Kamui Kobayashi crashes during Moscow demo in Ferrari F1 car
Former Sauber and Toyota Formula 1 driver Kamui Kobayashi crashed during his promotional run at the Moscow City Racing Demonstration, whilst behind the wheel of Ferrari’s 2009 F1 car. The Japanese driver, who is now competing in FIA World Endurance Championship with Ferrari, was running in wet conditions when the incident occurred.
After being dropped by Sauber after last season despite his maiden podium finish in the sport, Kamui Kobayashi switched to endurance racing with the Scuderia after a drive in Formula 1 failed materialize due to a lack of funds. The 26-year-old Hyogo-born driver finished 20th in this year’s Le Mans 24h event in the GTE Pro category, and received his first outing in a Ferrari Formula 1 car back in May around the Scuderia’s testing facility at Fiorano.
However, Kamui Kobayashi’s return behind the wheel of a Ferrari F1 car was plagued by embarrassment after he spun in the tricky weather conditions and hit the retaining barrier. Although significant damage was caused to the F60 machine, the Italian outfit had luckily brought a second car to the event therefore allowing Kamui Kobayashi to return to the demonstration within 20 minutes of his embarrassing ordeal.
Kamui Kobayashi’s incident comes almost a year after Pastor Maldonado’s humiliating incident at a demonstration event in Venezuela last August. The local hero had recently secured his and Venezuela’s first victory in Formula 1, accounting for the 20,000 fans attending the venue. Many other teams’ were present at the demonstration in Moscow on Sunday including McLaren and Lotus, ahead of Russia’s inaugural Formula 1 race next season.
Picture Copyright © Ferrari
Takuma Sato Makes IndyCar History With Victory At Long Beach
Takuma Sato has made IndyCar history after taking his and Japan’s maiden IZOD IndyCar Series victory around the Streets of Long Beach, after an incident-filled race ran in scorching weather conditions. The 36-year-old took the victory ahead of Graham Rahal, with Justin Wilson 3rd for Dale Coyne Racing,
After securing pole position, four-time Champion Dario Franchitti led at the start as the field jostled for position through the opening corners. At Turn 6, rookie Tristan Vautier collided with Scott Dixon, an incident which forced the Kiwi to pit with a puncture and saw Vautier struck with a drive-thru penalty for causing an avoidable incident. Further collisions ensued throughout the opening lap, as Sebastian Saavedra slammed into the wall at Turn 9. This saw the first of many full course cautions, as Marco Andretti pitted to replace a damaged front nose cone.
The race was restarted on Lap 7, as Dario Franchitti fought for the lead of the race with reigning Champion Ryan Hunter-Reay. This was the first lap the Scotsman had led since the season finale at Fontana last year, in what has so far been a tough new season. Dario Franchitti proceeded to open up a gap to Ryan Hunter-Reay throughout the opening few laps, before Takuma Sato managed to overtake the Andretti Autosport driver for 2nd on Lap 22. The Japanese ace then began to catch Franchitti for the lead, before electing to pit on Lap 28 along with Ryan Hunter-Reay.
Dario Franchitti pitted from the lead a lap later and suffered a frustratingly slow stop, which ultimately led to the 39-year-old loosing the lead to Will Power. A second full course caution was caused on Lap 30 when Charlie Kimball and Alex Tagliani collided at Turn 8. Will Power, who has so far led during each of the three opening races, pitted under caution and handed the lead down to Takuma Sato.
The race was resumed on Lap 35, only for a third full course caution to be caused moments later when James Hinchcliffe and Tony Kanaan collected E.J. Viso at Turn 1. The Venezuelan driver continued to circulate, and eventually pitted for repairs along with Ryan Hunter-Reay, unlike Tony Kanaan who managed to survive the incident relatively unscathed. The race was quickly resumed, as Takuma Sato continued to lead at the front despite Graham Rahal’s attempts to reel in the A.J. Foyt Racing driver.
Reigning IZOD IndyCar Series Champion Ryan Hunter-Reay’s disastrous race was ended on Lap 50, when the American driver struck the tyre barrier at Turn 8. This caused the fourth full course caution of the race, and allowed the leaders to pit under caution. Takuma Sato won the race off of pit road, whereas further back Will Power was struck by Tristan Vautier who was exiting his pit box. This caused slight damage to Power’s Penske, and saw Vautier issued with his second penalty of the day. During the melee in the pit-lane, A.J. Allmendinger was forced into retirement with a mechanical issue.
Once again the race was resumed on Lap 56, as Takuma Sato remained in the lead ahead of Graham Rahal. Charlie Kimball’s race was brought to a premature conclusion when the 28-year-old struck the barrier at Turn 1. However, this did not result in a full course caution, as the gap at the front ebbed and flowed between Takuma Sato and Graham Rahal. As Takuma Sato started his final lap of the race, there was contact between Tony Kanaan and Oriol Servia, which saw the race end under caution conditions as Takuma Sato stormed to an historic victory around the Streets of Long Beach.
The Japanese ace was followed home by Graham Rahal in 2nd and Justin Wilson in 3rd, after 80 incident-filled laps. Takuma Sato’s victory was the first for A.J. Foyt Racing since Kansas in 2002, and the first on a street or road course since Silverstone way back in 1978. With three different winners in the first three races, the 2013 IZOD IndyCar Series has enjoyed an exciting and unpredictable start. Helio Castroneves remains atop the Drivers’ Championship with 99 points, however Takuma Sato is only six points adrift in 2nd position. The Series will reconvene in several weeks time around the Streets of Sao Paulo for the Sao Paulo Indy 300.
Results - 80 laps:
Pos Driver Team/Car Time/Gap
1. Takuma Sato Foyt Dallara-Honda 1h50m08.7155s
2. Graham Rahal Rahal Dallara-Honda + 5.3612s
3. Justin Wilson Coyne Dallara-Honda + 8.2386s
4. Dario Franchitti Ganassi Dallara-Honda + 12.3573s
5. JR Hildebrand Panther Dallara-Chevy + 28.2402s
6. Oriol Servia Panther/DRR Dallara-Chevy + 29.4683s
7. Marco Andretti Andretti Dallara-Chevy + 30.2703s
8. Simon Pagenaud Schmidt Dallara-Honda + 31.8674s
9. Simona de Silvestro KV Dallara-Chevy + 33.1224s
10. Helio Castroneves Penske Dallara-Chevy + 33.4118s
11. Scott Dixon Ganassi Dallara-Honda + 33.6278s
12. James Jakes Rahal Dallara-Honda + 35.0645s
13. Josef Newgarden Fisher Dallara-Honda + 35.8945s
14. Ana Beatriz Coyne Dallara-Honda + 36.3442s
15. Sebastien Bourdais Dragon Dallara-Chevy + 36.5936s
16. Will Power Penske Dallara-Chevy + 43.0022s
17. Tristan Vautier Schmidt Dallara-Honda + 51.7961s
18. Ed Carpenter Carpenter Dallara-Chevy + 56.4533s
19. Alex Tagliani Herta Dallara-Honda + 1 laps
20. Tony Kanaan KV Dallara-Chevy + 2 laps
21. Charlie Kimball Ganassi Dallara-Honda + 2 laps
22. EJ Viso Andretti Dallara-Chevy + 27 laps
Retirements:
AJ Allmendinger Penske Dallara-Chevy 51 laps
Ryan Hunter-Reay Andretti Dallara-Chevy 49 laps
Mike Conway Rahal Dallara-Honda 38 laps
James Hinchcliffe Andretti Dallara-Chevy 34 laps
Sebastian Saavedra Dragon Dallara-Chevy 1 lap
Picture Copyright © Chris Jones/IndyCar
McLaren To Switch Back To Honda Power?
Rumors linking McLaren and Honda have resurfaced within the Formula 1 paddock, amid speculation over future engine suppliers once the sport enters the new era of engine regulations in 2014. Next year, the sport will introduce turbo-charged V6s with energy recovery systems, replacing the current specification.
After leaving the sport in 2008 due to the uncompetitive results of its F1 team, Honda decided to pull the plug on its continuation in the sport. This proved a bad decision, as the outfit was then rebranded as Brawn GP and stormed to a sensational Drivers’ and Constructors’ Championship campaign with Jenson Button and Rubens Barrichello. However, the recent rumors have suggested that the Japanese marque would only return as a supplier and not as a standalone outfit.
Currently there are four engine suppliers in Formula 1 with Mercedes, Ferrari, Renault and Cosworth. Next season it is understood that Cosworth will not design a 2014-spec engine for Marussia, which is expected to force the Banbury-based outfit to opt for another engine supplier. Due to the team’s recent appointment of Jules Bianchi, many expect the Anglo-Russian outfit to enter a partnership with Ferrari in 2014.
However, such a partnership is understandably unthinkable for McLaren, with the two teams’ rivalry stretching back several decades in the sport. A switch to Renault engines is also out of the question, with the French marque currently supplying reigning Champions Red Bull and openly against providing for further teams’ on the grid. This leaves only Mercedes, McLaren’s current and long-standing engine supplier, however the marque is understandably eager to direct all major development to the works team, especially with the recent appointment of McLaren protege Lewis Hamilton.
This has therefore sparked recurring rumors that McLaren could enter a new partnership with Honda, one which brought both outfits’ huge successes throughout the late-80s and early-90s when Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost drove for McLaren. Last month Honda added fuel to the rumor mill by stating they were pondering a return to Formula 1 as an engine supplier once again. Should McLaren strike the deal with Honda, this could see them end up as the sole team supplied by the Japanese marque, unless Marussia opt to strengthen their McLaren partnership and use Honda engines as well.
However, McLaren’s team principal Martin Whitmarsh has since played down the rumors linking the Woking-based outfit to Honda power in the future, stating that McLaren are contracted to Mercedes until 2015. Although Martin Whitmarsh has denied a future with Honda, he does believe further engine suppliers are required in F1.
“What I can tell you is we have a contract with a long-standing partner, Mercedes-Benz, for 2013, 2014 and 2015,” explained Martin Whitmarsh to Sky Sports F1’s Natalie Pinkham. “So we have a contract, they’re our partners and we’re going to try and win World Championships and races with them. We’ve got a good and long-standing commitment to Mercedes-Benz, that’s what we’re focused on right now.
“In the longer term who knows what’s going to happen? We’re delighted to be partnering Mercedes-Benz. They’ve done, certainly in the last few years, a fantastic job and we’ve won a lot of races together and we’re going to try and win quite a few more in the next few years.”
McLaren’s future in terms of an engine supplier will unquestionably remain a hot topic within the paddock, especially as such a partnership sparks a nostalgia within many who remember the glory days of Prost and Senna. However, it will be interesting to see a McLaren powered by Mercedes battling towards the front of the grid alongside the Mercedes works team in recent years to come.
Picture Copyright © McLaren F1 Team
Red Bull Racing Announce Four-Year Extension Of Infiniti Partnership
Newly-crowned Constructors’ Champions Red Bull have announced a new four-year extension of their partnership with Japanese car manufacturer Infiniti, which will see the Austrian outfit enter an expanded partnership with the brand. This will see the team officially rebranded as Infiniti Red Bull Racing for the 2013 season and beyond.
The extension of this partnership between the two companies will see Red Bull and Infiniti enter a much closer and technologically focused relationship, as Infiniti will begin to work alongside Red Bull on numerous engineering and development projects. The partnership between the two companies began back in March 2011, which initially started out as a purely commercial relationship. However, the relationship is now set to increase much further.
“Red Bull Racing and Infiniti have been working on a number of initiatives since the start of our relationship in 2011.” Explained Red Bull’s team principal, Christian Horner. “During that time, Infiniti has demonstrated significant technical prowess and I’ve been impressed by the depth of the wider engineering capabilities of the Nissan Motor Company. In terms of marketing, Infiniti has leveraged their involvement with Red Bull Racing and Formula One extremely effectively to become much better known in a short space of time. These two attributes make Infiniti the ideal title and technical partner for Red Bull Racing.”
Red Bull’s Chief Technical Officer, Adrian Newey, is understandably thrilled with the new extension in Infiniti’s relationship will Red Bull. The technical mastermind of Newey, who has designed Championship winning cars for Williams, McLaren and Red Bull, believes the manufacturer’s new technical partnership will greatly assist the teams future technical projects, especially those which come into effect from 2014 and beyond.
“Formula One presents immense design and engineering challenges on a daily basis.” Said Adrian Newey, “Having a committed technical partner like Infiniti gives us a great platform for working together on technical projects, such as the Energy Recovery Systems for the 2014 season.”
Red Bull Racing have remained a indomitable figure throughout the world of Formula 1 since their first victory at the 2009 Chinese Grand Prix, a season which first saw the might of the Milton Keynes-based outfit as the team and Sebastian Vettel became locked in a season-long Championship battle with the Brawn GP of Jenson Button.
Since then, the team have won three successive Constructors’ Championships, becoming the first team to win their first three Championships in a row. This new deal could well propel for the team new heights of dominance, as they continue to remain competitive at the front.
Picture Copyright © Getty Images
Kamui Kobayashi Pleased With Race Effort Despite KERS Issue
Kamui Kobayashi has voiced satisfaction after a relatively competitive performance during the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, especially after the Japanese driver struggled with a KERS issue largely due to a problem with his downshifting. Kobayashi eventually finished 6th, bringing home eight valuable points for Sauber.
With Sauber still aiming to catch and pass Mercedes for fifth in the Constructors’ Championship, Kamui Kobayashi’s 6th place finish at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix will have been warmly welcomed, especially as Mercedes once again failed to score a single World Championship point. This result has reduced the gap between Sauber and Mercedes to only 12 points, with two races still remaining in the Championship.
However, Kamui Kobayashi did not have the ability use the full pace of the car during the 55-lap race, as his car was plagued with a downshift issue which in turn effected the KERS harvesting system on his Ferrari-powered Sauber C31. Regardless of this minor setback, the Japanese star still finished competitively within the points, as he strives to retain his seat at Sauber.
“It was a very tough race and I am really happy I was able to get those eight points for the team.” Explained Kamui Kobayashi, “To fight for fifth place in the Constructors’ Championship in the remaining two races will be very exciting. Unfortunately today I could not use the full performance of the car. There was a problem with downshifting, which meant I could not recharge the KERS properly and didn’t have full boost. Otherwise my race went well.”
Whereas Kamui Kobayashi finished an impressive 6th, team-mate Sergio Perez endured yet another frustrating Grand Prix. The Mexican driver was involved in a multi-car incident with Paul di Resta, Romain Grosjean and Mark Webber on lap 37, which resulted in Perez being issued a ten second stop-and-go penalty for causing the melee. Eventually, the future McLaren driver was able to finish 15th.
Picture Copyright © Sauber Motorsport AG
Sauber Confident Of A Competitive Belgian Grand Prix
Sauber are confident that they can enjoy a competitive race at this weekend’s Belgian Grand Prix, as the Formula 1 fraternity returns for the second and final half of this intriguing season. Sauber have so far finished of the podium twice this season, with Sergio Perez coming agonizingly close to victory at the Malaysian Grand Prix.
As Kamui Kobayashi and Sergio Perez gear up for the 12th round of the Championship, both drivers are confident that the Ferrari-powered Sauber C31 can be competitive once the track action gets underway on Friday morning with the opening practice session. The Spa-Francorchamps circuit has become renowned for its inclement weather over the years, and this year looks set to be no different with rain already a threat for the weekend ahead.
“Spa-Francorchamps is one of my favorite circuits.” Explained Kamui Kobayashi, whose personal best finish was 8th back in 2010. “However, the weather is very unpredictable and can influence qualifying or the race significantly. Due to the length of this track, it can sometimes be that one part of it is completely dry while, at the same time, another part can be completely wet. But I’m confident we can be very competitive under all kinds of conditions in Spa because the characteristics of this track with its fast corners should suit our car. I’m really looking forward to this race.”
Sauber’s best finish of the season so far occurred during the wet/dry race in Malaysia, when Sergio Perez nearly stole victory away from the Ferrari of Fernando Alonso in the closing stages of the race. With Spa-Francorchamps a unanimous favorite amongst the drivers, Sergio Perez also believes that the 7.004km circuit will suit their car.
“Spa-Francorchamps is quite a daunting track with a great history.” Said Sergio Perez, who has yet to finish a race in Belgium. “I believe it is one of the favorites of any racing driver. I believe the fast circuit in the Ardennes will suit our car. We should get everything right there and make sure we start into a productive second part of the season.”
The Belgian Grand Prix has always been one of the most highly anticipated races of the season, with the combination of unpredictable weather and the difficult nature of the circuit producing some of the most memorable and exciting races in the history of the sport. This weekend’s race has all of the ingredients to be yet another classic, which Sauber are hoping to excel in.
Picture Copyright © Sauber Motorsport AG
Sauber Duo Rue Missed Opportunities In First Half Of 2012
Sergio Perez and Kamui Kobayashi have enjoyed a highly competitive start to the 2012 season, with Perez already stepping onto the podium twice in Malaysia and Canada and Kobayashi coming ever so close to his first ever podium finish in Germany with 4th. However, the Sauber duo are ruing missed opportunities in what was a highly competitive opening eleven races of the season.
Although Sergio Perez and Kamui Kobayashi currently sit 9th and 10th in the Drivers’ Championship respectively, the duo are realistic in the fact that the 2012 season has not been all glory so far. The Hinwil-based outfit have lately been suffering greatly when it comes to qualifying, with Sergio Perez failing to progress through to the top ten shootout since the Spanish Grand Prix back in May.
This has greatly plagued Sergio Perez, who came agonizingly close to his maiden Grand Prix victory at the Malaysian Grand Prix at the beginning of the season. Since then, the Mexican driver has only been able to finish on the podium one other time, at the Canadian Grand Prix when the likes of Fernando Alonso and Sebastian Vettel began to suffer greatly from tyre wear.
Sergio Perez finished 2nd in Malaysia, only +2.263 seconds off winner Alonso.
“I had some great moments in the first half of the season.” Explained Sergio Perez, “There were the two podiums in Malaysia and Montreal, which, of course, made me very happy. Nevertheless it was also a period with ups and downs because we didn’t make the most of every situation.”
Sergio Perez’s team-mate, Kamui Kobayashi, has yet to finish on the podium in 2012. However, the Japanese driver has shown exceedingly quick pace throughout the first half of the season, and has also stated that missed opportunities has been the only set-back of the season so far.
“Overall we have done a good job and achieved great things.” Said Kamui Kobayashi, “The team built a very good car with an excellent performance. Since the beginning of the season we have been competitive on most tracks, and this means we can be confident for the remainder of the season. The downside so far has been we definitely missed some opportunities for some more great results. Too often we didn’t manage the weekend perfectly. If we can improve there, a lot will be possible.”
It’s visible that Sauber have designed a car which is capable of great things this season, and which is consistently quick on the majority of the circuits on the calendar. Both Sergio Perez and Kamui Kobayashi know how to win races, having done so on numerous occasions in GP2 and GP2 Asia. If Sauber can qualify both cars high on the grid, its highly conceivable that further podiums are there for the taking in this highly competitive and unique 2012 season.
Picture(s) Copyright © Sauber Motorsport AG
Kamui Kobayashi Pleased With Sauber’s New Aero Package
During the Spanish Grand Prix, Kamui Kobayashi equalled his best finish to date in Formula 1, as the Japanese driver brought his Ferrari powered Sauber C31 home in 5th place. After three days of testing at Mugello prior to Spain, Kobayashi is pleased with the upgrades introduced to the car, and is confident heading to Monaco for the next race.
“I think we have improved in the areas we wanted to.” Explained Kobayashi, “The car is better balanced through the corners now. In terms of stability I would say it is about the same, but stability always depends a lot on the track conditions.”
Kamui Kobayashi started the Spanish Grand Prix in 9th position, however was able to complete some rather stunning passing maneuvers to progress through the field to eventually finish 5th, with only Maldonado, Alonso and the two Lotus drivers’ ahead of him. With the 2012 season one of the most unpredictable in recent years, Kobayashi is aiming to finish higher than 5th, with a possible podium in his sights.
“It obviously provides an entirely different challenge than that of the Circuit de Catalunya.” Said Kobayashi, “I think our car will be better in Monaco than it was last year because it has improved in slow corners. In 2011 I finished fifth, so the target should be to finish higher up this year. However, even if you are given the best car in Monaco, in the end a lot is down to the driver to get the ultimate tenths of a second out of it.”
Overall, Kamui Kobayashi seems satisfied with the progress which Sauber is making. The Swiss team has come agonizingly close to taking victory already in 2012, and Kobayashi seems confident that anything is possible in this topsy-turvy season.
Picture Copyright © Sauber Motorsport AG
Mugello, Day 2: Grosjean & Kobayashi Fastest Overall
The Lotus of Romain Grosjean and the Sauber of Kamui Kobayashi have ended day two sharing the top place on the time sheets after a late run from the Japanese driver which saw him set an identical lap time to that set earlier by Romain Grosjean in the Lotus E20, on a day which saw contrasting weather in comparison to day one when heavy rain struck the track. Luckily for the drivers’ and teams’, sunny conditions and positively balmy temperatures were the conditions on day two.
The Red Bull duo of Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber would finish 3rd and 4th for the day, with Felipe Massa’s Ferrari taking 5th.
After a relatively incident-free and quiet morning period, which saw Romain Grosjean fastest before the lunch interval, the afternoon session began in similar circumstances. Three teams’ had driver changes over the lunch hour, as Timo Glock and Sebastian Vettel replaced their respective team-mates.
Australia’s Daniel Ricciardo was scheduled to replace team-mate Jean-Eric Vergne after lunch in the Toro Rosso, but the Frenchman was seen back in the car as the afternoon period got underway. However, Ricciardo would take to the track late in the afternoon, with just 47 minutes left in the session. A quick lap of 1:23.411 would put the Australian into 8th place on the time sheets.
The Mercedes of Michael Schumacher was the first driver to venture out as the afternoon session got underway, the German clocking 144 laps over the course of the day.
It was nearly one hour into the afternoon period before the reigning World Champion of Sebastian Vettel made his first track appearance of the week, setting an initial 01:27.194 on his first timed lap, finishing the day with a quickest lap of 01:21.825 good enough for 3rd.
Ferrari, who yesterday topped the days timing sheets, sent Felipe Massa out for some aerodynamic work as the session wore on. The Brazilian ended the morning session 3rd behind Grosjean and Webber. Massa would also join the track with 15 minutes left in the session to end the day on a long stint for the Ferrari team. With 106 laps in total completed, Massa was able to place 5th.
After setting no timed lap in the morning session, Force India’s Paul di Resta remained in the pits as the track action resumed after lunch. Force India’s lack of track time was due to a hydraulics issue, which the mechanics were quickly trying to conquer. Marussia also discovered a fault on their car, as they confirmed that a power steering issue had struck Timo Glock’s car. This issue forced the mechanics to change the steering rack, resulting in Glock unable to take the track for a while.
The first red flag of the day was caused by Kamui Kobayashi, whose Sauber had ground to halt at turn 12. However, the red flag was short-lived as the marshals quickly cleared the track. Kobayashi would then show there was no damage to his car by clocking the late run which would put him on par with Romain Grosjean.
The Mugello test concludes tomorrow on the third and final day before the teams head off for the Spanish Grand Prix.
Pos Driver Team Time 1. Romain Grosjean Lotus-Renault 1m21.603s 2. Kamui Kobayashi Sauber-Ferrari 1m21.603s + 0.000s 3. Sebastian Vettel Red Bull-Renault 1m21.825s + 0.222s 4. Mark Webber Red Bull-Renault 1m21.997s + 0.394s 5. Felipe Massa Ferrari 1m22.257s + 0.654s 6. Jean-Eric Vergne Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1m22.422s + 0.819s 7. Daniel Ricciardo Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1m22.588s + 0.985s 8. Michael Schumacher Mercedes 1m23.404s + 1.801s 9. Charles Pic Marussia-Cosworth 1m23.982s + 2.379s 10. Vitaly Petrov Caterham-Renault 1m24.312s + 2.709s 11. Gary Paffett McLaren-Mercedes 1m24.480s + 2.877s 12. Timo Glock Marussia-Cosworth 1m24.499s + 2.896s 13. Paul di Resta Force India-Mercedes 1m24.749s + 3.146s 14. Bruno Senna Williams-Renault 1m24.842s + 3.239s
Sauber Fail To Score Points For The First Time In 2012
For the first time in 2012, Sauber have left a Grand Prix empty handed as both Sergio Perez and Kamui Kobayashi failed to finish within the top ten. After Sergio Perez’s fantastic 2nd place in Malaysia, the team have unfortunately only scored one World Championship point, from Kobayashi in China.
Sergio Perez suffered from tyre degradation throughout the race in Bahrain, and subsequently lost out to Michael Schumacher in the closing stages of the race. The German was sprinting up the field after starting 22nd, and managed to pass Perez for 10th and the final points scoring position.
The other Sauber of Kamui Kobayashi finished just behind Perez, in 13th position. The initial race strategy from Sauber was to have the Japanese driver on a 2-stop strategy, but when tyre degradation came earlier than expected in the second stint, Sauber were forced to pit Kobayashi for a third time with only seven laps remaining.
Kamui Kobayashi was also very disappointed with the start of the race, with the Sauber apparently having too much wheel spin off the line at the start.
“Well, for me the start was too slow.” Explained Kobayashi, after a disappointing Bahrain Grand Prix. “I had too much wheel spin and we will look into that. I started on a set of new medium compound tyres and we tried a two stop strategy but in the end it didn’t work out. Our problem was a general lack of speed and we will work hard to fix it.”
“The key point of the race was on lap one when we lost positions.” Commented Giampaolo Dall’Ara, Sauber’s Head of Track Engineering. “The start was possibly not so good. That’s something we have to look into. From that point on we were unable to recover. Altogether we were not strong enough today to recover from all that.”
Sauber head to the Mugello test at the beginning of May and the next Grand Prix in Spain scratching their heads slightly, trying to work out what went wrong this weekend in Bahrain.
Picture Copyright © Sauber Motorsport AG
F1 News 24/7
Andy's GP Blog 