F1- Australia Latest News (Practice 4)

[ALBundy]

Looks like Renault and McLaren are the teams to beat and BMW Williams not looking too bad...Prac Four: Late-charging Kimi steals the showSaturday March 05 2005Email Us Chat Forum Mail article Print article Kimi Raikkonen put in a late charge to steal P1 from Renault's Fernando Alonso on a drying surface in Practice Four for the Australian GP.As the 45-minute session wore on and the rain from the previous practice began to let up a dry line formed on the Albert Park circuit. This saw the timesheets change dramatically as McLaren and Renault came to the fore as they'd been promising to do throughout pre-season testing.Kimi Raikkonen eventually claimed the P1 slot, clocking a 1:27.297, which put him 0.112s ahead of Fernando Alonso.Raikkonen's team-mate Juan Pablo Montoya was next in line and he too found himself ahead of a Renault in the form of Giancarlo Fisichella.Jenson Button clocked the fifth best time to beat Mark Webber, while Michael Schumacher could only manage seventh place on a dry track. He was 3.236s off the pace.Times01 K. Räikkönen McLaren 1:27.29702 F. Alonso Renault 1:27.40903 JP. Montoya McLaren 1:28.25604 G. Fisichella Renault 1:28.57105 J. Button BAR 1:29.57706 M. Webber Williams 1:30.29907 M. Schumacher Ferrari 1:30.533 08 T. Sato BAR 1:30.554 09 D. Coulthard Red Bull 1:30.64510 R. Barrichello Ferrari 1:30.71511 N. Heidfeld Williams 1:31.375 12 C. Klien Red Bull 1:31.67113 J. Trulli Toyota 1:31.701 14 F. Massa Sauber 1:31.73615 J. Villeneuve Sauber 1:34.03116 R. Schumacher Toyota 1:34.924 17 C. Albers Minardi 1:35.97518 P. Friesacher Minardi 1:40.04519 T. Monteiro Jordan 1:40.802 20 N. Karthikeyan Jordan 1:40.822

 

[ALBundy]

Oh looks like Schumi is screwed by the weather :yahoo: :yahoo: 23 seconds behind and he will have a monumental task to move up the grid tomorrow!

Giancarlo Fisichella's lucky day
Australian GP - Saturday qualifying





Fisichella has Provisional Pole in Melbourne

When Giancarlo Fisichella finished ninth and last on the lead lap for Sauber at the Brazilian Grand Prix at the end of last year, never would he have thought that the result would come back to help him in the manner it did today in the first qualifying session for the Australian Grand Prix. Now with Renault, Fisichella was in the right place at the right time as he completed his qualifying lap in drying conditions just seconds before the heavens opened and Albert Park was drenched. It was certainly Fisichella’s lucky day.

The story of qualifying today was of the weather conditions as the sessions started wet, dried out and then ended very wet. This created something of lottery for the drivers. Running in reverse order of the last race result, today’s first qualifying session effectively handed Giancarlo Fisichella the Pole Position on a plate as the Renault driver stopped the clocks in 1:33.171s ahead of Jarno Trulli in the Toyota and Mark Webber in the Williams. With a two second cushion over his nearest rival, Trulli looks all set to claim the Pole Position for real come second qualifying on Sunday morning.

For Toyota it was a case of mixed fortunes as Trulli provisionally starts from second position while Ralf Schumacher put in a lacklustre effort in wet conditions to take 17th on the grid some 18 seconds off the pace. Over at Williams, Webber is currently third on the grid – far better than he or the team could have hoped for after a difficult weekend so far in Australia. Webber’s new team-mate Nick Heidfeld put in a poor lap and was seventh fastest, three seconds slower than Webber even though the two ran one after the other in similar conditions.



Jacques Villeneuve survived two off track moments – one 360 degree spin on his warmup lap and another off track excursion on his slow down lap in his Sauber Petronas. The 1997 Champion gambled on slick Michelin tyres mid-session before the heavy rains fell and slithered around to take the fourth position. Sauber team-mate Felipe Massa was perhaps the most unfortunate of all as he crossed the line to begin his qualifying lap just seconds after Fisichella claimed the provisional pole. Heading to turn one Massa found the circuit awash and he gingerly made his way back to the pits to park up.

Christian Klien and David Coulthard benefited from good track conditions as they took the fifth and sixth best times for the new red Bull Racing team even though Coulthard’s lap was particularly conservative. With Nick Heidfeld seventh Jenson Button took the eighth position – suffering as a result of being one of the very early runners on track.

Narain Karthikeyan out in a good lap in very slippery conditions to set the ninth best time in his Jordan Toyota with team-mate Tiago Monteiro four positions back in 13th. With the exception of the Minardi drivers in 15th and 16th positions, the remaining runners all completed their laps in the wettest segment of the qualifying hour.

Kimi Raikkonen qualified the superb new McLaren MP4-20 in tenth position while Brazilian Grand prix runner and therefore the final runner in qualifying today Juan Pablo Montoya qualified in 11th. The team seem strong and are perhaps one of the few likely to recover from today’s qualifying lottery.

Rubens Barrichello qualified 12th, six places ahead of 2004 Champion Michael Schumacher who was the first driver on track following Massa’s aborted run in monsoon conditions. For Schumacher, 25 seconds off the pace, his title defence has started in the worst possible way.

With Monteiro 13th in his Jordan, Fernando Alonso had to make do with 14th position in the second Renault ahead of Christijan Albers, Patrick Friesacher and the two Schumacher’s. Felipe Massa and Takuma Sato both failed to set a time as the Brazilian parked his car back in the pit lane while the Japanese racer parked his in the wall on his out lap.

A most interesting provisional qualifying session has played right into the hands of Giancarlo Fisichella and Renault. For his rivals, it was generally a case of damage limitation. For Michael Schumacher it was just a disaster.

 

[mctnesh]

Originally posted by ALBundy@Mar 5 2005, 12:13 PM
Oh looks like Schumi is screwed by the weather :yahoo: :yahoo: 23 seconds behind and he will have a monumental task to move up the grid tomorrow!

Hold your horses....wait for tomm' event!!! :hmmph: k:

 

[ALBundy]

Another die hard red scarlet fan hahahaha...25 seconds is too much for schumi....GO McLAREN!!! :rofl: :rofl:

 

[ALBundy]

Results after Qualifying 1. Take note, of this year's new ruling where there will be two qualifying sessions where the best lap timing from each session is added and the aggregate will determine who has the pole position. LOOK who is LAST!!!! THE SCHUMI BROTHERS!!!:yahoo: :yahoo:

P. No Driver Team - Engine Tyres Times Ave/Gaps
1. 6 FISICHELLA Renault M 1'33"171 204.901 Km/h
2. 16 TRULLI Toyota M 1'35"270 + 0'02"099
3. 7 WEBBER Williams BMW M 1'36"717 + 0'03"546
4. 11 VILLENEUVE Sauber Petronas M 1'36"984 + 0'03"813
5. 15 KLIEN RedBull Cosworth M 1'37"486 + 0'04"315
6. 14 COULTHARD RedBull Cosworth M 1'38"320 + 0'05"149
7. 8 HEIDFELD Williams BMW M 1'39"517 + 0'06"346
8. 3 BUTTON BAR Honda M 1'41"512 + 0'08"341
9. 19 KARTHIKEYAN Jordan Toyota B 1'44"357 + 0'11"186
10. 9 RAIKKONEN McLaren Mercedes M 1'44"997 + 0'11"826
11. 10 MONTOYA McLaren Mercedes M 1'45"325 + 0'12"154
12. 2 BARRICHELLO Ferrari B 1'45"481 + 0'12"310
13. 18 MONTEIRO Jordan Toyota B 1'46"846 + 0'13"675
14. 5 ALONSO Renault M 1'47"708 + 0'14"537
15. 21 ALBERS Minardi Cosworth B 1'49"230 + 0'16"059
16. 20 FRIESACHER Minardi Cosworth B 1'50"864 + 0'17"693
17. 17 R.SCHUMACHER Toyota M 1'51"495 + 0'18"324
18. 1 M.SCHUMACHER Ferrari B 1'57"931 + 0'24"760

 

[mctnesh]

Its ok....1 more qualifying session to go and another 58 laps to prove who is the better driver! B)
Btw, Schumi holds the lap record at albert park circuit!! :yahoo:

 

[ALBundy]

Schumi is 7 seconds behind the minardis. On a dry track, 7 seconds is too much to make up even for schumi, unless the minardis screw up. Imagine this, Ferrari behind a minardi :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: Now, this is turning up to be an awesome opening race for the new F1 season! Schumi charging up from the back with Kimi and Montoya fighting their way to the top....hmm cant wait for the race tomorrow!!!

 

[KennyG]

Originally posted by ALBundy@Mar 5 2005, 12:25 PM
Another die hard red scarlet fan hahahaha...25 seconds is too much for schumi....GO McLAREN!!! :rofl: :rofl:

Never Say die........

 

[Juan Powerblow]

Oh boy! Tomorrow's race is gonna be a scorcher!! :yahoo:

 

[L O N G]

A bolt from the BLUE...!!!

1 Giancarlo Fisichella (Italy Renault)
Renault R25 RS25 V10 - Michelin 6 1h 24' 17''

2 Rubens Barrichello (Brazil Ferrari)
Ferrari F2004M 054 V10 - Bridgestone 2 1h 24' 22''

3 Fernando Alonso (Spain Renault)
Renault R25 RS25 V10 - Michelin 5 1h 24' 24'' 48 6''

4 David Coulthard (Scotland Red Bull)
RedBull RB1 Cosworth TJ V10 - Michelin 14 1h 24' 33'' 467 16''

5 Mark Webber (Australia Williams)
Williams FW27 BMW P84/5 V10 - Michelin 7 1h 24' 34'' 244 16''

6 Juan Pablo Montoya (Colombia McLaren)
McLaren MP4/20 Mercedes FO110R V10 - Michelin 10 1h 24' 52''

7 Christian Klien (Austria Red Bull)
RedBull RB1 Cosworth TJ V10 - Michelin 15 1h 24' 56'' 333 38''

8 Kimi Räikkönen (Finland McLaren)
McLaren MP4/20 Mercedes FO110R V10 - Michelin 9 1h 24' 56''

9 Jarno Trulli (Italy Toyota)
Toyota TF105 RVX-05 V10 - Michelin 16 1h 25' 20'' 444 1' 3''

10 Felipe Massa (Brazil Sauber)
Sauber C24 Petronas 05A V10 - Michelin 12 1h 25' 21'' 729 1' 4''

11 Jenson Button (England BAR)
BAR 007 Honda RA005E V10 - Michelin 3 1h 25' 28'' 24 1' 10''

12 Ralf Schumacher (Germany Toyota)
Toyota TF105 RVX-05 V10 - Michelin

13 Jacques Villeneuve (Canada Sauber)
Sauber C24 Petronas 05A V10 - Michelin

14 Takuma Sato (Japan BAR)
BAR 007 Honda RA005E V10 - Michelin

15 Narain Karthikeyan (India Jordan)
Jordan EJ15 Toyota RVX-05 V10 - Bridgestone

16 Tiago Monteiro (Portugal Jordan)
Jordan EJ15 Toyota RVX-05 V10 - Bridgestone

17 Patrick Friesacher (Austria Minardi)
Minardi PS04B Cosworth CR-3L V10 - Bridgestone

18 Michael Schumacher (Germany Ferrari)
Ferrari F2004M 054 V10 - Bridgestone Crash

19 Nick Heidfeld (Germany Williams)
Williams FW27 BMW P84/5 V10 - Michelin Crash

20 Christijan Albers (Netherlands Minardi)
Minardi PS04B Cosworth CR-3L V10 - Bridgestone Gearbox

 

[affan66]

i zzzzzzz most part of the event. It was so boring because everyone's preserving tires and engines. I guess everyone's still playing safe and trying out different permutations to get the best out of the car without ruining tires and engines.

zzzzzzz

 

[jarance]

With the new change of rules of 1 set of tyres, pretty soon you only need 2 person to just pump in the petrol.. So boring... :lazy: :lazy: :lazy:

Crazy.. what happen when it rain on you are on dry tires.. it crazy... Studid decision..

 

[mctnesh]

Ya.....the whole race was quite boring...can't recall of any interesting incident.

I think they better revert to previous system..........atleast dun have to put up preserving the tyre and not pushing up to mark...
Sigh.....

 

[flash]

Renault driver gives F1 a longed-for shot in the arm

MELBOURNE: Renault's Giancarlo Fisichella cruised to victory in the season-opening Australian Grand Prix yesterday to give Formula One a longed-for shot in the arm after a year of Ferrari domination.

“It was easy from the beginning to the end,” said the Italian, who started from pole position on his debut for the French team.

While the little Roman celebrated his second GP win in 142 races, Ferrari's Michael Schumacher kicked off his quest for an eighth championship with the worst start of his record-breaking career.


Renault's Giancarlo Fisichella celebrates on the podium at Melbourne's Albert Park circuit after winning the Australian Grand Prix Sunday. - Reuterspic
The German, runaway winner of the first five GP last year and a record 13 out of 18, started on the back row and failed to finish after being shunted off by compatriot Nick Heidfeld in a Williams.

It was left to Brazilian Rubens Barrichello, usually cast as loyal number two, to show that champions Ferrari remained a force to reckon with despite leaving their new car at home.

He finished runner-up, ahead of Fisichella's Spanish team mate Fernando Alonso who had a brilliant race from 13th on the grid after being held up for 17 laps by Canadian Jacques Villeneuve's Sauber.

“It shows that Ferrari has no crisis. We're here, we're going to fight,” said Barrichello. “It's still our old car and the new car is going to give us even more pleasure.”

Renault lead the championship with 16 points to Ferrari's eight. Newcomers Red Bull are third on seven.

Red Bull's Briton David Coulthard came close to a sensational result, running a strong second before finishing fourth, while Australian Mark Webber was fifth for Williams.

Colombian Juan Pablo Montoya finished sixth on his McLaren debut and Austrian Christian Klien handed Red Bull two more points with seventh place.

Finland's Kimi Raikkonen was eighth, starting from the pitlane after being pushed off the grid during an aborted first start to the race.

“I was quite conservative, never pushed to the limit except at the end when Rubens was catching me and I went a little quicker,” said Fisichella, who won by 5.5 seconds.

Melbourne made up for the hollowness of his only previous victory, for Jordan, at the crash-strewn 2003 Brazilian Grand Prix. Then, he was not declared winner until days after the event due to a timing error.

Schumacher has 81 wins more than Fisichella but will have to wait until the next race in Malaysia to try and add to them.

Heidfeld skidded into the Ferrari and shunted it off into the gravel at turn three and although Schumacher was pushed back on to the track, he pitted and retired.

The world champion's race had already been wrecked by starting 19th, with an engine change before the race, after a sudden storm rained on his hopes during Saturday qualifying.

Narain Karthikeyan, India's first Formula One driver, finished 15th for Jordan as the highest-ranked of the four men making their Grand Prix debuts in Australia. – Reuters

 

[flash]

Well, MS was not on the podium but his team-mate RB was... sign of things to come????

 

[ALBundy]

I agree with everyone here that the race was super boring....new rules and regulations is a failure judging by the way the drivers were driving. Let's hope things will be better in Sepang!

 

[flash]

Yup, agreed, it was boring and I snoozed thru.... With all the new rulings and restrictions, I guess the drivers are holding back. Hope things will heat up in the next few races or I will defect to WRC...

 

[Juan Powerblow]

Super boring! It's so disappointing after waiting so long for new season to start!

 

[willie]

same comment here, already there is decrease in number of people watching, now they making it more boring......

 

[willie]

new rules

can change tyres when it is declared as wet track