Sidepodcast

• Length: 28:15 
• Size: 25.5 MB 
• File: episode82.mp3 
• Enhanced: episode82.m4a 
• Transcript: Coming soon 
• Torrent: episode82.torrent 

A whistle-stop tour through all the news and feedback that’s occurred following on from China and ahead of the season finale Brazilian Grand Prix.

Intro

There’s no such thing as an off-season in the Sidepodcast World.

Good Week / Bad Week

Good week for circuits, as Portugal will be hosting a test in December, and the Montreal officials believe they may be back on track to getting on the 2009 calendar. Bad week for Nigel Stepney as he’s in the news again, and for Ferrari because who likes bikes anyway?

News and Views

The FIA and FOTA got together to make lots of decisions and came up with two. We discuss the promise and pitfalls of all that engine business. We also take a look at what seats are left for the many drivers that want to get into Formula 1 next season, and whether Bourdais might have his seat for certain.

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• Length: 41:50 
• Size: 38.0 MB 
• File: episode81.mp3 
• Enhanced: episode81.m4a 
• Transcript: Coming soon 
• Torrent: episode81.torrent 

The post-China race podcast in which we discuss all the track happenings, including Hamilton’s flawless performance, and the Ferrari switch. We also delve into the mysteries of the FIA, once again.

Intro

It was just a shout out or two on Radio 5live, I’m not moonlighting really.

Good Week / Bad Week

A good week for drivers with Force India’s confirmations, and Ferrari’s young programme. A bad week for us as we have to contemplate yet another feeder series.

News and Views

France have pulled out of the calendar as well, but it doesn’t look like Canada will be returning, and what timely news alongside the Abu Dhabi complex. There just aren’t enough pages. Also, we debate the standard engine tender.

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• Length: 9:45 
• Size: 9.0 MB 
• File: digest68.mp3 
• Transcript: digest68.pdf 
• Torrent: digest68.torrent 

It couldn’t be billed as the most exciting race of the season, but it had it’s moments, and F1 Digest is here to fill you in on the Chinese Grand Prix.

The Race

Perhaps we built it up to much, but the penultimate round of the 2008 championship really didn’t live up to expectations. It wasn’t the worst race of the season, but it certainly wasn’t thrill-a-minute either. The Ferrari boys struggled, the BMWs tried to make their way through the field, and all the while Hamilton just pulled away at the front.

Conclusions

Trulli and Bourdais start a war with each other, whilst Raikkonen says he knew what to do. The other teams all seemed to struggle with most drivers having tyre issues, trying to fix it with clever strategies, and failing miserably.

In the championship contenders articles I wrote earlier this week, I said it was Hamilton’s championship to lose. This race is the same. The man starts from pole with what is clearly the fastest car on the grid. On paper, he should be able to blitz the competition and get the win. Whether that means he successfully closes his championship campaign with one race still to go depends on how the Ferrari duo fare.

Raikkonen is ahead of Massa, but assuming they get off the line and round the first corner cleanly, there are plenty of opportunities for Massa to pass, or be let past. The threat of rain will be worrying the red team, not only for the confusion and chaos it tends to bring but also because of their tyre performance in the cooler climates.

The only other championship contender, in the form of Kubica, starts from 11th, which has ultimately shoved his title bid into the “not this time” box. Kub must be bitterly disappointed, of all the races for the BMW to start having issues, it had to be his sole surviving opportunity to make it to the championship finale. Heidfeld was in a position to help him out a little, starting in 6th, but after messing with DC’s head, he faces a three place grid penalty.

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• Length: 9:38 
• Size: 8.8 MB 
• File: digest67.mp3 
• Transcript: digest67.pdf 
• Torrent: digest67.torrent 

McLaren lead the way once again, with Hamilton on a determined streak to sew up the title at the penultimate race. Tune in to today’s F1 Digest for a recap of all Free Practice 3 and Qualifying action.

Free Practice 3

It turned into a nightmare day for Webber, as his engine gave up towards the end of the session. Heidfeld managed to top the timesheets, in an unusual move for BMW, who are more known for sandbagging during practice.

Qualifying

Hamilton had it sorted from the word go, whilst the BMW boys made things much harder for themselves. Ferrari did the best job they could, whilst Kovalainen felt disappointed with his out-of-touch position.

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BMW have been known for mediocre Free Practice times that translate into solid performances for the rest of the weekend. Heidfeld is known for being behind Kubica the majority of the time. What does it mean, then, that Heidfeld pulled out all the stops in FP3 to top the timesheets by 0.074 seconds?

Hamilton would have wanted to lead all three sessions, but I’m sure he can console himself with being second in FP3. The McLaren looks superb at the moment, although both drivers did struggle to keep the car on track at various points throughout the sessions. The Ferrari boys don’t appear to have any pace, not if you go by their latest times. However, Free Practice is not the be all and end all of everything, and it remains to be seen what will happen in the next hour.

Barrichello popped up into third at one point, and whilst he was pushed down to 11th by the time the session had finished, this is still an impressive showing from the Honda. He was in front of both Ferrari’s, and Vettel, while Button held off Alonso for 15th in the timesheets. All very curious.

Webber suffered the indignity of a massive engine failure, the Red Bull pouring thick plumes of smoke from the back. This may be worrying for the other three Renault runners for the upcoming sessions, especially if they recall how dodgy the Renault power plant was earlier in the season.

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With Hamilton leading both sessions already this weekend, it looks as though the McLaren’s are on fire for for this final championship push. Ferrari look to be less speedy, although they may be struggling with the cooler temperatures and their tyres. The battle will become clearer today during FP3 and Qualifying, so we’ll be keeping a beady eye on all four drivers from the two teams.

Alonso managed to sneak into second at the last minute in FP2, so it shows that he believes it’s never too late for a bit of competitive running. Perhaps Fernando is enjoying some better speed, or perhaps he’s just trying to mess with the other guys heads, but either way, it is nice to see the man in the thick of it once again. Even Piquet managed to find a bit of pace at the end of Friday, so the Renault boys could do well this weekend.

Bourdais had a bit of an off into the gravel during Free Practice, and whilst it wasn’t a damaging incident, it might have knocked his confidence a little. He was running well, close behind Hamilton, but after a few too many trips wide, he found himself beached off track. He even had to help the marshals sort themselves and the crane out to recover his stricken Toro Rosso. With just two more opportunities to prove his worth, perhaps the pressure is getting to the Frenchman.

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• Length: 7:23 
• Size: 6.8 MB 
• File: digest66.mp3 
• Transcript: digest66.pdf 
• Torrent: digest66.torrent 

Free Practice 1 and 2 took place today at the Shanghai International Circuit and Hamilton had the edge. However, it looks like it will be a real battle. Find out all the happened in today’s F1 Digest.

Free Practice 1

Hamilton led the way from the Ferrari boys, although the Free Practice session played out as they always do. An installation lap, a pause in the action, and then hard tyres all the way.

Free Practice 2

Once more McLaren took the lead, although not for the want of the Renaults trying. Alonso found some last minute speed to see off his team mate for second place. Oh, and Bourdais got stuck in the gravel.

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It was a slow start to the morning for most teams, with the usual format of installation laps followed by a long lull in the action. However, when it got going, the normal four led the way for the majority of the session.

Hamilton looked to be on fine form, the only man to get into the 1:35s, four tenths faster than the two Ferraris. The red cars were perhaps struggling a little, or maybe not too worried about times. It’s always hard to tell.

We saw quite a few excursions into the grass, from Barrichello, Hamilton, and Raikkonen, whilst Trulli’s morning session was shortened abruptly. He spun the Toyota slightly, but managed to keep the car out of the wall, returning to the pit lane for a check up before returning to the track. He didn’t do particularly well for the rest of the session though.

The track is supremely wide, with plenty of run off area, so incidents may be few and far between for the first few sessions. However, we’ve already seen Piquet repeat Lewis Hamilton’s gravel trap escapade from last year. He managed to get out safely, but it looks as though the pit lane entry will definitely be one to watch out for.

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China has already had the pleasure of hosting one international sporting event this year, and now it’s time for something even more important: Formula 1. The penultimate round of the 2008 season kicks off right now with Free Practice 1, and here’s some things we’ll be looking out for.

Now that Alonso has found some pace in his Renault, he seems to be all about the rivalry with Hamilton once again. I don’t imagine there will be any visible hostility, but to add more fire to the Spaniards determination can only be a good thing. However, this all depends on whether the Renault really has suddenly got a lot better, or if back-to-back wins is enough for one season, thank you very much.

Heidfeld will no doubt want to make sure he has all the information he can possibly get about his tyres, after such a unfortunate start to last weekend. With Kubica still in the hunt for the title, Heidfeld may be able to play a good second driver role here, or he may just let his team mate fight it out alone.

The weather may play a part in proceedings this weekend, as it looks like clouds and perhaps some precipitation could appear at some point during the action. Stuart is at the circuit, and has commented that there’s sun and smog, but the most troublesome aspect looks to be the wind.

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