Sebastian Vettel doubts the F1 calendar could expand much further beyond the current 20 races per season.

The world champion told Servus TV this year’s 20-race schedule is near the limit of what teams can cope with:

“I think 20 is a good number but it’s a big number,” said Vettel. “Not just for us, the drivers, I think for the whole team, for the whole paddock.

“To move around sometimes have races back-to-back one weekend straight after the other is not easy, I think that you need to be aware of that.

“We have the races more and more spread out around the globe so these things don’t make it easy. So I think we just get away with 20 races.”

This year’s calendar is the longest ever with 20 races, and it is set to expand next year with the planned addition of a second race in the USA.

Vettel won the latest addition to the calendar, the Indian Grand Prix, last year. The United States Grand Prix at the Circuit of the Americas joined the calendar this year.

Asked which of the current races he enjoys most Vettel said: “I really love to go to Japan. First of all the track is amazing.

“The atmosphere there is completely different. The people there are very friendly and very crazy, in a positive way, about motorsport, about racing, about Formula One.

“That’s something very nice to see and makes you feel very special when you get there and you see that there’s so big support for Formula One and for the drivers.”

2012 F1 season

• Vettel says 20 races per year is near teams' limit
• Force India expect more from Barcelona upgrade
• Top ten pictures from the Spanish Grand Prix
• Frank Williams praises teams' rescue efforts after fire
• Vote for your Spanish GP Driver of the Weekend

Image © Red Bull/Getty images

Vettel says 20 races per year is near teams’ limit is an original article from F1 Fanatic. If this article has been published anywhere other than F1 Fanatic it is an infringement of copyright.

The Renault team marked its 300th and final race at the end of last season.

They remain active in F1 as an engine supplier, in which capacity they have enjoyed huge success in recent years with Red Bull.

The team introduced turbo engines into F1 in the seventies and Fernando Alonso won the drivers’ championship with them twice during the last decade. They amassed 100 podium finishes and 35 Grand Prix wins.

How much do you know about Renault’s F1 team? It’s time to put your knowledge to the test.

• Renault 1977-2011 Quiz

If you’ve not taken one of our quizzes before, have a quick look at this quick guide first:

• F1 Fanatic Quizzes guide

You can compare your overall score with other F1 Fanatics and take more quizzes here:

• F1 Fanatic Quizzes
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If you don’t already have one, you will need to register an F1 Fanatic account to participate in the quizzes. Details on how to get one can be found here:

• Register an F1 Fanatic account
• F1 Fanatic site and user accounts FAQ

How did you get on? Share your score in the comments – but remember not to leave clues about the questions!

F1 Fanatic Quizzes

• Take the Renault F1 Fanatic Quiz
• Take the Spanish Grand Prix F1 Fanatic Quiz
• Take the Rubens Barrichello F1 Fanatic Quiz
• Take the Australian Grand Prix F1 Fanatic Quiz
• Nick Heidfeld: The F1 Fanatic Quiz

Image © Renault/LAT

Take the Renault F1 Fanatic Quiz is an original article from F1 Fanatic. If this article has been published anywhere other than F1 Fanatic it is an infringement of copyright.

Force India deputy team principal Bob Fernley says there is more performance to come from the upgrade package introduced last weekend.

Fernley told the team’s website: “From our point of view our upgrade has gone in successfully. I think we’ve still got a little bit more engineering to be able to optimise it.

“Two to three tenths of optimisation would have put us fifth, and don’t forget it was the first time we’ve run it.”

Fernley admitted some concern at the step forward taken by Williams in the last race: “We’ve seen a situation with Sauber in Malaysia where they came second and perhaps had the possibility of a victory. Williams were quite strong in Australia. Both have tailed off a bit and then Williams came back exceptionally strongly in Barcelona.

“Is it peaks and troughs, or is it consistency? At the moment I’m not discouraged because I think Sahara Force India and Lotus are probably the two most consistent teams. We’re not at the front, but we’re there and thereabouts all the time.

“I think we’d be more disconcerted if Williams continued to deliver. They have a jolly good car and we’ve always said the competition is incredible, and we’ve just got to dig deep and move forward.”

He also praised Nico Hulkenberg’s drive at Barcelona: “He was very, very good.

“He had some tyre problems at the beginning, but he overcame them and delivered a superb race. His first set of tyres went off quicker than we thought they would do.

“But to keep Mark Webber behind him for that length of time was impressive. Any rust that might have been on him is clearly gone!”

2012 F1 season

• Vettel says 20 races per year is near teams' limit
• Force India expect more from Barcelona upgrade
• Top ten pictures from the Spanish Grand Prix
• Frank Williams praises teams' rescue efforts after fire
• Vote for your Spanish GP Driver of the Weekend

Image © Sahara Force India F1 Team

Force India expect more from Barcelona upgrade is an original article from F1 Fanatic. If this article has been published anywhere other than F1 Fanatic it is an infringement of copyright.

In the round-up: Lotus team principal Eric Boullier says his team’s days of having a number one driver are “a thing of the past”.

Links

Top F1 links from the past 24 hours:

Eric Boullier Q&A: Lotus are on the up (F1)

“Historically, this team has always pushed for one driver – a definite leader. But that has definitely changed. It’s a thing of the past. I want two fast drivers because that is the way you get ahead in the constructors’ championship. So both drivers have the same status.”

Williams: Maldonado always real deal (Autosport)

“When asked if Maldonado was only at Williams in the first place because of money, [Frank] Williams said: ‘Yeah, he was to some extent. I’m not denying that. But if we thought he’d been a wanker, he wouldn’t have got in the team no matter how much money he had.’”

Mercedes and the Concorde Agreement (Joe Saward)

“A deal with Mercedes needs really to be done after all the other horse trading is over. The problem is that the Formula One group is in a wild hurry to go to the markets in July and there is not much time to quibble for weeks on end. This may explain the presence of Mercedes boss Dr Dieter Zetsche in Barcelona.”

Williams is a born winner (The Telegraph)

David Coulthard: “Frank is one of the few people in the paddock who will acknowledge he may have misled you and he will tell you to your face that the reason he did it was for the good of the team; for the hundreds of employees back at Grove. It’s hard to argue with that.”

McLaren reach out to Williams (Daily Express)

“The ‘camaraderie and spirit of co-operation’ described by team principal Sir Frank Williams that came to the fore as the fire took hold when personnel from a number of teams battled to extinguish it, will again be prevalent over the coming days. In particular, McLaren are to loan equipment to Williams to ensure they can compete strongly.”

Spanish GP Review (Williams)

Chief operations engineer Mark Gillan on Maldonado: “Simply stunning – a master class from start to finish. He was strong all weekend, winning the race from pole despite a strong challenge from Alonso. One can’t ask anymore from a driver.”

Fresh questions over struggling Schumacher (BBC)

“Schumacher may continue to embarrass himself in wheel-to-wheel racing occasionally, but he’s close to Rosberg’s pace these days – and Mercedes’ top management rate their younger driver very highly indeed.”

Confusion reigns in Spain (Sky)

“If there is the hint of a pattern to the apparently random outcomes this year, it is that when the weather was cooler than expected – i.e. China and Barcelona – the Ferrari, Williams and Sauber have been competitive (recall Bruno Senna’s sparkling race in China). On hot days, the Lotus has tended to look very good. In the 40C+ heat of Friday in Barcelona the Lotuses looked by far the fastest cars over a race stint, even though they apparently struggled to get the last couple of tenths of single lap pace.”

Jenson Button heads to Brands to salute British racing fans

“The 2009 world champ will make a guest appearance at the Kent circuit’s DTM meeting for hi-tech fire-spitting touring cars.”

Comment of the day

Guy reckons Pirelli got it “spot on” in the Spanish Grand Prix:

Having seen the Spanish GP, Pirelli hit that spot on – a Prime that allows for a range of race strategies, being stretched to half the race with careful management (Hamilton), or more aggressive use (most), and an option that is perfect for qualifying or a short and sweet fast stint if/when the race strategy calls for it.

I do agree that they should scrap one of the rules; either having to start on the qualifying tyre, or having to use both compounds in the race. Not sure you need to do both. And I do wish they would bring in something to stop the farce of cars not running in Q3 though.
Guy

Add your view on F1 tyres here:

• Should F1 change its tyre strategy?

From the forum

• Who will be the first driver to be replaced in 2012?

Happy birthday!

Happy birthday to Rob A!

If you want a birthday shout-out tell us when yours is by emailling me, using Twitter or adding to the list here.

On this day in F1

It’s been a while since we last saw Williams lock out of the front row of the grid. But in the eighties and nineties it was a common sight.

In fact, Williams qualified on the front row of the grid on this day 20 and 25 years ago, in the 1987 Belgian Grand Prix and 1992 San Marino Grand Prix.

Both races saw Nigel Mansell start from pole position, alongside team mates Nelson Piquet and Riccardo Patrese respectively.

Image © Lotus F1 Team/LAT

Boullier: “Both drivers have the same status” is an original article from F1 Fanatic. If this article has been published anywhere other than F1 Fanatic it is an infringement of copyright.

No-one predicted Pastor Maldonado’s maiden victory in the latest round of the Predictions’ Championship.

Rivasgui and Doodie111 were the only ones to correctly name the Williams driver as the pole sitter for the race. Lewis Hamilton’s penalty was bad news for the 266 people who picked him for pole position.

Gabal came out on top in the latest round of the championship, scoring 19 points by correctly placing Fernando Alonso, Romain Grosjean and Kamui Kobayashi in second, fourth and fifth.

Vjohann73 claimed the second-place prize by getting closer to the pole position time than Barkun. Gabal wins an Autocourse 1972 eBook, Vjohann73 gets a Grand Prix Heroes DVD from Duke Video and Barkun claims an F1 poster from PJ Tierney. Congratulations to all!

Gabal moves up to joint 15th place in the championship standings but Chrissylyn remains on top with 62 points, followed by ButtonUp09 on 60 and Bisutommy79 on 59.

• Updated Predictions Championship standings

Here are the top ten predictions for the last race:

Remember you can make your predictions for all the remaining rounds of the season below and edit them whenever you like up until the start of each qualifying session.

2012 F1 Fanatic Predictions Championship overall prizes

Grand prize: Two grandstands tickets to the 2013 British Grand Prix

The person who scores the most points over the whole season will win two grandstand tickets to the 2013 British Grand Prix at Silverstone.

The grand prize winner will receive tickets to all three days of the event with reserved seating for the race.

• Buy British Grand Prix tickets via the Silverstone website or call the ticket hotline on 0844 3728 300

Second place prize: An F1 painting of your choice

The second place finisher will win a Formula 1 painting by Rob Ijbema.

You get to choose which F1 driver, present or past, will feature in the painting.

Or you can pick one of the other motor racing paintings on Rob’s site:

• Car-a-day

Runner-up prize: Racecar Engineering subscriptions

The five players with the next highest scores (positions three to seven) will each win a year’s subscription to Racecar Engineering magazine.

Racecar Engineering is the world’s leading motorsport technology magazine. Every issue is packed with in-depth features, interviews and analysis from Formula One, Le Mans and all forms racing and rallying.

• Exclusive offer: save up to £33 when you subscribe to Racecar Engineering

Runner-up prize: Autocourse calendars

The five players with the next highest scores (positions eight to 12) will each win a 2013 Autocourse calendar.

The Autocourse Grand Prix calendar contains images taken during the season of all the major players competing in the Formula One World Championship.

The images are high resolution and taken by one of the world’s leading Grand Prix photographers, the calendar is printed on art quality paper and comes with a stiffened backing board and shrink wrapped for protection.

• Autocourse Grand Prix calendar

More prizes to be announced

Further prizes will be announced during the season.

2012 F1 Fanatic Predictions Championship race prizes

Race winner’s prize: Autocourse eBooks

The highest scorer in each race will win an Autocourse eBook. The 1971 edition will be the first prize up for grabs, and later players will have the chance to win 1972 to 1976 editions.

The Autocourse eBooks are faithful reproductions of the original annuals in digital form. The colour, clarity of images and text have been improved to modern standards, but the content remains in original format.

Autocourse has become the definitive record of Formula One racing the world over and early editions are collector’s items, which regularly trade for hundreds of pounds.

• The 1971 Autocourse eBook is available from www.autocourse.com for £19.99 with free postage/packing to UK customers.

First runner-up prize: Grand Prix Heroes DVD

The second-placed player in each race will win their choice of one of Duke Video’s new Grand Prix Heroes DVDs (pictured top).

Videos are available on such famous F1 figures as Niki Lauda, James Hunt, Mika Hakkinen, Jackie Stewart, Mario Andretti, Emerson Fittipaldi, Jody Scheckter, Ronnie Peterson, Peter Revson and Frank Williams.

• Duke Video

Second runner-up prize: F1 posters by PJ Tierney

The third-placed player in each race will win one of PJ Tierney’s excellent unofficial Formula 1 posters.

You can view PJ’s posters along with his other work on his website:

• PJ Tierney

How to enter

To enter, predict the pole sitter and the top five finishers in the race. You can also enter a prediction for the pole position lap time – this may be used as a tie-breaker.

Enter your pole position lap time prediction as follows: MM:SS.ccc

For example, for a lap of one minute, 23.456 seconds you would enter 01:23.456

You need to log in using an F1 Fanatic account to make your prediction.

If you haven’t got one yet the sign-up process is quick, simple and entirely free: sign up here now.

After entering your prediction, you will receive an email confirming your entry. If this does not happen, or you are concerned your prediction has not been received, please get in touch using the contact form.

Enter your predictions

Image © Williams/LAT

Maldonado win surprises everyone in Predictions Championship is an original article from F1 Fanatic. If this article has been published anywhere other than F1 Fanatic it is an infringement of copyright.

A selection of ten of the best pictures from the Spanish Grand Prix weekend.

Fernando Alonso, Friday practice

All eyes were on Ferrari at the beginning of the weekend as their updated F2012 took to the track.

The initial signs were good: Fernando Alonso was quickest in first practice by almost four-tenths of a second having been eight-tenths or more off the pace in every previous FP1 session this year.

Alexander Rossi, Friday practice

Two drivers made their first appearances at an F1 race weekend: Caterham’s Alexander Rossi and HRT’s Dani Clos.

The American logged 25 laps in the CT01 on Friday morning. The weekend before he had raced for Caterham’s Formula Renault 3.5 team at another Spanish track, Motorland Aragon, taking a best finish of fifth.

Lewis Hamilton, qualifying

McLaren paid the price for instructing Lewis Hamilton to stop on the track after qualifying after he had low on fuel – the stewards sent him to the back of the grid.

After the race McLaren revealed they had become aware of Hamilton’s fuel situation after he had begun his qualifying lap. Team principal Martin Whitmarsh conceded the correct course of action would have been to tell Hamilton to abandon his qualifying effort.

Spanish Grand Prix start

Hamilton’s penalty handed pole position to Pastor Maldonado. But for the second year in a row it was Alonso who led into the first corner.

Heikki Kovalainen and Lewis Hamilton, race

Former McLaren team mates Heikki Kovalainen and Hamilton scrapped for 16th place early on. The battle didn’t last long – Hamilton eventually finished eighth.

Kimi Raikkonen, race

Kimi Raikkonen finished on the podium for the second race in a row.

Although the crowd on the bank in the foreground looks substantial, the dearer grandstand seats in the background have only a smattering of spectators. Attendance continued to fall at the race due to Spain’s economic troubles.

Mark Webber, race

Both Red Bull drivers had to change their front wings during the race due to damage. Mark Webber finished out of the points for the first time this year in 11th.

Pastor Maldonado, Fernando Alonso, race

An early second pit stop for Maldonado allowed him to claim the lead back from Alonso. The Ferrari driver gave chase, but it was in vain, Maldonado edging clear in the final stint to win by three seconds.

Nico Rosberg, Sebastian Vettel, race

The Mercedes gave its tyres a hard time in the final stint and Rosberg fell back into the clutch of Vettel, who demoted him for sixth place. Rosberg held on to seventh place, chased across the line by Hamilton.

Podium

The man of the hour is raised aloft by two world champions at the end of the race.

More Spanish Grand Prix pictures

• 2012 Spanish Grand Prix Thursday pictures
• 2012 Spanish Grand Prix practice in pictures
• Rossi: F1 debut was “as good as it could have been”
• Clos: “unbelievable” to make F1 debut at home
• 2012 Spanish Grand Prix qualifying in pictures
• 2012 Spanish Grand Prix in pictures

2012 Spanish Grand Prix

• Force India expect more from Barcelona upgrade
• Top ten pictures from the Spanish Grand Prix
• Frank Williams praises teams' rescue efforts after fire
• Vote for your Spanish GP Driver of the Weekend
• Williams end second-longest F1 victory drought

Images © Ferrari spa/Ercole Colombo, Caterham/LAT, McLaren/Hoch Zwei, Ferrari spa/Ercole Colombo, Caterham/LAT, Lotus F1 Team/LAT, Red Bull/Getty images, Williams/LAT, Mercedes/Hoch Zwei, Pireli/LAT

Top ten pictures from the Spanish Grand Prix is an original article from F1 Fanatic. If this article has been published anywhere other than F1 Fanatic it is an infringement of copyright.

In the round-up: Ferrari say Felipe Massa needs to up his game in the next race at Monaco.

Links

Top F1 links from the past 24 hours:

Never give up, especially in Formula 1 (Ferrari)

“As for an analysis of the Scuderia’s performance and its two drivers, Fernando has always maintained a very high level (67 points and second place in 2010, 51 and fifth place last year) while Felipe’s drop off has made itself felt. The Brazilian had picked up 49 points two years ago and 24 the following year, while so far this season he has just 2. In Montmelo, Felipe was very unlucky, both in the race and in qualifying, but everyone, he more than anyone, is expecting a change of gear starting right away with the Monaco Grand Prix, his second home race, given that he lives just a few hundred metres from what, as from next Sunday, will be transformed into the paddock for the sixth round of the 2012 championship.”

Peter Windsor via Twitter

“[Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez] has declared today a public holiday in Venezuela in honour of Pastor’s victory.”

Maldonado’s triumph unites polarised Venezuela (Reuters)

“Venezuelan driver Pastor Maldonado’s remarkable first Formula One victory brought a rare moment of national unity to a homeland bitterly divided months before a presidential vote.”

In Spain I saw real heroes at work (The Sun)

Tom Webb (Caterham): “For a number of those who helped out this was not their first F1 fire. But for me, this was the first time I have been so close to something so potentially life threatening and I am humbled by the way the men and women of my sport responded.”

‘Fire crews in Spain were incompetent’ (The Telegraph)

Force India deputy team principal Bob Fearnley: “Incompetent would be a very polite way of saying what these people have done here today. There’s no training, no procedures. I went down to see how my man is, and I had to fight my way in. We need to look seriously at the training of people at the circuits. I’m not impressed at all.”

McLaren regrets qualifying decision (Autosport)

Martin Whitmarsh: “With hindsight I was wrong, but I don’t think I or very many people anticipated that, as a consequence, we would be starting from the back of the grid.”

Gary Anderson on Maldonado’s mature victory (BBC)

“We’ve seen the spotlight on different cars at different times. Is it conditions, is it track type, is it temperature, is it car characteristic, is it the driver? There are so many factors to weigh up and I’m sure these debates are going on up and down the pit lane.”

Taking a starring role in Spain (Sky)

“Almost unnoticed after the race, Michael Schumacher was given a five-place grid drop for the next race in Monaco, of all places. He misjudged Senna’s braking and rear ended him. That one was definitely down to Michael I’m afraid even though Bruno, on very worn tyres, was not exactly arrow straight into the braking zone.”

Comment of the day

More Spanish Grand Prix stats from Andrew81:

Maldonado became the fourth driver to lead his first lap in 2012, after Perez, di Resta and Grosjean. Only four seasons outside the 1950s have seen more drivers do this. We have had ten drivers from eight teams lead laps so far; while ten drivers isn’t rare (the record is fifteen, reached six times including 2008), only three seasons have seen more than eight teams lead, with ten in 1975 and nine in 2003 and 2008. The only established team not to have led a lap yet is Toro Rosso; the highest they have run is third (Vergne for one lap in Malaysia).

And fastest lap stats: five drivers from four teams is fairly average over a whole season, but it looks like they could go to anyone this year, so expect this number to end up among the highest. 2009 holds the joint record of ten different drivers in a season, but only in 1975 have as many as eight teams got the accolade. We’ve also had two drivers set their first fastest laps so far, but this is fairly common over a season.
Andrew81

From the forum

• What was the best pass of the Spanish Grand Prix?

Happy birthday!

Happy birthday to Jonny!

If you want a birthday shout-out tell us when yours is by emailling me, using Twitter or adding to the list here.

On this day in F1

Keke Rosberg won the Monaco Grand Prix today in 1983.

The world champion gambled on starting on slick tyres on a damp track and won with an extraordinary display of driving skill.

Championship contenders Nelson Piquet and Alain Prost were third and fourth.

Rosberg became the fifth different driver/team combination to win in the first five races of the year. This was the only time that had happened in F1 history until Maldonado’s win on Sunday.

Here’s the start of the race – look out for Rosberg grabbing second at the start from fifth on the grid. He took the lead at the start of lap two but the director missed it:

Image © Ferrari spa/Ercole Colombo

Ferrari “expect change of gear right away” from Massa is an original article from F1 Fanatic. If this article has been published anywhere other than F1 Fanatic it is an infringement of copyright.

Williams team owner Frank Williams has praised the efforts of the F1 community in responding to the fire which broke out in the team’s garage yesterday.

“I was pleased to welcome back to the factory the majority of our team this morning. One of our people remains in Spain for further medical assistance, but we are all looking forward to his imminent return.

“Everyone at Williams F1 is extremely relieved that this event was contained as quickly as it was and the damage which occurred was, relatively speaking, limited in its nature.

“While the incident was unexpected and definitely most undesirable, it has demonstrated the genuine cohesiveness, camaraderie and spirit of co-operation that exists within the Formula One paddock. The astonishing response from the teams and other paddock personnel was immediate, unconditional and overwhelming.”

Williams confirmed two further team members who were treated for smoke inhalation have been released from hospital.

Another member of the team remains in hospital in Spain having suffered burns in the incident. His condition is described as stable and he is expected to return to the UK within the next 48 hours where his treatment will continue.

Williams, the FIA and the local authorities are investigating the cause of the fire.

2012 Spanish Grand Prix

• Force India expect more from Barcelona upgrade
• Top ten pictures from the Spanish Grand Prix
• Frank Williams praises teams' rescue efforts after fire
• Vote for your Spanish GP Driver of the Weekend
• Williams end second-longest F1 victory drought

Image © Williams/LAT

Frank Williams praises teams’ rescue efforts after fire is an original article from F1 Fanatic. If this article has been published anywhere other than F1 Fanatic it is an infringement of copyright.

Which F1 driver had the best race weekend in Spain?

Compare all the drivers’ performances below and vote for who you think was the best driver of the Spanish Grand Prix weekend.

Driver notes

Sebastian Vettel – Minimised his running in qualifying to save tyres for the race. But a drive-through penalty for failing to slow sufficiently for yellow flags dropped him back into the pack. Passed Rosberg and the McLarens in his final stint to claim sixth, but it looked like fifth was the best he had on offer.
Mark Webber – His single run in Q2 was not good enough for him to reach Q3, so the pole sitter of the last two Spanish Grands Prix started 11th. Lost a place at the start, then pitted early in an attempt to make up ground. Like his team mate, his progress was slowed by front wing damage, necessitating a replacement. Couldn’t get past Hulkenberg for the final point at the end.

Jenson Button – Didn’t look comfortable in the McLaren at any point during the weekend. Missed Q3 and had a quiet race, finishing behind his team mate who had started last.
Lewis Hamilton – Faced with the sort of frustration that led to some of his worst performances last year, Hamilton responded commendably well. Relegated from first on the grid to last through no fault of his own, he took places when they were on offer and stayed his hand at other times, preserving his tyres. Was the only driver to complete the lap with two stops and even another McLaren pit stop blunder didn’t put him off his stride.

Fernando Alonso – The Ferrari looked a much more competitive proposition in Spain – at least, in Alonso’s hands. Out-qualified the Lotuses and snatched the lead at the start. But slipped behind Maldonado in the pit stops and, despite getting close, couldn’t quite take it back. Shares the lead of the championship with Vettel.
Felipe Massa – Over half a second off his team mate in qualifying, for which he blamed traffic, Massa started 14 places behind the other Ferrari. Disputed his penalty for speeding under yellow flags which dropped him behind Paul di Resta. He finished there, lapped by Alonso.

Michael Schumacher – Scraped into Q3 and moved up two places at the start to hold sixth, pressuring Romain Grosjean. But after Grosjean passed Senna and began to pull away, Schumacher’s eagerness to pass got the better of him and he ran into the back of the Williams. The stewards docked him five places on the grid for the next race.
Nico Rosberg – Couldn’t make the tyres last in his final stint and was passed by Kobayashi and Vettel. Had the race been 67 laps long instead of 66 he would have lost out to Hamilton too.

Kimi Raikkonen – Out-qualified by Grosjean but moved ahead immediately at the start. Said after the race the car had the potential to win but they didn’t get the strategy right. Spent the final stint reeling in Alonso for second place, finishing 0.6 seconds behind.
Romain Grosjean – Not for the first time this year he didn’t make best use of a good grid position. Quickly passed Senna and Rosberg after his first pit stop to take up fourth. Like Raikkonen, made a late final pit stop and was flying at the end, setting fastest lap.

Paul di Resta – There wasn’t much to choose between the Force Indias in qualifying. In the race the team felt they’d underestimated how well the tyres would last and Di Resta fell from 12th to 14th.
Nico Hulkenberg – Like his team mate in the last race, Hulkenberg had to cling on to his points finish, holding off Webber by two-tenths of a second for his second points finish of the year.

Kamui Kobayashi – Thwarted by an hydraulic problem in qualifying which prevented him from setting a time in Q3, Kobayashi held onto his ninth place at the start. A bold pass on Button halfway through the race allowed him to claim fifth, building up enough of a gap to stay safe from the recovering Vettel.
Sergio Perez – Started a career-best fifth but clipped Grosjean at the start and collected a puncture which destroyed his race.

Daniel Ricciardo – No Q3 heroics this weekend – in fact he was out-qualified by his team mate for the first time this year. He and Vergne were closely-matched in the race until the final dozen laps, when Ricciardo began to drop back.
Jean-Eric Vergne – Finished five seconds ahead of his team mate as he lost performance sharply in the final laps. Nonetheless he finished ahead of Ricciardo for the fourth race in a row.

Pastor Maldonado – Only 14th-fastest on Friday but said he was feeling confident. He was second-fastest in final practice and repeated the feat in qualifying before Hamilton’s penalty handed him his first pole position. Lost the lead to Alonso at the start but an aggressively early second stop got him ahead again. After that he withstood considerable pressure to deliver his first win and Williams’ first since 2004.
Bruno Senna – The contrast in fortunes between the Williams drivers was especially stark on Saturday as Senna spun out during Q1. In the race he delayed his first pit stop, moving up to seventh. On lap 12, shortly after being passed by Grosjean, he was rammed out of the race by Schumacher.

Heikki Kovalainen – A mistake in qualifying left him behind his team mate on the grid. But he passed Petrov at the start and finished the race 15 seconds ahead. He was 24 seconds behind the next car which, for the second time this year for Caterham, was Massa’s Ferrari.
Vitaly Petrov – Caterham did not run their new exhaust set-up in Spain, but despite that Petrov was three-tenths off Senna’s time in Q1. He wasn’t happy with his KERS map in the race and steadily dropped back from his team mate.

Pedro de la Rosa – Ran HRT’s new aerodynamic package and briefly stayed in front of Charles Pic at the start. Crossed the line in last place but was pleased to see the chequered flag at the Circuit de Catalunya for the first time since 1999.
Narain Karthikeyan – Retired shortly after his second pit-stop with a technical problem.

Timo Glock – Started behind his team mate for the second time after encountering yellow flags on his second run in Q1. Moved ahead at the start and brought the car home 18th, lapped twice.
Charles Pic – Pic had a spin early on in the race and was struggling with a driveshaft problem when Alonso came up to lap him. The stewards found Pic didn’t move aside quickly enough and handed him a drive-through penalty, but his car’s problem had already become terminal by then.

Qualifying and race results summary

Review the race data

• 2012 Spanish Grand Prix lap chart
• 2012 Spanish Grand Prix tyre strategies and pit stops
• 2012 Spanish Grand Prix fastest laps

Vote for your driver of the weekend

Which driver do you think did the best job this weekend?

Cast your vote below and explain your choice in the comments.

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Rate the Race: Spanish Grand Prix

What did you think of this weekend’s race? Give your verdict here:

• Rate the race: 2012 Spanish Grand Prix

2012 Spanish Grand Prix

• Force India expect more from Barcelona upgrade
• Top ten pictures from the Spanish Grand Prix
• Frank Williams praises teams' rescue efforts after fire
• Vote for your Spanish GP Driver of the Weekend
• Williams end second-longest F1 victory drought

Image © Red Bull/Getty images, Lotus F1 Team/LAT, Williams/LAT

Vote for your Spanish GP Driver of the Weekend is an original article from F1 Fanatic. If this article has been published anywhere other than F1 Fanatic it is an infringement of copyright.

Pastor Maldonado became the 104th different driver to win a round of the world championship.

He added Venezuela to the list of countries that have produced race winners, becoming the 21st different nation to do so.

Maldonado also scored his first pole position, something 96 different drivers have achieved. He inherited first on the grid after Lewis Hamilton was penalised, costing McLaren what would have been their 150th pole position.

Williams’ wait for a win

Williams are no strangers to victory in F1 – this was their 114th and Maldonado is the 15th different driver to have won for them.

But it’s been a long time since their last taste of success: Juan Pablo Montoya’s win in the 2004 Brazilian Grand Prix. This was also the last race before F1 Fanatic came into existence!

Williams ended one of the longest victory droughts ever for an F1 team. They failed to win in the intervening 130 races they started. But it falls well short of the record set by Ligier, who went 223 races without a win between Jacques Laffite’s victory in Canada in 1981, and Olivier Panis’s Monaco Grand Prix triumph in 1996.

Here are the five longest victory droughts for F1 constructors:

Williams also had a 54-race win-less streak between the 1997 Luxembourg and 2001 San Marino Grands Prix.

Two other teams in F1 today with long gaps between wins are McLaren (49 between Adelaide 1993 and Melbourne 1997, and 44 between Fuji 1977 and Silverstone 1981) and Mercedes (40 between Monza 1955 and Shanghai 2012).

There have been longer win droughts in terms of duration, but these were set by teams who left the sport and returned. Such as Honda, who went 39 years between John Surtees’ win at Monza in 1967 and Jenson Button’s Hungarian Grand Prix win in 2006, though the team did not participate between 1969 and 2005.

Likewise Mercedes ended a 57-year wait for another victory this year, but did not compete as a full constructor between 1956 and 2009.

Most different winners at the start of the season

Maldonado became the fifth different driver for a fifth different team to win a race at the start of the season. The only other season this has ever happened was 1983:

In 1983 the sixth round was won by Prost. If a different driver or team wins the next race it will set a new record for most consecutive winners at the start of the season. Given Lotus and Sauber’s strong start to the year, it is not out of the question.

We have now had seven different winners in the last seven races, including Lewis Hamilton’s win in Abu Dhabi and Mark Webber’s in Brazil at the end of last season.

The record for most consecutive different winners is nine. Here are the longest streaks:

More Spanish Grand Prix stats and facts

Romain Grosjean set fastest lap for the first time in his career. A different driver has set fastest lap in every race this year including both Lotus drivers, although neither of them have won a race.

His team mate Kimi Raikkonen led a race for the first time since his comeback – the last time he led was at Monza in 2009.

Kamui Kobayashi equalled his best-ever finish with fifth, which he also scored in last year’s Monaco Grand Prix.

Mark Webber’s run of four consecutive fourth-place finishes came to an end. He also failed to score for the first time in ten races.

Five drivers have completed all 293 racing laps so far this year: Fernando Alonso, Lewis Hamilton, Sebastian Vettel, Nico Rosberg and Kimi Raikkonen.

Without penalties, Hamilton would have started every race from the front row so far. A gearbox change penalty dropped him to seventh in China, and his exclusion from qualifying this weekend left him last on the grid.

Review the year so far in statistics here:

• 2012 F1 championship points
• 2012 F1 season records
• 2012 F1 race data
• 2012 F1 qualifying data
• 2012 F1 retirements and penalties
• 2012 F1 strategy and pit stops
• 2012 F1 driver form guides

Spotted any other interesting stats and facts from the Spanish Grand Prix? Share them in the comments.

2012 Spanish Grand Prix

• Force India expect more from Barcelona upgrade
• Top ten pictures from the Spanish Grand Prix
• Frank Williams praises teams' rescue efforts after fire
• Vote for your Spanish GP Driver of the Weekend
• Williams end second-longest F1 victory drought

Image © BMW ag

Williams end second-longest F1 victory drought is an original article from F1 Fanatic. If this article has been published anywhere other than F1 Fanatic it is an infringement of copyright.