European Grand Prix Preview

After the excitement of the Canadian Grand Prix Formula 1 returns to its heartland with the European Grand Prix from the streets of  the Spanish port of Valencia.

This will be the third race hosted by Valencia of a Grand Prix that has moved throughout Europe since its inaugural race in 1983 at Brands Hatch. In 1997, as the final race of the season, Michael Schumacher and Jacques Villeneuve went to Jerez fighting it out for the world title. During the race Schumacher famously attempted to win the title by turning into Villeneuve, this time though Schumacher came off worst and his Canadian rival finished the race behind the McLarens and took his sole championship. That race also saw future double world champion Mika Hakkinen take his first victory after David Coultard pulled aside for his teammate.

Donnington Park in 1993 saw Ayrton Senna win for McLaren in what has long been called one of the Brazilians best races. In exceptionally wet conditions Senna leapt to the front of the field on the first lap and was not seen again by the field. The conditions were so difficult that Alain Prost stopped on no less than seven occasions. The Nurburgring has played host to the most European Grand Prix with 1984 its first race. The German circuit had to wait until 95 for another race but it was worth the wait with local hero Schumacher taking the win. He had to battle it out with Ferrari’s Jean Alesi after the Frenchman started the race on slick tyres in the wet, the track dried quite quickly and he was best placed and led the race comfortably until three laps from the end when he was passed by Schumacher.

2003 saw then McLaren driver Kimi Raikkonen robbed of the win by his only mechanical failure of the year while leading comfortably. The Finn ended up losing the title to Michael Schumacher at the last race of the season and cursing his luck at this race. Raikkonen also missed out on victory in 2005 as a tyre failure on the last lap cost him victory. A regulation of that season was that drivers had to use the same tyre for the duration of the race and as a result Raikkonen felt that he needed to stay on track, the Finn cruised at the front of the field until the failure but was left disconsolate after being so close to another win that was cruelly taken from his crasp.

Neither of the two races at Valencia has provided classics with the first race exceptionally poor. Last year’s edition though was a marked improvement and was won by Rubens Barrichello for Brawn after the Brazilian craftily used fuel strategy to his advantage to beat the then reigning world champion to the flag. Barrichello used this result as a springboard for his title tilt but he had already begun talks with his current team, Williams, that weekend and with the poor performance of the car this will be a very difficult race for the most experienced driver in Formula 1 history.

This is Formula 1’s second visit to Spain this season and Red Bull will be looking to repeat their success of Barcelona where Mark Webber emerged victorious. The Milton Keynes based team though has lost the advantage that it held at that point in the season and the gap to their rivals has shrunk to the point that the team that has dominated qualifying all season do not start the weekend as favourites. The changes that the FIA mandated to the exhaust system of the Red Bull has clearly taken away some of its advantage but McLaren’s rate of development has clearly outpaced the Adrian Newey led technical staff of Red Bull.

This weekend’s race should be illuminating as to how the rest of the season will unfold. Red Bull know that it crucial for them to reassert themselves at the front of the field but McLaren, with a fully optimised ‘f-duct’ system, will be able to run a higher downforce configuration on this street circuit and thus should theoretically have greater grip as a result. The Woking squad struggled for grip on slow speed corners at the start of the season and their recent successes in Turkey and Canada have both been on circuits where top speed can give a significant advantage. If the silver cars are faster than Red Bull this weekend it will have been clear that McLaren has become the pace setters, and that is before their significant upgrade package arrives at Silverstone.

Ferrari bring their own significant upgrade to Valencia and with the performance of the Prancing Horse on low grip circuits such as Bahrain and Canada this season home town favourite Fernando Alonso will be very confident of battling it out at the front of the field. The upgrade of the Ferrari is quite extensive with the use of a Red Bull style exhaust is central to the teams hopes of success. The system sees the exhaust gases exit through the diffuser and significantly improves the available downforce for the driver. The team has also changed its blown rear wing and are confident that the system now will show a much greater performance benefit. The team admitted that it had lost its way with their attempt to copy McLaren’s F-duct and overestimated the benefit of the system, even so it is clear that there are straight line speed advantages of the system so Ferrari know it is imperative to have the system working satisfactory for the remainder of the season.

  

The Valencia Street Circuit

Utilising roads around the port of Valencia this weekend’s race will be run on the 5.419 km Valencia Street Circuit which features 25 corners. Unlike most street circuits top speed is important here with cars reaching speeds in excess of 320 km p/h on the back straight. As a result of this speed requirement teams with an effective blown rear wing will have an advantage so during practice sessions it should be expected for Red Bull to once more test their version of the system.

The first race held here in 2008 was notable for the fact that it featured no overtaking moves on the track, with only pitstops allowing drivers to overtake one another. Last year’s race featured a tactical battle at the front and was an improvement on the inaugural race but if this year’s edition is to provide excitement it is likely to rest on the performance of the Bridgestone tyres.

Bridgestone will take the same compounds to Valencia that led to such an exciting Canadian race. The Montreal circuit features some similar characteristics to Valencia with low grip surface and a lack of running throughout the season. This could lead to issues arising with tyre life once more this weekend but with high temperature expected it is likely that the chemical makeup of the tyre should be able to operate sufficiently and it would be surprising to see any more than a single pit stop this weekend for the leaders.

Weather for this weekend’s Grand Prix

This weekend should see clear skies and high temperatures with only Saturday expected to see any cloud cover. Temperatures are forecast to be in the region of 30C during the race.

What can we expect from this weekend?

Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button have led McLaren to the top of both championships in recent races with the Woking based team winning three of the last five races. Hamilton has finished second in both races at Valencia but with the McLaren expected to set the pace this weekend the former title holder knows that there is an opportunity to go one better this weekend. Button was thoroughly outperformed by Hamilton in Canada and knows that this weekend he has to reassert himself in terms of his place within the team otherwise he could face a long summer, especially if the McLaren Silverstone upgrade is more suited to his teammate.

Only a month ago Mark Webber was the form man of Formula 1 after back to back wins. His chances of a victory in Canada were hampered by a pre race gear box change and after clashing with teammate Sebastian Vettel in Turkey the Australian knows that he needs another strong showing this weekend if he is to continue his run of strong performances since the first Spanish race of the season. Vettel knows that the focus of the media is still on the team and the rivalry that has developed between the teams drivers since the Turkey clash and the young German knows that he needs a win to draw a line underneath the clash. He has driven well here in the past, most notably qualifying inside the top eight for Tora Rosso in 2008.

Mercedes are expected to bring an upgrade to Valencia that includes a blown exhaust system and the team know that it is crucial for them to gain some momentum as Renault and Robert Kubica challenge the team for fourth in the title chase. The team struggled in Canada with Michael Schumacher criticised for his driving standards after clashing with both Kubica and former teammate Massa. The German races in Valencia for the first after his hopes of a comeback for Ferrari were scuppered after Massa’s Hungarian crash.

Massa won the first race held at Valencia and will race knowing that he has the comfort of a contract extension. The Brazilian needs to challenge his teammate Alonso this weekend and with the major upgrade expected to bring the red cars to the front of the field the expectation is that the Brazilian could challenge for a podium. This though is dependent on Massa being able to maximise the Bridgestone tyres. He has been unable to do so this season but with the blown diffuser and greater levels of downforce he could challenge at the sharp end.

The past races in Valencia mean that a classic cannot be expected but this season is shaping to be one to be long remembered so hopefully Valencia can provide another thrilling Grand Prix.

European Grand Prix Preview

After the excitement of the Canadian Grand Prix Formula 1 returns to its heartland with the European Grand Prix from the streets of the Spanish port of Valencia.

This will be the third race hosted by Valencia of a Grand Prix that has moved throughout Europe since its inaugural race in 1983 at Brands Hatch. In 1997, as the final race of the season, Michael Schumacher and Jacques Villeneuve went to Jerez fighting it out for the world title. During the race Schumacher famously attempted to win the title by turning into Villeneuve, this time though Schumacher came off worst and his Canadian rival finished the race behind the McLarens and took his sole championship. That race also saw future double world champion Mika Hakkinen take his first victory after David Coultard pulled aside for his teammate.

Donnington Park in 1993 saw Ayrton Senna win for McLaren in what has long been called one of the Brazilians best races. In exceptionally wet conditions Senna leapt to the front of the field on the first lap and was not seen again by the field. The conditions were so difficult that Alain Prost stopped on no less than seven occasions. The Nurburgring has played host to the most European Grand Prix with 1984 its first race. The German circuit had to wait until 95 for another race but it was worth the wait with local hero Schumacher taking the win. He had to battle it out with Ferrari’s Jean Alesi after the Frenchman started the race on slick tyres in the wet, the track dried quite quickly and he was best placed and led the race comfortably until three laps from the end when he was passed by Schumacher.

2003 saw then McLaren driver Kimi Raikkonen robbed of the win by his only mechanical failure of the year while leading comfortably. The Finn ended up losing the title to Michael Schumacher at the last race of the season and cursing his luck at this race. Raikkonen also missed out on victory in 2005 as a tyre failure on the last lap cost him victory. A regulation of that season was that drivers had to use the same tyre for the duration of the race and as a result Raikkonen felt that he needed to stay on track, the Finn cruised at the front of the field until the failure but was left disconsolate after being so close to another win that was cruelly taken from his crasp.

Neither of the two races at Valencia has provided classics with the first race exceptionally poor. Last year’s edition though was a marked improvement and was won by Rubens Barrichello for Brawn after the Brazilian craftily used fuel strategy to his advantage to beat the then reigning world champion to the flag. Barrichello used this result as a springboard for his title tilt but he had already begun talks with his current team, Williams, that weekend and with the poor performance of the car this will be a very difficult race for the most experienced driver in Formula 1 history.

This is Formula 1’s second visit to Spain this season and Red Bull will be looking to repeat their success of Barcelona where Mark Webber emerged victorious. The Milton Keynes based team though has lost the advantage that it held at that point in the season and the gap to their rivals has shrunk to the point that the team that has dominated qualifying all season do not start the weekend as favourites. The changes that the FIA mandated to the exhaust system of the Red Bull has clearly taken away some of its advantage but McLaren’s rate of development has clearly outpaced the Adrian Newey led technical staff of Red Bull.

This weekend’s race should be illuminating as to how the rest of the season will unfold. Red Bull know that it crucial for them to reassert themselves at the front of the field but McLaren, with a fully optimised ‘f-duct’ system, will be able to run a higher downforce configuration on this street circuit and thus should theoretically have greater grip as a result. The Woking squad struggled for grip on slow speed corners at the start of the season and their recent successes in Turkey and Canada have both been on circuits where top speed can give a significant advantage. If the silver cars are faster than Red Bull this weekend it will have been clear that McLaren has become the pace setters, and that is before their significant upgrade package arrives at Silverstone.

Ferrari bring their own significant upgrade to Valencia and with the performance of the Prancing Horse on low grip circuits such as Bahrain and Canada this season home town favourite Fernando Alonso will be very confident of battling it out at the front of the field. The upgrade of the Ferrari is quite extensive with the use of a Red Bull style exhaust is central to the teams hopes of success. The system sees the exhaust gases exit through the diffuser and significantly improves the available downforce for the driver. The team has also changed its blown rear wing and are confident that the system now will show a much greater performance benefit. The team admitted that it had lost its way with their attempt to copy McLaren’s F-duct and overestimated the benefit of the system, even so it is clear that there are straight line speed advantages of the system so Ferrari know it is imperative to have the system working satisfactory for the remainder of the season.

The Valencia Street Circuit

Utilising roads around the port of Valencia this weekend’s race will be run on the 5.419 km Valencia Street Circuit which features 25 corners. Unlike most street circuits top speed is important here with cars reaching speeds in excess of 320 km p/h on the back straight. As a result of this speed requirement teams with an effective blown rear wing will have an advantage so during practice sessions it should be expected for Red Bull to once more test their version of the system.

The first race held here in 2008 was notable for the fact that it featured no overtaking moves on the track, with only pitstops allowing drivers to overtake one another. Last year’s race featured a tactical battle at the front and was an improvement on the inaugural race but if this year’s edition is to provide excitement it is likely to rest on the performance of the Bridgestone tyres.

Bridgestone will take the same compounds to Valencia that led to such an exciting Canadian race. The Montreal circuit features some similar characteristics to Valencia with low grip surface and a lack of running throughout the season. This could lead to issues arising with tyre life once more this weekend but with high temperature expected it is likely that the chemical makeup of the tyre should be able to operate sufficiently and it would be surprising to see any more than a single pit stop this weekend for the leaders.

Weather for this weekend’s Grand Prix

This weekend should see clear skies and high temperatures with only Saturday expected to see any cloud cover. Temperatures are forecast to be in the region of 30C during the race.

What can we expect from this weekend?

Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button have led McLaren to the top of both championships in recent races with the Woking based team winning three of the last five races. Hamilton has finished second in both races at Valencia but with the McLaren expected to set the pace this weekend the former title holder knows that there is an opportunity to go one better this weekend. Button was thoroughly outperformed by Hamilton in Canada and knows that this weekend he has to reassert himself in terms of his place within the team otherwise he could face a long summer, especially if the McLaren Silverstone upgrade is more suited to his teammate.

Only a month ago Mark Webber was the form man of Formula 1 after back to back wins. His chances of a victory in Canada were hampered by a pre race gear box change and after clashing with teammate Sebastian Vettel in Turkey the Australian knows that he needs another strong showing this weekend if he is to continue his run of strong performances since the first Spanish race of the season. Vettel knows that the focus of the media is still on the team and the rivalry that has developed between the teams drivers since the Turkey clash and the young German knows that he needs a win to draw a line underneath the clash. He has driven well here in the past, most notably qualifying inside the top eight for Tora Rosso in 2008.

Mercedes are expected to bring an upgrade to Valencia that includes a blown exhaust system and the team know that it is crucial for them to gain some momentum as Renault and Robert Kubica challenge the team for fourth in the title chase. The team struggled in Canada with Michael Schumacher criticised for his driving standards after clashing with both Kubica and former teammate Massa. The German races in Valencia for the first after his hopes of a comeback for Ferrari were scuppered after Massa’s Hungarian crash.

Massa won the first race held at Valencia and will race knowing that he has the comfort of a contract extension. The Brazilian needs to challenge his teammate Alonso this weekend and with the major upgrade expected to bring the red cars to the front of the field the expectation is that the Brazilian could challenge for a podium. This though is dependent on Massa being able to maximise the Bridgestone tyres. He has been unable to do so this season but with the blown diffuser and greater levels of downforce he could challenge at the sharp end.

The past races in Valencia mean that a classic cannot be expected but this season is shaping to be one to be long remembered so hopefully Valencia can provide another thrilling Grand Prix.

Dutch TT Preview

After a late start to the year MotoGP is now in full swing for 2010 with Saturday’s Dutch TT following on from last weekend’s British GP and the Catalan GP next weekend.

This three race period will be crucial in determining the championship and with Jorge Lorenzo fresh from his dominant performance at Silverstone the Spaniard will start as a red hot favourite this weekend. Lorenzo is a three time winner Dutch TT winner in the smaller classes and will look to win in the premier class for the first time.

As usual the most likely pursuers of Lorenzo will be Dani Pedrosa and Casey Stoner. The 2002 125cc race marked Pedrosa’s first ever GP victory as he dominated the race from pole position in beating then reigning world champion Manuel Poggiali. He has since added another four podiums at the circuit as well as numerous front row starts.

Stoner has had four podiums at Assen including a victory in 2007 when he led home Valentino Rossi for the win. The Ducati rider has been on each step of the podium the last years at Assen and will be looking to put to bed his poor start to the year on this circuit where a rider can overcome the shortfalls of his bike.

The Circuit

“The Cathedral” has long been viewed as the home of traditional Grand Prix motorcycle racing. It has been a venue for MotoGP since the inception of the championship in 1949 and still maintains the character of a road venue even though it is now closed course.

Assen is the greatest challenge that a rider faces all year in MotoGP. With numerous off camber corner, high speed straights and the challenging fast sweeping bends that end the lap riders love this circuit. Assen is unlike any other on the calendar and every rider wants to be able to put on their CV as Dutch TT winner.

Historic moments that are long etched into the memory of fans have occurred at numerous places throughout the circuit but one of the most recent was during last season’s 250cc race when Alvaro Bautista and Hiroshi Aoyama clashed at the final turn. Aoyama managed to crawl across the line for the victory ahead of Hector Barbara.

Other notable moments from the past included Barry Sheene taking his first GP victory in the 1975 500cc race. In 1977 Giacomo Agostini gave MV Augusta its final victory in the 350cc class. The 1985 edition also saw the last time that a machine with less than four cylinders won a premier class race, Randy Mamola won the 500cc race on a Honda triple.

1992 will long be remembered for Australian Mick Doohan’s crash that almost left the future five times world champion as an amputee. Future world champion Alex Criville gave Spain its first ever premier class victory in that year’s race.

Marco Malandri became the youngest ever GP winner in 1998 when he beat Kazuto Sakato by just 0.028 seconds in the 125cc race. The Italian held the record until current Moto2 rider Scott Redding won the British GP in 2008. Last year’s race saw Valentino Rossi win his 100^th Grand Prix and the ever charismatic Italian displayed a banner with each an image of his victories displayed.

Who will be the contenders for MotoGP?

Championship leader Jorge Lorenzo will start as a clear favourite but Stoner and Pedrosa are sure to challenge. Andrea Dovizioso is second in the title race but the Italian has struggled at Assen in the past with only a solitary podium and a brace of front row starts to his name.

Randy de Puniet was undoubtedly one of the surprises of Silverstone and the LCR Honda rider will be looking to add to that this weekend. The Frenchman has qualified well here in the past but his race performances are average.

Former world champion Nicky Hayden won at Assen during his championship year of 2006. Hayden’s victory will be remembered as the 200^th premier class victory for Honda and the dramatic fall of Colin Edwards at the last corner. Hayden has been impressive this season matching Casey Stoner’s pace in practice and racing well with four fourth positions to his name thus far. This could be the weekend where Hayden springs a surprise and manages to finish on the podium.

Who will be the challengers in the smaller class?

The Moto2 class boasts four previous winners of Dutch TT’s with past 125cc winners Toni Elias in 2001, Mattia Pasini in 2007 and double winner Gabor Talmaschi in 2005 and 2008. The 2008 race was stopped after it started raining and Talmaschi won the five lap restarted race by .0128 seconds. The only 250cc winner still racing outside of MotoGP is Anthony West, winner of a rain sodden 2003 race.

It’s unlikely that West, Talmaschi or Pasini will be present at the front of the field this weekend but the beauty of Moto2 is that on any day any rider can compete at the front of the field. Elias struggled at Silverstone but still holds a commanding 15 point lead in the title chase and the Spaniard is sure to be invigorated by returning to the scene of his first GP victory. The Gresini rider knows that he will have to be on form this weekend though otherwise by next weekend’s Catalan GP he could be under pressure in both the title chase and also from the home fans.

Aspar rider Julian Simon followed home Sergio Gadea in last year’s 125cc race and the two riders are well placed in the Moto2 championship to close the gap on Elias this weekend with strong showings. Simon, the reigning 125cc title holder is in fourth and Gadea in sixth as they enter this weekend’s race.

British GP winner Jules Cluzel has never scored at point at Assen but the Frenchman will be very dangerous this weekend as he looks to build on his Silverstone success. Cluzel has showed a lot of promise in the last year and his first ever GP success is sure to give him confidence with which he will look to build a tilt on the title around.

Simone Corsi will look to put his crash at Silverstone behind him and build on a run of form at Assen that has seen him qualify well in recent years and finish on the podium in 2008. Javier Simeon will race again this weekend and the youngster has been very impressive for the Holiday Gym team. Switzerland’s Thomas Luthi has raced well this year and finds himself in third in the championship, the former 125cc world champion has shown good form at Assen and his second place in 2008 was his best GP result in the 250cc class but the change to Moto2 has clearly helped him and after finishing as runner up at Silverstone the Swiss rider will look to go one better this weekend.

In the 125cc class Marc Marques became the youngest ever back to back winner in GP history as the 17 year old Spaniard closed in on compatriots Pol Espargaro and Nico Terol at the head of the championship. Marquez knows that the straight-line speed advantage that his Derbi has will be crucial this weekend.

The 125cc class has been home to some of the best racing seen in years with the battles for victory exceptionally close at each race, including Silverstone where Espargaro and Marquez clashed three times on the final lap. Assen always produces close racing and the expectation will be for just that in this year’s 125 race. Last year’s vice champion was Bradley Smith and in Italy and Britain he showed that he can still compete at the front of the field. This weekend will be crucial if he is to have any chance of catching the Spaniards in the title chase.

The British Grand Prix returns to Silverstone for the first time since 1986 when Australia’s Wayne Gardner won the 500cc race for the Rothmans-Honda team.

This race will see one of the first international races to be held one Silverstone’s new Arena circuit layout. The new track has been praised by all who have sampled it including the Rizla Suzuki riders Loris Capirossi and Alvaro Bautista. The expectation is that this will be one of the fastest and most spectacular races of the season with numerous potential overtaking positions.

The home fans have no one to follow in the top class but with Bradley Smith showing a return to form in recent weeks in the 125cc class the expectation is that the 19 year old from Oxford could compete for a third career victory. It has been a challenging start to the year for the young Briton due to reliability issues as well as a lack of top speed at Mugello but racing before his home crowd has brought out the best in him in the past with pole position last year at Donnington a prime example.

The Circuit

Like most circuits in Britain Silverstone is located on what was during the Second World War an RAF airfield. As a result the land is mostly flat but it is also incredibly fast. The new layout features many of the previous corners that have helped make Silverstone a favourite for racing drivers as well as motorcyclists. Opening the lap with the fearsome Copse corner riders are then pressed into action with Beckets and Maggots before taking a breather down Hanger straight. All this is identical to the old layout of the track but once riders exit the slightly reprofiled Club corner they enter the new section.

Whereas in the past the Abbey chicane was a slow left-right chicane it is now one of the seasons most fearsome challenges with riders facing a very fast right hander that leads into the Arena section that is quite technical and sure to challenge the setup of the bike with the rear wheel constantly losing traction.

Once the Arena is tackled the riders are then onto the back straight which leads into the ever tightening Brooklands before Luffield and the fabled Woodcote curve take the riders back to the start of the lap.

Who will be the contenders for MotoGP victory on Silverstone’s return to the calendar?

With the injury enforced absence of MotoGP’s biggest star, Valentino Rossi, there is one less front runner to worry championship leader Jorge Lorenzo. The Yamaha rider will start as the clear favourite but Ducati’s Casey Stoner is always strong on fast circuit such as the new Silverstone and the 2007 world champion will be looking to put his miserable start to the year behind him. As a former British Championship racer Stoner feels at home in England and perhaps crucially is the only rider to have raced at Silverstone in the past.

The main challenger to Lorenzo though should come from Mugello winner Dani Pedrosa. Pedrosa clearly has the Honda dialled in more to his liking after struggling with the bike at Qatar. With his slight frame and powerful Pedrosa should dominate the top speed charts and with so many fast corners the triple world champion will be confident of closing the gap to Lorenzo at the top of the title table.

It’s unlikely that anyone else could challenge for victory in the dry against Lorenzo, Pedrosa and Stoner but in the wet of Donnington last season Andrea Dovizioso emerged victorious to take his first premier class win. The Italian has shown good form this season and knows that with the paddock increasingly certain that Stoner will be a Honda rider next season the next five races before the summer break are crucial if the Italian hopes to keep his ride for next year.

Who will be the challengers in the smaller class?

Outside of the top class the battle for victory is difficult to predict. The last Moto2 race featured the first dominant victory in the new class with Andrea Iannone dominating at Mugello. It is difficult to see a repeat performance this weekend. The difference between a lap that gets a rider to the front of the field and one where he is left in the midfield is tiny and the one thing that this year has shown so far is that anyone can challenge for the honours on any given weekend.

Even so it is tough to overlook the form of Toni Elias this year and with reigning world 125cc champion, Julian Simon, gaining increasing confidence in his new bike it would not be unexpected for them to battle it out at the front. The hometown hero will be Scott Redding in this race with the young Englishman performing before an expectant home crowd. The youngest ever winner of a GP has struggled since taking the flag at Donnington in 2008 but he has the ability to challenge at the front once more and the fact that he is at home again makes him impossible to underestimate. It has been a trying start to the year for Redding but he has the ability to turn his season around, starting this weekend.

In the 125cc class Smith will be one of the favourite but the Derbi riders will be very tough to be beaten. Even though the Derbi and Aprilia bike are now all but identical in each race Derbi has been shown to have the fastest bike in terms of top speed. This is due to a different exhaust configuration on the Spanish bikes and Marc Marquez will be confident of adding to his first career win from Mugello with another great result at Silverstone.

His teammate Pol Espargaro has shown that when all things are equal he is the outright fastest rider in the class and with the new found maturity in his riding the tough Spaniard will be looking to take the title lead away from Nico Terol, winner of the opening race in Qatar.

Canada left fans breathless but Hamilton left his rivals "tyred"

Montreal played host to the Canadian Grand Prix and the most exciting race of the season thus far. Lewis Hamilton and McLaren emerged victorious once again and retook the lead in both championships.

When the year opened in Bahrain with a processional race the expectation was the Formula 1 was in for a dangerously poor season and one that would see millions of fans switch off their televisions and search for a new form of excitement on a Sunday afternoon. This expectation has been proven very wrong with each race since Bahrain proving thrilling for various reasons; this race though was the best of the year so far.

Tyres prove crucial to the outcome of this race

There were numerous factors that led to this race proving to be classic but the primary reason was that the tyres were on a knife-edge throughout the weekend. Drivers were unable to make their tyres last for a substantial number of laps. In Formula 1 the regulations state that drivers must use both compounds of tyre throughout a race, most races have seen the best strategy being a single pit stop as early as possible that would allow a driver to gain or maintain track position over rivals until the flag.

In Montreal the soft tyre was barely able to last for 15 laps and the harder was not able to last more than 30 laps so it was clear that drivers would need to make multiple pit stops for tyres. With this being the case teams needed to decide how best to tackle the strategy of the race and when to use the softer tyre.

 McLaren and Ferrari both decided that their best option was to use the soft tyre at the start. They did this to minimise what they felt was their weakest segment of the race and to get this part of the race over as early as possible. Red Bull started the race on the harder compound because they expected to be able to go until around lap 20 but with the conditions on race day hotter than at any other time during the weekend Webber and Vettel were forced to stop on laps  13 and 14 respectively,  experiencing issues with the harder tyre. Both drivers expected that the opening stint would put them out of reach of the McLarens and Ferrari’s Alonso but by being forced into a shorter stint the team negated their potential advantage and ended up finishing in fourth and fifth.

When the chequered flag fell Lewis Hamilton was first past the line ahead of his teammate Jenson Button as McLaren achieved a second consecutive one-two. This victory was very different to Hamilton’s opening win of the year in Turkey which was overshadowed by the controversial clash of the Red Bull drivers.  This race showcased the quality of this season’s racing with the leading five drivers all challenging for the win at various stages of the race.

Ferrari was in the hunt for this win; Fernando Alonso challenged for the lead on various occasions. The Spaniard actually led prior to his second pit stop and were it not for trouble lapping backmarkers Alonso could have repeated his 2006 victory, as it was the time lost in traffic gave his former teammate Hamilton the opportunity needed to emerge victorious at the scene of his first win in Formula 1.

A month ago it seemed unlikely that anyone would catch the Red Bulls, which had a clear advantage of over half a second per lap, but after the pace of development shown by McLaren the pressure has now turned on Red Bull to recapture their pervious standing as pacesetter. So far this season Red Bull has failed to maximise their potential for what has been the fastest car in Formula 1. The teams now embark on a summer in Europe and Red Bull’s shortcomings have opened the door to their rivals.

Ferrari will bring a major aerodynamic upgrade to the Valencian race and with their form on low grip surfaces strong they will be confident of challenging for victory. As it is, the form of Hamilton and McLaren is exceptionally strong and the pace of development by the team shows no sign of letting up with their mid season upgrade expected for the British Grand Prix in July. The McLaren is yet to usurp Red Bull as the fastest car on the grid but the team has shown itself able to win races through better reliability and strategy and the different strengths of the leading teams looks set to guarantee a summer of excitement in F1 that could not have been predicated after Bahrain.

Canadian Grand Prix Preview

The Canadian Grand Prix returns to the Formula 1 calendar this weekend with the return of the Circuit de Gilles Villeneuve. Montreal has a rich tradition of F1 and the races hosted here have tended to be some of each season's best.

The Circuit

 

The circuit has a well earned reputation as a car breaker and when you look at the layout of the circuit is quite easy to see why-high speed straights leading into slow first and second gear corners. Brakes and gearboxes take a pounding and failures are common, a classic example being Heinz-Harold Frentzen's Jordan failing on the second last lap of the '99 race that led to that Grand Prix ended behind the safety car with double world champion Mika Hakkinen leading the field over the line in his McLaren.

Recent Canadian Grand Prix

Michael Schumacher is the most successful driver in the history of this race with seven victories but it is unlikely that we will be seeing number eight this weekend with the Mercedes slower than the pace of the leading Red Bull and McLaren teams. As it is Mercedes have moved ahead of Ferrari in recent races.

The Italian team is the most successful team in the history of this race with thirteen race wins but the red cars are clearly lacking right now.  Felipe Massa signed a new two year contract with Ferrari and he will look to maintain the form he showed in Turkey, where he out qualified teammate Alonso, but he will need to buck the trend of his past results here if he is to beat his teammate again. Alonso is a past winner here while Massa has never stood on the podium here and has a best finish of two fifth places combined with a disqualification in 2007 for failing to stop at the red light in pitlane.

During the next years Grand Prix a somewhat similar incident occurred with the red light at the end of pitlane switched on and Raikonnen sitting at the end of pitlane waiting to reenter the race only for Lewis Hamilton to drive straight into the back of the then reigning world champion's Ferrari.

In 2007 as a rookie Hamilton claimed his first career win in Canada and then backed it up with a win at Indy the week after. The Englishman showed that he was sure to be a championship contender as he dominated a race blighted by safety cars, the most significant of these was as a result of a massive shunt involving BMW's Robert Kubica. The Polish driver crashed at the hairpin and was forced to sit out the next race which led to the arrival on the Formula 1 grid of a certain Sebastian Vettel.

Kubica returned to the scene of the biggest accident of his career in 2008 to deliver BMW their one and only Grand Prix win as a full works Formula 1 team. He led home his teammate Nick Heidfeld after his team gave him the benefit of a stronger strategy relative to his teammate. The win placed Kubica firmly into championship contention and the Pole spoke after the race of a need to continue to press hard and win more races that season to challenge for the title right until the end of the season. Of course with hindsight we know that BMW did not take his advice but with the form that Kubica finds himself in right now it is quite clear that Renault would not make the mistake maintain his current form.

Apart from the recent races there have been numerous talking points and interesting events throughout past runnings of this race, one of the most memorable was in 1991 when Nigel Mansell waved to the crowd on the last lap and his Williams ground to a halt leaving a bemused Englishman to stand trackside and watch Piquet take the chequered flag.

Weather for this weekend

The weather for this weekend is quite promising with temperatures expected to be in the range of 20 and 24 degrees with no rain forecast on Friday or Saturday. Raceday though has thunderstorms forecast but these are set to arrive after the flag has dropped. Rain has played a part in some Canadian Grand Prix but the safety car has been much more prevalent in the past and it is this that we should expect to see on Sunday rather than rain.

Previewing Mugello 2010

This weekend sees the Italian MotoGP round and the Tuscan circuit will look to continue its long run of producing classic racing.

 Each year races at this venue leave fan awe struck as races invariably produce exteptionally close races. An example of this would be the 2006 125cc Grand Prix which was the closest race in GP history with a 0.001 second victory margin and only 0.050 separating the podium places.

Indeed the small classes has traditionally been the race that is most closely contested with riders unable to break away from each other due to the slipstreaming battles on the long home straight.

Italian fans are always incredibly passionate at their races and the atmosphere they create at Mugello is just what anyone would expect. Fan clubs line the circuit to lend support to their chosen rider and on the formation laps of races the air around the circuit is filled with the coloured smoke from flares and one can only imagine how distracting this must be for the riders!

The Circuit

Originally Mugello was home to one of Italy’s largest road races through local towns. The road race circuit was 66 km long but in 1974 the shortened current circuit was first conceived and then updated by Ferrari in the late 80s after they purchased it to use for testing of road and race cars.

The current configuration of Mugello measures just over 5 km and with a 1141 metre home straight each year we see tremendous slipstreaming battles as riders exit the final corner and battle with one another all the way to San Donato, a downhill second gear corner where riders can choose from numerous lines.

The circuit is characterised by the lie of the land with the track following the natural contours of the Tuscany countryside. This sees riders flow from one apex to another and also sees a lack of slow chicanes with riders instead tackling fast left than right sequences that require a bike that can easily change direction. One of the prime overtaking places is at turn six and seven, Casanova and Savelli. One of the most atmospheric areas on any race track in the world, this sequence sees many fan clubs camping out in the hope of getting as close to their heroes as possible. With downhill braking the riders face a challenge in getting the bike stopped for the apex and keeping their pursuers at bay.

The final corner is one of the most difficult on the circuit because riders know any mistake will be punished heavily on the home straight. Bucine is a long left hander that leads all the way downhill to the start finish line.

Who will be the contenders at Mugello for MotoGP victory?

Mugello is an exceptionally fast and flowing circuit and favours a rider with exceptional feel for the front end of their bike.  Certain riders consistently are at the front of the field at this track but no one has anything like the record of Valentino Rossi. A nine time winner of this race, Rossi consistently has saved his very best for the display of his compatriots. Last year saw the end of Rossi’s unbeaten run at Mugello when he followed home Casey Stoner and Jorge Lorenzo.

Lorenzo leads the world championship after a stellar start to the year with two wins and a podium placing the Majorcan ahead of his teammate Rossi. Lorenzo has had mixed results here in the past but won in 2006 from pole in the 250cc race. Indeed qualifying has not been an issue for the Spaniard as he has started from the head of the field three times including last year. This year though Lorenzo has shown that he has added a lot of maturity to his already formidable speed and he will relish taking the fight to Rossi in Italy.

Stoner loves this circuit with an enviable qualifying record clearly displaying the speed that the 2007 world champion has consistently displayed here. In seven years he has only started outside the front row twice and in 2003’s 125cc Grand Prix marking the first pole position of his career but the race ended in disappointment for the Australian as he finished the race in 18th after being taken out from behind on the last lap after running in fifth. In recent years though Stoner's star has shined underneath the Tuscan sun with top four positions the last three years including a win and a runner up spot. After the disappointment of the start to the year Stoner will be keen to show the world that he has put his recent crashes behind him.

Last year was the first time that Honda’s Dani Pedrosa failed to finish in Italy and with the exception of his first race in 2001 the Spanaird has consistently finished inside the top four including five podiums. Qualifying though has been a struggle for Pedrosa with only three front row starts, but with such a long straight Pedrosa has consistently been able to use his small frame to his advantage by hiding behind the fairing and rocketing past his rivals over the start finish line.

Who will be the challengers in the support classes

Outside of the top class the battle for victory is difficult to predict. The Moto2 class has consistently seen some of the closest fields ever with Toni Elias leading the title chase and expecting to challenge for a third victory in a row but the Spanish rider has never finished on the podium at Mugello in the past.

Aspar’s Julian Simon showed at Le Mans that the change to Suter chassis was successful and the reigning 125 champion will be expecting to add to his podium finish last year. Former 125 title winner Thomas Luthi has finished on the podium twice but has consistently finished inside the top five and will look to regain his form from the opening two races.

The main challenge to Elias is expected to come from former MotoGP teammate Alex Deangelis who finished in the top three for three consecutive years from 2005 in the 250cc class. The San Marinese rider has struggled this year and will look to rebound from his frightening crash last time out when he was struck by a crashing motorcycle.

In the 125cc class Bradley Smith knows that if he is to challenge for a world title this year but the Britain won this Grand Prix last year so should be full of confidence ahead of this weekend’s race. This race will be telling in how the internal dynamics of the Aspar team with Nico Terol battling for the title chase and challenging for race wins this year. It will be interesting to see how the team deals with Smith if he cannot get on a par with his Spanish teammate.

Pol Espagaro showed at Le Mans that he has a new found maturity to go with his undoubted speed and the Derbi showed in Qatar that it was the fastest bike down the long front straight so their riders will expect to challenge for the victory. Marc Marquez and Efran Vasquez are both searching for their first ever win in Grand Prix and the Derbi should be able to allow them to showcase their obvious talents.