Raikkonen's Red Return

FELIPE'S FERRARI FAREWELL
Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo said at Monza that he wanted to get the driver line up for next season sorted. The first major step towards that was made, with Felipe Massa's departure being announced on September 10. The Brazilian said on his Twitter and Instagram accounts:

"From 2014 I will no longer be driving for Ferrari. I would like to thank the team for all the victories and incredible moments experienced together. For next year, I want to find a team that can give me a competitive car to win many more races and challenge for the Championship.

"Lol bye" - F. Massa, 2013

While Massa's early career with Ferrari was indeed successful, scoring an excellent 11 wins, his accident in Hungary 2009 appeared to have damaged more than just his head, and his form took a dip. His 2010 season was his comeback, so some margin for recuperation can be left, but he failed to score any podiums in 2011, by which time it might not be so big of an ask that he had returned to form.

However, since the mid point of 2012, he has been extremely strong scoring points in every race of the second part of 2012, rounding off the year with a superb 3rd place in his home race. He has only failed to finish in the points three times this year, once in Bahrain (tyre failure) then Monaco (Brake failure) and Germany, where he spun off.

Massa's former team mate and one of the most popular drivers in the sport, Kimi Raikkonen was confirmed as his replacement on September 11. The pair were teammates from 2007 to 2009, when Raikkonen won the '07 title, and Massa came oh-so-close to doing so the following year.

OH I DO LOVE WHEN SILLY SEASON BEGINS TO FALL INTO PLACE...

This move opens up a space at Lotus, which could be taken by di Resta or Hulkenberg, the two other names tipped to replace Massa at Ferrari. Hulkenberg looks most likely to join Lotus at this moment, with that leaving the door open for Massa to return to Sauber, the team at which he started his career.

Massa's future has not yet been decided, though. I would expect Massa to go back to the Swiss team, who have just recently confirmed that Russian teenager Sergey Sirotkin will join the team, providing that he gains his FIA Superlicense. If Massa did go, it's unclear whether his long-term race engineer Rob Smedley would jump. The two are the closest Driver-Engineer pairing you will ever come accross, and I would be surprised if Smedley didn't follow 'Felipe Baby' to wherever he next settles.

ROOSTERS IN THE HENHOUSE
Ferrari's team mantra has always been that the team's needs outweigh any of the individuals that are a part of it, prompting some questionable moves in the past. Just ask the outgoing Massa about Germany 2010, but don't tell him that Fernando is faster...

Anyway, this ideology of the team coming first means that they tend to back one driver for the World Championship and the other plays a support role. Eddie Irvine and Rubens Barrichello bore the unfortunate 'No. 2' role when partnering Michael Schumacher, similar to Mark Webber's position in Red Bull now, but with Raikkonen AND Alonso there is very little to tip the scales.

In fact in 2008, Luca di Montezemolo famously said that the duo would not be a good idea, possibly after the fallout of Alonso and Hamilton's 2007 scuffle. The team have rarely employed drivers of a similar level really - Berger and Alesi were arguably even in the 90s, but neither was capable of winning the Championship. You have to go as far back as 1953 to find a Ferrari team with two World Champions - Alberto Ascari and Guiseppe Farina. The two Italians are the only from that country to have won the WDC, with Ascari the only one to do it for the Scuderia. However, in 1953, Ascari was far superior to Farina, probably due to the latter's age.

McLaren are a contrast to Ferrari and always give both drivers an equal shot at the Championship if they can. When they signed Button in 2009, they had the two most recent champions in the sport, and after three years together, the pair hadn't really come close to the Championship, with Button coming second in 2011 the best attempt. So, with two Goliaths of the sport in the same team, who will be the victor? Will we see another 2007-esque strop from Alonso, or will we see a disappointing season from Kimi like in 2008?

Just know that as the two drivers closest to Vettel, Ferrari have very real designs on the Constructors' Championship.

Have McLaren turned a corner?

SHAKY 2013 SEASON
Woking's illustrious and irreplaceable outfit are the darlings of many an F1 fan. I'm particularly fond of the British marque. My upbringing was rich in F1, and during the early 2000s in my formative years, I witnessed the resilience and hardiness of McLaren as they battled diligently against the might of Ferrari. Two legendary drivers, David Coulthard and Mika Hakkinen were my absolute favourites, but they were held back by speedy, yet unreliable cars.

This fascination with all things McLaren was increased twice more - by Kimi Raikkonen's meteoric rise to the top, and Lewis Hamilton's similarly rapid climb to the throne of World Champion. However, 2013 has been a dreadful year so far. With only one points finish worthy of double figures (Button scored 10 points in China for 5th place) the team look in trouble, especially when you compare that to last year, where they had already won three races by this point.

Comparisons to last year are futile though. They are not the same team, with huge names like Lewis Hamilton and Paddy Lowe departing in 2012. The car is different too - for 2013 McLaren have tried what Red Bull and Ferrari have mastered in the past few seasons, which is a pull-rod suspension setup. This differs from conventional push-rod systems, and allows for a tighter aerodynamic package at the front. But quite clearly, the MP4-28's version doesn't work quite as well.

Sergio Perez is still developing as a driver, so you can perhaps excuse, or expect a lower points tally for him (even though he was supreme in the Sauber last year) however Button is F1's longest-serving driver at the moment, and you would maybe have higher expectations of him.

FORWARDS TO THE PAST
This season is reminiscent of 2009. Can you remember that far back? The season where cars were very short and stubby, slicks returned, and only a few cars had KERS. Very different from now, with the long cars and omnipresent KERS. Despite these differences, though, McLaren's plight is very similar. Their driver lineup consists of a World Champion (2009 Hamilton, 2013 Button) and a young driver who is in his third season, and impressed the year before (2009 Kovalainen, 2013 Perez).

The points they've scored are not drastically different either. Below is a line graph, depicting the sporadic and inconsistent points scored up to round eleven of each season.

Looking at this graph, you should remember that in 2009 points were only awarded to 8th place. If we take Hamilton's 9th place in Spain 2009, McLaren get an extra two points, bringing them up to 51. But of course, points were awarded differently back then too. If we convert those 51 points into 'Metric' (2010-present) points, McLaren net themselves a hefty 107 for 2009. So compared to 2009, they're technically doing worse, considering that tally plus a win and second place for Hamilton by this point as well.

So this is uncharted territory: We have to look really far back to find McLaren in this poor form. 2006 was a difficult year, just after losing sponsorship from West Cigarettes (before they found their feet with Vodafone) and also losing the brainpower of Adrian Newey; the team didn't manage a win all season. However, there were 9 podiums and three pole positions, something the team will almost categorically NOT achieve this season.

Perhaps the most fitting comparison would be to that of 1995. The team had a decent but not brilliant season the one previous, but looked to be innovative and groundbreaking for the season next.  In 2013 as we have discussed, they have attempted this with the Pull-rod Suspension-Aero setup, which doesn't look to have worked. In 1995, the height of their technology meant that a 'needle' pointy nose on the front of the car and a small wing on top of the airbox (not mandated for all cars for a camera) were considered revolutionary, but the former paid no benefits, and the airbox-mounted wing was much larger than the Television camera housings and provided unnecessary drag to an area of the car which required no such aerodynamic intervention.

Back to the graph though - it's clear to see that while the start of the season has been not only erratic but also dismal, there is an undeniable peak forming, with the summit in Hungary. Whether they can continue to climb through the Asian season is a mystery, but the results indicate that they have indeed made a step forward.

TOOLS OF SELF-DESTRUCTION
Past allegories aside, the team are questionably starting to turn things around. Any common BBC viewers will remember David Coulthard's unfortunately accurate remarks in Melbourne:

"It's not just slow in the corners, it looks slow in a straight line as well!"

Jonathan Neale believes that the problem they've had with the car is the translation from Wind-tunnel to actual, physical data. The car's predecessor, MP4-27 was the fastest car for much of the 2012 season. It's hard to fathom how, but the team seemed to go blunderingly backwards from then, losing much ground on competitors.

Do you remember the first test in Jerez? In January? McLaren topped the sheets on Day 1. Rather embarrassingly, this was because of a chassis component being fitted wrongly, and it was unsafe to leave it in place. Perhaps it would have been a credible decision to make this fitting 'right'...?

Perhaps the car's sluggish start to life can be forgiven, since the wind tunnels were telling the team that it was faster than it really was - but by now, a team as prestigious as McLaren should've caught up. Okay, I'm being mean now.

UPGRADES
McLaren's sporting director Sam Michael revealed that the team are not bringing a huge raft of improvements to Monza this weekend. This is because of two key things: 1) It's Monza - where there is absolutely minimal downforce required, and 2) The team have now switched their developmental focus to 2014's car, which will likely be given the chassis designation MP4-29.

Michael continued, and noted that the team are looking to bring a big package of upgrades to the streets of Singapore at the end of the month. This will provide the team with a fighting chance in the Asian and Southern American rounds, as the season begins to wind down. Perhaps they can net that illusive podium after all - Button was definitely on course for one in Spa, but a dreadful strategy call butchered that chance. I'm baffled as to why he pitted, actually.

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY
Finally, in a much happier tone, it's fantastic to celebrate McLaren's 50th Anniversary as an operating race car company. New Zealander Bruce McLaren first set up camp in Woking on September 2nd, 1963, and the team is one of the most successful in history. To join in the celebrations, head over to The McLaren Website. 

Seb Sublime in Spa

The luscious Ardennes Forest houses the historic Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps. The track is the longest on the calendar and also one of the longest-standing tracks in the sport, running for 20 years straight (1950-1970) and then taking a break while Zolder and Nivelles-Baulers had a go. Zolder was deemed too unsafe, and Nivelles too boring, and in Spa was favoured once more, and since 1983 the race has been held there, apart from in 2003 when Tobacco laws were disputed, and 2006 when the final Bus Stop Chicane and pit buildings were modified.

The race last year was won by Jenson Button, and despite the improvements that McLaren will have undoubtedly been toiling away at this past month, the team look unlikely to be on the podium in this year's race. Button's excellent win last year was overshadowed by the colossal pile-up that Romain Grosjean caused at the start of the race. The Frenchman looks to be calmer this year, though, so hopefully we should see a less chaotic start.

NEWS
After four decades weeks, the Summer break is finally over! Formula One returns with a vengeance this weekend, as the European leg of the Season comes to an end, and the paddock move on to Asia and America. During the summer break the usual silly-season transfer talk began, or rather, continued. Red Bull have finally put to bed the completely stupid speculation that Raikkonen could be moving to their team next year. I told you so. Anyway, this makes Daniel Ricciardo's prospects look all the more promising. I'm not going to link you to that article again, but it's pertinent once again. Perhaps I should digress before my head grows any more...

Marussia will be switching to Ferrari for next year since Cosworth have decided to abandon their F1 plans. That leaves the F1 Engine situation as the following:

Red Bull - Renault
Ferrari - Ferrari (Obviously)
McLaren - Mercedes
Lotus - Renault
Mercedes - Mercedes (Durrr)
Sauber - Ferrari
Force India -Mercedes
Williams - Mercedes
Toro Rosso - Renault
Caterham - Renault
Marussia - Ferrari

And the Official 2014 engine customer League Table...
Renault - 4
Mercedes - 4
Ferrari - 3

Though the number of suppliers has reduced, it's worth remembering Honda will return in 2015 to power the McLaren MP4-30.

Aside from that engine news, not a lot has happened mid-season. Unless of course you count Fernando Alonso's ticking-off from Luca di Montezemolo (for being a bit rude about his Ferrari) as news.

Mention practice sessions

QUALIFYING REPORT
Q1 started with a shower. The rain drenched the track in most places, and intermediates were the way to go. However, the deluge paused momentarily, and dry tyres became viable. Both Williams and Toro Rosso got the timing wrong, though and switched to slicks too early. All four cars were eliminated along with Charles Pic and Sauber's Esteban Gutierrez.

Car eliminated after Q1
17) Maldonado
18) Vergne
19) Ricciardo
20) Bottas
21) Gutierrez
22) Pic

The second Session was pretty much dry - the fastest time in this session was some 12 seconds quicker than actual pole. Such a thing could only happen in Spa. The plight of the dark blue cars (Williams and Toro Rosso) in Q1 meant some of the backmarkers rubbed elbows with more conventional midfielders.

Cars eliminated after Q2
11) Hulkenberg
12) Sutil
13) Perez
14) van der Garde
15) Bianchi
16) Chilton

This was perhaps the most frenetic, awesome, nerve-racking and incredible qualifying session of the season, maybe the best I've ever seen. Everyone went out on slick tyres at the start, save for di Resta and Massa. The Ferrari pilot botched a great chance to re-live his Ferrari glory days, and ended up 10th. By the time the two were on their hot lap, everyone else had dived into the pits for more appropriate rubber - Intermediate tyres.

Paul di Resta set the benchmark of 2:02:332, and it looked like the Scot was going to snatch his first ever pole position. Commentators, friends, spectators and mysel endured a gruelling 4-minute wait on tenterhooks, This was shattered, though, in the last 30 seconds and after the chequered flag - Rosberg went fastest, then Webber bumped him down to 3rd, followed by Vettel taking Pole, who was swiftly dispatched by Hamilton. 

The Final Top Ten
1) Hamilton
2) Vettel
3) Webber
4) Rosberg
5) di Resta
6) Button
7) Grosjean
8) Raikkonen
9) Alonso
10) Massa
 
RACE DAY
All eyes turned to the skies on Sunday morning; the circuit's famous 'mini-climate' is all-too familiar to everyone, but radars indicated no rain until 4pm, well after the race finish.

As the five lights went out Hamilton and Vettel made decent starts and led the way, while behind Button and Alonso started brilliantly, getting up to 4th and 5th respectively. As the leaders climbed through Eau Rouge, Vettel picked up a tremendous slipstream on Hamilton, and duly passed him before the Les Combe chicane.

Leaders of the pack: Vettel jumps Hamilton on Lap 1.

Lap two saw Fernando Alonso hounding Jenson button at the same piece of track as the aforementioned manouvre. He couldn't get the jump on the McLaren straight away, but by lap 4, he had perfected the move, and shimmied past.


Lap eight saw Grosjean and Perez come to blows. The Mexican moved down the inside of the Frenchman, but moved right over on him, and Romain was forced off the track. That's just not allowed, and the McLaren driver was awarded a lovely Drive-through Penalty.

Pushy Perez: Romain had to take avoiding action from the stubborn Mexican

.

Hamilton diced with two former Renault team-mates Grosjean and Alonso. Firstly he had a nip-and-tuck challenge with the Frenchman after he pitted on Lap 13. He re-joined just behind the Lotus, then passed him at Les Combe, before losing the place again. The Brit got past him the next lap round, but by that time, he had lost ground on the leaders and crucially, when Alonso emerged from the pits, he was right behind Lewis.

This led to sparring between the McLaren class of 2007. Hamilton began Lap 15 ahead of Alonso, but moved over at the La Source hairpin with the intention of getting DRS by being behind at the detection point. He chased the Spaniard along the Kemmel straight, but was surprisingly unable to pass; the Ferrari's gearing was superior and got the better of the Mercedes. From that point on, Alonso remained ahead.

On a personal note, my heart broke on Lap 25 when Kimi Raikkonen succumbed to brake fade/failure. He was chasing his former team mate Felipe Massa for several laps. He saved all his KERS energy for the run out of Stavelot towards the Bus Stop chicane, but when it came to braking, his car would not oblige, and he was forced to go wide in order to slow down. 

Kimi's illuminated discs were prevalent from an early stage.

On the grounds of safety, the Finn opted to retire his car, bringing an end to his incredible string of 38 finishes since Germany 2009. He was just three races shy of Nick Heidfeld's 41-race finishing record, although Kimi's stint actually contained wins (3) while 'Quick Nick's' did not.

Raikkonen's title chances take a hit.

The biggest and no doubt most expensive accident occured on lap 29 when Pastor Maldonado annihilated Paul di Resta's VJM06. The whole incident started at Stavelot, when Pastor got an enormous sideways slide on. He drifted through the corner (you had to look quite close on TV to notice) and this allowed Esteban Gutierrez in the Sauber behind to get alongside him. They went through Blanchimont and into the Bus Stop chicane side-by-side, and the Mexican got past. This left Maldonado out of place, and as he tried to recover, he skimmed Adrian Sutil's front wing, and then slammed into the rear-left tyre of di Resta's car, sending it through the rear suspsension and rear wing. It was a great shame considering Paul's excellent qualifying, but the Stewards decided no penalty was necessary, deeming it a racing incident.

di Rest-In-Pieces: Paul's Force India is obliterated.

For the remainder of the race, the top ten shuffled around. Jenson Button looked on course for an excellent 3rd place finish. Sat behind Alonso in second, his 1 stop strategy looked set to pay of handsomely, but strangely - despite setting competitive lap times on his Hard Tyres - he opted to pit on Lap 35, just 9 laps from the close. This dropped him down to 7th. His new tyres were able to give him an edge though, and he powered past Grosjean too. Romain's downfall did not end there - he was surpassed by Massa with 5 laps to go as well, relegating the Frenchman to 8th.


Maldonado was given a 10-place Stop & Go penalty in the last few laps for his collision with the Force Indias. It did little to the standings though, as he was already in 16th. The only other action in the closing part of the race was Daniel Ricciardo. The now-confirmed Red Bull driver put aside a dreadful qualifying session (where he placed 19th) and managed to overtake Sergio Perez for 10th place and a single (but very valuable) point. Daniel's soon-to-be team mate rounded the final few laps and subsequently set the fastest time of the race; his lead over second-placed driver Alonso was 17 seconds.
 

How the 1% live... Hamilton and Vettel spray Champers on David Coulthard.

Lap Leaders
S Vettel 1-44

Finishing Positions
1. S Vettel, Red Bull Racing
2. F Alonso, Ferrari
3. L Hamilton, Mercedes AMG
4. N Rosberg, Mercedes AMG
5. M Webber, Red Bull Racing
6. J Button, McLaren
7. F Massa, Ferrari
8. R Grosjean, Lotus
9. A Sutil, Force India
10. D Ricciardo, Toro Rosso
11. S Perez, McLaren
12. JE Vergne, Toro Rosso
13. N Hulkenberg, Sauber
14. E Gutierrez, Sauber
15. V Bottas, Williams
16. G van der Garde, Williams
17. P Maldonado, Williams
18. J Bianchi, Marussia
19. M Chilton, Marussia

Out/Unclassified
P di Resta, Force India (Collision)
K Raikkonen, Lotus (Brakes)
C Pic, Caterham (Hydraulics)

PENULTIMATE PONDERING
I made the mistake of saying to a friend before this race:
 
"I don't care what happens, because it's Spa, and something interesting always happens."

Well, it didn't. It was a pretty boring race for myself to be honest with you. It might have been the fact that I was at work when it was on, and I was recording it on my DVR to watch later, then a colleague blurted out the result. Maybe it was that, but basically, there wasn't enough excitement - once Vettel got past Hamilton it was game over, as he'd already got outside of the DRS zone by lap 3.
 
PLEASE check out my Lap Guide Video. It's a dream of mine to be a journalist in the realm of F1, and I created a sort of commentary/lap guide video over the top of Hamilton's pole.
 
Driver of the day:
Sebastian Vettel. Quite simply unbeatable.

THANKS
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