Jenson Button shines at London Triathlon
Despite suffering from a bout of tonsillitis in the days leading up to the event, McLaren’s Jenson Button put in an impressive performance at Sunday’s London Triathlon. Button is understood to have finished fourth out of the 570 competitors in his group, with a time of 2.14:14.
The annual event includes a 1500-metre swim, a 40-kilometre bike ride and a 10-kilometre run. It attracts 11,000 entrants making it the largest triathlon in the world.
“Great day at the London Triathlon,” said Button on his official Twitter site. “Suffered quite a bit on the run due to just being physically drained I guess from the antibiotics. Still reasonably happy with the result though.”
Lotus to field young Malaysian driver at aero test
Lotus have announced on Friday that 16 year-old Malaysian driver Nabil Jeffri will carry out an aero test for the team at an undisclosed location in early September. Jeffri, who is a member of the AirAsia ASEAN Driver Development Program, is currently fifth in the Formula BMW Pacific championship.
“I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to drive for Lotus Racing at the aero test,” he said. “It’s a big privilege to gain driving experience with the most promising new Formula One team. Driving the Lotus Racing car will definitely be a priceless exposure to the F1 driving experience, and I’m looking forward to many more similar opportunities to arise as a result of being part of the AirAsia Driver Development program.”
Tony Fernandes, Lotus team principal, added: “It’s an exciting day for all of us in the Lotus Racing team - being able to give bright young talent like Nabil the chance to play an integral role in the development of our team is a recognition of his burgeoning talent, and shows that there is a clear route to the top rung of the motorsport ladder, no matter how old you are or where you are racing.
Webber: Red Bull ready to take on anyone, anywhere
As he showed to great effect at the recent Hungarian Grand Prix, Mark Webber in a Red Bull is a winning combination. And at the start of this month’s summer break the Budapest victor has sent out a warning call to his rivals that he plans to be just as strong at the season’s remaining seven races.
Although Webber missed out on pole in Hungary - it was claimed by his team mate Sebastian Vettel - the Australian notched up his fourth win of the year, crossing the line almost 18 seconds ahead of the chasing Ferrari of Fernando Alonso.
And while some have questioned whether the RB6, and in particular its innovative front wing, can maintain the same level of performance it enjoyed at the Hungaroring on all circuits, Webber is optimistic it can.
“We’ve shown this year that the car is performing on all tracks so we hope we don’t have any weak circuits,” he told Red Bull’s official website. “Singapore should be good, Suzuka, Brazil and Abu Dhabi. We’re a little bit worried about how the long straights might go at some of the other venues, at Monza maybe. But the car is very, very strong at most tracks so we’re ready to take on anyone at any venue.”
With such confidence in his car, Webber is hopeful he can add a few other blue-ribbon events to his tally of victories this year, which already includes wins in Monaco and Silverstone.
Button prepares to tackle London Triathlon challenge
With a three-week break between races, you’d expect most drivers to hang up their race suits and take some well-earned rest and relaxation ahead of the season’s final push. McLaren’s Jenson Button has other ideas, however, and this weekend will take part in the world famous London Triathlon.
The annual event, which takes place over Saturday and Sunday, attracts 11,000 entrants making it the largest triathlon in the world. It encompasses a demanding 1500-metre swim, a 40-kilometre bike ride and a 10-kilometre run. Button - a regular triathlon competitor - took part in the event last year and impressively finished second in his age category.
Although an ideal way to boost his fitness for Grands Prix, the British driver has even nobler reasons for competing as he’ll be raising money for the Make-A-Wish Foundation. The 30 year-old is a patron of the charity, which makes dreams a reality for young people fighting life-threatening illnesses.
Massa: Red Bull in a different league
Ferrari’s Felipe Massa has admitted Red Bull were in a league of their own at last weekend’s Hungarian Grand Prix. The Austrian team’s Sebastian Vettel clinched pole position in Budapest with a 1.2 second margin, while his team mate Mark Webber took victory 17.8s ahead of Massa’s Ferrari colleague Fernando Alonso.
At the previous round in Germany Ferrari seemed to have the edge, with Alonso and Massa scoring a dominant one-two at Hockenheim, but just a week later at the Hungaroring Red Bull had returned to form. And the Brazilian believes this turnaround in performance can be explained by the characteristics of the two circuits in question.
“In Germany, we seemed to have the fastest car and just a few days later, Red Bull were in a different league to all the other teams,” he explained to Ferrari’s official website. “They have nearly always been fastest, apart maybe from Bahrain and then Hockenheim. It is mainly related to the nature of the track. In Germany we qualified in much the same time and then we were quicker in the race, but in Hungary they were 1.2 seconds faster, which suggests to me that in Hockenheim they underperformed.”
Despite acknowledging the dominance of the Red Bulls, Massa, who has returned to Brazil for the summer break, is more than happy with the pace of his F10 and his fourth-place result in Hungary.
Alonso: Ferrari must remain calm for final push
The dark days following last month’s British Grand Prix saw Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso fall almost 50 points off the championship lead. Now he is riding high, just 20 shy of standings leader Mark Webber, and fresh from his second podium in as many races in Hungary, the Spaniard believes the title is still firmly in his sights.
“I think we have to be happy with our championship so far,” he told Ferrari’s official website. “We had some good races and some disappointing races as well, but overall I think we are in a really close position in the championship to the leader. There are five drivers fighting for the championship and there are seven races to go now. Anything can happen in these seven races, so we need to be the best one in this last part of the championship.”
If they are to emerge victorious at the end of the season Alonso knows Ferrari must remain cool, calm and collected, but with both team and driver more than familiar with the challenges of winning titles he is confident they can stay focused.
“We are in a position now that we are able to take the lead of the championship if we win one race,” he said. “I think we have to remain calm. We know that four or five drivers will fight until the last race, but we need to use our experience as a team. Ferrari have won so many championships, and my personal experience as well, fighting for three championships. We have to stay calm, and in these seven races get as many podiums as possible. I think continuity will be key to winning the championship.
Ferrari to face disciplinary hearing over team orders
Ferrari will appear before the FIA World Motor Sport Council (WMSC) next month following their controversial one-two result at July’s German Grand Prix.
The Italian team were fined US$100,000 by the Hockenheim race stewards for breaching sporting regulations after Felipe Massa, who had been leading the event, moved aside to allow team mate Fernando Alonso past. The stewards also forwarded their report to the WMSC for further consideration.
The disciplinary hearing will take place in Paris on Wednesday, September 8
Schumacher: I crossed the line with Barrichello move
Michael Schumacher has admitted that his blocking of Rubens Barrichello in Sunday’s Hungarian Grand Prix was “too hard”. Schumacher almost edged Barrichello into the pit wall as he tried in vain to stop his former team mate passing him for P10 late in the race.
In post-race interviews the Mercedes driver suggested his tactics had been harsh but fair. However, having received a 10-place grid penalty for the next round from the Budapest stewards - and having had a day to reflect - Schumacher has now conceded that he overstepped the mark.
“Yesterday right after the race I was still in the heat of the moment, but after I watched the scene with Rubens again, I must say that the stewards were right in their assessment - the manoeuvre against him was too hard,” he told his official website.
“Of course I wanted to make it difficult for him to overtake and I showed him clearly that I didn’t want to let him down the inside, but I wasn’t trying to endanger him with my manoeuvre. If he felt that way, then sorry, that was not my intention.”
Schumacher handed 10-place grid penalty for Spa
Mercedes GP’s Michael Schumacher has been punished by the Hungarian Grand Prix stewards for his clash with Williams’ Rubens Barrichello in the closing laps of Sunday's Budapest race. Schumacher receives a 10-place grid penalty for the next round in Belgium.
As Barrichello attempted to overtake the German on Lap 66 on the main straight, the seven-time champion appeared to move over on the Brazilian and push him towards the pit wall.
After a post-race investigation the stewards decided Schumacher had "illegitimately impeded car 9 during an overtaking manoeuvre”. Mercedes GP have accepted the decision.
Race - McLaren one-two in Montreal thriller
Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button in their McLaren MP4-25s turned the world championship fight on its head in Montreal on Sunday afternoon, when they scored the team’s third one-two of the season after a tense race in which nobody was able to relax.
It began with second fastest qualifier Mark Webber being moved back five grid places after Red Bull replaced his gearbox, then a collision between Ferrari’s Felipe Massa and Force India’s Vitantonio Liuzzi which split the field up and put some unfancied runners in places you wouldn’t have expected in the midfield.
Up front Hamilton grabbed the lead from Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel and Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso, with Button slipping into fourth as Liuzzi and Massa fell down the order to begin sterling recovery drives after pit stops.
Soon it became apparent that those who had gambled on soft rubber in qualifying were in trouble: Button, Hamilton and Alonso all pitted for the harder Bridgestones within seven laps.
That left Vettel in the lead with Webber a surprised second, having closed in while Hamilton was struggling for grip. But when the Red Bulls pitted on the 13th and 14th laps the complexion of the race changed again. Vettel switched to the option tyre and lost ground; Webber stayed on the primes, intent on building enough of a lead to be able to stop for the options (as per the rules which say you have to run both compounds in a race) without losing first place.
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