GUEST POST - WHY YOU SHOULD WATCH THE ABU DHABI GP 2015

So here we are, the final race of the season. It's been a long one. Even with both world championships decided a long time ago, if you're a real F1 fan you'd still be up to watch this race. Not only is it the last race of the season but it is held at a fantastic track (facilities and looks, not layout). I was there in 2009 and it was great.

Here we have a guest post on why you should watch this race. With or without any reasons, I say watch it. It's gonna be a long winter.

Four reasons why you should watch the final F1 race of the season

Hamilton may have already won the trophy and the podium line-up is decided, but Sunday's F1 race in Abu Dhabi is still worth watching. Here’s why.

1. This could be the last race for Red Bull

Not so long ago, Red Bull used to dominate the F1 world, when it won the title four years in a row (2010, 2011, 2012, 2013) with an amazing alliance between its Renault-supplied engines and the driving skills of Sebastian Vettel. What a difference tw years makes, Red Bull's partnership with Renault has ended bitterly, and they have not yet found a new engine supplier. Although they are signed up for next season, there may be soon two strong drivers without a team if they do not find a new supplier quickly!

Up until recently, Red Bull was counting on either Mercedes or Ferrari as alternate supplier, but this is seemingly less and less likely.

Chief technical officer Adrian Newey has been frustrated figure for Red Bull and explains : "We are possibly forced out of Formula 1 because Mercedes and Ferrari have become concerned we would beat them with their own engine".

A decision is expected shortly, possibly after this weekend’s race.

2. Watch the battle beyond the podium

While the top of the rankings is now known, there is some tension in the fight for 4th and 5th place. Finnish drivers are trying to elbow each other out of the way, both figuratively and litterally: Veltteri Bottas is currently in 4th place (Williams team) while Kimi Raikkonen is in 5th place (Ferrari team). In Mexico, both collided again, after their initial brush-up in October in Sochi. There were rumors that Ferrari is considering replacing Raikkonen with Bottas, and that could explain the tension between the two, though this has now been resolved with a suprise new 1 year contract for Raikkonen.

Currently, odds are favouring Raikkonen for fourth place in the championship, while Bottas is predicted to struggle in Abu Dhabi.

3. Will Ferrari confirm its revival?

It would have been difficult for Ferrari to do worse than last season, and thanks to Sebastian Vettel (who replaced Fernando Alonso in the driver's seat), things are going much better in 2015! 3rd place this year is definitely better than last season, when they had their worst season in 21 years. Vettel has done relatively well and is actually the only driver who has managed to give Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg a little competition this year.

Vettel is popular in the media and seems to be thriving with Ferrari. It will be interesting to see how well he performs in Abu Dhabi.

4. Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg

The turbulent relationship between the two Mercedes drivers has not gone away. With the 1st and 2nd place already secured, it is unlikely the two teammates are going to risk anything this weekend. However, calm heads have not been Hamilton and Rosberg’s strong point so far this season, so the rivalry between the two could flare up again.

In fact, several commentators believe that this season will be the last one with Rosberg teams-up with Hamilton.

Therefore, the last race of the year has plenty to intrigue for next year and it is certainly worth watching the event at the magnificent resort Yas Marina in Abu Dhabi on Sunday.

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BRAZILIAN GP 2015 PREVIEW

The Brazilian Grand Prix (Portuguese: Grande Prêmio do Brasil) is a Formula One championship race which is currently held at the Autódromo José Carlos Pace in Interlagos, a district in the city of São Paulo, Brazil. A Brazilian Grand Prix was first held in 1972 at Interlagos, although it was not part of the Formula One World Championship. Typical of European motorsports at the time, this race was done as a test to convince the FIA if the Interlagos circuit and its organizers could capably hold a Grand Prix. The following year, however, the race was first included in the official calendar, and it was won by defending world champion and São Paulo native Emerson Fittipaldi. In 1974, Fittipaldi won again in rain soaked conditions, and the year after, another São Paulo native, Carlos Pace, won the race in his Brabham, followed by Fittipaldi. 1977 was won by Reutemann, but the drivers began complaining about Interlagos's very rough surface, and the event was then relocated for a year to the new Jacarepaguá circuit in Rio de Janeiro.

Interlagos at just over 800 metres, the atmospheric pressure is 10% lower than at sea level and while this doesn’t sap power with a turbo engine, like it does with a normally aspirated one, it does make the Energy Recovery System work harder on the turbo side.

It is also the shortest lap of the season in terms of lap time, a quick lap there being under 1m 12 seconds, so the qualifying and racing have an intense quality about them. The circuit has a fast downhill sector one and final uphill sector three, with a tight infield sector in the middle.

TRACK CHARACTERISTICS

Track length : 4.309 kilometres.
Race distance : 71 laps (305.909 kilometres).
Corners : 15 corners in total
 Average speed : 210km/h. A classic circuit set in a natural bowl, in a suburb of Sao Paulo.
Aerodynamic setup : Med/High downforce.
Top speed : 323km/h (with DRS open) 311km/h without.
Full throttle : 60% of the lap time (ave/high).
Brake wear : light.
Number of braking events : 6, Time spent braking – 16% of the lap.
Total time needed for a pit stop : 20 seconds
Lap record : 1:11.473 (Colombia Juan Pablo Montoya, Williams BMW, 2004)

WEATHER FORECAST

The weather in Sao Paulo is likely to be characteristically dramatic over the next few days, but conditions should settle down in time for Sunday’s race. Before then thunderstorms could arrive in time to disrupt qualifying. The heat and humidity will build over the next few days, pushing up to 32C on Saturday before the expected storms begin in the afternoon.

Friday may also see some rain however it is expected not to arrive until after the day’s practice sessions have concluded. Whereas last year’s race was surprisingly hot, Sunday is expected to be the coolest of the three days this year, with temperatures only in the low twenties, quite different to the conditions the drivers will have practised in.

DRS

There are two DRS zones. The first has a detection point at the apex of T2, with activation 20m after T3, while the second has its activation point 30m after T13, with an activation point 60m after T15.

TYRES

The P Zero White medium and P Zero Yellow soft compound have been nominated for this year's Brazilian Grand Prix: the most popular combination of the season, which has been selected for the ninth and final time in 2015.

Brazil is one of the shortest but most intense laps of the year, with the circuit running in an anti-clockwise direction, which is quite unusual in Formula One. There is plenty of work for both the tyres and the drivers - as the Interlagos track requires a high degree of physical effort - and the situation is often made more complex by variable weather conditions. Last year, the hottest track temperatures recorded all season were in Brazil, but the race has also been affected by heavy rain in the past. If it remains dry, Interlagos is ideal territory for the versatile medium and soft slick compounds.

Expected performance gap between the two compounds: 0.9 seconds per lap.

SAFETY CAR

The chances of a Safety Car are high at 63%. The Safety Car has been used in seven of the last 11 races. It is often called into action on the first lap, as it’s a short lap with 24 cars charging into tight corners. This makes the Safety Car an important element to factor into Race Strategy planning. It encourages teams to hedge their bets and split strategies, with one car doing a conventional two-stop plan and the other on a one-stop, a plan that would benefit from a safety car deployment. This is because a safety car would close up the field reducing any time loss and if timed well, would allow a one-stopping car to effectively get a free pit stop.

CONCLUSIONS

This weekend’s Brazilian Grand Prix could well be a record-breaking Formula 1 event, as the sport heads into the penultimate race of the 2015 season. Most of the lap-records on the current F1 calendar are held by drivers who raced in 2004, when the V10 engine era built to a crescendo before being restrained by tyres built to last an entire race in 2005 and then the switch to V8 power in 2006.

But as was the case last time out in Mexico, the V6 turbo engines F1 uses now are less affected by high altitude than normally aspirated power units. At the 2014 Brazilian Grand Prix, which is 765m above sea level, Nico Rosberg claimed pole position with a time just 0.201s slower than Rubens Barrichello’s 1m09.822s record set at Interlagos 11 years ago. With the progress made to the V6 engines over the last 12 months, there is a very real chance we could see a long-standing F1 record broken this weekend.

Last year's strategy and how the race was won: There was heatwave last year, so this was not entirely typical of what we would expect to see this time. In 2014, Nico Rosberg won the race for Mercedes using a three-stop strategy. He started on the soft tyre and then changed to the medium on laps seven, 26 and 50. The highest-placed two-stopper, Kimi Raikkonen, finished seventh.

Rosberg kept Lewis Hamilton from pole position by just three-hundredths of a second at this track last year and went on to inflict a vital defeat on his team mate as the pair were scrapping for the championship. Twelve months later there’s only pride at stake, but with Rosberg having taken the last four pole positions in a row and Hamilton anxious to finally cross Interlagos off the very short list of F1 tracks he hasn’t won at yet, we may get a suitably spicy encounter between the two.

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GUEST POST - HAMILTON VS ROSBERG

This week I'm having a special posting. It's a guest submission by F1 fanatic Luke Rees. He will be talking about the rivalry between Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg as we head into the Brazilian GP after an exciting US and Mexican GP. Lewis has never won in Brazil surprisingly and that will give him motivation to fight this weekend as a tribute to Senna. This should be good.

How Bad Are Things Between Rosberg, Hamilton and Mercedes?

Social media is abuzz with the tension between Rosberg and Hamilton following the US Grand Prix and now Rosberg’s revival at the Mexican Grand Prix.

Rosberg was frustrated at being clipped in the first corner by Hamilton in Austin, losing out the race with only eight laps to go.

Hamilton refused to be called in for a second pit stop during the Mexican Grand Prix.  He chose not to believe his Mercedes team that his tyres were dangerously low, staying out an extra lap while questioning the call and then asking for feedback on the tyres.

In the aftermath of the Mexican GP, Hamilton said: "I didn't agree with the decision but the team make decisions and I abide by them most of the time. We'll have a chat when I get back. I have full confidence in those guys."

It would therefore seem the latest Mercedes disagreement is a minor one and can be moved past relatively quickly.  

Rosberg took poll position in the race, with Hamilton a close second.  After the race, Hamilton praised his team mate’s driving but also took a slight dig as he mentioned Rosberg’s gust of wind excuse for the US Grand Prix.

Mercedes’ Point Of View

Following the US Grand Prix, Mercedes acknowledged that the situation between the two drivers could deteriorate quickly if left unchecked, as it did after the 2014 Belgian Grand Prix, when Hamilton claimed Rosberg deliberately crashed into him.

Talks have happened behind closed-doors before the Mexican GP. It is difficult to say how these went, but it appears that the main issue for Mercedes would have been the contact between the cars in the first corner in Austin, which could have had devastating impact for the team. Speaking about the public spat, Hamilton has now said that Mercedes told both of them clearly that they, “must race against each other from now on in a fair and respectful manner.” They seemed to have follow those instructions during the Mexican GP.

A Clash Of Personalities

Behind the divide are two very different individuals. Hamilton is Britain’s richest sportsperson, and his on-off relationship with the lead singer of the Pussycat Dolls and his love of the night life with the likes of Rihanna and Jay-Z has ensured that he is a recognizable figure beyond the world of F1 racing. He’s even been talked once more for the coveted BBC Sports Personality of Year, having been placed as the most likely winner for 2015, behind only track and field athlete Jessica Ennis-Hill.

While Hamilton comes from a working-class background, Rosberg followed on the footsteps of his father Keke Rosberg, the 1982 Formula 1 World Championship. He has kept a much lower public profile than Hamilton, partly through personal choice and partly as he has been doomed to play second-fiddle to Hamilton for the most part of his career.

The two have known each other for a long time, having first met as 14 years old competing in kart races. From the start, there was tension between the two, as you expect from highly competitive people fighting for the same trophy, so there is in effect nothing new with the two of them having a public argument.

What Does The Future Look Like?

The two drivers continue to compete fiercely against each other.  The question remains whether it can be a healthy competition between two team mates, or a division amongst the Mercedes camp.

Hamilton is the favourite heading into the Brazilian Grand Prix on the 15th November at 13/20, with Rosberg second favourite at 6/4.

Luke Rees

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PF1’S CONCLUSIONS FROM MEXICO

Again another race I missed because it was at 3am here and I just couldn't afford 2 days of leave to watch. And again, whenever I miss a race it turns out to be a good one, like Austin. Damn! Anyway here are some conclusions from Planet F1 for your reading pleasure.

The trust deficit at Mercedes, makings of a fascinating rivalry between Kimi and Bottas and more in PF1’s Conclusions From Mexico.

Dizzy With Nostalgia…And A Lack Of Oxygen

Hometown hero Sergio Perez only managed to finish eighth on an alternative one-stop strategy and the race was far from a classic, but the large crowd and impressive racetrack architecture made for a fine event as Mexico made its return to the F1 cal.

The circuit, sitting at more than 2,000 metres above sea level, facilitates high speeds – in excess of 360kph – which is the kind of statistic that will delight speed freaks and F1 fans alike.

The lack of grip, meanwhile, created serious challenges for the drivers, who are often criticised for having an easy time of it in the PlayStation era of driving.

A Trust Deficit

Although Mercedes have dominated over the past two seasons, a third year of success depends as much on the intra-team balance as it does on the step taken by Ferrari and Williams.

The contact between Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton at Spa in 2014 casts a long shadow, as does the strategic error in Monaco this year.

More recently, rivals will have noted Hamilton’s response to the pitwall call for him to pit in Mexico.

Hamilton was reluctant to pit on lap 47, saying: “I think it’s the wrong call.”

Mercedes can afford internal politicking because their car is the class of the field, but as Red Bull and before them Ferrari and Williams can all attest, no one dominates forever.

Obsessed with beating each other, Hamilton and Rosberg should be wary of the dangers lurking on the second and third rows of the grid in 2016.

Winter Is Coming

Sebastian Vettel’s error-strewn race will do nothing to erode his excellent debut season with Ferrari.

Although the four-time Champion struggled in Mexico, he has finished 70 percent of his races with the Scuderia and won three times, which compares favourably with the 50 percent podium-to-start ratio achieved by a certain Michael Schumacher in his first season with the Italian manufacturer.

While historical comparisons are always controversial, this statistic does highlight Vettel’s consistency in 2015 – and lest we forget how far Ferrari lagged behind in 2014.

A Deficit Of A Different Sort

Jenson Button described his 14th-place finish in Mexico as “painful” and bemoaned the 20-45kph speed differential that the McLaren-Honda faced to other cars in a straightline.

The Honda power unit struggled more than others in the high-altitude of Mexico City, but the Red Bulls suffered similarly as their underpowered Renault units were bullied by the Merc-powered Williams of Valtteri Bottas.

Red Bull are still keen to switch to Honda power (a move currently being blocked by McLaren) after their very public divorce with Renault, although at present Christian Horner must be wondering whether it’s worth swapping a donkey for a mule.

Compatriots Clash Again

Pound-for-pound, few nations can compete with Finland’s production line of racing talent in F1 and in other series.

Keke Rosberg, Mika Hakkinen, and Kimi Raikkonen have all won F1 titles while the likes of Heikki Kovalainen and Valtteri Bottas have often found themselves fighting near the front.

Bottas underscored his potential by finishing best of the rest behind the Mercedes duo in Mexico, but only after he survived a collision with Raikkonen through Turns 4-5.

The clash in Mexico was the second between the Finns in three races and on this occasion neither driver was willing to leave an inch.

“I had to turn in at some point – I cannot just go straight,” said the Ferrari man, who retired after the incident with a broken rear suspension.

“Of course, I’m not going to back off,” said Bottas.

The incidents in Russia and Mexico have the makings of a fascinating rivalry as a former champ’s career winds down and the Finnish champ-in-waiting tries to step up.

If you enjoyed this posting, please do share it with your network so more people can enjoy it as well. Also, check out my Formula 1 inspired designs at my online shop - Formula One Tees, click on image or proceed over to the online shop here - http://formulaone.spreadshirt.com/

You can put any of my designs on almost any available product (doesn't have to be t-shirts). To design your own, select the product, select the design, put your own text if you want to, arrange the size and placement of the design then click "Add to basket". The product will be created and added to your shopping cart. To finish and make payment, click "Checkout". Once you are happy with your order, click "Proceed To Checkout" where you will fill in your shipping information and payment method.

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