Last updated at 6:56 PM on 12th June 2011
Following the sport's utter incompetence over the handling of the Bahrain affair, Formula One can at last turn its attentions back to the track today with the Canadian Grand Prix.
And when it comes to drama and excitement, the Montreal race always throws up a fantastic showing, and round seven of the 2011 calendar is unlikely to buck the trend.
After his Monaco nightmare, Lewis Hamilton, who already trails championship leader Sebastian Vettel by 58 points, will be keen to make his mark around the Canadian port. And the Briton has done pretty well here in years gone by - winning his maiden grand prix back in 2007, and romping to glory last year.
But will he be able to stop the reigning world champion? You won't need me to tell you that Vettel has won five of the opening six races this season. You can join in on today's action by contacting me on Twitter, or dropping me an email.
18.53: I've dropped in a few pictures of the incident between Button and Hamilton below. Who do you think was at fault? Here's Hamilton's verdict on it: 'It was tricky conditions. I had pretty good pace. Jenson made a mistake into the last corner. I got the run on him. I think I was half way up the outside of him and he kept moving across. Whether or not he saw me I don't know. The team told me to retire. I thought the suspension was broken but it wasn't - it was just the tyre was busted.'
18.47: You can't blame the race director Charlie Whiting - the rain is torrential, and it's a virtual swimming pool out there. I can't see this race being restarted any time soon.
Lap 25: The Canadian Grand Prix is RED FLAGGED!
Lap 23: 'An update for you, there's so much water, you cannot re-start the race like this,' Vettel says over the team-radio. Doesn't look as though we'll be racing any time soon then. So here's a run down on the top 10 for you: Vettel, Kobayashi, Massa, Heidfeld, Petrov, Di Resta, Webber, Alonso, De La Rosa, Button
Lap 22: 'From Turn 9 to Turn 13 it's simply undriveable', says the race-leader and reigning world champion Sebastian Vettel, as we see Hamilton finally make his way back to the pits. I don't think he'll be speaking to the media any time soon.
Lap 21: Massa loses the lead of the race after pitting for a new set of tyres. Should the safety car be out simply because it starts raining? Meanwhile, Schumacher is in for his second stop after a brief stint on the inters - that didn't work out for the seven-times champion.
Lap 20: Sebastian Vettel is in for a new set of wet tyres - it's virtually a free pit-stop because he hasn't been picked up by the safety car yet. Webber is in for a change of full wets. Massa leads the grand prix. I should point out that the safety car is out because of the deluge of rain, and not because of an accident.
Lap 19: Button is up to P8 after passing Di Resta and Petrov. Here's Sportsmail's Simon Cass: 'Button is flying on the intermediates; will a tyre gamble finally pay off for the McLaren driver? He is giving everyone else something to think about but I am looking out of the window and the rain is insistent and the umbrellas are up in the paddock.' And Simon's not wrong. It's chucking it down, and the SAFETY CAR has been called out. Alonso pits for the extreme wet, and he's followed in by Jenson Button.
Lap 18: Vettel is EIGHT seconds ahead of Massa, and twenty-three ahead of the other Ferrari of Alonso, who is in P7.
Lap 17: Webber is past the other Renault of Nick Heidfeld, and moves up to seventh after his earlier collision with Hamilton. Alonso and Rosberg pit for intermediate tyres, and Alonso feeds in between the two Renaults.
Lap 16: Button is half-a-second quicker than the leaders in the middle sector of the lap, and is now all over the back of Di Resta in P10.
Lap 15: A dry line is emerging, and that's Button up to P11 after taking Barrichello, Sutil and Maldonado on the same lap. Webber moves up to P8 after passing Petrov. Will the front-runners react to Button? The McLaren man is flying.
Lap 14: Button is flying on the intermediate tyres. He passes Sebastien Beumi and moves up to P14 after serving his penalty.
Lap 13: We're racing again, as Vettel leads from Alonso, Massa, Rosberg, Schumacher, Kobayashi, Heidfeld, Petrov, Webber and Di Resta. More misery for Button, as the McLaren man has been penalised - he comes in for a drive-through.
Lap 12: Safety car in at the end of this lap.
Lap 11: No sign of Hamilton making it back to the pits. Something to hide? Webber is told he needs a new steering wheel. Button is set for a drive-through after speeding under the safety car.
Lap 10: The safety car remains out, as we see rain beginning to fall. Huge black clouds are approaching, and Button is on the wrong tyres. He's slipped to P12. Hamilton is also under investigation for speeding under the safety car. That's three investigations in 10 laps. Surely, that has to be some sort of record?
Lap 9: The incident between Hamilton and Button will be investigated. A difficult one to call. Button was protecting his line, after Lewis got a better run off the final corner. With the spray, it would have been almost impossible to see his McLaren team-mate in his mirrors.
Lap 8 So, the safety car is still out. 'Is there any damage to the car?' Button asks. 'Everything looks okay. We can see no damage,' he's told.
In tow: Hamilton gets a run on Button before the two collide on the pit-straight
Lap 7: I take it back. Vettel makes an error at Turn 8. And incredible. Hamilton is OUT as the safety car is deployed. Lewis eyes a move on Button, but makes contact with his team-mate. 'What is he doing?' Button yells over the team-radio. Button pits for Inters. You just couldn't make it up.
Lap 6: So, it doesn't matter whether it's dry or wet, Vettel is still flying. He's almost four seconds up on Alonso. Hamilton takes to the outside of Schumacher at the hairpin, but the Mercedes man edges Lewis wide, and Hamilton falls behind team-mate Button. We have just seen the replay of the Webber-Hamilton incident. Racing incident, probably. But the stewards could take action. I'll keep you updated.
Lap 5: Alonso is all over the back of Vettel, but he goes in too deep into Turn 1, and the German keeps the lead. And it just had to happen. Hamilton has a stab at Webber into the first corner, but they touch, and Webber spins. Hamilton drops to six, while the Aussie falls way down the order. Schumacher is up to fifth after taking Button. Vettel leads by two seconds.
Lap 4: So, thankfully the safety car is in at the end of this lap. Lilian Robins is backing Hamilton to win on Twitter.
Lap 3: It's wet, but visibility is okay.' Unsurprisingly, Hamilton wants to get going. Oh, and Vettel leads from Alonso, Massa, Webber, Hamilton, Rosberg, Button, Schumacher, Heidfeld and Petrov.
Lap 2: Someone's just said to me, 'these guys get paid 20million-a-year. They should be racing in the wet.' They're probably making a good point. Massa is also told more rain will come in 15-20 minutes.
Lap 1: Rather bizarrely the race is now under way, albeit under the safety car. Schumacher is told rain will be expected after 15 minutes. It's looking pretty wet out there. Dare I say, we could be under safety car conditions for a few laps yet.
17.57: A safety car start means ALL the drivers must start the race on the extreme wet tyre - also DRS won't be activated until the race director deems it safe enough to do so.
17.56: So, it's been confirmed... the race will start under the SAFETY CAR.
17.55: 'I'm calling red flag before 75% of the race is done', Daniel Notaro says on Twitter. But what do the rest of you think? The track appears to be drying, albeit very slowly, but more rain is forecast.
17.52: Here is Sportsmail's Chief Motor Racing Correspondent Simon Cass: 'McLaren have been coy but the general feeling is they have gambled with a set-up better suited to the wet so despite Hamilton and Button starting down the grid their gamble might just be set to pay off. Both Mercedes have followed suit as has Barrichello in the Williams. 'This is a voyage into the unknown for everybody with no teams having had much experience of the wet tyre and even less on the intermediate. Today might be a good one to have a punt on a outsider for a podium finish. Those concrete walls look even closer in these damp conditions.'
17.50: We're hearing that the race will start under the safety car. A shame, but not surprising.
17.45: It's mayhem on the grid, as the teams and drivers decide what tyre to run. Will it be the intermediates of the extreme tyre? Here's Jenson Button's view on it all: 'It's very slippery. There is a lot of standing water. I think you've got to be wary. 'It's stopped raining and it is getting warmer and we still haven't decided what to run.'
17.35: So, here's the Red Bull pairing of Sebastian Vettel, and Mark Webber. We'll start with the pole-sitter and reigning world champion: 'It's quite slippery and quite wet. (On whether he'll start on intermediate tyres) 'Not with this amount of water. It is extreme, but maybe inters with less water later on.' And here's his team-mate, who starts in fourth: 'It's pretty good, and tricky in places. Turns 5,6,7 it's difficult through there, but it's not too bad. We'll have a look when we get going. Survival for the first hour is very important, they'll be safety cars, but you've got to stay cool and keep the pace sensible.'
On the Button: The McLaren man speaks to Mark Webber (above), while Lewis Hamilton and Nick Heidfeld wave to fans on the drivers' parade
17.30: So, who will the rain favour? Lewis Hamilton, who starts in sixth always excels in damp conditions, while Michael the 'rain-meister' Schumacher could be in contention for his first podium since his return to the grid. Either way, it won't be straight-forward for pole-sitter Vettel, and for us neutrals, that has to be a good thing. Let's hear your predictions.. I'll get the very best views up on the site.
17.25: Good evening everyone, and welcome to Sportsmail's coverage of the Canadian Grand Prix. The umbrellas are up in Montreal, and we're set for a wet race - stay tuned for what promises to be an absolute corker of a grand prix.
Pole-sitter: Sebastian Vettel will start the Canadian Grand Prix from pole position
No hay comentarios:
Publicar un comentario