Race Winner Rosberg Given Reprimand

Mercedes’ Nico Rosberg has handed a reprimand following a ruling by Stewards at the British Grand Prix.

The German has stormed to victory at the Buckinghamshire event before being called to the stewards office at 16.40 local time. The 28-year-old was accused of failing to slow down under yellow flags through turns 3-5 roughly an hour into the action packed race. The sector involved had already seen both Lewis Hamilton and Felipe Massa suffering tire delmaninations out of turn four.

A twenty-second penalty in lieu of a drive-through penalty was expected, but the stewards at the track, including World Champion Nigel Mansell deemed the offence to be a minor one which resulted in a reprimanded.

Rosberg Summoned To Stewards

Race winner Nico Rosberg has been called to the stewards at the British Grand Prix.

The German stormed to a narrow race victory over Red Bull’s Mark Webber, but now Stewards have summoned the three-time race winner to their office on claims that he failed to slow down under yellow flags.

“The driver and a team representative are required to report to the Stewards at 16.40 in relation to the incident below”, reads the FIA statement. “Reason: Appearing to not slow for Yellow Flags in turns 3 to 5 at 14.06”.

Turns 3 to 5 were the turns were drivers were warned to slow down and avoid the flags as several major delaminations occured in that sector, namely race-leader Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari’s Felipe Massa.

The standard penalty for ignoring yellow flags is a drive through penalty. If Rosberg is penalised, it will be translated to a twenty-second time penalty which would promote Mark Webber to first, Fernando Alonso to second and homeboy Lewis Hamilton to third.

Rosberg Wins Action Packed British Grand Prix

Nico Rosberg has stormed to victory at the British Grand Prix to claim his second win of the season. Red Bull’s Mark Webber drove a fantastic recovery to claim his fifth consecutive podium after a botched start while Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso pulled a last minute pass on Kimi Raikkonen to grab the final podium position.

Rosberg’s win was down to luck when Lewis Hamilton’s Mercedes suffered a delamination while Sebastian Vettel ground to a halt on Lap 42. Hamilton’s delamination was only the tip of the iceberg in a scary incident. Mere minutes following Hamilton’s problem, Felipe Massa spun out of turn four with a similar puncture. While the Brazilian limped back to the pits, Jean-Eric Vergne suffered a delamination on the hangar straight. This time, Lotus’ Kimi Raikkonen came dangerously close to getting a face full of rubber as he was following the Frenchman down the straight.

It was a ridiculous display following on from which Charlie Whiting deployed the Safety Car while all marshalls were deployed to the track to clean the surface. The Safety Car eventually came back in but Sergio Perez would later suffer a delamination coming down Hangar straight, missing Alonso by mere centimetres. It was the Mexican’s second tire blow-out of the weekend, suffering one on Saturday.

With Lewis far down the grid, Sebastian Vettel was left storming away at the front of the grid. Nico Rosberg fought hard to keep up with his countryman, pulling away from the rest of the grid. Hamilton, spurred on by home support, was up to fourteenth by the time the Safety Car boxed, having gained eight places before it was deployed. Mark Webber was also a man on a mission, pulling moves on both Lotuses, both McLarens and Kimi Raikkonen into Luffield – the spot where he took the race win last year.

The pitlane was also active. Between the delaminated cars pitting, Alonso and Raikkonen came within a hair of each other when the Spaniard left his box and the Finn entered his own. Nico Hulkenberg and Pastor Maldonado came mighty close too when Maldonado narrowly cut ahead of the German in the exit.

And mid-field saw action too. Adrian Sutil cut Daniel Ricciardo off while the Aussie tried to overtake the German into Stowe corner. The stewards didn’t call him on it, but Ricciardo vented with the traditional wave of his hand. Paul di Resta in the other Force India started from 21st in the grid following a penalty, but used home support to make it to tenth and into the points. The Scotsman held one of the racing highlights of the race when he battled Lewis Hamilton for eleventh over several laps in true wheel-to-wheel racing.

Sebastian Vettel’s Red Bull ground to a halt on Lap 42 on the start/finish straight and the Safety Car was deployed to clear the car. Nico Rosberg and Mark Webber pitted for fresh tires while Raikkonen, in second, was told to stay out. Mark Webber was the man to beat in the final laps, leading a charge which saw him past Daniel Ricciardo, Adrian Sutil and Kimi Raikkonen  and coming within .7 of Nico Rosberg before the German crossed the line and took the checkered flag.

It’s Nico’s third career win and the second of this season, while Webber took to the podium for the fifth consecutive time. Lewis Hamilton had a dead-set win stolen from him by the blow-out but did fantastic to pull himself back to fourth. Jean-Eric Vergne, Romain Grosjean and Sergio Perez all pulled into the pits near the end with various problems. Finally, Lotus’ Kimi Raikkonen finished fifth which means he has finished in the points for a stunning twenty-five continuous races to eclipse Schumacher’s record of twenty-four.

1. Nico Rosberg
2. Mark Webber
3. Fernando Alonso
4. Lewis Hamilton
5. Kimi Raikkonen
6. Felipe Massa
7. Adrian Sutil
8. Daniel Ricciardo
9. Paul di Resta
10. Nico Hulkenberg
11. Pastor Maldonado
12. Valtteri Bottas
13. Jenson Button
14. Esteban Gutierrez
15. Charles Pic
16. Jules Bianchi
17. Max Chilton
18. Giedo van der Garde

• Jean-Eric Vergne
• Sergio Perez
• Sebastian Vettel
• Romain Grosjean

Di Resta Disqualified

Force India’s Paul di Resta has been disqualified from Qualifying at the British Grand Prix.

The Scot was celebrating fifth place at qualifying this afternoon but post-qualifying scrutineering found that his Force India was 1.5 kilos below the mandatory minimum weight limit of the car and driver combined.

The last person to be ruled as underweight was Sebastian Vettel in Abu Dhabi last year who had achieved pole position before pulling over on his in-lap having run out of fuel. Despite being only slightly below the weight, the German was demoted to the back of the grid. A similar penalty was handed to Di Resta.

The Scot has a bad record at home. He finished 15th in his first home race in 2011, and retired on the first lap of last year’s race.

Hamilton Takes Home Pole Position

Lewis Hamilton has taken pole at the British Grand Prix to put him in prime position to win his home Grand Prix for the first time since 2008. Mercedes defied the odds to take a 1-2 when Rosberg finished second. Sebastian Vettel finished third with Mark Webber taking fourth in his last British Grand Prix.

Without the unpredictability of rain to prompt the teams to gamble, they were almost straight out on track. Nico Hulkenberg was the first man out on track and set a benchmark lap of 1.35.806. Team-mate Esteban Gutierrez was the next man across the line and he bettered Hulkenberg’s attempt until Romain Grosjean set his first timed lap to go first. Raikkonen, Bottas, Massa and Maldonado tried to set a faster lap, but couldn’t surpass the Frenchman’s effort.

It was Nico Rosberg with ten minutes gone that managed to improve, setting a 1.31.355 which was soon beaten by Lewis Hamilton who set a 1.30.995 on his first timed lap. Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso was struggling to put a lap together, consistently slipping wide at the Maggots/Becketts section which left him fifth with five minutes remaining in the session.

Red Bull’s Mark Webber went out to set his first timed lap at his strongest track, to go third behind the Mercedes duo. McLaren’s Jenson Button was eighteen minutes into the session before he set his first lap which put him eighth for the historic team. Felipe Massa was far into the drop out zone when the checkered flag flew, but could only go 14th. Alonso, who was in the pits, finished 15th.

William’s Valtteri Bottas was the first man in the drop zone, finishing 18th for Williams in their 600th Grand Prix. Esteban Gutierrez was eighteenth for Sauber, Pic the best of the backmarkers while Bianchi, Van der Garde and Chilton filed in twentieth, twenty-first and twenty-second.

Mark Webber was the first man out on track for the second Qualifying session and set a 1.31.3. Adrian Sutil followed Webber around on the medium compound to set a 1.31.4. Paul di Resta and Pastor Maldonado then crossed the line, slipping into 3rd and 4th respectively.

Daniel Ricciardo went third while Vergne went seventh with Felipe Massa going eighth for Ferrari. Nico Rosberg set his first timed lap and set a 1.31.0, which was two tenths faster than Lewis Hamilton who was the next man to set a lap. Kimi Raikkonen’s first lap put him ninth while Jenson Button’s first lap at his home circuit put him only 11th. It set Jenson up for yet another disappointing home round.

Sebastian Vettel finally took to the track to set a lap and immeadietly went fastest. The German’s efforts put him 0.03 faster than Rosberg while Williams’ Maldonado set a lap and stayed 14th. Jean-Eric Vergne was fighting hard to set a top-ten lap but went wide at the Maggots/Becketts section to lose several seconds and ruin the attempt. Sergio Perez couldn’t better 12th while Daniel Ricciardo split the Mercedes and went third.

Paul di Resta put in a hot lap to go 5th while Jenson Button went 10th and Fernando Alonso went 8th to bump Jenson down to 11th. Mark Webber went second in the last seconds while Felipe Massa crossed the line last to go merely 12th in a disappointing show for the Brazilian. Button was knocked out at his home round, meaning no McLaren progressed to Q3.

Daniel Ricciardo was straight out on track for the third Qualifying round and was followed out Mark Webber, Paul di Resta and Fernando Alonso. Ricciardo’s first lap time was 1.31.5 while Webber crossed the line for a 1.30.5 before being bumped down by Rosberg with a 1.30.2. Lewis Hamilton crossed the line to go quicker still with a 1.30.1 to take provisional pole at his home race. Sebastian Vettel crossed the line to take fourth, ahead of Romain Grosjean, Fernando Alonso and Daniel Ricciardo.

Mark Webber came back online and had pace through the first and second sector, eventually setting a lap good enough for provisional second. Rosberg went first while Hamilton came around the last corner to set a 1.29.6 to wow his home crowd. Sebastian Vettel was the last man across the line to finish third and demote Mark Webber to fourth.

1.  Nico Rosberg
2.  Lewis Hamilton
3.  Sebastian Vettel
4. Mark Webber
5. Paul di Resta
6. Daniel Ricciardo
7. Adrian Sutil
8. Romain Grosjean
9. Kimi Raikkonen
10. Fernando Alonso
11. Jenson Button
12. Felipe Massa
13. Jean-Eric Vergne
14. Sergio Perez
15. Nico Hulkenberg
16. Pastor Maldonado
17. Valtteri Bottas
18. Esteban Gutierrez
19. Charles Pic
20. Jules Bianchi
21. Giedo van der Garde
22. Max Chilton

Q2 Report

Mark Webber was the first man out on track for the second Qualifying session and set a 1.31.3. Adrian Sutil followed Webber around on the medium compound to set a 1.31.4. Paul di Resta and Pastor Maldonado then crossed the line, slipping into 3rd and 4th respectively.

Daniel Ricciardo went third while Vergne went seventh with Felipe Massa going eighth for Ferrari. Nico Rosberg set his first timed lap and set a 1.31.0, which was two tenths faster than Lewis Hamilton who was the next man to set a lap. Kimi Raikkonen’s first lap put him ninth while Jenson Button’s first lap at his home circuit put him only 11th. It set Jenson up for yet another disappointing home round.

Sebastian Vettel finally took to the track to set a lap and immeadietly went fastest. The German’s efforts put him 0.03 faster than Rosberg while Williams’ Maldonado set a lap and stayed 14th. Jean-Eric Vergne was fighting hard to set a top-ten lap but went wide at the Maggots/Becketts section to lose several seconds and ruin the attempt. Sergio Perez couldn’t better 12th while Daniel Ricciardo split the Mercedes and went third.

Paul di Resta put in a hot lap to go 5th while Jenson Button went 10th and Fernando Alonso went 8th to bump Jenson down to 11th. Mark Webber went second in the last seconds while Felipe Massa crossed the line last to go merely 12th in a disappointing show for the Brazilian. Button was knocked out at his home round, meaning no McLaren progressed to Q3.

• Jenson Button
• Felipe Massa
• Jean-Eric Vergne
• Sergio Perrez
• Nico Hulkenberg
• Pastor Maldonado

Q1 Report

Without the unpredictability of rain to prompt the teams to gamble, they were almost straight out on track. Nico Hulkenberg was the first man out on track and set a benchmark lap of 1.35.806. Team-mate Esteban Gutierrez was the next man across the line and he bettered Hulkenberg’s attempt until Romain Grosjean set his first timed lap to go first. Raikkonen, Bottas, Massa and Maldonado tried to set a faster lap, but couldn’t surpass the Frenchman’s effort.

It was Nico Rosberg with ten minutes gone that managed to improve, setting a 1.31.355 which was soon beaten by Lewis Hamilton who set a 1.30.995 on his first timed lap. Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso was struggling to put a lap together, consistently slipping wide at the Maggots/Becketts section which left him fifth with five minutes remaining in the session.

Red Bull’s Mark Webber went out to set his first timed lap at his strongest track, to go third behind the Mercedes duo. McLaren’s Jenson Button was eighteen minutes into the session before he set his first lap which put him eighth for the historic team. Felipe Massa was far into the drop out zone when the checkered flag flew, but could only go 14th. Alonso, who was in the pits, finished 15th.

William’s Valtteri Bottas was the first man out, finishing 18th for Williams in their 600th Grand Prix. Esteban Gutierrez was eighteenth for Sauber, Pic the best of the backmarkers while Bianchi, Van der Garde and Chilton filed in twentieth, twenty-first and twenty-second.

• Valtteri Bottas
• Esteban Gutierrez
• Charles Pic
• Jules Bianchi
• Giedo van der Garde
• Max Chilton

Rosberg Leads Final Silverstone Practice

Mercedes’ Nico Hulkenberg topped the timesheets at the final practice session ahead of the British Grand Prix. He traded fastest laps with  team-mate Hamilton but the German finally finished ahead of local boy Lewis. Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel was third, also narrowly beating team-mate Mark Webber while Romain Grosjean finished fifth for Lotus.

Australia’s Daniel Ricciardo finished sixth with Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso in seventh and Lotus’ Kimi Raikkonen in eighth. Adrian Sutil was ninth for Force India whose factory is based at Silverstone, while Paul di Resta in the other Force India was also in the top ten.

Jean-Eric Vergne was eleventh for Toro Rosso while twelfth was the highest McLaren could manage with Jenson Button. Pastor Maldonado was thirteenth for Williams who are celebrating their 600th Grand Prix this weekend, with Nico Hulkenberg fourteenth for Sauber and Felipe Massa fifteenth for Ferrari, boxing mid-session to replace his engine on precautionary grounds and missing the rest of the session.

Valtteri Bottas was sixteenth ahead of Esteban Gutierrez in seventeenth and Sergio Perez in eighteenth who endured a tough session for McLaren. Charles Pic was highest of the backmarkers, taking nineteenth for Caterham while Jules Bianchi finished twentieth for Marussia. His team-mate Max Chilton who is celebrating his first home Grand Prix, finished ahead of Caterham’s Giedo van der Garde who finished twenty-second and last.

Sergio Perez held the talking point of the session when his rear tear exploded on the exit of Copse corner. The Mexican crawled through the Maggots/Becketts section before finally pulling off the track at the top of the Hangar straight. A red flag was thrown while marshalls cleared the debris from the incident while the world once again turned their attention to Pirelli. Perez made it back to the track with eight minutes remaining but spun through the Maggots/Becketts section on his first timed lap and returned to the pits.

Hamilton And Lotus Reprimanded, Bottas Fined

Stewards at the British Grand Prix have handed out three separate penalties following this afternoon’s Free Practice 2.

Firstly, Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton was reprimanded for failing to keep to the right of the pitlane bollard when making his entry into the pits. The rules state that a driver must keep to the right of the bollard when entering the pits, to stop any drivers making sudden darts across the track.

However, the Briton failed to obey the rule and was subsequently summoned to the stewards office. The stewards ruled that he had indeed broken the rule, but as he had not crossed the track in a dangerous way, i.e. crossing the track in front of another driver, he would be given a reprimand instead of a full-blown penalty.

Lotus was also given a reprimand. The Enstone based team were given the reprimand for an unsafe release in the pitlane.

Finally, William’s Valtteri Bottas was fined €1,ooo for speeding in the pitlane. According to the rules in 2013, a driver is fined €100 for each kilometre per hour he exceeds the speed limit. Having clocked 9.6km/h above the limit, Bottas’ fine was rounded up to 10km/h over, hence the €1,000 fine.

F1 Pays Tribute To Mark Robinson

Formula One has held a formal tribute to Mark Robinson, the marshall who lost his life in an accident at the Canadian Grand Prix three weeks ago.

Previously, marshalls at the Circuit de Catalunya had paid tribute to the 38-year-old. This evening, marshalls, team-members, journalists and FIA officials, as well as members of the public, joined together below the podium to hold a one-minutes silence for Robinson.

Images courtesy of Adam Cooper.