Jordan's Track Talk

Tag: Round 1

  • Round 1 – Bahrain Qualifying

    Round 1 – Bahrain Qualifying

    Well, that was a madness of a qualifying session! WOW, with these new cars it could of been anyone’s, but it looked like it was going to Max Verstappen’s but it was not…

    Charles Leclerc takes his 10th pole position and second at the Bahrain International Circuit, as he beat Max Verstappen to the top spot by 0.123s. It was Carlos Sainz who took P3 making it a very strong start for the Italian team.

    The top 10 are- P1: Charles Leclerc, P2: Max Verstappen, P3: Carlos Sainz, P4: Sergio Perez, P5: Lewis Hamilton, P6: Valterri Bottas, P7: Kevin Magnussen, P8: Fernando Alonso, P9: George Russell and P10 going to Pierre Gasly!

    I think Lewis got the most out of the car today, where as George messed up on his last quali lap missing the breaking zone in Turn 1, hence why he qualified 9th. I would say I’m most intrigued to see how the Mercedes race pace is tomorrow and if the porpoising affects them as much as it previously has…

    Mr Valterri Bottas leaves Mercedes and goes to Alfa Romeo and with his first qualifying session with the team he goes and sticks it in 6th! Definitley seems the Ferrari power unit is a lot better this year compared to last as this bring me onto…

    Kevin Magnussen!! WOW. The Haas has qualifying pace! But even with a hydraulic issue K-Mag got the car into a great position in which will be his first grand prix tomorrow in over a year! His teammate done a superb job, qualifying 12th- lets hope for some masterclass overtaking from Mick tomorrow to see him in that top 10!

    McLaren… My heart breaks for them- they showed so much pace in Barcelona testing, then it went downhill last week in the Official Pre-Season test with their breaks and Ricciardo having covid set them off on the back foot. Norris starts P13 and Ricciardo P18.

    A quick mention for Alex Albon aswell! First time back in over a year and in a Williams so a completely new car and team to learn and he out qualifies his team mate!

    Predictions for tomorrow-

    I think if Charlex and Max don’t come together tomorrow afternoon then it could be Charles taking the race win- but the pair have history and have collided here…

    Top 5 I think will be: P1: Verstappen, P2: Leclerc, P3: Perez, P4: Sainz and P5: Hamilton.

    I do think both Haas’ will score points tomorrow and hopefully Bottas in the Alfa Romeo too. Definitely will be interesting to see the different strategies and how the pit stops will play out with the new tyres.

    Times-

    Feature Race F3: 09:00am (GMT), Feature Race F2: 10:40am (GMT), Bahrain GP: 15:00pm (GMT).

  • F2 Bahrain- Day 1

    F2 Bahrain- Day 1

    Free Practice-

    Novalak had initially set the first laptime of the new Formula 2 season, with the Frenchman setting a 1:48.044. He then improved with his second tour of the track but it was Jake Hughes who jumped up to take P1 and setting a 1:45.294.

    Lawson’s first attempt at a flying lap put him second- half a second of Hughes, Marcus Armstrong briefly jumped ahead of him but the Carlin driver’s second attempt put him in first.

    PREMA’s Daruvala pushed Lawson down to second before Armstrong jumped ahead of him too, slotting into 2nd. MP Motorsport then bumped Daruvala down to third as Drugovich went first ahead of Novalak. With less than three minutes left, DAMS were able to break the MP pair up.

    PositionDriverTeamLaptime
    1Felipe DrugovichMP Motorsport1:44.484
    2Ayumu IwasaDAMS1:44.679
    3Roy NissanyDAMS1:44.754
    4Clement NovalakMP Motorsport1:44.769
    5Marcus ArmstrongHiTech Grand Prix1:44.833
    Top 5 Free Practice

    Qualifying-

    All 22 cars took to the track when the lights went green but the session was red-flagged due to Iwasa’s DAMS came to a halt. Once the car was off the track, the session then resumed, Jake Hughes and Amaury Cordeel the Van Amersfoort pair led the session.

    Hughes was sat in P1 after the first flying laps ended with a 1:41.469. The British driver kept on to the position as his second fast lap was enough to beat Felipe Drugovich to the top spot.

    But it was Jack Doohan who put himself on pole position for Sunday’s feature race, with Theo Pourchaire in P2 and Juri Vips in P3. Felipe Drugovich will start Saturday’s Sprint race in P1, with Verschoor lining up next to him and Jake Hughes in P3.

    PositionDriverTeamLaptime
    1Jack DoohanVirtuosi Racing1:40.542
    2Theo PourchaireART Grand Prix1:40.683
    3Juri VipsHiTech Grand Prix1:40.755
    4Logan SargeantCarlin1:40.760
    5Ralph BoschungCampos Racing1:41.000
    6Liam LawsonCarlin1:41.100
    7Jehan DaruvalaPREMA Racing1:41.115
    8Jake HughesVan Amersfoort Racing1:41.121
    9Richard VerschoorTrident1:41.178
    10Felipe DrugovichMP Motorsport1:41.210
    Top 10 Qualifying
  • F3 Bahrain- Day 1

    F3 Bahrain- Day 1

    Free Practice-

    With the teams already having some track action here for the pre-season test, the field of 30 drivers took to track so set themselves up for hopfeully a competitive weekend.

    After the light went green and a few flurry of laps, it was MP Motorsport’s Caio Collet who set the fastest, however his effort was still some way of the true pace.

    The times began to tumber, as the drivers gathered further experience at the Bahrain International Circuit. But it was the reigning team champions, Trident who got off to a strong start this weekend, as Roman Stanek ended Free Practice on top with a 1:48.012.

    PREMA’s Arthur Leclerc moved himself up into second place, in which he was less than a tenth of a second behind Stanek. With Rookie, Gregoire Saucy launching himself into 3rd.

    In the final 10 minute, there was a brief yellow flag due to Reece Ushijiam coming to a stop in sector one but was able to get his car moving again.

    PositionDriverTeamLaptime
    1Roman StanekTrident1:48.012
    2Arthur LeclercPREMA Racing1:48.090
    3Gregoire SaucyART Grand Prix1:48.099
    4Izack HadjarHiTech Grand Prix1:48.285
    5Caio ColletMP Motorsport1:48.402
    Top 5 Free Practice

    Qualifying-

    Gregoire Saucy was the first to jump to the top of the timesheets, placing himself just over one-tenth of a second in front of Roman Stanek. Most of the drivers, then returned to the pit lane as the qualifying session hit the halfway point.

    With 10 minutes to go, a lot of the drivers came out of the pitlane and set their minds to some more push laps. Colapinto set a fire laptime, which saw no-one be able to replace him at the top spot.

    The top 12 switch round for tomorrows sprint race, so we will have Rookie, Zak O’Sullivan on pole position, lined up next to another rookie and FDA driver, Ollie Bearman with David Vidales rounding out the top 3 for tomorrows starting grid.

    PositionDriverTeamLaptime
    1Franco ColapintoVan Amersfoort Racing1:46.249
    2Roman StanekTrident1:46.314
    3Kush MainiMP Motorsport1:46.322
    4Gregoire SaucyART Grand Prix1:46.410
    5Victor MartinsART Grand Prix1:46.412
    6Juan Manuel CorreaART Grand Prix1:46.600
    7Zane MaloneyTrident1:46.622
    8Alexander SmolyarMP Motorsport1:46.642
    9Isack HadjarHiTech Grand Prix1:46.649
    10David VidalesCampos Racing1:46.707
    11Ollie BearmanPREMA Racing1:46.843
    12Zak O’SullivanCarlin1:46.860
    Top 12 Qualifying

  • Bahrain Grand Prix

    We are back! Finally it’s race weekend and we are at the Bahrain Grand Prix for round 1 out of 22. Lots has happened since we was last here, new cars, new team-mates, new tyres and a new world champion!

    But, who will be world champion this year? Someone new or will we see Max Verstappen defend his crown? Or will Lewis be hunting for his 8th… It’s all to play for this year and it all starts here at the Bahrain International Circuit.

    Who needs to shine?

    Considering its the first race of the season I would say all, but I will give you all a few of my choices!

    Mick Schumacher and Yuki Tsunoda both going into their second year this season so I’d like to see them two do well across the whole weekend and it will be interesting to see if Haas have the pace and what Mick can do with it!

    Guanyu Zhou, the only driver to graduate from F2 this year, so all eyes on him, with him having Valtteri Bottas as his teammate it will be interesting to see how he does compared to him.

    Alex Albon, back in F1 after a year out and in a Williams, he has a lot to prove, especially showing the team that it was the right decision to bring him into the team, but Alex will also have to fight to stay in F1.

    Kevin Magnussen, again a year out- but this time it’s different as he hasn’t spent his time in one of the teams sim/ going to the track for a grand prix weekend.

    Predictions for Qualifying-

    My top 5 for qualifying are- Pole: Verstappen, P2: Leclerc, P3: Hamilton, P4: Sainz and P5: Russell.

    If Mercedes sort out their propoising I can see them being up there for pole position, but I have to give it RB and Max as they have a very fast car it seems but I do think it will be close between RB and Ferrari.

    I also predict that we see a Haas in the top 10, maybe an Alfa Romeo too, this then might cause some shock Q2 exits…

    Times for this weekend-

    Friday 18th March-

    Free Practice F3: 8:25am – 9:10am (GMT), Free Practice F2: 9:35am – 10:20am (GMT), Free Practice 1: 12:00pm – 13:00pm (GMT), Qualifying F3: 13:25pm – 13:55pm (GMT), Free Practice 2: 15:00pm – 16:00pm (GMT), Qualifying F2: 16:25pm – 16:55pm (GMT).

    Saturday 19th-

    Sprint Race F3: 10:05am – 10:45am (GMT), Free Practice 3: 12:00pm – 13:00pm (GMT), Qualifying: 15:00pm – 16:00pm (GMT), Sprint Race F2: 16:40pm – 17:25pm (GMT).

    Sunday 20th-

    Feature Race F3: 09:00am (GMT), Feature Race F2: 10:40am (GMT), Bahrain GP: 15:00pm (GMT).

  • Vettel out of Bahrain GP

    Vettel out of Bahrain GP

    Aston Martin’s Sebastian Vettel has tested positive for Covid-19 and will miss the season opener in Bahrain. The four time world champion is currently doing well.

    Vettel will be replaced by the team’s reserve driver, Nico Hulkenberg who will be in the car from Friday practice. This weekend will be Hulkenbergs first Grand Prix since the 2020 Eifel Grand Prix, when he stood in for Lance Stroll at Racing Point after the Canadian tested positive aswell.

    It was the third time he filled in for a race driver that year, having replaced Sergio Perez for the two race weekends at Silverstone.

    The former Renault driver will be making his 180th Grand Prix start on Sunday, in which he is still looking to break his podium duck.

    The news comes after Daniel Ricciardo returned a positive test last week, in which he missed the Official Pre-Season Test, he has since returned a negative test and has returned to the paddock today (Thursday).

    Speaking prior to his positive test, Vettel had said he hoped this season would see a marked improvement from Aston Martin. “Everything is new in Formula One and I think we’re looking at a very tight battle, and some very close gaps, between all the teams,” he said. “There’s a lot to play for – and that’s F1 at its best.”

    Wishing Sebastian a get well soon and hopefully we see him in the car next week!

  • Ricciardo set to race

    Daniel Ricciardo has tested negative for Covid-19 and will be returning to Bahrain paddock on Thursday in time for the season opener.

    McLaren had a number of drivers on standby if Ricciardo had tested positive, those being Nyck de Vries, Stoffel Vandoorne, Paul Di Resta and Alpine reserve, Oscar Piastri.

    The Australian tested positive during the Official Pre-Season Test last week, leaving his teammate to conduct the three days of running for the Papaya team. Norris completed 200 laps over the 3 days- having the highest individual tally.

    McLaren did however, run into problems with their overheating brakes and will have spent the time between the test and the Grand Prix attempting to fix those problems as they aim to join the frontrunners.

    “McLaren F1 Team confirms that after testing positive for Covid-19 last week, Daniel has now returned a number of negative tests and will therefore return to the paddock on Thursday ready to compete in this weekend’s Bahrain GP,” said the team on Wednesday ahead of the Grand Prix. “Daniel has been feeling better each day as he continued to recover while in isolation following local regulations in Bahrain.”

    https://www.instagram.com/p/CbKNBSlMDDd/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

  • Bahrain tyre allocation

    For the first time this year, we get to take a look at the tyre allocation for the weekend ahead, not just for F1 but for Formula 2 and 3.

    Pirelli has selected the three hardest compounds in the new 18 inch tyre range: C1 (Hard), C2 (Medium) and C3 (Soft). The nomination is one step harder than the selection which was made last year, as the new tyres are completely different in comparison to the old 13 inch tyres.

    The choice has been made because of the layout of the track, asphalt characteristics and temperatures. Bahrain remains one of the most abrasive tracks on the calendar thanks to a high percentage of granite within the asphalt, which leads to higher levels of wear and degradation. Even though asphalt abrasion is high, the sand which blows in from the surrounding desert can cause a lot of sliding which automatically affects grip.

    The rear tyres work the hardest at Bahrain due to lateral loads. There s a high degree of track evolution over over the weekend, and this year it will be even higher as normal as both Formula 2 and Formula 3 are support races.

    The teams had the chance to get familiar with the 2022 18-inch tyre range, having spent a total of six days of testing with all the compounds, although not always in representative conditions. We know from the past that track temperatures can play an important role in Bahrain, affecting tyre degradation, and that’s something we noticed at the recent test as well. During the race temperatures should be milder compared to FP1 and FP3, so the teams will have to focus on their data from FP2 and qualifying. It’s still hard to predict the race strategy as, in the past, Bahrain has been a multi-stop race, but it will be interesting to see if anyone will try something different this year.

    Mario Isla, Head of Pirelli Motorsport.

    Formula 2

    Formula 2 begins its season in Bahrain with the Hard compound and the Soft compound. The hard compound has been revised for this season to offer improved resistance increase the performance gap to the medium with the aim of challenging the drivers and increasing strategy options.

    Formula 3

    For the first time, Formula 3 will begin in Bahrain with the hard compound as the nominated tyre. Even though the compounds are the same before, the rear tyres have been designed to degrade faster which should shift the balances towards oversteer and make the car more challenging, with the aim of promoting greater driver involvement and showcasing talent.

  • Round 1- Diriyah E-Prix

    And finally we have Formula E cars back on track! We had Free Practice 1 to start things off and for some it was good where as for others not so…

    In the first five minutes reigning champion Nyck de Vries struck the wall into Turn 3 with the rear of his Silver Arrow getting sideways and damage enough to force the Dutchman into retiring the car from the session which turned the whole course yellow.

    The track condition at Riyadh Street Circuit is always tough to manage during the opening session, the track evolves and gets faster as it cleans up. As conditions started to come to the drivers, Nissan e.dams new boy Maximillian Guenther set the target for the rest to chase mid-way through FP1. But it was Mahindra Racing’s new signing Oliver Rowland who hit the top of the timesheets at the end, with a 1m 10.559s, with Antonio Felix da Costa in 2nd and Jake Dennis in third.

    Going on to the second free practice session, it was Oliver Rowland again who took the top spot with Sam Bird whose won twice in Saudi Arabia was in 2nd by just 0.015. Third was Jake Dennis again making it an all British top 3.

    Rowland’s time was just over a second quicker than the times on Thursday due to the track. However it was the reigning champs who were down the order, with Stoffel Vandoorne 16th and Nyck a couple of spots back.

    Now onto qualifying- the new format for all the drivers but it was infact Mercedes’ Stoffel Vandoorne who took pole position. The final duel was between Stoffel and Jake (Dennis), Dennis originally flew off the line but his Andretti looked a lot looser than the Mercedes, and by the half-way point of the lap the Belgian had romped four tenths of a second clear.

    The top for qualifying are: P1: Vandoorne, P2: Dennis, P3: De Vries, P4: Lotterer, P5: Bird, P6: Cassidy, P7:Frijns, P8: Oliver Rowland, P9: Di Grassi, P10: Gunther.

    Now onto the race! It was the reigning champion taking the first race win of the season just like last year! And his team-mate bringing it home in second making the Mercedes EQ team have a 1-2!! What a way to start the season. The last podium spot going to Jake Dennis.

    The last couple of laps saw 4 drivers all battling for fourth position which involved Sam Bird, Lucas Di Grassi, Edoardo Mortara and Nick Cassidy. With Sam Bird making that fourth position.

  • A look into Saudi Arabia

    A look into Saudi Arabia

    For the first time this year it is race week for Formula E! Friday and Saturday we will have round 1 and 2, a double header in Saudi Arabia for the Diriyah E-Prix.

    Diriyah Circuit-

    The Diriyah Circuit has 21 twists and turns around the historic town walls of the UNESCO World Heritage site in the desert. The drivers will face a very challenging lap from as soon as the lights go green as they have a technical first sector which leads into a bobsleigh run at Turn 6.

    The circuit layout is a test of strategy with a long energy straight which closes out the lap. The race is run in the dark being illuminated by LEDs lining the circuit.

    RIYADH STREET CIRCUIT, SAUDI ARABIA – FEBRUARY 26: Aerial drone footage of the Riyadh Street Circuit during the Diriyah ePrix I at Riyadh Street Circuit on Friday February 26, 2021 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. (Photo by Sam Bagnall / LAT Images)

    Last year saw Nyck De Vries win round 1 and Sam Bird win Round 2 at Diriyah. Will they be victorious again? Or could we see someone else?

    Will Mercedes EQ be able to start the ground running and get away in both title fights, as they and Nyck de Vries will be hoping to challenge for the Drivers and Teams championship!

    Times-

    Thursday 27th-

    Free Practice 1: 18:00pm to 18:30pm, 15:00pm to 15:30pm (GMT)

    Friday 28th-

    Free Practice 2: 13:30pm to 14:00pm (AST), 10:30am to 11:00am (GMT)

    Qualifying: 15:40pm to 17:00pm (AST), 12:40pm to 14:00pm (GMT)

    Round 1: 20:00pm to 21:00pm (AST), 17:00pm to 18:00pm (GMT)

    Saturday 29th-

    Free Practice 3: 13:30pm to 14:00pm (AST), 10:30am to 11:00am (GMT)

    Qualifying: 15:40pm to 17:00pm (AST), 12:40pm to 14:00pm (GMT)

    Round 2: 20:00pm to 21:00pm (AST), 17:00pm to 18:00pm (GMT).