Sidepodcast

After what might possibly be the season’s most dramatic qualifying session, we now head into race day.

Right now it’s raining a lot, and doesn’t show any immediate sign of stopping. The sky is very grey, with no glimpse of a break on the horizon. It’s also blustery and cold. Not the perfect conditions for a Formula 1 car by any means!

While the line up at the front of the grid is certainly one for the history books, we’re looking forward to the run through the first section all the way down to Stowe. What can the out of position Massa and Kubica bring to the race, especially considering Felipe’s charge through the field last year? It may be DC’s last home GP but he’s been outclassed by his teammate so far this weekend, he’ll be looking to make amends on a heavier strategy.

We’re sitting in the grandstands overlooking Magotts and Becketts, wave if you spot us on TV.

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With a wet start to FP3 and a dry end we were treated to some great insight as to how the cars may fare in Qualifying this afternoon. It’s all weather dependant of course - at the moment it’s cold and windy but hopefully will be a dry start to Q1.

Alonso finished at the top of the sheets, and with the Renault looking particularly good in the changing conditions, he’ll be hoping for more of the same this afternoon.

As for the rest we’re probably not in the best position to be passing comment, but with Kimi in 9th and Kubica in 19th, we’re as confused as anyone else as to who’ll have the upper hand this afternoon.

Qualifying starts at 1pm in the UK. Lord knows where we’ll be watching, but we’re going to miss all of ITV’s build up, available online. Don’t forget Bernie’s token fan guesture on F1.com too. Radio 5Live will also have commentary from 1pm with Davidson in the box.

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At the time of writing, this is what we know. Massa, Trulli, Alonso and both Toyota drivers had a scrappy Friday, all spending time out of their cars. BMW appeared to be lacking pace, but that wouldn’t be the first time on a Friday and Vettel’s outclassing his French team mate, while Kovi looked impressive in FP2.

We woke up to pouring rain, which has cleared up now. The wind has picked up considerably though, and with a wet track, the question is who will brave the tarmac to provide a dry line? If the weather stays fine it should dry up before qualifying, but today’s first session is another story.

As it’s FP3, we’re looking for yet another spot to watch the action. We know for fact the BBC will be offering commentary, Bernie has live timing online, but there won’t be anything coming from ITV’s direction until qually. More information can be found on our F1 on the Internet page.

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F1 Digest was all done, written and ready to record, but we had to wait for the 5live folks to finish their extended broadcast for the British GP. It was actually fun, because there’s free beer and we got to listen in. However, just as they finished up and cleared the media tent, so the fireworks and the live music started. Presumably this was no coincidence, but unfortunately we at Sidepodcast do not have the power to ask them to hold off for ten more minutes!

So, apologies are necessary for the lack of an audio show, but if you missed any of the action today and want to know what will be said as soon as I get a chance to record it, I’m providing the transcript. Releasing the words before the show is even recorded is a first for me, but there you go. This post will remain, but you can find the finished show linked at the end of the transcript.

Intro

This is the second edition of F1 Digest for the British Grand Prix weekend, and this time we’re coming to you live from a field just outside Silverstone itself. The height of glamour, you know? We got to see the action first hand, but we also managed to keep in touch with the live comments. Hopefully this show can combine the best of both worlds.

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FP2 comes kicking and screaming into the world at two o’clock this afternoon, and the sun’s gone into hiding. We’re a bit chilly at the moment and the wind’s picked up. It feels a little like the weather we had during testing last week, so Fissi might want to be careful out there.

Alonso’s earlier blowup caused much havoc, especially with Massa’s rear end. We’re hoping for a whole lot of on track action as teams and drivers play catchup for the lost time.

Vettel gets much respect for his mornings effort, while Piquet seems to be on a high after his points finish in France. Will Ferrari have time to get Massa running again though?

Today’s second 90 minute session should give us a better idea as to what’s what this weekend. From 2pm in the UK we’ll be following all the action somewhere near a fast section of the track, while live timing details the facts and ITV provides the video coverage.

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We’re taking a belt and braces approach to live commenting this weekend, so this post might appear a while before free practice begins. However, if you’re reading this at all, then we’re halfway there (probably literally).

The sun is up this morning and the sky is very blue. We’ve no idea what the weather holds in store so we’ve packed flip-flops, sun cream, an umbrella and some wellies. A typical English summer day then.

On the driver front, many will be overly familiar with Silverstone given the amount testing done there last week. How much action we’ll see this morning is anyone’s guess, but hopefully the unpredictability and instability of the climate may help us here.

As you may have already gathered we’ll be at the circuit for the whole weekend, while Christine’s Mother-in-Law is manning the servers back home. Do be nice to her, it’s her first day after all.

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• Length: 8:20 
• Size: 7.7 MB 
• File: digest33.mp3 
• Transcript: digest33.pdf 
• Torrent: digest33.torrent 

It’s Sidepodcast’s home race, along with a few of the other teams and drivers, so this preview takes a closer look at one of the classic motorsport races.

Vital Statistics

• Date: 6th July
• Circuit: Silverstone
• Length: 5.1km
• Laps: 60
• 2007 Winner: Kimi Räikkönen

Preview

As a complete contrast to the last race in Magny-Cours, the British GP at Silverstone seems to conjure up a lot of confidence and emotion in many of the drivers, even those for whom it is not their home event. There’s also the added bonus of having a three day test the week before the event to make sure they’re all fully focused.

• Length: 06:19 
• Size: 72.6 MB 
• File: track9.m4v 
• Transcript: track9.pdf 
• Torrent: track9.torrent 
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It’s a sort of homecoming for Formula One this weekend, as racing returns to Silverstone 60 years after the circuit hosted the first ever race of the first ever FIA Drivers’ World Championship. In its honour Sidepodcast actually visits the circuit for this special episode of Inside Track.

We look back at the preparation for last year’s British GP with Red Bull’s very own Ole Schack, as well as finding out what to look out for in 2008 with all the boys from Toyota. There’s the usual lap of the circuit plus a quick championship refresher. In short, everything you need to know about the next race on the F1 calendar.

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