Formula 1 2016

And the grid for 2016 season is now complete.

Renault Sport F1 team revealed their livery for this season.

I like it, it will be the most visible car on the track :)

Just a few more hours, and its lights out and a way we go :)

First practise session starting at 02:30 CET.

Here are some interesting facts about Australian GP:

Because of the rain, after two practise sessions we didn't find any conclusion about this season.

But weather forecast sais that tomorrow is going to be sunny, so let's hope for a nice and thrilling qualifying.

Nico Rosberg crashed at the second practise session, and Hamilton was quickest, with the time of 1'38.841.

Kimi Raikkonen was third with a 0.645 seconds behind Hamilton.

Sebastian Vettel finished eight with a 1.920 seconds behind Hamilton.

Third and final practise session starts tomorrow at 04:00 CET, and qualifying at 07:00 CET.

Enjoy :)

Australian GP, qualifying results:

1. Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes, 1:23.837

2. Nico Rosberg, Mercedes, 1:24.197

3. Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari, 1:24.675

4. Kimi Raikkonen, Ferrari, 1:25.033

5. Max Verstappen, Toro Rosso, 1:25.434

6. Felipe Massa, Williams, 1:25.458

7. Carlos Sainz, Toro Rosso, 1:25.582

8. Daniel Ricciardo, Red Bull, 1:25.589

9. Sergio Perez, Force India, 1:25.753

10. Nico Hulkenberg, Force India, 1:25.865

11. Valtteri Bottas, Williams, 1:25.961

12. Fernando Alonso, McLaren, 1:26.125

13. Jenson Button, McLaren, 1:26.304

14. Jolyon Palmer, Renault, 1:27.601

15. Kevin Magnussen, Renault, 1:27.742

16. Marcus Ericsson, Sauber, 1:27.435

17. Felipe Nasr, Sauber, 1:27.958

18. Daniil Kvyat, Red Bull, 1:28.006

19. Romain Grosjean, Haas, 1:28.322

20. Esteban Gutierrez, Haas, 1:29.606

21. Rio Haryanto, Manor, 1:29.627

22. Pascal Wehrlein, Manor, 1:29.642

However, these results have fallen into the background, because of the new qualifications system, which turns out to be a disaster. The worst decision in history of F1. No one is satisfied with how it works, neither the fans nor drivers. It is expected now that they will bring back the old qualifying system for the next race. This sport is in real crysis.

Australian GP is starting tomorrow at 06:00 CET.

I'm a few days late, but better late then never.

Australian Gp was amazing, great race 'till the end.

-Ferrari seems to be really close to Mercedes.

-Raikkonen had a bad luck again, his car caught on fire.

-Great debut for Haas F1 team, they scored first points, Groesjan finished at P6.

-Alonso had a really bad crash, but he is fine.

Next stop - Bahrain!

- That new horrible qualifying format will still be in use at Bahrain.

- It looks like Ferrari invented new "super clutch", which is key for theirs succesfull starts.

- Good news for Raikkonen, as he will use the same power unit in Bahrain, like he was in Australia. The flames didn't cause any damage to the power unit.

Here are some interesting things about F1:

-Drivers seat position is very important in Formula 1. The seats are made from carbonfibre, super lightweight, containts six safety belts and they are made especially for a particular driver. Sit positon is very low, just about 10mm from the floor.

-There is the Scuderia Ferrari 2015 steering wheel. It looks like a spaceship, and costs around 20k-30k £. It contains various sets of buttons like DRS button, KERS, Pit lane limiter and buttons for all sort of settings.

-Drivers kit is also super lightweight. Shoes, underwears etc, they are all fireproof. Helmets are also made from carbon-fibre, with air flow intakes, and costs a fortune, around 10-15k £.

Schedule for this weekend F1 Bahrain Grand Prix:

Friday 1.4.2016.

- 13:00 CET - practise session 1

- 17:00 CET - practise session 2

Saturday 2.4.2016.

-14:00 CET - practise session 3

-17:00 CET - Qualifying

Sunday 3.4.2016.

- 17:00 CET - Bahrain Grand Prix - race

Breaking news:

Fernando Alonso will not participate in this week Bahrain GP.

After that terrible accident, Bahrain medical center didn't give him a pass, because some chest scans weren't right.

Stoffel Vandoorne, McLaren's reserve driver will replace Fernando Alonso this weekend.

Not following Formula 1 events closely but I guess it would be another year of Mercedes domination, it would be boring even if I liked Hamilton but I just can't stand the guy so I guess would be another season without watching a single race.

Last race was Ferrari was pretty close. For a first half of the race Ferrari was first and second, and they lost the race because of wrong team strategy, and because Kimi suffered from a gearbox failure.

It could be another year of Mercedes dominance, but not like last year, Ferrari is a lot closer this year.

F1 Bahrain GP - practice session 1 - classification :

As expected Mercedes holds 1st and 2nd. Both Toro Rosso and Red Bull are looking pretty strong, but this is unofficial training.

F1 Bahrain GP - practice session 2 - classification :

Second training was far more interesting than the first one.

-Nico Rosberg topped the standings once more.

-Groesjan had a small accident with the front wing.

-Vettel marked the training today, when he suddenly stopped the car in the middle of the lap. Apparently, it wasn't anything serious. He stopped because of loose wheel nut.

-Mclaren surprised everybody as they finished 3rd on the standings.

Last race was Ferrari was pretty close. For a first half of the race Ferrari was first and second, and they lost the race because of wrong team strategy, and because Kimi suffered from a gearbox failure.

It could be another year of Mercedes dominance, but not like last year, Ferrari is a lot closer this year.

Yeah hopefully it would be a lot closer this season because otherwise it will be too boring. Hopefully Vettel could be in the title race once again, I support the Britain's on almost any sport but in Formula 1 there is too strong Brit lobby which affect over some of the races trough the years.

It all depends from the start. Ferrari doesn't have the pace in qualifying, but they are really strong when it comes to the start of the race. Also their race pace is good. We'll see, we need some real battles at the front of the grid.

Looking GOOD! Forza Ferrari, full power! :)

P1 for Seb5 and P2 for Kimi7.

Qualifying starts in 30 minutes.

Final practise session - results:

It was an okay qualifying, way better than it was in Australia, far more interesting.

Great drive for Groesjan (P9), it seems that Haas's result in Australia isn't a surprise. They have good pace.

Debutant Pascal Wehrlein did a great job. He put his Manor on 16th place.

At the front, things are the same.

F1 Bahrain GP starts tomorrow at 17:00 CET.

Winning streak continues for Nico Rosberg. Five wins in a row.

Great start and excellent drive for the whole race.

Kimi Raikkonen saved Ferrari's weekend as he finished second. He was able to split Mercedes duo, same as he did last year. He had a rough start ,but as the race was going, he had a great pace and was able to pass some drivers and finish second.

Bad start for Lewis Hamilton. He had an incident with Bottas at turn 1. Then he fell on P9, but was able to recover and finish 3rd.

Sebastian Vettel haven't started the race. He had an engine failure already in the formation lap. Disastrous weekend for him and his Scuderia team. It looks like Ferrari has some serious reliability issues.

Another great result for debutants Haas F1 team. Romain Groesjan finished 5th. Amazing.

Alonso's substitute, Stoffel Vandorne finished 10th. He took 1 point in his very first race in F1.

1. Nico Rosberg

2. Kimi Raikkonen

3. Lewis Hamilton

Great start of the season for Rosberg but he was  too soft in the key moments trough the previous seasons and it's time for him to show that he could be a champion, this season or never!

Great start of the season for Rosberg but he was  too soft in the key moments trough the previous seasons and it's time for him to show that he could be a champion, this season or never!

He looks way better this season. More focused and determinated. If he lose the championship again, he'll probably have to look for another team. But if Ferrari solve their reliability issues it is going to be tight at the front. The pace is there,Kimi's looking fresh with Vettel who is strong like always.

This year FIA introduced to us a new award - Driver of the day.

By voting on official F1 site, fans decide who gets it.

Romain Groesjan took the award for the Australian GP and also for Bahrain GP.

Excellent drives for the Frenchman, P6 and P5 for the debutants Haas F1 team. :)

Great start of the season for Rosberg but he was  too soft in the key moments trough the previous seasons and it's time for him to show that he could be a champion, this season or never!

 

He looks way better this season. More focused and determinated. If he lose the championship again, he'll probably have to look for another team. But if Ferrari solve their reliability issues it is going to be tight at the front. The pace is there,Kimi's looking fresh with Vettel who is strong like always.

Hopefully they will because it will make the season incredibly more interesting, I must admit I have one favourite and one guy that I can't stand in both these teams so not exactly for any of the teams but for the battle and drama which was missing in the previous seasons.

I dont know if you were following closely, but they are changing qualifying format again.

They dont want to switch back to an old 2015 format, and instead of switching they came up with an idea of aggregate system. Drivers  grid positions would be based on their two best laps in each qualifying session.

That system was also been used back in 2005 and it was ditched after six races :D

If you ask me I don't think its the most vital thing for the final results of the races, as we know many changes could happen even at the start so one or two lost positions in the qualification would not be so essential most of the times I guess.

Yeah, especially now in hybrid era. Even if Mercedes or Ferrari starts from 10th position they have a huge chance to get on the podium.

I'm just annoyed with all that changes. The qualifying like it was in 2015 was good, no need to change it.

Couldn't say which is better or fairer system in qualifications but obviously there is no need to change something when it's  working fine.

Current drivers standings:

1 Nico Rosberg 50

2 Lewis Hamilton 33

3 Daniel Ricciardo 24

4 Romain Grosjean  18

5 Kimi Raikkonen 18

6 Sebastian Vettel 15

7 Felipe Massa 14

8 Max Verstappen 9

9 Nico Hulkenberg  6

10 Valtteri Bottas 6

11 Daniil Kvyat    6

12 Carlos Sainz   2

13 Stoffel Vandoorne 1

*The rest 9 drivers didn't score points so far.

Already a solid advantage for Rosberg, disappointing 6th place for Vettel, and a great P5 for Groesjan. :)

According to Ferrari's statements there is no fundamental design problem with a power unit. Vettel's car had a problem with an exhaust valve, but that isn't the root of the problem. They are saying that electronic maping was the problem and pushed that valve beyond the limits. However Vettel will use a second engine in China.

F1 China GP will take place on April, 17th.

Breaking news:

FIA has finally listened to what the drivers and the teams have said. They will revert the qualifying system to 2015 format, starting already from China. The old and good proven system will be in use for the whole year. Finally :)

F1 China - Shangai GP starts tomorrow.

15.4.2016.

04:00 CET - Practise session 1

08:00 CET - Practise session 2

16.4.2016

06:00 CET - Practise session 3

09:00 CET - Qualifying

17.4.2016.

08:00 CET - F1 China GP- race

I am happy to see that old qualifying system is again in use.The new one was bad because,as the qualifications nears the end,there is less and less vehicles on the track and it is really boring for the fans.

That was the main issue. It was a really bad system.

Mercedes driver, Lewis Hamilton will take a five place grid penalty, because of a gearbox change.

It is going to be an interesting race :D

With this ban for Lewis Hamilton,I see a new chance for Nico Rorsberg to make another win.It will be interesting to see could Ferrari finally become competitive and even win a Grand Prix.

Shangai is a "power unit" circuit. There is one very long straight, and horse power are crucial for this one.

We'll see, if Ferrari dont have any issues, they could be competitive.

In qualifying I expect Nico Rosberg at the top, sharing first row with Vettel. Kimi 3rd, Ricciardo 4th and Lewis 5th.

Red alert! Scuderia 1-2 Kimi 1st and Vettel 2nd at free practise 2. Full power :)

F1 China Qualifying results:

1. Rosberg

2. Ricciardo

3. Raikkonen

4. Vettel

5. Bottas

6. Kvyat

7. Perez

8. Sainz

9. Verstappen

10. Hulkenberg

Lewis Hamilton had some problems with the power unit and he will start from the back, 22nd position.

Great lap from Ricciardo, Vettel and Raikkonen had the pace for pole position, but both of them made mistakes. It is going to be a great battle at the front tomorrow, and also in the back with Lewis. Enjoy :)

Absolutely great race, with a lot of drama and overtaking.

Nico Rosberg won third race this season, his sixth win in a row. He is now 36 points ahead of Lewis Hamilton. Solid advantage for the german driver.

Here is an interesting F1 race lap chart :

My prediction was wright,Rosberg won grand prix.With such a fantastic start of the season  his chances are growing a lot to win the title.

He got lucky this time, as both Ferrari colided, and Hamilton had engine problems and an accident in turn1.

He looks way better this season, but we'll see, this is just the begining :)

In order to catch Mercedes, Ferrari will probably spend their first engine tokens already for Russian GP. They will introduce an update for the power unit, that will increase horse power.

I hope it will work, and that we'll enjoy watching a real battle in Russia. Russian GP starts this weekend. :)

It would be great if that works. It will be a great batle beetwen them.

With this kind of performances Nico has really good chance to become a champion this season but I've seen him too many times not too convincing and determined in the deciding moments of the season so I still have my big doubts about him.

Me too, but this time Lewis isnt at his best, like he have lack of focus, and Rosberg looks really fast .

I'm cheering for Vettel of course, the season just started :)

F1 Russian GP in Sochi starts tomorrow.

29.4.2016.

09:00 CET - Practise session 1

13:00 CET - Practise session 2

30.4.2016

11:00 CET - Practise session 3

14:00 CET - Qualifying

1.5.2016.

14:00 CET - F1 Russian GP- race

Ferrari will also bring a new front wing for Sochi.

Enjoy :)

Me too, but this time Lewis isnt at his best, like he have lack of focus, and Rosberg looks really fast .

I'm cheering for Vettel of course, the season just started :)

I prefer Vettel too but not sure Ferrari could catch Mercedes this season.

In fact  Jos "the Boss" Verstappen was my favourite F1 rider and now I support his son Max :)

Haha, we'll see. I expect a Ferrari win in Russia :)

No doubt Max is a great talent, a real refreshment for the sport, last year in Monaco, he was fantastic :D

F1 Sochi GP -Free practise 2 - results :

1. Lewis Hamilton - Mercedes - 1:37.583

2. Sebastian Vettel - Ferrari - +0.652

3. Nico Rosberg - Mercedes - +0.867

4. Kimi Raikkonen - Ferrari - +1.210

5. Daniel Ricciardo - Red Bull - +1.501

6. Valtteri Bottas - Williams - +1.602

7. Daniil Kvyat - Red Bull - +1.610

8. Jenson Button - McLaren - +1.613

9. Felipe Massa - Williams - +1.706

10. Fernando Alonso McLaren - +1.817

11. Carlos Sainz - Toro Rosso - +1.882

12. Max Verstappen - Toro Rosso - +1.918

13. Nico Hulkenberg - Force India - +2.212

14. Sergio Perez - Force India - +2.284

15. Kevin Magnussen - Renault - +2.610

16. Romain Grosjean - Haas - +2.677

17. Esteban Gutierrez - Haas - +2.925

18. Jolyon Palmer - Renault - +3.105

19. Felipe Nasr - Sauber - +3.157

20. Rio Haryanto - Manor - +3.497

21. Pascal Wehrlein - Manor - +3.565

22. Marcus Ericsson - Sauber - +4.069

Lewis Hamilton tops the second practise, as both ferraris strugled with balance.

Ferrari's problems continues, as Vettel stopped his car after 30 minutes, because of electronical problems.

Update:

Sebastian Vettel will take a 5 place grid penalty at sunday's GP, due to gearbox change. It is suspected that gearbox was damaged after that colide with Kimi two weeks ago.

Today, at FP1, Red Bull introduced a new head protect for 2017, aeroscreen concept.

Yesterday, Nico Rosberg have won another grand prix. He took his first F1 Grand slam: Pole + fastest lap + leading every lap + victory! :)

F1 China GP :

1. Rosberg

2. Hamilton

3. Raikkonen

Seb Vettel had an accident with Kvyat in the first lap. Kvyat "Crashdonado" hit Vettel twice from behind and knocked him out of the race.

Really great season start for Rosberg, he totally dominated the last race and I hope he'll continue with this performance in the next races. Still a long way to go though.