Tag Archives: robert kubica

Testing over, Australia is approaching

So testing for the 2011 season is done, the teams have their data and we have the times. There isn’t many surprises within the testing times though I would have expected more from McLaren – not another year spent catching up? If Red Bull stop throwing away points McLaren don’t have a chance. Ferrari should push them hard and expect Alonso to want that title.
Australia is an odd place, it doesn’t seem to be that indicative of the season and doesn’t always show the true pace of the cars. We also know that you can win by being clever here as Jenson Button has shown. Don’t expect the Red Bull to be off the pace though, or for the brakes to explode, they will be hard to beat.
The tyres will be the great unknown in Melbourne as there isn’t really anywhere to use the new rear wing or Drag reduction device, [...]

Testing for the new season begins

The 2011 began in Valencia as the teams set out to prove that their news cars are up to speed. Some teams opted to miss this first test entirely or run their old car, most notable of these was McLaren. While some may criticise that decision it didn’t seem to affect Red Bull last year who didn’t even attend the first test.
Robert Kubica ended the last day fastest, showing that the Renault may yet have some pace this year, though he may not get to drive it again due to his accident. The Red Bulls seems to be putting it some solid runs but the Mercedes car still doesn’t seem to have much pace compared. The picture is far from clear in testing though with different fuel loads run lengths and testing programmes at play. We’ve also yet to see some of the new cars for comparison.
Testing continues this week [...]

Full year report: Renault

Renault have flattered to deceive all year, in practice they are fast, Robert  sometimes even gets them near the front in qualifying but the never seem to be able to convert in into race pace. Vitaly Petrov hasn’t exactly excelled in the other car and they don’t seem to have had the development regime of the other teams.
Robert Kubica has been the star of the Renault show and if there were places at one of the top teams he would be heading there, but as there isn’t he’ll be at Renault next year plugging away trying to ensure that he stays on peoples radar, he might even get a podium.
Vitaly Petrov hasn’t impressed all year, he has had accident after incident and hasn’t been consistent in any way. If he hadn’t paid for his drive I doubt he’d still be racing, Flavio would have had him out races ago.
Renault need [...]

Ferrari take the title by the horns as Red Bull implode

Korea was always going to be an odd event, the track wasn’t finished, the teams knew nothing about the surface and it had the specter of rain. What rain it was too, apart from causing the race start to be delayed an hour it meant that no one out there was confident – apart it seemed from Lewis Hamilton. Webber slipped in the conditions and Vettel’s car let him down again as Alonso was left to pick up the pieces and take a lead in the drivers championship.
The two McLaren drivers have almost ruled themselves out of the hunt now with fourth and twelfth and given the pace of their car which leaves the title race to Webber, Vettel, and Alonso. With Brazil and Abu Dhabi to come (both won by Red Bull last year) Webber must being feeling confident, though in the past Ferrari have held the upper hand [...]