The Chinese Grand Prix saw McLaren score their first one-two finish since Fernando Alonso drove for them.
It was also the first British one-two in 11 years and Russia became the 33rd country to score points in F1. Read on for all the stats and facts from China.
Jenson Button won his second race in four starts for McLaren and the ninth of his career.
The Chinese Grand Prix has still not been won by the same driver twice. Since 2004 it’s been won by Rubens Barrichello, Fernando Alonso, Michael Schumacher, Kimi Raikkonen, Lewis Hamilton, Sebastian Vettel and now Button.
With Lewis Hamilton finishing second this was the first one-two for a pair of British drivers since the 1999 Austrian Grand Prix, won by Eddie Irvine with David Coulthard in second place.
McLaren recorded their 45th one-two finish and their first since Fernando Alonso led home Hamilton in the 2007 Italian Grand Prix.
After four races we’ve already had three different teams record one-two finishes – Ferrari in Bahrain and Red Bull in Malaysia.
It was pole position number eight for Vettel, who has now started from first place as many times as 1964 champion John Surtees and Riccardo Patrese.
Red Bull kept up their run of pole positions in 2010 and achieved their second front row lock-out. No-one has won a race from pole position yet this year – the last person to do so was Vettel at Suzuka seven races ago.
Despite having 11 wins and 17 pole position, Lewis Hamilton’s fastest lap was only the fourth of his career. His last one came at the same circuit when he won the 2008 race.
All three drivers on the podium were powered by Mercedes – the first time this has happened since the 1955 British Grand Prix when the Mercedes factory team fill the podium, Stirling Moss leading home Juan Manuel Fangio and Karl Kling at Aintree.
Vitaly Petrov scored the first points of his career – and became the first Russian driver to score in Formula 1. It was also his first race finish.
Russia is the 33rd different country to produce a Grand Prix points-scorer. The last addition to the club was Poland, when Petrov’s team mate Robert Kubica finished third at Monza in 2006.
Virgin and Sauber failed to get either of their cars to the finish once again. The two teams have only recorded one finish each so far this year. Timo Glock and Kamui Kobayashi are yet to see the chequered flag in 2010.
Most laps led
| Driver | Laps led |
| Sebastian Vettel | 110 |
| Jenson Button | 71 |
| Fernando Alonso | 18 |
| Nico Rosberg | 16 |
| Mark Webber | 4 |
Most podium finishes
| Driver | Podiums |
| Felipe Massa | 2 |
| Lewis Hamilton | 2 |
| Jenson Button | 2 |
| Nico Rosberg | 2 |
| Fernando Alonso | 1 |
| Robert Kubica | 1 |
| Mark Webber | 1 |
| Sebastian Vettel | 1 |
Finishes and DNFs
Spotted any more interesting stats and facts from the Chinese Grand Prix? Share them in the comments.
2010 Chinese Grand Prix
sato113
19th April 2010, 8:41
‘first one-two for a pair of British drivers since the 1999,’ – but which GP was it?
nice stats as always!
Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
19th April 2010, 8:49
Sorry, Austrian! Fixed it.
The BBC mentioned that during their coverage and Coulthard didn’t seem terribly pleased to be reminded about it . This was, of course, the race where he took out Mika Hakkinen on the first lap, then lost the lead of the race to Hakkinen’s title rival Irvine. Not his finest hour…
Sush Meerkat
19th April 2010, 8:51
Petrov is impressive, for a formula 1 driver he’s overweight and he hasn’t done the normal F1 graduation route, but his starts and race craft are astounding.
Lustigson
19th April 2010, 9:13
I too was impressed by Petrov’s driving. Not necessarily by his speed, though, since he kept on losing time to teammate Kubica.
Maciek
19th April 2010, 9:26
It’s not really fair to compare Petrov’s pace to Kubica’s yet, and won’t be for a while, but he’s certainly shown some spunk the last two races.
James
19th April 2010, 11:11
I would hardly say he is overweight though, even by F1’s strict standards. He is over 6 foot tall and looks more muscular than flabby.
This was the sort of thing the minimum weight rise from 605 to 620 kg was supposed to fix. I find this a little concerning myself that teams are still demanding drivers to shed weight…
Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
19th April 2010, 11:13
It’s always going to be the case. Weight in a drivers’ body that can be lost could be re-positioned elsewhere in the car to improve the centre of gravity. That’s why the drivers are virtually lying down in the cars.
James
19th April 2010, 15:55
Oh yeh, I understand that completely, but like I said, part of the reason for the minimum weight increase was to help drivers of a taller physique.
I can see why teams would want drivers to be the weight of a Grand National jockey, but it really cannot be healthy for these guys to sustain their body weight and mass. It wasnt really like this before. Only 2005 has this been an increasing issue.
Royston Capel
19th April 2010, 9:14
Good stats,but I´d like to know which drivers have won a GP for three different teams.
f1yankee
19th April 2010, 9:49
currently, alonso and button. then we go back to mansell, prost, senna, berger, patrese, piquet, lauda, jones, and reutemann rounds out the 80’s
Ned Flanders
19th April 2010, 10:05
We looked at this after Alonso and Button took wins for a 3rd team at Bahrain and Melbourne respectively. Prost won for 4 different teams- Renault, McLaren, Ferrari and Williams- which is a record I think.
Prost also challenged for or won the championship for all 4 teams which is impressive. Alonso could do the same with same with a 3rd team (Ferrari) this season if he does well
SonyJunkie
19th April 2010, 10:55
Nigel Mansell Only won races for Williams and Ferrari.
Ayrton Senna only won races for Lotus and Mclaren.
2 Minutes To Midnight
19th April 2010, 12:09
For sure, Ayrton could won a race with Williams if the accident in Imola didn’t happen. (And I think he could also win a race with Ferrari, cause he said that he wants to drive for Ferrari in the end of his career.)
MouseNightshirt
19th April 2010, 13:34
Alas, that Ayrton would have had a win with Williams is a tragic irrelevance when it comes to actual stats.
Patrickl
19th April 2010, 13:51
Yeah, like those statistics are of any importance whatsoever.
Ned Flanders
19th April 2010, 13:59
If you have nothing nice to say don’t say anything at all Patrick. Your comments can be needlessly unfriendly at times.
Also, Senna came close to winning with Toleman so with a bit of luck he might have won for 4 or 5 different teams.
And with Vettel having won for 2 teams at such a young age, I could see him joing the ‘3’ club within a few years
Patrickl
19th April 2010, 15:58
Ned seriously. He’s acting like there is some holy rule in allowing something into a statistic or not.
Lachie
19th April 2010, 9:51
My first two thoughts and a quick Wikipedia search confirmed Prost and Piquet both did. I would assume there’s more and maybe many in the early days where i’m not sure how strict the teams were (Fangio did it too :) )
Ilanin
19th April 2010, 14:29
It can get confusing. For example, Stirling Moss won races for Mercedes, Maserati, Vanwall, and Rob Walker; but he won races in a Mercedes, Maserati, Vanwall, Cooper and Lotus because Walker entered a variety of different cars as a privateer. Is that four or five?
geo132
19th April 2010, 9:55
it was mentioned after the first race in bahrain. Alonso is one of those drivers who won 3 races, for 3 different teams: mclaren, renault and ferrari this year.
PJA
19th April 2010, 9:26
I don’t know if this has been answered elsewhere but when was the last jump start, as I can’t remember one happening for quite a while.
GeeMac
19th April 2010, 9:53
I was wondering the same thing. I’d imagine that there hasn’t been one since the late 1990’s or early 00’s.
Ned Flanders
19th April 2010, 10:07
My brain is telling me that Massa had one for Sauber at Magny Cours in 2002, though I can’t really remember now (me and my brain are seperate entities now, which explains a lot!)
'
19th April 2010, 11:06
Fisichella jumped the start at Canada 2006…
Enigma
19th April 2010, 18:56
Wasn’t it Barrichello in Brazil in 2007?
Enigma
19th April 2010, 18:58
Ah, didn’t that Bleu has already sad that.
Bleu
19th April 2010, 9:35
From a quick memory I don’t remember any in 2008 or 2009, but I think Barrichello had one in Brazil 2007.
Scribe
19th April 2010, 9:36
Funny that, Mark Webber’s had rock solid reliability. Finally a McLaren 1-2, just shows the importance of actually having two drivers, oh Heikki you were fun but you just couldn’t hack it huh?
Poor Kobayashi, really wanted him to do well, this Sauber could be the end of his career.
Enigma
19th April 2010, 9:57
It’s Lewis’ fault, he had a puncture in Hungary 2008 :)
Ned Flanders
19th April 2010, 10:08
But even that would’ve been a 2-3 if Massa’s engine had of lasted the distance
'
19th April 2010, 11:09
McLaren would have had a 1-2 at Australia 2008 if it wasn’t for an unfortunately timed safety car…
Patrickl
19th April 2010, 13:53
McLaren could have had a 1-2 in Australia 2010 if it wasn’t for an ill advised pitstop.
Dan M
19th April 2010, 19:27
McLaren wouldn’t have had a 1-2 in China if it wasn’t for an untimely safety car.
Christian
19th April 2010, 9:40
The most laps in the lead stats are pretty interesting. Vettel and Button out on their own at the moment.
Derek
19th April 2010, 12:05
I’m amazed that Hamilton and Massa have not lead a lap yet
Bleu
19th April 2010, 9:43
I had a look on other circuits which have started with many different winners.
– Österreichring had eight (Ickx, Siffert, Fittipaldi, Peterson, Reutemann, Brambilla, Watson, Jones) in 1970-77, until Peterson won again in 1978.
– Long Beach had different winner in every eight races (1976-83): Regazzoni, Andretti, Reutemann, Villeneuve, Piquet, Jones, Lauda and Watson.
– Jochen Rindt won German GP at Hockenheim in 1970 when it was held for the first time. When the race was permanently moved in 1977, winners were Lauda, Andretti, Jones, Laffite, Piquet, Tambay, Arnoux and Prost. Piquet took second victory in 1986 after new Nurburgring held 1985 event.
– Paul Ricard and Brands Hatch also had lots of different winners but they didn’t have permanent spot in the calendar. Dijon sometimes held French GP and Brands Hatch was rotating with Silverstone.
Other notes then:
– Kamui Kobayashi and Sebastien Buemi have been involved in same first-lap accident twice in three races
– In general, this was first engine manufacturer 1-2-3 since Luxembourg GP 1997 when Renault took first four spots with Villeneuve, Alesi, Frentzen and Berger.
TommyC
19th April 2010, 9:49
i think it’s the first time it’s been that difficult to predict which team would first win two races in a season…
on a more serious note, maybe the race with the highest average for number of pit stops? most pitted at least 3 times didn’t they? alonso 5 even.
Enigma
19th April 2010, 9:55
69 pit stops all together I think. That’s averagely 2,9 stops per driver, including the retirees.
geo132
19th April 2010, 9:57
one of Alonso’s pit stops was actually a drive through penalty.
One of the William’s pitted 6 times though!
David
19th April 2010, 14:31
I find it bizarre and highly irritating that people wistfully remember Senna as some sort of demi-god! People deride Schumacher’s achievements because of a handful of transgressions in the heat of the moment yet Senna was every bit as bad if not worse yet he’s revered as a legend. Senna was undeniably good but I believe he had achieved all he was likely to achieve by the time he killed himself at Imola. To my mind his star had started to fade by then, he was not the driver he was and Michael Schumacher was in the ascendancy. Senna would not have been able to compete with Schumacher’s relentless ability to perform and probably would have retired at the end of his Williams contract if not before. Talk of “what if” and “he could of won this and that if only he hadn’t killed himself” is akin to seeing the world through rose coloured specs, it’s overly romanticising the memory of the guy just because he’s dead. Indeed, there would have been no more titles for senna had he not had the accident and continued to race, he had entered his decline and as we know with other greats such as Hakkinen, Schumacher. Villeneuve, once the rot starts there’s no going back, it just gets worse and they can no longer find that superhuman level of performance anymore. I have nothing against Senna per se, I just think people lack perspective when his name comes up.
PJA
19th April 2010, 15:19
As you say it is a big “what if” but considering Hill only lost out on the 1994 title to Schumacher by 1 point I think Senna would have managed to win the title that year if he hadn’t died, I think the only issue would be would Schumacher have received all those penalties if things had been different.
'
19th April 2010, 11:11
Nurburgring had 75 pitstops from 22 drivers, an average of 3.41 per driver…
'
19th April 2010, 11:11
Nurburgring 2007, that is.
Ilanin
19th April 2010, 14:36
The 1993 European Grand Prix would have to be a challenger, if anyone could find pit stop data for it. Due to reliability issues more common in the ’90s it might not make it though. Prost made seven stops all by himself.
'
19th April 2010, 15:41
No, Donnington had 69 pitstops, an average of 2.875 per driver. I’m pretty sure Nurburgring 2007 is the highest.
Ilanin
19th April 2010, 17:55
Right, but that was in the refuelling era, so it isn’t directly comparable to either Shanghai 2010 or Donnington 1993.
Enigma
19th April 2010, 9:54
Kobayashi is yet to make a pit stop this year.
Senna qualified 23rd in all 4 races.
GeeMac
19th April 2010, 9:56
Great stats.
I read one in autosport that I don’t know if anyone has mentioned. Jenson’s win in Austrailia made him one of only 13 drivers who have won races for three different manufacturers. It’s quite an exclusive club with the likes of Fanigo, Lauda and Prost in it.
Magnificent Geoffrey
19th April 2010, 13:42
I’m assuming that Fernando is also one of those 13 as well?
theo
19th April 2010, 9:57
Kimi 5th in WRC rally of Turkey! in only 8th ever rally.
What a driver.
PeterG
19th April 2010, 10:07
Is Kovalainen still driving in China? Why does he only have 3 caps?
Is already known why Liuzzi spun his car?
Bleu
19th April 2010, 10:32
I think it’s Malaysian GP which is missing – Kovalainen finished but was not classified.
sato113
19th April 2010, 15:33
nah he retired with a hydralic problem on lap 47
Andrew White
19th April 2010, 19:54
He went back out after that because it was Lotus’ home race, but he didn’t complete 90% race distance, so was not classified.
Ned Flanders
19th April 2010, 10:14
Sebastien Buemi was wiped out from behind by an out of control car on Lap 1 at Turn 6 for the second time in the last 3 races. Kamui Kobayashi was involved both times, too.
Incredible stat if I say so myself!
Sush Meerkat
19th April 2010, 11:00
how the hell did you spot that one?, nice find Ned.
Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
19th April 2010, 11:15
Wow nice one Ned!
Tom L.
19th April 2010, 12:30
You could even add to that that Huelkenberg was affected each time (I know being forced to run round the outside to avoid it isn’t quite the same as being hit by Kobayashi as in Australia, but still…)
KateDerby
19th April 2010, 10:34
STR comparison;
Well done to Alguersuari 4 finishes out of 4
Hard luck to Buemi 2 first lap smashes, neither he could do a thing about!
JSC
19th April 2010, 10:40
Shouldn’t Alonso be missing a finish?
Puffy
19th April 2010, 10:43
Nope, he completed enough of the race and was classified.
Puffy
19th April 2010, 10:46
Obviously I’m talking about Malaysia where Alonso’s engine blew just before the end and was ultimately classified 13th.
Dave Gilligan
19th April 2010, 10:44
RE: Coulthard and Irvine: I’d consider it an Anglo-Irish finish or better still a Celtic 1-2
MouseNightshirt
19th April 2010, 13:37
Huzzah! Won’t happen again in my lifetime methinks.
hartry
19th April 2010, 13:56
Anglo-Irish? ANGLO? I don’t think Coulthard would be very happy at that! Go with Celtic!
Ilanin
19th April 2010, 14:43
Irvine was born in County Down and remained a British citizen throughout his career; on the other hand, he competed under an Irish racing licence.
If you don’t count Irvine, you end up going back to the 1995 Hungarian Grand Prix for a Hill-Coulthard 1-2.
Sush Meerkat
19th April 2010, 10:59
Can we have some sort of stat for Heiki’s Lotus being up in 6th place for about 3 minutes?, its just such a beautiful place to be for that Lotus.
Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
19th April 2010, 11:16
I mentioned it here: Safety car spares Hamilton and Alonso’s blushes (Chinese Grand Prix analysis)
sumedh
19th April 2010, 11:30
The real question to be asked is, why did the safety car come out in the first place!!
Nitpicker
19th April 2010, 12:58
Is it the first time a new-for-2010 team has finished ahead of an established team (Kovalainen ahead of Hulkenberg)?
sumedh
19th April 2010, 11:03
Perhaps, a record for maximum pit-stops in a race.
Earlier record was for Nurburgring 75 stops in 2007.
This one has about 100 i think ;-)
sumedh
19th April 2010, 11:07
My bad. just 67 stops in yesterday’s race.
'
19th April 2010, 11:15
When’s the last time 2 English drivers finished 1-2?
Ned Flanders
19th April 2010, 12:23
I was thinking some time in 1995 with Herbert and Hill, but that’s unlikely, because Herbert only ever won when Hill took himself (and Schumacher) out!
Then I thought Mansell and Hill, and again, in the one race where they might have finished 1-2 in 1994, Hill and Schumacher collided!
Then back in the 1970’s and 1980’s the two competitive English drivers, Mansell and Hunt, never raced together. So I think you’ll have to look back to the 60’s with the likes of Graham Hill and Surtees.
But while thinking about this, it has occurred to me how many race winning British drivers there have been from outside of England. I can think of Coulthard, Irvine, Watson, Stewart and Clark.
In the last 40 years, the only English drivers to win have been Hamilton, Button, Herbert, Hill, Mansell and Hunt
KMcD
19th April 2010, 11:33
Still think it a disgrace that Irvine is counted as British. Can recall him being referred to as an Irish driver by british media when he ran into bother in his early days back in Jordan.
2 Minutes To Midnight
19th April 2010, 12:15
He’s Northern Irish, mate (I think). So therefore, he’s counted as British.
CoolGav
19th April 2010, 12:32
It’s the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, so it’s up to him where his sympathies lie – British or Irish.
MouseNightshirt
19th April 2010, 13:39
Us Northern Irish suffer a lot from the “Are you Irish or British” malarkey. We can be both, just so you know.
Red Andy
19th April 2010, 17:28
The people of Northern Irish are entitled to both nationalities. Irvine raced under an Irish racing licence and identified himself as Irish, but raced in F1 as a Brit – some say because threats were made against his family.
Red Andy
19th April 2010, 17:29
“people of Northern Ireland,” I should say.
KMcD
21st April 2010, 11:57
Exactly. They have the choice. He chose Irish, as per his racing licence. Which was ignored by FIA who used his passport instead.
Stevensan
19th April 2010, 11:52
anyone know attendance? the stands looked full (well, apart from the bill board anyway…)
Ned Flanders
19th April 2010, 12:09
I spotted plenty of empty seats myself. Then again, the circuit has a huge capacity so that’s hardly a surprise. And at least the cameras didn’t try to conceal the issue, like they did in Turkey last season
sato113
19th April 2010, 15:40
there were loads of empty seat at the end of the back straight to the left. and of course around turn 13.
Scott Joslin
19th April 2010, 12:03
Does anyone know when the last British 1-2 finish for British drivers in the same team was. Last I can remember is in Hungary in 1995 with Damon Hill and David Coulthard. Surely there has been a more recent occasion?
Also has there ever been a British 1-2 finish when the drivers were not racing for a British team?
2 Minutes To Midnight
19th April 2010, 12:19
More importantly, when is the last time ENGLISH drivers score a 1-2 (in the same team or in a different team). But for sure this is the first time that an English drivers score a 1-2 in a British team.
IDR
19th April 2010, 12:48
“ENGLISH drivers score a 1-2”:
Monaco 1969: Graham Hill, Piers Courage
Not easy one!!!!
Scott Joslin
19th April 2010, 14:54
IDR – I take my hat off to you Sir – Good knowledge!
James Bolton
19th April 2010, 18:17
Just to point out – Coulthard and Hill finished first and second in the 1995 Portuguese GP too, which was a few races after Hungary.
Also: The 1965 British Grand Prix was a Brti 1-2-3-4-5!
1st Jim Clark Lotus
2nd Graham Hill BRM
3rd John Surtees Ferrari
4th Mike Spence Lotus
5th Jackie Stewart BRM
Ned Flanders
19th April 2010, 19:39
Wow, incredible! Great stat James
matt90
19th April 2010, 12:03
When was the last time 2 British drivers driving for a British team/s came 1st and 2nd?
Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
19th April 2010, 12:49
I think Scott’s already answered your question! (See new comment thread above)
David A
19th April 2010, 16:28
IDR answered it, but it is funny they posted at the same time! :P
Patrickl
19th April 2010, 16:08
Lol, you posted the same question at exactly the same time :)
CoolGav
19th April 2010, 12:36
Apart from the first 30 metres of so, until Alonso got past Vettel, Red Bull didn’t lead the race – the first time this year, despite what Legard said… I certainly don’t count being passed down to the first corner (even if by a jump-starting competitor) leading the race.
Nitpicker
19th April 2010, 13:01
I guess you have to cross the line in the lead to be classified as “led a lap”.
You must admit commenting on live TV is a bit more tricky than writing about it a few days after the fact.
GeoCucc
19th April 2010, 13:14
It’s only the third time, when none of the first 4 races were won from the first row. This year Alonso won from 3rd, Button from 4th, Vettel from 3rd and Button from 5th.
It happened in 1970 and 1975.
1970: Brabham 3rd, Stewart 3rd, Rindt 8th, Rodriguez 6th place.
1975: Fittipaldi 5th, Pace 6th, Scheckter 3rd, Mass 11th place.
If same happen in Spain, it would be incomparable, but it will be tricky, because races in Barcelona were won from the first row every time since 1997 (and incredibly, since 2001 from the pole).
:)
Magnificent Geoffrey
19th April 2010, 13:46
That reminds me, I really need to do some research on Carlos Pace. I honestly know absolutely nothing about the man himself, apart from the plane crash.
Patrickl
19th April 2010, 13:55
What was the last time we had a full Mercedes powered podium?
SonyJunkie
19th April 2010, 14:30
You obviously didn’t read the article because Keith has answered this question!!
To save you reading it the answer is the 1955 British Grand Prix when the Mercedes factory team fill the podium, Stirling Moss leading home Juan Manuel Fangio and Karl Kling at Aintree.
Patrickl
19th April 2010, 16:01
Oh lol. Indeed I missed that one.
Odd since I even searched for “mercedes” to see if anyone else had brought it up.
Calum
19th April 2010, 14:12
In that photo, is Lewis not in orange because he didn’t actually win?
Carl
19th April 2010, 14:40
I was wondering the same thing. Looks like he still has his Racing kit on.
Ninjenius
19th April 2010, 14:47
I’m wondering if this photo was taken before Hamilton’s visit to the stewards. Perhaps the bright orange will have been inappopropriate when arguing a case to the stewards! :D
sato113
19th April 2010, 15:41
maybe it’s in rebellion!
TommyC
19th April 2010, 14:45
i think this race has prompted the most comments on this website… up to 345 on the vettel/hamilton article. wow.
Patrickl
19th April 2010, 16:06
I’m sure the Spa 2008 stewarding debacle got more comments.
But yeah, whenever Hamilton is involved in a stewarding decision (or lack thereof) there are a lot of people with strong opinions (not founded in any rulebooks).
Not sure if the German 2008 pit incident between Alonso and Vettel already got posted, but go to 2:21 and see Vettel do exactly what is now claimed to be illegal for Hamilton to do:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3A1mJhyQuHU
Harv's
20th April 2010, 5:00
thanks patrickl, finally someone who has a valid point, i said what you said on that article that has had so many comments and i havnt had a good response from any of those hamilton haters!
Dr. Gonzo
20th April 2010, 17:28
Vettel did not do EXACTLY what Hamilton did.
First – He was AHEAD of Alonso after his release from the box
Second – While he did drive side-by-side with Alonso, they were both in the FAST LANE to the left of the double dashed lines, unlike Hamilton who did it in the SLOW LANE to the right and in the actual pit working area!
Calum
19th April 2010, 14:53
Hamilton hasn’t led a lap :O
Massa, the leader just a few days ago hasn’t led a lap :O
It’s still tight, a win changes it all, look how mixed up the table is compared to before China.
Also, there was a pattern in the way the WCs finished, most recent first, and the first one to do it last out of the 4.
Button ahead of Hamilton ahead of Alonso ahead of Schumacher.
Enigma
19th April 2010, 19:49
Off the top of my head, that was also the case in:
– Hungary 2009
– Most of the races in 2008 where Kimi beat Alonso
– Every race of 2007
– Every time Alonso beat Schumacher in 2006
But off course with 4 WDCs it’s more rare.
Jacob
19th April 2010, 15:45
not sure where to post this but this video is sooo good
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5C0I7Ef4gQI
David A
19th April 2010, 16:33
Alonso and Hamilton tripping each other up, and a Finn ending up on top. Story of the 2007 season right there! :P
2 Minutes To Midnight
19th April 2010, 17:42
LOL kinda prophetic if you ask me :)
symmetry
19th April 2010, 15:58
When was the last time the top 3 qualifiers were not on the podium?
Oh, that would be Australia 2010 :)
Alex Stanger
19th April 2010, 16:05
I got the pole time 0.025s out!
I guessed 1:34.583 and it was 1:34.558
And I predicted Button as winner :D
Stevo
19th April 2010, 16:25
70 overtakes in that race, more than any other in the last 6 seasons.
First time 3 teams have scored 1-2 finishes in a season since 1998.
Hamilton has scored all his fastest laps in the Asian races, in Japan, Malaysia and China.
2 Minutes To Midnight
19th April 2010, 17:40
So we could be on the verge to see an exciting season :D :D. I couldn’t believe myself for saying this, but thank you FIA & Jean Todt for banning refueling!
Ninjenius
19th April 2010, 16:45
Here is list of the “top 8” drivers and the amount of places they have gained(+) or lost(-) over the course of the first 4 races when comparing grid position with finish position.
1. Hamilton: +24
2. Button: +17
3. Massa: +14
4. Alonso: +6
5. Rosberg: +1
6. Vettel: -6
7. Schumacher: -16
8. Webber: -16
(e.g. Rosberg gained 1 place in Australia, lost 1 in Malaysia and gained 1 in China. 1-1+1 = +1)
teeb123456789
19th April 2010, 17:10
Anyone noticed how everyone in the top photo is wearing the new McLaren winning t-shirt apart from hamilton? must be a sore loser :)
Calum
19th April 2010, 17:16
Must say it was quite obvious to pick out the white race suit amongst the bright orange shirts :P
Seriously though, was he not allowed to wear one because it was Jenson who won?
Ninjenius
19th April 2010, 17:30
I’m sure I saw Kovi in orange at some point when Hamilton won races in 2008/09.
PJA
19th April 2010, 17:35
He may just not have had time to change considering he had to see the stewards.
I think he will be allowed to wear the shirt as it was a team victory, but if it was me I wouldn’t be sure if I would wear it if I only came second.
'
19th April 2010, 18:12
I seem to remember seeing him wear one at Malaysia 2007, when Alonso won. That was before they fell out of course.
James Bolton
19th April 2010, 18:21
If the team wins, they all wear the Rocket Red shirt. It’s only because he’ll have been seeing the stewards that he isn’t wearing one. He probably put one on straight after the photo
2 Minutes To Midnight
19th April 2010, 18:39
Also another fact I may add is if either Button or Hamilton won the title this year. It will be the first time that British drivers won 3 consecutive WDC.
'
19th April 2010, 18:42
What about 1962-5?
1962: Graham Hill
1963: Jim Clark
1964: John Surtees
1965: Jim Clark
That’s 4 consecutive years with a British WDC… Or do you mean English?
2 Minutes To Midnight
20th April 2010, 3:46
Sorry, I mean English mate :D
rit
19th April 2010, 19:52
offtopic
I seen Ferrari using same pit crew(pit garage) to change tires of both cars. WHY?
PJA
20th April 2010, 9:36
Although each team has two garages to work on the cars they only have one pit space to change tyres during the race. So usually both cars will not come in at the same time, but if they do such as under a safety car one of them will have to queue and wait for the other car.
In China during the first safety car period when most of the cars came in to change to inters the Red Bulls were together on track but Vettel seemed to make a bit of a gap behind Webber so he shouldn’t of had long to wait, unfortunately there were problems with Webber’s stop so Vettel still had to queue.
Andrew White
19th April 2010, 20:21
Rosberg has achieved his highest WDC position, currently in second on 50 points. His previous best was third after Australia 2008.
Five drivers have finished in the points in every race: Rosberg, Hamilton, Button, Massa and Webber.
Other than these five, only three other drivers have both finished and been classified in every race: Kubica, Barrichello and Alguersuari.
Button had a greater lead after four races last year (12 points) than he does this year (10 points) despite the new points system and despite only receiving half points in Malaysia.
The gap between first and second at the end of the race has been getting progressively smaller over the first four races of the season. From 16.0 secs in Bahrain, it has gone to 12.0, then 4.8, and now 1.5 secs in China.
Lastly, a question. When was the last time we had three races with different championship leaders after every race. We have had Alonso, Massa and now Button.
Enigma
19th April 2010, 20:42
Did some research … not sure if it’s correct.
In 2008, Hamilton was leading after Monaco, Kubica after Canada and Massa after France.
Enigma
19th April 2010, 20:44
And in the next race in Silverstone, Hamilton, Massa and Raikkonen were all on 48 points, and Kubica on 46.
BBT
19th April 2010, 20:38
…and probably Vettel after the next one ;-)
BBT
19th April 2010, 20:41
Just look how far Vettel pushed Hamilton out of the pit/fast lane (if this post works)
http://www.ergouk.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/images/Vet_HAM_1.jpg
http://www.ergouk.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/images/Vet_HAM_2.jpg
Patrickl
19th April 2010, 21:37
Someone posted this one too:
http://img177.imageshack.us/img177/7673/151296.jpg
Enigma
19th April 2010, 22:18
Both teams’ mechanics are looking down the pit lane :)
Harv's
20th April 2010, 5:05
and look how wide the pit lane is…
…and vettel was saying how he didnt push hamilton off
PJA
20th April 2010, 9:40
When they showed the footage from Vettel’s onboard camera I seem to remember you could see him turn his head to look in his outboard mirror then start to drift to the right edging Hamilton out.
Patrickl
20th April 2010, 12:02
Yeah. He actually said that he didn’t understand why Hamilton felt the need to touch him.
People say that Hamilton is a liar, but Vettel doesn’t seem to have much problems in that department either.
K
19th April 2010, 21:58
Did you know that there were 70 overtakes in China. The second highest number of any Grand Prix since 1983. In 2009 there was total 244 passes over the 17 races. In 2010 there has been 156 in the first four races.
Marc Connell
20th April 2010, 7:28
nice stats! clearly there are more overtaking in this age. But do these stats include overtaking black markers?
Andrew White
20th April 2010, 9:28
Those figures are from the cliptheapex forum. It doesn’t include overtakes on the first lap, leaders lapping backmarkers, overtakes in the pits or overtakes where someone has gone off the track, spun or has a mechanical problem.
K
20th April 2010, 9:35
Exactly as Andrew White says.
Paul Gilbert
19th April 2010, 22:31
How many other times has one team managed a 1-2 on the grid and another team managed a 1-2 in the race? I know of 2 earlier examples: Italy 1988 and Australia 2000 (on both occasions McLaren locked out the front row and Ferrari managed a 1-2 finish). Europe 1997 would also have counted had Heinz-Harald Frentzen been 0.001s faster in qualifying.
Not sure if this has been mentioned, but Felipe Massa has gone from 1st to 6th in the Championship in just one race. Has this ever happened before?
Bleu
20th April 2010, 8:26
The previous occasion that happened was 2002 European GP. Williams took the front row with Montoya and Ralf, Ferrari 1-2 in the race with Barrichello and Michael.
Jian
20th April 2010, 0:19
Finally a double overtake again! Were there any in 2009? I miss Heidfeld, who did 3 of those in 2008…I don’t miss Kova in McLaren, embarassingly suffering twice at the hands of Massa and Heidfeld resp in Canada and Silverstone.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C-qJl6ES9wg
Icthyes
20th April 2010, 0:39
Is it the first time since 1996 that everyone on the podium had the same engine? That was a Renault (Williams and Benetton) 1-2-3-4, can’t remember what race.
Harv's
20th April 2010, 5:17
O.K.
Lets do this stat thing…
first race of the season where Vettel didnt lead the first corner.
Red Bull did not lead a lap for the first time in 6 races.
Massa’s finishing positions have been falling ever since the season started in bahrain. 2nd, 3rd, 7th and 9th.
Hamilton has been outqualified 3 times in a row b his team mate the last time that happened was in 09′ monaco to britian.
The race had 62 recorded passes, (excluding pit passes) highest amount in 20 years, 70 passes at the 1990 Mexican GP.
First Mclaren double podium since Italian GP. Heikki and Lewis never shared the podium.
Gusto
20th April 2010, 6:33
Shame MSC took the odd number because it would of been a car number 1-2-3, surely well see it this year?, or maybe a Merc 1-2-3-4.
Gusto
20th April 2010, 6:44
If you throw in the Redbulls followed by Ferrari`s it would be a statistical freak…. Got my predictions sorted for the next race.
Icthyes
20th April 2010, 12:37
Oh and of course, first time Hamilton and Button have ever shared the podium, despite two world championships and 19 race wins (before this one_ between them!
Alistair
20th April 2010, 15:58
Here’s a good stat from Martin Brundell (BBC site):
‘Hamilton […] has now made 32 competitive overtakes in just four races.’
Chaz
20th April 2010, 18:50
There were several good drives. I hope the beeb shows some of the unseen footage at the next race…