Pole position and a solid race win: Mark Webber drove one of his best Fomula 1 races ever in Barcelona and gave everyone, his team-mate included, something to think about between now and Monaco in less than a week’s time.
The Red Bulls were clearly the fastest cars all weekend and despite other teams bringing various upgrades to the race, they will be left wondering what they can do to close the gap. Mercedes was quicker, and most notably Schumacher was faster than Rosberg throughout all practice sessions, qualifying and the race for the first time this season, but he was still over a second and a half adrift of Webber.
Catalunya isn’t known for its overtaking opportunities so all eyes were on the first corner, the McLaren of Hamilton that was third on the grid, and the Ferrari of Alonso that was fourth. Even with the relatively short run down to the first corner, both Red Bulls were wary of the F-Duct system and knew that they’d have their work cut out to stay in front. However, much to the joy of Webber, and much to the dismay of anyone hoping for an exciting race, the order of the top six cars stayed the same.
Hamilton drove another strong race and managed to jump Vettel during his stop. However, with less than two laps of the race remaining and a comfortable second place in his sights, his front left tyre blew and into the barriers he went. The crowd went wild as this promoted Alonso, the home favourite, to second and Vettel, who had to nurse his car to the end with serious brake troubles, to third.
Schumacher finished a credible fourth, while Button could only manage fifth. The seven-times World Champion overtook the ‘Frome Flyer’ when he emerged from the pits and Button then failed to get past him in the ensuing laps, despite having a much faster car. Schumacher blocked impressively, but to be honest, Button was never going to make too much of an impact by trying the same thing lap after lap: going round the outside of turn one, where Schumacher predictably shut off the inside line.
So well done to Mark Webber. Yes he had the fastest car, but even Vettel, with all his raw speed and talent, couldn’t match him. The other 11 teams are going to have to have a proper think about how to close the gap to Red Bull. If they can’t, we’re staring down the barrel of a rather predictable rest of the season…
Boring procession, Barcelona always had poor reputation for overtaking but clearly FIA needs to have a mandatory rainstorm to make F1 interesting again… Or they could start to remove some of the aerodynamic paraphernalia that prevents real wheel to wheel racing!
congrats to Mark for a very very good race- almost perfect –
well done- feel for Lewis, who incidentally i think will be awesome next year – having absorbed so much from Jenson this year-
does anyone believe what Mercedes are saying re favourtism? one thing is obvious Ross isn’t the same as last year – what chance Niko driving for another team next year?
apart from Mark and Lewis, algusuari looked good – as did Rubens, Nico Hulk again flattered to decieve, know he had a problem but, this guy needs to start clicking soon –
overall thought the race apart from Mark, frustrating and at points tedious, thought Jenson’s comments very pertinent and summed up my feelings, shame
Webber, great bloke though he is, is at his best when there’s not much thinking involved.
Hamilton must be the fastest since Peterson or Rindt.
Button shouldn’t have whinged about Schuey’s move. (I’m a Jenson fan and my enthusiasm for MSC is well under control). Even Kubica couldn’t get past Sutil, so there was no shame in not being able to overtake the world’s greatest blocker. Just don’t moan about it Jense, because you laid the “Can’t overtake” myth to rest last year.
And yes, Nico, it’s only going to get worse. As the season goes on you’re going to find that the rear wheels have as much sticking power as your bum on a water flume. And your reputation will be heading in the same direction.
Finally, is Alguersuari the next Alonso? You heard that cliche here first, remember!
Didn’t watch the race today, but from what I’ve read the new Mercedes car is completely screwing Rosberg up, finally showing their true colors. That’s too bad.
Webber? Fastest lap?
Might want to check the stats on that one.
Good morning John Miller from down under where we aren’t very bright but have stable government, a very strong economy, lots of room and the weather is great.
Hop down to Australia House as we are always looking for skilled migrants, however at the moment we are OK for F1 drivers who are smart enough to keep their cars intact for the duration of a GP…..
I think Lewis would have dive bombed Michael, and let the gods decide. Of course, Michael, being one of the gods, would have punished him harshly. Push him into the grass? Let the collision occur?
Jens just doesn’t have the killer/suicidal instincts of Lewis. He does have superior race craft but Lewis just pushes the car to its limit every corner regardless of the consequences. You have to love watching him, but cringe at the inevitable blunders.
BTW: Drivers are very proud of not thinking. It’s a chant at some driver’s meetings with hearty laughter all around. I didn’t understand it at first, but you simply don’t have time to think in a race car. Everything is coming at you too fast, and just anticipating what the car will do and reacting is about all you have time for. A little thinking goes a long way in that environment.
Drivers do their thinking off the track, visualizing and studying the car, track and opponents. That stuff must be automatic in the car.
At least this Australian will keep his GP victory. 30 years ago Alan Jones won at Jarama but this was not recognized by the FIA as one Jean-Marie Balestre said it didn’t take place following the withdrawal of the “grandee” teams. Not to matter he still won the World Championship. Could history repeat itself this year? Here’s hoping.
I agree that Jenson should have tried a little harder to get around Schumacher, but we did get to see (again) his superb race and car management, and his team mate’s lack of same. No matter how you look at it, 5th is better than DNF.
I can see a podium or two in Sutil’s not too distant future. The man is a racer.
Pete H,
Indeed – sorry about that. Thanks for pointing out the mistake!
EF
Did nobody else find that Grand Prix horrifically dull? They really need to think again about Barcelona as a circuit, it just doesn’t work. Its one redeeming feature was the last corner, which they’ve ruined with a poxy chicane. It took about 5 or 6 laps for the field to string out and that was that. I ended up watching the Spa 1000KM on Eurosport which featured the novel idea of cars of differing appearance following each other closely through corners and overtaking. I didn’t watch the NASCAR or Indycar races this weekend but I’m guessing they were a bit less of a bore too.
Remember all that talk before the season started with all and sundry speculating that old Schu just wouldn’t have the killer instinct against the young guns? Ho ho. Schumacher made Button look pretty damn ordinary with that pass. And Vettel, who was in a similar track position against Hamilton, ran himself off the track! The “new Schumi” blinked.
Clearly the revised Mercedes is off the pace but we saw enough in Spain to know that Schumacher, Alonso and Hamilton are the racers out there.
Shall we wait until the wheel/tyre analysis is complete before blaming the driver? Jumping to conclusions is the sort of thing they do on lesser fora.
the Indycar race was extremely boring this weekend….wait…..news flash… there wasn’t an Indycar race this weekend!
OK the GP was boring unless you’re a Webber fan, which I am, so here’s to all the brainless guys out there racing and WINNING!!!
Yes I agree with you Richard !.And I have to admit nodding off to be awoken by the exclamation of the commentators at Hamiltons off.
The first corner was okay and then I waited …..and waited….,
This does not bode well for Monaco .Lets all hope that it rains otherwise I will be outside on the lawnmower !.
Vettel possibly won this year’s World Championship when he refused Red Bull’s request to retire the car.
15 Points after all the things which went wrong for Vettel – through no fault of his own – will tell at year end.
Mercedes GP reminds me of BMW in 2008 when the German marque decided to abandon their faster driver’s Championship Challenge – Kubica then, Rosberg now (2nd after China) – in an effort to make their slower driver go from 8th/7th to 5th/4th … BUT at the expense of the hitherto quicker man.
What are Mercedes doing? Surely Nico is the man for the future?
The writing looks on the wall for poor Massa…
…Italian-speaking Kubica, aka Alonso’s Poker-playing partner, for the Scuderia in 2011?
It couldn’t be anymore transparent.
Could it?
Great race for Webb-o….. Vettel has some bad luck for sure….
Alonso has the best luck I have ever seen in F1… tooling aroudn in 4th all day and walks right up to 2nd. In Bahrain he is rolling around in 2nd all day, then bang good luck and he wins… his only bad luck I remember was in Malasyia and that was only for 9th place, so no big deal
I would not be surprised if Gary P. is a GP driver before many more races, with Mercedes or Cosworth power. Mercedes can say that Rosberg agreed to the changes but he obviously had no choice. Why could his car not have been left as he wanted? There is no way that Mercedes are going to win at all this year unless others suffer great misfortune, or GP is driving !
Barcelona proves what’s already been said, we need more mechanical grip. Adjustable front wings seems like another wrong turn.
Great run from Webber, who thoroughly deserve it.
Hamilton lost a certain second, due to a rim failure according to the latest bulletins.
Schumi, did a mediocre job with a now even more mediocre car. Like most of you I feel quite sorry for Rosberg.
Barcelona was never a great track, and this year is even more of a laugh with the stupid chicane before the last corner.
Paal, if you think Schumacher did a “mediocre” job you have a very strange perspective. Mediocre car yes, but to keep the world champion behind for 48 laps is not something a mediocre driver can do and does not constitute a “mediocre performance”.
It’s a shame some people completely missed the fact they were watching a grand prix driving masterclass. Pearls before swine, as they say.
As for R Tanveer’s theory that MGP is sacrificing their quicker man for their slower man …. words nearly fail me. Grand prix teams, at least proper ones, are there to win. Full stop. It is an unseemly insult to Ross Brawn and his top engineers to suggest their goal is to somehow make Michael Schumacher look good. Their goal is to make the best car on the grid. If there are any F1 principals past or present out there who wish to contradict me, please do…
‘Racing’ at Circuit de Cataluñya has rarely been on the cards since 1991. As our host broadcaster in Australia told us more times than I care to remember, 9 (now 10) years in a row the pole sitter has gone on to win.
Is it not a circuit, by nature, which give us as fans and the teams the first true indication as to how the rest of the season will pan out? Thanks to its known quality and layout if you can make a car work there it’ll work everywhere? If so it’s shaping up as a long one for everyone outside the RBR garage.
@ Andy Reeves. I have a feeling Monaco will be one hell of a race. Maybe it’s the optimist in me but the prospect of 24 cars in Q1, with potentially inclement weather across the weekend, could see a jumbled gird. It’s not inconceivable to see some of the quick boy caught out tripping over the backmarkers when it comes to the crunch.
Ditto for the race. Although I get squeamish when thinking about Vettel/Alonso/Hamilton etc barrelling head first into St Devote with Glock/Senna potentially trundling through the breaking zone. Piquet/Patrese 1985 or Arnoux/Alboreto up the hill in 1987 anybody?
IF Webber had set the fastest lap, it would have been what I call a “Domination” – Pole, led every lap, fastest lap and the win. The last time I remember that happening was Hungary 2004 by one M. Schumacher.
Also, I seem to remember that when Catalunya was built for the 1991 Spanish GP, the circuit design was supposed to promote overtaking, with those two fast corners leading on to the long front straight. How some things (seemingly) never change…
Webber deserves kudos here, a win on offer and he maximized the opportunity. Puts me in mind of Mansell’s blooming at Williams days.
Vettel grinding it out, plucky. The experience goes into his “silicon chip” for future reference.
Mercedes had to attack issues, the car is not fully top drawer. Yet, A-list teams can abet full potential from both drivers. Brawn in 2009 managed that, not so far in 2010..
Was this a carrot for MSC? If so, it flatters to deceive, possibly a swath of damage also.
Nico’s race was fraught anyhow. Barcelona’s is a “slim chancer” of a circuit if you’re mired mid pack.
Finally Sauber had a glimmer of durability and pace. Kobyashi got full distance at least. Rate him worthy of a longer view.
Kubica at Ferrari? Few if offered, ever fully refuse a peak at the inner sanctum. The last Pole fully embraced in Italy, history thinks of well.
Renault need a real racer, a motivated one, surely could use Robert a year or two longer. Petrov is worth time.The Regie has spit out a flock of aspiring shoes lately.
Barcelona is seldom a great GP, usually just another one, so this was.
Monaco hopefully will provide useful drama.
I had to do something else on Sunday, so I was not able to watch the race live.
I managed to stay away from news programmes and settled down to watch the evening programme. It was only an hour (including the pre-race build up).
If what I saw was the highlights, I pity you poor souls who watched it all. The only good thing was that it took a lot less time than watching the whole race.
So there’s the answer – just watch the edited ‘highlights’.
(On Saturday, I saw a cracking bike race. The three leaders were together through the whole race, right up to the last corner and lots of overtaking.
As an Australian I thought the win was a coming of age for Webber, he appears mentally capable to go all the way this year. The thinking mans driver, perhaps. How lucky is Alonso, definitely the luckiest driver in F1, but I won’t hold that against him.
Only if your delivery service to Australia could be as good as Webber’s win. Still waiting for the latest edition!!!
@ Steve Wyant:
May 11th, 2010 10:11am
“IF Webber had set the fastest lap, it would have been what I call a “Domination” – Pole, led every lap, fastest lap and the win.”
Or – “grand chelem”?
It’s the designer boys. Give the car to Sutil and watch him win too…
To the guy who said Weber’s fastest lap should be checked, check Monaco 2010 pal!!
And try to focus on results rather than reputations.
Re Monaco…
…Alonso seems to be making a lot of mistakes for supposedly the “most complete” driver in Formula One.
Fernando muffed the start in Australia, put himself in engine trouble in Malaysia, made a rookie error at the lights in China and today binned the Ferrari into the barriers during practice.
Fine…He seems faster and more comfortable than Massa – but he doesn’t seem to be in the Vettel-Kubica league in terms of consistency (both of whom are without “baggage”) and he’s certainly not Lewis-quick in terms of pace.
I simply can’t put Alonso in the Top 3 right now.
These mistakes are going to be deadly when the Championship is decided.