Sebastian Vettel has a chance to clinch the drivers' championship with one round to spare in the United States Grand Prix.
But Fernando Alonso, who starts seven places behind his rival, said he believes he will out-score him this weekend.
The start
The first corner at the Circuit of the Americas is already recognised as one of its most distinctive features. Wide and tight, it sits on top of one of the steepest climbs on the Formula One calendar.
And there are concerns it could be the scene of a first-lap pile-up as drivers seize their best opportunity to make up places at the start. Particularly as overtaking is expected to be difficult during this race.
But before they reach turn one another potential problem awaits half of the field: the lack of grip off-line.
Alonso originally qualified ninth and he might wish that's where he was starting. Romain Grosjean's penalty has elevated him to eighth, but that is on the dirtier side of the grip where little rubber has been laid so far this weekend. Even if the organisers clean the track, it could prove a significant disadvantage for the likes of him, Lewis Hamilton, Kimi Raikkonen, Felipe Massa and others.
That is more good news for Vettel, who starts from pole position on the clean side and has a good chance of making it through turn one with being troubled by second-placed Hamilton.
Strategy
Strategic options are likely to be very limited. Pirelli expect a one-stop strategy to be the standard as tyre degradation is very low.
This will not help Alonso's bid to gain places during the race. His best bet of coming good on his pre-race prediction of out-scoring Vettel appears to be some kind of technical problem for the Red Bull ' something which has already happened during practice this weekend.
But if Vettel converts pole position into victory, Alonso must finish at least fourth or else the championship is over.
The championship
The drivers' and constructors' championship titles could be won by Sebastian Vettel and Red Bull respectively in the race. Here's how:
- How Vettel and Red Bull can win titles this weekend
Qualifying times in full
Ferrari tried to improve their position in Q3 by using scrubbed tyres but their qualifying result of seventh and ninth matched what they achieved in Abu Dhabi, albeit with their drivers reversed.
'A very difficult qualifying, there's no doubt about it,' said technical director Pat Fry. 'The tyre-asphalt combination created conditions that were very difficult to interpret and we probably struggled more than others.
'We even tried to make the most of [third practice] to prepare as well as possible for qualifying and now we must look at the data carefully to try and understand what didn't work out as it should have done.'
Another team which struggled with the track conditions was Sauber. 'We have lost a lot of performance compared to this morning's practice session and at the moment we don't really know why,' said Sergio Perez.
'The track temperature increased a lot, but for me the tyre warm up still wasn't any better. My car tended to oversteer quite a lot in qualifying. Perhaps we did not follow the way the track conditions developed in the right direction.'
Sector times
Lewis Hamilton was quickest through the first sector and was in with a chance of beating Vettel until the final sector: 'I did two consecutive quick-laps ' and, on my second lap, having put in a 'banker', I didn't really have anything to lose, so I went almost over the limit, really on the edge, but the car still seemed to handle it well.
'On the final corner, I gained a little time on the entry but lost it on the exit. I got every corner perfect, I reckon, except for that last one.'
Kimi Raikkonen was surprised to find himself fifth, which became fourth after his team mate's penalty. 'I was actually expecting a more difficult qualifying session today,' he said, 'but the car was the best it's felt all weekend so it turned out to be quite good.
'The set-up is still not exactly how I want it but it's much closer. The warmer conditions make the car work much better and that certainly makes a difference.'
Speed trap
The only consolation for Alonso is that he is significantly quicker than Vettel in a straight line ' but there's little so far to suggest he might be able to get on terms with the Red Bull in the race.
Over to you
Can Alonso stop Vettel from winning the championship in America? And how will the all-important start unfold?
Share your views on the United States Grand Prix in the comments.
2012 United States Grand Prix
- Advantage Vettel - but Alonso still believes
- 2012 United States Grand Prix qualifying in pictures
- Vettel takes pole as Alonso struggles to fourth row
- Grosjean handed five-place penalty
- 2012 United States Grand Prix grid
0 komentar:
Posting Komentar