Formula 1 General Chat & Discussion

[hidden link - please register]
[hidden image - please register]
[hidden link - please register]
[hidden image - please register]
[hidden link - please register]
[hidden image - please register]
[hidden link - please register]
[hidden image - please register]
...

Barcelona Test Day 2: Maldonado quickest for Lotus in final day of testing

1. Pastor Maldonado - Lotus - 1:24.871 - 102 laps
2. Nico Rosberg - Mercedes GP - 1:25.805 +0.934 - 102 laps
3. Kimi Räikkönen - Ferrari - 1:26.480 +1.609 - 93 laps
4. Esteban Gutierrez - Sauber - 1:26.972 +2.101 - 84 laps
5. Susie Wolff - Williams - 1:27.280 +2.409 - 55 laps
6. Jules Bianchi - Marussia F1 Team - 1:27.718 +2.847 - 55 laps
7. Sebastian Vettel - Red Bull Racing - 1:27.973 +3.102 - 72 laps
8. Daniel Juncadella - Force India - 1:28.278 +3.407 - 91 laps
9. Stoffel Vandoorne - McLaren - 1:28.441 +3.570 - 135 laps
10. Daniil Kvyat - Toro Rosso - 1:28.910 +4.039 - 21 laps

Pastor Maldonado set the fastest time of the final day of testing in Barcelona, the Lotus driver posting a time of 1:24.871 on the supersoft tyre to put him just under a second ahead of Mercedes Nico Rosberg, who set his time on medium tyres. In the morning the German also trialled Mercedes experimental new exhaust, designed to increase noise. Following a good day for Lotus yesterday, when test driver Charles Pic completed 70 laps and claimed the second fastest time of the opening day, Maldonado enjoyed an even more solid outing today, logging 102 laps of the Circuit de Catalunya. The Venezuelan finished 0.934s ahead of Rosberg, who also broke the century mark with 102 laps. The German began his day’s work testing Mercedes much anticipated ‘megaphone’ exhaust. The results of the test will be analysed by the FIA and discussed with the sport’s teams before a decision is made on whether to adopt the solution. Rosberg was followed on the timesheet by Kimi Raikkonen, who enjoyed a much better day at the wheel of the F14 T than yesterday. The Finn completed just 20 laps yesterday due to power unit issues and a late off but today he completed 93 laps for a best time of 1:26.480, almost half a second clear of Sauber’s Esteban Gutierrez.Gutierrez was involved in a minor incident in the morning session when a fire broke out at the back of his car in the pit lane. It was quickly extinguished by his mechanics and the Mexican was soon back on his way for an eventual tally of 84 laps. Elsewhere, Williams Development Driver and FIA Women in Motorsport Ambassador Susie Wolff took over from Felipe Massa at the wheel of the Williams FW36, for a full day of testing, her first since driving the team’s 2013 car at last year’s Young Driver Test at Silverstone. This latest test is an advance of her scheduled appearance in Friday practice at this year’s British and German Grands Prix. After an early spin Wolff soon got into her stride and completed 27 laps in the morning. She improved again in the afternoon, eventually claiming the day’s fifth-fastest time with a lap of 1:27.280, set on the soft tyre. In total she completed 55 laps. Behind her Jules Bianchi finished sixth but was confined to the garage for most of the afternoon with a technical problem. The team did manage, however, to get him up and running again in the final 10 minutes of the session. Seventh place went to Sebastian Vettel, whose running was largely restricted to the afternoon session. A gearbox problem cut short Red Bull Racing’s running yesterday and overnight repairs dragged on into this morning. Vettel eventually emerged some three hours into the session, putting in a couple of runs before lunch. The afternoon was more productive for the champion and he got through 72 laps. “The problems of yesterday made a bit late out this morning but the afternoon was productive and we did a lot of laps, which considering the time we had it was good,” said Vettel. “We used the tyres used last weekend as we want to try to understand the car more and in terms of that I think we have learned a lot, so I would say it was a useful, if not perfect, day.” Behind the champion came Force India tester Daniel Juncadella and, getting a first F1 outing, McLaren’s Stoffel Vandoorne. Both were conducting tyre testing for Pirelli and afterwards Vandoorne said he was pleased with his first day in F1. “This has been a fantastic day for me: my first experience in a Formula One car, and a really great opportunity to get plenty of laps under my belt,” he said after racking up the day’s largest total – 136 laps. “I want to say a big thank-you to the team – everyone has been incredibly helpful and positive. It’s also great to have been able to contribute to the test programme: 136 laps today was a fantastic achievement, and it’s great that it’s earned me my Formula 1 Superlicence.” Daniil Kvyat was ninth for Toro Rosso. The Russian brought out the red flags twice in the morning and then spent most of the afternoon in the garage. Caterham, meanwhile, did not run at all, with the team announcing in the morning that damage caused by Kamui Kobayashi’s accident yesterday was severe enough to prevent the team taking part.

Kind Regards
Shaky - Schumi

F1 Barcelona Test: Day 1: Chilton surprisingly fastest

1. Max Chilton - Marussia F1 Team - 1:26.434 - 60 laps
2. Charles Pic - Lotus - 1:26.661 +0.227 - 69 laps
3. Lewis Hamilton - Mercedes GP - 1:26.674 +0.240 - 79 laps
4. Kimi Räikkönen - Ferrari - 1:26.965 +0.531 - 20 laps
5. Jean-Eric Vergne - Toro Rosso - 1:27.724 +1.290 - 51 laps
6. Nico Hulkenberg - Force India - 1:27.727 +1.293 - 52 laps
7. Felipe Massa - Williams - 1:27.756 +1.322 - 55 laps
8. Jenson Button - McLaren - 1:28.333 +1.899 - 73 laps
9. Kamui Kobayashi - Caterham - 1:30.101 +3.667 - 72 laps
10. Sébastien Buemi - Red Bull Racing - 1:31.440 +5.006 - 54 laps
11. Giedo van der Garde - Sauber - 1:31.783 +5.349 - 86 laps

Max Chilton sprung a surprise by setting the pace on Tuesday during day one of the post-Spanish Grand Prix test. Chilton had been well down the order until late in the session when he posted a 1:26.434 effort, putting him 0.227 seconds up on Lotus test and reserve driver Charles Pic. It was a remarkable lap considering his best effort in qualifying last weekend was over 3 seconds slower (1:29.586). In total the Englishman did 60 tours, even though there were a number of red flag periods and even though running was disrupted by rain this morning. Lewis Hamilton meanwhile, who took his fourth win in succession on Sunday and with it the lead in the 2014 Formula 1 Driver Championship, was third for Mercedes on 1:26.674. He clocked up 79 tours. Behind, Kimi Räikkönen took fourth for Ferrari, the last of the runners in the 1:26 bracket, despite a troubled day, with engine problems and a trip into the gravel limiting him to just 21 laps – the fewest of anyone runner. Further back, Toro Rosso's Jean-Éric Vergne and Force India's Nico Hülkenberg came in fifth and sixth, split by just 0.003 seconds – although both were over seven tenths off the Ferrari in P4.
Williams' Felipe Massa and McLaren man Jenson Button rounded out the top eight, ahead Caterham's Kamui Kobayashi, Red Bull Racing reserve, Sébastien Buemi and Sauber tester, Giedo van der Garde. The Dutchman did the most laps of anyone runner, 86, his quickest time a 1:31.783.

Kind Regards
Shaky - Schumi

Today and tomorrow the F1 teams will be testing at the Circuit de Catalunya Barcelona, the circuit on which the last weekend the GP of Spain was held. Who test when during F1 testing in Barcelona?

Red Bull:
Tuesday: Sebastien Buemi
Wednesday: Sebastian Vettel

Mercedes:
Tuesday: Lewis Hamilton
Wednesday: Nico Rosberg

Ferrari:
Tuesday: Kimi Raikkonen
Wednesday:

Lotus:
Tuesday: Charles Pic
Wednesday: Pastor Maldonado

McLaren:
Tuesday: Jenson Button
Wednesday: Stoffel Vandoorne

Force India:
Tuesday: Nico Hülkenberg
Wednesday: Daniel Juncadella

Sauber:
Tuesday: Giedo van der Garde
Wednesday: Esteban Gutierrez

Toro Rosso:
Tuesday: Jean-Eric Vergne
Wednesday: Daniil Kvyat

Williams:
Tuesday: Felipe Massa
Wednesday: Susie Wolff

Marussia:
Tuesday: Max Chilton
Wednesday: Jules Bianchi

Caterham:
Tuesday: Kamui Kobayashi
Wednesday: Robin Frijns

Kind Regards
Shaky - Schumi

CONSTRUCTORS CHAMPIONSHIP AFTER 5 RACES :

1. Mercedes 197 points
2. Red Bull 84 points
3. Ferrari 66 points
4. Force India 57 points
5. Williams 46 points
6. McLaren 43 points
7. Toro Rosso 8 points
8. Lotus 4 points

DRIVERS CHAMPIONSHIP AFTER 5 RACES :

1. L. Hamilton GBR Mercedes 100 points
2. N. Rosberg GER Mercedes 97 points
3. F. Alonso ESP Ferrari 49 points
4. S. Vettel GER Red Bull 45 points
5. D. Ricciardo AUS Red Bull 39 points
6. N. Hulkenberg GER ForceIndia 37 points
7. V. Bottas FIN Williams 34 points
8. J. Button GBR McLaren 23 points
9. K. Magnussen DEN McLaren & S. Perez MEX ForceIndia 20 points
10. K. Raikkonen FIN Ferrari 17 points
11. F. Massa BRA Williams 12 points
12. R. Grosjean FRA Lotus, J. E. Vergne FRA ToroRosso & D. Kvyat RUS ToroRosso 4 points

Result of the Spanish GP :

1. Lewis Hamilton - Mercedes GP
2. Nico Rosberg - Mercedes GP + 0.636
3. Daniel Ricciardo - Red Bull Racing + 49.014
4. Sebastian Vettel - Red Bull Racing 1:28.918 + 76.702
5. Valtteri Bottas - Williams + 79.293
6. Fernando Alonso - Ferrari + 87.743
7. Kimi Räikkönen - Ferrari + 1 lap
8. Romain Grosjean - Lotus + 1 lap
9. Sergio Perez - Force India + 1 lap
10. Nico Hulkenberg - Force India + 1 lap
11. Jenson Button - McLaren + 1 lap
12. Kevin Magnussen - McLaren + 1 lap
13. Felipe Massa - Williams + 1 lap
14. Daniil Kvyat - Toro Rosso + 1 lap
15. Pastor Maldonado - Lotus + 1 lap
16. Esteban Gutierrez - Sauber + 1 lap
17. Adrian Sutil - Sauber Geen tijd + 1 lap
18. Jules Bianchi - Marussia F1 Team + 2 laps
19. Max Chilton - Marussia F1 Team + 2 laps
20. Marcus Ericsson - Caterham + 2 laps
Did Not Finish :
21. Kamui Kobayashi - Caterham
22. Jean-Eric Vergne - Toro Rosso

Fastest Lap : Sebastian Vettel - 1:28.918
Pitstop Nico Rosberg : 2 ( lap 21 - lap 45 )
Bat. 2 Teams : Kevin Magnussen > Jean-Eric Vergne
Grid Pos. Romain Grosjean : 8th place

Hamilton Streak Continues In Spain :
Lewis Hamilton's run of race victories continued on Sunday when he claimed his fourth grand prix win in succession but his first in Spain. As many predicted before the race it was all Hamilton as he put two seconds between himself and Nico Rosberg before the German pegged it back. Extending that lead to over four seconds in the second stint, Hamilton had enough of an advantage that when he switched to the hard tyres - and Rosberg the medium - he could still keep his team-mate at bay - although only just as Rosberg crossed the line 0.6s adrift. The victory not only handed Hamilton the lead in the Championship by three points over Rosberg but his 26th career win saw him become the third most successful British driver ahead of Jim Clark. Such was Mercedes' advantage on the day that the third placed driver was 48s down the road and they lapped everyone up to seventh place. It was Daniel Ricciardo who achieved that P3, joining the Mercedes drivers on the podium despite a valiant effort from Valtteri Bottas early in the race. The Williams driver jumped ahead at the start and was holding third up until the first round of pit stops. But with Ricciardo opting for an early stop on lap 14 and Bottas only coming in on lap 20, the Finn not only dropped to third but was also 10 seconds down the road. Bottas had then looked on course to finish fourth only for Sebastian Vettel to pull off a late pass. The reigning World Champion recovered from 15th to finish fourth. Fernando Alonso claimed sixth place as he overtook Kimi Raikkonen with three laps to go. The Finnish driver had held the advantage for most of the race only to lose out to Alonso's fresher rubber late on. Romain Grosjean was eighth as he netted his and Lotus' first points of the Championship while Sergio Perez and Nico Hulkenberg completed the top ten.

Kind Regards
Shaky - Schumi

News-Update :

Grid penalty compounds the pain for Vettel in Spain :
Sebastian Vettel’s Spanish Grand Prix weekend went from bad to worse after Red Bull confirmed a gearbox change that dropped the Formula 1 champion to 15th on the starting grid for Sunday’s race.The 26-year-old quadruple champion has suffered a series of setbacks since he arrived at the Circuit de Catalunya with a different chassis to the one he had raced in the first four rounds of the season. A problem with the wiring loom limited his track time to four laps in Friday practice and the German pulled over in the final phase of Saturday’s qualifying with gearbox problems that left him 10th on the provisional grid. Gearboxes must last six successive races and any unscheduled change incurs a five place penalty. “I left the pits and…I lost drive in second gear. I went to third, decided to keep going because its possible to do a lap without second gear around here but by turn one I got stuck in fifth gear and couldn’t go up or down,” he said. The champion, who won the last nine races of 2013 but has so far made just one podium appearance this season with a third place in Malaysia, recognised after qualifying that Sunday’s race would be difficult. “It’s obviously tough because you don’t get more information on the car, get into the rhythm. We missed more or less both practice sessions yesterday,” he said. Vettel said Friday’s problems came down to “a very small cable (that) got caught in the wrong place which is impossible to see when you put the car together. “Obviously now we know where it belongs,” he said. “Up to that stage you could say we’ve just been lucky because it never got caught.” Vettel has struggled to get the feeling he wants from the new V6 turbo powered car, and its complex energy recovery systems. In the meantime, his new Australian team mate Daniel Ricciardo has been going from strength to strength – a marked change from last year where his predecessor and compatriot Mark Webber seemed to attract all the bad luck in the team. Ricciardo qualified third on Saturday, the fourth time in five races that he has been quicker than Vettel on a Saturday afternoon. “It’s not a nightmare. We were able to learn a lot of things,” said Vettel of his season so far.

Kind Regards
Shaky - Schumi

The fastest lap of Hamilton looks this way

[hidden link - please register]

schubert

Result of the qualifying:

1. Lewis Hamilton - Mercedes GP - 1:25.232
2. Nico Rosberg - Mercedes GP - 1:25.400 +0.168
3. Daniel Ricciardo - Red Bull Racing - 1:26.285 +1.053
4. Valtteri Bottas - Williams - 1:26.632 +1.400
5. Romain Grosjean - Lotus - 1:26.960 +1.728
6. Kimi Räikkönen - Ferrari - 1:27.104 +1.872
7. Fernando Alonso - Ferrari - 1:27.140 +1.908
8. Jenson Button - McLaren - 1:27.335 +2.103
9. Felipe Massa - Williams - 1:27.402 +2.170
10. Sebastian Vettel - Red Bull Racing -no time
Q2
11. Nico Hulkenberg - Force India - 1:27.685 +2.453
12. Sergio Perez - Force India - 1:28.002 +2.770
13. Daniil Kvyat - Toro Rosso - 1:28.039 +2.807
14. Esteban Gutierrez - Sauber - 1:28.280 +3.048
15. Kevin Magnussen - McLaren - no time
16. Jean-Eric Vergne - Toro Rosso - no time
Q1
17. Adrian Sutil - Sauber - 1:28.563 +3.331
18. Max Chilton - Marussia F1 Team - 1:29.586 +4.354
19. Jules Bianchi - Marussia F1 Team - 1:30.177 +4.945
20. Marcus Ericsson - Caterham - 1:30.312 +5.080
21. Kamui Kobayashi - Caterham - 1:30.375 +5.143
22. Pastor Maldonado - Lotus - no time

Qual. Time : 1:25.232
Pole : Lewis Hamilton
Team Battle : Roamin Grosjean > Pastor Maldonado
Grid Pos. Kimi Raikkonen : 6th place

Hamilton Secures First Spanish Pole :
Lewis Hamilton claimed his first official Spanish Grand Prix pole position on Saturday as he came through a red-flag interupted session to beat Nico Rosberg. For the fourth time this campaign, the British driver was the quickest over a single lap, taking pole position with a 1:25.232. With his lap 0.168s up on team-mate Nico Rosberg's it meant Hamilton, who is chasing his fourth win in succession this weekend, edged ahead in the Mercedes qualifying battle. The duo were leaps and bounds up on the chasing pack as Daniel Ricciardo, who qualified third, was 1.053s down while Valtteri Bottas entered the mix in fourth place. The Williams driver qualified ahead of the much-improved Lotus of Romain Grosjean while Kimi Raikkonen pulled one back against Fernando Alonso as he beat his team-mate by 0.-3s. Jenson Button was eighth quickest ahead of Felipe Massa. Meanwhile, Sebastian Vettel's woes continued in qualifying. Having missed Friday's running with an electrical problem, Vettel tried to make up some ground in final practice and entered qualifying hopeful about his chances. Those ended, though, in Q3 when the German's RB10 lost all drive on his out-lap, forcing him to park on the side of the road without a time to his name. The session was red-flagged as his car was pushed to safety. It was also a disappointing session for McLaren rookie Kevin Magnussen as a power unit problem with his MP4-29 meant he was not able to venture out in Q2 and therefore finished in 15th place. Another not to set a time in that session was Jean-Eric Vergne, who faces a 10-place grid penalty for losing a wheel during Friday's second practice. There were also issues in Q1 as that was red-flagged for seven minutes when Pastor Maldonado crashed. The Lotus driver lost his E22 on the exit of Three on the kerb, slid across the track and hit the barrier with the front right. "I lost the car," was his simple explanation.

Kind Regards
Shaky - Schumi

Result of the 3rd practice session :

1. Nico Rosberg - Mercedes GP - 1:25.887
2. Lewis Hamilton - Mercedes GP - 1:26.756 +0.869
3. Fernando Alonso - Ferrari - 1:27.188 +1.301
4. Felipe Massa - Williams - 1:27.223 +1.336
5. Romain Grosjean - Lotus - 1:27.682 +1.795
6. Kevin Magnussen - McLaren - 1:27.806 +1.919
7. Daniel Ricciardo - Red Bull Racing - 1:27.808 +1.921
8. Jenson Button - McLaren - 1:28.006 +2.119
9. Pastor Maldonado - Lotus - 1:28.076 +2.189
10. Sebastian Vettel - Red Bull Racing - 1:28.085 +2.198
11. Valtteri Bottas - Williams - 1:28.101 +2.214
12. Jean-Eric Vergne - Toro Rosso - 1:28.242 +2.355
13. Daniil Kvyat - Toro Rosso - 1:28.298 +2.411
14. Kimi Räikkönen - Ferrari - 1:28.419 +2.532
15. Sergio Perez - Force India - 1:28.571 +2.684
16. Nico Hulkenberg - Force India - 1:28.668 +2.781
17. Adrian Sutil - Sauber - 1:28.715 +2.828
18. Esteban Gutierrez - Sauber - 1:28.865 +2.978
19. Max Chilton - Marussia F1 Team - 1:30.169 +4.282
20. Jules Bianchi - Marussia F1 Team - 1:30.670 +4.783
21. Kamui Kobayashi - Caterham - 1:30.712 +4.825
22. Marcus Ericsson - Caterham - 1:31.559 +5.672

Nico Rosberg leads Lewis Hamilton in final practice :
Mercedes continued its dominance of Formula 1 as Nico Rosberg topped the third practice session for the Spanish Grand Prix ahead of his team-mate Lewis Hamilton. Qualifying this afternoon will most likely be another personal duel between the two Silver Arrows machines. They were split by 0.869 seconds in Saturday morning practice. Local hero Fernando Alonso was third quickest in his Ferrari, more than 1.3s behind Rosberg and just fractionally ahead of Felipe Massa's Williams. Frenchman Romain Grosjean was fifth quickest for Lotus ahead of Kevin Magnussen (McLaren), Daniel Ricciardo (Red Bull) and the other McLaren of Jenson Button.
Pastor Maldonado was ninth quickest in the second Lotus, while Sebastian Vettel made up for the time he lost on Friday by completing 20 laps in his Red Bull and finishing with the 10th fastest time. At the beginning of the hour the Ferraris set the early pace, with firstly Kimi Raikkonen, then his team-mate Alonso going fastest on the hard tyres in the first 20 minutes. As the half hour mark approached the Mercedes drivers emerged from the pits and started lighting up the timesheets. Rosberg was first to post the quickest time, over a second faster than Alonso's Ferrari. Rosberg and his team-mate Hamilton then traded fastest lap times at the top of the order, but it was clear that a number of drivers continued to struggle with the low grip on a dry but overcast day in Barcelona. Several drivers, including the spectacular Alonso, battled with rear grip issues and once again Max Chilton's session ended in the gravel trap, this time after he locked up his front left heading into Turn 5 and slid wide into the gravel on the outside of the corner. Kamui Kobayashi also had a late off-track excursion in his Caterham but was able to continue unharmed.

Kind Regards
Shaky - Schumi

Jean-Eric Vergne, sanctioned with 10 positions and 30.000€ for the incident with a wheel, yesterday in the free practice 2.
Is it logical that they sanction the team but, why to the pilot?

Result of the 2nd practice session :

1. Lewis Hamilton - Mercedes GP - 1:25.524
2. Nico Rosberg - Mercedes GP - 1:25.973 +0.449
3. Daniel Ricciardo - Red Bull Racing - 1:26.509 +0.985
4. Fernando Alonso - Ferrari - 1:27.121 +1.597
5. Kimi Räikkönen - Ferrari - 1:27.296 +1.772
6. Kevin Magnussen - McLaren - 1:27.788 +2.264
7. Jenson Button - McLaren - 1:27.811 +2.287
8. Felipe Massa - Williams - 1:27.824 +2.300
9. Pastor Maldonado - Lotus - 1:27.866 +2.342
10. Daniil Kvyat - Toro Rosso - 1:28.049 +2.525
11. Nico Hulkenberg - Force India - 1:28.074 +2.550
12. Jean-Eric Vergne - Toro Rosso - 1:28.246 +2.722
13. Adrian Sutil - Sauber - 1:28.284 +2.760
14. Valtteri Bottas - Williams - 1:28.698 +3.174
15. Esteban Gutierrez - Sauber - 1:29.105 +3.581
16. Sergio Perez - Force India - 1:29.129 +3.605
17. Romain Grosjean - Lotus - 1:29.493 +3.969
18. Jules Bianchi - Marussia F1 Team - 1:29.991 +4.467
19. Max Chilton - Marussia F1 Team - 1:31.148 +5.624
20. Kamui Kobayashi - Caterham - 1:31.338 +5.814
21. Marcus Ericsson - Caterham - 1:31.586 +6.062
22. Sebastian Vettel - Red Bull Racing - no time


Hamilton on top as Vettel struggles :
Lewis Hamilton continued to set the pace in Barcelona repeating his time-sheet topping performance of the morning in the day’s second session. Mercedes ended the day with top two times as Nico Rosberg joined his team-mate at the top of the order, the German making up for lost time after his opening session was interrupted by power unit problems. He finished just under half a second adrift of Hamilton, who set a best lap of 1:25.524. Third place went to Red Bull Racing’s Daniel Ricciardo, the Australian finishing just under a second behind Rosberg, but over half a second up on fourth-place Fernando Alonso. Ricciardo was the only Red Bull running in the afternoon, however. After being restricted to just four laps in the morning with an electrical problem, the Austrian team failed to repair the damage caused in the afternoon and the champion was forced to sit out the whole session. Alonso, meanwhile, was less than 0.2s ahead of team-mate Kimi Raikkonen, who finished the second in fifth place. The twin Ferrari’s were followed by the McLarens of Kevin Magnussen and Jenson Button respectively. Felipe Massa was eighth for Williams and was followed by the Lotus of Pastor Maldonado. The Lotus driver had a good afternoon completing 42 laps but it was a more tricky outing for team-mate Romain Grosjean. The Frenchman suffered with engine woes and brake issues, the latter forcing him to abandon the session after 26 laps. Elsewhere, there was a worrying moment for Jean-Eric Vergne late in the session. The Toro Rosso driver came out of the pit only for the right-rear wheel of his STR9 to detach and he was to stop at Turn 2.

Kind Regards
Shaky - Schumi

Result of the 1st practice session of the GP of Spain :

1. Lewis Hamilton - Mercedes GP - 1:27.023
2. Jenson Button - McLaren - 1:27.891 +0.868
3. Daniel Ricciardo - Red Bull Racing - 1:27.973 +0.950
4. Fernando Alonso - Ferrari - 1:28.128 +1.105
5. Nico Rosberg - Mercedes GP - 1:28.168 +1.145
6. Kimi Räikkönen - Ferrari - 1:28.337 +1.314
7. Kevin Magnussen - McLaren - 1:28.423 +1.400
8. Pastor Maldonado - Lotus - 1:28.744 +1.721
9. Sergio Perez - Force India - 1:28.779 +1.756
10. Felipe Massa - Williams - 1:28.791 +1.768
11. Daniil Kvyat - Toro Rosso - 1:28.792 +1.769
12. Nico Hulkenberg - Force India - 1:28.828 +1.805
13. Jean-Eric Vergne - Toro Rosso - 1:28.859 +1.836
14. Felipe Nasr - Williams - 1:29.272 +2.249
15. Adrian Sutil - Sauber - 1:29.688 +2.665
16. Jules Bianchi - Marussia F1 Team - 1:29.820 +2.797
17. Romain Grosjean - Lotus - 1:29.944 +2.921
18. Giedo van der Garde - Sauber - 1:30.440 +3.417
19. Max Chilton - Marussia F1 Team - 1:30.748 +3.725
20. Sebastian Vettel - Red Bull Racing - 1:30.942 +3.919
21. Kamui Kobayashi - Caterham - 1:30.997 +3.974
22. Marcus Ericsson - Caterham - 1:31.421 +4.398

Hamilton quickest with ease :
Race favourite Lewis Hamilton set the pace for dominant Mercedes in first Spanish Grand Prix practice on Friday while the pain remained the same for Sebastian Vettel despite a Red Bull chassis switch. Hamilton’s fastest lap of 1:27.023 seconds, set six minutes from the end, was 0.868 quicker than Jenson Button who was best of the rest, for McLaren. The impressive margin on a sunny morning at the Circuit de Catalunya further underlined the Briton’s status as the man to watch after three consecutive wins.
Championship leader Nico Rosberg, who is four points clear of team mate Hamilton and who had said on Thursday that he “just needed a normal weekend” to regain the momentum, suffered a cooling issue that cut short his session. He was fifth fastest.
Quadruple world champion Vettel, who had a miserable pre-season test in Spain and has had a difficult four grands prix since then, kicked off the first European race weekend of the year with another setback. The German, winner of the last nine races of 2013, was using a different chassis to the one raced so far but he completed just four laps before pulling over with an electrical problem.
Marshals handed him a fire extinguisher as he inspected the car before hitching a ride back to the paddock on a scooter.
“We had a full electrical shutdown on Seb’s car. We’re not sure what caused it. It cut the radio and everything,” said Team Principal Christian Horner.Although the car was returned to the pits, the problem prevented Vettel from taking any further part in the morning session. His Australian team mate Daniel Ricciardo, who has out qualified Vettel in three of the four races and passed him in the last two after the German was instructed to let the faster car through, was third fastest. Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso, the local favourite for his home race after winning last year with plenty of banners in the grandstand urging him on, was fourth on the time sheets. With the opening long-haul races in Asia and the Middle East out of the way, all teams have brought updates to their cars and Friday’s practice sessions were being closely watched for any signs of change in the pecking order. In a bizarre early incident, a wing mirror on Sergio Perez’s Force India broke off and was left flapping around on a wire. The Mexican completed the lap with it in his hand.

Kind Regards
Shaky - Schumi

The Catalunya Circuit, will host the Spanish Grand Prix for the 24th year in a row First edition in 1991
Barcelona circuit has a good variety of corners and the track, with its abrasive surface is a very demanding for tyres especially on the outer left side Pirelli has chosen the “Orange hard” and “White medium” compounds for this Gran Prix.

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

the winners
2 wins: Alonso (2006-2013) and Raikkonen (2005-2008)
1 win: 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) and Rosberg(2013)

Fastest lap
2: Massa(2006-2007) and Hamilton(2010-2011);
1: Raikkonen (2008); Grosjean(2012); and Gutierrez(2013);

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
3 (1+1+1) Massa
3 (0+2+1) Hamilton
2 (1+0+1) Vettel
2 (1+0+1) Button
1 (1+0+0) Maldonado
never on podium: Rosberg

At the Barcelona circuit in the previous 23 editions,
17 times won, the pilot started from pole position.

7 different winners in the last seven editions
zero wins for Hamilton and Rosberg in Barcelona
probably this year we will have the eighth different winner

Season 2014: winners after 4 races
Hamilton vs Rosberg 3-1