1 Racing Mind’s 2020 Formula 1 Mid-Season Team Report Card: Williams Racing

Photo Credit: Mark Sutton LAT Images/Pirelli

Team Grade: C

Driver’s Grade 

George Russell: B-

Nicholas Latifi: C

Summary of First Nine Races:

An organization who has won nine Formula 1 Constructors Championship titles and crossed the line first in 114 grand prix races since 1977, Williams Racing Formula 1 team’s performance in recent years has been far detached from its glorious history. The once-dominant team has been regularly spotted at the rear of the running order for grand prix events in 2019 due to many factors including a lower operating budget compared to teams at the front of the grid as well as bumbled development of the FW42 race car. As the on-track product suffered, the delay of the 2020 season caused by the global COVID-19 pandemic magnified off-track woes for Williams Racing. In addition to splitting from team title sponsor ROKiT, the organization posted a large financial loss in May of this year. To was at that point mention of partnership or even total sale of the Williams Racing team was first floated.

Despite operational challenges, Williams Racing arrived for the season opening Formula 1 race in Austria with British pilot George Russell and rookie Canadian driver Nicholas Latifi. Although Williams Racing had scored a point in the constructors’ championship by this time last year, the 2020 on-track performance for the team has been mildly better. Russell’s pace in qualifying for several early events in the season showed the Mercedes-Benz powered FW43 was able to potentially enter the Q2 session. The Styrian Grand Prix and the Hungarian Grand Prix were season-best qualifying outings for George Russell after nine races starting 12th on both occasions. 

Nicholas Latifi’s first season in Formula 1 has involved a great deal of time in the back of the field. The Canadian has been outpaced by his more experienced teammate in all nine qualifying events this season. Finishing 11th on two occasions (largely due to running in events with high attrition), Latifi had been recorded as finishing all races this season until his first retirement being caught up in the multi-car wreck at the Tuscan Grand Prix.

Prediction for Rest of the 2020 Season:

Taking to the grid for the 2020 Formula 1 season was a challenge itself for the Williams Racing team. A sale to US-based Dorilton Capital announced in late August allowed the organization to obtain its most important goal; the team’s survival. 

While the new owners are committed to retaining the team’s name and other heritage features including the ‘FW’ designation in their chassis, the race group is moving on without team founder Sir Frank Williams or its Deputy Team Principal Claire Williams. With the Tuscan Grand Prix being the start of establishing a new era for a new Williams Racing, it’s difficult to imagine any major improvements will be made throughout the remainder of 2020 to left the team up the grid. Running powerful Mercedes-Benz power is not a guarantee for success for the team as it is for the factory Mercedes AMG or even Racing Point. Williams Racing’s best chance at a championship point for the 2020 season may come in events where a high level of race retirements will occur.

1 Racing Mind's 2017 Formula 1 Summer Break Report Card: Williams Martini Racing

Photo Credit: Glenn Dunbar/LAT Images

Team Grade: C

Driver Grades
Felipe Massa: B-
Lance Stroll: C+

Williams Martini Racing’s 2017 plans were thrown for a loop in only the first month of the year. Unable to resist the opportunity to take over the hotly desirable seat vacated by the retired Nico Rosberg at Mercedes AMG, Valtteri Bottas sought and was granted a release from the team. Brazilian Formula 1 veteran Felipe Massa, who originally intended to hang up his helmet after the 2016 season, was recalled to drive a Williams-Mercedes alongside 18-year-old Canadian rookie Lance Stroll.

The 40th anniversary season for the Williams Formula 1 team, 2017 has been short in celebration on the track. Felipe Massa started the season off reasonably with sixth place finishes at the Australian Grand Prix and Bahrain Grand Prix. While Massa has been a consistent for the organization with point-scoring finishes in 6 of the 11 races currently completed, Williams’ best effort of the 2017 Formula 1 season was obtained by the first year driver. Lance Stroll scored a third place result at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix and was running in second place in the late part of the event before former Williams driver Valtteri Bottas. Stroll became the youngest Formula 1 driver to finish on the podium in Formula 1 competition and the first Canadian no named Villeneuve to achieve a three-top result in a grand prix.

While the podium sandwiched by two other point scoring finishes has been a respectable run for Lance Stroll, his rookie has been unstable overall. Stroll’s Formula 1 career started with three consecutive retirements consisting of a brake issue in Australia as well as two collisions in China and Bahrain.

In the first two years of Formula 1's implementation of the current gasoline/electric hybrid powertrain rules, Williams opting for Mercedes-Benz power was almost a winning decision existing as a podium threat for many 2014 and 2015 events. Since 2016, the team’s performance appears to have slipped. While the FW40 race car has rarely appeared in the top half of the point scoring spots, the Williams machines have been fairly reliable with several retirements being due to collisions rather than mechanical issues.

Thoughts of Team for Remainder of 2017:

The current Williams race car has shown much of its strength on slower tracks in 2017 leaving the Singapore Grand Prix as a potential opportunity looking forward through the final nine events.

While Felipe Massa has put in a steady effort with Williams with the exception of his withdraw from the Hungarian Grand Prix due to health reasons, Lance Stroll’s performance has areas requiring growth. Stroll’s qualifying results in the first 11 events have been most atrocious. Cracking Q3 on only two occasions, Stroll’s Williams-Mercedes has most often been seen mired back in last three rows of the grid. Better starting spots would inevitably help the Canadian find point-scoring consistency through the remaining portion of 2017.

Hamilton Wins Monza Despite Formula 1-Style Deflategate Investigation

Photo Credit: Mercedes AMG

The 11th race of the 2015 season for some of the top open wheel drivers in the world, 53 laps around the fastest track Formula 1 assembles in a season is a potentially torturous test of machinery. The high-speed, low downforce setup around the 5.793-kilometer Autodromo Nazionale di Monza pushes teams to extract peak engine performance from their vehicles. Before weekend, Honda and Renault added numerous components to the point affiliated teams received grid place penalties assessed after this weekend's qualifying. Even the favored Mercedes AMG team came to Monza with enhancements made to their power units.

Surprising few, Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes AMG sat on the pole for the 2015 Italian Grand Prix. What was a matter of bewilderment was the Hamilton's fellow front row occupant. In a Ferrari, Kimi Raikkonen started the race as the main focus of the patriotic Italian fan base who would have loved to see the Prancing Horse win on the Monza circuit. It was a short-lived moment of appreciation in Sunday's main event for Raikkonen. When the lights went out at the start of the grand prix, the Ferrari for the Finnish driver stalled at a precarious instant as the field launched. Kimi Raikkonen's car finally got up to speed only after the entire field had flown by. After potentially being in a situation of contending for an easy podium or even a win at Monza, Raikkonen and the Ferrari race car fought a difficult uphill battle.

Photo Credit: FOTO STUDIO COLOMBO PER PIRELLI MEDIA

While Lewis Hamilton faced an immediate challenge from the Ferrari of Sebastian Vettel, the Mercedes AMG race car quickly pulled away neutralizing the chance for an Italian team winning on its home track. In less than 15 minutes into the Italian Grand Prix, Hamilton had a 5.5-second gap over Vettel.

As Lewis Hamilton was enjoying a Sunday drive in Italy, his teammate Nico Rosberg fought in a weekend that had gone the way the German wanted. After suffering engine issues in final practice, Rosberg's car ran an older spec power unit layout that put him in a potential handicap to Hamilton. Qualifying fourth, a poor start by Nico Rosberg opened the door to the pair of Williams-Mercedes race cars. Thanks to a quick pit stop made on lap 18 courtesy of the Mercedes AMG crew, Rosberg leapfrogged the Williams machines when drivers Felipe Massa and Valtteri Bottas came to the attention of pit lane a few laps later. Elevated to third, Rosberg spent roughly half of the race's distance narrowing the interval between himself and second place's Sebastian Vettel.

After 53 laps, the commanding authority Lewis Hamilton raced would not be challenged. Hamilton crossed the line more than 25 seconds ahead of second-place Vettel. Potentially the seventh win of the 2015 season, the Italian Grand Prix victory came into scrutiny short after the race.

By crossing the line to the Italian Grand Prix, Hamilton defended his 2014 race win at the track. However, Lewis Hamilton's 40th grand prix victory would be placed in jeopardy in post-race when it was revealed tire pressures on his Mercedes AMG tested below the mandatory limit. While an underinflated tire was detected on left-rear corner of Hamilton's race car, the amount of the violation was 0.3 PSI. A clear breach of technical rules as well as being a potential safety risk, a deflated tire could potentially provide an advantage in regards to grip. Tire pressures on the second Mercedes AMG driven by Nico Rosberg also had an underinflated tire that was 1.1 PSI under the limit. Since Rosberg's race ended in retirement, there was no concerns for a penalty. In the end, Lewis Hamilton's race stood as official in a weekend the defending British Formula 1 champion described as a perfect one.

In post-race, Head of Mercedes-Benz Motorsport Toto Wolff described the ordeal with the deflated tire. "As Mercedes-Benz, our number one priority is to operate our car within the prescribed safety limits and this is not something we would ever take a chance on. Indeed, we worked very closely with Pirelli since Spa to help define these limits for the race weekend in Monza, and we saw today that there were no problems in a very high-speed, hard-fought race; my compliments go to Pirelli for the job they have done here in Monza", said Wolff. With Hamilton's win, the points gap between the Mercedes AMG in the 2015 drivers' championship has widened considerably. The Italian Grand Prix becomes the second in a row for Formula 1 where tires were the talk of post-race analysis. At the last race on the Spa-Francorchamps circuit, Sebastian Vettel leveled criticism at Pirelli for a tire failure late in the event. In truth, the tire wore out because of excessive distance.

The podium at Monza was immersed by an emotional atmosphere as a loud, the Italian crowd cheered the drivers of three separate teams (the first time such an occurrence happened this season). Mercedes shared the Italian Grand Prix podium with Ferrari and Williams. Sebastian Vettel was unable to keep pace with the exceptionally fast Lewis Hamilton but maintained the second-place position for much of the event even resisting Nico Rosberg's late challenge.

Photo Credit: FOTO STUDIO COLOMBO PER PIRELLI MEDIA

Collecting his second podium finish in 2015, Felipe Massa was a benefactor of Rosberg's late retirement. By little more than 3/10th of a second, Massa fended off his teammate Valtteri Bottas. "It's really emotional to have been on the podium. It was a difficult but fantastic race, I didn't have the best start but I was still able to pass cars so it was good enough. I worked hard to open the gap to Valtteri, but when I pitted early it gave him the advantage on tyres at the end of the race. It was hard to keep him behind as he really wanted it, but I just about managed it." said Massa in post-race.

Starting on the front row but falling to the back by the first corner of the Italian Grand Prix, Kimi Raikkonen and his Ferrari hoed a difficult road for 53 laps. At the checkered flag, Raikkonen had climbed to fifth place. Behind Raikkonen's Ferrari, the Force India duo of Sergio Perez and Nico Hulkenberg delivered a favourable performance at Monza. While Force India had a low-yield start of the 2015 Formula 1 season, the recent grand prix races have shown some progress for the team. The Italian Grand Prix was the third time in five events that both cars finished within the points.

After suffering a poor qualifying and a grid position drop to the second-to-last place at the race's start, Daniel Ricciardo and his Red Bull Racing team had an eventful outcome. From 19th, Ricciardo surged to 8th place. Teammate Daniil Kvyat emerged from 18th place to take 10th in the second Red Bull-Renault. Though the result would not completely satisfy observers concerned with Renault's competitiveness against the Mercedes-Benz and Ferrari machines, the Monza event was nonetheless a decent points showing for the outfit. Splitting the two Red Bull Racing cars, Marcus Ericsson's Sauber-Ferrari accomplished his third consecutive points-scoring run. Every vehicle appearing in the top-10 utilized a one-stop strategy.

Only four cars were record to have not finished the 2015 Italian Grand Prix. Two of the retirements were the Lotus F1 Team entries of Romain Grosjean and Pastor Maldonado that occurred early in the race. With each passing grand prix, the Lotus F1 Team is continuing to dodge rumours that the team will be unable to finish the season. Besides Nico Rosberg, Fernando Alonso's McLaren-Honda suffered what was diagnosed with an electrical control board fault after 42 laps.

With the visit to the fast Monza circuit now completed for 2015, Formula 1's European tour has wrapped for the year. Next on the schedule is the Grand Prix of Singapore set for September 20th.

 

2015 Formula 1

Italian Grand Prix

Race Results

Pos #	Car #	Driver	Team	Engine
1	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes AMG	Mercedes-Benz
2	5	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	Ferrari
3	19	Felipe Massa	Williams	Mercedes-Benz
4	77	Valtteri Bottas	Williams F1	Renault
5	7	Kimi Raikkonen	Ferrari	Ferrari
6	11	Sergio Perez	Force India	Mercedes-Benz
7	27	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India	Mercedes-Benz
8	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull	Renault
9	9	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber	Ferrari
10	26	Daniil Kvyat	Red Bull	Renault
11	55	Carlos Sainz Jr	Scuderia Toro Rosso	Renault
12	33	Max Verstappen	Scuderia Toro Rosso	Renault
13	12	Felipe Nasr	Sauber	Ferrari
14	22	Jenson Button	McLaren	Honda
15	28	Will Stevens	Manor Marussia	Ferrari
16	98	Roberto Merhi	Manor Marussia	Ferrari
17	6	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes AMG	Mercedes-Benz
18	14	Fernando Alonso	McLaren	Honda
19	8	Romain Grosjean	Lotus	Mercedes-Benz
20	13	Pastor Maldonado	Lotus	Mercedes-Benz

1 Racing Mind 2015 Formula 1 Mid-season Report Card: Williams Martini Racing

Photo Credit: FOTO STUDIO COLOMBO X PIRELLI

Williams Martini Racing

 

Team Score: C

 

Felipe Massa: C+

Valtteri Bottas: B

The Williams Martini Racing's 2014 season was seen as a very positive year. Making the right move by choosing the Mercedes-Benz power unit last season, the team has enjoyed near-equal pace with the factory Mercedes AMG organization. Williams Martini Racing's effort biggest success was a pole for the 2014 Austrian Grand Prix. With many expecting a race victory for the team in 2014, 2015 has featured high hopes for Williams. Though a productive Formula 1 campaign in the first 10 races this season, it may not be unfair to say some were looking for bigger things from the Williams-Mercedes race cars in 2015. 

There seemed to be no fault in the decision to preserve the driver line-up after the 2014 season. Felipe Massa and Valtteri Bottas performed well last season and have continued to be consistent for 2015. Both Massa and Bottas have appeared on the podium with a third place finish Unfortunately, the 2015 Williams-Mercedes race car appeared is lacking the front-running pace that was presented with the 2014 vehicle.

Similar to last year, the Williams Martini Racing team's progression back to the victory lane has shown periods of weakness. Slow, handling-focused circuits such as Monaco and the Hungaroring concluded with no points being scored by either race car. In the British Grand Prix, Williams driver Massa snatched the lead from the Mercedes AMG race cars in the early stages but faded to fourth. In the second scenario, race conditions contributed to result but the finish left many within the team disappointed. Bad luck for the Williams Martini Racing also occurred at the opening round in Australia when Valtteri Bottas suffered a back injury that sidelined him for the round.

Still showing potential, the Williams-Mercedes has shown reliability and Felipe Massa has finished in the top-10 for all but two races this season. Last year by the tenth race, Massa had three DNFs. Despite missing a race, the young Bottas continues to impress currently in fourth place in the overall points standing. As a team, Williams is holding steady in third-place in the manufacturers' points.

Ingredients for Second-Half of 2015:

Last year, Williams Martini Racing's season enjoyed a very productive second-half of the schedule that resulted in six of nine podiums for 2014. With the strong Mercedes-Benz hybrid power unit and a Williams engineers that can provide a quick, well-engineered vehicle, there could be still be potential for the team to steal a win in 2015 figuring a little fortune finds the team.

Hamilton Recovers from Poor Start to Win British Grand Prix

Photo Credit: FOTO STUDIO COLOMBO X PIRELLI

 

One of the more popular rounds on the Formula 1 championship, the British Grand Prix was first run in 1926 and has a history at the former World War II airfield of Silverstone since 1948. From 1987, Silverstone has served as the permanent home of Britain's grand prix race.

For a long time, the event has served as a home race for major teams and drivers. While diversity of competitors has widened changed over the years, but the British Grand Prix is still heavily coveted by national interests including seven current teams based in the country. All through the weekend of the 2015 edition of the race at Silverstone, defending winner and Brit Lewis Hamilton made no secret to how important the British Grand Prix is to him. "I can’t describe the feeling I had last year – lifting that trophy again in front of the sea of fans on pit straight after so many years and after a tough start to the weekend too. It’s something that will always stay with me and nothing less than the same again will do."

Taking the pole on Saturday with teammate Nico Rosberg on the front row, Lewis Hamilton mindset ahead of the 52-lap main event is to be the top Mercedes AMG race car presuming it would be the team's race to lose. In what was a wacky race start Sunday, both Mercedes AMG car drivers were caught off-guard when the five lights went out. In a bizarre sight, the Williams-Mercedes cars on the second row leapfrogged the Mercedes AMG vehicles. Felipe Massa took an early lead with teammate Valtteri Bottas assuming the second place position.

Behind the lead pack, a first lap incident involving Lotus F1 Team and McLaren race cars occurred. Damage race machines on track resulted in a safety car period as well as three of the four cars (Jenson Button, Romain Grosjean and Pastor Maldonado) linked to the chaos unable to finish the race. Fernando Alonso was also connected to the mayhem but was able to persevere after reaching the pits for a new front wing.

The early stage of the British Grand Prix claimed a number of vehicles powered by Renault. One exit was Max Verstappen who spun off track in one of the Toro Rosso-Renaults. However, the second Toro Rosso of Carlos Sainz Jr. and the Red Bull race car of Daniel Ricciardo both encountered an electrical faults with their powerplants. Daniil Kvyat was the only Renault powered contender to finish at Silverstone crossing the line in sixth place.  

When it appeared the race was lost on the start, the Mercedes AMG team fought back. For Lewis Hamilton, the British Grand Prix was won on pit road. A swift pit stop performed on the #44 car by the Mercedes AMG pit crew placed Hamilton ahead of Felipe Massa and Valtteri Bottas. Retaking possession of the first place position, Lewis Hamilton was falter-free as he cruised to a 10.956-second victory at Silverstone for his third victory. Describing the entire weekend as very special in his home country, Hamilton expressed he was tearing up in the last lap of the grand prix. In the previous two times Lewis Hamilton has won the British Grand Prix (2008 and 2014), he went on to win the year's championship title.

Both drivers for Williams Martini Racing used the word "frustrating" to describe their results in the 2015 British Grand Prix. Having been in position to win or score a podium finish at Silverstone, Felipe Massa and Valtteri Bottas were thrown for a curve with the late race rain. It was near the end of the race where Hamilton's teammate Nico Rosberg and Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel gained an advantage over to Williams-Mercedes race cars to gain podium spots. Williams Martini Racing took fourth and fifth place at Silverstone with Massa claiming the edge over Bottas.

Deeper in the finishing order, both Force India-Mercedes vehicles finished in the points. Nico Hulkenberg took seventh place while Sergio Perez was ninth at the chequered flag. Splitting the two Force Indias was the second Ferrari driven by Kimi Raikkonen. In the tenth and final point-scoring spot in the British Grand Prix's results was Fernando Alonso. Overcoming an opening lap tangle, Alonso grabbed his first point of a season that has been dominated in lackluster results with the McLaren powered its Honda power unit.

The 2015 Formula 1 will get two weeks off to prepare for July 26th's Hungarian Grand Prix.

2015 Formula 1

British Grand Prix

Race Results

Pos #	Car #	Driver	Team	Engine
1	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes AMG	Mercedes-Benz
2	6	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes AMG	Mercedes-Benz
3	5	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	Ferrari
4	19	Felipe Massa	Williams	Mercedes-Benz
5	77	Valtteri Bottas	Williams F1	Renault
6	26	Daniil Kvyat	Red Bull	Renault
7	27	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India	Mercedes-Benz
8	7	Kimi Raikkonen	Ferrari	Ferrari
9	11	Sergio Perez	Force India	Mercedes-Benz
10	14	Fernando Alonso	McLaren	Honda
11	9	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber	Ferrari
12	98	Roberto Merhi	Manor Marussia	Ferrari
13	28	Will Stevens	Manor Marussia	Ferrari
14	55	Carlos Sainz Jr	Scuderia Toro Rosso	Renault
15	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull	Renault
16	33	Max Verstappen	Scuderia Toro Rosso	Renault
17	8	Romain Grosjean	Lotus	Mercedes-Benz
18	13	Pastor Maldonado	Lotus	Mercedes-Benz
19	22	Jenson Button	McLaren	Honda
20	12	Felipe Nasr	Sauber	Ferrari

Hamilton Takes Pole in Monza in Session of Mercedes-Benz Supremacy

Photo Credit: Andrew Hone Photographer/Pirelli

The Italian Grand Prix is a storied stop on the Formula 1 tour. With the first-ever running of the auto race occurring in 1921, the race had only interrupted by World War Two. For all but five of the years as part of the modern Formula 1 sanctioning body, the Italian Grand Prix's home has been the Monza circuit. Autodromo di Monza currently takes place on an 11-turn, 5.793-kilometer (3.6-mile) road course for a 53-lap race in what is the last Western European round in the 2014 championship.

A low-downforce, high-speed circuit, Monza has confirmed a most-evident truth during the 2014 season. Under Formula 1's new gasoline/electric hybrid powertrain technical specifications, Mercedes-Benz engines have been the choice for fast competition laps. The factory team (Mercedes AMG) has been the major benefactor of the manufacturer's engineering heading into this season but customers Williams, McLaren and Force India have also found Mercedes-Benz power to be an advantage. Qualifying for the Italian Grand Prix only magnified the struggle for Ferrari and Renault against the Mercedes-Benz juggernaut in 2014.

With qualifying times considerably faster than the Saturday morning practice session, Lewis Hamilton's 1-minute, 21.109-second lap time in Q3 was more than enough for the pole. Hamilton's top lap time was 0.274 seconds faster than teammate Nico Rosberg. Despite their continuing dominance in qualifying (winning all-but one pole position in the season so far) All is not well in the Mercedes AMG team. The stories of a deteriorating relationship between Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg reached a high point in the past race in Belgium. Rosberg making contact with Hamilton's car during the race was the most public display of the Mercedes AMG drivers' displeasure with each other. With both drivers competing for a drivers' championship, Mercedes AMG team principal Toto Wolff has warned his pilots that any similar follow-up incidents will not be tolerated by the team.

Photo Credit: Mercedes AMG

Behind the Mercedes AMG cars on the front row, the next two rows on the grid for the 2014 Italian Grand Prix will start with customer Mercedes-Benz engines. Another pattern was the younger team pilots leading their more veteran teammates. Both Williams-Mercedes race cars will occupy the second row at the start of the race on Monza. Valtteri Bottas starts third while Felipe Massa scored a fourth fastest time in Q3. "To have both cars on the second row is a good starting point for the race. I am really happy with the qualifying lap and the car is set-up for the race so I am confident we can push the Mercedes, it’s just a question of how much can we push them.", said Bottas on the Williams team news release. The McLaren team has their pair of entries placed on the third row with Kevin Magnussen recording a 0.065-second advantage over Jenson Button. The only Mercedes-Benz powered team breaking from the trend was the Force India cars. Sergio Perez has qualified 10th while Nico Hulkenberg recorded a 12th fastest time in Q2.

Photo Credit: Andrew Hone Photographer/Pirelli

The best non-Mercedes team throughout the Italian Grand Prix practices came as a source of national pride. The Ferrari organization was led by Fernando Alonso in qualifying with a seventh place result in Q3. Teammate Kimi Raikkonen missed the cut for the third and final qualifying session and will start the Italian Grand Prix in 11th.

Red Bull Racing, the Renault-powered team that succeeded in being the only team to overcome Mercedes AMG for victory this season on three occasions, appeared mismatched in qualifying against the products of the German engine manufacturer. The only Renaults to break into Q3, Red Bull Racing was led by reigning world champion Sebastian Vettel in eighth place followed by Daniel Ricciardo in ninth. Knowing their one lap performance deficient through Friday practice, Renault Sport is looking towards to race pace and reliability as keys for a successful 53 laps at Monza.

With a sunny and warm weather forecast for the afternoon event, Pirelli predicts the race at Monza will be a one-stop affair for front-running teams. Race time for the 2014 Italian Grand Prix 2 pm local time or 8 am Eastern time.


2014 Formula 1
Italian Grand Prix 
Starting Grid

Pos #	Car #	Driver	Team	Engine
1	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes AMG	Mercedes-Benz
2	6	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes AMG	Mercedes-Benz
3	77	Valtteri Bottas	Williams F1	Renault
4	19	Felipe Massa	Williams	Mercedes-Benz
5	22	Kevin Magnussen	McLaren	Mercedes-Benz
6	22	Jenson Button	McLaren	Mercedes-Benz
7	14	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	Ferrari
8	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull	Renault
9	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull	Renault
10	11	Sergio Perez	Force India	Mercedes-Benz
11	7	Kimi Raikkonen	Ferrari	Ferrari
12	25	Jean-Eric Vergne	Scuderia Toro Rosso	Renault
13	27	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India	Mercedes-Benz
14	99	Adrian Sutil	Sauber	Ferrari
15	21	Esteban Gutierrez	Sauber	Ferrari
16	13	Pastor Maldonado	Lotus	Renault
17	8	Romain Grosjean	Lotus	Renault
18	10	Kamui Kobayashi	Caterham	Renault
19	17	Jules Bianchi	Marussia	Ferrari
20	4	Max Chilton	Marussia	Ferrari
21	26	Daniil Kvyat	Scuderia Toro Rosso	Renault
22	9	Marcus Ericsson	Caterham	Renault

1 Racing Mind 2014 Formula 1 Mid-Season Report: Martini Williams Racing

Photo Credit: Pirelli Photo Service

Martini Williams Racing

Team Score: B

Felipe Massa: B-

Valtteri Bottas: A-

Not only has the Martini Williams Racing team emerged considerably better than last year's team, the organization was a podium contender for several races. 2013 was a complete disaster for the nine-time constructors' title winner capturing only five points in 19 races. This year, Martini Williams Racing holds 121 point and is found in third place in the team standings. The abandonment of Renault for Mercedes-Benz power was likely a contributing factor to success. Although the engines received by Williams' are not quite at the zenith of performance as those powering the Mercedes AMG cars, the powerplant has nonetheless provided potency to the team's FW36 chassis.
 

The driver line-up for Martini Williams Racing reflect an experienced Brazilian pro with Felipe Massa and the budding sophomore talent of Finnish Valtteri Bottas. Both Massa and Bottas have been fast with the Williams-Mercedes but the younger driver has shown the best endurance for surviving grand prix races. Currently fifth in the Formula 1 Drivers' points, Bottas has qualified in the top-four three times in the past four grand prix events. Most impressively is Valtteri Bottas' current podium streak. Collecting his first-ever top-three finish in a Formula 1 race in Austria, Bottas has collected two runner-up spots at Silverstone and the Hockenheimring. Felipe Massa has also shown flashes of brilliance in 2014 but have been hindered by crashes including a scary one at the Canadian Grand Prix.

Ingredients for Second-Half of 2014: Martini Williams Racing can possibility exit the 2014 Formula 1 season with a victory if they can catch the Mercedes AMG team on a bad outing. Bottas and Massa must remain solid in qualifying as well as race scenarios. It is also pivotal that Williams continues to develop their FW36 chassis in a positive manner.

Massa Leads Surprise Williams Front Row Qualifying Performance in Austria

Photo Credit: Pirelli Photo Service

After 11 years off the Formula 1 schedule, the open wheel series returns as a radically different venue. Still set on a 4.236-kilometer track as was the 2003 grand prix, the name has been changed from the A-1 Ring to the Red Bull Ring and the facility has underwent a host of enhancements.

Back in 2003, the Formula 1 racing tour was a seen where V-10 engines roared, Red Bull Racing didn't even exist and racing great Michael Schumacher was adding to what would be a career of record-breaking performances. A season that ended with a championship point standing where Schumacher won by just two points over then-McLaren driver Kimi Raikkonen, the German driver's Austrian Grand Prix victory ultimately that year served as an important piece to a his sixth of seven world drivers' titles.

This era was also the last recent period where the Williams F1 Team was a formidable front-runner in Formula 1 competition. Winning four races in 2003, the Frank Williams-founded race organization has only won two times over the course of the grand prix events held from 2004 to this season. Fighting to find the right combination of drivers, engines and support, the Williams Martini Racing team appears to have struck upon a possible podium-contending match for 2014. Felipe Massa and Valtteri Bottas have been making the most out of a solid car and a competent Mercedes-Benz powerplant in several races so far this season. Returning to the former A-1 Ring in Austria, the Williams Martini Racing team may channeled their past magic in Formula 1 to top everyone else in Saturday's qualifying for the Austrian Grand Prix.

The Williams-Mercedes cars led a progressive surge in the three practice sessions at the Red Bull Ring. By the third and final practice session, Valtteri Bottas stood at the top of the time sheet while his highly-experienced teammate Felipe Massa was tightly nestled posting the third-fastest time. It was in qualifying where the seasoned Brazilian driver rose to deliver a commanding performance. Felipe Massa pulled off a Q3 timed lap of 1 minute, 8.769 seconds to grab his 16th career pole position and his first since the 2008 Brazilian Grand Prix. As a plus for Williams Martini Racing, Valtteri Bottas was less than a tenth of a second off Massa's fastest lap allowing him to start in second. The first pole for Williams since 2012, the presence of both cars on the front row has not been seen since 2003 at the German Grand Prix.

Photo Credit: Andrew Hone/ Pirelli Photo Service

While the Saturday time trial session glory belonged to the Mercedes-Benz customer team in Austria, the factory team has been celebrating for the most race weekends this Formula 1 season. The Mercedes AMG team remains fast but has appeared a little more fallible since the Canadian Grand Prix race two weeks ago. Nico Rosberg posted the third-fastest time in a session that saw the Mercedes F1 W05 Hybrid race car dethroned from the top spot after grand prix qualifying this season. As for the Mercedes AMG driver Lewis Hamilton, his Q3 session was marred with mishaps. Making two attempts, Hamilton would ultimately have to scrub both runs spinning in the second run. The Brit will start in ninth place.

Photo Credit: Mercedes AMG

Qualifying for the Austrian Grand Prix also served a mixed bag for Ferrari and Red Bull Racing. Winless since the 2013 Spanish Grand Prix, Ferrari and Fernando Alonso are still trying to find the final ingredient of consistent, front-running speed. Alonso posted a fourth-fastest time on Saturday but Kimi Raikkonen could only muster an eighth place starting position. Capturing their first 2014 win at the previous grand prix, The Red Bull-Renault's victory came just in time for the event on the Red Bull Ring. Red Bull Racing has been led by the team's newcomer Daniel Ricciardo through much of the season. Austrian Grand Prix qualifying at the team owner's home event has continued to result in the Australian outrunning his championship defending teammate. Ricciardo will start fifth Sunday while Sebastian Vettel missed the Q3 session for a third time this season settling for a 12th place grid position.      

Formula 1 rookies for 2014 Kevin Magnussen and Daniil Kvyat posted impressive times on the Red Bull Ring for respectable Sunday grid spots. The McLaren-Mercedes of Magnussen will start sixth while the Kvyat's Toro Rosso-Renault will roll-off seventh. Nico Hulkenberg will start tenth for the Austrian Grand Prix for Force India.

With a forecast calling for a warm and sunny Austrian Grand Prix, 71 laps around the Red Bull Ring is scheduled to commence at 2 PM local time and 8 AM eastern time.


2014 Formula 1
Austrian Grand Prix
Starting Grid

Pos #	Car #	Driver	Team	Engine
1	19	Felipe Massa	Williams	Mercedes-Benz
2	77	Valtteri Bottas	Williams F1	Renault
3	6	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes AMG	Mercedes-Benz
4	14	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	Ferrari
5	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull	Renault
6	22	Kevin Magnussen	McLaren	Mercedes-Benz
7	26	Daniil Kvyat	Scuderia Toro Rosso	Renault
8	7	Kimi Raikkonen	Ferrari	Ferrari
9	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes AMG	Mercedes-Benz
10	27	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India	Mercedes-Benz
11	22	Jenson Button	McLaren	Mercedes-Benz
12	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull	Renault
13	13	Pastor Maldonado	Lotus	Renault
14	25	Jean-Eric Vergne	Scuderia Toro Rosso	Renault
15	8	Romain Grosjean	Lotus	Renault
16	11	Sergio Perez	Force India	Mercedes-Benz
17	99	Adrian Sutil	Sauber	Ferrari
18	21	Esteban Gutierrez	Sauber	Ferrari
19	17	Jules Bianchi	Marussia	Ferrari
20	10	Kamui Kobayashi	Caterham	Renault
21	9	Marcus Ericsson	Caterham	Renault
22	4	Max Chilton	Marussia	Ferrari

Rosberg Flies the Mercedes Flag in Canadian Grand Prix Qualifying

Photo Credit: Andrew Hone/ Pirelli

Two weeks after another memorable running of the Monaco Grand Prix, the enthusiasm of the 22-car 2014 Formula 1 season has jumped over the Atlantic Ocean. The first stop in North America for 2014, the Canadian Grand Prix held on the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve provides an interesting combination of long, high-speed stretches and heavy braking areas.

The 4.361-kilometer track's now regular June date is typically a point in the Formula 1 season where the have and have-not teams are aware of where they stand on the grid. While the historically strong but under-performing teams for 2014 such as Ferrari and McLaren will be re-evaluating their efforts for a more productive season moving forward, the Mercedes AMG team is at the top of the Formula 1 world entering the 2014 Canadian Grand Prix race weekend.

While Fernando Alonso topped the first practice session on the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve on Friday, the Mercedes AMG race cars of Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg were in hot pursuit. Just 0.016 seconds off the pace of the Ferrari in the first practice, British driver Hamilton posted a 1-minute, 16.118-second to dominate Friday warm-ups. Ahead of Saturday qualifying, Hamilton bettered his own time by more than half a second in a morning session.

Lewis Hamilton parlayed his speed in practice into strong performance in Q1 and Q2 time trial sessions on Saturday. Fellow Mercedes AMG pilot Nico Rosberg kept up appearances during the first two stages of qualifying being third fastest in Q1 and second-quickest in Q2. Mercedes-Benz teams also presented some encouraging performance during Canadian Grand Prix qualifying. Kevin Magnussen posted a second-fastest time in Q1, the rookie driver wound-up 12th on the grid after a less impressive Q2 run. Magnussen's teammate and 2011 Canadian Grand Prix winner Jenson Button will start ninth in his McLaren-Mercedes. The second Mercedes-Benz customer time to showing strength on Saturday was Williams Martini Racing. Valtteri Bottas and his more experienced teammate Felipe Massa posted some strong times throughout qualifying. After Q3, Bottas is starting fourth while Massa is placed in a solid fifth place position. Last year in Canadian Grand Prix time trials, then-rookie driver Valtteri Bottas qualified third but fell quickly over the course of the grand prix. With a year of Formula 1 driving under his belt and a Williams car that his appeared better than the 2013 version, could put together a better run.

When qualifying wrapped, the factory Mercedes AMG team enjoyed the victors. However, despite holding the advantage in the conclusion of the first two qualifying sessions, Lewis Hamilton would be bested by his German teammate. Posting a 1-minute, 14.874-second lap time in Q3, Nico Rosberg captured pole. While Hamilton attempted to take the pole position in the late portion of the final time trial session, his Mercedes AMG race car was 0.079 seconds off the mark. Holding a slim four point advantage over teammate Lewis Hamilton heading into the Canadian Grand Prix, Nico Rosberg have conceivably declared full-scale war against the 2014 Formula 1 field that includes, most provocatively, his fellow Mercedes AMG driver. 

Photo Credit: Mercedes AMG

Taking third place in qualifying on the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, the Red Bull-Renault of Sebastian Vettel broke a dominating session among Mercedes-Benz propelled cars. Over half a second off the pace of second-place Lewis Hamilton, Vettel is still searching for his first victory in the 2014 Formula 1 season and arrives at the Canadian Grand Prix as the race's defending winner. The second Red Bull Racing car will start from sixth place on the grid for Sunday's main event.

The 70-lap Canadian Grand Prix is set to start at 2:00 PM Eastern time. The weather forecast calls for a sunny, warm race.



2014 Formula 1
Canadian Grand Prix
Qualifying Results

Pos #	Car #	Driver	Team	Engine
1	6	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes AMG	Mercedes-Benz
2	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes AMG	Mercedes-Benz
3	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull	Renault
4	77	Valtteri Bottas	Williams F1	Renault
5	19	Felipe Massa	Williams	Mercedes-Benz
6	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull	Renault
7	14	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	Ferrari
8	25	Jean-Eric Vergne	Scuderia Toro Rosso	Renault
9	22	Jenson Button	McLaren	Mercedes-Benz
10	7	Kimi Raikkonen	Ferrari	Ferrari
11	27	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India	Mercedes-Benz
12	22	Kevin Magnussen	McLaren	Mercedes-Benz
13	11	Sergio Perez	Force India	Mercedes-Benz
14	8	Romain Grosjean	Lotus	Renault
15	26	Daniil Kvyat	Scuderia Toro Rosso	Renault
16	99	Adrian Sutil	Sauber	Ferrari
17	13	Pastor Maldonado	Lotus	Renault
18	4	Max Chilton	Marussia	Ferrari
19	17	Jules Bianchi	Marussia	Ferrari
20	10	Kamui Kobayashi	Caterham	Renault
21	9	Marcus Ericsson	Caterham	Renault
22	21	Esteban Gutierrez	Sauber	Ferrari

Williams F1 Surprises Signing with Mercedes-Benz for 2014

Photo Credit: Daimler AG

With the McLaren Formula 1 team planning a switch to Honda in 2015, Mercedes-Benz had been left with the possibility of one fewer customer of their new turbocharged engine. It didn't take long for the German automaker to ink a deal with a new team.

In what could be viewed as a stunning move, Williams F1 Team decided to abandon their association with Renault in favour of Mercedes-Benz. Accepting the power of Mercedes-Benz's future turbocharged, 1.6 liter V6 engine, Williams F1 Team wants to ring in a more consistently competitive package for the 2014 season. Team founder Sir Frank Williams is particularly pleased inking the new deal. “I’m delighted to announce our new association with Mercedes-Benz for the 2014 Formula One season and beyond. Mercedes-Benz has been one of the sport’s most successful engine suppliers and we believe that they will have an extremely competitive engine package". On the side of the engine supplier, Managing Director of Mercedes AMG HPP Andy Cowell is greets the partnership saying,   "Williams is one of the sport’s iconic names and we are very excited to be working together towards a successful future under the new regulations".

The formulation of Williams' new engine partnership is significant for Mercedes-Benz but also news-making in regards to Renault. Williams F1 Team established a dynasty with Renault in the mid-1990s. In fourth out of six years from 1992 to 1997, Williams-Renault race cars were handled by the Formula 1 World Drivers' Champion. When Williams F1 Team reunited with Renault in 2012, winning magic between the two companies returned briefly. Driver Pastor Maldonado drove his Williams-Renault from the pole position to victory at last year's Spanish Grand Prix. That performance has not been repeated since that 2012 win. As a matter of fact, the Williams F1 Team is pointless in the 2013 constructors' points after six races.

The press announcement did not go without acknowledging the outgoing engine supplier for the Williams F1 Team. Sir Frank Williams paid tribute to the history with Renault. "I would also like to take this opportunity to thank Renault for their continued hard work since we renewed our engine partnership at the beginning of the 2012 season. We have enjoyed a strong relationship that has resulted in much success over the years, including powering us to winning ways once again last year at the Spanish Grand Prix.” said Williams. In response to Williams F1 Team's announcement, Renault Sport F1 promptly issued a statement expressing an amicable parting. "We would like to thank Williams for the warmth it has extended to Renault over the last two years and wish the team the very best for the future. Williams and Renault have a long history together and quickly recaptured its winning spirit in the early days of the rekindled partnership with victory in Spain 2012. We will continue to actively work with the team until the Brazilian Grand Prix in November to end the second incarnation of the partnership with results that do justice to its reputation." said Jean-Michel Jalinier, President of Renault Sport F1.

Starting in 2014, the agreement between Williams F1 Team and Mercedes-Benz is said to be a long-term deal.