Bahrain

[cameraman]

The pre-race weights are in. The grid was shuffled slightly by Sutil's penalty.
Figure 2.6 kg fuel/lap.

1. Jarno Trulli, Toyota, 648.5 kg
2. Timo Glock, Toyota, 643
3. Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull, 659
4. Jenson Button, Brawn GP, 652.5
5. Lewis Hamilton, McLaren, 652.5
6. Rubens Barrichello, Brawn GP, 649
7. Fernando Alonso, Renault, 650.5
8. Felipe Massa, Ferrari, 664.5
9. Nico Rosberg, Williams, 670.5
10. Kimi Raikkonen, Ferrari, 671.5
11. Heikki Kovalainen, McLaren, 678.5
12. Kazuki Nakajima, Williams, 680.9
13. Robert Kubica, BMW Sauber, 698.6
14. Nick Heidfeld, BMW Sauber, 696.3
15. Nelson Piquet, Renault, 677.6
16. Sebastien Buemi, Toro Rosso, 678.5
17. Giancarlo Fisichella, Force India, 652
18. Mark Webber, Red Bull, 656
19. Adrian Sutil, Force India, 679
20. Sebastien Bourdais, Toro Rosso, 667.5

Vettel is far heavier than the other first 7 cars:eek:
BMW looks to be fueled for a one stop but that can't happen with the super-softs, so a really long first run then a short super-soft second stint. They can run about 20 laps longer than Glock.

[oddlycalm]

Vettel is far heavier than the other first 7 cars:eek: BMW looks to be fueled for a one stop but that can't happen with the super-softs, so a really long first run then a short super-soft second stint. They can run about 20 laps longer than Glock.

Agreed on all points. Not to bleed the other thread in here, but what's your analysis of the Rosberg strategy? :confused:

And then there is Webber. Front row car yet in 20 minutes of Q1 he can't manage a decent time then gets balked out at the last minute, and they put him out in 18th spot with a normal fuel load? WTF...?

oc

[The Doctor]

Vettel is far heavier than the other first 7 cars:eek:
BMW looks to be fueled for a one stop but that can't happen with the super-softs, so a really long first run then a short super-soft second stint. They can run about 20 laps longer than Glock.

They said during qually coverage that the super-softs were actually the preferred tire, both for overall pace and for longer stints... so BMW are probably good to go for a one-stop race. Too bad they're slow and it won't make too much of a difference.

I'd like to see if the Brawns are able to hold off the KERS cars and claim another spot on the podium. They don't look to have the one-lap pace this round, but maybe they'll have good race pace. And they're stopping a few laps later than the Toyotas so if they can keep them in sight at least they'll have a good chance of leap-frogging them. Vettel looks tough to beat again this week, though.

[oddlycalm]

stopping a few laps later than the Toyotas so if they can keep them in sight at least they'll have a good chance of leap-frogging them. Vettel looks tough to beat again this week, though.
That's my take as well. Brawn will do a great strategy and get at least one of his guys on the podium but unless Vettel is somehow caught out he's going to be very hard to beat.

It's quite interesting how the massive changes in the aero rules and the introduction of KERS has resulted in the tightest qualifying fields in years. There are simply no cars that are several seconds off the pace anymore.

oc

[Insomniac]

Interesting that neither Trulli or Vettel could pass each other. I enjoyed Rubens whining about Piquet. My thought was, implement KERS! I thought Hamilton had a shot at 2nd, but he just couldn't pass Trulli or Vettel when needed. Anyone know why Massa had to pit early?

[Gnam]

Broken front wing endplate. I forget who ran over it.

[trish]

Broken front wing endplate. I forget who ran over it.

Kimi, I think.

[Insomniac]

Broken front wing endplate. I forget who ran over it.

Some guys drive with partially damaged front wings, others dive for the pits. I can never figure out what is too much damage.