Ferraris line up to spoil Vettel’s party (German Grand Prix pre-race analysis)

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Red Bull have their tenth pole position of the year but they’ve only managed to convert them into five wins so far.

Sebastian Vettel will have to resist the fast Ferraris and his team mate if he’s to win on home ground. Take a look ahead to the German Grand Prix below.

The start

So Sebastian Vettel starts on pole position once again. But he’ll need to do better than he did at Silverstone, where first place became 24th by the end of lap one.

With a large amount of rain this weekend starting from the racing line side of the grid may not be that great an advantage. In the Saturday afternoon GP2 race the drivers starting second and fourth were both able to overtake those who started first and third.

But keep an eye also on the McLarens starting from row three. Their straight-line speeds in Q3 were at least 5kph faster than all the other cars, and Jenson Button was 9kph quicker than Mark Webber, who starts in front of him.

The opening lap will be critical as ever and keep an eye out for drivers making use of the tarmac run-offs, particularly at the exit of turn one and the turn six hairpin.

As we’ve seen in the past, notably at Spa last year, stewards are happy for drivers to use run-off on the outside of the track to gain an advantage.

Strategy

The teams have had little experience of dry running this weekend. Even in second practice the track wasn’t fully dry, and it only really began to rubber-in during qualifying.

Tomorrow’s race is expected to be dry, but the teams have limited knowledge of how the super-soft and hard tyres are going to perform – how well will they last, and how soon will they start to degrade?

Significantly, none of the top ten drivers chose to gamble on starting on the hard tyres. They will all start on the super-soft tyres having qualified on them.

Michael Schumacher, starting 11th, may well gamble on the hard tyres and stay out longer in the hope of gaining some places.

Also keep an eye on the two Force Indias who will be starting further down the field than usual.

Adrian Sutil has made some excellent passes in the last two races and has a lot of ground to make up after his gearbox change penalty. As we saw with his team mate at Silverstone, his progress could play an important role in determining when the leaders make their pit stops.

It’s a short lap at Hockenheim as well, raising the possibility of traffic causing problems among the leaders. Going off the times from practice this morning the front runners could catch Sakon Yamamoto as early as lap 12.

Over to you

How do you expect the German Grand Prix to unfold? Can Vettel score a home victory, or will Ferrari net their first win since Bahrain? And what can the McLarens do from the third row?

Have your say in the comments and join us for the race live blog tomorrow.

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    Keith Collantine
    Lifelong motor sport fan Keith set up RaceFans in 2005 - when it was originally called F1 Fanatic. Having previously worked as a motoring...

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    79 comments on “Ferraris line up to spoil Vettel’s party (German Grand Prix pre-race analysis)”

    1. I foresse a good start by Massa to take the lead from Vettel and Alonso squabling, and Webber to be behind both McLarens at the end of Lap 1. Or maybe some shock rain at the time Schumacher has to come in for tyres ;-)

      1. I agree, massa’s starts have been awesome :D

        1. I have not kept score of Massa’s starts this year, but if they are good, you have to factor in that he is starting from way back and the cars in front of him are generally slower.

          1. IF everyone makes it around the first corner and down the back straight watch out for McLaren.
            they are going to pass some of the cars in front of them.
            low down force kept them behind in qualifying but high speeds will allow them to pass on the straights.
            BUTTON 317.5 km/h
            HAMILTON 316.7 km/h
            VETTEL 311.9 km/h
            ALONSO 308.5 km/h
            WEBBER 308.5 km/h
            MASSA 308.3 km/h
            you cant beat speed when it comes to passing.

            1. You can beat the speed when you have way more downforce…

            2. the top speed is of no use if you are going to be slow coming out of the corner & if you need to brake from a longer distance cause you are carrying higher speed…. meaning advantage Ferrari & Red Bull…

              But if McLaren gets ahead on the opening lap then it’s going to be pretty hard for Ferrari or Red Bull to overtake em.

      2. Massa will be having to defend his place from McLaren specially on the straight line in sector 2… and also Webber.

        McLaren have only chance to overtake in first few laps where they can use their top speed advantage.

        if it rains then things will be more interesting which i would like to see.

    2. I will be shocked if there is not one red or blue car in the fence at the first corner. Massa has made some desperate starts lately, and Vettel and Alonso have made some terrible ones. The McLarens start really well, and they will be doing steady business at the Spitzkurve.

      Hamilton has been quicker than Button at every stage except Q3 and I expect there may be some issues if it starts to look like Webber/Massa is pulling away from them and Hamilton is still behind his teammate.

      1. yes. i was thinking this too. it may be the best chance yet to see hamilton and button having a true on track battle.

        note: “true” means both of the participants know they are having a race. ;-)

      2. The thing is thought that Hamilton has been faster than Button on light fuel/qualifying because the McLaren isn’t as stable or predictable in those conditions. In race trim, Button is at least as fast as Hamilton, although he does tend to start cruising as though there’s a long-term catchup option in the races. In Prost’s days that was certainly true, as drivers made more errors and cars failed more often. These days, I’m not so sure that’s a strategy that’ll work.

        Button needs to keep Hamilton behind, but being honest I can’t see it happening. Even in clear air, but I can see Hamilton hanging back and taking both Webber and Button when they’re battling for position.

      3. 17 points in two races
        24th July 2010, 22:29

        Í´m sure Charlie Whiting, LH´s first fan, is thinking something new for stop Ferrari drivers.

        Stewards are happy for drivers to use run-off on the outside of the track to gain an advantage. Do you really think that Charlie (how old is he?) is going to penalize LH if in an agressive move he takes any advantage.

        I don´t think than ca be posible with Charlie Whiting!!!

        1. whiting has given Hamilton a few debatable penalties in the past. he doesn’t favour anyone.

        2. Charlie L.H fann…. i see what u want too say. But at least this year we can see real racing and duels between the drivers. Fiarari days are over we all know that.

        3. If it’s legal Lewis will go for it and let FIA make the call. If he is penalized he will accept it and be about his business. He has had as many, or more, calls against him as he has been found in compliance.
          You know, I could say the same about Fred.

          1. 17 points in two races
            25th July 2010, 9:20

            Come on, all of you know Charlie is Charlie, he needs five o ten laps to penalized Fernando Alonso, and he needs two laps to get sure the safety car block someone race… as he did in the last GP

            Take it easy, the FIA has decided to penalized in less than 1 lap!!!! So if LH take some advantage, he will be penalized in less than 1 lap, and no with a drive trhough like he penalized FA for overtaking Kubica. He needed 4 laps to know what to do…. How old is he? Do you really think he is doing a good job? Did your see the famous overtaking of SC by LH without penalty?

            1. Can’t agree with you more. Charlie has been quite biased lately and I fear that Ferrari will again be dealt with the wrong end of this stick this week-end.

              Someone said that we are seeing more passing nowadays. Where exactly? in the front or in the middle of the field. As far as I’m concerned we are still lacking spectacular passes as the one by Hakkenen in Spa on Shumi.

        4. This is the sort of Ill-informed rambling I avoid the Planet F1 forums for.

          Charlie Whiting makes all sorts of debatable decisions sometimes. He’s in a damned if you do, damned if you don’t position. I’m sure if you take the time to look back over the decisions, there are as many that go against your position as there are to support it.

          The idea that race control favours McLaren, or Hamilton, over Ferrari, when everyone from the bottom to the top of F1 referred to the FIA as “Ferrari International Assistance” for years, and they have admitted they negotiated special treatment in 2004, is utterly laughable.

          If you want to spout stream of consciousness opinion, please do so in the appropriate vessel – Youtube comments or PF1.

          1. well said! It seems as though a large proportion of ferrari ‘fans’ are whiners, who only started following F1 when the only question each race was “how many seconds will schumacher win by?” I wouldn’t be surprised if the very same people are man utd supporters.

        5. Charlie Whiting, LH´s first fan

          Oh please. He hardly did Hamilton any favours at Spa in ’08 did he?

    3. The stewarts might be happy for drivers to use the runoff area, but especially if the astro-turf is still wet, or wet again, it won’t do anyone any good at all.

      I can’t help myself kinda hoping the Ferraris will be fast enough to spring a surprise on Vettel, but I don’t think that will happen. Let’s just hope Alonso doesn’t get caught up again behind a safety car, or we’ll never hear the end of it ;)

      1. Let’s just hope Alonos doesn’t get caught again behind Massa.. The would be the worst possible scenario. A good start for Massa will lose Ferrari the race..

    4. Ferrari could win, but judging by their inability to convert practice and qualifying form into a strong result coupled with Alonso’s slow starts have left me wondering whether this would be another of those “what if” races.

      But what’s encouraging for Ferrari fans is that Red Bull’s advantage has been almost nullified by the scarlet beasts, particularly that of Alonso. Had Webber got a clean run Massa would not qualified 3rd, but still a great comeback performance from the Brazilian. He could give Alonso a hard time in the race. If so, would Ferrari’s team tactics come to play, with the championship in mind?

      1. Hockenheim is quite a good track for overtaking these days so it may not be easy for Massa to keep Webber behind him if Webber is faster than him in the race.

        I’m assuming Massa will get dropped by Alonso and Vettel, but i have just been thinking. He is a confidence driver. Being so close to the front might inspire him to keep up with Alonso. He seems fairly withdrawn to me at the moment. I don’t suppose it’s much fun being out qualified by so much each race.

        1. Well, Massa finally showed good pace in Q2, although like Webber, his Q3 lap wasn’t the best. So I have good hope that we can see Massa finally getting back to Bahrain speeds and following, if not leading Alonso in the charge to Vettel.

          If everyone has an okay start, and given that RBR still has the slight slump in race pace – unless Ferrari inherited that with the retarded ignition trick and McLaren is all over the RBR and Ferrari in race trim – I expect Ferrari to be very much onto Vettel, with Webber struggling to keep up while being chased hard by the McLarens.

      2. I think team tactics have already come to play. I find it difficult to believe Alonso is .497 seconds quicker than Massa in the same car in qualifying trim. Race maybe, qualifying, no.

        1. Massa made some mistakes, he said, in his final run, or he would have been a lot closer to Alonso.

    5. We’ve seen Vettel be a bit impetuous when things don’t go his way already this year. If Alonso gets the better of him off the line, there’s a better than even chance of sparks flying. During that time, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Webber and either or both McLarens squeezing through. Perhaps Massa, too. He’s not the man he was in 2008 and early 2009, so if he falls back, I’ll not be too surprised.

      I may not be a particular fan of either man on the front row, but I’d say Alonso will get the drop on Vettel…

      1. It might be Massa punting Vettel off in the first corner though. Would be a good strategy for Alonso to get a head start as well.

        And both McLarens will be very eager to get a good start and have a go at Webber.

        1. Although the WDC needs Alonso winning, I would like to have a Massa win, to have yet another driver on the GP-winners list for this year, so I would prefer Massa to finally have a problem free first lap again. For the WCC Ferrari need Massa to score.

    6. Alonso will win, and then go on to win his 3rd WDC \o/

    7. The start straight is quite short, so there shouldn’t be too much changes into first corner. But the hairpin will be interesting during the first lap. I think one of the Force Indias will be involved in a crash on the opening lap while trying to recover from the bad starting position. Schumacher has been very good at the starts so I would expect him to be ahead of Rosberg again.

      The tyre thing is interesting, especially as there hasn’t been too optimal conditions to test the tyres this weekend.

      1. Yeah Schumi has been very impressive in the starts. Just look at the aerial replays of the Montreal start. Very impressive driving watching him just rocket past half the field weaving in and out of quite a number of cars. If he can make a start as well as that and somehow do it on hard tires allowing for a late Kobayashi-in-Valencia-style pitstop he could make up a lot of positions.

    8. If Vettel can beat Alonso now that they seem to have fairly equally matched cars it will do wonders for his reputation. He’s great at driving fast, but I’m not sure about his race craft and temperament yet. I think Alonso is hungry for the victory and if Vettel gets off the line first he’ll be under a lot of pressure in the race.

      I hope the Mclarens have better race pace than qualifying pace and can mix it with the Ferrari’s and Red Bulls. I was hoping this season would be a true 4 team battle. I’ll be happy to accept a 3 team battle though. That would be great.

      1. I agree, I’d like to Alonso testing Vettel. However, I think there’s absolutely no way the top 6 cars will all still be there, never mind in the same order, by the end of the first lap. It’s gonna be messy…

      2. It would be great to see a Turkey like battle but now with six cars. Maybe with Alonso being already ahead of Vettel, and Webber at least a car behind, to avoid that RBR own-goal from Turkey, so that we can enjoy it until the finish. Wouldn’t mind seeing some more overtaking during it, now the Ferrari’s are matching RBR well in corners, and McLaren beat them all in straight line this race.

    9. German — 1:13.791 — 1:14.427 — +0.636
      British — 1:29.615 — 1:30.556 — +0.941
      European — 1:37.587 — 1:37.969 — +0.382
      Canadian — 1:15.420 — 1:15.105 — -0.315
      Turkish — 1:26.295 — 1:26.433 — +0.138
      Monaco — 1:13.826 — 1:14.432 — +0.606
      Spainish — 1:19.995 — 1:20.829 — +0.834

      I don’t think its all doom for Mclaren, look at Silverstone and the Spainish GP, in both Hamilton ran comfortably 2nd even though he was over 0.83 behind in qualifying, and Jenson was only 0.636 behind today.

      Looking at Ferrari and their first attempts with the EBD and today them running with the engine retardation thingy, plus RBRs general pace in qualifying against race pace (and FP low fuel pace) it seems this trick is worth about 0.4 in qualifying but not run in the race.

      Mclaren are stronger on full tanks as well so it could be very interesting tomorrow, a three team race?

      1. The Silverstone track is 90 seconds long, Hockenheim is just 73 seconds, that is why the gap is lesser.

        It would be easier to compare if the times were mentioned in percentages instead of seconds.

        1. Agreed and I mentioned the shorter lap in another post but forgot to include it above.

          I still stand by the general point that it is very much a three horse race, with Mclaren only very slightly on the back foot but not by as much as it looks at first sight.

          1. Jhonnie Siggie
            24th July 2010, 23:10

            Ferrari have complicated things from Lewis. While being able to get an easy 3rd (15pts) in a RB & Mclaren horse race, he is looking at getting only 8 pts in 6th place. The RB drivers can easly eat away at his lead now. The best result for Hamilton tomorrow would be a Massa win followed by a win by Alonso. That will help him preserve his lead till Mclaren sort out the EBD in future races.

    10. I don’t think Massa is going to try any daredevilry at the start. He cannot afford to have a 4th consecutive non-points finish. So unless Vettel and Alonso have really horrible starts, I expect him to just stay 3rd.

      He should be able to stay there, I hope. Red Bull is one of the more sensitive cars to dirty air which will make Mark’s job of overtaking him tougher, although, Massa isn’t the best defensive driver, Vettel made him look pedestrian at Silverstone.

      I think its unlucky for Mclaren to have Lewis starting on the dirty side. He could have mounted a successful challenge to Mark on lap 1 and picked off Felipe easily as well. Can Jenson do the same to Mark from P5, I doubt.

      Alonso’s best chance to get Vettel will be at the hairpin after parabolica. Even otherwise, he can stick close to Vettel for long times and wait for a mistake.

      Vettel just needs to maintain a cool head. All the team-politics affected him more than Webber at Silverstone. He just needs to drive fast without thinking about whatever media backlash he might face.

      Come to think of it, Vettel is becoming the next Schumi for the British media. They just love to disparage him. Schumi similarly was the target for British media throughout his ‘first’ career.

      1. But the dirty side doesn’t make a lot of a difference after the loads of rain coming down the last couple of days. I think Lewis will have a serious go at Webber.

        For sure the hairpin will see some action this year. I remember seeing Lewis there live in GP2, that was great.

        1. I am worried a bit that if Webber is stuck behind Massa, he could have a bit of an Australian GP-type race, taking them both out. But maybe Massa is hoping Hamilton gets into a scrap with the two of them and is the one taken out again?

    11. I’m not sure how much Ferrari has managed to close the gap in race-pace.
      Red Bull had dominant qualifying times so far seemed to be connected to blown diffuser and now that other teams are also implementing it they got closer. We’ll see tomorrow I guess, one thing is certain – Ferrari are keen to wipe out worst result in decades by a strong race tomorrow.

      1. But on race pace Ferrari were, like McLaren, already a lot closer as long as there is no large parts of high-speed cornering, so all they had to do is maintain that. I don’t see why they would have lost much of that pace with the EBD.

    12. I’m suspecting Vettel to do something dumb at the start, although he will get a good start as the RB is better at traction off the line. But Massa could cause trouble from 3rd as he’s been seen making wild starts recently. Webber or Alonso would be my pick for the win tomorrow. One of the McLarens could very well be on the podium with the help of a good strategy. Behind the top 6, its very difficult to say. The Williamses might have a good race and end up at good positions, at least Rubens. Rosberg can haul some points if his car allows him and Schumacher, well, I can’t really say! Kubica will look to do well again and it will be good to watch the Force Indias make their way through to get closer to the point scoring positions.
      All that said, if it rains, then the whole thing could be a lot different.

    13. i know that it may seem a little bit of a wild prediction, but im thinking that mclaren will get a very good result tomorrow. I reckon that alonso will take vettel out at the hairpin (or somewhere else on the first lap), and the maccas will get off the line very well. Both will hoefully cruise past webber and massa as they are over 5ph quicker on the straights which will become even more in the slipstream. Even if this doesnt happen, its all set for a good race tomorrow. Anyone else agree with my prediction ;)

    14. I, on the other hand, don’t think that Massa will make a desperate start. He made a terrific start in Melbourne. Alonso will definitely tangle with Vettel in the beginning, and this could play out very well for Felipe. Watch out for a Prancing Horse vs Bull battle; rain will make this otherwise dull circuit come to life, and keep an eye on Rubens Barrichello and Kamui Kobayashi, who have had solid perfirmances the last two races. Who knows what could happen- remember Markus Winklehock leading on his F1 debut here three years ago?

      1. Sorry, but Winkelhock led the European GP at Nurburgring in 2007, not Hockenheim.

    15. @flippy pk… that race with wink;ehock leading was an amazing race, one of the best in recent times :)

      1. It was really fun to watch; too bad Yamamoto replaced Winklehock.

    16. there was no need to replace him. he did a great job (come on, leading the race in a spyker, thats not too bad ;) ) i think thats one of the few races that i was on the edge of my seat for nearly all of it (except spa 08 and maybe fuji 07)

    17. Yamamoto must be F1’s biggest villain. Replacing all good or exciting or likable drivers thanks to his money. First Winkelhock, then Senna, now Chandok. God knows whose seat is he after now.

      1. As Anthony Davidson once said (correctly!), “F1 is a rich man’s sport.”

    18. anyone think yamamoto will end up at red bull ;) money goes a long way nowadays :)

      1. Not that long a way, I would think, no. Would hope, actually, although if RBR do that, they would clearly deserve the mess they get, him taking out Vettel while being overtaken in the same car (he would replace Webber, clearly).

    19. Using the run off doesn’t do any good. It never did any good in Spa either (and they have allowed it there for ages).

      Last time it helped Raikkonen a bit because the two drivers ahead of him hit each other and he could move around these slow cars. AND he had KERS which made him faster on the straight anyway.

      1. it certainly helped in 08 when he ran wide at pouhan with 2 laps to go

        1. well briefly, until he binned it.

        2. He passed Hamilton after Hamilton ran wide when trying to avoid a spinning car.

          Besides, did Raikkonen even run wide at Pouhon?

          1. They both ran wide; Hamilton returned to the track imeddiately, Raikkonen continued outside.

    20. It isn’t always the front runners that win the race at Hockenheim – the weather normally “adjusts” positions.

      The German F1 Drivers have won 110 Grand prix between them since 1960, as follows>

      Michael Schumacher has won 91 F1 Races
      Sebastian Vettel has won 7 F1 races
      Ralf Schumacher has won 6 F1 races
      Frentzen won 3 has F1 races
      Von Trips won 2 F1 races
      Jochen mass won 1 F1 race.

      Only one German has become a World Champion,and we all know who that is.

    21. Great result from ferrari. I’m very curious about the race pace of both ferrari and mclaren. Mclaren seems to be pretty good in race trim, but the car has changed for this race, so it will be a guess.
      Good track for good racing so let’s hope we get a cracker of a race!

    22. I predict a very fierce battle at the start between Alonso/ Massa and Button / Hamilton ! For the sake of a good race , I hope we won`t have the repeat of Webber / Vettel Turkey accident between the Ferrari and Mclaren drivers !

    23. STRFerrari4Ever
      25th July 2010, 0:57

      This race is poised nicely to be a very good one. I know we’ve said that a lot in the past and come race day we’ve been disappointed but this seems like a great race waiting to happen.

      Vettel in my opinion will be determined more than ever to nail the start and try to streak off into the distance. Since it’s his home race he’ll want to win it more than any other race so I expect some great determination and composure from the German. Alonso will be waiting to pounce on Vettel if he makes a mistake at the start or at any point during the first 10 laps, it’s going to be crucial for Fernando to get past Sebastian asap. There could be a safety car & that could hinder the Ferrari’s as we’ve seen in the past two grand prix’s so Alonso & Massa must bolt like crazy.

      Webber well I think the best he can hope for is a podium, I feel he can pass Massa quite easily but he’ll have a difficult time matching Vettel & Alonso. The two McLaren’s with their lower downforce setup will be interesting to watch, particularly Hamilton. His aggressive style could just be the difference between damage limitation and a possible podium. As for the rest of the grid the only chance they have of upsetting any of the big teams is if the weather intervenes.

    24. theRoswellite
      25th July 2010, 1:25

      Good info Diana. I don’t really know how anyone can figure out an outcome this year…each race seems to have some unforeseen event, even to the point that when we get a perfectly uneventful race it seems a bit of a surprise.

      One thing I do know, if we go into the last race with a handful of drivers with a good shot at the title, the champion may be the guy with not necessaryily the most pure speed, but the most composure under pressure.

      (which, Keith, sounds like a decent topic, “Which driver can perform the best under pressure?” )

    25. I think Alonso will challenge Vettel at the start, but even he doesn’t get by, I like his chances of winning. It was a tremendous fortune that brought Vettel pole today. If you look closely at the last few meters of Alonso’s final Q3 lap, you see that he did not drive in an absolutely straight line at the end. He could have easily had pole. The other factor in Ferrari’s favor could be the speed of the pitstop crew. I think the RBR crew is not the best or one of the best. McLaren is tops, then probably Ferrari.

      1. McLaren seems to have been a bit slow, Ferrari was, over the season, the quickest, or 2nd best after Mercedes (not sure), Red Bull was usually a bit faster than McLaren.

        An exception has been rain, where RBR strategy interfered to make things go wrong, or a surprise SC, where Ferrari has stumbled, with both cars coming in together. But barring those, Ferrari are looking good for the pitstop. I do hope to see them trying not to need it to overtake, though.

    26. The positive here for Ferrari, is that it is in qual when the Red Bull has such good pace, in the race, the Red Bulls should be comparatively slower because they can’t use the retarded ignition trick they do in qual.

      Mclaren are in a good spot to pounce, and I think Lewis does have a chance, Especially if mistakes are made ahead, but, realistically you have to say, Mclaren doesn’t look to have the Red teams pace, let alone the Red Bulls.

      The weakest link in the top group I think is Massa, It’s great that he found some of last years pace, but, I do think he most likely to fall back, I think Webber will be quicker, and this I think is a likely place for a collision.

      I suspect the team in the best position really, although I don’t mean in termsof race winning, is Williams, Supposedly the 6th team, behind the “top 4” and Renault, they are looking good to pick up the pieces if the ball is dropped further up. Rubens, as long as he can start the car, I think has a history of looting any places that open through opportunity.

      Schumacher? The one I’d like to win? I have little hope for a good finish, Although he does get good starts, which I hope will pip Rosberg, He doesn’t seem to have much luck this year, and the pit stops should destroy any performance he can make up until then.

    27. I have a feeling Alonso will win. Just a hunch, really, but he *has* to win tonight to keep even the slimmest of championship hopes alive and for that reason I think he will pull out all the stops.

    28. Turn 1 will be very interesting today as it is tight & the run to it is very short so whoever makes the mistakes will be the biggest losers.Schumacher’s best chance to get something out of this race is to start of hard tyres as Keith mentioned & then do the last 20-25 laps on soft tyres.I don’t expect Hamilton to be on the podium but 3 out of first 4 driver on the starting grid will be on the podium with Vettel winning the race until Alonso & Ferrari finds something extra.

    29. Vettel had better hope that Fred get’s him at the first corner so he can get it over with otherwise he is in for a very painful day. Fred will attack him relentlessly until he makes a mistake, then he will overtake and leave Vettel a psychic mess for the rest of the race. Fred is ruthless in these kind of races when he knows he has a good car under him. I don’t think he is aware of what’s about to happen to him.

      1. Makes me wonder, have we seen any good battle between Alonso and Vettel yet?

        Alonso did overtake Vettel in Bahrain and via pit stops in Catalunya, but wheel-to-wheel racing between the two? Can’t remember any since last time in Hockenheim.

    30. Yeah, but I just think the red cars are a touch too heavy at the start. Easy prey (relatively). A bit of defending is what Stefano wants. It should be a sabertooth nano up against a sharp rabbit. Hope it´s a beauty and we have a rest of the season 2 savour. Forza Felipe!!

    31. Ferrari is good on tyres but i think Vettel will just make it

    32. i think vetel will hold his position at first lap top 3 wud remain same till the pit stops there wud ba chnge in position at first lap between butn ,weber and hmltn .
      lewis cud end upon the podium ;D

    33. Im eager to see how Ferraris new clutch works at the start. Alonso is on the dirty side and Vettel said that this time clean side is much better. Massa probably gets good start because he is on clean side, and with his past he is aiming to front Alonso,so i believe Webber gets advantage from Ferrari rivalry.

      Someone mentioned the Maccas top speed, so they might also be great challenge for Alonso and Webber on the dirty.

      About Schumi, he hasnt been able to use the hard tyre advantage in 2010 season, i think he somehow destroy the tyres. He might be putting the Merc setup pretty much the sameway he did at Ferrari.The difference is Ferrari has always been gentle on tyres while Merc seems to destroy its tyres. (use tyres more)

      Anyways i hope Merc gets good results. Maybe some rain could spice things up for them.

      Bring it on!!!!

    34. GP2 and GP3 races have seen massive amount of warnings given for using run-off at turn 1. Interesting to see how stewards and race control look it in F1 race.

    35. I expect a Vettel win or if he or the car fails then it’ll be Webbo or more likey Mclaren if they get a good start.

    36. As usual Ferrari will waste another chance for victory. And hamilton will put a stunning pass on vettel.

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