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2006 MALAYSIAN GP-RACE REVIEW | |||
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Following the thrilling season opener at Bahrain,
many F1 insiders expected Malaysia to feature much of the same. However, fans
were robbed of a classic race, when the seemingly luckless Kimi Raikkonen was
punted off mid way through the first lap by Christian Klien's Red Bull. The Finn
suffered a broken rear suspension and spun into the barriers, suffering race
ending damage to the rear of the car. Raikkonen had qualified sixth on the grid, but Klien starting from eighth was beneath his rear wing by the time the field arrived at turn four, where the contact happened, with Klien fully over the kerb and being squeezed by Raikkonen. The inevitable contact seemed heavy when viewed from Raikkonen's on board camera, heavy enough to damage the rear suspension of the McLaren and send him spinning into the tyre wall. Another driver being squeezed on the first lap was Mark Webber starting from fourth, who was forced within a few feet of the pit wall by exciting young team mate Nico Rosberg who was making up for an indifferent start. The two Williamses were side-by-side entering the first corner, allowing the fast starting Fernando Alonso to sweep past them both and into third. Alonso had started from seventh after a refuelling miscalculation during qualifying meant his car was carrying double the amount of fuel compared to his closest competitors. Pole man Giancarlo Fisichella made a clean start to lead Jenson Button into the first corner. He took advantage of others misfortunes to open up a pleasant gap between himself and Button before the first pit stops. Meanwhile, Mark Webber who managed to force his way past Rosberg into turn one was being held up badly by Alonso's fuel heavy Renault. This was a disaster for the Williams strategy as was seen when Webber pulled into the pits after only 14 laps. Webber had been running light, and was hoping to be mixing it up the front with Fisichella and Button, who were carrying slightly more fuel. However by the time of his first stop, he was over 20 seconds behind the front two, and was in tenth place when he exited the pits. Worse was to follow, for moments later the Cosworth engine in the Williams failed, and Webber was left pondering what might have been. The Williams race was over at that moment, for Nico Rosberg who had shone during qualifying, retired on only the seventh lap after an engine detonation. The young German, making the most impressive debut to an F1 career since Jacques Villeneuve's near win at his first Grand Prix was surprisingly cool about the whole situation: "What happened was a shame because I was going quite well, even if I had wheelspin at the start and problems at the first corner, where I could have been a bit more aggressive. Just before my engine gave up, I felt there was something wrong with it. It's really unfortunate, but that's the way it goes." While it is clear that Cosworth have supplied a cracking engine, it seems that reliability needs to be focused on, two retirements in the opening quarter of the race are not great credentials for a company that only suffered one engine failure throughout 2005. Still to be fair to Cosworth, every engine manufacturer apart from Mercedes has had to change at least one engine so far this season, and several engines were changed throughout the Malaysian Grand Prix weekend. Ferrari were the main recipients of engine changes during the weekend, with both drivers taking penalties on the grid, meaning Michael Schumacher having to start from 14th on the grid, with Felipe Massa even further back in 21st. However the young Brazilian drove a superb race to finish 5th, and one place ahead of the seven-time champion. Is this a sign of Schumacher's star on the wane, or just simply a better strategy and drive from Massa? Whatever the answer, it is evident that Schumacher faces a firm challenge from his new team mate this season. Up front, Fisichella pitted on lap 17, with Button following on lap 19. However the pit stops increased Fisichella's already handy lead over Button, who exited the pits behind Montoya's McLaren. The Columbian's car, which Button managed to pass with such ease at Bahrain was a real hindrance for four laps before he too pitted. Button though had lost valuable time in his pursuit and had to step on it to gradually close the gap before the second round of stops. Alonso made his first stop on lap 26, and rejoined third with Button and Fisichella within striking distance. This sparked a series of impressive laps from the Spanish champion, lapping seven tenths of a second a lap quicker than Fisichella, who received the 'step-on-it' call from race engineer Alan Permane. The Italian duly responded, and began to set times comparable to Alonso's. He made his final stop on lap 38, and set some brilliant 'in' and 'out' lap times that ultimately clinched the win. The second round of pit stops saw Jenson Button fall from 2nd to 3rd. The Brit, aiming for the win was held up badly by Scott Speed's Toro Rosso before his second stop, and lost up to three seconds. Meanwhile, Alonso had a clear run before his final stop, and was able to scrape past as the Briton exited the pits. This left a Renault 1-2, with Button forced to settle for third. Honda team-mate Rubens Barrichello on the other hand had a second dire race in as many weeks. Off the pace of Button all weekend, he went for a one stop strategy in hope of gaining a respectable result, but compromised his chances by speeding through the pit lane and earning a stop go penalty. The Brazilian who pushed Button hard in pre-season tests has been a huge disappointment so far this season, and will need to find his feet sooner rather than later. However, Fisichella, mourning the loss of a childhood friend resisted a late Alonso surge to win his third grand prix of his career, ending a 12 month losing streak. "It was important for me to do my best because I lost a friend of mine a week ago, and I would like to dedicate that race to him. "It was a perfect race, and tough physically and mentally, but I was quite confident and comfortable. The car balance was just fantastic, and it was great to have my engineer on the podium." While Renault have made a perfect start to the season, it is still not clear what the other teams have to offer and many questions remain unanswered. Do McLaren have true outright pace (demonstrated by Raikkonen's drive at Bahrain)? Are Ferrari competitive or will reliability hinder their chances? Was Williams' qualifying performance genuine? Are Honda able to fight it with Renault at some circuits? It would seem that things are close, but other issues could well get in the way of the most competitive championship for years. Reliability looks a key concern, with several engine and other failures during the grand prix. Rosberg's Cosworth engine failed, as did Heidfeld's BMW, and Ralf Schumacher's Toyota blew up during qualifying. Heidfeld had been running a superb fifth place before the engine failure, but team mate Jacques Villeneuve was on hand to pick up the spoils and finish a solid 7th to gain 2 points. Aside from engines, Webber Christian Klien and David Coulthard suffered hydraulic problems, while Scott Speed and Yuji Ide also suffered mechanical problems. On top of that, as mentioned above, every manufacturer has had to change at least one engine per weekend apart from Mercedes during the season so far. Besides reliability, controversy surrounded Ferrari throughout the weekend, with all the teams with the exception of Red Bull lodging a complaint regarding the clear to be seen (from the onboard camera) flexing of a front wing element. Word has it that a silent agreement was made, with the part to be modified or removed before the Australian Grand Prix. So, with all this uncertainty, and room for more controversy, be sure to watch the Australian Grand Prix, because the unexpected might just become the reality. |
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