F1 Fanatic

52 comments on 2011 Japanese Grand Prix grid

1. 

   Steph (@) said on 8th October 2011, 9:02

   Bruno is blowing my socks and shoes off. He’s been terrific ever since he stepped into that Renault. He’s always been on the pace or there about which is impressive as he hasn’t done much racing or even testing of late particularly in F1 and he only had that dog of a car last year. I think he’s doing a splendid job. I always liked him -I don’t think it was because of the name but maybe I was swayed by it- and I’m very pleased for him. I remember when he tested for Honda and was so close to that race seat but that went to pot and I really worried he wouldn’t get a shot to prove himself but he’s really grabbing this opportunity with both hands. I know he’s only against Petrov who didn’t exactly set the world on fire last year but I do think that Vitaly has potential and has improved on last year and Nick may have been very poor this year but few drivers have beaten Heidfeld over the years so he had to be doing something right.

   It was odd how STR slipped back. I have no idea whether it was intentional to save tyres but I suspect they’ll have a stronger day tomorrow.

   I hope Perez and Paul feel better soon too!

   Reply
   • 

     Enigma (@enigma) said on 8th October 2011, 9:15

     I’m happy for Senna as well, glad he got the chance. He’s impressive, given how many years he wasn’t allowed to race when others did karting. I hope he gets to stay at Renault in 2012, or at least get a decent seat in a midfield team.

     I don’t think Toro Rossos have really disappointed that much, to be honest – they haven’t shone in qualifying all season. They’ve only managed Q3 thrice, and two times it was just taking advantage of crazy saturdays. I still expect them to get some points.

     As for Checo and Paul, I haven’t heard anything – are they ill or something?

     ReplyReport user
     • 

       sumofmarc (@sumofmarc) said on 8th October 2011, 12:14

       Perez: “suffering from a nasty flu-like illness” http://www.thecheckeredflag.co.uk/2011/10/mixed-fortunes-for-sauber-drivers-in-japan-qualifying/

       Di Resta: “battling against a throat virus and fever”
       http://www.sportinglife.com/others/news/story_get.cgi?STORY_NAME=others/11/10/08/AUTO_Japanese_Di_Resta.html&BID=678

       ReplyReport user
       • 

         Enigma (@enigma) said on 8th October 2011, 12:34

         @sumofmarc Cheers!

         ReplyReport user
2. 

   Steph (@) said on 8th October 2011, 13:11

   When I look at the grid on here it is really depressing to see all the “no times” underneath the names. That’s not what I want from qualifying.

   Reply
3. 

   Eggry (@eggry) said on 8th October 2011, 13:43

   Indeed!

   ReplyReport user
4. 

   JT19 (@jt19) said on 8th October 2011, 14:05

   Wow, my head was fixed on 1st, 2nd, and 3rd, I completely forgot to look at 4th, 5th and 6th! Massa alongside his best mate Hamilton and also ahead of Alonso and Webber!

   Webber being that far down is IMO because of 2 things, the squabble and not aligning his car properly to get the speed on the out-lap, and his race engineer was talking about the KERS using 40%. So was his KERS not working once again?

   Being a Hamilton fan and what Massa has said and fallen out with him, I have to congratulate Felipe in what he has achieved here, even though I don’t like him at this current moment lol :p

   Hamilton’s tyres are a few laps older than those around him as we were told by Ted Kravitz the first run in Q3 were scrubbed options for most runners, so I expect him to be first into the pits, if he is still running that far into the race (I hope!)

   ReplyReport user
5. 

   LexBlair (@lexblair) said on 8th October 2011, 14:49

   Could somebody point out to me why Petrov actually starts behind Senna even though he had the faster time coming into Q3…

   ReplyReport user
   • 

     Mads (@mads) said on 8th October 2011, 17:12

     I think it is decided by their car number. And because Petrov was far behind Kubica in last years championship, Senna now has the lowest number of the two. Meaning he starts in front.
     But it does seem a bit mental to me that their Q2 ranking don’t go through to Q3 to decide which driver starts where among the ones who didn’t set a time, of cause.

     ReplyReport user
6. 

   JerseyF1 (@jerseyf1) said on 8th October 2011, 18:16

   *Originally listed as tenth, he will in fact start seventh as he attempted to start a flying lap

   Schumacher attempted to start a flying lap (and failed), Kobayashi did start a flying lap.

   ReplyReport user
7. 

   James_mc (@james_mc) said on 9th October 2011, 0:12

   Good effort by Di Resta given that Sutil is reputedly good around here and he has a pretty nasty-sounding infection. Then again, illness has proved no barrier at the Japanese GP (admittedly at Fuji)

   ReplyReport user
8. 

   PMccarthy_is_a_legend (@pmccarthy_is_a_legend) said on 9th October 2011, 1:25

   @Enigma d) Prior to the start of the qualifying practice session intermediate and wet-weather tyres may only be used after the track has been declared wet by the race director, following which intermediate, wet or dry-weather tyres may be used for the remainder of the session’
   Can’t go out on inters unless the track is deemed wet by race director

   ReplyReport user
   • 

     Enigma (@enigma) said on 9th October 2011, 5:54

     @pmccarthy_is_a_legend Never heard of that, thank you for letting me know.

     ReplyReport user
9. 

   wasiF1 (@wasif1) said on 9th October 2011, 2:25

   Will Kobayashi will be able to choose his tyres?

   ReplyReport user

Add your comment Cancel this reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Name *

Email *

Website

All comments must abide by the comment policy. Comments may be moderated.
Want to post off-topic? Head to the forum.
See the FAQ for more information.

Notify me of followup comments via e-mail