Friday Practice 0 first impressions

[truefan72]

Ferrari and McLaren are still in a different class

1. Lewis H looks solid
2. Kimi looks great and ready to defend his crown
3. Kovaleinen is impressive
4. Piquet Jr. is dissapointing
5. Alonso is hard to tell due to Renault, but did well in the morning all things considering
6. Red Bull surprisingly look good
7. Webber seems to like the no traction control
8. speaking of... it is throughly enjoying to see these guys perform without it. I am not one to limit innovation, but this change has brought about more driving abilty.
9. BMW look unimpressive
9b. Both drivers seem to struggle as well ( maybe the expectations)
10. Glock is making me eat my words, looks good so far
11. Force India are better than I thought, we'll see
12. Nico Rosberb is going to have a fight on his hands with Nakajima
13. STR's are about the same as last year.
14. Vettel is going to be good, Bourdais will probably have his number though by the end of the year.
16. Toyota and Honda are better than last year
17. Massa still makes a few too many error for my liking

It looks like its going to be extremely close in the midfield, with hardly anything inbetween, 8-20, Super Aguri seem to be the only team that's going to struggle. It's going to be extremely close between Ferrari and McLaren. And probably between LH and KR for the win. Massa and HK will fight for 3rd.

I honestly think that Alonso, Red Bull and Toyota will outperform BMW in this race as I see it....then again, it's only Friday Practice ;)

[ShiftingGears]

A lot of people got sideways in practice - very good to watch. My favourite was Massa getting sideways in the sweeper.

Looking to be a better show this year without TC, although the circuit grip is also a factor.

[truefan72]

yep,

where you at the track?

I wonder how it must have been to see it live.
Watching it on TV you certainly hear the different shift and braking patterns as each driver tries to figure out how to drive on the limit with these machines without compromising too much. They say that the amount of manual braking by the drivers as pretty much doubled per lap with no TC.

It was as entertaining a Friday practice as I've seen in years.

[pino]

First practice times from Australian Grand Prix at Albert Park, Melbourne:

1. Kimi Raikkonen (Fin) Ferrari one minute 26.461 seconds
2. Lewis Hamilton (GB) McLaren-Mercedes 1:26.948
3. Felipe Massa (Brz) Ferrari 1:26.958
4. Heikki Kovalainen (Fin) McLaren-Mercedes 1:27.114
5. Mark Webber (Aus) Red Bull-Renault 1:28.263
6. Fernando Alonso (Spa) Renault 1:28.360
7. Robert Kubica (Pol) BMW Sauber 1:28.579
8. Timo Glock (Ger) Toyota 1:28.913
9. Sebastian Vettel (Ger) Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1:28.957
10. Jarno Trulli (Ita) Toyota 1:29.014
11. Jenson Button (GB) Honda 1:29.124
12. Giancarlo Fisichella (Ita) Force India-Ferrari 1:29.230
13. David Coulthard (GB) Red Bull-Renault 1:29.301
14. Sebastien Bourdais (Fra) Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1:29.363
15. Rubens Barrichello (Brz) Honda 1:29.533
16. Nick Heidfeld (Ger) BMW Sauber 1:29.561
17. Adrian Sutil (Ger) Force India-Ferrari 1:30.155
18. Nelson Piquet Jr (Brz) Renault 1:30.357
19. Takuma Sato (Jpn) Super Aguri-Honda 1:31.048
20. Anthony Davidson (GB) Super Aguri-Honda 1:31.771
21. Kazuki Nakajima (Jpn) Williams-Toyota 1:35.053
22. Nico Rosberg (Ger) Williams-Toyota no time


Second Session

1. Hamilton 1:26.559
2. Webber 1:27.473
3. Massa 1:27.640
4. Kovalainen 1:27.683
5. Coulthard 1:28.037
6. Raikkonen 1:28.208
7. Trulli 1:28.292
8. Rosberg 1:28.352
9. Fisichella 1:28.469
10. Glock 1:28.582
11. Button 1:28.632
12. Heidfeld 1:28.731
13. Alonso 1:28.779
14. Barrichello 1:28.849
15. Kubica 1:28.860
16. Nakajima 1:29.077
17. Sutil 1:29.161
18. Vettel 1:29.193
19. Piquet Jr 1:29.581
20. Bourdais 1:29.605
21. Sato 1:30.663
22. Davidson 1:31.527


Source : BBC Sport

[pino]

Both Toyota, Red Bull and Fisichella :eek: looks strong at the moment, let's hope the will confirm it when the pole starts.

Go Jarno ! :D

[leopard]

yep,

They say that the amount of manual braking by the drivers as pretty much doubled per lap with no TC.


On the other hand they need more energy twice to make manual breaking than driving with TC don't they? Make sure your driver have got their breakfast and lunch properly.

[ShiftingGears]

yep,

where you at the track?

I wonder how it must have been to see it live.
Watching it on TV you certainly hear the different shift and braking patterns as each driver tries to figure out how to drive on the limit with these machines without compromising too much. They say that the amount of manual braking by the drivers as pretty much doubled per lap with no TC.

It was as entertaining a Friday practice as I've seen in years.

Nah, although I was at the track last year. Last year it either looked really smooth or they were off the circuit (ala Heikki) but this year we're seeing more corrections. I have a good feeling about this.

Also, the V8 Supercar race was great.

[aryan]

Mostly agree with truefan.

BMW was unimpressive. Renault was hugely disappointing. The again, HK also had a very difficult debut last year here so I don't want to jump on Piquet Jr, but seriously, Jr better lift his game soon.

HK is going to give LH a run for his money, and Massa won't like it without TC, that's for sure.

Webber... well, where did that come from? Did the home crowd give him an extra 50 bhp or something?

Honda, and Torro Roso, same as last year.

Williams seems to have hugely improved.

Super Aguri is in deep trouble.

[Valve Bounce]

Well I am willing to stick my neck right out here seeing that historically, bunsen has outdone Mark Webber on all fronts. So I am offering to bet my sig on Mark Webber against the bunsen - any takers?

[RS]

It's always interesting to see the Friday times but Saturday morning practice before qualifying always gives us a much more accurate picture.

I am surprised how big the gap was bewteen the best time in both sessions and the rest of the field (bar McLaren and Ferrari)

[I am evil Homer]

Mostly agree with truefan.

BMW was unimpressive. Renault was hugely disappointing. The again, HK also had a very difficult debut last year here so I don't want to jump on Piquet Jr, but seriously, Jr better lift his game soon.

HK is going to give LH a run for his money, and Massa won't like it without TC, that's for sure.

Webber... well, where did that come from? Did the home crowd give him an extra 50 bhp or something?

Honda, and Torro Roso, same as last year.

Williams seems to have hugely improved.

Super Aguri is in deep trouble.

Agree with this it's only first practice but Nelsinho's times are poor when you look at the driver's who are around him and what they're driving. The Renault may not be the force of two season's ago but it certainly nowhere near as bad as those times suggest.

[PSfan]

My impression from todays 2nd practice:

That white bridge screws up the overall look of the Williams... also to much white on its side pod spoils the look...

Super Aguri now has my favorite looking car (I'm canadian so the red/white livery appeals to me... looks good when Sato skipped it across the gravel)

Every driver seemed to have some no-tc moments (some worse then others... cough cough... massa... Trulli... cough cough...) Should make for an interesting first corner in the race...

And most importantly... no Anthony Hamilton!!! :p : (I wonder if he's ill...)

[Valve Bounce]

Agree with this it's only first practice but Nelsinho's times are poor when you look at the driver's who are around him and what they're driving. The Renault may not be the force of two season's ago but it certainly nowhere near as bad as those times suggest.

Watched Junior on the telly at one stage and he looked rather erratic, which was reflected in his times. Other drivers were erratic earlier but then got smoother later. Lewis was so smooth that he looked slow; others were all over the place.

[Whyzars]

Hamilton pulled out a blinder when he needed it. I think he'll be the one to beat for pole tomorrow.

Webber and Coulthard were the surprise of the day for me.

[Valve Bounce]

When the driver looks slow but his times show otherwise, you know that he has the car sorted. Some guys were just snapping going into corners or going through corners, which means there's a helluva lot of work to day. Then some guys just barely came out and you know that they have a cross between last year's Honda and a rickshaw.

[SGWilko]

When the driver looks slow but his times show otherwise, you know that he has the car sorted. Some guys were just snapping going into corners or going through corners, which means there's a helluva lot of work to day. Then some guys just barely came out and you know that they have a cross between last year's Honda and a rickshaw.

There was one shot of video, on the ITV highlights feed, of Lewis really hanging the tail of the McLaren out. That was a sight to see.

Shock horror, excitement returns to F1.....

I really feel that the single ECU move by the FIA deserves a big :up: in practice alone it has given us a taster of how little mistakes cost a lot.

Roll on Qually, and Roll on race day.

The gap between Fernando and Junior was a casm, and he [Jr] has a lot to do. But it was the same for Heikki last year wasn't it?

Massa seems to be quick, but erratic.

Can't wait!

[Robinho]

i honestly expect Jnr to struggle this year, i don't think he's all that special

[Tazio]

There was one shot of video, on the ITV highlights feed, of Lewis really hanging the tail of the McLaren out. That was a sight to see.

Shock horror, excitement returns to F1.....

I really feel that the single ECU move by the FIA deserves a big :up: in practice alone it has given us a taster of how little mistakes cost a lot.

Roll on Qually, and Roll on race day.

The gap between Fernando and Junior was a casm, and he [Jr] has a lot to do. But it was the same for Heikki last year wasn't it?

Massa seems to be quick, but erratic.

Can't wait!Good observations!
A LOT of cars getting sideways. However these guys need to test the limits of the Albert Park tarmack.
I don't think it was that unusual if this was the result of lateral G's.
It was rather alarming that many drivers had prolems adjusting to the unassisted engine braking!
Resulting in spins and the rear-end stepping way out.

[keysersoze]

Williams have the best-looking livery.

I LOVED seeing the cars look twitchy under braking. It seems everyone had a moment or two.

Red Bull looks much stronger than I thought they would be.

BMW looks much weaker than I thought they would be. The cars, with all the winglets up front, are the ugliest thing I've seen on an F1 grid in quite some time.

For Vettel to be kicking Bourdais this soundly (he's beaten him in every pre-season test as well) speaks volumes about his future. He's the real thing.

All my boy Fisi needs to perform is a mid-field or backmarker team.

Piquet is in deep trouble, and rumours of an early sacking will begin very quickly.

[Tazio]

BTW Williams' Gerarbox issues reared it's ugly head once again.
This has been an area of ongoing concern for them.
They need to sort that out!

[mstillhere]

Ferrari and McLaren are still in a different class

1. Lewis H looks solid
2. Kimi looks great and ready to defend his crown
3. Kovaleinen is impressive
4. Piquet Jr. is dissapointing
5. Alonso is hard to tell due to Renault, but did well in the morning all things considering
6. Red Bull surprisingly look good
7. Webber seems to like the no traction control
8. speaking of... it is throughly enjoying to see these guys perform without it. I am not one to limit innovation, but this change has brought about more driving abilty.
9. BMW look unimpressive
9b. Both drivers seem to struggle as well ( maybe the expectations)
10. Glock is making me eat my words, looks good so far
11. Force India are better than I thought, we'll see
12. Nico Rosberb is going to have a fight on his hands with Nakajima
13. STR's are about the same as last year.
14. Vettel is going to be good, Bourdais will probably have his number though by the end of the year.
16. Toyota and Honda are better than last year
17. Massa still makes a few too many error for my liking

It looks like its going to be extremely close in the midfield, with hardly anything inbetween, 8-20, Super Aguri seem to be the only team that's going to struggle. It's going to be extremely close between Ferrari and McLaren. And probably between LH and KR for the win. Massa and HK will fight for 3rd.

I honestly think that Alonso, Red Bull and Toyota will outperform BMW in this race as I see it....then again, it's only Friday Practice ;)

Overall KR still the fastest :)

[jens]

Webber has always been very good at Albert Park. Last year at his first Grand Prix in RB he immediately outqualified DC by 10 positions! So it would be no surprise to see him in P5 tomorrow in quali.

Don't know about BMW. Last year they were often uninspiring at friday's FP's too, but then established themselves as 3rd force in the rest of the weekends.

Arguably the last private test for Honda was successful. Doubt that they and Force India will end up that high up as today, but they might trouble a team like Toro Rosso, who was expected to be better than the first two, but may not live up the expectations.

I'm moderately optimistic about Toyota. Q3 is on the cards. Trulli should be there if he stays out of trouble. Why not even a Top6 position in quali? That would be totally satisfying. :D I'm a bit sceptical about Glock - he has said that he needs to change his driving style to take the maximum out of the car. So some more time is needed to give him.

Super Aguri more than a second slower than anyone else. :\

[mstillhere]

Watched Junior on the telly at one stage and he looked rather erratic, which was reflected in his times. Other drivers were erratic earlier but then got smoother later. Lewis was so smooth that he looked slow; others were all over the place.

Well that speaks volumes about earlier statements supporting Junior replacement of Fisichella. After all it might not have been a good move.

[FIA]

I'm dissapointed with Nelson Piqut, but he could still do well in the european rounds. Super Aguri are not going to do well this year, shame really. BMW arren't looking good, this has annoyed me as I thought it could be a winning year for them. Red Bull look superb and tractio control ban is interesting.

[cinnamon33]

Everyone says, that Nelson is disappointing. Well, he's still only a rookie and I don't think that with the course of the season he will do very badly - Heikki at first didn't look much better and now almost everyone praises him, but a year ago the rumours were flying, that he could be sacked. We'll probably have to wait some time for another debut like Hamilton's, so let's not say that Junior and other rookies are disappointing just after two practice sessions.

[keysersoze]

Everyone says, that Nelson is disappointing. Well, he's still only a rookie and I don't think that with the course of the season he will do very badly - Heikki at first didn't look much better and now almost everyone praises him, but a year ago the rumours were flying, that he could be sacked. We'll probably have to wait some time for another debut like Hamilton's, so let's not say that Junior and other rookies are disappointing just after two practice sessions.

He underwhelmed me in testing, too. In an earlier thread, I predicted Renault would score in the low 50s this season, and Alonso will have 45 of them.

Now I'm willing to go even further. Barring extenuating circumstances, I don't see Junior ever making Q3, and I don't see him in the points on sheer pace. On the other hand, I see Alonso as a Q3 regular.

This is the biggest teammate mismatch.

[SGWilko]

He underwhelmed me in testing, too. In an earlier thread, I predicted Renault would score in the low 50s this season, and Alonso will have 45 of them.

Now I'm willing to go even further. Barring extenuating circumstances, I don't see Junior ever making Q3, and I don't see him in the points on sheer pace. On the other hand, I see Alonso as a Q3 regular.

This is the biggest teammate mismatch.

Lets give him the benefit of the doubt, and put it down to first race jitters. He does have a fair legacy to live up to.......

[truefan72]

Everyone says, that Nelson is disappointing. Well, he's still only a rookie and I don't think that with the course of the season he will do very badly - Heikki at first didn't look much better and now almost everyone praises him, but a year ago the rumours were flying, that he could be sacked. We'll probably have to wait some time for another debut like Hamilton's, so let's not say that Junior and other rookies are disappointing just after two practice sessions.

agreed,

but it was his mental errors and off track moments that were of concern with HK not his overall pace. He actually was a lot more competitive than NPJr is.

being 18th and 19th respectively in a Renault while your teammate is 6th in the morning and 13th later on, indicate that the car has some potential. He had an entire year and winter to getused to the conditions.

Let's not forget that he's been clainming to be better than HK and was itching to replace him last year.

Last year, in arguably a weaker car, HK was 8th on Friday morning, and 18th in Friday afternoon whilde doing only 10 laps (the least of allthe racers out there), then 8th again Saturday morning, and qualified 13th, so that's what NP has to outdo IMO

As to the Sper Aguri's.I wish they woul make a clean break from Honda. They clearly screwed them over royaly to save their own sorry hides and now are in much worse a psotion than they were in the first half of 2007.

[keysersoze]

Lets give him the benefit of the doubt, and put it down to first race jitters. He does have a fair legacy to live up to.......

I was a huge Piquet fan back in the day, and I must shamefully admit that I'm inclined to like Junior because he's clearly well-spoken (and outspoken) and his accent is so, well, nearly, North American.

But it seems he talks a better game than he delivers. I became even less than impressed when he panned Giancarlo's 2007 performance, even though Nelson himself wasn't any quicker when he tested.

[ShiftingGears]

BMWs top Sat. Practice, with Button, Fisichella and the Red Bulls looking very good. Very unpredictable, besides Nelsinho's performance. He sucked.

Also Heikki looking very second rate to Hamilton as well - only the SA cars were slower.

[Roamy]

YUK I thought the cream would rise to the top and after Saturday practice the Sh!t has risen to the top YUK hopefully everyone was sandbagging

[PSfan]

YUK I thought the cream would rise to the top and after Saturday practice the Sh!t has risen to the top YUK hopefully everyone was sandbagging

Keep in mind, last year Davidson was 4th quickest after 3rd Practice, which translated into 11th after qualifying (which was still great) but indicates that even 3rd practice won't give a good preview of what to really expect

[Roamy]

i hr and the fireworks start - most of the Euro will be sleeping like we do in the summer.

[pino]

i hr and the fireworks start - most of the Euro will be sleeping like we do in the summer.

I am not :p :

[Tazio]

Australian GP free practice session 3 times


1. KUBICA BMW 1m25.613s
2. HEIDFELD BMW 1m25.950s
3. ALONSO Renault 1m26.082s
4. ROSBERG Williams 1m26.171s
5. COULTHARD Red Bull 1m26.385s
6. WEBBER Red Bull 1m26.470s
7. BUTTON Honda 1m26.502s
8. VETTEL Toro Rosso 1m26.663s
9. FISICHELLA Force India 1m26.682s
10. TRULLI Toyota 1m26.882s
11. MASSA Ferrari 1m27.020s
12. HAMILTON McLaren 1m27.084s
13. GLOCK Toyota 1m27.162s
14. RAIKKONEN Ferrari 1m27.163s
15. PIQUET Renault 1m27.284s
16. BARRICHELLO Honda 1m27.333s
17. SUTIL Force India 1m27.489s
18. BOURDAIS Toro Rosso 1m27.578s
19. NAKAJIMA Williams 1m27.601s
20. KOVALAINEN McLaren 1m27.992s
21. SATO Super Aguri 1m28.363s
22. DAVIDSON Super Aguri 1m28.912s





Here's My BMW 1,2
VVVVVVVVVVVVV

[PSfan]

Australian GP free practice session 3 times
1. KUBICA BMW 1m25.613s
2. HEIDFELD BMW 1m25.950s
3. ALONSO Renault 1m26.082s


Interesting to compare the times to last years:

2007 Australian GP free practice 3 times

1. Raikkonen Ferrari 1m26.064s
2. Fisichella Renault 1m26.454s
3. Hamilton McLeran 1m26.647s

Not sure about track conditions... but even without the electronic gizmos, cars seem quicker this year...

[ShiftingGears]

Hamilton on pole
Kubica 2nd - though he would've got pole if he didnt run wide at Turn 11/12.
Too bad for Webber and Raikkonen, I hope the car problems arent a concern for the rest of the season :s

Piquet Jr was awful. 21st.

[gloomyDAY]

Hamilton on pole
Kubica 2nd - though he would've got pole if he didnt run wide at Turn 11/12.
Too bad for Webber and Raikkonen, I hope the car problems arent a concern for the rest of the season :s

Piquet Jr was awful. 21st.
I wonder what happened to Vettel. Have a lot of faith in STR and hoping to see some improved times from both Seb's.

[truefan72]

yes I think Kubica could have taken pole if not of his mistake

CLEARLY the BMW 's were trying to trick me. Those cars seem awefuly fast. And good for RK. Well done BMW, They seem to have taken a solid step in making this a 3 horse race.

HK acquitted himself very well and will give LH a run for his money.
The STR's and RBR's are better than I thought
Converselry, I guess the renaaults are worse and NPJr is a dissapointment so far.

Honda has taken a solid step forward
Massa needs to "bring it" tomorrow for ferrari's sake
anything less than a podium would be dissapointing IMO
Lewis Hamilton looks great and a well deserved pole position
infact McLaren are doing their best to erase the shadows of last season.
I hope Kimmi can give us some exciting driving tomorrow.
With all the no-TC racing, mistakes under pressure and different braking zones due to competion should see him grab a point, but his got to be a bity patient at first.

The first corner is crucial. Kubica hasn't been in this postion and I think that he'll probably get passed by HK and might be in an incident with Massa,

Lets hope for a clean start and a great race.

btw, shame for Webber, I think his car might have made top 5

[jens]

Wow, superb performance by BMW!!! :up: They were definetely the 'sandbaggers' of winter testing. They are almost certainly third best at the moment and I would say that they are even very close to Top2 (closer than last year). And what's more amazing, they even seem quicker than Ferrari (the team that was expected to dominate!) in qualifying trim. Awesome stuff - another proof that never underestimate BMW! :D Despite a mistake Robert still second - I also suspect he has lighter fuel load than other drivers. But this was BMW's usual strategy last year - drivers on different strategies with regard to be ready for every race situation (SC's, etc).

In the beginning Toyota didn't seem too convincing (without KR's and MW's unluck wouldn't have made it into Q3), but P6 in the end for Jarno - very good. And very good performance by Glock too, who despite not seeming too comfortable with the car made it into Q3. :up: As in the past years Toyota has often struggled in race conditions, then arguably this year it should be different - wonder if they can keep their positions in the race too? (hopefully they have got rid of their poor starts than characterized the car in '07)

Honda is another positive surprise. So this season might be a bit better for the Japanese teams than the previous one!

And another bright moment - Der Seb 6th in Q2! ;) Bourdais has admitted that he is still struggling over one lap, but the loss for Vettel was nevertheless enormous (like Piquet's loss to Alonso). Nakajima performed a bit better than in last year's Brazilian qualifying, but it seems he still needs to work on his quali pace.

Force India - a little bit disappointing to be honest. Couldn't keep the same development rate as Honda.

Funny that before the season Ferrari was expected to dominate this season. Now there doesn't seem to be much left of that 'domination'. Massa looked very uninspiring during the whole qualifying. Probably Ferrari has better race pace, but will that be good enough for challenging top positions?

About Webber - this year's Red Bull was expected to be more reliable, wasn't it? :\

[PSfan]

Well that was interesting... won't know the full implications of Q3 until after the top 10 make their first pitstops tomorrow. I'm not sure if I would sacrifice grid position for a longer first run at the first couple races, the more cars behind you means less chance of someone in front having a "non-tc" related incident in front of you.

Truly a dreadfull way for Kimi to defend his championship, If I was Ferrari, I would consider starting him on pit road... be easier to pass those 6 or 7 cars that you would sacrifice at the start, then risk being caught up in a first lap/corner incident because a few other drivers aren't up to speed without the TC.

Would like to know if STR really had a problem with Vettels car, or if having the engine cover off was just to make it look like they did. No point in burning off fuel if you think you are only gonna start 9th or 10th anyway.

All the driver still seem at one point have the car slip out a little, and I expect it to still happen during the race, the trick will be to make sure it only happens when no-one is beside you...

[Tazio]

It will be interesting to see what kind of fuel strategy kimi's on. I suspect Ferrari, and kimi should be happy with p5 maybe p4 points Unless there is attrition at the top, anything more would be extremely optomistic, or incredible!

[Valve Bounce]

It will be interesting to see what kind of fuel strategy kimi's on. I suspect Ferrari, and kimi should be happy with p5 maybe p4 points Unless there is attrition at the top, anything more would be extremely optomistic, or incredible!


What!!!! Kimi conked out during Q2. And Lewis is on pole, and Alonso didn't make Q3 - I have your ass in a vice, buddy!!

[truefan72]

Glock docked 10 places for two seperate infractions.
Changing the gearbox and "impeding" Webber
The former I can see, that latter I need to see.

It seems so subjective to hand out that kind of fine.
It really comes down to one man's point of view and probabvly another's bitching to the stewards.

oh well

[ioan]

Glock docked 10 places for two seperate infractions.
Changing the gearbox and "impeding" Webber
The former I can see, that latter I need to see.

It seems so subjective to hand out that kind of fine.
It really comes down to one man's point of view and probabvly another's bitching to the stewards.

oh well

Not to mention racing in OZ.
Impeding the guy n the kitty litter has to be penalized. :s

[ShiftingGears]

Not to mention racing in OZ.
Impeding the guy n the kitty litter has to be penalized. :s

Yeah but unfortunately for Glock rules are rules. Same with Kimi - he was about 100 metres from being legally pushed back into the garage when his car failed him.