Belgian GP Friday and Saturday Practice Sessions Thread

[m schumy]

F1`s back :-D

Fingers crossed for a great weekend, should be a good race for Ferrari :-) I really like Spa, it`s one of my fave tracks :thumb

[Sempre_Ferrari]

Buon giorno cari Tifosi.....Came into work early this morning to get everything done so I don't get disturbed during FP1 :-)

BRING IT ON !!! and fingers crossed that all our updates work as they should... :clap

[m schumy]

I missed F1, it`s been like ages since the last race :-)

[Sempre_Ferrari]

I know what you mean, I'm already starting to dread the end of season. Need my FIX on a regular basis and there are no rehab facilities for F1 addicts :-(

But we wont dwell on that now, still 7 races to win before worrying about withdrawals :thumb

[Grillo]

Spa is such a great great track... It was never a message for Tilke but I heard he will have to find his inspiration from some good tracks to build the new track in Austin. A couple of corners from Spa, another one from Turkey, one more from Suzuka... Wow, it will be a long lap.

[voiko]

anyone know current weather?

[Sempre_Ferrari]

anyone know current weather?

http://live.autosport.com/commentary.php/id/259

[voiko]

http://live.autosport.com/commentary.php/id/259

ty forgot about that.. still at work :(

[Naeem]

We'll be hearing a lot of Kimi Raikkonen so I thought I'd introduce him to this thread, perhaps the top step of the podium be left empty this year.

Does anyone know anything about these reported fuel improvements by shell? is it just a rumour? or have shell/ferrari confirmed said improvements?

[Mitra]

it has been one month TOOOOOOOOOOO long

7 minutes to go

[Greig]

We'll be hearing a lot of Kimi Raikkonen so I thought I'd introduce him to this thread, perhaps the top step of the podium be left empty this year.


Why?

The king of Spa is racing this weekend.......

[mad_ani]

EPLSite.com has no live feeds...any other sources???

[m schumy]

Live streaming: http://www.firstrow.net/watch/24954/1/watch-formula-1---grand-prix-belgium-%28-practice1-%29.html

[mad_ani]

awesome!!! cheers

[Mitra]

http://www.firstrow.net/watch/24954/2/watch-formula-1---grand-prix-belgium-(-practice1-).html

stream 1 on elp is up now as well

[m schumy]

awesome!!! cheers

Welcome :thumb

[m schumy]

BBC Sport's Sarah Holt in Spa: "It wouldn't be a British Bank Holiday without rain and it wouldn't be Spa without, well, buckets of the wet stuff. It has been absolutely tipping down this morning and BBC HQ has at times been shaken by thunder and bathed in a dusky gloom. The F1 cars haven't been on track for 25 days and wet conditions could put a dampener on their return in first practice. The main protagonists were all eager to push on after their summer holidays. Mark Webber, who heads the title race by four points from Lewis Hamilton, said: 'I didn't really need a break. I missed the driving.' Workaholic Fernando Alonso, who is 20 points off Webber, spent some of his time off working with Ferrari's engineers on the simulators and says he really wants to get back on the track. Let's see how much running Spa's fickle skies allow this morning."

[m schumy]

0900 And we are off for 90 minutes of first practice. Glock is the first man to take to the track. It really is grim out there. How many spins are we going to get today?

:-D:lol

[Ste]

Great to have F1 back, it's been far too long.

Come on Ferrari, let's have a brilliant weekend. :-D

[Naeem]

It's so great to see that front wing of ours flexing.

[mad_ani]

5 min: Massa has continued on a second tour, with a huge plume of spray hanging in the air behind his Ferrari as he charges down to Les Combes.

[Naeem]

BBC commentator- "Adrian Newey has a great design on a BBQ, its flexes as you put the sausages on"

[m schumy]

BBC pit-lane reporter Lee McKenzie: "I met up with Rubens Barrichello in the paddock in Spa to interview the Brazilian, who is celebrating his 300th grand prix race this weekend. Always honest, always emotional, the 38-year-old spoke openly about changes to Formula 1 over his 18-year career, the death of his mentor Ayrton Senna in 1994 and how he would not change anything in his career - not even playing second fiddle to Michael Schumacher for all those years at Ferrari. Last night many of the drivers on the grid gathered at the Williams motorhome for a champagne reception in Barrichello's honour, showing how widely respected he is. My interview with Barrichello will be shown during Sunday's race programme on BBC One."

BBC pit-lane reporter Holly Samos: "Most of the teams have come to Spa with upgrades, Force India being one of them and Vitantonio Liuzzi will test their new blown diffuser this morning but Adrian Sutil will not. Both drivers will test it this afternoon, though, and the team hope to run it for race. Williams, meanwhile, have a new front and rear wing, plus some mechanical changes. Renault have a huge upgrade, it is the first time the 'F-duct' has featured."

[m schumy]

BBC Sport's Sarah Holt in Spa: "No-nonsense Australian Mark Webber wasn't getting carried about by regaining the championship lead at the last race in Hungary. But would celebrating his 34th birthday in Spa today give him more to smile about? 'It goes quick huh?' Webber straight-batted back to the media throng. 'A few grey hairs too. Oh well.' Well, maybe a surprise present from his team-mate Sebastian Vettel will cheer him up. 'I have brought nothing with me,' confessed Vettel. 'I don't know. I think they have these free shampoos and this kind of stuff in the hotel, a last-minute present.' I have a feeling that getting back in the car and pressing on with his title push will be enough of a birthday present for Webber this weekend."

[Ste]

This is going to be an extremely wet weekend! Fantastic. Hope our boys can hold it together.

[Suzie]

Morning everyone :wave
It is SO good to have F1 back - and at a wet Spa too! YUM.

[Sempre_Ferrari]

Alonso on track

[brava]

Alonso P1

[vcs316]

Alonso is quickly on the pace with his fresh, full wet tyres. 2m02.582s is the fastest time of the day so far from the Spaniard.

Top 5
1. Alonso
2. Sutil
3. Button
4. Webber
5. Hamilton

[m schumy]

BBC pit-lane reporter Ted Kravitz: "McLaren have done a lot of work on this rear blown diffuser as the drivers have said the balance of the car has not been the same since the upgrade went on. The handling changed fundamentally and there has been a lot of work to try to make the car more predictable to allow Jenson Button and Lewis Hamilton to push harder."

[vcs316]

40 min: Vettel is now setting a quick pace and indeed the Red Bull driver goes to the front of the field with 2m02.450s as the pace gradually quickens in the tricky conditions.

39 min: Sutil reports at the end of his first run that the gear ratios are very long, so he hasn't yet used seventh. The German also confirms that the F-duct is functioning normally.

[vcs316]

Massa improves to seventh quickest with a 2m03.601s lap.

[Ste]

Alonso just went P1, 1.2s quicker than Vettel in P2.

Nice :-D

[Sempre_Ferrari]

track must be drying...Nando P1...by 1 sec

[bkircher]

Massa and Alonso both look to be running the older front wing. Nice time from Alonso too.

[vcs316]

Alonso puts his Ferrari back on top of the order, improving the benchmark to a 2m01.223s.

[Ste]

Alonso Team Radio:

"It's raining quite heavy now"

Then I literally didn't understand the rest.

[Hermann]

So far for 'the track must be drying' for Fernando to be the fastest atm. No its not drying at all its just that he is one of the best rain drivers...

Did he just make a start test?

[vcs316]

Alonso pops through the pits in his Ferrari to give the team a measure of the time spent trundling past the garage.

[vcs316]

Schumacher completes a lap in 2m03.489s to move up to eighth place as the rain on the south side of the circuit becomes much heavier again.

[vcs316]

Heavy rain now falling as lightning flashes around Spa. We have 10 hardy souls on the circuit doing their best currently.

[vcs316]

1 Fernando Alonso in pits
2 Lewis Hamilton in pits
3 Sebastian Vettel in pits
4 Adrian Sutil in pits
5 Jenson Button in pits
6 Mark Webber in pits
7 Kamui Kobayashi in pits
8 Michael Schumacher in pits
9 Felipe Massa in pits
10 Nico Hülkenberg in pits
11 Nico Rosberg in pits

[vcs316]

Michael Schumacher proves he still has the bravery and heads out in his Mercedes powerboat. :-D

[m schumy]

Michael Schumacher proves he still has the bravery and heads out in his Mercedes powerboat. :-D

:-D

[Ste]

I'm waiting for someone to aquaplane over one of the lakes of water on track. :lol

[voiko]

Massa and Alonso both look to be running the older front wing. Nice time from Alonso too.

anyone confirm this?

[m schumy]

0959: Red Bull boss Christian Horner was speaking to Lord Ted of Kravitz earlier on the controversy over whether there is bodywork on their cars that is flexing illegally. Here's what he had to say: "Plenty has been said about our car but the FIA are the regulators and all the cars have to comply with same rules. Our car has complied with the rules at every race so far and will comply here. We take all the talk about our car as a compliment, it shows the others don't know what we're up to. So far this year they've talked about our ride height, suspension, active ride height - this week it's the front wing, what next? It can only be the drivers after that. The next two races are very important to us. I think McLaren and Ferrari have won the last 11 races here, that's quite a lockout. They will be quick in the first and third sectors so we've got to do our damage in the middle sector and we're confident we can give them a run for their money this weekend. [Red Bull technical director] Adrian Newey seems pretty relaxed about it [the new load tests for Spa and Monza]. It will only affect us as much as any of the other teams."

[vcs316]

Schumacher quickly decides that conditions are a touch too wet for meaningful running and he pits. :-D

[vcs316]

I'm waiting for someone to aquaplane over one of the lakes of water on track. :lol

Alguersuari reports a lot of water on the track - as if we didn't know - and that he's experiencing aquaplaning. He crosses the line in 2m05.731s - 1.5s shy of his previous best and begins another tour. :lol

[vcs316]

Massa heads out to sample the conditions for Ferrari.

[vcs316]

Massa's car is tailed by a huge plume of spray as he comes around to begin a lap against the clock.

[Ste]

Alonso going quicker. PB in S1, Purple in S2. Currently 0.35 up.

Another PB in S3. Goes quickest, 2.00.797.

0.770 quicker than Hamilton in P2.

[itsme_marky]

any pics of the new diffuser & revised back of the car?

[vcs316]

Alonso clocks a 2m00.797s to go significantly quicker at the top of the times.

[RockyRaccoon]

Alonso doing a very nice job in these conditions, consistently up there. Still I'm hoping for a dry race/quali, rain is too unpredictable!

[vcs316]

Fernando Alonso is the fastest driver at the end of a wet first practice session at Spa, with a time of 2m00.797s, with Hamilton second.

[m schumy]

BBC pit-lane reporter Ted Kravitz: "This is developing into a fascinating contest between Red Bull and Ferrari - that's maybe what we're going to see here this weekend. Ferrari now have approaching Red Bulls level of down-force."

[m schumy]

Free Practice 1

http://i37.tinypic.com/2zspsm1.jpg

[Stormsearcher]

@rocky- why change what is working for us. :-D
i dont care if it rains or snows or is dry.. as long as we win. :-) i hope this positive FP carries into the race as well.
Go Ferrari!!!!!!!!! :thumb

[Stormsearcher]

I can already see PF1s writers struggling to find words that say alonso was P1 in FP1... wondering how they can make hamiltons P2 look like a P1. lol..

[bladeswing]

felipe's quite far down the order... i wonder why. are there any differences between their ( ferrari cars ) set ups?

[Kingdom Hearts]

Felipe, let's say is not one of the best driver under rain, but we really don't know anything about fuel load or set ups.

[Katu]

felipe's quite far down the order... i wonder why. are there any differences between their ( ferrari cars ) set ups?

maybe because of that
http://img827.imageshack.us/i/massa.jpg/

[Ste]

maybe because of that
http://img827.imageshack.us/i/massa.jpg/

He didn't spin as far as I'm aware so quit the bashing.

[Katu]

yeah he didn't spin, but he didn't do not a single mistakefree lap too, as much as i saw...

[Paulpg87]

rain.. good race to watch but damn.. i want ferrari to win and when it comes down to rain it's always a sh** for us. Hope in some good luck and no mistakes from pits.

[voiko]

can anyone confirm we are using older front wing now?

[Grillo]

I didn't want a wet weekend. :-s

Alonso looked strong, Hamilton and Vettel weren't far behind.

Let's see what Spa 2010 bring us. [I miss a praying emoticon]

[aroutis]

There ya go, perhaps Greig can add it to the library ?

http://www.adslgr.com/forum/images/smilies/bless.gif

As an attachment also

[shostak]

More info from FA:


Good feeling with the new aero pack of F10, however, with the rain it is impossible to draw conclusions from what they have earned.
Not yet tried the new fuel and other improvements to the engine to not interfere with the aero tests. Nor have tried all the aerodynamic developments, the rain is still a major problem.

http://www.efectosuelo.com/gp-de-belgica-2010-seguimiento-libres-1-y-2/comment-page-1/#comment-26582

Ferrari are very happy with downforce, you only have to watch S2 timings (from Alonso). Alonso was with a new rear wing, Massa with the old.

[Sempre_Ferrari]

Not yet tried the new fuel and other improvements to the engine to not interfere with the aero tests.

Does this confirm the fuel upgrade? Strange that I haven't found this anywhere else tho...:Hmm

[gvsnraju85]

Only 3 misn left....any news on the weather??
Hoe now we can test all the new aero and the fuel....

All the best Ferrari.....Any streaming links??

[m schumy]

Live streaming: http://www.firstrow.net/watch/24957/3/watch-formula-1---grand-prix-belgium-%28-practice2-%29.html

[Sempre_Ferrari]

....any news on the weather??


Another line of heavy showers and storms is approaching from the west, but these are expected to miss the circuit to the south as the afternoon wears on. However, directly in the circuit's path are some light showers that may keep the circuit damp for a while yet.

Track conditions for the drivers will most certainly be tricky, but in any brief sunny spells between the showers, we could see a top temperature of 18 or maybe 19 degrees Celsius.

http://live.autosport.com/commentary.php/id/261

[RockyRaccoon]

Still wet. Don't think there will be much running with limited wet tyres.

[Sempre_Ferrari]

2 min: Much of the standing water has drained away, meaning intermediates could be an option if the teams do want the drivers to push for a time.

[gvsnraju85]

Live streaming: http://www.firstrow.net/watch/24957/3/watch-formula-1---grand-prix-belgium-%28-practice2-%29.html

Thanks for the link mate....but its not working for me :(:(


any other link guys???

[gvsnraju85]

Massa purple in S2 and S3

[SanderV]

http://eplsite.com/stream3.html

[Sempre_Ferrari]

Ferrari 1 2 ...the way it should be ;-)

[gvsnraju85]

http://eplsite.com/stream3.html



This is not in english....but atleast i can see something now.....cheers :D:thumb

[Sempre_Ferrari]

Nando P1 on intermediates

[m schumy]

Hispania's Karun Chandhok on the Red Button: "Mercedes have arguably the best engine in the pit-lane and this could be their chance to really try to drag themselves on the podium. They have had a difficult season but Nico Rosberg is driving really well and he could be a surprise here with that Mercedes power."

[gvsnraju85]

Two simultaneous incidents......and these commentators on "http://eplsite.com/stream3.html" are putting me to a slumber......

[SanderV]

This is not in english....but atleast i can see something now.....cheers :D:thumb

I know, but I can't find a stream with English commentary.

[Paulpg87]

as predicted force india adn mclaren with mercedes engine are very strong here. if it rains it will be difficult to beat hamilton.

[Hermann]

So far the best times in the wet have been made by Fernando, i think its the other way round. They will be difficult to beat if its dry.

[aroutis]

http://www.myweather2.com/activity/hourimage.aspx?tagid=20101329012708&id=42081

[voiko]

whats the engine got to do with if it rains etc?!

[gvsnraju85]

The sun seems to be out...hope we can see some good action now...too slow so far

[gvsnraju85]

whats the engine got to do with if it rains etc?!

Its not the engine its the confidence level with the car that they are talking about here dude

[Hermann]

Its not the engine its the confidence level with the car that they are talking about here dude

To me Fernando looked very confident with the car on the wet track.

[RockyRaccoon]

Alonso is only 1.3 down and he set his time on inter when the track was alot wetter than it is now. Massa is only 0.4 down. I don't think we can make any calls on the pecking order just yet.

[voiko]

ahhh cool cool.. well im optimistic we are confident :)

[gvsnraju85]

To me Fernando looked very confident with the car on the wet track.

Thats the point I are trying to make....if it is dry Hamster may be difficult to beat....in wets we are the untouchables.......but i am not sure if the red bulls are hiding their true pace or are they genuinely so slow:Hmm

[voiko]

as predicted force india adn mclaren with mercedes engine are very strong here. if it rains it will be difficult to beat hamilton.

sorry there was two conflicting messages on page 3... all good :)

[Hermann]

Fernando changed the rear wing and now he is ready to go for some checks

[m schumy]

Hispania's Karun Chandhok on the Red Button: "When you come down a tyre, from wets to inters and inters to slicks, then that call comes from the team. As a driver it is very hard to judge whether the track is dry enough."

1339: It really is difficult at the moment for the teams to decide as to when and if they go to dry tyres. BBC pit-lane reporter Holly Samos says that a group of mechanics are looking at the back of Seb Vettel's car. "There is a problem with the rear right," she says. "I'm not sure what it is."

[FerrariF60]

alguesari goes p1 on slicks

[RockyRaccoon]

Time for slicks :-D

[FerrariF60]

Time for slicks :-D

i couldn't aggree more....show 'em what u made of Alonso!!!

[FerrariF60]

is webber having problems?? he's driving pretty slow

[RockyRaccoon]

He's back up to speed now, strange!

[RockyRaccoon]

Apparently there's rain forecast before the end of the session, surely we should be getting some dry running in?

Edit: Just as I say that Massa comes out on slicks.

[WS6TransAm01]

Alonso goes purple in S2 two laps in a row but only P4... we need to dial back some downforce to get a better S1 and S3

[gvsnraju85]

did you notice hw much play there is in the Red bull wings VS the mc-cheater wings??

[RockyRaccoon]

Both Mclarens are on the softer tyre and we're on the harder tyre, thats gotta be worth at least 3 tenths on a damp track like this?

[WS6TransAm01]

Again... 32.8 in S1, .4 slower than P1 in that sector and .4 seconds slower on the lap... GR!

All the life streaming is blocked at work :( have to go by iPhone live timing... this sucks!

[brava]

red flag

[gvsnraju85]

Even i noticed that right from the start of the sessio we seems to be slow in S1......any guesses y????is the Mercedes engine 0.4 s worth more powerful??

[WS6TransAm01]

oh no... why is track red-flaged!

[RockyRaccoon]

Spectators ruining all the fun!

[gvsnraju85]

oh no... why is track red-flaged!

Spectators in dangerous area

[gvera]

@gvsnraju85: Might be engine or drag (due to different downforce levels or better aero with less drag)

[gvsnraju85]

red flag

Why is the time count down still on???? Isnt the timing supposed to be stopped during a red flag??

[gvsnraju85]

@gvsnraju85: Might be engine or drag (due to different downforce levels or better aero with less drag)

Thanks a lot :D

[RockyRaccoon]

Why is the time count down still on???? Isnt the timing supposed to be stopped during a red flag??

Not during practice, the timer only stops in Quali.

[Katu]

Why is the time count down still on???? Isnt the timing supposed to be stopped during a red flag??

timing stops only in quali or race

[zeus2]

We haven't tried on soft tyres yet, but even so i think we're running a little too much downforce, the time we gain in sector 2 doesn't seem to be making up for the time we are loosing in sec 1 and 3. but I'm sure ferrari know what they are doing, :thumb

[gvsnraju85]

What a shame ....the precious dry track time is being wasted behind teh red flag!!!!!

[aroutis]

If these are times without soft tyres we should be more than fine.

[RockyRaccoon]

Webber calling for 10 minutes to be added to the session, I agree!

[gvsnraju85]

Ferrari at the head of the pack

[brava]

Now we are fitted with soft tyres

[FerrariF60]

alonso got out 1st...

[RockyRaccoon]

Well that was a shambles

[zeus2]

If these are times without soft tyres we should be more than fine.

yeah but Kubica is also on the hard tyres and he's ahead of us. It looks like he's running less downforce cause he's fast in sec 1 and 3 and a little slower in the twisty sec 2, wierdly enough he's currently the fastest in the speed traps in sec 1 and 3 the high speed sections, looks like that renault isn't as bad as rbr are making it out to be.

[brava]

Alonso P1

[WS6TransAm01]

Nando P1 with 0:00 on the clock?

Did they get their 10 extra min?

[RockyRaccoon]

Alonso P1 :-D

Sutil lost 0.9 in the middle sector but ended the lap only 0.1 behind!

[Hermann]

I always predicted that one day we would be fighting with Force India.

[brava]

We're looking good, both on wets and on slicks.

[Katu]

great, it looks really promising ;-)

[FerrariF60]

i think we'e in pretty good shape, but we have to dial down the downforce a little bit more, cause we loose some precious time in S1 and S3

all in all it was a pretty good session..

forza Alonso, Massa and Ferrari for a good qualy tomorrow

[gvsnraju85]

Alonso P1

Alonso P1 but not sure hw much we can rely on it since pretty much everyone was on the track and we were the only ones to get a clean track.....all others definitely suffered from traffic.....and there is not much difference........it will get really close in the qualifying......and the 7 mins of wasted time did not help us :(

Hope they tested all the parts and the new fuel

[zeus2]

Nando put in that fastest lap on his first timed lap on softs, seems like we dialed back a little downforce on that run, I think we can go alot faster though, sutil must be feeling robbed :lol

[m schumy]

Free Practice 2 Results

http://i35.tinypic.com/2aiegsw.jpg

[brava]

Of course we can not rely too much on the free practice result....but at least a hint we can get

[WS6TransAm01]

deff need to dial back the DF. Going into Le Combes is one of the best overtaking spots, thats where Kimi got Fisi last year. We cant be .4 slower leading up to that corner. If you get overtaken there, its going to be hard as hell to overtake in S2 even if you are faster. Then comes S3 and you are slower again saying bye bye to the car in front of you.

[m schumy]

BBC Sport's Sarah Holt on Twitter: "Mark Webber says it was very difficult to figure out relative performance on a wet Friday in Spa. He seems much happier than yesterday."

Lotus technical chief Mike Gascoyne on Twitter: "Jarno [Trulli] got blocked by Kubica who made a mistake so didn't improve on the option, more to come tomorrow."

[Paulpg87]

we are first but slower than mclaren, renault and force india in the fast sectors, bad news for race and for Monza.

[zeus2]

Speed trap classifications

1 Felipe Massa 301.0
2 Robert Kubica 300.5
3 Adrian Sutil 300.5
4 Jenson Button 300.3
5 Pedro de la Rosa 300.1
6 Michael Schumacher 299.5
7 Fernando Alonso 299.3
8 Lewis Hamilton 299.2
9 Vitantonio Liuzzi 297.6
10 Heikki Kovalainen 296.9
11 Rubens Barrichello 296.7
12 Mark Webber 294.8
13 Kamui Kobayashi 294.3
14 Sebastian Vettel 294.3
15 Sebastien Buemi 294.0
16 Sakon Yamamoto 292.5
17 Jaime Alguersuari 291.5
18 Nico Hulkenberg 290.7
19 Bruno Senna 289.0
20 Lucas di Grassi 288.5
21 Vitaly Petrov 288.1
22 Nico Rosberg 287.6
23 Jarno Trulli 282.7
24 Timo Glock 268.5

[goferrarigo]

Speed trap classifications

1 Felipe Massa 301.0
2 Robert Kubica 300.5
3 Adrian Sutil 300.5
4 Jenson Button 300.3
5 Pedro de la Rosa 300.1
6 Michael Schumacher 299.5
7 Fernando Alonso 299.3
8 Lewis Hamilton 299.2
9 Vitantonio Liuzzi 297.6
10 Heikki Kovalainen 296.9
11 Rubens Barrichello 296.7
12 Mark Webber 294.8
13 Kamui Kobayashi 294.3
14 Sebastian Vettel 294.3
15 Sebastien Buemi 294.0
16 Sakon Yamamoto 292.5
17 Jaime Alguersuari 291.5
18 Nico Hulkenberg 290.7
19 Bruno Senna 289.0
20 Lucas di Grassi 288.5
21 Vitaly Petrov 288.1
22 Nico Rosberg 287.6
23 Jarno Trulli 282.7
24 Timo Glock 268.5
I am shocked that a ferrari is the quickest car in a straight. The only thing i don't understand is that we lost about 3 or 4 tenths in 2 sectors which mainly have straights.:-??

[zeus2]

Apparently Massa screwed up coming out of turn nine on his last run. we probably ran a lot less downforce on those last runs. If you think Massa coming fastest was wierd then look who's behind him, yes its a renault :lol

[goferrarigo]

Apparently Massa screwed up coming out of turn nine on his last run. we probably ran a lot less downforce on those last runs. If you think Massa coming fastest was wierd then look who's behind him, yes its a renault :lol
Yeah but renualt have a brand new f duct. Also when Kubica went on the straight he had a toe from Rosberg i think.

[Paulpg87]

top speed but slower in the 2 sectors that are only straights... i'm an idiot and i don't get it.

[Stormsearcher]

we are first but slower than mclaren, renault and force india in the fast sectors, bad news for race and for Monza.

Relax. Its prbly just a set-up issue. Besides its FP1 and 2, they would be trying out different stuff to see which works best. Which is prbly the case with everyone else too.
But it does look promising. Atleast we wont be trying to fend of schumis motor boat come the race. Atleast i hope. :-D

[tifosi_kaka]

I think we have missed something really important. The speed trap is actually located at the exit of Eau Rouge.

So perhaps we have good suspension setup losing less speed through Eau Rouge and we top the speed trap. Perhaps we also have higher drag with the new rearwing which takes away speed on the Kemmel Straight and also Blanchimont, which explains the loss of time in S1 and S3.

[Stormsearcher]

I have a stinking feeling that the lewser might do some kamikaze lap in quali to pip us. That said, i still feel this race is ours to lose. :-)

[goferrarigo]

I have a stinking feeling that the lewser might do some kamikaze lap in quali to pip us. That said, i still feel this race is ours to lose. :-)
Lets just hope lewser runs out of fuel before the finish line.:-D

[shostak]

More from FA:


Although not visible, the hole in the floor is huge (A3 size more or less as I had said for months), so have had to incline still a little more the engine.
The increase in downforce is evident, you can see it in S2.

Hungaroring:
http://photos.gpupdate.net/large/159754.jpg

Spa:
http://formula1home.files.wordpress.com/2010/08/cubierta-motor-alo-2.jpg?w=510&h=444

[Tifoso]

How did we do, please? :-)

[shostak]

How did we do, please? :-)

Do you remember Toyota's diffuser with A3 size? Well, now Ferrari diffuser has all characteristics of that Toyota diffuser. Engine problems earlier this year postponed the true F10.

Edit: Ferrari didnt use today the new Shell fuel. Tomorrow we will use it, with the gearbox and engine for the race. (source: FA)

[Tifoso]

Do you remember Toyota's diffuser with A3 size? Well, now Ferrari diffuser has all caracteristics of that Toyota diffuser. Engine problems earlier this year postponed the true F10.

Edit: Ferrari didnt use today the new Shell fuel. Tomorrow we will use it, with the gearbox and engine for the race. (source: FA)

Thanks, amico mio. :-)

"How did we look?" is an Americanism--it means "How did we do?", though :oops

[Grillo]

There ya go, perhaps Greig can add it to the library ?

http://www.adslgr.com/forum/images/smilies/bless.gif

As an attachment also

:lol

I was thinking about something like http://elsiete.espana-foro.es/users/1715/25/07/04/smiles/519949.gif but yours is funny.

[SilverSpeed]

Anyone got a link for me and the others when the FP3 starts in a good half hour?

[gvsnraju85]

14 mins left for the final practice to begin.... here's to a dominating Weekend:

Forzaaaaaaaaaaaa Ferrari

any update on the track conditions and the weather??

please post any streaming links (preferably in english)

I hope we dominate this session too.......i am still sceptically about the true pace of the Mc-laren, Redbulls and Force India

[vcs316]

Weather update

Light showers dampened the circuit for a time during the night, but the racing surface has dried out since dawn, meaning we'll start today's action with a dry track.

To the north-west of the Spa, a slow-moving heavy shower is heading south-east towards Liege. This shower could come into play during the break between practice and the start of qualifying. We will keep you up-to-date as we go through the morning.

Temperatures are on the chilly side once again, with a maximum of 18 degrees Celsius predicted - and it will be cooler tomorrow.

[gvsnraju85]

try this:

http://www.firstrow.net/watch/25072/1/watch-formula-1---grand-prix-belgium-%28-practice3-%29.html

[vcs316]

Weather update from Lotus' Mike Gascoyne: "Still no rain and no showers on the radar and the track is dry but still a few damp patches off line. Session will start dry. Still chances of rain increasing towards qualifying"

[gvsnraju85]

http://www.firstrow.net/watch/25072/5/watch-formula-1---grand-prix-belgium-%28-practice3-%29.html

[vcs316]

try this:

http://www.firstrow.net/watch/25072/1/watch-formula-1---grand-prix-belgium-%28-practice3-%29.html

not working for me.. do u have the link for the epsilite stream?

[m schumy]

Live streaming: http://eplsite.com/stream2.html

[vcs316]

Live streaming: http://eplsite.com/stream2.html

Thanks :thumb

[vcs316]

Alonso and Hamilton are on track to put in a first lap of the day.

[Mitra]

anyone been able to find an english stream?

[vcs316]

There is a sense of urgency in the installation laps today as the teams scramble to make the most of this dry track time.

[SilverSpeed]

Yeah I see no rain in the coming hour on the radars here but for Q it still looks possible.

[vcs316]

Schumacher is out on a set of intermediates and is slowly performing checks as he heads towards Blanchimont on his installation lap.

[vcs316]

Force India has a busy session planned: "Tonio will be making three runs, using both hard and soft tyres. After his install he's reported the track is 'still very green.' Temps low"

[gvsnraju85]

not working for me.. do u have the link for the epsilite stream?

http://eplsite.com/stream1.html

[gvsnraju85]

any english link????

[m schumy]

Thanks :thumb

Welcome :thumb

[SilverSpeed]

Schumi asks if his duck is working :-D

[vcs316]

Schumi asks if his duck is working :-D

His race engineer Andrew Shovelin confirms that all is well. :-D

[m schumy]

BBC Sport's Sarah Holt in Spa: "McLaren, Red Bull and Ferrari's championship contenders agreed it was difficult to get a true sense of comparative form after Friday's rain-hit running. I bumped into Fernando Alonso huddled up under a huge Ferrari umbrella after he set the fastest time in the second session and he said he was happy with how things have gone so far in Spa but dismissed Friday's times as counting for "nothing at all". He will be focused on capturing his first pole of 2010 when qualifying begins at 1300 BST. On Alonso, our own David Coulthard says: 'He knows this is a make-or-break race weekend for him.'"

[vcs316]

1. Ham
2. Kub
3. Alo

[vcs316]

BBC Sport's Sarah Holt in Spa: "McLaren, Red Bull and Ferrari's championship contenders agreed it was difficult to get a true sense of comparative form after Friday's rain-hit running. I bumped into Fernando Alonso huddled up under a huge Ferrari umbrella after he set the fastest time in the second session and he said he was happy with how things have gone so far in Spa but dismissed Friday's times as counting for "nothing at all". He will be focused on capturing his first pole of 2010 when qualifying begins at 1300 BST. On Alonso, our own David Coulthard says: 'He knows this is a make-or-break race weekend for him.'"

:thumb

[vcs316]

Massa P3
Alonso P4

[m schumy]

BBC F1 commentator Jonathan Legard on Twitter: "Force India confident of Sutil into Q3 - F duct matching simulation. Renault F duct living up to expectations too."

[vcs316]

Speed trap:

Button - 307
Alonso - 306
Hamilton - 306
Vettel - 305
Massa - 305
Sutil - 304

[vcs316]

With the chance of a shower, this could be the time for an opportunistic move to the softer tyre to try and get some data on the options

[SilverSpeed]

We loose 0.1 in S1 and S3, in S2 we loose almost 0.4 sec.

[vcs316]

Massa is heading out of the Ferrari garage for a quick test of the softer rubber before that rain reaches the circuit.

[vcs316]

36 min: Both McLarens are on track with soft rubber as the scramble to make the most of the dry track continues.

36 min: Kubica has pitted his Renault after interestingly failing to find pace on the soft tyres.

35 min: Hamilton is now second to the championship leader with Kubica third, Alonso fourth, Massa fifth and Vettel on track in sixth.

[SilverSpeed]

mmz dont see any showers on my radars here, wonder what site they use...

[SilverSpeed]

Herpa Derp is Vettel doing lol?

[vcs316]

Vettel's Red Bull crawling in the pit lane. Appears to have lost all drive!!

[Mitra]

whats up with vettel's car?
i dont have an english stream

[SilverSpeed]

Red Bull didn't pay his fuel bills :-D

[Greig]

Starting to rain, Trulli having a go at Nando :-D

[Katu]

mmz dont see any showers on my radars here, wonder what site they use...

better one :lol

[SilverSpeed]

We are more then 0.5 sec off pace. I hope for a wet Q then Fonzo can catch the pole :-D

[m schumy]

BBC Sport's pit-lane reporter Holly Samos: "Robert Kubica's side of the Renault garage were very happy yesterday. That 'F-duct' aero device was supposed to be introduced a few weeks ago, but they brought it straight here. But they say the figures they pulled yesterday in a rainy session were almost identical to those they were getting in the factory."

[Greig]

We are more then 0.5 sec off pace. I hope for a wet Q then Fonzo can catch the pole :-D

We were not using the soft tyre tho?

[SilverSpeed]

better one :lol

Seems so yes, but now I have found another one which shows me more precise and now I saw the rain to. To bad I can't see what's coming in 2 hours from now.


We were not using the soft tyre tho?

Dont think that fernando did, massa i'm not sure of.

[vcs316]

Alonso seems pretty relaxed in the Ferrari garage :-)

[SilverSpeed]

So if it's gonna rain on sunday we need to qualify with a wet setup not?

[SilverSpeed]

Seems that the rest is going out while we are staying inside.

[m schumy]

Ferrari team boss Stefano Domenicali: "Unfortunately on Friday you don't score any points. We must be humble because we saw this morning that the Red Bulls and McLaren are so strong. If you make one mistake here, you jump backwards. The development we brought earlier this season didn't bring the improvement we hoped. This weekend we really hope that everything will be smooth, beyond that we don't know."

BBC F1 analyst Anthony Davidson: "For Mark Webber, this might be his only chance to win the world championship and it showed when he was still sitting in his car in the garage when it rained. He wants pole position, wet or dry."

[m schumy]

Free Practice 3 Results

http://i38.tinypic.com/25usdo0.jpg

[m schumy]

BBC Sport's Sarah Holt in Spa: "Red Bull's title contender Sebastian Vettel collected third place in Spa last season but that isn't his lasting memory of the Belgian circuit. The 23-year-old explains: 'I had a crash here in the Renault World Series in 2006 and broke my finger. For the first time I was in the medical centre; they brought me in the ambulance to the hospital, the ambulance driver was probably crazier than all of us. I was put into a wheelchair, even though there was nothing wrong with my legs. They gave me this funny dress like an old woman's dress. I don't want to do it again but it was an experience.' Crikey."

BBC F1 analyst Anthony Davidson on Red Bull deciding not to give Vettel a new engine for this race: Engines are a living, breathing animal and you cannot be sure how they are going to react. You see some engines blow up after just a few miles and others go way beyond their life expectancy. I can't believe that Red Bull would do anything to significantly damage Vettel's chances here."

BBC Sarah Holt on Twitter: "Lewis Hamilton wants the championship lead back and he is right on Webber's heels in final practice - just 0.117 seconds behind for McLaren."

[gvsnraju85]

any english links for Quali???