2013 Chinese GP - Race Thread

[tifosi1993]

[tifosi1993]

[FA fan]

I find it interesting that when Alonso had a newer tires, he completely destroy Vettel, but when Vettel have the newer tires, he wasn't really closing down the gap that fast though.

Alonso was almost 20 seconds ahead of Kimi at one point before he drop the pace. I think if Vettel was on the same strategy and start beside Alonso, Alonso would still beat him. We are really fast in the race, at least in China. Perhaps even the fastest car out there.

Well I think it's close to call! Alonso and Kimi IMHO were the fastest,Kimi had a slow start and the contact with Perez compromised his race,otherwise I think he could have challenged Alonso for the win..

[tifosi1993]

I think some of you folks have waaayyyyy high expectations for a certain driver from another team and want's him to do well......

One the other hand that same some of you have waaayyyyyy less expectations for a driver who drives for Ferrari and always want's him to..well...move over

I know different folks have different strokes but it's strange to see this kind of attitude in a forum where we all supposed to be Ferrari fans.

[DJTaurus]

iPhone 5 wallpaper
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[SoumyaBanerjee]

I think some of you folks have waaayyyyy high expectations for a certain driver from another team and want's him to do well......

One the other hand that same some of you have waaayyyyyy less expectations for a driver who drives for Ferrari and always want's him to..well...move over

I know different folks have different strokes but it's strange to see this kind of attitude in a forum where we all supposed to be Ferrari fans.

We're just being realistic instead of indulging in meaningless chest-beating. We have to recognise the fact that Kimi and Lotus were quite quick today,as they might end up being FA's closest challengers to the title...stop being naive!!!

[FA fan]

[QUOTE=tifosi1993;781558]I think some of you folks have waaayyyyy high expectations for a certain driver from another team and want's him to do well......

One the other hand that same some of you have waaayyyyyy less expectations for a driver who drives for Ferrari and always want's him to..well...move over
I know different folks have different strokes but it's strange to see this kind of attitude in a forum where we all supposed to be Ferrari fans.

Was this reply meant at me?? If it was,first of all,I was never a Kimi fan! Before I was even a Ferrari fan I was an
Alonso fan since he was in minardi. As for the race these are the facts I saw how the race went,am I happy that Alonso won??no I'm not only happy,I'm over the moon!!but I suppose just cuz I don't post so many pictures doesn't make me a true fan!!

[scuderiafan]

Well I think it's close to call! Alonso and Kimi IMHO were the fastest,Kimi had a slow start and the contact with Perez compromised his race,otherwise I think he could have challenged Alonso for the win..

Doubt it man. Even before contact, Alonso was whupping him, and Lotus themselves said the broken nose didn't make much difference, maybe 3 tenths. That doesn't account for the other 5 tenths Alonso seemed to have on Kimi most laps from where I was sitting. Kimi had reason to push, Alonso didn't yet Kimi was being dropped at a second a lap at times. Remember, Alonso said they had pace in the pocket.

Ferrari with Alonso was different level today. The others had their squabble, but he was untouched. The slow start also only dropped him behind Felipe who was quick at that point himself, so it isn't as if he was being held up. If anything, Hamilton was holding Alonso up in the first stint.

[raylinds]

Great race for the team! Forza Ferrari!!!!

[FA fan]

Doubt it man. Even before contact, Alonso was whupping him, and Lotus themselves said the broken nose didn't make much difference, maybe 3 tenths. That doesn't account for the other 5 tenths Alonso seemed to have on Kimi most laps from where I was sitting. Kimi had reason to push, Alonso didn't yet Kimi was being dropped at a second a lap at times. Remember, Alonso said they had pace in the pocket.

Ferrari with Alonso was different level today. The others had their squabble, but he was untouched. The slow start also only dropped him behind Felipe who was quick at that point himself, so it isn't as if he was being held up. If anything, Hamilton was holding Alonso up in the first stint.

Yeah but the damage to the front nose was graining kimi tyres! Anyways bro hope your right,cuz that will mean more or less the same performance in Bahrain,cuz it's a week time,don't think any teams will bring more updates,plus it's hotter in Bahrain,so maybe 4 pit stops;)

[Sianellen]

Ferrari

Fernando Alonso (1st)
“It couldn’t have gone better than this today! I hadn’t won since Germany and this has a special feeling because it was a tricky race full of action. Along with the second place I got in Australia, this result shows that the car is competitive and that we are working in the right direction to always be in the fight for the podium. For that, I have to thank the team for the huge efforts it has made both here and back in the factory. They have worked so hard to put me in this position from which I can fight with the others on equal terms. We had a good feeling all through the weekend and qualifying third gave us the possibility of fighting for the top places. On top of that, maybe we were owed some good luck. Along with that all the important factors worked perfectly, such as set-up, strategy, calling the pit stops and the stops themselves. All together it produced a win that wasn’t easy at the end of a race in which we made the most of our pace and did a good job of managing the tyres, which was definitely the most dangerous aspect. With no one dominating the Championship, it makes it extremely interesting, even if we are aware this is only the third race. We are under no illusions and we must continue to concentrate and do all we can to improve still further.”

Felipe Massa (6th)
“It’s difficult to understand exactly what happened today, because the start went very well. I was immediately quick and the car was working perfectly. At the first stop, I fitted the Medium tyres and after a few laps I began to suffer with graining on the front. That meant I lost ground to other cars and it was probably down to a problem linked to the track conditions and my driving style. All weekend, I haven’t felt comfortable with these tyres and in the race, any attempts I made to save them was useless. But for this problem, I would certainly have been in the fight for the podium, but I am still confident because, all the same, I was able to bring home a good points haul which is important in a season that has only just begun”.

Pat Fry, Ferrari chassis director
“The great start from both cars was certainly the best way to begin the race. We knew the Mercedes would have a slightly higher degradation than us and the double overtaking move on Hamilton at the start of Lap 5 meant we got into the lead immediately. We also knew that we would rejoin in traffic after the first pit stop, without knowing if we would have been able to overtake the cars that were on the Medium: the move paid off for Fernando with his stop on the sixth lap, while for Felipe, who pitted on lap 7, it was more difficult, especially as he had some graining which meant he was not able to finish any higher. Overall, the F138 showed that it has a good pace and we can take satisfaction from that. Now we must immediately turn the page and concentrate on the race coming up in Bahrain. We are absolutely aware that we still have a lot of work to do on qualifying performance if we want to make the most of our race pace.”

Stefano Domenicali, Ferrari team principal
“I am pleased with the result for the team as a whole today and clearly with winning a race that looked like being a difficult one from many points of view, starting with tyre management. After what happened in Malaysia, I am particularly happy to see Fernando on the top step of the podium, because it’s the best possible turnaround and it’s down to a great job from the guys here at the track and in Maranello. However, I am sorry for Felipe who, because of graining, was unable to make the most of his potential, nor to secure the result he could have aimed for after his great start. This is only the third race and in a few days we will already be back on track to take on another challenge in Bahrain. In this first part of the championship it is harder than ever to come up with an accurate evaluation of the hierarchy in the field: between qualifying and the race we have seen contrasting performances for some teams and therefore we must concentrate very hard on improving the car over the single lap in qualifying, while maintaining the performance level we have seen over the long runs.”

[tifosi1993]

Was this reply meant at me??

No

If it was,first of all,I was never a Kimi fan! Before I was even a Ferrari fan I was an
Alonso fan since he was in minardi. As for the race these are the facts I saw how the race went,am I happy that Alonso won??no I'm not only happy,I'm over the moon!!

We all are.

but I suppose just cuz I don't post so many pictures doesn't make me a true fan!!

Absolutely not.

And I'm sorry if i offended you or anyone.

[stringer987]

Sorry if this has already been asked. but what was Stella saying to Alonso after he had won the race? The italian words if possible!

[FA fan]

No



We all are.



Absolutely not.

And I'm sorry if i offended you or anyone.

Well it's ok:) I actually saw @-SoumyaBanerjee reply to your post,and it looked like it was meant at me..no worries it's all cool,roll on Bahrain

[scuderiafan]

Yeah but the damage to the front nose was graining kimi tyres! Anyways bro hope your right,cuz that will mean more or less the same performance in Bahrain,cuz it's a week time,don't think any teams will bring more updates,plus it's hotter in Bahrain,so maybe 4 pit stops;)

That is true, not updates but Lotus should be a lot stronger in Bahrain. Don't see Ferrari having the same advantage they did today next week.

[grinchy]

Excellent race win from Fernando, shame about felipe but overall by far the fastest car today. Congrats to everyone & lets keep it going.

[FA fan]

[QUOTE=scuderiafan;781585]That is true, not updates but Lotus should be a lot stronger in Bahrain. Don't see Ferrari having the same advantage they did today next week.[/
Why do you think so?

[Dino]

An incredible race by Alonso after the disapointment in Malasia 3 weeks ago.
Now i beleive we really could have won Malasia as well.
Massa's 6th.place and 8 points are surely welcome for the WCC.
I support both of our drivers and want Felipe up there with Fernando but it still worries me that while one car dominates the race, the other just beats a Toro Rosso by 1.8 seconds in a 5787 second race.
Massa in my opinion should never pit after Alonso as his tyres are always in a worse state than the Spainiard's.
Rob Smedley,Massa and their side of the garage should try shorter stints and defend towards the end of the race with a lighter
less tyre destroying car.
We will win both championships this year..
Bringing them in for a tyre change at the same time today would not have worked either as they where too close and the loss for Massa would have been too much.

[Alonsomaniac]

I'm happy, just very happy.
I was even happy to see the friendly interaction between Fernando and Lewis after the race.
Strangest of all, I have never been happy when Lewis scored a podium, but today I was....for obvious reasons...

People, we all as Ferrarifans, can have a beautiful and exciting season: championships are a real possibility!

[FrankAlfa]

I think Massa must modify his driving style to be more gentle on the tires. The tires do not like abrupt direction change that induces latteral friction resulting in the graining. Massa must get smoother with the car. If you watch Alonso and some of the other driver who work the car smoothly, their tires last longer and they have less severe drop off rate.

Ciao,

Forza Ferrari!!!!

[Alonsomaniac]

Did anyone notice the difference in character between Fernando and Bieber?

When Bieber wins: the finger and the finger and the finger...ME,ME,ME!!!

When Fernando wins: waving the flag and hugging the team...WE,WE,WE!!!

[scuderiafan]

[QUOTE=FA fan;781588]

That is true, not updates but Lotus should be a lot stronger in Bahrain. Don't see Ferrari having the same advantage they did today next week.[/
Why do you think so?

Because it is more of a traction track (one of their strengths and according to journos one of Ferrari's lower points), and mainly because it is hotter temps.

[khizerk]

An incredible race by Alonso after the disapointment in Malasia 3 weeks ago.
Now i beleive we really could have won Malasia as well.
Massa's 6th.place and 8 points are surely welcome for the WCC.
I support both of our drivers and want Felipe up there with Fernando but it still worries me that while one car dominates the race, the other just beats a Toro Rosso by 1.8 seconds in a 5787 second race.
Massa in my opinion should never pit after Alonso as his tyres are always in a worse state than the Spainiard's.
Rob Smedley,Massa and their side of the garage should try shorter stints and defend towards the end of the race with a lighter
less tyre destroying car.
We will win both championships this year..
Bringing them in for a tyre change at the same time today would not have worked either as they where too close and the loss for Massa would have been too much.

Bringing them both in together wasn't the better option that's for sure. However, as Pat Fry admitted, moving the pit stops one lap earlier would have helped. But this is all in retrospect...

I don't think Massa performed too badly considering he wasn't in clean air and these jokes of tyres degrade so quick in traffic. Vettel was even having problems passing Hulkenberg.

[qb_marukochan]

Bringing them both in together wasn't the better option that's for sure. However, as Pat Fry admitted, moving the pit stops one lap earlier would have helped. But this is all in retrospect...

I don't think Massa performed too badly considering he wasn't in clean air and these jokes of tyres degrade so quick in traffic. Vettel was even having problems passing Hulkenberg.

massa said not because he was pitted a lap after fernando, he said he was struggling all weekend with medium even on friday. for one lap after pitted, it s okay, but after that, it was graining, more and more. That made felipe didnt have the pace. ( i saw his interview on bbc). And someone said, its because his driving style . its ok with soft, but a lil bit worse with medium.

[Mrs Alonso]

What a brilliant win today for Nando and the team. It's a shame Felipe couldn't be up at the front too but on the whole an enjoyable race.

Quite frankly I have been shocked and appalled by the attitudes of some so called Ferrari fans today saying they aren't pleased for this result.

[Ferrari Man]

It was worth the three week wait to see a Ferrari on the top step. Amazing pace shown by Alonso. It was brilliant watchin him overtakin car after car. Especially puttin pettel in his place. Brings me backing to our dominant years. Be nice to carry this over to Bahrain so here s hopin. Congrats Ferrari. We''re back on top....

[redsteph]

OK risking my neck here but I've never been an Alonso fan. It was always his attitude I didn't like and I am of course going right back to the Renault days.
But (before I get lambasted from all sides) I think he is a different person now, maybe it's being at Ferrari for a few years and away from people like Briatore and Ron Dennis I am actually starting to like the guy and I reckon he's got a real shot at the title going by the first few races.

[Tony]

It's amazing what proper correlation can do eh?

How 'bout some love for the Toyota wind tunnel.... not only does it make Ferrari faster, it makes McLaren worse

[FrankAlfa]

@ Tony,

110% agree!

Ciao,

Forza Ferrari!!!!

[aroutis]

OK risking my neck here but I've never been an Alonso fan. It was always his attitude I didn't like and I am of course going right back to the Renault days.
But (before I get lambasted from all sides) I think he is a different person now, maybe it's being at Ferrari for a few years and away from people like Briatore and Ron Dennis I am actually starting to like the guy and I reckon he's got a real shot at the title going by the first few races.

The way he reacts when he wins a race, the way he ran to get the flag, my thought was "Ferrari has turned him into a Tifoso after all!". You do have a point :)