Vettel edges closer to world title taking pole in India

Sebastian Vettel has pipped the two Mercedes drivers in qualifying, grabbing pole position for tomorrow’s Indian Grand Prix.

Red Bull Racing’s Sebastian Vettel has continued his dominating form from free practice, qualifying in first position for the Indian Grand Prix.

The 26-year-old has previously had a great run at the Buddh International circuit, looking on the money to wrap-up the FIA Formula 1 Drivers World Championship in tomorrow’s grand prix.

Mercedes drivers Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton managed to qualify second and third to the German, while Australian Mark Webber was just pipped by the pair due to running a different qualifying strategy to his teammate Vettel.

Felipe Massa managed to finish fifth in Q3, starting alongside Kimi Raikkonen, the driver who is set to replace Massa at Ferrari towards the end of the 2013 world championship.

Nico Hulkenberg out-qualified Fernando Alonso for seventh position in tomorrow’s race, with the two McLaren’s of Sergio Perez and Jenson Button rounding out the top ten grid positions.

Australian Daniel Ricciardo just missed out on Q3 by one-tenth, qualifying 11th for tomorrow’s race.

Vettel goes into the Indian Grand Prix with a 90-point lead to Ferrari’s Alonso, with the German set to take his fourth consecutive world title tomorrow if he finishes fifth or above.

Qualifying results

Pos	No	Driver	Team	Q1	Q2	Q3	Laps
1	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing-Renault	1:25.943	1:24.568	1:24.119	12
2	9	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	1:25.833	1:25.304	1:24.871	21
3	10	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	1:25.802	1:25.259	1:24.941	20
4	2	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing-Renault	1:25.665	1:25.097	1:25.047	17
5	4	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	1:25.793	1:25.389	1:25.201	19
6	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Lotus-Renault	1:25.819	1:25.191	1:25.248	18
7	11	Nico Hulkenberg	Sauber-Ferrari	1:25.883	1:25.339	1:25.334	19
8	3	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	1:25.934	1:24.885	1:25.826	15
9	6	Sergio Perez	McLaren-Mercedes	1:26.107	1:25.365	1:26.153	21
10	5	Jenson Button	McLaren-Mercedes	1:25.574	1:25.458	1:26.487	23
11	19	Daniel Ricciardo	STR-Ferrari	1:25.673	1:25.519		14
12	14	Paul di Resta	Force India-Mercedes	1:25.908	1:25.711		15
13	15	Adrian Sutil	Force India-Mercedes	1:26.164	1:25.740		16
14	18	Jean-Eric Vergne	STR-Ferrari	1:26.155	1:25.798		14
15	17	Valtteri Bottas	Williams-Renault	1:26.178	1:26.134		15
16	12	Esteban Gutierrez	Sauber-Ferrari	1:26.057	1:26.336		11
17	8	Romain Grosjean	Lotus-Renault	1:26.577			7
18	16	Pastor Maldonado	Williams-Renault	1:26.842			9
19	22	Jules Bianchi	Marussia-Cosworth	1:26.970			8
20	21	Giedo van der Garde	Caterham-Renault	1:27.105			6
21	20	Charles Pic	Caterham-Renault	1:27.487			7
22	23	Max Chilton	Marussia-Cosworth	1:28.138			8

Written by Loren Hazelwood. @LorenHazelwood

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Vettel takes pole for Korean Grand Prix

Fiasco Sports, Formula 1

Reigning Formula 1 champion Sebastian Vettel has claimed pole position for the 2013 Korean Grand Prix.

Sebastian Vettel takes his sixth pole for the season. Photo: Getty Images/The Daily Telegraph

Sebastian Vettel has taken his sixth consecutive pole position for the 2013 Formula 1 Championship, setting a great first lap in Q3 with a time of 1:37.202.

The German was quick throughout all the qualifying sessions, feeling threatened by the Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton, who was quickest in practice yesterday, qualifying second.

Australian Redbull racer Mark Webber qualified in third, but will unfortunately will take a 10-spot penalty for tomorrow’s race due to an incident from the Singapore Grand Prix.

Lotus driver Romain Grosjean took fourth spot on the grid, while his teammate Kimi Raikkonen qualified tenth.

Next in line on the grid are the Ferrari team, with Fernando Alonso qualifying sixth and Felipe Massa starting from seventh.

The Sauber-Ferrari had a strong run in qualifying, with Nico Hulkenberg taking eighth and Esteban Gutierrez placing ninth.

Australian Daniel Ricciardo just missed out on the top ten, starting from 13th for tomorrow’s race.

Despite no one having ever won the Korean Grand Prix from pole before, Vettel is confident he can back up his win from last year and extend his championship lead.

Full qualifying results

Pos	Driver	Team	Q1	Q2	Q3
1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing-Renault	1:38.683	1:37.569	1:37.202
2	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	1:38.574	1:37.824	1:37.420
3	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing-Renault	1:39.138	1:37.840	1:37.464
4	Romain Grosjean	Lotus-Renault	1:39.065	1:38.076	1:37.531
5	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	1:38.418	1:38.031	1:37.679
6	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	1:38.520	1:37.978	1:38.038
7	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	1:38.884	1:38.295	1:38.223
8	Nico Hulkenberg	Sauber-Ferrari	1:38.427	1:37.913	1:38.237
9	Esteban Gutierrez	Sauber-Ferrari	1:38.725	1:38.327	1:38.405
10	Kimi Räikkönen	Lotus-Renault	1:38.341	1:38.181	1:38.822
11	Sergio Perez	McLaren-Mercedes	1:39.049	1:38.362
12	Jenson Button	McLaren-Mercedes	1:38.882	1:38.365
13	Daniel Ricciardo	STR-Ferrari	1:38.525	1:38.417
14	Adrian Sutil	Force India-Mercedes	1:38.988	1:38.431
15	Paul di Resta	Force India-Mercedes	1:39.185	1:38.718
16	Jean-Eric Vergne	STR-Ferrari	1:39.075	1:38.781
17	Valtteri Bottas	Williams-Renault	1:39.470
18	Pastor Maldonado	Williams-Renault	1:39.987
19	Charles Pic	Caterham-Renault	1:40.864
20	Giedo van der Garde	Caterham-Renault	1:40.871
21	Jules Bianchi	Marussia-Cosworth	1:41.169

– See more at: http://fiascosports.com/vettel-takes-pole-for-korean-grand-prix/#sthash.uAXztfYR.dpuf

Daniel Ricciardo Confirmed at Red Bull for 2014

Fiasco Sports, Formula 1

The long awaited rumour has been confirmed – Australian Daniel Ricciardo is set to join Sebastian Vettel at Red Bull Racing for 2014

Daniel Ricciardo. Image: Wayne Lubdey. Source: Herald Sun

Image: Wayne Lubdey/Herald Sun

Australian Daniel Ricciardo today confirmed that he will join the current championship winning team Red Bull Racing for next year alongside current world champion Sebastian Vettel.

The 24-year-old has signed a multi-year agreement to race for the Infiniti team, after ending months of speculation since fellow Australian Mark Webber announced his retirement from the sport at the end of this season.

The Western Australian has been linked with Red Bull since entering the Formula 1 grid.

He was originally their test driver in 2011, before joining the Red Bull sponsored Torro Rosso team in 2012.

“Next year I’ll be with a championship-winning team, arguably the best team and will be expected to deliver,” said Ricciardo.

“I’m not here to run around in 10th place, I want to get the best results for myself and the team.

“It will be a great challenge to be up against Sebastian Vettel; I’m looking forward to that.”

Red Bull Racing boss Christian Horner stated that the decision to take Ricciardo on board was an easy one.

“It’s fantastic to confirm Daniel as one of the team’s race drivers for 2014,” said Horner.

“He’s a very talented youngster, he’s committed, he’s got a great attitude and in the end it was a very logical choice for us to choose Daniel.

“Daniel knows what the team expects from him; he’ll learn quickly and it’s very much a medium to long term view that we’re taking in developing him.

Australian Webber praised Red Bull’s decision and personally used Twitter to congratulate Ricciardo.

The next round of the FIA Formula 1 championship will start this Friday with practice at Monza, while Ricciardo currently sits at 14th in the championship.

Written by Loren Hazelwood

– See more at: http://fiascosports.com/daniel-ricciardo-confirmed-at-red-bull-for-2014/#sthash.G3biHoYv.dpuf

The Formula 1 Line-up Of Beards

Formula 1, Spultured

In recent years, I have noticed a new trend appearing across the Formula 1 field and it isn’t helmet design. Apparently now it’s all about the facial hair you’re sporting under the lid. Let’s take a look at some of the heavy hitters when it comes to those fuzzy face warmers.

The Lewis Hamilton
Having recently made a switch into the Mercedes team, Hamilton is pictured here running in the clean-cut look. This is where the beard highlights the outside of the face, while having a shorter haircut. Also known to be very aerodynamic.

The Button Blonde Babe
Having one World Championship up his belt, the McLaren driver has made this blonde-babe look very popular among his rival, Sebastian Vettel. Jenson Button’s facial hair is blonde in colour, highlighting his messy hair-look. Also works well with helmet hair.

The Nico DiCaprio
After recently cutting his long blonde locks, Nico Rosberg has gone for the rougher, edgier look. Having similar looks to Leonardo DiCaprio, Rosberg’s beard is neat but brings out his Hollywood style. This look works well with winning races.

The Webber-Wolf
The retiring Australian has let his beard go wild this year, representing a similar style to Hugh Jackman in Wolverine. Mark Webber is pictured here with his cat, with his beard dark in colour and wildly un-shaven, matching his hair. This look works well with Multi-21.

The Iceman
Kimi Raikkonen, aka. The Iceman, runs a clean look with no facial fuzz, as he has to keep his reputation up as The Iceman. Also known to not show emotion.

The Peach Fuzz
Romain Grosjean was famous for his turn one crashes last year, but the facial hair he is sporting looks like he hasn’t shaved since he started his F1 career. The Lotus driver’s facial hair highlights his youth, running the bare minimum on the face. This look works well with going into turn one on three wheels.

The Fernando Alonso
This cheeky Ferrari driver has been in the game for a while and knows how to grow a mean mow. Fernando Alonso is pictured here with a faint moustache and beard, while keeping his chunky brows neat. Also known to look good with the colour red.

While some of the younger and developing drivers in the field are trying to grow more facial hair, let’s just hope the 2014 list doesn’t include any ‘The Nigel Mansell’.

A Tribute to Retiring Webber

Formula 1, Spultured

Australian Formula 1 driver Mark Webber last night ended all of the rumours circulating the pit paddock and announced he will be moving from the Infiniti Red Bull Racing team to be apart of Porsche’s World Endurance Championship sportscar program.

We can’t ignore the fact that Webber and his young German teammate Sebastian Vettel did not get along like a house on fire, but this was not a considering factor of why the Australian decided to leave the sport.

The 36-year-old believed it was perfect timing to join Porsche’s program, as he believes it is a sensational challenge and the perfect timing for his future work.

With Webber announcing this ground-shaking news, I thought it was time that I’d look at the highlights of the Aussie’s racing career and how it all started.

It all began in 1991, when Mark started racing sprint go-karts around Australia competing against some great names in Australian motorsport. It was only a few years later in 1994 when Webber started racing in open-wheelers.

Formula Ford in Australia in the mid-nineties was the lead way for young Australian drivers who wanted to further their motor racing career.

Mark Webber in his Formula Ford

Mark Webber then struggled with funds for his racing, going over to the UK with virtually no money. Webber raced at the prestigious Formula Ford Festival in 1995 at the Brands Hatch circuit, finishing an astonishing third place on debut.

The 19-year-old at the time was then offered a factory drive with Van Diemen to compete in the European and British Formula Ford championships. Webber went on to win the 1996 British Formula Ford festival that year, which in many cases was known to be a gateway for Formula 1.

After competing in Formula Ford for three years, Webber graduated to Formula 3000 with Alan Docking Racing for the 1997 championship in Europe. Without having a stronger financial backing like Webber and his team had in the Formula Ford season, Webber and the team nearly had to pull out of racing the category halfway through. Fortunately an Australian personal investor came on board and financially helped Webber out.

Webber was approached at the end of his Formula 3 campaign by Mercedes-AMG to compete in a sports car race. He traveled all around the world racing at Japan, Europe and the United States, but his sports car career came to an early end after an aerodynamic fault, which caused Webber to go airborne and flip twice in practice for the 1999 24 Hours of Le Mans race. Webber escaped without injury, but this ended the Mercedes campaign and saw Webber return to open-wheel racing.

Mark Webber’s aerodynamic failure at Le Mans

Webber made his first steps in Formula 1 in 1999, testing for Arrows F1 team. It wasn’t until 2002 when Mark made his debut racing in Formula 1, where he was teamed up with Minardi Asiatech. Webber impressed on his debut, racing at his home Australian Grand Prix. He qualified 18^th for the race, but managed to climb his way through the field to grab fifth place, claiming the first ever points for the Minardi Asiatech team.

2009 marked an important year when Webber was racing for Red Bull that Webber qualified on pole for the first time in Formula 1 at the Nüburgring. This was the first time an Australian driver had claimed pole position since Alan Jones back in 1980. He went on to achieve his first Formula 1 victory despite receiving a drive through penalty early in the race for causing an avoidable collision at the start. Webber went on to dominate the race and win ahead of his teammate Vettel, heading a Red Bull 1–2.

Mark Webber’s debut in Formula 1 finishing in fifth

After the German Grand Prix, Webber was ready to take charge in the championship campaign for 2010, having great success in the season taking victories at the Spanish, Monaco and Hungarian Grand Prix’s. Webber unfortunately lost the championship battle to his younger teammate Sebastian Vettel, but finished in third place.

As the tension grew between Vettel and Webber at Red Bull, Webber was determined to go better in 2011. The Australian had to wait all year to claim victory at the Brazilian Grand Prix, but remained consistent throughout the year to claim third place in the driver’s championship.

After coming so close the previous year’s before for the championship title, Webber in 2012 won the British and Monaco Grand Prix’s, which he claims to this day are his sweetest victories.

Webber this year haven’t yet claimed a race victory and is currently sixth in the championship, so it was very interesting to find out that he announced the end of his Formula 1 campaign. He has come so close, yet for the 36-year-old other plans have come in the way and the Aussie believes Porsches is the way to go.

Mark Webber celebrating at Monaco in 2012

Despite having a huge crash at Le Man’s many years ago in his AMG-Mercedes, Webber believes he can overcome his fear of racing at Le Mans and give it a red hot go.

All the best to Webber and his sports car career, it will be sad to see an Australian leave the sport who has brought much joy to the Formula 1 paddock and will be sadly missed.

– Let’s see if our young Aussie driver at Toro Rosso Daniel Ricciardo can take his seat at Red Bull Racing!

All F1 Drivers Can Drive

Formula 1, Spultured

Published on: http://www.spultured.com

A few weeks ago, I was watching the Formula 1 qualifying with another dedicated fan and he turns to me and says, “well, you do know that not all of the Formula 1 drivers can drive … it’s about how much money they’ve got”.

Now, I personally know how expensive motor racing is and that a lot of it has to do with sponsorship and “who” you know. But, this does not mean that the drivers in the current championship can’t steer an F1 car.

So, to back up my statement and prove my learned friend wrong, I conducted a little background research on the current Formula 1 drivers in an effort to prove to him that most, if not all, the drivers have actually achieved a massive amount in their motor racing careers.

For example, current world champion Sebastian Vettel has won numerous go-karting world titles, won the Formula BMW championship and competed with current F1 drivers in the European Formula 3 series. These racers have always raced together, proving that development categories around the world are a vital part towards making it to the top. But it’s not all about the guys at the front of the grid.

The driver’s who are not gaining points in the championship at the moment are also really experienced racers. For example, Esteban Gutierrez, a newcomer to Formula 1, brings a huge amount of experience to Sauber. The Mexican has raced all over the world, having already claimed a Formula BMW European title and finishing third in the GP3 series last year (which he won in 2010). Although Gutierrez is yet to make a podium finish in the big league, this can be put down, at least in part, to the team he is steering for.

Unfortunately not all teams in Formula 1 have the same amount of money, but these drivers are all clearly good enough to win once the richer teams give them a chance.

Just because they are running at the back of the field, it does not mean they are “slow” or “can’t drive”. They are there largely due to their team not being able to fork out for the best gear to make faster Formula 1 cars.

So, for any of you non-believers that think Formula 1 is all about drivers who can’t drive and have heaps of money – think again. The skills all drivers acquire can’t be bought with a couple of million of dollars, it’s so much more than just the money. These guys can drive!

Vettel Claims Pole for Canadian Grand Prix

Fiasco Sports, Formula 1

Published on: http://www.fiascosports.com

Sebastian Vettel racing to pole. Photo: Luca Bruno

Redbull Racing’s Sebastian Vettel has taken advantage of the wet circuit conditions at the Montreal circuit, taking his third-straight pole position for the Canadian Grand Prix.

Lewis Hamilton was second quickest to the German, but the surprise for the session was William’s driver Veltteri Bottas who blitzed through the wet conditions to qualify third.

Monaco-winner Nico Rosberg continued to show his pace placing fourth, with Australian Mark Webber rounding out the top five.

Fernando Alonso struggled once again with the car, only managing sixth fastest, with Jean Eric-Vergne, Adrian Sutil, Kimi Raikkonen and Australian Daniel Ricciardo to start in the top ten.

Ferrari driver Felipe Massa unfortunately finished Q2 in the wall, with the qualifying session then red-flagged with minutes to go.

The two McLarens continued their lack of pace, with Jenson Button and Sergio Perez both missing out on Q3.

Despite qualifying in 19^th, Romain Grosjean will surrender his position and start in last place, due to a 10-grid spot penalty from causing an incident at the Monaco Grand Prix.

Pos Driver Team Time Gap

1. Sebastian Vettel Red Bull-Renault 1m25.425s

2. Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 1m25.512s + 0.087s

3. Valtteri Bottas Williams-Renault 1m25.897s + 0.472s

4. Nico Rosberg Mercedes 1m26.008s + 0.583s

5. Mark Webber Red Bull-Renault 1m26.208s + 0.783s

6. Fernando Alonso Ferrari 1m26.504s + 1.079s

7. Jean-Eric Vergne Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1m26.543s + 1.118s

8. Adrian Sutil Force India-Mercedes 1m27.348s + 1.923s

9. Kimi Raikkonen Lotus-Renault 1m27.432s + 2.007s

10. Daniel Ricciardo Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1m27.946s + 2.521s

11. Nico Hulkenberg Sauber-Ferrari 1m29.435s + 1.786s

12. Sergio Perez McLaren-Mercedes 1m29.761s + 2.112s

13. Pastor Maldonado Williams-Renault 1m29.917s + 2.268s

14. Jenson Button McLaren-Mercedes 1m30.068s + 2.419s

15. Esteban Gutierrez Sauber-Ferrari 1m30.315s + 2.666s

16. Felipe Massa Ferrari 1m30.354s + 2.705s

17. Paul di Resta Force India-Mercedes 1m24.908s + 2.590

18. Charles Pic Caterham-Renault 1m25.626s + 3.308

19. Romain Grosjean Lotus-Renault 1m25.716s + 3.398

20. Jules Bianchi Marussia-Cosworth 1m26.508s + 4.190

21. Max Chilton Marussia-Cosworth 1m27.062s + 4.744

22. Giedo van der Garde Caterham-Renault 1m27.110s + 4.792

Father Like Son In The Streets Of Monaco

Formula 1, Spultured

Published on: http://www.spultured.com

Last night’s Monaco Grand Prix not only delivered a two-hour race of the Formula 1 cars screaming down the streets of Monte Carlo, but saw Nico Rosberg take his first victory at the circuit, 30 years after his father Keke Rosberg claimed victory there, becoming the first father-son duo to ever win a race.

The race was full of wheel-to-armco action, but Rosberg stayed out in front of the pack for the entire grand prix, keeping the same form he had all weekend being quickest in practice and qualifying.

Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel struggled with his pace and finished second behind the fellow German, although he did still manage to set the fastest lap of the race, pushing it on his soft compound tyres. Vettel’s Australian team mate Mark Webber followed the same pit strategy and crossed the line in third.

The start showed just why Rosberg and Hamilton were on the front row, with the Renault Red Bull’s unfortunately not being able to jump the two Mercedes at the start of the race,

The front of the field were behaving themselves, while a few places back the McLaren boys were at it again. Sergio Perez make life hard for Jenson Button, who tried everything to get past his team mate, with Button complaining about Perez cutting him off when trying for a pass.

There was also damage for Van De Garde and Maldonado, with Van De Garde hitting the Williams of Maldonado through the chicane.

The racing was tight, by lap 7 the top six were only separated by 5.5 seconds, and with the newly formulated Pirelli tyres, the strategy for most teams was a two-stop race.

Mark Webber was first to pit out of the front-runners on lap 25, with Kimi Raikkonen pitting one lap later, which was early considering the team at Lotus were using a one-stop strategy for the 78 lap duration.

Sebastian Vettel then made his pit stop, while Felipe Massa managed to hit the wall in the same place he did in practice, which saw the Ferrari driver unable to register a qualifying time. At this point, the Mercedes drivers had not made their first pit stop.

The Mercedes team then decided to pit their two front-running drivers, but this unfortunately hurt Hamilton, who was “leap-frogged” by the two Red Bull cars and fell back to fourth.

Because of the damage caused to Felipe Massa’s Ferrari, for the first time this season the safety car was on the circuit. Massa was attended by the medics but was later taken to hospital due to whiplash.

After nine laps of the safety car, the race was restarted. Hamilton was desperate for his two spots back and was trying all his moves on Aussie Webber. Raikkonen was also super defensive on Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso.

It was only four laps later until another racing incident occurred. Bianchi squeezed Maldonado out into the air and then into the wall. The wall was too damaged to bring out another safety car and debris was all over the track, so the race was red flagged and all the drivers were sent to the starting grid.

In this situation, drivers are allowed to get out of their cars, talk with their engineers, grab a drink and mechanics are also allowed to work on their racing cars. During the break the stewards also decided that Fernando Alonso should give back a spot to Sergio Perez, where Perez tried making a pass on Alonso through the chicane.

With the race on the verge of two hours and twenty minutes, drivers had to make their way through the race quickly to make it through the 78-lap duration. The restart saw Rosberg get a great jump on Vettel, with Mark Webber defending his third position well on Lewis Hamilton.

Lap 60 saw another retirement of the race, with Bianchi locking up and going sideways into turn one.

Two laps later, another safety car was called and it was Grosjean who striked again, taking out Australian Daniel Ricciardo by riding the back of his Torro Rosso. Both of the drivers failed to finish the grand prix.

The race then restarted and all of the drivers were hungry for the top position. Rosberg stayed out of trouble to take the win, with Sebastian Vettel following in second. Last year’s race winner Mark Webber managed to hold off Hamilton to take third.

Quiet achiever from Force India Adrian Sutil took out fifth place, with Jenson Button rounding out the top six. Raikkonen dropped from fifth to 16th with seven laps remaining after coming together with Perez, but still managed to sneak inside the top ten.

Media by Loren Hazelwood

Motor sport media, marketing and content specialist

Sebastian Vettel

Vettel edges closer to world title taking pole in India

Vettel takes pole for Korean Grand Prix

Daniel Ricciardo Confirmed at Red Bull for 2014

The long awaited rumour has been confirmed – Australian Daniel Ricciardo is set to join Sebastian Vettel at Red Bull Racing for 2014

The Formula 1 Line-up Of Beards

A Tribute to Retiring Webber

All F1 Drivers Can Drive

Vettel Claims Pole for Canadian Grand Prix

Father Like Son In The Streets Of Monaco