Schumacher Fast, Coulthard Lucky !

I think it is amazing that David Coulthard managed to walk away from a plane crash in which both the pilot and copilot died. What is even more amazing is the fact that none of the passengers were hurt and that Coulthard will be racing this weekend.

Admittedly one of the first things a race driver learns is that one should get out as fast as possible after a crash, because the risk of fire is always there. I am sure this training and David’s unflappable nature contributed immensely to the three passengers walking away without a scratch but they were very lucky that the exit was not jammed or obstructed.

It is a very sad day for the families and loved ones of the pilots that died in the crash.

It will also be very hard for Coulthard to put it behind him and focus on the race. Regardless of how well he may be physically, it is only human to be troubled by an event of this magnitude, sadness and immediacy.

Barcelona is not a fast track. It is marginally slower than San Marino and has three very slow (under 80mph) corners. It is a winding track that allows little opportunity for overtaking except for the pit straight. Average speed of the wining car will be around 207km/H.

During testing, last week, Michael Schumacher was fastest on all of the three days he drove. The closest a McLaren came to Schumacher’s time was Panis who was about ½ second slower on Wednesday.

But, like always, we have no idea who was testing what and apart from the observation that McLaren were not as fast, we have little indication that McLaren will not be fastest again on the day.

On the last day Ralf Schumacher was faster than Barrichello and Hakkinen and only 0.15 second slower than his brother Michael. But, again, it is difficult to assess what this means as he may have been trying out a qualifying set up.

McLaren

Although they were not fast in last week’s testing, I am fully expecting McLaren to be on the pace on Sunday. The cars are reliable and fast, and there is no reason to believe that Ferrari have managed to close the gap.

Providing that Coulthard can put his near escape and the tragic plane accident out of his mind I believe that there is a fair chance that he could win this race. This year he seems more determined and focused, and with his recent win in Silverstone he should be confident.

I am afraid that I can’t say the same for Hakkinen. It is not that he has lost any of his qualifying or driving ability, but even when he gets on the podium he appears troubled. He claims that he is more relaxed this season, but I see little evidence of that helping. At Silverstone he drove a lacklustre race until close to the end when he suddenly picked up his pace. I still do not understand why he could not have done that from the beginning of the race.

If Hakkinen qualifies on pole again and gets the opportunity to dominate the race from the front he may win it. If he starts on the second row of the grid (or even further back) and is unable to get to the front in the start I would expect him to drive another demotivated race.

Ferrari

If testing is anything to go by they are looking good. Schumacher was fastest on all three days and Barrichello was not far behind.

It certainly looks as if Barrichello is not going to take the race to Schumacher. He is fast, but not as fast as Michael.

This could be because Barrichello is not as good as Schumacher in setting his car up for optimum performance or it may be that he is still getting to know the car and team. Either way, I do not see him challenging Schumacher’s already dominant position in the championship.

Ferrari have not qualified well this season. Some of it was just the luck of the draw during qualifying but the pattern is becoming established and I feel that Ferrari may have a problem in getting the extra horsepower that they need to qualify better than McLaren.

Although one could not criticise Michael Schumacher’s speed off the line in Silverstone, that was really his only fast start of the season. The rest of the season (and a lot of last season as well) he has lost ground on the start. Schumacher has spent some time practicing starts, but in my opinion it is not working. Barrichello has started far better virtually every time.

This, under normal circumstances, may not be that much of a problem but given the current situation where all overtaking has to be planned for the pit stops and track position is everything, this is a major problem for Schumacher. He may be a brilliant driver but today’s circumstances call for drivers that gain at the start – not lose.

Schumacher has the ability to make up ground during the race and never gives up. He is also brilliant at pit stops.

Providing his start is reasonable he has my money to win.

Williams

Williams did not look good all of last week in testing. On Wednesday Button was 14^th and on Thursday 13^th with Ralf Schumacher in 14^th.

And then, on Friday, Ralf Schumacher is second fastest (Button did not test on Friday).

It is of course possible that Williams were testing new components on the earlier days, leaving the fast runs for Friday but in my opinion it is much more likely that Ralf went out in qualifying set up when he posted that fast lap.

On the other hand Williams seem to be improving a lot faster than the other teams and it will not be long before they start getting to the pace of Ferrari or McLaren. If they can also steadily improve reliability they will be a force to reckon with long before the end of the season.

Providing they finish I think we can expect to see both Williams in the points.

Jordan

I do not think it is a case of Jordan getting worse, they are just not getting better or faster at the same pace as Ferrari, McLaren and Williams. They did well in Brazil, and Trulli finished in the points in Silverstone but they are definitely falling back into the clutches of Williams.

It could be that we are seeing the effect of the Mugen-Honda motor reaching the end of the development phase or a lack of budget to develop it more. If this is the case we will see this team fall back even further over the season as teams like Jaguar get their act together.

Both drivers are good, and should do better. To do better they need more speed and reliability.

I do not expect both to finish. If one finishes it may be in the points.

Benetton

While this team is forced to use a motor that has it’s future behind it, they will struggle.

Benetton did not look too bad in testing and may do a little better in Barcelona because it is a slower track but I still do not expect to see them on the podium unless Ferrari and McLaren retire one or both cars.

Fisichella is fast and although Wurz is under pressure I think that he is fast enough.

They may both finish, but will be lucky if one car (probably Fisichella) is in the points.

Jaguar

I keep on saying that they will get better and they do not.

It is almost as if Jaguar have decided to focus on next year and are putting little effort into their current race car. Or maybe they are finding it hard to adjust to the change of ownership.

They should be fast. They were definitely getting there last year and certainly have the budget to do what is needed this year.

As I have said before, I am not a fan of either of the Jaguar drivers, but with the problems that they have had with their cars it is hard to be judgemental. The best drivers would have done poorly in a Jaguar, this season.

If they finish it will be well back again.

Sauber

I am disappointed in this team. I did not expect to see them in the leading pack but firmly believed that they had the power and reliability to be very effective around 5^th position.

Salo seems to be doing all the right things and manages to do well if he gets the opportunity to do so. Diniz is also good, but the cars are pedestrian.

Attrition of the other, faster, cars may get one of the Saubers in the points, but I doubt it.

Prost

Slow at practice, slow on the day, both cars will challenge the back markers for position until they expire.

Arrows

Did very well in testing again. Verstappen was fastest on the first day and de la Rosa was 4^th fastest on Thursday.

I wonder if this team has three motors? One for qualifying, one for full distance racing and a fast motor for testing. I am amazed that they always do well in testing but are unable to emulate this during a race.

Arrows are also being hampered by the Supertec motor and are unlikely to do better until they get a better motor.

Do not expect to see them on the same lap as the leaders for more than half of the race.

Minardi

If the Supertec motor is hopeless then what can one say about the Fondmetal engine?

A brave team that have, over the years, trained a lot of very good drivers.

Both drivers look very good but, while they are driving for Minardi, it will be hard to know how good they really are.

BAR

They sure managed to fix the reliability problem that was a feature of this team for all of last season. But they are not fast.

Honda may have a lot of plans for the future and may be capable of delivering one of the best F1 motors, but to date it has made very little difference. They are not fast.

Villeneuve may be one of the fastest and aggressive drivers and Zonta can maintain a respectable pace too but it does not matter. The BAR is not fast.

In a recent press interview Villeneuve blamed the chassis and not the motor. If that is the case, and there is no reason to not believe him, we will have to wait for next year’s model before we see any speed from BAR.

Villeneuve is a talented and aggressive driver. It is frustrating to watch him drive defensively to keep the likes of Schumacher behind him in the hope that attrition in the lead will allow him to finish in the points. I can remember the days when he was fighting Schumacher for the lead, not dragging him back out of contention.

I just want to see him in a fast car again, before he retires. I just want to see a race where driver ability makes a difference and pit stops are necessary evils not the only way of overtaking.