F1 2015 | Vettel wins Singapore Grand Prix

SINGAPORE — Sebastian Vettel recovered from a heart-stopping track invasion by an unidentified fan on Sunday as he convincingly won the Singapore Grand Prix and closed the gap on Mercedes.

Ferrari’s Vettel led wire-to-wire for his third win this year, ahead of Red Bull’s Daniel Ricciardo, with championship leader Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes forced out with mechanical problems.

But Germany’s Vettel had a major shock on lap 36 when he spotted a man walking on the track, a bizarre incident which brought the race to a temporary halt.

“There’s a man on the track!” he yelled over the team radio, as the safety car came out for the second time in the floodlit night race.

The disruption was the closest Vettel came to an upset and there were echoes of his quadruple world title romp with Red Bull as he calmly won by 1.4 seconds.

source: interaksyon.com

Alonso looks for love in cold climate

HOCKENHEIM — Fernando Alonso is hoping that the sizzling heatwave in central Europe is replaced by cooler conditions on Sunday to give his Ferrari team renewed hope at the German Grand Prix.

A break in the weather with storms followed by a cooler spell is needed if the Italians are to shine in Sunday’s 67-lap race, he suggested after qualifying only seventh on Saturday.

Alonso has won three times at Hockenheim, including his last victory with Ferrari two years ago.

“Cooler temperatures this year seem to have an effect on us being a little bit more competitive. We have a lot of tyre degradation, especially at the rear, because we spin the tyres with the lack of down force.

“When it’s hot this effect is a little bit bigger. I think in qualifying with the new tyres you mask some of the problems with the grip of the tyres.

“So I expect tomorrow to be a little bit tougher than the performance we showed today.”

On Saturday, when the air temperature rose to 34 degrees Celsius and track to 55 degrees, Nico Rosberg claimed a dominant pole position for Mercedes.

source: interaksyon.com

F1 legend Michael Schumacher in coma, critical after skiing accident

GRENOBLE – Michael Schumacher, the retired seven-time Formula One champion, was in a critical condition on Monday after suffering severe brain trauma in a skiing accident in the French Alps, doctors said.

The German racing legend, who turns 45 on Friday, had been skiing off-piste with his 14-year-old son in the upmarket Meribel resort when he fell and hit his head on a rock.

He was “suffering a serious brain trauma with coma on his arrival, which required an immediate neurosurgical operation”, according to the hospital in the southeastern French city of Grenoble where he is being treated.

“He remains in a critical condition.”

Shortly after the accident Meribel resort director Christophe Gernigon-Lecomte said Schumacher, who had been wearing a helmet, was “conscious but a little agitated”.

But when Schumacher fell into coma, doctors realised the damage was worse than initially feared.

Two mountain police officers who gave first aid to Schumacher said he was suffering “severe cranial trauma” when they got to him and a helicopter was brought in to evacuate him within 10 minutes.

A renowned Parisian neurologist, doctor Gerard Saillant, arrived at the Grenoble hospital in a police car to help take charge of the famous patient.

Schumacher’s wife Corinna was at his side with his two children, the hospital said.

The hospital statement was signed by the facility’s neurosurgeon, the professor in charge of its anaesthesia/revival unit, and the hospital’s deputy director.

Schumacher a ‘crazy daredevil’

News of Schumacher’s accident stunned the Formula One community and his former teammates joined thousands on Twitter in wishing him a speedy recovery.

“My thoughts are with Michael Schumacher at this tough time.. Michael more than anyone has the strength to pull through this,” tweeted British F1 driver Jenson Button.

Schumacher’s former teammate at Benetton Martin Brundle wrote on Twitter: “Come on Michael, give us one of those race stints at pure qualifying pace to win through, like you used to. You can do it.”

He added that the German was “a crazy brave skydiving/bike racing daredevil”.

Brazilian Formula One racing driver Felipe Massa said he was “praying for God to protect you my brother!! I wish you a speedy recovery Michael”, the former Ferrari driver wrote.

The next update on Schumacher’s condition would be given at 1000 GMT on Monday, a hospital spokesman said.

Police kept guard at the hospital’s entrances as journalists and fans, some wearing the colours of the Formula One legend’s former stable Ferrari, gathered outside awaiting news of his health.

Police have opened an investigation into the circumstances of the accident, the ski resort said.

Schumacher, who won the last of his world titles in 2004, definitively retired in 2012 in the Brazilian Grand Prix, in which he finished seventh, after an abandoned attempt to quit six years earlier.

Since his debut in 1991, the German towered over the sport, winning more Formula One world titles and races than any other. He had a record 91 wins and is one of only two men to reach 300 grands prix.

Schumacher’s duels in his heyday with Damon Hill and Jacques Villeneuve, fired by an unquenchable competitive spirit, have gone down in Formula One lore.

Schumacher was born in January 1969 near Cologne, Germany, the son of a bricklayer who also ran the local go-kart track, where his mother worked in the canteen.

By 1987, Schumacher was the German and European go-kart champion and was soon racing professionally. In 1991 he burst into Formula One by qualifying seventh in his debut race in Belgium and a year later he was racing for Benetton, where he won his first Formula One grand prix in 1992.

After joining Ferrari in 1996, Schumacher achieved infamy by trying to ram Villeneuve off the road at Jerez in the last race of 1997, and was disqualified from the championship as punishment.

Over the next decade, he went from strength to strength, dominating the podium, before trying to retire the first time aged 37.

During his retirement he survived a horror accident that knocked him out when racing a motorbike in Spain.

That time he was released from hospital after just five hours.

But the father of two could not resist the lure of the track and in 2010 he signed a three-year deal with Mercedes.

But slower reflexes and a less competitive car meant Schumacher could not reproduce his former glory and he quit for good in 2012. His helmet had a message for fans: “Life is about passions — Thank you for sharing mine.”

source: interaksyon.com

Brilliant Vettel storms to Singapore pole

SINGAPORE — Sebastian Vettel stormed to his fifth pole position of the season at the Singapore Grand Prix Saturday as the brilliant young German stepped closer to his fourth world title in a row.

Red Bull’s German pilot timed a scorching 1min 42.841sec around the spot-lit Marina Bay street circuit to take first place on the grid ahead of Mercedes’ Nico Rosberg.

Lotus driver Romain Grosjean will start third, ahead of Vettel’s Red Bull team-mate Mark Webber, Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes and Ferrari’s Felipe Massa.

Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso, second in the overall standings behind Vettel, could only manage seventh fastest ahead of McLaren’s Jenson Button, Daniel Ricciardo and Esteban Gutierrez.

But the evening belonged, once again, to Vettel, who set the two fastest times and will now be favourite to claim his third win in a row in Singapore and his fourth out of the last five races.

Vettel’s final time was so quick that he could afford to return to the garage early and watch the others — but he was a relieved man when team-mate Webber just fell short.

“It’s a great feeling because it could go wrong, but I’m very happy with the result,” said Vettel.

Hamilton topped the standings in a swiftly shifting first qualifying period, ahead of Button, Alonso, Sergio Perez and Rosberg.

Ferrari’s Felipe Massa escaped the drop with a late lap which pushed him from 18th to 13th. Paul Di Resta and Pastor Maldonado, and both Caterhams and both Marussias, missed out.

Rosberg was leading Q2 from his team-mate Hamilton with a super-fast 1:43.892 — until Vettel started his flying lap.

The young German, bouncing over kerbs and speeding just inches (centimetres) from the track walls, obliterated Rosberg’s time by nearly a second as he screamed round in 1:42.905.

Vettel, Webber, Rosberg and Hamilton led the cars into the Q3 shoot-out, with Nico Hulkenberg, Ferrari-bound Kimi Raikkonen and McLaren’s Perez outside the top 10.

It was no surprise that Vettel stayed fastest, but he did it in astounding style, lowering his previous time and earning enough breathing space to garage early.

However, there were some nervy moments when Webber threatened his time — and a relieved Vettel punched the air as he watched his Australian team-mate finish in a slower time.

The 26-year-old has a 53-point lead in the standings and victory on Sunday will put him closer to matching Michael Schumacher and Juan Manuel Fangio by winning four championships in a row.

“It’s one of the toughest races we face all year, I would say the toughest physically and mentally. It’s so long and there’s so many corners, there’s hardly any room for mistakes,” he said.

“Pole is the best position to start from, I’m very happy with that as it’s tricky to pass on this track. But because it’s such a long race I think there’s plenty of opportunities for all of us.”

source: interaksyon.com