What we had in P2 was quite a bit of P1 redux, with one major difference.  This time around, we actually saw both Red Bulls on track for 30+ laps, perhaps for the first time this preseason, and they were both quick.  Not as fast as last year, but they were putting in some good times.  The same can't be said for the other Renault-powered teams, however. 

Neither Caterham or Pastor Maldonado's Lotus set a timed lap at all.  Lettuce Grosjean... well, you can see how he did.  The Toro Rossos were... meh, but that's normal for them, isn't it?  No, on the whole, Friday belonged to the Mercedes-powered cars, led by the Factory team.  Other than Hamilton's sensor issue in P1, the two Silver Arrows have pretty much owned the entire lead-up to the race.

Will that domination continue?  People were saying earlier that Mercedes could win this race by two laps... that's pretty clearly an exaggeration, but they do appear to be the odds-on favorites.  But there are bigger concerns out there right now.

For example, Charlie Whiting, the race director for Formula 1, was saying that many of the teams haven't been able to practice race starts yet.  He's also gone on record saying that the 107% Rule is essentially out the window for this race, and they're not even sure if ANYBODY will finish the race.  Eep.

This should be a fascinating race, clearly... one way or the other.  Either it's going to be high farce, or it'll be stunningly dramatic.  It'll certainly be entertaining!

Quals early Saturday morning!

Posted by: Wonderduck at 10:16 AM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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