McLaren Mercedes

Formula 1 Team reports for the 2009 F1 season includes race previews, reports and reviews
Ed
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Post by Ed » Mon Oct 05, 2009 12:55 am

2009 JAPANESE GRAND PRIX
Suzuka Circuit

LEWIS HAMILTON
MP4-24-02

Started: 3rd
Finished: 3rd
Fastest lap: 1m33.259s (6th)
Pitstops: two (Op-Pr-Op)
2009 points: 43 (6th)

A forceful start from third on the grid saw Lewis vault second-placed Jarno Trulli and attempt a move around the outside of leader Sebastian Vettel before slotting into second position for his opening stint.

“I tried to get past both Jarno and Sebastian at the start,” said Lewis. “But I couldn’t quite manage to get into the lead. It was a good scrap with Jarno – we were really battling, setting qualifying times as we tried to shave tenths off each other’s laps – but, over the race distance, my car couldn’t quite match his.”

Unable to keep up with the pace of the leading Red Bull, Lewis’s race instead focused on a tactical battle to beat Jarno’s Toyota for second. Lewis maintained that position through his first two stints, but was unable properly to defend the place in the final stint after developing an issue with his KERS device.

Lewis explained: “As I exited the pits after my second stop, I lost time with a gearbox problem, which meant I coasted about 100 metres down the pitlane – that cost me about a second. To be honest, it wasn’t a surprise to be jumped by Jarno at the final stops – we needed every tenth to make the gap up to three seconds and we couldn’t quite make it.”

With his engineers unable to rectify the KERS fault, Lewis was effectively forced to settle for third position, and then to protect his position after a late Safety Car period bunched the field.

“When we were behind the Safety Car, I asked the team if they could get the KERS working again so that I could shoot past Jarno,” Lewis said, “but they couldn’t do it and I wasn’t close enough to get in his slipstream at the restart.”

Nonetheless, Lewis firmly established himself in third place until the flag. On the occasion of his 50th grand prix, his six points today move him to within two points of fifth position in the drivers’ championship. The result also moves Vodafone McLaren Mercedes to within two points of third in the constructors’ championship.

HEIKKI KOVALAINEN
MP4-24-03
Started: 11th
Finished: 11th
Fastest lap: 1m33.801s (12th)
Pitstops: two (Op-Pr-Op)

2009 points: 22 (12th)

Qualifying ninth but demoted to 11th following his unscheduled pre-race gearbox change, Heikki attacked in the opening laps, making a great start to vault to ninth and moving up a further place after taking Adrian Sutil on lap two.

The pair ran in close proximity for much of the first stint until lap 13, when Adrian dived up the inside of Heikki at the chicane and the pair touched. Adrian spun and Heikki lost a position to Jenson Button as he was delayed by the incident.

Thereafter he pushed hard in the lower fringes of the top 10, stopping on laps 24 – when a front static hubcab refused to position itself correctly and needed to be replaced at the next stop – and 39 – when he chased Giancarlo Fisichella out of the pits and squeezed past the Italian on the kerbs as the pair raced for the first corner. He finished 11th.

“I’m a bit disappointed with my result,” Heikki said. “I’m absolutely on the limit of my car and we’re still lacking grip in the high-speed corners, so it’s not possible for me to attack any harder. I pushed from the start to the finish – Adrian tried to make a move but only went halfway, so I was able to stay beside him. When he tried to turn in, I was already on the kerb and I had no more room to avoid him, so I had to lean on him and that was more a problem for him.

“My second pitstop wasn't fantastic as we had a problem with the right front wheel, so Giancarlo was able to get out right in front of me. I was able to release the pitlane speed-limiter earlier and immediately got on KERS. He gave me some room, so it was quite an easy move – nothing too dramatic.”

MARTIN WHITMARSH
Team principal, Vodafone McLaren Mercedes

“Suzuka is a terrifically exciting and challenging circuit, for drivers and engineers alike. So for us to have bagged a solid third place here isn’t something we need be too disappointed with, particularly bearing in mind where we were performance-wise on fast circuits of this nature only a few weeks ago.

“Ultra-forceful competitor that he is and always will be, Lewis had hoped to be able to take the lead from Sebastian at the first corner. In truth it was never going to be easy, owing to the short run from the start-line to the first corner – and, once Sebastian had held on to his lead into Turn One, he remained just out of Lewis’s reach all afternoon.

“Lewis’s focus then turned to his delicately poised battle with Jarno. Emerging from the second pitstops in third place just behind the Italian, Lewis then suffered a KERS malfunction that we were unable to cure. Bearing in mind that he then had to improvise an all-new driving style to compensate for the lack of KERS and the compromised braking balance that the lack of KERS occasioned, he did a truly fantastic job to hold on to third place, and to keep Kimi [Raikkonen] at bay, through to the flag.

“After Heikki’s problems in qualifying, compounded by a five-place grid penalty caused by our need to replace his gearbox yesterday afternoon, Heikki tried his hardest today to make up places from his P11 grid slot – but the reality is that Suzuka is a tricky strip of narrow asphalt on which it’s deceptively difficult to overtake. The fact that Heikki is disappointed with his P11 finish is an indication of his competitive spirit – but he’s already talking optimistically about Interlagos.

“Talking of Interlagos, we’ll approach the Brazilian Grand Prix with the same mindset with which we’ve been approaching every Grand Prix since the German: in other words, with a mindset aggressively focused on scoring as many points as possible in an effort to secure third place in the constructors’ world championship.”

NORBERT HAUG
Vice-president, Mercedes-Benz Motorsport

“"A great race from Lewis again and 16 points for him and the team after the last two weekends with his win in Singapore and third place here in Suzuka.

“After his second pitstop, a potential isolation problem with the KERS Hybrid occurred, the root cause of which we are still investigating. As a precaution, the system switched itself off, so after his second pitstop, Lewis had to run without KERS support – which obviously cost him laptime due to brake-balance issues and less power available.

“Despite this handicap, he did a marvellous job defending his third position from Kimi at the restart after the Safety Car period. In fact, he pulled a gap out between him and the Ferrari in the last laps.

“Heikki was handicapped starting from 11th place after receiving a five place grid penalty due to changing his car’s gearbox following his qualifying shunt.

“Vodafone McLaren Mercedes has scored 51 points in the six races since Lewis’s win at the Hungarian Grand Prix at the end of July – a better score than any other team in that period of time.

“I would like to thank everybody in our team at Woking, Brixworth and Stuttgart for the hard work that was done in order to recover from our bad first half of the season when we scored 14 points in nine races. In the last six, we got 51 – and that definitely feels much better.

“Finally, congratulations to Sebastian and Red Bull Racing for a superb win today – this result keeps the outcome of the world championship open.”

Ed
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Post by Ed » Mon Oct 12, 2009 6:37 pm

2009 BRAZILIAN GRAND PRIX PREVIEW

Lewis Hamilton

“I’m really looking forward to this year’s Brazilian Grand Prix – it will be the first time I’ve travelled to Sao Paulo without being in contention for the world championship, and I’m actually looking forward to taking in a bit more of the city and relaxing and enjoying the experience of driving on one of the world’s greatest racetracks.

“My highlights are Turn One, braking into the long left-hander which bends right and takes you out onto the back straight; Ferra Dura, which is a fast right-hander where you body is squeezed hard into the side of the car, and the main straight: you accelerate hard uphill and you can even hear the crowd and the Brazilian drums playing in the grandstands.

“One of the greatest things about racing at Interlagos is the crowd. There’s such a great atmosphere; the fans have so much energy and life. It’s a party while you’re working, and it’s great to see everyone happy.”

Heikki Kovalainen

“The Interlagos circuit is quite a challenging one for the drivers because it’s anti-clockwise, which, after a season of racing on clockwise circuits, puts quite a strain on your neck muscles. But you quickly forget that once you get out on the circuit – it’s an incredible racetrack, really demanding – but very satisfying when you get a lap right.

“Interlagos hasn’t traditionally been a circuit where we have excelled, but we feel that we’ve resolved quite a few of the issues that affected us at this race last year, and using KERS Hybrid – particularly up that long hill out of the final corner – should be a considerable benefit both in qualifying and the race.”

Martin Whitmarsh

Team principal, Vodafone McLaren Mercedes

“Nobody on our team will ever forget the dramatic final laps of the 2008 Brazilian Grand Prix – they are memories that will live with us forever. Of course, the defining moments of the last two world championships have both taken place in Brazil and, as a result, the race has become an unusually colourful and intense occasion for us.

“Travelling to Sao Paulo this year with our focus solely on achieving the very best result will allow us to attack the race weekend without any additional considerations, and we are very much looking forward to that challenge.”

Norbert Haug

Vice-president, Mercedes-Benz Motorsport

“Lewis has been the most successful driver of the last two grands prix, which took place within the space of one week in Singapore and at the Japanese Suzuka circuit. During those eight days, Vodafone McLaren Mercedes scored more points than any other team, a trend that fortunately has continued for the last six grands prix since Lewis’s first 2009 victory in the Hungarian GP.

“We started the season and had to make do with a minimum of points, so it’s pleasing to see the upward trend we’ve had since our home grand prix at the Nurburgring in the middle of July. We try to continue this trend with Lewis’s two wins and two additional podium places in the last six races – a gain which hasn’t been achieved by any other driver in this period of time.

“In the last six races of the season’s second half, Lewis has beaten world champion candidate Jenson Button four times, Rubens Barrichello and our German friend Sebastian Vettel three times each, and each of the three title candidates has scored less points than Lewis, who managed 34 whereas Rubens scored 27, Sebastian 22 and, with 17 points, Jenson, who, at the top of the table, achieved only half of Lewis’s points.

“The world championship fight is open and electrifying – I know from my own experience what I am talking about when I say that with a 16-point deficit of Sebastian to Jenson, nothing has been decided yet. With regard to the constructors’ world championship, Brawn GP should have already done it with half a point still missing.”

Ed
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Post by Ed » Sun Oct 18, 2009 11:42 am

2009 BRAZILIAN GRAND PRIX FREE PRACTICE

LEWIS HAMILTON
MP4-24-02

P1 programme 25 laps 1m13.048s (5th)

P2 programme 39 laps 1m12.749s (10th)

Despite starting on a cold and somewhat gripless track, Lewis was immediately on the pace, setting a best time of 1m13.187s at the end of his opening six-lap run. He sat out the next half an hour while the rain showers intensified, but his return to the track was cut short by Grosjean’s accident, which happened just as Lewis was ready to exit the pitlane.

He completed two further runs in the morning session (six laps/1m13/048s and five laps/1m13.278s) to wind up fifth fastest.

For the afternoon session, Lewis switched to longer runs, focusing on evaluating the performance of the Option tyre. He completed an initial four-lap run on the Prime (1m13.157s) before undertaking an 11-lap stint (Primes/1m13.016s) and nine laps on the Option (1m12.749s). At the end of the session, the mechanics effected a rear downforce change and Lewis completed six laps (1m12.882s)

“We had a good Friday,” said Lewis. “We’re not the fastest, but our long runs appear to be quite consistent. We’re not as quick as the Red Bulls, but, for Brazil – where we haven’t traditionally been quick – we’re quite happy with the pace we have.

“In the past, we’ve always been quick in qualifying but not as quick in the race. KERS is worth close to four tenths in quali and around half that in the race, so I’m optimistic for tomorrow afternoon and think the consistency we showed today will reward us in the race.”

HEIKKI KOVALAINEN
MP4-24-03

P1 programme 25 laps 1m12.989s (4th)

P2 programme 39 laps 1m12.992s (17th)

Heikki completed four runs this morning, focusing on longer runs in order to sufficiently warm up the Prime tyre in the cooler conditions. After finishing his opening five-lap stint (1m14.785s best), his second outing (two laps/1m14.258s) was cut short when the session was stopped to recover the debris from Romain Grosjean’s collision with a marker board.

With rain constantly threatening, he quickly completed two further runs (four laps/1m13.087s and four laps/1m12.989s) to end the first session in fourth position overall.

In P2, Heikki ran a near-identical programme to Lewis. Completing an exploratory, short, five-lap run on Primes (1m13.049s), the bulk of his afternoon was taken up with a 10-lap run on Primes (1m12.992s) and a further 10-lap run on the Option (1m13.079s). He ended the day 17th fastest, completing his running with a five-lap stint (1m13.110s).

Heikki said: “A productive day. The times may not necessarily show it, but we’ve made some good progress today. We followed a disciplined programme, focusing on our race pace and evaluating both tyre compounds. Our pace on both tyres appears to be very good and we suffered very limited degradation, so I think our race pace will be good.”

MARTIN WHITMARSH
Team principal, Vodafone McLaren Mercedes

“Firstly, it’s a great feeling to be back in Brazil, and, in particular, here at Interlagos. This circuit holds some very happy memories for the whole team, and they came flooding back this morning once the sessions started.

“Interlagos hasn’t normally been a circuit where our race pace has been strong, but today’s running has certainly showed a remarkable level of consistency, which we are confident will carry over into the race on Sunday.

“Today’s times also show that the pace of both Red Bulls looks very strong, but we believe we’ll have a competitive racing car for this weekend.”

NORBERT HAUG
Vice-president, Mercedes-Benz Motorsport

“Not a bad day. We’ve been posting quick and consistent lap times in our race simulations. Lewis in 10th position was a little less than three tenths slower than Rubens Barrichello in third, and the three world championship contenders did similar lap times to Lewis. All 20 cars are separated by less than a second on their fastest laps, so it’s closer than ever in Formula 1.

“I’m not too concerned about our positions in today’s rankings. Tomorrow and on Sunday, we hopefully should be as competitive as in the last races, but of course there is always room for improvement.”

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Post by Ed » Sun Oct 18, 2009 11:44 am

2009 BRAZILIAN GRAND PRIX QUALIFYING

With the set-up of both cars leaning heavily towards tomorrow’s anticipated dry conditions, and with MP4-24 lacking the overall aerodynamic grip of the cars with the highest downforce levels, neither Heikki nor Lewis were able to graduate beyond Q1 in this afternoon’s chaotic, rain-lashed qualifying session.

Heikki will start tomorrow’s Brazilian Grand Prix from 17th, while Lewis will line up 18th.

HEIKKI KOVALAINEN
MP4-24-03

P3 programme
1m25.685s (5 laps, 12th)

Qualifying
Q1 1m25.052s (17th overall)

“These were some of the worst conditions I’ve ever experienced in a race weekend. I like driving in wet conditions, but today there was so much aquaplaning that it was extremely difficult to keep the car on the track. Plus, there was very bad visibility when you were travelling in the spray of another car.

“This result shows that we still lack some downforce, so there was nothing we could do to go any faster. I hope the set-up will better suit us in different conditions tomorrow.”

LEWIS HAMILTON
MP4-24-02

P3 programme
1m27.798s (4 laps, 17th)

Qualifying
Q1 1m25.192s (18th overall)

“Today was one of the worst qualifying sessions I can remember. Our car didn’t feel good at all: for both Heikki and me, we couldn’t even go flat-out along the straights – that’s how little grip we had.

“It was a disappointing performance, but we did the best we could – I even had a small ‘off’ trying to push at the end and the car just let loose on me. We were running with a dry set-up, so it’s a lot stiffer than you’d probably want in the wet – and our shortfall in downforce, compared to some of the other cars, really shows in these conditions.

“I’m hoping the sun comes out for tomorrow so we’ll have a fighting chance of getting into the points, but starting 18th means your weekend is really on the back foot.”

MARTIN WHITMARSH
Team principal, Vodafone McLaren Mercedes

“This was obviously disappointing for the whole team. Perhaps we concentrated too much on anticipating a potentially dry race tomorrow, and, consequently, we didn’t give our drivers a car that enabled them to graduate past Q1. Clearly, this was not what we’d hoped for, but we will be doing everything we can in tomorrow’s race.

“We won’t give up, and we want to score some points tomorrow by adopting perhaps a less risk-averse strategy than we otherwise would have done from positions further up the grid.”

NORBERT HAUG
Vice-president, Mercedes-Benz Motorsport

“A great disappointment. It looks as if our cars were more surfing than driving on lots of water on the track and, obviously, as a team we didn’t give it the best possible shot during these difficult heavy rain conditions today.

“We certainly can’t blame our drivers for our struggle – they are proven rain specialists.

“In addition, I feel very sorry for our friend Sebastian Vettel, who couldn’t make it into Q2 either, which may have cost him his last chance of a shot at the title.”

Ed
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Post by Ed » Mon Oct 19, 2009 5:07 pm

2009 BRAZILIAN GRAND PRIX

Interlagos, Sunday October 18

LEWIS HAMILTON
MP4-24-02

Started: 17th
Finished: 3rd
Fastest lap: 1m14.345s (6th)
Pitstops: two (Op-Pr-Pr)
2009 points: 49 (5th)

As Lewis passed the baton of world champion to Brawn GP’s Jenson Button this afternoon, he signed off by posting a real champion’s drive, storming through the field from 17th on the grid to third at the chequered flag.

With a first-lap accident prompting a Safety Car, Lewis’s crew chose to pit him immediately, effectively switching him to a single-stop strategy and placing him on the more efficient Prime tyre for the remainder of the race.

Restarting the race from 14th, he pushed hard, passing both Jaime Alguersuari and Romain Grosjean on a single lap, and moving up to fourth before making his final stop on lap 42.

Rejoining behind pole-sitter Rubens Barrichello, Lewis caught the Brazilian, finally KERS-boosting past him along the start-finish straight on lap 62 to be third.

“It was an incredible race for me and I’m so happy,” Lewis said. “Starting at the back was a completely different feeling from last year. This time, I wasn’t involved in the championship outcome, but I’m incredibly happy for Jenson. I’ve been down to congratulate him, his team and his family.

“As for my race, I was so far behind on the grid that I didn’t expect to finish on the podium, but I fought so hard and kept pushing like crazy throughout the whole race. It feels like a win when you come through fighting for positions all the time with good overtaking manoeuvres at the end.

“I just kept pushing and did one qualifying lap after another, which was very hard. The team kept telling me to keep going at that speed and our strategy was excellent. This was a great team effort.”

The points scored today move Vodafone McLaren Mercedes to third position in the constructors’ world championship, one point ahead of Ferrari.

HEIKKI KOVALAINEN
MP4-24-03

Started: 16th
Finished: 9th
Fastest lap: 1m14.303s (5th)
Pitstops: three (Pr-Pr-Op-Op)
2009 points: 22 (12th)

From 16th on the grid, Heikki was squeezed through Turn Two, suffered contact with Sebastian Vettel and spun, rejoining at the tail of the field and quickly pitting to top up his fuel load. However, through no fault of his own, Heikki was released before the refuelling nozzle had fully decoupled. As a result, the fuel hose was pulled from the rig and fuel was showered into the path of a following car, where it briefly ignited.

The delay in releasing the hose, signalling Heikki out of the pits, and the resultant loss of fuel into the car, meant that Heikki’s race was compromised from the very first lap.

Nonetheless, he raced hard, working his way into a points-scoring position before making his second stop on lap 29. Thereafter, he enjoyed a spirited tussle with Kamui Kobayashi and efficiently dealt with Giancarlo Fisichella – for the second time in two races – at the exit of his third and final stop.

Ninth position doesn’t accurately reflect his efforts today. His fifth fastest race lap, and – without losing fuel at the start – the team’s estimated finishing position of fourth, by contrast do.

“While the results don’t show it, I had a good race out there today,” said Heikki. “I lost about six or seven laps’ worth of fuel with the incident with the fuel-hose. And, without that problem, my first stint would have been longer and would have allowed me to get ahead of some of the cars ahead of me.

“I chased Kobayashi for a long time, and, even though I had the pace, I couldn’t launch an attack on him because my rear tyres had degraded quite a bit by then.

“Still, I’m very pleased that our team has now moved ahead of Ferrari in the constructors’ world championship. And I really feel I could have added to that total without my problems in the pitlane today.

“I’m already looking forward to the next race in Abu Dhabi. My aim there will be to go flat-out to ensure we consolidate that position and finish the season in third place.”


MARTIN WHITMARSH
Team principal, Vodafone McLaren Mercedes

“First of all, on behalf of all at Vodafone McLaren Mercedes, I’d like to offer our congratulations to Jenson, to Ross, to Nick and to the entire Brawn team for winning the drivers’ and constructors’ world championships this afternoon – and to Mercedes-Benz, too, who supplied their winning engines. Jenson fully deserves his success – although I’d like to make clear that both Rubens and Sebastian would also have been worthy champions, had things played out differently.

“Passing the champion’s baton to Jenson is of course Lewis, who performed as brilliantly as ever today. We altered his strategy as a result of the deployment of the Safety Car, after which he drove a fantastic race from 17th on the grid to third at the flag. Had he not been stuck in traffic for a few key periods of the race, he may have finished even higher up the field. Certainly, his race pace was very strong.

“Heikki would have scored points too, had he not been delayed by a pitlane incident in which he was blameless, caused by human error. Fortunately, no-one was hurt in the incident and we were quickly able to effect the back-up rig ahead of both drivers’ second stops. Once we get all the video footage back to Woking, we’ll perform a forensic investigation, in ‘slow time’, to establish exactly what happened. Until we’ve done that, it’s impossible for us to comment on the incident with any precision.

“Now, we travel to Abu Dhabi, where we intend to defend our new one-point lead over Ferrari in the constructors’ world championship that Lewis’s third place earned us today.”

NORBERT HAUG
Vice-president, Mercedes-Benz Motorsport

“What a race! Firstly, I would like to congratulate, on behalf of Mercedes-Benz, Jenson Button and the Brawn GP team for winning both Formula 1 world championships today.

“Ten months ago these guys were in danger of having no future in Formula 1. Today, they all achieved the biggest reward possible for all their hard work and effort. Well done Ross and Nick and everybody at Brawn GP – you wrote a fairytale story this season.

“I also would like to express my sincere compliments to all our engine people at Brixworth and Stuttgart – Mercedes-Benz powered two times in a row the world champion!

“Of course, Vodafone McLaren Mercedes and Lewis would have liked to keep the world championship title in our camp – but I think it’s fair to say that Jenson and Brawn GP are successors that fully deserve what they achieved.

“So here are some unusual statistics to enjoy: for the second year in a row, car number 22, driven by an Englishman and powered by a Mercedes-Benz engine has finished fifth in Brazil to win the world championship – what an amazing list of coincidences!

“Lewis today drove a fantastic race from 17th on the grid onto the podium, and this certainly was the best climbing up the ranks during all the 16 races this season. I’m totally convinced that he could have fought for victory today if he had started from the first two rows of the grid, which originally had been our plan.

“The team displayed a very smart move in switching both cars to a one-stop strategy after the Safety Car was deployed during the first lap. Heikki suffered from an early release from the pits which was entirely not his fault – without this handicap he would have scored some solid points today.

“We are now third in the constructors’ world championship and no other team has scored more points than we did during the second half of the season in the last seven races since Lewis’s first win this year in Hungary in July. And no driver scored more points than Lewis since then.

“I would like to say sorry to Rubens and Sebastian who today needed to give up their fierce plans of winning the world championship – but I am sure both of them see, like all of us, in Jenson Button a worthy successor to Lewis Hamilton as F1 world champion.”

Ed
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Post by Ed » Wed Oct 28, 2009 6:34 pm

2009 ABU DHABI GRAND PRIX PREVIEW

Lewis Hamilton

“We’ve had a fantastic second half of the season, and it would be perfect to end the year with a win – it would send us into the winter fully motivated and pumped up for the 2010 season. All the signs point to Abu Dhabi being another strong track for us – there are plenty of slow corners leading onto long straights, where KERS will be very advantageous.

“Seeing as it’s likely to be the last race for KERS, it would be fantastic to send it off with a perfect result – that would be a very fitting farewell for all the engineers who have worked so hard to make the Vodafone McLaren Mercedes system the best in the business.”

Heikki Kovalainen

“I had a very strong race in Brazil and I’m determined to rack up a points finish in Abu Dhabi to make sure we hold on to third position in the constructors’ championship. From what I’ve seen of the track, it looks pretty good – it’s got a couple of fast corners at the start of the lap, but then there’s a real low-speed, technical section towards the end.

“It still looks like it will be a tough track for overtaking, but the facilities look amazing – totally world-class – and I think the idea of a dusk race is very good for our sport. Singapore has set the standard very high with its night race, but Abu Dhabi looks like it will set new standards in Formula 1. I can’t wait to get out there.”

Martin Whitmarsh
Team principal, Vodafone McLaren Mercedes

“We may have just overhauled Ferrari in Brazil to move into third place in the constructors’ championship, but, being just one point ahead with just one race remaining, means that we go into the Abu Dhabi weekend fully focused on scoring the maximum possible points to consolidate that position.

“As usual, there has been no let-up from the team in its preparations. We head to Abu Dhabi not only extremely encouraged by the improved pace we showed in Brazil but also very optimistic that the final race of the season offers us another opportunity to challenge for victory.

“Everything I’ve seen and heard about the Abu Dhabi circuit speaks of the race organisers’ total passion and commitment to perfection. The track already looks to have eclipsed the facilities we have anywhere else in the world and I’m very optimistic that, like Singapore before it, this weekend’s race will set a new benchmark for Formula 1 and open up new opportunities for the sport in the Middle East and the rest of the world.”


Norbert Haug
Vice-president, Mercedes-Benz Motorsport

“This exciting season is coming to its end with the very first race at the new track in Abu Dhabi. This circuit defines the new state-of-the-art Formula 1 racetracks, and I’m sure it will be a truly exciting and hard-fought race.

“After both world championships have been decided, every team that is in a position to do so will try to use the chance to win this prestigious final race of the season. Since Lewis’ first victory in Hungary in late July, Vodafone McLaren Mercedes has shown a clear upwards trend.

“Both Lewis and Vodafone McLaren Mercedes have achieved two wins and five podium finishes, resulting in more points than any team and any other driver in the last seven races.

“We try to continue in that direction and hopefully with a similar result to the last street race in Singapore, which Lewis won.”

Ed
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Post by Ed » Thu Dec 03, 2009 2:00 pm

2009 ABU DHABI GRAND PRIX
FREE PRACTICE

Yas Marina circuit, Friday October 30

HEIKKI KOVALAINEN

MP4-24-03

P1 programme 20 laps 1m45.123s (10th)

P2 programme 35 laps 1m41.307s (1st)

“The whole day was pretty good. We’d already done some good work in Woking preparing for this circuit, so we had a good balance right from the start this morning. However, we had a brake issue during first practice which we couldn’t sort out during the session.

“This afternoon, we got it sorted and were able to improve considerably, with both tyres working well. The circuit is cool – it’s very smooth with good grip and the kerbs are nice. Turns Two and Three are not easy-flat, but, with the good balance of the car, they’re fun.

“On the straight, KERS gives us an additional benefit. We can use it for maximum performance and it’s worth three-and-a-half to four tenths.

“The light is no problem with our slightly tinted tear-off visors, which we could remove once the sun had set.”

LEWIS HAMILTON

MP4-24-02

P1 programme 18 laps 1m43.939s (1st)

P2 programme 34 laps 1m41.504s (2nd)

“It looks like we might be quite competitive here – our long runs appear to be good, the car feels great and the track is great – it’s quite interesting coming from daylight into nighttime, you don’t notice the difference through the twilight.

“They’ve done an incredible job here. It’s a really nice circuit to drive – there are a lot of technical corners, where braking stability is important. It’s a great track and I really enjoy driving it. The only bit I don’t like is the tunnel – but it’s a challenge!

“We’ll have to see what happens tomorrow, because the track conditions are always changing, but we feel quite comfortable with the pace we have. Our car seems to behave quite well over the kerbs, we’ve got the balance feeling quite good today.

“Our car is probably driving better than it has all year – it’s just been getting better and better. In a way, it’s been an excellent year: it’s a bit like a race when you start from the back of the field and fight back to the front – that’s what our season has been like.

“And I’m extremely proud of everyone in our team, they’ve done a fantastic job all year and I’d like to finish on a high for all of them.”

MARTIN WHITMARSH

Team principal, Vodafone McLaren Mercedes

“I think everybody in the Formula 1 paddock has been overwhelmed by the scale and ambition of the Yas Marina circuit – it sets standards within our sport that I think will be almost impossible to eclipse. It is a truly fantastic facility, and a fine testament to the incredible vision of our hosts here in Abu Dhabi, who have treated everyone in our team with enormous warmth and hospitality.

“To finish the second practice session in first and second positions on the timesheets is, of course, highly encouraging, but we are aware that there are a number of closely matched teams who will be working hard to win this race.

“Both Heikki and Lewis did a fantastic job today. Now, our efforts will shift towards maximising our performance and ensuring we are fully prepared for a thrilling qualifying session tomorrow.”

NORBERT HAUG

Vice-president, Mercedes-Benz Motorsport

“An exceptional new racetrack with fantastic facilities. Sincere compliments to the hosts in Abu Dhabi for establishing the new benchmark of new grand prix racetracks. The atmosphere here – especially at night – is absolutely fascinating, and I am sure this will become even better during tomorrow’s qualifying and Sunday's race.

“Our performance on this new track was very good today. Both Lewis and Heikki posted very competitive lap times during their race simulation long runs on both tyre compounds.

“I guess this was our most competitive Friday performance of the whole season.”

Ed
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Post by Ed » Thu Dec 03, 2009 2:01 pm

2009 ABU DHABI GRAND PRIX QUALIFYING
Yas Marina circuit, Saturday October 31

LEWIS HAMILTON
MP4-24-02
P3 programme
1m40.627s (18 laps, 2nd)

Qualifying
Q1 1m39.873s (on Primes, 1st)
Q2 1m39.695s (on Primes, 1st)
Q3 1m40.948s (on Primes, 1st overall)

Today we saw the fourth pole position of the season for Lewis, who revelled in the handling of MP4-24 around the Yas Marina circuit today. After an extremely encouraging run yesterday, and going into this afternoon’s final practice, Lewis refined the car’s balance to his liking, finally declaring the car “the best it’s felt all year,” after taking pole.

“My pole lap wasn’t too aggressive,” said Lewis. “I was very smooth, and it just kept getting better and better. KERS Hybrid and the engine have been fantastic all season – and today was no exception – but it’s the chassis that has really come good lately and we’ve brought them all together this weekend to create the perfect package.

“Even more encouragingly, this is all a work-in-progress for next year – and winning tomorrow would be a perfect way to end the season and raise our expectations for 2010.

“It should be an exciting race – I just want to go out and do the job tomorrow.”

HEIKKI KOVALAINEN
MP4-24-03

P3 programme
1m41.263s (20 laps, 6th)

Qualifying
Q1 1m40.808s (on Options, 9th)
Q2 1m40.948s (on Options, 13th overall)
Q3 –

It was a day of disappointment for Heikki, who looked set for one of his best grid positions of the year before being sidelined with a gearbox problem – just as he was preparing for his fast laps in Q2. Despite that setback, Heikki still finished the session 13th fastest and is well positioned for a charging race tomorrow evening.

“What a disappointing outcome to my qualifying,” Heikki said. “I got stuck in second gear during Q2 and that was it. I already had minor problems with the gearbox yesterday when it jumped out of gear, so it’s frustrating when you have a car you can easily take into Q3.

“But I’m looking at the positives: the balance of my car has been good throughout the entire weekend, and it’s been great to drive on this fantastic circuit.

“You can absolutely guarantee I’ll be giving it my all in the race tomorrow and I’ll be fighting from the first lap to the very last.”

MARTIN WHITMARSH
Team principal, Vodafone McLaren Mercedes

“Lewis did a brilliant job, demonstrating prodigious speed, to secure pole position in dominant fashion in Abu Dhabi this evening. We were relatively aggressive in terms of his fuel strategy, but we’ve certainly been more aggressive in a few other qualifying sessions this year and there’s therefore no doubt that his pace here is very genuine.

“Heikki, too, would have figured at or close to the front had he not been hampered by a gearbox problem not of his making, but you can be well sure that he’ll be pushing as hard as ever tomorrow to make good progress from his P13 grid slot.

“Tomorrow’s race will be an arduous one for drivers and team members alike – hot and tiring – but we’ll be aiming to end the season on a high by delivering a disciplined, focused and hopefully victorious performance, in an effort to secure third place in the 2009 Constructors’ World Championship.”

NORBERT HAUG
Vice-president, Mercedes-Benz Motorsport

“What a great lap from Lewis. This was his fourth pole in the last seven grands prix since Valencia and certainly a very important one on this fantastic new race track here in Abu Dhabi. Hopefully we can continue in that direction tomorrow. Our race simulation laps showed yesterday that our speed is there.

“Sorry for Heikki who could not make it into Q3 due to a gearbox problem, but tomorrow is another day for him as well and he can still have a good finish in the points.

“The organisers and the hosts here did an unbelievable job to build up this very impressive venue – another good reason why it would be very special to fight for a victory tomorrow at this inaugural GP of Abu Dhabi.”

Ed
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Post by Ed » Thu Dec 03, 2009 2:02 pm

2009 ABU DHABI GRAND PRIX
Yas Marina circuit, Sunday November 1

HEIKKI KOVALAINEN
MP4-24-03

Started: 18th
Finished: 11th
Fastest lap: 1m41.316s (18th)
Pitstops: one (Pr-Op)
2009 points: 22 (12th)

After being relegated to 18th on the grid with a gearbox problem in qualifying, Heikki made an impressive start, getting away perfectly and diving down the inside at Turn One to move up five places by the end of lap one.

From there, he began a race-long duel with Kimi Raikkonen, pushing his countryman hard for the first half of the grand prix, rising as high as fifth and then jumping him after making his sole pitstop, on lap 32. Despite establishing a narrow cushion over the Ferrari, Heikki was forced to push for the remainder of the race after his KERS stopped functioning.

Nonetheless, today’s result assures Vodafone McLaren Mercedes of third place in the constructors’ championship, one point ahead of Ferrari.

Heikki said: “I got a really good start and managed to overtake some cars. Unfortunately, the performance of my car was not as I’d have liked, and the heavy fuel load made it harder to make greater progress – but I was fighting right until the last corner.

“After my pitstop, my KERS stopped working, which meant I had to adapt the car to perform well without it. Still, after this race we can reflect on our overall season and look at what a great job we did to secure third position in the constructors’ championship.

“That was thanks to an incredible team effort. We never gave up, and really turned the tables around. And I’m extremely proud to be a part of the team that beat Ferrari in the constructors’ championship for the first time since 2005.”

LEWIS HAMILTON
MP4-24-02

Started: 1st
Finished: DNF – precautionary retirement with brake wear problems
Fastest lap: 1m40.367s (3rd)
Pitstops: one (Pr-Pr)
2009 points: 49 (5th)

Starting from pole position, Lewis began steadily to build a cushion over second-placed Sebastian Vettel, setting six consecutive fastest race laps as he established a lead of almost two seconds over the Red Bull Racing driver.

His progress, however, was not to last: Lewis began to encounter braking issues – a problem that caused him to out-brake himself and run wide at Turn 17, losing half of his advantage. A couple of laps later, the problem became more apparent: he was suffering from unusually high pad wear on his right-rear wheel.

Despite his engineers attempting to cope with the issue by putting Lewis into a brake-conservation mode, the wear-rate refused to drop off, and a decision was promptly made to bring him into the pits rather than risk imminent brake failure.

The team will thoroughly investigate the cause of the issue – but initial analysis suggests this was a one-off incidence of a faulty pad.

After stopping, Lewis said: “I had a good start, but I realised early on that something wasn’t right with the brakes. After three or four laps, it became clear that there was a problem with my right-rear brake pad, so I couldn’t open up the gap back to Sebastian and Mark [Webber].

“When the problem got worse, the team radioed me and told me to stop at the end of the lap. Of course, it’s a shame that we couldn’t show the performance we’d had throughout the weekend – but sometimes that’s racing.

“However, I think we can be really proud of our efforts: who’d have thought we’d finish third in the constructors’ championshipat the start of this season? It’s been an incredible year, and now I can’t wait for next season to start so I can fight for the world championship again.”

MARTIN WHITMARSH
Team principal, Vodafone McLaren Mercedes

“Lewis drove absolutely superbly all weekend – in fact he drove absolutely superbly all year.

“Today, though, after just five laps, his right rear brake pad began to show signs of an unusual level of wear – a rogue pad, we think – and as a result we had to stop him for safety reasons. That was an enormous pity, because up to that point he’d shown blistering pace every day here in Abu Dhabi.

“In many ways, therefore, for us, today’s race was a disappointing end to a challenging season – but, overall, there are plenty of reasons to be cheerful about it. The team has worked tremendously hard all year to improve MP4-24, which started the year as one of the slower cars but ended it with two fine wins and a string of impressive points-scoring finishes, culminating in a dominant pole position here yesterday. And Mercedes-Benz’s engines have been excellent all year.

“But perhaps more important still is that work on MP4-25 is already going very encouragingly – it’s already quicker than MP4-24 – and there’s every reason for us to be confident that we’ll be able to continue to develop and improve it significantly between now and the beginning of the 2010 season.

“Returning to this weekend, though, yet again Heikki was the undeserved victim of bad luck. His qualifying was spoiled through no fault of his own and as a result he lined up 18th for today’s race. He made a fantastic start – displaying a perfect combination of aggression and discipline – and passed Kimi at the first pitstops as a result, just as we’d hoped he would. Thereafter he stayed ahead of Kimi – which wasn’t strictly necessary from a points-scoring point of view but gave us the comfort we needed in terms of the constructors’ championship – and then adapted extremely well to the performance and balance compromises forced upon him by a mid-race KERS failure.

“Talking of the constructors’ championship, the fact that we beat Ferrari to third place is of course a matter of pride to us, and I want to pay tribute to all at Vodafone McLaren Mercedes for the superhuman efforts they all made in achieving that milestone. Ferrari are always formidable opponents for us, and next year we hope to beat them again – this time for first place rather than third.

“Last of all, I want to say what a wonderful event the inaugural Abu Dhabi Grand Prix was. Equally, we’re all very much looking forward to returning to this part of the world in March next year, to kick off the 2010 season in equally fine style in Bahrain.”

NORBERT HAUG
Vice-president, Mercedes-Benz Motorsport

“This inaugural Grand Prix in Abu Dhabi was a great venue to finish this remarkable 2009 season.

“A shame for Lewis, who drove fantastically the whole weekend and then had to stop due to a brake pad problem – he was the class of the field on Friday and Saturday, as his remarkable qualifying lap proved yesterday. Heikki suffered from starting 18th after a gearbox change, and, during the race, his KERS Hybrid system caused a problem, so Heikki had to switch it off after half-distance, and his speed was obviously compromised by that.

“Looking back at this season, the team recovered brilliantly from our uncompetitiveness in the first half of the season, and Lewis posted four pole positions in the last seven races.

“On the engine side, we did not have one failure. Mercedes-Benz this year supplied a total of six cars, Brawn GP and Jenson Button clinched both world championships – congratulations again – so that was very positive.

“I’d like to thank everybody in the team at Woking, Brixworth and Stuttgart for all their relentless hard work. It paid off – and it will pay off even more in the future.

“Finally, congratulations to our German friend Sebastian Vettel and his Red Bull team for a great victory at this inaugural very special grand prix of Abu Dhabi.”

Ed
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Post by Ed » Thu Dec 03, 2009 2:04 pm

TEST REPORT – JEREZ – DAY ONE

Date: Tuesday December 1 2009
Driver: Gary Paffett/Oliver Turvey
Location: Circuito de Jerez
Track length: 4.423km
Weather: Very cold in the morning, gradually warming up throughout the day. Maximum track temp 32.2°C; maximum ambient temp 18.8°C

Laps completed: 54/27 (Gary/Oliver)
Kilometres covered: 358km (239/119)

Best laptime: 1m19.426s at 14:57pm

Programme: The morning’s running was limited due to the low temperatures, so the team focused on a series of data-logging runs. As track temperatures rose, Gary kicked off the meat of the day’s programme, conducting a number of aero configuration evaluations before focusing on tyres, and how they will perform in 2010 with higher fuel-loads.

In the middle of the afternoon, Gary ended his running and the team switched the MP4-24 over to McLaren Autosport BRDC Young Driver prize-winner Oliver Turvey. This afternoon’s run was primarily an acclimatisation for the 22-year-old, who will be able to spend the next day learning from his initial run before he undertakes a longer stint on Thursday.

For tomorrow, Gary will return to the cockpit as the team starts a more in-depth analysis of fuel-load and how it is expected to affect car behaviour in 2010.

Driver for day two: Gary
Duration of test: Three days (December 1-3)

Ed
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Post by Ed » Thu Dec 03, 2009 2:06 pm

TEST REPORT – JEREZ – DAY TWO

Date: Wednesday December 2 2009
Driver: Gary Paffett
Location: Circuito de Jerez
Track length: 4.423km
Weather: Another cold start. Temperatures rose throughout the day, with a mid-day rain shower punctuating proceedings. Maximum track temp 27.2°C; maximum ambient temp 17.2°C

Laps completed: 80
Kilometres covered: 354km

Best laptime: 1m18.718s at 12:48pm

Programme: Gary undertook the day’s running, spending the early part of the morning conducting vibration tests until weather conditions improved.

The test team then moved on to a number of aero calibration tests and a baseline run, with Gary setting his fastest time of the day just before the brief arrival of a lunchtime rain shower.

A large part of the remainder of the day was then spent simulating 2010 fuel-loads and their effect on car balance and tyre degradation – the results of which proved encouraging. At the end of the day, Gary briefly conducted a test of some suspension modifications.

Tomorrow, Oliver Turvey will return to the cockpit to conclude his test – the team aiming to provide him a better feel for the car during his morning’s running. Thereafter, Gary will conclude the programme, once again working within the limitations of the 2009 car and tyres to simulate next year’s heavier fuel-loads.

Drivers for day three: Gary & Oliver Turvey (shared programme)
Duration of test: Three days (December 1-3)

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