2008 Formula One Thread

[mika]

formula1.com

Hamilton and Kovaleinen are pushed back 5 positions for blocking in the final moments of Q3. Here is the revised provisional grid. Final grid will not be published until Sunday AM Malaysian time.

 

[cheesewhiz]

M1ka,

This is a great thread!
Your not gonna start charging for this are you?

No, really thanks for all the info and pics.

Whizzy

 

[mika]

YouÔÇÖre welcome!

Here are some photos from the Sepang Qualifying

 

[mika]

Win for Raikkonen/Ferrari, SECOND FOR KUBICA/BMW SAUBER and third for Kovalainen/McLaren.

The race broke down into to three sub-races. Ferrari was in a race of its own for 30 laps as Raikkonen and Massa traded fast laps and the lead. On lap 30 Massa spun out and beached himself on the gravel ending his race.

Kubica settled into P3 after a short time after the start. The race commentary consistently described him as having a lonely race. Adrift of the Ferrari and with the rest of the field adrift of him by roughly an equal amount Kubica motored on in a consistent and strong manner.

Trulli in the Toyota had a very strong showing ending the race in P4.

Heidfeld was unable to challenge after turn 1 ending the race in P6 behind Hamilton in P5. His one shinning moment, showing his strength and hope for the future, was setting the races final fastest lap on lap 55.

The provisional finish:

1 Raikkonen / Ferrari
2 Kubica / BMW Sauber
3 Kovalainen / McLaren
4 Trulli / Toyota
5 Hamilton / McLaren
6 Heidfeld / BMW Sauber
7 Webber / Red Bull
8 Alonso / Renault
9 Coulthard / Red Bull
10 Button / Honda
11 Piquet / Renault
12 Fisichella / Force India
13 Barrichello / Honda
14 Rosberg / Williams
15 Davidson / Super Aguri
16 Sato / Super Aguri
17 Nakajima / Williams

DNF
18 Vettel / Toro Rosso
19 Massa / Ferrari
20 Sutil / Force India
21 Glock / Toyota
22 Bordais / Toro Rosso

 

[mika]

Malaysian Grand Prix

BMW Sauber F1 Team - Malaysian GP - Race
03-23-2008 Press Release

Weather: Overcast but dry, 30??C Air, 39-45??C Track


Sepang (MAL). In the humid heat of Sepang the BMW Sauber F1 Team scored 11 championship points ÔÇô the best result for the young crew so far. Robert Kubica finished second after a strong performance at the PETRONAS Malaysian Grand Prix. Nick Heidfeld was sixth, having lost ground right after the start. For the statistic books there were eight laps in the lead for Kubica, and Heidfeld set the first fastest lap of the race for the team and himself. After two of 18 races the BMW Sauber F1 Team is second in the ConstructorsÔÇÖ Championship with 19 points.

Robert Kubica: 2nd
BMW Sauber F1.08-03 / BMW P86/8
Fastest Lap: 1.35.921 min on lap 39 (6th fastest)
ÔÇ£ItÔÇÖs a fantastic day for the team, for Petronas and for me - the second consecutive podium. After Monza 2006 I finally managed to get another podium myself. I want to thank everybody in the team who worked very hard over the last two months to improve the car. I didnÔÇÖt have a good start because of too much wheel spin, and was fighting with Nick and Jarno Trulli. I took the dirty inside line and almost lost the car, but somehow I managed to get through the corner and overtake them. From this moment on I drove at my own pace. The Ferraris were too quick, but I was able to increase the gap from the cars following me. After the second pit stop I reduced the revs to save the engine and took it easy. I didnÔÇÖt feel very well all weekend and it was very hot in the car, so the last ten laps were pretty tough. But it all paid off with a brilliant result.ÔÇØ

Nick Heidfeld: 6th
BMW Sauber F1.08-04 / BMW P86/8
Fastest Lap: 1.35.366 min on lap 55 (fastest overall)
ÔÇ£I have mixed emotions about todayÔÇÖs race. Of course IÔÇÖm happy to have clocked up my first fastest race lap in F1, and 11 points are also the best ever result for our team. The pace of the car was really, really good ÔÇô about the same level as the McLaren. ThatÔÇÖs all very positive and makes it even more disappointing that I only finished sixth. My start was very good and then I tried to overtake right on the outside in the first corner. Robert was on the inside, and Jarno Trulli was between us ÔÇô I just ran out of room. It was a try, but it didnÔÇÖt work out. I picked up some dirt and lost two more positions on the first lap. At least I got them back when I overtook David Coulthard and Fernando Alonso on lap four. Again our pit crew did a very good job.ÔÇ£

Mario Theissen (BMW Motorsport Director):
ÔÇ£This was another good performance for our team. Robert was able to establish himself behind the Ferrari right after the start. He drove a very strong race and claimed not only his second podium, but also his best result in F1. Nick had no luck in the first corner and lost some positions. I regard it as a success that he still managed to finish sixth and also clocked up the fastest race lap. Of course we are very pleased with the early days of the season ÔÇô two podiums in two races, 19 nice points to our account and 11 points in one go is a new record for us. ThatÔÇÖs all very positive and a good basis for the next races.ÔÇ£

Willy Rampf (Technical Director):
ÔÇ£The second second place in a row, fastest race lap, thanks to Nick, and eleven points ÔÇô we are very pleased how this season has started for us. It was another fantastic race for us. Only the Ferrari was faster than Robert today, and I am especially happy for him that all went so well after he had a lot of bad luck in Australia. While Robert was able to gain a place at the start, Nick unfortunately lost a few. Later he managed to come back and executed a very fine overtaking manoeuvre by catching two cars at once. We had no technical problems on either car, the performance was again very strong. Now highly motivated we fly back to Hinwil and Munich and look forward to the coming races .

Sunday, March 23, 2008 Malaysian Grand Prix Sepang Circuit Malaysia The Prime Minister of Malaysia Abdullah Ahmad Badawi visits the BMW Sauber F1 Team garage

Sunday, March 23, 2008 Malaysian Grand Prix Sepang Circuit Malaysia Robert Kubica (POL) in the BMW Sauber F1.08

Sunday, March 23, 2008 Malaysian Grand Prix Sepang Circuit Malaysia Nick Heidfeld (GER) in the BMW Sauber F1.08

Sunday, March 23, 2008 Malaysian Grand Prix Sepang Circuit Malaysia Nick Heidfeld (GER) in the BMW Sauber F1.08

Sunday, March 23, 2008 Malaysian Grand Prix Sepang Circuit Malaysia Robert Kubica (POL) in the BMW Sauber F1.08

Sunday, March 23, 2008 Malaysian Grand Prix Sepang Circuit Malaysia BMW Sauber F1 Team driver Robert Kubica (POL) finishes 2nd in the race

Sunday, March 23, 2008 Malaysian Grand Prix Sepang Circuit Malaysia BMW Sauber F1 Team driver Robert Kubica (POL) finishes 2nd in the race.

 

[mika]

You should find this interesting Statdawg

Max Mosley - Joint Statement by BMW and Mercedes-Benz
04-03-2008 Press Release

Max Mosley - Joint Statement by BMW and Mercedes-Benz
The content of the publications is disgraceful. As a company, we strongly distance ourselves from it. This incident concerns Max Mosley both personally and as President of the FIA, the global umbrella organisation for motoring clubs. Its consequences therefore extend far beyond the motor sport industry. We await a response from the relevant FIA bodies.

 

[mika]

Bahrain GP - Practice

BMW Sauber F1 Team - Bahrain GP - Practice
04-04-2008 Press Release
Weather: dry, 27-30??C Air, 35-42??C Track


Sakhir (BH). It was a trouble free Friday for the BMW Sauber F1 Team in the desert. Just as the team had planned, Robert Kubica and Nick Heidfeld used the first two practice sessions to prepare for the Bahrain Grand Prix.


Robert Kubica:
BMW Sauber F1.08-03 / BMW P86/8
1st Practice : 7th, 1.33.333 min / 2nd Practice: 5th, 1.32.915 min
ÔÇ£I am happy with todayÔÇÖs work. We managed to do quite a lot of laps and worked on the aerodynamic set-up of the F1.08. We consistently improved the carÔÇÖs balance. All in all, it was a very productive day.ÔÇØ


Nick Heidfeld:
BMW Sauber F1.08-04 / BMW P86/8
1st Practice : 14th, 1.34.106 min / 2nd Practice: 17th, 1.34.023 min
ÔÇ£We have completed our programme as planned and had no technical issues at all. Sand isn't a problem either. For the long runs I'm already quite happy with the balance of the car, but I have some problems with its balance when it comes to doing a single fast lap. We will now look at the data and search for some improvements for tomorrow's qualifying.ÔÇØ


Willy Rampf (Technical Director):
ÔÇ£We are satisfied with the first practice day. We concentrated on race preparations and did the tyre comparison. Robert got used to the car right from the beginning, whereas Nick is not yet completely happy with the balance of his car. Now we shall concentrate on analysing the data, then the relevant changes will be adopted. We had no technical problems.ÔÇØ

 

[mika]

Bahrain Practice Sessions Fri / Sat

2008 Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain GP

Friday Practice – 1 – Results

Friday Practice - 2 – Results

From: Formula1.com

Practice two – Ferrari in command as Hamilton crashes


Friday practice – selected driver quotes


Friday – Analysis – Advantage Ferrari in Bahrain


Friday press conference – Bahrain


[url- http://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/2008/4/7597.html] FIA confirms minimum lap time for qualifying[/url]


Saturday Practice – Results

William’s Rosberg takes his turn at the top in Bahrain

 

[mika]

Bahrain Qualifying

Qualifying ÔÇô Bahrain


All 22 cars may run laps at any time during the first 20 minutes of the hour. At the end of the first 20 minutes, the six slowest cars drop out and fill the final six grid places.

Q1: Results

1 Raikkonen
2 Masa
3 Heidfeld
4 Kubica
5 Alonso
6 Piquet
7 Rosberg
8 Nakajima
9 Weber
10 Trulli
11 Glock
12 Bourdais
13 Buttom
14 Barrichello
15 Hamilton
16 Kovalinen

Cut

17 Coulthard Red Bull
18 Fisichella Force India
19 Vettel Toro Rosso
20 Suitl Force India
21 Davidson Super Aguri
22 Sato Super Aguri

Sato spun in Q1 bringing out the red flag with 5 minutes to go in the session. When the session began again the top six, including BMW stayed in the pits (Kubica P4. Heidfeld P6) when the session finished Kubica was bumped back to P7 and Heidfeld feel all the way to P13.


After a seven-minute break, the times will be reset and the 16 remaining cars then will then run in a 15-minute session - again they may complete as many laps as they want at any time during that period. At the end of the 15 minutes, the six slowest cars drop out and fill places 11 to 16 on the grid.

Q2: Results

1 Massa
2 Kovalainen
3 Kubica
4 Heidfeld
5 Hamilton
6 Raikkonen
7 Trulli
8 Rossberg
9 Alonso
10 Button

Cut

11 Webber
12 Barrichello
13 Glock
14 Piquet
15 Bourdais
16 Nakajima

Q2 began with BMW Sauber staying in the pits as the rest diced for position. When they did come out KubicaÔÇÖs first effort moved him up to P3 while Heidfeld managed P8 in his first effort.

After a further eight-minute break, the times are reset and a final 10-minute session will feature a shootout between the remaining 10 cars to decide pole position and the starting order for the top 10 grid places. Again, these cars may run as many laps as they wish.

Q3: Results

1 Kubica
2 Massa
3 Hamilton
4 Raikkonen
5 Kovallinen
6 Heidfeld
7 Trulli
8 Rosberg
9 Button
10 Alonso


Q3 began with Hamilton, Kubica and Button alternating owning P1. Massa quickly moved to P1 and Hamilton to P3 as all the teams finally we on the track. Heidfeld and Button seemed to drop while Kubica continued to find himself bookended by Massa at P1 and Hamilton in P3. Champion Raikkonen seemed stuck in P5. With one minute left the final ten positions began to sort out. The final seconds seemed to last for ever as I waited for times to be final with my gaze fixated on the listing of Kubica on the pole in P1

Provisional Grid

1 Kubica BWM Sauber
2 Massa Ferrari
3 Hamilton McLaren
4 Raikkonen Ferrari
5 Kovallinen McLaren
6 Heidfeld BMW Sauber
7 Trulli Toyota
8 Rosberg Williams
9 Button Honda
10 Alonso Renault
11 Webber Red Bull
12 Barrichello Honda
13 Glock Toyota
14 Piquet Renault
15 Bourdais Toro Rossi
16 Nakajima Williams
17 Coulthard Red Bull
18 Fisichella Force India
19 Vettel Toro Rosso
20 Suitl Force India
21 Davidson Super Aguri
22 Sato Super Aguri

 

[mika]

On what was expected to be a Ferrari dominated weekend...

From the BMW Sauber Website-


Kubica stuns Formula One with first pole for the BMW Sauber F1 Team


With a stunning effort, Robert Kubica has secured the maiden pole position in the short history of the BMW Sauber F1 Team - and the first for a Polish driver in the history of Formula One. Nick Heidfeld completed the team's fine result by qualifying sixth on the grid.

As usual, neither Robert Kubica or Nick Heidfeld experienced any problems on their way to advancing to the second leg of qualifying for the Bahrain Grand Prix. Robert was the faster of the pairing and crossed the line in 1:32.893 minutes to finish seventh, while Nick set a 1:33.137-minute lap time to take 13th position. Ferrari's Felipe Massa took provisional pole position with a 1:21.937-minute lap.

Eliminated: David Coulthard, Giancarlo Fisichella, Sebastian Vettel, Adrian Sutil, Anthony Davidson and Takuma Sato.

In the second knockout phase, Robert Kubica had to go out just once to safely qualify for the top-ten shootout. The Pole delivered in fine style and crossed the line in 1:31.745 minutes to secure third position. Nick Heidfeld, however, had to make two efforts as he was only eighth following his first assault. On his second, however, Nick also confirmed the BMW Sauber F1.08's competitiveness by securing fourth position with a 1:31.909-minute lap. Ferrari's Felipe Massa once again clocked the fastest lap time of the leg, with his 1:31.188-minute lap.

Eliminated: Mark Webber, Rubens Barrichello, Timo Glock, Nelson Piquet, S?®bastien Bourdais and Kazuki Nakajima.

In the top-ten shootout, Robert caused a true stir by securing pole position. Following his first assault, he was just thousandths slower than provisional pole-sitter Massa, but in his second effort, the Pole upped the ante once again. In the end, he crossed the line in 1:33.096, thus out-qualifying the second placed Ferrari driver by 0.127 seconds. Nick experienced a slightly more difficult top-ten shootout, but at the end of the day he crossed the line in 1:33.737 minutes to finish sixth and complete the promising team result.

Result: 1st Robert Kubica, 2nd Felipe Massa, 3rd Lewis Hamilton, 4th Kimi R?ñikk?Ânen, 5th Heikki Kovalainen, 6th Nick Heidfeld, 7th Jarno Trulli, 8th Nico Rosberg, 9th Jenson Button, 10th Fernando Alonso.

 

[mika]

From BMW Motorsport

Bahrain Grand Prix ÔÇô Qualifying, Saturday ÔÇô 05.04.08
04-05-2008 Press Release
Bahrain Grand Prix ÔÇô Qualifying, Saturday ÔÇô 05.04.08

Weather: Dry, 27-29??C Air, 39-45??C Track

Sakhir (BH). The Pole is on pole - the BMW Sauber F1 Team celebrates its first fastest time in qualifying. Robert Kubica was quickest in qualifying for the Bahrain Grand Prix. It is the 38th Grand Prix for the team and the 25th for Kubica. Team mate, Nick Heidfeld, was sixth.

Robert Kubica:
BMW Sauber F1.08-03 / BMW P86/8
Qualifying 1st, 1.33.096 min (3rd practice: 7th, 1.33.024 min)
ÔÇ£I am very happy. I missed the chance to take pole position in Australia, but this time it worked out well. My first run in Q3 was quite good, but I made a small mistake in the first corner. The second run was better, although I again made a small mistake in corner 9. We knew before the season that the car was good due to the results of the computer simulation and the wind tunnel work. Finally it has paid off that we never gave up working hard. I want to thank the entire team who have worked so hard over the last months. We will now study the data and prepare for tomorrow. A long race lies ahead of us.ÔÇØ

Nick Heidfeld:
BMW Sauber F1.08-04 / BMW P86/8
Qualifying 6th, 1.33.737 min (3rd practice: 20th, 1.34.074 min)
ÔÇ£First of all I want to congratulate Robert. The first pole position for our team is a great success, and it is fantastic we have a car that enabled us to achieve this. In view of this, of course, I canÔÇÖt be satisfied with sixth. But after I had a lot of difficulties in the practice sessions getting the most out of the tyres and the grip for a single lap, it could have been a lot worse today. Since Friday we have changed the balance of the car and it is much better now. Anyway, on the long runs it was okay right from the beginning therefore I have no reason to hang my head down before the race.ÔÇØ

Mario Theissen (BMW Motorsport Director):
ÔÇ£This is a fantastic day for Robert and our young team. We really did not expect to be on pole position. We are only in our third season and are at the very top of the grid for the first time. It is another step up the ladder. On the pit wall I was told it took 256 races for Sauber to get there. Robert managed to do a perfect lap while Nick is not entirely happy here so far, but he also has good chances from the third row.ÔÇØ

Willy Rampf (Technical Director):
ÔÇ£This is a very special day for us because we have our first ever pole position as a team. We deserved it thanks to a good drive from Robert. A big compliment to him - not only for his final run as he has been very quick here since Friday morning. But Nick is also in a very good position for the race ÔÇô we are really looking forward to it.ÔÇØ


I will post pictures when they are available.

 

[mika]

Bahrain

Thursday

Thursday is a press day. The drivers give interviews, meet the locals and hang out with the birds.

Sometimes drivers even pick up a local bird that doesnÔÇÖt know what their getting into.

Friday Practice


Heidfeld

Kubica

Saturday

Practice then three sessions (if you are lucky) of qualifying

Some drivers get excited about the little things, like wining their first race pole position.

Then they go and laud it over the other drivers,

[img]http://m1ka.smugmug.com/photos/274991427_WjYxN-L.jpg

get all caught up with the cameras and the press,

hold press conferences,

start giving orders to the F1 management,

but the boss is happy with you so he will let you take the car out again tomorrow.

Nick, see what happens when you get distracted messing around with the local birds!

 

[mika]

The Pol is on the Pole

 

[mika]

RACE - Bahrain

The largest challenge in many F1 races is surviving the first corner.

Robert Kubica in his BMW Sauber led the field around the track on the formation lap and back to the starting grid. The green lights came on and the race began. Massa won the charge to the first corner moving Kubica to second while Hamilton, with a disastrous start, found himself dropping back to tenth. Heidfeld came out of the same corner in fifth.

In the first ten laps the race order started taking on more of the expected appearance. Ferrari had been predicted to dominate and in short order they began fulfilling that prediction with Massa in first and Raikkonen in second. In the lead Massa chewed up the open space ahead of him opening up to a five second gap over his team mate.

BMW Sauber was considered the wild card coming into the race and they played it out. Kubica set a fast lap on lap five while nibbling as the rear end of Raikkonen. Heidfeld cleanly in fourth found himself over five seconds adrift of his team mate.

In the same time the McLarens slipped back. Hamilton who Saturday found himself pictured in the top three with Kubica and Massa, found himself pitting on lap three after his run in with Alonso. In the opening laps he went from contender to motoring around in P18 with a McLaren that did not seem to be working right. Kovalainen found himself in P5 behind Heidfeld but not really able to challenge him.

By lap nine the leaders were beginning to lap the back markers.

Lap 18 began the first of the planned pit stops. Kubica was in and the race order began to jumble for the next laps as drivers pitted and race strategies played out. When the firs round of pit stops finished playing out Ferrari was clearly in the lead, BMW Sauber in command of third and fourth and the current leader in the manufacturers race, McLaren, was having a tough afternoon.

Hamilton was having a particularly difficult time languishing in P18. He was able to move up to P14 before pitting once again on lap 32. That stop was reflective of McLarens fortunes to this point last 9.9 seconds. That is an eternity in F1. By lap 34 he found himself moving over to allow the race leaders put him one lap down.

The second and final round of pit stops for the leaders was begun by Raikkonen. Would he gain an advantage over his team mate would there be problems? In and out with no problems his team mate followed and they returned in the race with no real change in relationship with each other.

This put Kubica in the lead on lap 39 until he pitted on lap 41 when Heidfeld took the lead as his team mate pitted until pitting on lap 44 when he took his last trip down pit lane.

After this round of pit stops played out the race chart assumed its order prior to the beginning of the final round. Less than fifteen seconds separated P1 and P4 with the rest of the field almost 20 seconds back from P4.

Kubica set another fast lap on lap 43.

Lap 48 Heidfeld set the then latest fast lap for the race. On the next lap, Kovalainen in his McLaren was able to take advantage of the open space in front of him and set the next race fastest lap. For this effort he gained little as the front four continued their commanding race pace.

As the checkered flag fell giving Massa the victory in Bahrain only 8.4 seconds separated him from Heidfeld in fourth with Raikkonen in second and Kubica in third.

The rest of the field was led to the finish by Kovalinen in his McLaren a full 26.7 seconds behind the leader and 18.7 seconds behind Heidfeld.

Kubica had a great race weekend taking his first pole and finishing the race with a podium finish in third. HeidfeldÔÇÖs fourth place finish made it a great weekend for the team. The points scored by the third and fourth place finishes of the BMW Sauber drivers moves the team into the lead of the manufacturerÔÇÖs title hunt after three races.

The season is still young, but there is much for BMW fans to celebrate this race weekend. Enjoy the moment.

Provisional Race Results

1 Massa / Ferrari
2 Raikkonen / Ferrari
3 Kubica / BMW
4 Heidfeld / BMW
5 Kovalainen / McLaren
6 Trulli / Toyota
7 Webber / Red Bull
8 Rosberg / Williams
9 Glock / Toyota
10 Alonso / Renault
11 Barrichello / Honda
12 Fisichello / Force India
13 Hamilton / McLaren
14 Nakajima / Williams
15 Bourdais / Toro Rosso
16 Davidson / Super Aguri
17 Sato / Super Aguri
18 Coulthard / Red Bull
19 Sutil / Force India
20 Piquet / Renault - DNF
21 Button / Honda - DNF
22 Vettel / Torro Rosso - DNF


I will post pictures and updates latter today.

 

[AFHRNFA1]

F1

Rock on BMW

 

[mika]

BMW Sauber F1 Team - Bahrain GP - Race.
04-06-2008 Press Release
Bahrain Grand Prix ÔÇô Race, Sunday ÔÇô 06.04.08

Weather: Dry, 28-29??C Air, 36-38??C Track

Sakhir (BH). After the first three fly-away races of the season the BMW Sauber F1 Team returns to Europe leading the championship. Robert Kubica, who claimed the first pole position for the team on Saturday, and Nick Heidfeld were third and fourth respectively at the Bahrain Grand Prix. The team celebrated its third consecutive podium and, for the first time in its young history, took the lead in the standings, although the gap is only one point.

Robert Kubica: 3rd
BMW Sauber F1.08-03 / BMW P86/8
Fastest Lap: 1.33.775 min on lap 55 (5th fastest overall)
ÔÇ£I am happy with the result. This is my second consecutive podium and the team is leading the constructorsÔÇÖ championship. Unfortunately I had massive wheel spin at the start and hit some debris in the first corner of the second lap. When I drove through the oil I was sure I had punctured my tyre as at that point I didnÔÇÖt have the information about the oil. But this was a great day for the team. I am now looking forward to Barcelona.ÔÇØ

Nick Heidfeld: 4th
BMW Sauber F1.08-04 / BMW P86/8
Fastest Lap: 1.33.565 min on lap 48 (2nd fastest overall)
ÔÇ£Now after the race IÔÇÖm much happier than I was yesterday. Having finished fourth is a positive result after what was a difficult weekend for me. The carÔÇÖs balance on this track was just not how I wanted it to be. I hope I wonÔÇÖt have such troubles again. Finishing the race just one position behind my team mate, who started from pole while I was sixth, is a good result. I enjoyed overtaking Jarno Trulli and Heikki Kovalainen. Once again for us in the team everything went smoothly.ÔÇØ

Mario Theissen (BMW Motorsport Director):
ÔÇ£The third podium in the third race ÔÇô this was really a tailor made start to the season for our team. Finishing third and fourth in Bahrain with Robert and Nick was a very good result. Our performance gives everybody extra motivation for the coming weeks. Both drivers lost positions at the start, the reason may be technical and must be analysed. Later on both drove excellent races and the pit stops went perfectly. In the end the gap to the Ferraris was really small. The car still has more potential for us to exploit, and we shall continue to do this carefully one step at a time.ÔÇ£

Willy Rampf (Technical Director):
ÔÇ£Basically the race went as expected. We knew we could not match the pace of the FerrariÔÇÖs here and planned our strategy accordingly. Robert and Nick made the most out of it by finishing in third and fourth. It was pleasing to see that in the end the gap to the front wasnÔÇÖt big, and there was no real pressure from behind. After three podiums in three races, we shall make the most of our strengths in the short break and be really motivated to close the gap even further.ÔÇØ

 

[mika]

Spanish GP - Qualifying

BMW Sauber F1 Team - GP Spain – Qualifying
04-26-2008 Press Release
Spanish Grand Prix – Qualifying, Saturday – 26.04.08

Weather: Dry, 20-25??C Air, 30-39??C Track

Barcelona (ES). The BMW Sauber F1 Team drivers, Robert Kubica and Nick Heidfeld, qualified fourth and ninth respectively for the curtain raiser to the European season in Barcelona.
Robert Kubica:
BMW Sauber F1.08-03 / BMW P86/8
Qualifying 4th, 1:22.065 min (3rd practice: 4th, 1:21.717 min)
“This was a good qualifying. I am very happy as I managed to do a very quick lap in both Q2 and Q3. I am especially happy about the second qualifying session as I was second fastest thanks to using only one set of tyres. I am looking forward to tomorrow’s race, and I think our pace is good.”

Nick Heidfeld:
BMW Sauber F1.08-04 / BMW P86/8
Qualifying 9th, 1:22.542 min (3rd practice: 1st, 1:21.269 min)
“I’m certainly not happy with P9. The first outing in top ten qualifying was reasonable, but my final lap was not good enough. It didn’t help that I had graining towards the end of the lap. I very much hope I shall have a better start tomorrow than we have seen for the previous races so far this year. For me here Ferrari is as strong as expected, Renault is apparently stronger than expected, although we may guess Fernando Alonso didn’t have a lot of fuel on board.”

Mario Theissen (BMW Motorsport Director):
“Robert managed to do a good lap and got the maximum out of the car. I consider his fourth on the grid very good. Nick did not have a good lap, as we expected him to be a bit nearer the front. Anyway, since the 2006 Brazilian GP in Sao Paulo we have been able to get both our cars into the top ten in qualifying.“

Willy Rampf (Technical Director):
"We had an absolutely trouble-free weekend so far. Robert showed a strong performance in qualifying and was able to get the grid position we expected based on his strategy. He is in a good position for the race. Nick struggled to find a good set-up that was right for him on a single quick lap. However, he has a good strategy for the race. It will be crucial for him to make a good start and not loose too much time in traffic."


Formula1.com

Qualifying – selected driver quotes

Raikkonen steals pole from Alonso

Exclusive interview: Williams’ Kazuki Nakajima




Provisional Grid

P
1 Raikkonen
2 Alonso
3 Massa
4 Kubica
5 Hamilton
6 Kovalainen
7 Webber
8 Trulli
9 Heidfeld
10 Piquet
11 Barrichello
12 Nakajima
13 Button
14 Clock
15 Rosberg
16 Bourdais
17 Coulthard
18 Vettel
19 Fischella
20 Sutil
21 Davidson
22 Sato

 

[mika]

BMW Sauber F1 Team - Spanish GP - Race
04-27-2008 Press Release
Weather: Dry, 23-24??C Air, 37-40??C Track


Barcelona (ES). The BMW Sauber F1 Team ended up with five Championship points for Robert Kubica after an action packed Spanish Grand Prix. This means second in the ConstructorÔÇÖs standings ahead of McLaren Mercedes, who lost a car in a heavy accident. Initial information is that Heikki Kovalainen is ok. Nick Heidfeld had bad luck as he was forced to refuel during the subsequent safety car period. A stop and go penalty dropped him down from fifth to the back of the pack.

Robert Kubica: 4th
BMW Sauber F1.08-03 / BMW P86/8
Fastest Lap: 1.22.106 min on lap 20 (4th fastest overall)
ÔÇ£We had a very good pace during todayÔÇÖs race. Unfortunately I lost a position at the start. Anyway at the end our gap to the leader was only five seconds. If someone had told me that yesterday I would not have believed it. I hope Heikki is ok. When I passed the accident I saw the car in a very strange position. The FIA is making great efforts for car safety, so we have to be really thankful to them.ÔÇØ

Nick Heidfeld: 9th
BMW Sauber F1.08-04 / BMW P86/8
Fastest Lap: 1.22.519 min on lap 21 (7th fastest overall)
ÔÇ£At the start I managed to gain the two positions I had wanted to. ThatÔÇÖs positive, especially because recently we have had less impressive starts. I was fifth in the race when I had bad luck with the timing of the safety car period and my first pit stop. I had just passed the pit entry when I got the signal to come in. I then tried to save fuel and delay my pit stop, but in the end it was the choice between running out of fuel on the track or getting a stop and go penalty.ÔÇØ

Mario Theissen (BMW Motorsport Director):
ÔÇ£First of all we are all relieved that after his accident Heikki Kovalainen signalled he was okay. Robert lost a position at the start and was close behind Lewis Hamilton turning into the first corner. He was almost as close to Hamilton when he finally crossed the finish line. Nick gained two positions at the start so was well on his way. The safety-car period destroyed our strategy. We literally missed getting Nick into the pit lane before the safety car by a few seconds. As a result he had to refuel during the safety-car period, and we got a 10 second penalty because of that. For our team it was the least points we have scored so far this season, but we had a good performance throughout the weekend without any technical problems.ÔÇØ

Willy Rampf (Technical Director):
ÔÇ£Overall we expected more from this race. Robert lost a position to Hamilton right after the start and, because they both had a similar speed and were on the same pit stop strategy, he couldnÔÇÖt get third place back. Nick purely had bad luck. Just before he was supposed to come in, the Safety Car went out. His tank was empty and he was forced to enter the pit lane under the red light. The ten second penalty ruined his race.ÔÇ£

 

[535IS]

McLaren has got to be ecstatic that heavily crashing one of their cars inadvertently ruined BMW's race ...

 

[mika]

BMW Sauber F1 Team - Turkish GP - Free Practice

05-09-2008 Press Release
Weather: dry but overcast, 14-16 ??C Air, 19-28??C Track


Istanbul (TR). At the unexpectedly cold Istanbul Park the BMW Sauber F1 Team drivers were 12th and 6th (Robert Kubica) and 7th and 10th (Nick Heidfeld) respectively in the first Free Practice sessions for the Turkish Grand Prix. In the morning session Kubica only completed seven laps due to a mechanical problem with the rear suspension.


Robert Kubica:
BMW Sauber F1.08-03 / BMW P86/8
1st Practice: 12th, 1:29.330 min / 2nd Practice: 6th, 1:28.431 min
“Unfortunately I didn’t have too much time on the track this morning due to a small technical problem. Therefore we had to squeeze the morning work into this afternoon’s programme. We only did four runs and had to work on the tyres and the set up. We still have a few problems with the balance of the car, but tested several set up options which we will now evaluate and then choose the best one. I am confident for tomorrow.”

Nick Heidfeld:
BMW Sauber F1.08-05 / BMW P86/8
1st Practice: 7th, 1:29.024 min / 2nd Practice: 10th, 1:28.817 min
“The trouble is I don’t get the tyres heated up quickly enough. The long run wasn’t bad. As soon as the tyres start to work, it is okay, but it takes too long to get there. We now have to work on that.”

Willy Rampf (Technical Director):
”We could not complete our programme as planned. This was because on the one hand the weather conditions were changing, and on the other Robert had a mechanical problem with the car’s rear suspension in the first session. In the afternoon everything worked well and we concentrated on comparing tyres, and also did some set up changes. Now we shall analyse the data to find the best set up for this demanding track. On Saturday and Sunday it is supposed to stay dry.”