico Hulkenberg - Force India/Mercedes - 1m29.409s + 2.581s
12 Raffaele Marciello - Sauber/Ferrari - 1m29.630s + 2.802s
13 Jolyon Palmer - Lotus/Mercedes - 1m29.676s + 2.848s
14 Susie Wolff - Williams/Mercedes - 1m29.708s + 2.880s
15 Fernando Alonso - McLaren/Honda - 1m29.813s + 2.985s
16 Jenson Button - McLaren/Honda - 1m29.817s + 2.989s
17 Sergio Perez - Force India/Mercedes - 1m30.096s + 3.268s
18 Pastor Maldonado - Lotus/Mercedes - 1m30.110s + 3.282s
19 Will Stevens - Marussia/Ferrari - 1m32.471s + 5.643s
20 Roberto Merhi - Marussia/Ferrari - 1m32.647s + 5.819s

Nico Rosberg pipped Mercedes team-mate Lewis Hamilton to top spot in the first Formula 1 free practice session for the Spanish Grand Prix. The German ended up at the top of the timesheets, just seven-hundredths of a second faster than Hamilton, with Mercedes almost a second clear of the rest of the field. Rosberg set the pace during the first half-an-hour, when all drivers have the use of a set of hard-compound Pirelli tyres that they cannot use once the first 30 minutes have finished. He set a best time of 1m27.333s during this period as he and Hamilton traded fastest times on rubber enduring enough to produce good pace for multiple laps. That was almost two-tenths faster than Hamllton could manage, with Ferrari driver Sebastian Vettel, who did briefly go fastest, ending up third and 0.8s down. Once onto their new sets of hard Pirellis, Hamilton drew first blood, outpacing Rosberg by 45-thousandths of a second on their first flying laps, largely thanks to stunning pace in the first sector. But with Hamilton's second flier looking set to improve his advantage, he had a slow final sector, meaning that his first flying lap was to remain his fastest of the morning. Rosberg then improved, finding almost a tenth of a second in the final sector compared to his first lap, to establish a 0.070s margin in first place. Ferrari was best of the rest, with Vettel and Raikkonen separated by just 26-thousandths, but they were a second slower than Rosberg. Scuderia Toro Rosso pairing Carlos Sainz and Max Verstappen ran strongly throughout the session to seal fifth and sixth place, with the lead Red Bull of Daniil Kvyat - sporting a new nose - in seventh, just under two seconds off the pace. It was another difficult session for Red Bull, with Kvyat's team-mate Daniel Ricciardo not able to complete any proper running until the final 10 minutes of the session. The Australian reported a problem when he applied full throttle on his outlap, and while he soon returned to the track for another attempt, he then disappeared into the garage for much of the session before restarting late on to go ninth fastest. As usual, Williams had a relatively low-profile Friday practice session on heavy fuel, with Felipe Massa eighth and development driver Susie Wolff, making her first FP1 appearance since last July's German GP weekend, 14th and 0.877s off the Brazilian. Sauber driver Felipe Nasr banged in a lap good enough for 10th, 2.312s off the pace, with 12 minutes remaining, which relegated Force India driver Nico Hulkenberg to 11th. Reserve driver Raffaele Marciello backed up team-mate Nasr in 12th place on his second FP1 appearance, with another backup driver, Jolyon Palmer, 13th in the faster of the Lotus-Mercedes. McLaren-Honda had a quiet start to the weekend with its upgraded MP4-30, with Fernando Alonso and Jenson Button setting near-identical pace in 15th and 16th places. At one stage, Button reported that "the balance is completely wrong" over the radio with the front wing he was trying, while Alonso had a late spin at Turn 12. Sergio Perez, who had a trip through the gravel exiting Turn 3 after 26 minutes, was 17th in the second Force India. Pastor Maldonado was only able to complete seven laps thanks to what the team described as a "minor gearbox issue", meaning his fastest time was his run on the first set of tyres, putting him down in 18th place and ahead only of the two Manor-run Marussias of Will Stevens and Roberto Merhi.

Kind Regards
Shaky - Schumi

Here are the times for this weekends GP :

Friday : 08/05
1st practice session : 10.00u - 11.30u
2nd practice session : 14.00u - 15.30u

Saturday : 09/05
3rd practice session : 11.00u - 12.00u
Qualifying : 14.00u - 15.00u

Sunday : 10/05
Race : 14.00u

Kind Regards
Shaky - Schumi

Spanish Grand Prix - Catalunya Circuit – Barcelona 8-9-10 may
in this week end after a break of three-week, the F1 championship returns in Spain at Barcelona for the 25th year in a row
the track, with its abrasive surface is a very demanding for tyres, particularly the front left,
and as last year, Pirelli has chosen the following compounds: “orange hard” and “white medium” for this Grand Prix
probably the majority of pilots will use a 2 pit-stop strategy

Podium 2011: Vettel(Red Bull) – 2° Hamilton and 3° Button. Fastest lap: Hamilton
pole position : Webber 1'20''981

Podium 2012: Maldonado(Williams) – 2° Alonso and 3° Raikkonen. Fastest lap: Grosjean
pole position : Maldonado 1'22''285 (best lap time Hamilton 1'21''707 but disqualified)

Podium 2013: Alonso(Ferrari) – 2° Raikkonen and 3° Massa. Fastest lap: Gutierrez
pole position : Rosberg 1'20''718

Podium 2014: Hamilton(Mercedes) – 2° Rosberg and 3° Ricciardo. Fastest lap: Vettel
pole position : Hamilton 1'25''232

the winners
2 wins: Alonso (2006-2013) and Raikkonen (2005-2008)
1 win: Hamilton(2014) Maldonado(2012) Vettel (2011) Button(2009) Massa(2007)

pole position
2 pole: Raikkonen (2005-2008)
1 pole: Alonso (2006); Massa(2007) Button(2009) Maldonado(2012) Rosberg(2013) and Hamilton(2014)

fastest lap
2: Massa(2006-2007) and Hamilton(2010-2011);
1: Raikkonen (2008); Grosjean(2012); and Vettel(2014);

Podium(winner+second+third) for current pilots at Barcelona(circuit de Catalunya)
7 (2 wins+4 second+1 third) Alonso
4 (2+1+1) Raikkonen
4 (1+2+1) Hamilton
3 (1+1+1) Massa
2 (1+0+1) Vettel
2 (1+0+1) Button
1 (1+0+0) Maldonado
1 (0+1+0) Rosberg
1 (0+0+1) Ricciardo

18 of the 24 Grands Prix staged at the Catalunya Circuit have been won starting from pole position,

CONSTRUCTORS CHAMPIONSHIP AFTER 4 RACES :

1. Mercedes 159 points
2. Ferrari 107 points
3. Williams 61 points
4. Red Bull 23 points
5. Sauber 19 points
6. Toro Rosso & Lotus 12 points
8. Force India 11 points

DRIVERS CHAMPIONSHIP AFTER 4 RACES :

1. L. Hamilton GBR Mercedes 93 points
2. N. Rosberg GER Mercedes 66 points
3. S. Vettel GER Ferrari 65 points
4. K. Raikkonen FIN Ferrari 42 points
5. F. Massa BRA Williams 31 points
6. V. Bottas FIN Williams 30 points
7. D. Ricciardo AUS Red Bull 19 points
8. F. Nasr BRA Sauber 14 points
9. R. Grosjean FRA Lotus 12 points
10. C. Sainz jr. ESP Toro Rosso, M. Verstappen NED Renault & N. Hulkenberg GER Force India 6 points
13. M. Ericsson SWE Sauber & S. Perez MEX Force India 5 points
15. D. Kvyat RUS Red Bull 4 points

Result of the Bahrein race :

1. Lewis Hamilton - Mercedes GP - 1:35:05.809
2. Kimi Räikkönen - Ferrari 1:36.311 + 3.380
3. Nico Rosberg - Mercedes GP + 6.033
4. Valtteri Bottas - Williams + 42.957
5. Sebastian Vettel - Ferrari + 43.989
6. Daniel Ricciardo - Red Bull Racing + 1m01.751
7. Romain Grosjean - Lotus gee + 1m24.763
8. Sergio Perez - Force India + 1 lap
9. Daniil Kvyat - Red Bull Racing + 1 lap
10. Felipe Massa - Williams + 1 lap
11. Fernando Alonso - McLaren + 1 lap
12. Felipe Nasr - Sauber + 1 lap
13. Nico Hulkenberg - Force India + 1 lap
14. Marcus Ericsson - Sauber + 1 lap
15. Pastor Maldonado - Lotus + 1 lap
16. Will Stevens - Manor F1 Team + 2 laps
17. Roberto Merhi Manor F1 Team geen tijd + 3 laps 54
Did Not Finish :
18. Max Verstappen - Toro Rosso
19. Carlos Sainz jr - Toro Rosso
Did Not Start :
20. Jenson Button - McLaren

Fastest Lap : Kimi Raikkonen - 1:36.311
Pitstop V. Bottas : 2
Bat . 2 Teams : Nico Hulkenberg > Carlos Sainz jr
Grid Pos. D.Kvyat : 9th place

Hamilton wins, Raikkonen snatches 2nd place in Bahrain :
Lewis Hamilton took his third win in four races to extend his championship lead after an enthralling battle of strategy between Mercedes and Ferrari in the Bahrain Grand Prix. But there was late drama as Kimi Raikkonen snatched second place from Nico Rosberg with two laps remaining after both Mercedes were struck with a brake-by-wire problem in the closing laps. Before the race even began, Jenson Button’s torrid weekend came to an early end when McLaren discovered yet another problem with Button’s car that the team were unable to fix, meaning he was unable to take the start. There was even more trouble as the formation lap began when Felipe Massa’s Williams failed to leave his grid slot. Williams recovered the car to the pit lane and were able to get the car restarted by the time the field formed up for the start. As the lights went out, Hamilton lead away but Rosberg immediately challenged Vettel for second, allowing Raikkonen behind to take third place by driving around the outside of the Mercedes. It did not take long for Rosberg to begin pressuring Raikkonen and the Mercedes forcefully reclaimed third place with a dive down the inside of the Ferrari into Turn One. Hamilton begin to open up a small lead at the front, before Vettel too found himself with his mirrors full of Mercedes and Rosberg was able to pass the Ferrari in similar fashion to Raikkonen by squeezing Vettel at the apex of Turn One. At the first round of stops, Kimi Raikkonen was the only one of the front runners to opt for Medium tyres. Rosberg lost position to Vettel, but was able to repass the Ferrari soon after. Despite running on the harder tyres, Raikkonen showed remarkable pace and ran consistently quicker than the front three. As the front three of Hamilton, Rosberg and Vettel stopped for the second and final time, Raikkonen continued into the lead on a long middle stint.Vettel successfully undercut Rosberg yet again, but when the Ferrari driver came under renewed pressure, Vettel ran wide at the final corner and damaged his front wing, forcing him into an unscheduled stop. Raikkonen eventually pitted for the final time with 17 laps to go to for a set of Softs to attempt to chase down the Mercedes. The Ferrari driver was able to take seconds out of the Silver Arrow’s lead every lap, eventually closing up to Rosberg with around four laps remaining. With two laps to go, Rosberg suddenly ran wide and Raikkonen was through into second place. But what looked like an error by Rosberg turned out to be a brake-by-wire problem as Lewis Hamilton reported similar braking issues in the lead. Luckily for Mercedes, there was not enough laps left for Raikkonen to close the gap at Hamilton ahead and the world champion duly crossed the line to take his third win in four races with Raikkonen and Rosberg rounding out the podium. After his last extra stop, Vettel easily caught Valtteri Bottas but was unable to take back fourth from the Williams driver. There was drama for Daniel Ricciardo as the Red Bull’s Renault engine blew up out of the final corner, but the Australian was still able cross the line in sixth. Romain Grosjean, Sergio Perez, Daniil Kvyat and Felipe Massa rounded out the points, while Fernando Alonso was just 3.9 seconds from scoring McLaren’s first points of the season in 11th.

Kind Regards
Shaky - Schumi

Result of the Qualifying :

1. Lewis Hamilton - Mercedes GP 1:32.571
2. Sebastian Vettel - Ferrari 1:32.982 +0.411
3. Nico Rosberg - Mercedes GP 1:33.129 +0.558
4. Kimi Räikkönen - Ferrari 1:33.227 +0.656
5. Valtteri Bottas - Williams 1:33.381 +0.810
6. Felipe Massa - Williams 1:33.744 +1.173
7. Daniel Ricciardo - Red Bull Racing 1:33.832 +1.261
8. Nico Hulkenberg - Force India 1:34.450 +1.879
9. Carlos Sainz jr -Toro Rosso 1:34.462 +1.891
10. Romain Grosjean - Lotus 1:34.484 +1.913
Q2
11. Sergio Perez - Force India 1:34.704 +2.133
12. Felipe Nasr - Sauber 1:34.737 +2.166
13. Marcus Ericsson - Sauber 1:35.034 +2.463
14. Fernando Alonso - McLaren 1:35.103 +2.532
15. Max Verstappen - Toro Rosso 1:35.103 +2.532
16. Pastor Maldonado - Lotus 1:35.677 +3.106
Q1
17. Daniil Kvyat - Red Bull Racing 1:35.800 +3.229
18. Will Stevens - Manor F1 Team 1:38.713 +6.142
19. Roberto Merhi - Manor F1 Team 1:39.722 +7.151
20. Jenson Button - McLaren - no time

Qualifying Time : 1:32.571
Pole : Lewis Hamilton
Team Bat. : Alonso > Button
Grid Pos. F.Massa : 6th place

Hamilton on pole as Vettel splits the Mercedes :
Lewis Hamilton took his fourth consecutive pole position of the 2015 season in Bahrain, but it will be Sebastian Vettel’s Ferrari who starts alongside the world champion on the front row. An exciting qualifying session saw Vettel split the two Mercedes to take second on the grid for tomorrow’s race, after Lewis Hamilton took pole position with the final lap of the session. Nico Rosberg will line up third with Kimi Raikkonen’s Ferrari behind him and the Williams of Valtteri Bottas and Felipe Massa in fifth and sixth.
Q1
Nico Rosberg set the early pace at the front on the Medium tyres, but all teams opted to switch to Soft tyres to avoid being caught out by an improving track. After a difficult start to the weekend for Jenson Button, the McLaren driver’s luck turned even worse when his McLaren ground to a halt yet again without him setting a time, dooming him to start from the very back tomorrow. Lewis Hamilton used the Soft tyres to break the 1’34 barrier for the first time this weekend to go quickest with a 1’33.928 while Valtteri Bottas went second quickest in the Williams. As the chequered flag flew, Pastor Maldonado improved his time to get himself into Q2, but Max Verstappen jumped up to 14th position to bump the Lotus driver out at the death. After spinning in final practice, Daniil Kvyat’s day went from bad to worse when a mistake on his final lap meant he was unable to improve by enough and he was eliminated in a disappointing P17.
Fernando Alonso brought some badly needed cheer to McLaren as a great final lap put him P9 and into the second qualifying session for the first time in 2015.
Q2
Hamilton wasted no time in picking up the pace immediately where he left off in Q1 by lowering a 1’32.669 on his first attempt in Q2, going over a second quicker than his team mate. With drivers in the top ten forced to start on their Q2 tyres, it was difficult to read into lap times. Raikkonen went P2, but was almost a second slower than Hamilton as Massa split the two Ferraris in third. A tight finish to the second session saw Sergio Perez jump up to P10 before Carlos Sainz Jr won the final slot in Q3 with a great lap to push the Force India driver out. Both Saubers were unable to make it through, with Fernando Alonso eliminated in P14 – McLaren’s best quaifying of the season. Max Verstappen will line up in 15th after being half a second slower than his team mate .
Q3
The Ferraris were the first cars out to set a time in the crucial final session with Vettel quicker than Raikkonen, but Daniel Ricciardo used fresh tyres to eclipse both Ferraris on his first effort. Lewis Hamilton went quickest of all after the first flying laps were completed in the final session, but with only Daniel Ricciardo having used a new tyre on the first run, there was plenty of scope for improvement.
As the final runs began, Daniel Ricciardo was the first man set to cross the line, followed by the Ferraris with the Mercedes set to cross the line last. Sebastian Vettel took provisional pole with his best lap of the weekend – a 1’33.227 – which put Raikkonen behind his team mate. Nico Rosberg was then unable to beat Vettel’s time either, putting him second, before Lewis Hamilton snatched his fourth consecutive pole of the season at the chequered flag, four tenths faster than Vettel. Behind the front four, Valtteri Bottas beat team mate Felipe Massa for fifth place, while Daniel Ricciardo took seventh in the Red Bull. Nico Hulkenberg ended a good day for Force India in eighth and Carlos Sainz Jr and Romain Grosjean rounded out the top ten.

Kind Regards
Shaky - Schumi

Result of the 3rd practice session :

1. Lewis Hamilton - Mercedes GP 1:34.599
2. Sebastian Vettel - Ferrari 1:34.668 +0.069
3. Nico Rosberg - Mercedes GP 1:34.968 +0.369
4. Kimi Räikkönen - Ferrari 1:35.141 +0.542
5. Valtteri Bottas - Williams 1:35.393 +0.794
6. Felipe Massa - Williams 1:35.471 +0.872
7. Pastor Maldonado - Lotus 1:36.307 +1.708
8. Daniel Ricciardo - Red Bull Racing 1:36.335 +1.736
9. Nico Hulkenberg - Force India 1:36.421 +1.822
10. Felipe Nasr - Sauber 1:36.429 +1.830
11. Jenson Button - McLaren 1:36.488 +1.889
12. Daniil Kvyat - Red Bull Racing 1:36.548 +1.949
13. Marcus Ericsson - Sauber 1:36.612 +2.013
14. Max Verstappen - Toro Rosso 1:36.684 +2.085
15. Sergio Perez - Force India 1:36.727 +2.128
16. Fernando Alonso - McLaren 1:36.899 +2.300
17. Carlos Sainz jr - Toro Rosso 1:36.979 +2.380
18. Romain Grosjean - Lotus 1:37.151 +2.552
19. Will Stevens - Manor F1 Team 1:39.745 +5.146
20. Roberto Merhi - Manor F1 Team 1:40.541 +5.942

Hamilton quickest, but Vettel is closer than Rosberg :
Lewis Hamilton topped the time sheets in final practice ahead of qualifying for the Bahrain Grand Prix, but Sebastian Vettel’s Ferrari was less than a tenth behind. Vettel split the two Mercedes after the qualifying simulation runs on the Soft compound tyre at the end of the session, with Nico Rosberg third quickest and Kimi Raikkonen fourth. It was a hot and windy start to the session with little running in the early stages due to the conditions. Romain Grosjean had an off at Turn Four, filling his Lotus’s tyres with gravel. The Ferraris were quickest after the initial runs were completed on the Medium tyre with Kimi Raikkonen fastest. The session was briefly stopped around half way through when Daniil Kvyat lost control of his Red Bull at Turn Four, spinning backwards into the gravel. When the session resumed, there was little improvement out on track before the circuit fell quiet before Nico Hulkenberg was the first man out to attempt a qualifying run. The Force India driver initially went quickest, but Nico Rosberg comfortably eclipsed that on his first effort on the faster tyre. Then it was the turn of Lewis Hamilton to post a Soft time and the world champion duly set the fastest lap of the weekend with a 1’34.599. After showing good speed in all three sessions, Sebastian Vettel showed that Ferrari’s pace was genuine by posting a time within a tenth of a second of Hamilton’s to go second quickest. Kimi Raikkonen could only manage a lap that was half a second slower than his team mate, while Red Bull were able to get Kvyat back out at the close of the session for one final flying lap.

Kind Regards
Shaky - Schumi

Result of the 2nd practice session :

1. Nico Rosberg - Mercedes GP 1:34.647
2. Lewis Hamilton - Mercedes GP 1:34.762 +0.115
3. Kimi Räikkönen - Ferrari 1:35.174 +0.527
4. Sebastian Vettel - Ferrari 1:35.277 +0.630
5. Valtteri Bottas - Williams 1:35.280 +0.633
6. Daniel Ricciardo - Red Bull Racing 1:35.449 +0.802
7. Pastor Maldonado - Lotus 1:35.474 +0.827
8. Felipe Nasr - Sauber 1:35.793 +1.146
9. Daniil Kvyat - Red Bull Racing 1:35.883 +1.236
10. Felipe Massa - Williams 1:35.884 +1.237
11. Marcus Ericsson - Sauber 1:36.148 +1.501
12. Fernando Alonso - McLaren 1:36.191 +1.544
13. Romain Grosjean - Lotus 1:36.334 +1.687
14. Carlos Sainz jr - Toro Rosso 1:36.471 +1.824
15. Nico Hulkenberg - Force India 1:36.805 +2.158
16. Max Verstappen - Toro Rosso 1:36.917 +2.270
17. Sergio Perez - Force India 1:37.062 +2.415
18. Will Stevens - Manor F1 Team 1:39.131 +4.484
19. Jenson Button - McLaren 1:39.209 +4.562
20. Roberto Merhi - Manor F1 Team 1:40.592 +5.945

Rosberg quickest in practice 2 , as Vettel, Perez collide :
Mercedes were back on top in second practice in Bahrain with Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton quickest from Ferrari. But there was drama as Sergio Perez and Sebastian Vettel made contact at Turn One in the closing minutes, bringing out the red flag and leaving the Ferrari with a broken front wing. The session began with a setting sun and floodlights illuminating the circuit but temperatures not too much cooler than the afternoon session. Many drivers were heard complaining about the brightness of their steering wheel displays early in the session. Mercedes immediately upped their pace from the first session, with Lewis Hamilton setting the early benchmark with a 1’36.795 on the Medium tyres – quicker than Ferrari managed in first practice. After Jenson Button lost an entire session’s running in FP1 when his McLaren seized up at Turn One, there was more frustration for Button in the second session when he stopped at Turn 11 after completing only three laps. Ferrari were the first team to try the Soft compound tyres, with Kimi Raikkonen improving by around two seconds on his Medium. Sebastian Vettel was set to beat his team mate’s time, but ran wide at the final corner, costing him half a second. Then it was the turn of the Mercedes to try out the Soft compound for the first time. Hamilton went quickest with a 1’34.762, but was immediately beaten by Rosberg who improved by a tenth on his team mate. With everyone having completed a run on the Soft tyres, teams turned their focus to longer runs. Hamilton ran on the Medium tyres, while Rosberg ran a stint on the Soft tyres. After stopping early, McLaren were able to get Button’s McLaren back out on the circuit for some brief runs.
With just over ten minutes to go, the session was red flagged when Sergio Perez made contact with the front wing of Vettel’s Ferrari, leaving debris on the track at Turn One. Vettel had claimed over radio that he had suffered a brake failure and was hit by the Force India at the apex of the turn as Perez abandoned a move to pass Marcus Ericsson’s Sauber ahead. The incident is under investigation by the stewards. When the session restarted, Kimi Raikkonen and Lewis Hamilton were seen driving around a queue of cars waiting at pit exit by taking to the restricted area of the inside of the pitlane. Both drivers are also being investigated. No one was able to improve their times at the front of the field during the final minutes and Mercedes finish the first day’s running around half a second quicker than the Ferrari’s on ultimate one-lap pace.

Kind Regards
Shaky - Schumi

Result of the 1st practice session :

1. Kimi Räikkönen - Ferrari 1:37.827
2. Sebastian Vettel - Ferrari 1:38.029 +0.202
3. Valtteri Bottas - Williams 1:38.390 +0.563
4. Carlos Sainz jr - Toro Rosso 1:38.447 +0.620
5. Daniel Ricciardo - Red Bull Racing 1:38.455 +0.628
6. Max Verstappen - Toro Rosso 1:38.504 +0.677
7. Fernando Alonso - McLaren 1:38.598 +0.771
8. Felipe Nasr - Sauber 1:38.628 +0.801
9. Daniil Kvyat - Red Bull Racing 1:38.661 +0.834
10. Felipe Massa - Williams 1:38.790 +0.963
11. Sergio Perez - Force India 1:38.793 +0.966
12. Pastor Maldonado - Lotus 1:38.842 +1.015
13. Nico Hulkenberg - Force India 1:39.187 +1.360
14. Jolyon Palmer - Lotus 1:39.283 +1.456
15. Nico Rosberg - Mercedes GP 1:39.293 +1.466
16. Lewis Hamilton - Mercedes GP 1:39.532 +1.705
17. Marcus Ericsson - Sauber 1:39.534 +1.707
18. Will Stevens - Manor F1 Team 1:42.973 +5.146
19. Roberto Merhi - Manor F1 Team 1:44.265 +6.438
20. Jenson Button - McLaren - no time

Ferrari F1 pair Raikkonen and Vettel set practice pace :
Ferrari Formula 1 team-mates Kimi Raikkonen and Sebastian Vettel left it late before taking the top two positions in opening practice for the Bahrain Grand Prix. With track temperatures well over 50 degrees early in the session, after using their first sets of mediums during the first 30 minutes, several teams opted to leave it very late before making their final runs. By that time, the track temperature had dropped to the mid-40s, with both Raikkonen and Vettel jumping from the lower reaches of the timing screens to the top in the final 10 minutes. First Vettel, who when he initially went out for his final run was told to ease off while a problem was solved, deposed Williams driver Valtteri Bottas from top spot, then Raikkonen outpaced him by two tenths. With usual pacesetter Mercedes down in 15th and 16th places with Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton, having both moved onto their second set of tyres earlier in the session and presumably concentrating on heavier fuel-load work, Bottas was able to hang on to third place despite a lockup at Turn 10 and a wild moment in the middle of the last corner on his best lap. Carlos Sainz Jr was another driver who held back his second set of tyres, briefly jumping up to second before behind shuffled back to fourth ahead of the lead Red Bull of Daniel Ricciardo and Scuderia Toro Rosso team-mate Max Verstappen. McLaren-Honda driver Fernando Alonso was among the drivers to move onto their second set of rubber relatively early on and briefly went fastest, ultimately ending up a strong seventh, just under eight tenths off the pace. But it wasn't all good news for McLaren, with Jenson Button spinning at Turn 1 on only his third lap and ending the day last after failing to set a time. Sauber had another solid session, with Felipe Nasr in eighth place, although team-mate Marcus Ericsson was unable to make a significant improvement on his second set of rubber after running fifth following the first 30 minutes, and ended up down in 17th behind the two Mercedes drivers. Felipe Massa, in the second Williams, was 10th fastest, but only four tenths off team-mate Bottas, just behind the second Red Bull of Daniil Kvyat. Force India driver Sergio Perez also had a brief spell in first position early in the second runs, but ended up 11th ahead of Lotus driver Pastor Maldonado, who had a run through the gravel at the last corner while on a lap on his second set of rubber having already improved his time. Lotus reserve driver Jolyon Palmer made his second appearance on an F1 weekend, ending up 14th and within half-a-second of Maldonado after losing time in the first sector. At the foot of the timesheets, Will Stevens was the quicker Marussia ahead of team-mate Roberto Merhi in 18th and 19th places.

Kind Regards
Shaky Schumi

Here are the times for this weekends GP :

Friday 17/04 :
1st practice session : 13.00u CET - 14.30u CET
2nd practice session : 17.00u CET - 18.30u CET

Saturday 18/04 :
3rd practice session : 14.00u CET - 15u CET
Qualifying : 17.00u CET - 18.00u CET

Sunday 19/04 :
Race : 17.00u CET

Kind Regards
Shaky - Schumi

Bahrain Grand Prix - Sakhir international circuit 17-18-19 April 2015

This is the first evening Grand Prix of the season and track temperatures fall as the race goes on.
Pirelli has chosen the “White medium” and “Yellow soft” compounds for this weekend
the same tyre choice as in China

Podium 2012: Vettel(Red Bull) – 2° Raikkonen and 3° Grosjean.
Fastest lap: Vettel
pole position : Vettel 1'32''422

Podium 2013: Vettel(Red Bull) – 2° Raikkonen and 3° Grosjean.
Fastest lap: Vettel
pole position : Rosberg 1'32''330

Top five 2014: Hamiltonl(Mercedes) – 2° Rosberg; 3° Perez; 4° Ricciardo; 5° Hulkenberg.
Fastest lap: Rosberg
pole position : Rosberg 1'33''185

the winners
3 wins: Alonso (2005-2006-2010)
2 wins Vettel (2012-2013) and Massa (2007-2008)
1 win: Button(2009) and Hamilton(2014)

Pole Position
2 pole: Vettel(2010-2012) and Rosberg(2013-2014)
1 pole: Alonso(2005); Massa(2007)

Fastest lap
2: Vettel(2012-2013) and Rosberg(2006-2014)
1: Alonso(2010); Massa(2007)

Podium(winner+second+third) for current pilots at Sakhir
6 (0 win + 3 second +3 third) Raikkonen
3 (3+0+0) Alonso
3 (2+1+0) Vettel
3 (2+1+0) Massa
3 (1+1+1) Hamilton
2 (1+0+1) Button
2 (0+0+2) Grosjean
1 (0+1+0) Rosberg
1 (0+0+1) Perez

CONSTRUCTORS CHAMPIONSHIP AFTER 3 RACES :

1. Mercedes 119 points
2. Ferrari 79 points
3. Williams 48 points
4. Sauber 19 points
5. Red Bull 13 points
6. Toro Rosso 12 points
7. Force India 7 points
8. Lotus 6 points

DRIVERS CHAMPIONSHIP AFTER 3 RACES :

1. L. Hamilton GBR Mercedes 68 points
2. S. Vettel GER Ferrari 55 points
3. N. Rosberg GER Mercedes 51 points
4. F. Massa BRA Williams 30 points
5. K. Raikkonen FIN Ferrari 24 points
6. V. Bottas FIN Williams 18 points
7. F. Nasr BRA Sauber 14 points
8. D. Ricciardo AUS Red Bull 11 points
9. C. Sainz jr. ESP Toro Rosso, M. Verstappen NED Renault, N. Hulkenberg GER Force India & R. Grosjean FRA Lotus 6 points
13. M. Ericsson SWE Sauber 5 points
14. D. Kvyat RUS Red Bull 2 points
15. S. Perez MEX Force India 1 point

Here's the result of Chinese GP :

1. Lewis Hamilton - Mercedes GP - 1h39m42.008 (1:42.208 )
2. Nico Rosberg - Mercedes GP + 0.714
3. Sebastian Vettel - Ferrari + 2.988
4. Kimi Räikkönen - Ferrari + 3.835
5. Felipe Massa - Williams + 8.544
6. Valtteri Bottas - Williams + 9.885
7. Romain Grosjean - Lotus + 19.000
8. Felipe Nasr - Sauber + 22.625
9. Daniel Ricciardo - Red Bull Racing + 32.117
10. Marcus Ericsson - Sauber + 1 lap
11. Sergio Perez - Force India + 1 lap
12. Fernando Alonso - McLaren + 1 lap
13. Jenson Button - McLaren + 1 lap
14. Carlos Sainz jr - Toro Rosso + 1 lap
15. Will Stevens - Manor F1 Team + 2 laps
16. Roberto Merhi - Manor F1 Team + 2 laps
Did Not Dinish :
17. Max Verstappen - Toro Rosso - gearbox
18. Pastor Maldonado - Lotus - brakes
19. Daniil Kvyat - Red Bull Racing - engine
20. Nico Hulkenberg - Force India - gearbox

Fastest Lap : Lewis Hamilton - 1:42.208
Pitstop M.Ericsson : 2 stops
Bat 2 Teams : Romain Grosjean > Felipe Nasr
Grid Pos. F.Alonso : 12th place

Hamilton leads Rosberg in comfortable Mercedes 1-2 :
Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes reasserted their authority over Formula 1 with a commanding Chinese Grand Prix victory. Nico Rosberg had to settle for second place, ahead of the Ferraris of Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen, in a race that was close at times without ever truly coming to life. Hamilton had made his intentions clear by angling his car very aggressively towards Rosberg's on the grid.
He duly held his lead off the line, with Rosberg and Vettel stringing out behind the champion through the first stint. The situation became more tense in the middle stint of the two-stop race, as both Rosberg and Vettel closed on Hamilton. A frustrated Rosberg radioed Mercedes asking if Hamilton could speed up, as his tyres were wearing too much whenever he got closer than two seconds away from his team-mate's rear wing. When Ferrari brought Vettel in for his second stop ahead of the two Mercedes, Rosberg was pitted a lap later in an effort to prevent his countryman getting an undercut on his new tyres. But rather than his rivals' earlier stops putting Hamilton at a disadvantage, he was able to raise his pace considerably on his final laps on soft tyres. Hamilton ran two laps longer than Rosberg and rejoined with a 6s cushion rather than the 2s advantage he had held prior to the stops. Rosberg reduced Hamilton's lead slightly before settling for second. A safety car appearance with two laps to go - caused by Max Verstappen's Toro Rosso parking on the pit straight in a cloud of smoke - made things even more comfortable for Hamilton, as the race finished under yellow. Vettel was not a match for the Mercedes once all were onto medium tyres and fell away in third. The Malaysian GP winner then came under late pressure from team-mate Kimi Raikkonen. The Finn quickly cleared both Williams on the opening lap to make up for his qualifying frustration, and though he could not keep pace with the top three at first, he ran long in his middle stint and made up ground. Raikkonen was still 1.4s behind Vettel when the late safety car came out and had to be content with fourth. Williams ran a lonely and distant fifth and sixth with Felipe Massa and Valtteri Bottas, a minute behind the leaders prior to the field being bunched up.
Lotus scored its first points of the year with Romain Grosjean in seventh, but it was a wild race for his team-mate Pastor Maldonado.
The Venezuelan got ahead of Grosjean in the first pitstop sequence, before going down the pitlane entry escape road at his second stop. A spin while trying to recover left him even further behind, and he then became embroiled in a spectacular battle with the McLarens of Jenson Button and Fernando Alonso. After several fraught laps, this came to a head when Button hit the back of the Lotus at Turn 1, ending Maldonado's race and prompting a stewards' investigation. Despite that, McLaren still got its first double finish of 2015 with Alonso and Button's battered cars 12th and 13th. Until his late engine failure, Verstappen was on course for eighth, having sliced through the field with some very accomplished overtaking. But his problem completed a terrible day for Renault and the Red Bull-owned teams. Daniel Ricciardo had tumbled to 17th with a terrible start and made heavy weather of coming back through the field to ninth between the Saubers of Felipe Nasr and Marcus Ericsson, which scored again. Daniil Kvyat was also out early with a suspected engine failure, while Carlos Sainz Jr spun at Turn 1 in the opening laps and later lost time with a gearbox problem before finishing between the McLarens and Manors in 14th. Force India spent a while in the points as a unique three-stop strategy for Sergio Perez shook out, but in the end 11th was his limit. A gearbox failure ended team-mate Nico Hulkenberg's race.

Kind Regards
Shaky - Schumi