Marussia versus Caterham: The Battle at the Back of the Grid

Interlagos 2012:  While the driver’s championship was being hotly contested between Sebastian Vettel and Fernando Alonso at the top of the grid, another battle was being fought with just as much significance resting on the result between two teams at the bottom.  In the closing stages of the race in Brazil, Vitaly Petrov overtook Charles Pic to usurp eleventh place, his best all season, giving Caterham the vital tenth place in the constructor’s standings.  While they may have won the battle, it is Marussia who are winning the war as the 2013 season dawns.

Photo: Sutton images

Having guarded the precious tenth spot since Timo Glock’s twelth place finish in Singapore, losing it at such a late stage was particularly disheartening.  Missing out on the extra revenue carried by tenth place, economic troubles now became ominous for the team, forcing them to make tough decisions.  One such decision was to part ways with experienced driver Timo Glock.  Having already replaced Charles Pic with significantly funded Max Chilton, the looming cloud of economic instability dictated the need to have another driver with similar financial backing.  Initially announcing that Brazilian Luiz Razia would drive for them in 2013, Marussia headed into winter testing where it rapidly became clear that his career with the team was over before its inception, due to funding not being received.  Quickly benefiting from Force India’s decision to hire Adrian Sutil to fill their second seat, Marussia swooped in on Frenchman Jules Bianchi to drive alongside Chilton. 

Photo:  F1 Fanatic

Caterham’s preparations for the new season were slightly less tumultuous.  Charles Pic was signed from Marussia in November putting the seats of Vitaly Petrov and Heikki Kovalainen in danger.  Surrounding the departure of Heikki was lots of talk about the team needing to hire a driver who could deliver money, however his record of underperformance compared with his team mates may have had some bearing.  Despite earning the team their all important prize winning tenth place, Vitaly Petrov was also overlooked when signing for 2013.  Able to furnish the team with payment for his drive, rookie Giedo Van der Garde won the seat. 

While left to languish behind Caterham in the championship at the end of last season, the new season brings optimism and hope.  After the first two rounds, Marussia lie above their rivals in that lucrative tenth spot and have been the team to sparkle. 

Providing much of the sparkle is Jules Bianchi who is the leading light in Marussia’s invigoration.  Races in both Australia and Malaysia have been the settings for stunning displays of driving talent by the Frenchman, akin to those showcased by Fernando Alonso at Minardi and Ayrton Senna at Toleman.  Qualifying top out of the four Marussia and Caterham drivers, and achieving fifteenth place in Australia then bettering this by two places to bring the car home in thirteenth in Malaysia, has attracted attention and created luminosity around the team in a time when their success could be overshadowed by well publicised events further up the field. 

In comparison, Caterham have not had such a bright start to the season.  Indeed, the only thing to sparkle is their new livery.  In Australia they qualified in the lowest two positions, with Charles Pic failing to meet the 107% requirement.  Malaysia showed a slight improvement with Pic taking 20^th position on the grid with Van der Garde in 22^nd.  In the race in Melbourne the Dutchman finished last of the cars still running with his more experienced team mate two places ahead.  However, Caterham will have been pleased at finishing above Max Chilton in Malaysia.   While Max could be seen as a weak spot for Marussia, he is young and hungry, and with a team mate of Bianchi’s quality, has the ideal incentive to spur further improvement in performance. 

Photo: jamesallenon f1.com

In addition to having a promising driver such as Bianchi, Marussia have used links with other teams to bolster their aspirations for 2013.  Using a KERS system developed by Williams when they were running a Cosworth engine, Marussia have been pleased with its addition to the MR02 so far.  In conjunction with McLaren Applied technologies they have also been able to use wind tunnel technology to develop the design of the car, a significant move forward for them.  With Jules Bianchi being part of the Ferrari Young Driver Programme, links to the Italian team can also be made and could lead to a possible engine deal for the return to the turbo era in 2014, not to mention possible use of other Ferrari resources. 

So far 2013 is proving to be a season full of optimism and confidence, and instead of staring at the back of the Caterhams, they could be looking to battle the likes of Williams and Toro Rosso at the back of the midfield.  Finishing only three away from a point scoring position in Malaysia, attaining Marussia’s first point is almost guaranteed if Bianchi continues his electrifying form, and a contest for ninth in the Constructor’s championship is within the realms of possibility.   For the team with the smallest budget in Formula One, what an incredible story that would be. 

Panicky requests for a change in Pirelli tyres may be regretted by Red Bull and Mercedes.

The power of rubber:  For something that is so easily destroyed at the hands of a Formula One car, it has a remarkable command over the sport stretching its tendrils of control into virtually every aspect.  Tyres dictate the design of the car, race set up, race strategy and driving style, and considering this omnipotence it is not surprising that complaints are heard from the teams when they impact negatively on performance. 

After high hopes held by Mercedes following winter testing took a tumble during the opening weekend of the season in Australia, Niki Lauda expressed serious concern over the 2013 Pirelli tyres.  With the race won by Kimi Raikkonen undertaking one less pit stop than the other front runners, the Austrian legend questioned the influence the new tyres have over the number of stops, saying that it is difficult for the fans to understand.  He told German newspaper Bild, “The fans don’t understand if there are more than two pitstops ( For F1) it’s a fundamentally wrong path.”  Could the reasoning behind crediting fans with such little knowledge and understanding, be a smokescreen for a whinge about the tyres because they prevented the team from delivering the results they hoped for? 

Likewise, after not being able to convert a pole position into a race win in Melbourne, Red Bull were also bleating about the high degradation of the 2013 compounds, with Helmut Marko declaring that Pirelli had agreed to bring a changed version to Bahrain at the latest. 

Helmut Marko's comments show anxiety about performance of the Red Bull.  Photo:  Yallaf1.com

Having had positive experiences with the tyres at Albert Park, with Alonso claiming second to Raikkonen’s victory, Ferrari and Lotus hold differing views to those of Mercedes and Red Bull.  Both teams have stated that they will not give their consent to an alteration in the tyres on anything other than safety grounds.  Holding the same belief, Pirelli’s Motorsport Director, Paul Hembury, has declared that no modification to the tyres will take place.

Pirelli were asked to change the tyres to make racing more exciting in 2013. The compounds they have produced to fulfil that brief are the same for every team on the grid, and moaning about their behaviour suggests insecurity about their understanding of the performance of their cars.   Surely adapting the design and set up of the cars to match tyre behaviour is part of the development contest that continues throughout the season and shouldn’t be questioned one race in. 

After sharing the top four finishing positions in Malaysia, Red Bull and Mercedes might just be ruing the panicky requests made to change the tyre compounds to make them more conducive to their cars.  They may be very glad that favouritism is not a word with which Pirelli are familiar.  

Malaysian Grand Prix: Team mate conflict and pit lane catastrophe

Enthralling from the outset, the Malaysian Grand Prix became more and more bizarre as it evolved.  Underpinning the race was stirring wheel to wheel racing, later entwined with twisted tales of team mate conflict and pit lane catastrophe. 

As the lights were extinguished over a damp track and the cars sprang into action on their intermediate tyres, good starts were made by the drivers on the front few rows of the grid.  Fernando Alonso, having weaved his way round the outside of Sebastian Vettel at turn 1 to put himself on the racing line for Turn 2, became startled at the position and speed at which he now found the German, resulting in damage to his  front wing.  After another sterling start, Massa slipped down to sixth after the aforementioned scuffle.  Almost making contact with Alonso, he backed off a little to be passed by Webber, who had made an unusually positive start, followed by Hamilton and Button.  As they swept their way further round the opening lap, Alonso was pushing hard, overtaking Mark Webber despite sporting a precarious front wing.  Believing he could stay out until it was time to replace the intermediates with slicks, Alonso passed the entrance of the pit lane to start another lap, one that was halted by contact with Mark Webber, ripping the wing from the car and sending the Spaniard careering into the gravel.  The race now had a Red Bull one- two situation that would become more elaborate as the race unfolded. 

Alonso's 200th race ended in disappointment.  Photo: Montrealgazette.com

Having been given a three place grid penalty for blocking Nico Rosberg during qualifying, Kimi Raikkonen made a poor start which was taken advantage of Hulkenberg making a strong start from twelfth.  By lap six, Hulkenberg had  put his Sauber into seventh position. 

Lap five saw Vettel visit the pits for his first set of slicks.  A move that was followed by the rest of the field as a stream of cars followed suit causing problems in the pit lane.  A momentary loss of memory saw Lewis Hamilton pull into his old McLaren box much to the surprise of the pit crew.  An auto pilot mistake that caused him to lose a precious six seconds that could have put him in contention for the lead.   A collision between Jean Eric Vergne and Charles Pic in the pits resulted in a new front wing and a $10,000 fine for Toro Rosso for unsafe release.  The pit lane woes continued in the Force India garage with a problem securing the left rear tyre on Adrian Sutil’s car. 

  

The decision to leave Webber out a lap later than most of the field proved a smart move which propelled him ahead of his team mate.  After exiting the pits he put in a few storming laps on his fresh hard tyres.  Just behind the Red Bulls the Mercedes of Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg were making advances on the leaders, with Hamilton taking chunks out of Webber’s lead and Rosberg being told not to focus on nurturing the tyres.  In contrast to this aggressive action being taken by Mercedes, Webber was given a coded message telling him to look after the tyres because he will endure no assault from Vettel behind him, a request that gave the silver cars the opportunity to stalk the leaders more closely. 

For the second consecutive race, Maldonado made an unforced error rumbling through the gravel and across the grass.   To remedy his car after its adventure, he came in for a front wing demoting him to twenty first position.  He later retired on lap 49 with a KERS issue. 

Early on, championship leader Kimi Raikkonen spent a long time staring at the back of Perez’s McLaren, before use of DRS enabled him to get past on lap 16.  The stability and flexibility seen in the Lotus in Australia was a distant memory as The Finn looked uncomfortable all day.  On lap 35 he was overtaken in a close encounter by Hulkenberg in the pit lane. On lap 39, scrapping for ninth position,  Kimi could be heard complaining over the radio that he was being squeezed off the track by Hulkenberg. Two laps later he passed the German down the pit straight into turns two and three. He finished seventh, the position he qualified in before receiving the grid penalty.

Kimi was unable to repeat Melbourne performance.  Photo: Yallaf1.com 

Lying just behind the four frontrunners was Jenson Button in fifth, giving us a glimpse of the improvement McLaren are making.  However this improved performance was halted by a mistake during his pit stop on lap 36, when the front right tyre was not secured properly.  Having driven a few yards towards the exit, and not being able to reverse in the pit lane, he was hauled back to the box to ensure the job was done properly.  His hopes for points were dashed as he left the pits to rejoin in fourteenth, later retiring with two laps to go.   

Force India’s stunning start to the weekend dissipated from memory as another problem during a pit stop failed to secure the left front tyre on Paul di Resta’s car.  This left him to filter back onto the track in last position, a lap down.  Beginning their trip to Malaysia with such high hopes, the team later had to endure a crashing low in the form of a double retirement.

Nearing the midway point of the race saw the team mate battles heat up.  Having stayed out a lap longer than Webber, and hoping a fast in lap would help him overtake the Australian,  Vettel showed disappointment at having to remain behind.  Team radio aired, “Same strategy as previous stint, three second gap, saving the tyres.”  Thinking about the Constructors Championship on the Red Bull pit wall, decisions had been made to ensure a safe one – two result.  With Mark struggling on medium tyres however, the three times world champion’s desire to go faster couldn’t be controlled.  “He is too slow, get him out of the way.” Like an uncontrollable beast that won’t be tamed, Vettel was unable to accept the teams wish for him to concede the victory.  After exiting the pit lane following a stop on lap 44, Webber found himself embroiled in an almighty contest with his team mate that continued round to turn five.  The assault was repeated a lap later when he was finally overcome. Nerves ripped to shreds on the pit wall anticipating possible bloodshed, team radio messages were used to attempt to control the situation.   “Come on Seb, this is silly.”

Racing wheel to wheel.  Photo: News.com.au

Meanwhile the Mercedes drivers were having their own squabbles.  After their earlier messages intimating the need to push the Red Bulls, Mercedes now risked running out of fuel if they continued the level of pace.  Lewis, running just ahead of Rosberg was told to conserve fuel, with Nico being told to back off.  As with the Red Bull battle, team radio revealed all as Rosberg stated,  “ I can go faster than him, let me past.”   Clearly unhappy as he pulled in at the end of the race, he said,  “ Will remember this one.”

Adrian Newey was chosen to collect the constructor’s trophy and as he and the drivers gathered to await their podium appearance, the tension and animosity was palpable.  With the team telling Vettel over the radio at the end of the race, “Look’s like you wanted it bad enough, there will be some explaining to do,” words exchanged between Newey and Vettel were strained.  A lack of eye contact was evident as Mark Webber joined them and proceeded to show his displeasure at Seb’s blatant defiance of the team’s decision. 

Tension on the podium.  Photo: Telegraph.com

 With simmering vexation and wrath evident, coupled with Lewis Hamilton’s unease at taking third place from a faster team mate, the podium ceremony was more like a funeral than a celebration.  Malaysia 2013 will go down as an epic race, but not necessarily for the right reasons. 

Qualifying in Malaysia: Ferrari reveal their pace over one lap.

Q1

Contrary to usual practice in qualifying one, full use was made of the softer compound tyre, suggesting the teams will be favouring the harder compound in the race.  Not wishing to use more tyres than necessary, teams chose not to make early appearances. Prior to the session, Stefano Domenicalli voiced his opinions about the importance of saving tyres over the need to reach the front row, and backed this opinion up by sending out his cars for a sole run.  No more was necessary as Alonso went fourth fastest and Massa was twelfth. 

With eight minutes left of the session, Adrian Sutil thumped in a 1.36.8 on medium tyres to go fastest, a time consequently not matched.  Steaming out of the pits on medium tyres, Kimi Raikkonen slotted the Lotus in just behind the Force India. 

Looking like he could fall victim to the dreaded drop zone, Webber put in a lap that saw him go ninth fastest, leaving Gutierrez with a fight on his hands, one he won to reach safety in eleventh, five places ahead of team mate Nico Hulkenberg who had earlier become agitated when blocked by Sergio Perez. 

John Eric Vergne missed out on the second qualifying session while  team mate Ricciardo cruised through four places ahead; a difference matching that between Valtteri Bottas in eighteenth and Maldonado in fourteenth.  The remaining places in the drop zone were filled by Marussia and Caterham.  Although missing out on Q2, Jules Bianchi was only half a second behind Hulkenberg which not only showcased his own talents, but also those of the developing Marussia. 

Bianchi shows promise in the Marussia.  Photo: Skysports.com

Q2

Qualifying saw most drivers out on new medium tyres.  Adrian Sutil showed consistency as he matched his 1.36.8 time from the first qualifying session.   Rosberg outperformed Lewis setting the fastest time, closely followed by Webber seven places ahead of Vettel, who was on a used set of medium tyres, a clever move to guard a crucial extra set, something that will be needed if they do end up on a four stopper as suggested in the third practice session. 

Seven minutes in, and droplets of rain started to make the track slippery making it imperative that drivers get a timed lap completed before the elements truly turned against them.  Massa and Alonso got out on track just in time, resulting in sixth and seventh positions, while Di Resta and Grosjean were caught out.  Languishing in fifteenth, Paul di Resta was on a flyer that could have put him into the top ten but he slipped on moisture and lost it at turns 7 and 8 making another run necessary to avoid being locked out.  Unfortunately for him, he endured another spin leaving him to start the race in eleventh.  The other drivers to be locked out in this session were Hulkenberg, Ricciardo and Gutierrez. 

Paul di Resta couldn't keep the car on track ending up 15th on the grid.

Q3

The start of the third qualifying session saw a queue of drivers on intermediate tyres ready to be unleashed at sight of the green light. A queue of drivers itching to get an early lap in to pave the way for a later flying lap to ensnare pole position.   The earlier laps ironed out teething problems as Lewis Hamilton struggled to keep his Mercedes on track, Vettel was passed round the outside and Sutil showed that he wasn’t as content in inclement conditions. 

After initial timed laps were completed, but with no one quite brave enough to risk slicks, the drivers started to come in for new inters.  A crucial move made by Vettel, Massa and Alonso who captured the top three positions on the grid.  Despite lagging behind his team mate for most of the day, Hamilton finished the qualifying session two places ahead of Rosberg in fourth.  Emerging late, Raikkonen only had enough time for one timed lap, and with the car squirming underneath him, he only managed fourth, pushed down to seventh by later laps from Rosberg, Alonso and Massa.  A grid penalty for blocking Rosberg later pushed him down to tenth.  Button and Perez showed there is some performance left in the McLaren qualifying eighth and tenth respectively. 

Photo: Emirates247.com

It was a close qualifying.  After third practice, it looked like Ferrari were so focused on the race, they were sacrificing pace over one lap.  With qualifying over, they appeared to have focus for both.  With Red Bull fastest again over one lap, we were left to wonder whether they can put together an effective race package.  

Malaysia FP3: A close session pointing towards an exciting qualifying session.

Practice three in sweltering Malaysia alluded to what could be expected in qualifying.  With no team yet to have found all the pieces of the jigsaw, let alone pieced them together, a gripping qualifying session was promised following the session.

  

Red Bull started the session on heavily fuelled long runs and after Mark Webber initially set the pace, they were impeded by tyre wear.  Towards the end of his own long run, Vettel  had a skirmish with his car as the back end tried to escape him; a clear indication that tyre degradation was taking its toll.  With the circuit having evolved due to the rain in FP2, rear tyres started to struggle due to its now unfavourable tendency to cause oversteer.  With Red Bull’s race simulation showing that they only have eleven laps before their hard tyres reach their limit, four pit stops during the race wasn’t beyond comprehension. 

FP2 pace setter Kimi Raikkonen appeared to be tussling with oversteer in his car.  The changes in the track overnight affected the balance of the Lotus which seemed so perfectly matched to conditions in the earlier sessions.  He ended fifth fastest with his team mate down in fourteenth. 

Sebastian Vettel ended the session with a 1.36.4 to go fastest.  Red Bull still appear to have their main focus set firmly on pace over a single lap, but they aren’t looking good on long runs in terms of tyre management.   Completing less laps than the other top teams, Ferrari seem to be content with the set up of their car, and while they are not showing out and out pace, have an eye on the bigger picture with development for the race firmly set in their minds.  Massa and Alonso ended the session eighth and tenth respectively. 

Vettel topped the timesheet in the third session.  Photo: skynews.com.au

Niki Lauda could be seen looking serious in the Mercedes garage as both drivers put themselves at the top of the timesheet at different points in the session.   Continuing their quest to become the new McLaren in terms of constructor’s position, Adrian Sutil and Paul di Resta kept the cars in the top five for the duration of the period.  With the aim of McLaren being to understand the car better in order to extract more performance in Malaysia, Button’s seventh fastest time suggests they are heading in the right direction.

Practice three built the foundations for an exciting qualifying session.  Red Bull were quick over one lap but their race simulation suggest they won’t be as strong in the race.  The opposite could be said of Ferrari.  Mercedes will be fairly optimistic, while Lotus will hope the track reverts to conditions experienced during practice sessions one and two. 

Malaysia FP2: Lotus set the standard as Kimi Raikkonen outperforms the field in changing conditions.

The threat of rain looming over second practice was a catalyst for the drivers to get out on track as soon as the green light flicked on. In stark contrast to the minimal lack of action seen in the first half hour of the earlier session, the possibility of a Malaysian downpour prompted all teams to complete runs before the gathering black clouds unleashed their ammunition.

The aim for Ferrari for the second session was to complete more long runs, having spent time doing practice starts and other pit lane tests in the first.  They immediately looked good as Alonso recorded a 137.3. Not good enough however, to prevent Kimi Raikkonen marginally trumping it a few minutes later with a 137.0.  Going in to this race it was the aim of Lewis Hamilton to build on the positive start experienced in Australia, however the pace of the Mercedes showed the foundations may have crumbled, as his first flying lap achieved a 1.44.1, slightly behind that of his team mate on a 1.43.7.  Hamilton later improved on this time, but was still left trailing by a second.    

Kimi sets fastest time.  Photo: Yallaf1.com

Ferrari set another fastest time twenty minutes into the session with a 1.36.6 from Massa on medium tyres, but with the Red Bull looking mighty through the fast corners, Sebastian Vettel  struck,  going a few tenths faster. 

With the first splattering of rain being felt half an hour in, exploration of tyre behaviour in the wet became the story of the session.  When rain began to fall steadily, drivers used the opportunity to explore different racing lines and test how far they could push their slicks on a moist track.  Nico Hulkenberg discovered the limits of his tyres, spinning the car by the entrance to the pit lane, his second incident of the session.  Finding reverse, he managed to move off the racing line avoiding an oncoming Sebastian Vettel, and a red flag situation. 

Rain gave the teams a chance to try out wet set ups.  Photo:dauliymail.com

With the chance to delve into the nature of the full wet and intermediate compound tyres, Gutierrez left the pits on the former and Perez on the latter with 26 minutes left on the clock.  Being unable to gain a suitable amount of grip on wet tyres, Gutierrez had a momentary excursion from the track.  Wrestling it back on, he headed for the pits to change to intermediates.  Likewise, Perez had a trip across the gravel after slipping on a white line.

The Ferraris were impressive on the damp track with a 1.53.6 from Alonso, compared with a 1.55.8 from Kimi Raikkonen.    Heat and humidity in Malaysia causes the track to dry quickly so it wasn’t long before cars emerged on slick tyres.  The track stayed patchy as Webber experienced on the final turn, when lack of grip caused a fleeting loss of control under braking. 

As the track continued to dry, Grosjean took a trip across the grass three minutes from the end of the session while his team mate Kimi posted a 1.40.0 on medium tyres.  

After his victory in Melbourne, Kimi expressed a wish for a continuation in performance.  Achieving the fastest time on a dry track, second fastest on a damp track and fastest on a drying track, his wish is on the road to being granted.  Although closely followed by Red Bull and Ferrari, Lotus and Kimi are setting the standard.  

Malaysia FP1: Red Bull show good pace while Lotus optimise tyre performance.

Two long straights fused at a hairpin and a selection of fast, flowing corners provides contrasting racing from that seen on Australia’s street circuit at Albert Park.   As the Formula One circus arrives at the first racing circuit of the season at Sepang International, thrilling racing packed full of overtaking is anticipated.  

Photo: Exampaper.com

With teams keen to look after their tyres, searching for the optimum time to go out to use the one set they can spare for the session, the first half an hour on track resembled a ghost town.  As the period crept on, a lone Marussia broke the silence.    Max Chilton set the first time of the session with a 1.42.5, a time he cut by a second on his second flying lap.  A few minutes later, Sergio Perez directed his McLaren round the circuit in 1.38.8, around two seconds faster than his more experienced team mate, Jenson Button.   

With 47 minutes left of the session, Grosjean emerged sporting a new front wing for the weekend.  Back to a familiar set up after a poor race in Melbourne, he pushed hard on his initial flying lap, going flat out through turn 13 rumbling over the kerb to record a time of 1.39.3.  Improving this time by one and a half seconds he pounded in a 1.37.9 to go fastest. 

Mercedes showed great pace on their first timed laps with Nico Rosberg setting a time of 1.37.5 on his second flying lap snatching the top spot from the Frenchman.  Red Bull revealed their hand as Rosberg’s time was overshadowed  by Mark Webber’s 1.37.0, which he later improved with a 1.36.9.  Vettel was just behind, 2 tenths off his team mate. 

Webber was fastest in the first practice session.  Photo: burnleycitizen.co.uk

With twenty seven minutes remaining, Esteban Gutierrez lost control into turn 14 after blasting up behind a slow moving Felipe Massa.  This incident was followed by a lock up from Alonso causing a momentary departure from the track.  Completing significantly less laps than the rest of the field, the Ferrari’s of Alonso and Massa finished the session four tenths and eight tenths off the pace respectively. 

After outpacing his team mate following their first flying laps, Adrian Sutil suffered a collapsed front wing after mounting a kerb.  The Force India appeared to be lacking flexibility as the ride height also had to be adjusted on the car of Di Resta.  Sutil was later told over the team radio to stay off the kerbs.  Finishing sixth and eighth fastest, despite their issues, they are emerging as front runners in the midfield, and if they stay true to this form, will overtake McLaren’s position in the pecking order.  William’s dismal start to the season continued as they finished sixteenth and nineteenth fastest. 

Last to set a time was Championship leader Kimi Raikkonen.  Starting the weekend with a new front wing and new bodywork, a KERs issue sprung up during the session requiring major work to be completed during the session.  The Finn’s first flying lap saw him set the second fastest time with a 1.37.4. 

Towards the end of the session degradation of the tyres became evident.  With the teams using the same set of tyres for the whole session, they tumbled over the precipice of peak performance.  After completing sixteen laps, the hard tyres on Sebastian Vettel’s car were propelling rubber missiles across the track and Lewis Hamilton could be heard reporting over the radio that his were destroyed.  Having only completed twelve laps, chunks appeared to be missing from Felipe Massa’s tyres.  Only Lotus, with their flexible car, together with a laid back, smooth Iceman driving style seemed to be able to combat the punishing effects of the double right handed corners on the left front tyre.  Having topped the timesheet, Red Bull showed they have a car with good pace, but lag behind in the quest to optimise tyre performance.  Red Bull and Lotus went into the second practice session evenly matched.