Liverpool Grand Prix have lived up to their pre season hype after locking out the front row of the grid for tomorrows season opener at Albert Park. Adrien Simon edged out his teammate Karl Beckenbauer by a mere two hundredths of a second to take pole position.
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Drivers - Felix Beyer (Force Australia), Will Hoskins (Franklin), Puccio Giodano (Scuderia Rossi), Michal Kubat (Warrior), Nathaniel Powers (Downton), Adrien Simon (Liverpool)
PRESS CONFERENCE Today saw the first time this season that all 24 drivers took to the track at once, and there were a few surprises, and although we still cannot read an awful lot into the times, it is the first real indication of a pecking order.
The fastest time went to the Ingram of Milkovich, who looked very good. The Ingram was very stable, noticeably good around the fast 11-12 chicane. His team mate Campos looked less comfortable however, only managing 18th. Second was Domenicalli in the Rossi, which once again showed it's promise, while 11th for Giodano was slightly disappointing, suggesting the driveability of the car wasn't totally there, with some points looking like the car is quite feisty on turn in. Westwood had the best session of everyone, with Kinnumen third and Boston 6th. The car looks very sorted, and they must be very happy with how things are going. Pre season pacesetters Liverpool had a session that backs up driver Adrien Simon's claims that they are not the favourites, with a 4th for Beckenbauer and the Frenchman only taking 7th. However, the team will be hoping there is more to come, with qualifying tomorrow being very important around the Albert Park circuit. Peugeot look good around here. The cars were very quick in a straight line, while they seemed stable in the slower corners in the back end of the lap. Ellington took 5th, while 12th went to Regi Abott. Lucas had a mixed session, with the car looking mighty in the hands of Davenport, taking 8th, while Phipps struggled, only managing 21st, a disappointing performance. Downton had a similar day, with Marcus Thunder proving a dab hand in Melbourne, taking 9th, which was in stark contrast to world champion Nathaniel Powers, who only managed 20th place - he looked very ragged and couldn't seem to get a clean lap together. Fun looked like a solid bet for the midfield, with Agostino 10th and Dwyer 15th. The car looked very driveable, but they seemed to lack a small amount of speed. Franklin had a nightmare, there is no two ways about it. Ruiz got 13th, and Hoskins 17th, but they look to have no confidence in the car on corner entry, while they struggled to put the power down out of the corners. Warrior had a brilliant first session in the VGPC, with Kubat taking 14th, which was an amazing performance from him, with the car looking ever so good bearing in mind how late they started the car. Harding came 24th of 24 runners, but that isn't a problem by the looks of things, Kubat gave the team great hope. Team 23 looked rather worried today, with 16th and 19th positions occupied by Wagner and Mattson respectively. The car looked solid enough, but there is very little in the way of confidence from the drivers, which seems to be where the driver needs to look for pace. The final team was Force Australia. The home team for this event took 22nd and 23rd, but the car looked very tidy, with the drivers being able to attack from the off. Alaniz and Beyer will be hoping for big things this year! Ingram Grand Prix driver Nikolai Milkovich has set the fastest time in the first practice session of the season. Practice is a new addition to the series, with one being held each weekend and running for an hour long. The Russian was ahead of Domenicalli, Kinnumnen, and Beckenbauer. Full times below.
Today was the first day all of the teams were together in the paddock making their final adjustments to their cars before the practice session, and there is little doubt that one of the most confident teams has to be Liverpool GP, with their drivers setting fast times, being quickest on three of the four days. We spoke to Adrien Simon to see what he thought about his chances were for this race:
Martin Edwards: Thanks for joining me today Adrien, you come here as one of the favourites for a win. How do you think you will get on? Adrien Simon: Of course we are happy that we have shown ourselves to be very quick, but we cannot be sure that we will be the quickest in the race and qualifying. Testing, as we have seen so many times can make cars look good or bad, and often the order isn't found until the first few races of the season. Having said that, we are going to be quick, so for sure the aim is a win, and a 1-2 would be amazing! But, we're certainly not far out in front, so any slip ups and we will be taken by the Rossis and Franklins. ME: Fair enough, but you've got to be happy with the car? AS: Of course, I don't know what we will end up with in Melbourne, but I am of course happy with the car. We are quick all round, and I hope we can be in a place where we can take advantage of our pace without having to worry about the opposition too much catching up! ME: Thanks Adrien, best of luck! AS: Merci Martin! Virtual Grand Prix Championship's official website is pleased to announce the introduction of the Predictions Championship for the second season.
Mimicking F1 Fanatic's own system, team principal's and fans alike (Nic as well if he wants), will get the chance to predict the pole sitter, his time, and the top five for each race! The city of Melbourne, is famous for many things. It's diverse cultures, tight lane-ways, street art, and it's passion for sport. This weekend kicks off the second season of the F1F Virtual Grand Prix Championship, and what a place to do it in, Melbourne. A booming city home to over 4 million people, and was second in the throne to hosting a race behind Adelaide back in the 80's and 90's. Today, we asked some VGPC experts to give us their tips for the first round, and the overall champion.
Hello and welcome to Testing Talk with Gary Anderson. As with any pre season test, there has been a huge amount of speculation about the pecking order, along with how teams are prepared for the season ahead. Today I am joined by guest
Bradley Downton, of course the team principal of Downton F1 Team. He is joining me to give his inside view on the teams, and will help me to run the rule over the stats in the hope of giving an idea of who will be fast in Australia, and who will be working hard to get things right for the season ahead. Neil Allenby catches up with Franklin F1's team principal to talk about testing and the season ahead.
Downton F1 Team Principal Bradley Downton has spoken exclusively to VGPC.com about a variety of topics in a recent revealing interview. Downton - pictured left following his teams fifth place on the final day of pre-season testing - is known for his refreshingly frank and honest interviews and this is no different. Our reporter Neil Allenby - fresh out of the hospital following being punched in the face by a Downton team member after asking about THAT Ultimatum - caught up with the honest team principal and quizzed him on all things Downton. One of the major talking points in terms of development for this season is the new Volkswagen W12 being run by the Lucas Grand Prix team. While there have been many changes in engine manufacturer, they have mostly consisted of V8 or V10 units, a very conventional design that has been used by many manufacturers. However, Volkswagen have gone in a totally different direction, and there have been many people who are intrigued as to the benefit of such a design. Technical guru GARY ANDERSON has interviewed team principal Lucas Wilson and their technical director Andy Davies to get the inside track, and also he has provided his own analysis of the engine.
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