(Mercedes AMG F1 Team)
Mercedes AMG PETRONAS F1 Team are the 2014 FIA Formula One Constructors championships following a dominant 1-2 finish at today's inaugural Russian Grand Prix in Sochi as Lewis Hamilton took victory ahead team mate Nico Rosberg taking his four victory in a row and taking a 17 point lead over the German as the sport heads to Austin for the US Grand Prix in three weeks time.
Rosberg made a mistake going into turn one as he challenged Hamilton for the lead flat spotting his tyre and running wide. He had to give the place back to Hamilton and make a pit-stop at the end of the first lap and did a sensational stint of 52 laps on a single set of the Pirelli Medium compound rubber to fight back to finish in second place.
It was a great race for the Williams Martini Racing Team as Valtteri Bottas claimed another podium finish for the Grove based outfit, their 6th of the season. The result now lifts the Finn ahead of reigning world champion Sebastian Vettel. The Williams Martini Racing Team have now extended their lead over Ferrari in the championship to 28 points.
It was an absolutely fantastic day for the McLaren Mercedes team as Jenson Button finished the race in fourth place while team mate Kevin Magnussen finished the race in fifth place which has meant that the Woking based outfit have taken a 20 point lead over the Sahara Force India Formula One Team in the race for fifth place in the Constructors championship with three race's remaining this season.
Ferrari's Fernando Alonso fought off a late challenge from a charging Infiniti Red Bull Racing of Daniel Ricciardo who was to finish in 6th place with the Australian finishing in 7th place. The Australian commented by saying:
'The first few laps were pretty hectic and we lost a few places at the start. We will have to have a look at that, it’s nearly the end of the season now, but we haven’t had many good starts so that’s a bit frustrating.
Starting the race the tyre was already blistered, it had quite a bit from qualifying, so it wasn’t looking too healthy and the first stint made it worse; I could see it starting to come apart, so we had to pit quiet early. Then on the prime the tyre lasted well and we had good pace and could match Alonso, but couldn’t get past. Congrats to Mercedes – it’s been a dominant season by them, so hats off to them.'
'The first few laps were pretty hectic and we lost a few places at the start. We will have to have a look at that, it’s nearly the end of the season now, but we haven’t had many good starts so that’s a bit frustrating.
Starting the race the tyre was already blistered, it had quite a bit from qualifying, so it wasn’t looking too healthy and the first stint made it worse; I could see it starting to come apart, so we had to pit quiet early. Then on the prime the tyre lasted well and we had good pace and could match Alonso, but couldn’t get past. Congrats to Mercedes – it’s been a dominant season by them, so hats off to them.'
Reigning world champion Sebastian Vettel finished the race in 8th place following an early battle with team mate Daniel Ricciardo. The German stated:
'I had a good start and then a tough battle with Daniel, but from then onwards the speed was nothing special, we had the same issues as we had in qualifying. I was alone for a lot of the race, the beginning was entertaining, but after that it wasn’t that busy. Congratulations to Mercedes on the title, they deserve it.'
Infiniti Red Bull Racing team principal Christian Horner commented:
'Firstly congratulations to Mercedes on an excellent campaign to win the Constructors’ Championship; they’ve done a stunning job this year and after four years in Milton Keynes that trophy will now move up the road to Brackley. It was a fairly uneventful race for us.
Tyre degradation was not really a factor; we had a concern with the option tyre with Daniel, which is why we pitted so early, but that was pretty much it. Dan got pretty close to Alonso at the end who looked like he was in trouble on fuel, but we just didn’t have the pace on the straights to mount a serious challenge. So both cars home, a reliable race, but it’s been a Mercedes engine dominated event.'
'I had a good start and then a tough battle with Daniel, but from then onwards the speed was nothing special, we had the same issues as we had in qualifying. I was alone for a lot of the race, the beginning was entertaining, but after that it wasn’t that busy. Congratulations to Mercedes on the title, they deserve it.'
Infiniti Red Bull Racing team principal Christian Horner commented:
'Firstly congratulations to Mercedes on an excellent campaign to win the Constructors’ Championship; they’ve done a stunning job this year and after four years in Milton Keynes that trophy will now move up the road to Brackley. It was a fairly uneventful race for us.
Tyre degradation was not really a factor; we had a concern with the option tyre with Daniel, which is why we pitted so early, but that was pretty much it. Dan got pretty close to Alonso at the end who looked like he was in trouble on fuel, but we just didn’t have the pace on the straights to mount a serious challenge. So both cars home, a reliable race, but it’s been a Mercedes engine dominated event.'
Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen finished the race in 9th place just ahead of the Sahara Force India of Sergio Perez who rounded out the top ten to give the Silverstone based outfit one point. Speaking following the race, the Mexican stated:
'It was a very hard race and a very hard-earned point. We tried our best to push throughout the race, but obviously the fuel strategy was quite marginal – especially because I started the race on the medium and had to really push to keep in touch with the group on the softs. When I was on the softs,
it was hard to save fuel because I had to defend from Felipe [Massa] who was behind me for the whole of the second stint. So it was a hard afternoon, but hopefully we can be in better shape for the coming races.'
Felipe Massa had a great race coning through the field to finish the race in eleventh place after starting the race from 18th on the grid so will be disappointed to have missed out on a points scoring finish for the Grove based outfit.
Sahara Force India F1 Team's Nico Hulkenberg finished the race in 12th place just missing out on a points scoring finish for the Silverstone based outfit. Speaking following the race the German stated:
'It was quite a difficult race for me today. We started pretty far back on the grid and I was struggling a little with my straight-line speed compared to the cars with which I was battling.
We were doing well in the corners, but losing a bit of ground on the straights, which made it difficult to overtake, especially on a track like this, where the straights are the only good passing opportunities. We could have probably finished in a higher position had it not been for this. We will need to regroup and come back stronger in Austin.'
Sahara Force India F1 Team principal and managing director Dr Vijay Mallya stated:
'It was a difficult race on a track on which overtaking is nearly impossible. Checo was able to make his way past some of the other cars and mounted an impressive defence against Felipe Massa to claim the final point.
Unfortunately his earlier overtakes had claimed a toll on fuel consumption and he had to give up his chase of Raikkonen to save fuel, otherwise ninth might have been possible. Nico's race was compromised by his grid penalty, but he did well to close in on the top ten.
This result complicates a bit the battle for fifth in the Constructors' Championship, but with three races left, including the double-points finale in Abu Dhabi, everything can still happen. We will keep working hard and give 100% to bring the battle down to the wire.'
Toro Rosso's Jean Eric Vergne finished the race in 13th place just ahead of team mate Daniil Kvyat who was left extremely disappointed to have ended the race in 14th place.
The Sauber F1 Team duo of Esteban Gutierrez and Adrian Sutil finished the race in 15th and 16th place respectively. The team leave Russia in search of their first points of the season following a difficult year. Speaking about the race the Mexican stated:
'It was a clean race with an interesting first part. We were betting on having a safety car period during the first stint, and this is why we extended this run. It was not ideal for the strategy, but we took that risk and hoped to gain an advantage.
In the end, the safety car did not come out. Although I think the way the tyres were behaving and the way the car drove was pretty enjoyable, on the other hand finishing in P15 was very frustrating, after a race where almost everything went very well. However, we will keep fighting until the end of the season to have a chance to score points.'
Adrian Sutill commented on the race saying:
'The start on the medium tyres was difficult, as I had almost no grip. In addition, several drivers behind me put the soft compound on, which was a clear advantage. In Turn 1 I had no space and was forced to drop back. It was very slippery on this set, I lost some time in every corner and, as a result, positions.
We decided to go for an early pit stop in order to change to the soft tyres. Afterwards I was able to continue the race without major incidents, although the grip level reduced towards the end. We knew that the start on the medium tyres was a risky strategy in case there was no safety car period. In the end, no safety car came out. However, it was in general difficult to finish the race in the points with our pace. We still need to do our best during the upcoming races.”
Sauber F1 Team principal Monisha Keltenborn stated:
'We went into the race knowing that, under normal circumstances, things would be difficult for our team. Therefore we opted for a strategy which would have been beneficial in case of a safety car period. However, this didn’t work out, so we were not in a position to fight for points.'
The Sauber F1 Team Head of Track Engineering Giampaolo Dall'Ara commented saying:
'On the technical side of things everything was okay. The drivers did a good job, and the team worked well. So there was nothing to complain about. We decided for a split strategy, featuring pit stop windows out of the optimal ones, in order to cover most of the possibilities, as it was clear that, based on our current performance, there wouldn’t be many chances for us.
But, as everything in the race went smoothly, we couldn’t benefit from a special situation, so in the end we got what we expected with where we are at the moment.'
'It was a clean race with an interesting first part. We were betting on having a safety car period during the first stint, and this is why we extended this run. It was not ideal for the strategy, but we took that risk and hoped to gain an advantage.
In the end, the safety car did not come out. Although I think the way the tyres were behaving and the way the car drove was pretty enjoyable, on the other hand finishing in P15 was very frustrating, after a race where almost everything went very well. However, we will keep fighting until the end of the season to have a chance to score points.'
Adrian Sutill commented on the race saying:
'The start on the medium tyres was difficult, as I had almost no grip. In addition, several drivers behind me put the soft compound on, which was a clear advantage. In Turn 1 I had no space and was forced to drop back. It was very slippery on this set, I lost some time in every corner and, as a result, positions.
We decided to go for an early pit stop in order to change to the soft tyres. Afterwards I was able to continue the race without major incidents, although the grip level reduced towards the end. We knew that the start on the medium tyres was a risky strategy in case there was no safety car period. In the end, no safety car came out. However, it was in general difficult to finish the race in the points with our pace. We still need to do our best during the upcoming races.”
Sauber F1 Team principal Monisha Keltenborn stated:
'We went into the race knowing that, under normal circumstances, things would be difficult for our team. Therefore we opted for a strategy which would have been beneficial in case of a safety car period. However, this didn’t work out, so we were not in a position to fight for points.'
The Sauber F1 Team Head of Track Engineering Giampaolo Dall'Ara commented saying:
'On the technical side of things everything was okay. The drivers did a good job, and the team worked well. So there was nothing to complain about. We decided for a split strategy, featuring pit stop windows out of the optimal ones, in order to cover most of the possibilities, as it was clear that, based on our current performance, there wouldn’t be many chances for us.
But, as everything in the race went smoothly, we couldn’t benefit from a special situation, so in the end we got what we expected with where we are at the moment.'
The Lotus F1 Team pairing of Romain Grosjean and Pastor Maldonado finished the race in 17th and 18th place respectively and the team head to Austin hoping to score points for the first time since Monaco. Speaking following the race the Frenchman stated:
'The car felt okay to drive today, which was a big improvement on the previous two days and a testament to the work the team has put it over the week. The main challenge was the race start. It was hard to get the tyres up to temperature over the first few laps, so much so that I thought I had a puncture at the beginning.
After that, it was a straight-forward race aside from the incident with Adrian Sutil. He was on the softer tyres and had a lot more grip than me going into T3.
That corner closes up a bit on exit and he didn’t want to go too much off the racing line. I was already on the maximum for the braking zone and we just touched a little. It felt more like a racing incident to me but never mind, we head to Austin and hope for better things.'
Pastor Maldonado commented on his race by saying:
'We really struggled for balance on track today and it made for a very tough race for us. We started on the medium tyre, which made it difficult to make progress in the early laps. We then moved to the soft compound, but even late in the race it was a struggle to find grip.
My side of the garage lost out quite a lot from our issues on Saturday as we weren’t able to improve the car and in particular the balance. It was frustrating as we really wanted to put on a good show as the Sochi Autodrom is a fantastic circuit. I can’t wait to return next year in a faster car with a different tyre allocation as there is fantastic potential here.'
The Lotus F1 Team's deputy team principal, Frederico Gastaldi commented by saying:
'Our performance today was nothing to write home about which is a complete contrast to the facility here and the reaction we received to Formula 1 on our first visit to Russia.
The Sochi Autodrom is highly impressive and there is a lot of potential for great racing over the years to come. Both our drivers kept focused and brought their cars home, but we share their frustration at the performance level here this weekend. We have three races left in 2014, but our focus is very much on 2015 as we target a return to form.'
The Ensotne outfit's Trackside Operations Director, Alan Permane stated:
'We ran a split tyre strategy on our cars but we struggled with both approaches. It’s no secret that this circuit didn’t suit our car with the tyre allocation too hard for us to be able to make anything of this weekend.
Pastor obviously faced the setback from missing most of the running yesterday whilst Romain also received a five-second penalty in the race which did seem tough. We certainly hope for better results and performance from the final three races of the season.'
'The car felt okay to drive today, which was a big improvement on the previous two days and a testament to the work the team has put it over the week. The main challenge was the race start. It was hard to get the tyres up to temperature over the first few laps, so much so that I thought I had a puncture at the beginning.
After that, it was a straight-forward race aside from the incident with Adrian Sutil. He was on the softer tyres and had a lot more grip than me going into T3.
That corner closes up a bit on exit and he didn’t want to go too much off the racing line. I was already on the maximum for the braking zone and we just touched a little. It felt more like a racing incident to me but never mind, we head to Austin and hope for better things.'
Pastor Maldonado commented on his race by saying:
'We really struggled for balance on track today and it made for a very tough race for us. We started on the medium tyre, which made it difficult to make progress in the early laps. We then moved to the soft compound, but even late in the race it was a struggle to find grip.
My side of the garage lost out quite a lot from our issues on Saturday as we weren’t able to improve the car and in particular the balance. It was frustrating as we really wanted to put on a good show as the Sochi Autodrom is a fantastic circuit. I can’t wait to return next year in a faster car with a different tyre allocation as there is fantastic potential here.'
The Lotus F1 Team's deputy team principal, Frederico Gastaldi commented by saying:
'Our performance today was nothing to write home about which is a complete contrast to the facility here and the reaction we received to Formula 1 on our first visit to Russia.
The Sochi Autodrom is highly impressive and there is a lot of potential for great racing over the years to come. Both our drivers kept focused and brought their cars home, but we share their frustration at the performance level here this weekend. We have three races left in 2014, but our focus is very much on 2015 as we target a return to form.'
The Ensotne outfit's Trackside Operations Director, Alan Permane stated:
'We ran a split tyre strategy on our cars but we struggled with both approaches. It’s no secret that this circuit didn’t suit our car with the tyre allocation too hard for us to be able to make anything of this weekend.
Pastor obviously faced the setback from missing most of the running yesterday whilst Romain also received a five-second penalty in the race which did seem tough. We certainly hope for better results and performance from the final three races of the season.'
The Caterham F1 Team's Marcus Ericsson was the last runner as Kamui Kobayashi retired as did the Marussia F1 Team's Max Chilton. The next race in Austin, Texas takes place in three weeks time, from 31st October to 2 November.
Drivers Championship
1 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes AMG PETRONAS F1 Team 291 Points
2 Nico Rosberg Mercedes AMG PETRONA88S F1 Team 274
3 Daniel Ricciardo Infiniti Red Bull Racing 199
4 Valtteri Bottas Williams Martini Racing Team 145
5 Sebastian Vettel Infiniti Red Bull Racing 143
6 Fernando Alonso Ferrari 141
7 Jenson Button McLaren Mercedes 94
8 Nico Hulkenberg Sahara Force India Formula One Team 76
9 Felipe Massa Williams Martini Racing Team 71
10 Kevin Magnussen McLaren Mercedes 49
11 Sergio Perez Sahara Force India Formula One Team 47
12 Kimi Raikkonen Ferrari 47
13 Jean Eric Vergne Scuderia Toro Rosso 21
14 Romain Grosjean Lotus F1 Team 8
15 Damiil Kvyat Scuderia Toro Rosso 8
16 Jules Bianchi Marussia F1 Team 2
Constructors Championship
1 Mercedes AMG PETRONAS F1 Team 565 Points 2014 Constructors champions
2 Infiniti Red Bull Racing 342
3 Williams Martini Racing Team 216
4 Ferrari 188
5 McLaren Mercedes 143
6 Sahara Force India Formula One Team 123
7 Scuderia Toro Rosso 29
8 Lotus F1 Team 8
9 Marussia F1 Team 2
© Ben Johnston 2014
No comments:
Post a Comment