My Motorsport Blog

Firstly, well done Rubens! The world of Motorsport can see what your abilities are when you get a car which can perform the same as your team mate and the other top ten runners on the grid.

Having read coverage and other blogs on this I wonder why it is that we have so much dishonesty in the sport revealed recently? It is only with hindsight ( a week break to Paxos does that to you) that I realise that it is not really something new or even recent, we have always had dishonesty, but nobody were caught! As we move forward in the age of technology it appears that we have more and more “Whistle Blowers” in big business and now in motorsport. Wouldn’t you love to see the proof that the Piquet’s produced to achieve this.

The Nelson Piquet debacle really makes me wonder what the two Nelsons (Sounds like a wrestling match) will actually achieve or gain from this. Personally I think they should also be suspended as well as their GP2 Team as they have admitted that they are open for bribery and guilty of this by young Piquet’s action in causing a premeditated crash by his confession.

Let’s face it, they have achieved what Max Moseley had wanted and finally Briatore has left F1. If I were not such a pessimist I would say watch out Ferrari you might be next in certain sights.

The circuit is 5.543Km or 3.444 miles in length, 10 right hand corners and 5 left. The lap record is held by Juan Pablo Montoya with a time lap time of 1:34,223. The Ferrari’s had a one-two position on the grid in 2008 and Kimi Räikkönen won the race with Robert Kubica and Heikki Kovalainen second and third respectively.

The circuit is of course Sepang, Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia and at this stage we could be in for a storm……NO!!!! I actually do mean a storm. The weather forecasts for Saturday and Sunday show thunder showers so this link will help you monitor the situation. However, we have a new team and they do not seem interested in the weather or taking prisoners and want to win. I am referring to Brawn GP and they could repeat their Australian performance in Sepang if the car handles well in the wet.

I do not really want to speculate about this because the cars are completely different from last year but we know that Brawn GP, Toyota and Williams have an advantage with their respective aero-packages. I am however tempted to say that Brawn GP will feature in the top 5 this weekend. Looking at the results of 2008 in which Räikkönen won, followed by Robert Kubica, Kovalainen, Trulli, Hamilton, Heidfeld, Webber and Alonso. To these I would gladly add the names of Jenson Button, Rubens Barrichello and Felipe Massa as potential front runners.

Nick Heidfeld still holds the fastest lap at this circuit but he will have to make sure he qualifies well. It would have been great to see Sebastian Vettel in this pack but with the penalty he received in Australia it will be a hard day’s work in the “office” for the young man. Looking at this picture of Nick and Robert I do wonder what it is with F1 drivers and the “fluff” on their faces? We really need Wilkinson to add some sponsorship to this formula.

Looking at comments made by team and driver previews on the official F1 site it would appear that they have not looked at the weather forecast and this includes Hirohide Hamashima, Bridgestone director of motorsport tyre development because they are all concerned about the heat in Sepang. Granted Hirohide did mention the later start time and rain.

I believe the decision to start later at these circuits were wrong as the changes in track temperature and the setting sun were commented on in Australia by several drivers. It does make the race more exiting though.

As a F1 fan I am never nervous before the start of a Grand Prix because it is time the beer and snacks are seen to and my domain (the lounge and TV) secured against intrusion. I must add that this Sunday was no exception but I did feel a tinge of nerves (and no beer) and a wish for the Brawn GP Team to finish on the podium. Just to prove all the “Experts” wrong. You see I hoped for one of the new Brawn GP cars to cross the line in any of the first three places. I did hope that the Fairy Tale (not tail) would come true and Brawn GP takes 1st and 2nd.

This wish was shattered when Rubens Barrichello had such a bad start and then used his new car in a destruction derby on the first lap. To my amazement the car did not disintegrate as expected but kept going and did quite well. With confidence regained I had another glimmer hope but in the dying stages of the race Robert Kubica with his BMW became a threat and I did think a second or third place would be the end result for Jenson Button . But then Robert Kubica and Sebastian Vettel decided to have a little business meeting on the track while discussing the second position that they were contesting.

Not wishing others harm but I did have a smile. Rubens and the other Brawn GP car inherited second place. The lottery escaped me but the Fairy Tale ended as this writer had hoped.

On the 4th July 1954 Mercedes-Benz returned to Formula One racing with a one-two win at the French Grand Prix with the Mercedes -Benz W196. Since 1954 no other team achieved this but on the 29th March 2009 Jenson Button and Rubens Barrichello repeated history and a new team with a new car had a one-two finish in a Formula One Grand Prix.

Now just for some fun are you a F1 driver…..check your reaction times against what Shell recons it should be. After that, can you refuel your car like this?

Ferrari, McLaren and BMW drivers have resorted to wearing “cloaking devices” at the race track looking at Massa’s “beardy” it would seem. Could this be due to the the first practice rounds that we have had? What a surprise to see dark horses Williams, Brawn, Toyota and Red Bull “hogging” the front row and making life difficult for the high budget front runners of the past.

The cars look cleaner and I am glad to see the return of slick tyres to the formula. The “hype” about KERS and the concerns about the “reg” changes will be exposed this weekend and it is time fans agree we need a change to the sport that suit us and the spectators.

There are questions asked about the continuity of the Brawn car and I think we should accept the fact that Ross is not an idiot and has the knowledge and experience on how to run a team. To question his business acumen at this stage will be the same as to doubt his racing abilities,  which,  Mercedes Benz have already shown is in no doubt with their agreement to supply engines to the team. I think Mercedes after the practise rounds must be in no doubt that they have made the right decision.

The only aspect of the sponsorship to Ross Brawn’s team which I believe might come from Virgin and Richard Branson I do not like, is that he, Richard, sat on the fence waiting to see if Brawn GP were going to be succesful with the car specs, and if the appeals against the diffusers will be acceptable. I appreciate that this would have been a business decision but it is not a sport in which a sponsor can sit on the fence and wait to see which way a decision will go.

Once again Ross, well done and I believe you will be there for years to come. If I did not know better I would say get Rory and Michael together and go out there, chew bubblegum and kick some ass.

At this stage I have to say that most of the focus has been on the Brawn car but the threat is not just from that quarter and we have to keep eyes on Williams and Toyota who have something to prove. I really wish the FIA and the proposed or anticipated appeal against these guys are not successful and we can get racing.

LET THE GAMES BEGIN!!!!!!