Formula 1 General Chat & Discussion

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

Result of the Qualifying :

1. Lewis Hamilton - Mercedes GP - 1:35.782
2. Nico Rosberg - Mercedes GP - 1:35.824 +0.042
3. Sebastian Vettel - Ferrari - 1:36.687 +0.905
4. Felipe Massa - Williams - 1:36.954 +1.172
5. Valtteri Bottas - Williams - 1:37.143 +1.361
6. Kimi Räikkönen - Ferrari - 1:37.232 +1.450
7. Daniel Ricciardo - Red Bull Racing - 1:37.540 +1.758
8. Romain Grosjean - Lotus - 1:37.905 +2.123
9. Felipe Nasr - Sauber - 1:38.067 +2.285
10. Marcus Ericsson - Sauber - 1:38.158 +2.376
Q2
11. Pastor Maldonado - Lotus - 1:38.134 +2.352
12. Daniil Kvyat - Red Bull Racing - 1:38.209 +2.427
13. Max Verstappen - Toro Rosso - 1:38.393 +2.611
14. Carlos Sainz jr - Toro Rosso - 1:38.538 +2.756
15. Sergio Perez - Force India - 1:39.290 +3.508
16. Nico Hulkenberg - Force India - 1:39.216 +3.434
Q1
17. Jenson Button - McLaren - 1:39.276 +3.494
18. Fernando Alonso - McLaren - 1:39.280 +3.498
19. Will Stevens - Manor F1 Team - 1:42.091 +6.309
20. Roberto Merhi - Manor F1 Team - 1:42.842 +7.060

Qulifying Time : 1:35.782
Pole : Lewis Hamilton
Team Bat : M. Verstappen > C. Sainz jr.
Grid Pos. Sebastian Vettel : 3rd position

Hat-trick for Hamilton after narrow pole position win :
Lewis Hamilton continued his monopoly on pole positions in 2015 with his third in a row at the Chinese Grand Prix. But team mate Nico Rosberg came close to taking it away – his best effort was less than five-hundredths of a second off Hamilton’s pole time.
Sebastian Vettel again provided the closest challenge to the flying Mercedes but had to settle for third place, nine-tenths of a second behind.
Q1
With the soft tyres offering a performance gain of around 1.7 seconds over the medium compound, only Mercedes were able to make it through Q1 without using the softer rubber. Hamilton and Rosberg were decisively the quickest of the medium-tyre runners, and once their rivals had used the soft tyres the Mercedes pair were still as high as fifth and eighth. The Ferrari pair, Valtteri Bottas and Romain Grosjean led the times after their soft tyre runs. Despite hurried repairs to his car after final practice, in which he suffered an engine problem, Fernando Alonso made it onto the track at the start of the session. However both he and team mate Jenson Button failed to make the cut for Q2, the pair separated by four-thousandths of a second. They were comfortably clear of the two Manors – both of which were well inside the 107% time – and joined in an early exit by the Force India of Nico Hulkenberg.
Drivers eliminated in Q1
16 Nico Hulkenberg Force India-Mercedes 1’39.216
17 Jenson Button McLaren-Honda 1’39.276
18 Fernando Alonso McLaren-Honda 1’39.280
19 Will Stevens Manor-Ferrari 1’42.091
20 Roberto Merhi Manor-Ferrari 1’42.842
Q2
Despite Mercedes being unable to see the telemetry from his car, and suffering a recurrence of the overheating seat problem which plagued him during practice, Hamilton posted a 1’36.423 early in Q2 to head the times from Rosberg, who was three-tenths of a second slower. The Ferrari drivers were next, Vettel a little over half a second slower than Hamilton. However Daniil Kvyat abandoned his first run after reporting a loss of power in his Red Bull. Kvyat made it back onto the track for a final run, but missed out on a place in Q3 by less than a tenth of a second. The margin was even finer for Pastor Maldonado, whose session came to an end for the sake of just seven thousandths of a second. Sergio Perez also did a single run in Q2, which he began less than a minute before the chequered flag came out. He ended up slowest of the Q2 runners and will therefore start on the same row as his team mate.
Neither Toro Rosso driver made the cut for the top ten, both losing time on different parts of the Shanghai track. “Not a good lap,” Carlos Sainz Jnr reflected, while Max Verstappen owned up to locking his brakes at turn six.
Drivers eliminated in Q2
11 Pastor Maldonado Lotus-Mercedes 1’38.134
12 Daniil Kvyat Red Bull-Renault 1’38.209
13 Max Verstappen Toro Rosso-Renault 1’38.393
14 Carlos Sainz Jnr Toro Rosso-Renault 1’38.538
15 Sergio Perez Force India-Mercedes 1’39.290
Q3
In a repeat of what happened last time in Malaysia, Hamilton’s first run proved good enough for pole position – but one of his rivals came very close to snatching it away from him. This time it was Rosberg, who ended a lap which had not looked promising at first with a flying final sector which left him just four hundredths of a second off his team mate. “Oh come on guys!” he exclaimed when told how close he had come to pipping Hamilton. The Ferrari drivers used old tyres for their first run which left them around two seconds off the Mercedes. Nonetheless Vettel managed to split the two Williams drivers, Bottas having had a messy first lap including a costly slide at the exit of turn 12. His second effort was cleaner, but for the third time in a row he was beaten by Massa, who produced what he called a “great lap”. Raikkonen was mystified by his car’s handling in the first sector and qualified behind both the FW37s while Vettel beat the pair of them to claim third.
Top ten in Q3
1 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 1’35.782
2 Nico Rosberg Mercedes 1’35.824
3 Sebastian Vettel Ferrari 1’36.687
4 Felipe Massa Williams-Mercedes 1’36.954
5 Valtteri Bottas Williams-Mercedes 1’37.143
6 Kimi Raikkonen Ferrari 1’37.232
7 Daniel Ricciardo Red Bull-Renault 1’37.540
8 Romain Grosjean Lotus-Mercedes 1’37.905
9 Felipe Nasr Sauber-Ferrari 1’38.067
10 Marcus Ericsson Sauber-Ferrari 1’38.158

Kind Regards
Shaky - Schumi

Result of the 3rd practice session :

1. Lewis Hamilton - Mercedes GP - 1:37.615
2. Nico Rosberg - Mercedes GP - 1:37.841 +0.226
3. Sebastian Vettel - Ferrari - 1:38.313 +0.698
4. Kimi Räikkönen - Ferrari - 1:38.512 +0.897
5. Daniel Ricciardo - Red Bull Racing - 1:39.020 +1.405
6. Daniil Kvyat - Red Bull Racing - 1:39.106 +1.491
7. Carlos Sainz jr - Toro Rosso - 1:39.113 +1.498
8. Valtteri Bottas - Williams - 1:39.243 +1.628
9. Max Verstappen - Toro Rosso - 1:39.274 +1.659
10. Romain Grosjean - Lotus - 1:39.405 +1.790
11. Felipe Massa - Williams - 1:39.410 +1.795
12. Nico Hulkenberg - Force India - 1:39.513 +1.898
13. Marcus Ericsson - Sauber - 1:39.559 +1.944
14. Felipe Nasr - Sauber - 1:39.591 +1.976
15. Jenson Button - McLaren - 1:39.694 +2.079
16. Pastor Maldonado - Lotus - 1:39.766 +2.151
17. Sergio Perez - Force India - 1:39.781 +2.166
18. Will Stevens - Manor F1 Team - 1:42.928 +5.313
19. Roberto Merhi - Manor F1 Team - 1:44.956 +7.341
20. Fernando Alonso - McLaren - no time

Kind Regards
Shaky - Schumi

Result of the 2nd practice session :

1. Lewis Hamilton - Mercedes GP - 1:37.219
2. Kimi Räikkönen - Ferrari - 1:37.662 +0.443
3. Daniel Ricciardo - Red Bull Racing - 1:38.311 +1.092
4. Sebastian Vettel - Ferrari - 1:38.339 +1.120
5. Nico Rosberg - Mercedes GP - 1:38.399 +1.180
6. Daniil Kvyat - Red Bull Racing - 1:38.737 +1.518
7. Valtteri Bottas - Williams - 1:38.850 +1.631
8. Felipe Nasr - Sauber - 1:39.032 +1.813
9. Romain Grosjean - Lotus - 1:39.142 +1.923
10. Jenson Button - McLaren - 1:39.275 +2.056
11. Pastor Maldonado - Lotus - 1:39.444 +2.225
12. Fernando Alonso - McLaren - 1:39.743 +2.524
13. Marcus Ericsson - Sauber - 1:39.751 +2.532
14. Max Verstappen - Toro Rosso - 1:39.894 +2.675
15. Carlos Sainz jr - Toro Rosso - 1:39.971 +2.752
16. Nico Hulkenberg - Force India - 1:40.151 +2.932
17. Felipe Massa - Williams - 1:40.423 +3.204
18. Sergio Perez - Force India - 1:40.868 +3.649
19. Roberto Merhi - Manor F1 Team - 1:42.973 +5.754
20. Will Stevens - Manor F1 Team - 1:44.564 +7.345

Hamilton holds reduced lead in second practice
Lewis Hamilton led a Chinese Grand Prix Formula 1 practice session punctuated by a high-speed incident for Felipe Massa, brake failure for Daniil Kvyat and a spectator crossing the track. Nico Rosberg could only manage fifth in the second Mercedes, with Kimi Raikkonen emerging as Hamilton's closest rival and Daniel Ricciardo putting his Red Bull between Raikkonen and Sebastian Vettel's Ferraris in third. The spectator incident was the first curiosity. The man accessed the track on the pit straight and ran across to the pitwall between cars before climbing into the pitlane, where he was apprehended. At that point, Hamilton led Rosberg by a tenth of a second following the early medium-tyre runs, with the Mercedes formation a second clear of the rest. Raikkonen was their closest rival, and initially managed the best soft-tyre lap of anyone, leaping to a 1m37.662s to lead the session. That was seven tenths better than Vettel and Rosberg - who had a messy final sector - could manage. But Hamilton was able to put together a tidier lap than his team-mate and came through in 1m37.219s to steal Ferrari's limelight. The Red Bulls sat out the first half of the session and were then interrupted by a red flag when they did join in. Felipe Massa lost his Williams at high speed under braking at the end of the back straight, scraping the wall in the hairpin run-off with the front of his sideways car. Although there appeared to be only minimal damage, Massa parked in the run-off and a stoppage was required to retrieve the car. When Ricciardo did get chance to do a flying lap, he shot between the Ferraris to go third, with Kvyat taking sixth. But Kvyat's session then came to an early end when smoke started pouring from his rear brakes. Even though he followed Red Bull's advice to proceed very slowly back towards the pits, the Russian could not slow down sufficiently into the Turn 14 hairpin and skated all the way to the wall. Kvyat still held his top-six place as by that time the field had switched to long runs - which were enlivened by Rosberg and Raikkonen managing several corners of unusually spicy wheel-to-wheel racing for a practice session. There were signs of light for McLaren, as its new alliance with Honda appeared in the top 10 in a session result for the first time. Jenson Button managed 10th place, behind Valtteri Bottas, Felipe Nasr and Romain Grosjean, with Fernando Alonso in 12th. At the back, Will Stevens lost part of the session to an engine problem, but was able to rejoin right at the end.

Kind Regards
Shaky - Schumi

Result of the 1st practice session :

1. Lewis Hamilton - Mercedes GP - 1:39.033
2. Nico Rosberg - Mercedes GP - 1:39.574 +0.541
3. Sebastian Vettel - Ferrari - 1:40.157 +1.124
4. Kimi Räikkönen - Ferrari - 1:40.661 +1.628
5. Felipe Nasr - Sauber - 1:41.012 +1.979
6. Daniel Ricciardo - Red Bull Racing - 1:41.029 +1.996
7. Daniil Kvyat - Red Bull Racing - 1:41.097 +2.064
8. Carlos Sainz jr - Toro Rosso - 1:41.112 +2.079
9. Valtteri Bottas - Williams - 1:41.303 +2.270
10. Felipe Massa - Williams - 1:41.304 +2.271
11. Pastor Maldonado - Lotus - 1:41.335 +2.302
12. Max Verstappen - Toro Rosso - 1:41.575 +2.542
13. Jenson Button - McLaren - 1:41.845 +2.812
14. Marcus Ericsson - Sauber - 1:41.918 +2.885
15. Jolyon Palmer - Lotus - 1:41.967 +2.934
16. Sergio Perez - Force India - 1:42.141 +3.108
17. Fernando Alonso - McLaren - 1:42.161 +3.128
18. Nico Hulkenberg - Force India - 1:42.184 +3.151
19. Will Stevens - Manor F1 Team - 1:45.379 +6.346
20. Roberto Merhi - Manor F1 Team - 1:46.443 +7.410

Mercedes set scorching pace in first practice :
Lewis Hamilton led Nico Rosberg in a commanding Mercedes one-two in the opening practice session for Formula 1's Chinese Grand Prix at Shanghai. Rosberg had been the initial pacesetter on a 1m40.412s, as Hamilton's first lap was spoiled when he locked up and ran off-course at the tight Turn 14 hairpin. It was Rosberg's turn to go awry on the second outings, though, locking up into Turn 6 and visiting the run-off area. He managed to improve the benchmark to a 1m39.574s later in that run, but Hamilton outpaced it by half a second as he did a 1m39.033s just after the session's halfway mark. That lap kept the world champion on top to the flag, although the Mercedes continued to push on heavier fuel in the final part of the session. In cold and breezy conditions, countless drivers had minor excursions and the Mercedes pair were among the most frequent transgressors, with Hamilton repeating Rosberg's Turn 6 error and later skittering sideways off-track at Turn 1 after losing the back end mid-corner. When Hamilton established himself on top, the Mercedes were nearly two and a half seconds clear of the rest of the field. That margin came down, but even Malaysian GP winner Sebastian Vettel's best lap for Ferrari was still 1.1s off the pace as he took third. That lap came in the final seconds of the session, and until that point Vettel had looked set to end up 1.5s down on the leader. Three Ferrari-powered cars chased the Mercedes, with Kimi Raikkonen slotting in behind team-mate Vettel and Felipe Nasr making a late jump to fifth for Sauber. Renault's best cars were sixth to eighth - Red Bull duo Daniel Ricciardo and Daniil Kvyat leading Toro Rosso man Carlos Sainz Jr, who swiftly escaped a spin at Turn 1 in the first part of the session. The Williams of Valtteri Bottas and Felipe Massa completed the top 10, despite Massa spinning down the run-off at the hairpin on a late run. Pastor Maldonado spent a long spell in third for Lotus before falling back to 11th. His team-mate Romain Grosjean stood aside to let GP2 champion and Lotus test driver Jolyon Palmer make his debut in a grand prix practice session. Palmer had an early spin and was 15th, 0.6s off Maldonado. Jenson Button was the quicker of the McLarens in 13th, while the Manor-run Marussias trailed the field but had a trouble-free session.

Kind Regards
Shaky - Schumi

Here are the times for this weekends Chinese GP :

Friday 10/04 :
1st practice session : 04.00u CET - 05.30u CET
2nd practice session : 08.00u CET - 09.30u CET

Saturday 11/04 :
3rd practice session : 06.00u CET - 07.00u CET
Qualifying : 09.00u CET - 10.00u CET

Sunday 12/04 :
Race : 08.00u CET

Kind Regards
Shaky - Schumi