Alvin's Formula One Blog

McLaren's return to form in recent weeks has left the outfit more confident about its prospects for building a title-winning car in 2010, but the team does not believe it can fully relax just yet. The Woking-based outfit started the season in big trouble with its car, and knew that it needed to understand what had gone wrong if it was not to make the same mistakes next year. Now that the MP4-24 has been turned into a race winner, the team is more confident about its chances for developing a successful successor. McLaren managing director Jonathan Neale said: "If we were still scrabbling around at the back of the grid whilst we are going through the release of the car for next year - which will happen over the next month - then I would be very much more concerned than I am now. "We are not complacent by any means. We have to recognise that our car has KERS on it which is probably worth 0.3s, and we have a very good engine package. "If I compare where other team...

25/07/2009 Pos Driver Team Time Gap 1 Alonso Renault 1:21.569 120.147 mph 2 Vettel Red Bull 1:21.607 0.038 3 ...

Thursday 23rd July 2009 The Hungarian Grand Prix is about as interesting and rewarding as cycling round your bathroom. Now technically that description is the one applied to the Monaco Grand Prix, but if it stays dry, then the Hungarian GP will closely resemble Monaco's level of overtaking. Without the compensating hazard of Armco just centimetres away from the racing line. If it becomes wet then it can be an epic race - as we saw in 2006 - but then again most tracks produce great races in the wet. Forecasts for the weekend have it dry most of the time with a downpour some time on Saturday night. Jenson Button will have fond memories of that 2006 race because it was his first race victory for Honda - and up until February this year it looked like it was going to be his one and only career victory. With ambient temperatures predicted around 33 and 34C the Brawn GP cars should be in contention for race victory again. ...

Thursday 23rd July 2009 Felipe Massa believes Jaime Alguersuari is not only too young for F1 but could also "burn himself" due to his lack of experience. Alguersuari will become the youngest ever driver to compete in a F1 race when he lines up on the Hungarian grid this Sunday at just 19 years and 125 days. The Spaniard faces a massive task as he has yet to put a F1 car through its paces around a track having only ever taken part in straightline testing. But one person who believes it may be a bridge too far for the teenager is Ferrari's Massa. "For me he's too young," the Brazilian said. "When I came into Formula One I was just 20 and for me it was also quite young. I was too inexperienced to ask what I needed from the car so I made some mistakes. For sure I had a very difficult car to drive, but anyway, it was not easy for me. "But even for myself, and I can say it was too early...

Re-published from Planet F1 Sunday 3rd August 2008 Lewis Hamilton has expressed his relief that his lead in the World Championship is still intact. The Englishman's recovery from a potentially disastrous puncture, coupled with Felipe Massa's luckless engine blow-up on the penultimate lap of the Hungarian GP means that his advantage at the top of the standings has been extended when, for most of the afternoon, it appeared as if Massa would deliver a remarkable turnaround. The Brazilian blitzed Hamilton, expected to cruise to victory, off the start-line and then steadily built up a five-second lead before the McLaren suffered a puncture. At that point, disaster loomed large for Hamilton but Massa's late misfortune transformed the afternoon's complexion. "I salvaged the best of the worst," reflected a relieved Hamilton. "It's nowhere near as bad as it could have been. What can you do with...

Re-published from Planet f1 Sunday 3rd August 2008 Heikki Kovalainen was gifted his maiden grand prix victory when Felipe Massa's engine failed him just two laps from the end of the Hungarian GP. The Brazilian had been leading ever since the first lap when he pulled off the overtaking move of the race to take the lead off Lewis Hamilton. Massa made good work of it, etching out a gap over Hamilton before the Brit's charge came to an end on lap 42 when he suffered a left front puncture, dropping him well down the order. The drama, though, wasn't over as Massa suffered an engine failure just three laps from the finish line, stopping his car on the pit straight, his third retirement of the season. Massa's bad luck, though, was Kovalainen's good fortune as the Finn was handed his first grand prix victory, finishing 11 seconds ahead of Toyota's Timo Glock. Kimi Raikkonen was third ahead of Fernando ...

Re-published from F1-Live. Lewis Hamilton claimed his tenth career pole position this afternoon in Hungary as he chases his third straight victory tomorrow afternoon at a circuit where passing is traditionally all but impossible. There was none of the controversy that dogged the qualifying session 12 months ago as Hamilton , cruised to a relatively comfortable pole ahead of McLaren Mercedes team-mate Heikki Kovalainen. Hamilton ’s fourth pole of the season was confirmed in the very final seconds of the session as he improved on his own best time by another tenth of a second with a best time of 1:20.889s. Kovalainen really did leave it until the final opportunity as he started his final flying lap of the session in ninth position after problems on his first run. The Finn, recently confirmed by the team for the 2009 season, calmly posted a lap just over two-tenths slower than Hamilton but it was enough to make it all McLaren front row. Felipe Massa has been carrying the hopes of Fer...