Chinese Grand Prix 2011: 1st Qualifying session – Formula One highlights (part 4)
The first qualifying session headed into minute 15. Sebastian Vettel, clearly confident of his performances so far this season, looked to be competing with himself. The German driver improved his own time further by two tenths of a second to consolidate on his position on the provisional pole.
Nick Heidfeld effectively headed the relegation zone as more and more cars slotted into the top 17 positions at the expense of one another – it virtually looked like a dog fight; a survival of the fittest. Who would progress and at the expense of whom?
Heidfeld started his hot lap and appeared to be on the verge of taking up a much higher spot. He was more than a second faster than his previous sector 2 time. Crossing the line, the German shot his way to 2nd spot. Interestingly, both Renaults were at the top of the speed charts.
The success of one Renault driver potentially spelt doom for the other. Heidfeld’s teammate, Vitaly Petrov effectively headed the relegation zone. Paul di Resta, after an impressive run, beat Heidfeld’s time to go P2 – just a tenth of a second behind Sebastian Vettel’s best - Encouraging for the Force India camp, no doubt.
Meanwhile, Maldonado further distanced himself from the danger zone of relegation by moving up to 12th position. While it was good news for the Williams’ team, it meant another driver was in danger of being relegated at the other end. The timesheet was changing so rapidly that it was getting increasingly difficult to have a clear idea of who was in danger and who wasn’t.
Fernando Alonso headed into the pits and came back after slapping on a set of soft compound Pirellis. The Spaniard started his flying lap and the softer rubber reaped instant success. The Scarlet Ferrari went top of the charts with a couple of minutes left in the first qualifying session.
Staying with the Italian giants, their second driver in the form of Felipe Massa went 2nd fastest. In the Brazilian’s case however, the harder compound tyres proved to be an efficient option. Either way, irrespective of tyre choice, it was evident that the Ferrari was managing its tyres rather effectively. Was it an early indication that the most decorated team in the sport’s history was making a lunge for top honours, a spot which many believed, it rightfully deserved this campaign?
To be continued in part 5...
Tags: