San Marino Grand Prix.
Following Australia, we have had a three-week break from F1 but now it is back to business - and back to Europe for the San Marino Grand Prix and more traditional surroundings.
As we turn up in Italy, there is quite a lot to look forward to, as we have had a lot of excitement already in the early races. All in all, it is looking very exciting.
Imola, of course, is a home race for the fanatical tifosi and the venue has a lot of tradition and heritage. It is one of the older circuits and, as such, the run-off areas are not quite as big as they are at the new venues such as Bahrain, where a vast amount of land has been used to build the track and facilities. Imola is a lot more compact which, in some ways, makes it quite nice and cosy, whether it is on or off the track.
Unfortunately, I don't think the tifosi will have much to scream about at this moment in time. I would love Ferrari to head out of the pit-lane at Imola with have a chance of winning, but I think that is a bit far-fetched. However, saying that, you never know...
There is no doubt that they will pull out all the stops for the first of their two 'home' races. We might see something more adventurous on the engine side, we might see something turn up from Bridgestone too, and we might see some developments from the team on the chassis. All of sudden, the Scuderia and Michael Schumacher could be up there in contention to win. It will be a long shot, but it's not out of the question.
My money, though, is on Renault. Having been the class of the field in the first three events, I think they are again going to be tough to beat. Giancarlo Fisichella, being an Italian, will be pumped up to do well and Fernando Alonso never seems to fail of late. The consistency and reliability is just continuing from last season.
However, there is a lot going on with Renault off the race circuit at present, with a few things muted for future and maybe some top personnel there going in different directions. There could be some developments on that front soon.
McLaren, meanwhile, will turn up and should be strong. Indeed, I think it will be good competitive battle between those two teams. McLaren are not to far away from that first win now for '06 - they just need a little more pace and with that pace a bit more consistency to go with it. They are going to have to start making inroads soon though. They can't let Renault go on winning more and more races, otherwise it will all be done and dusted by mid-season in terms of the championships. Someone has got to turn up and put pressure on them, and McLaren look like the team most likely to do that.
Honda were disappointing in Melbourne, especially after qualifying so well and putting Jenson Button on pole, and they are still struggling with their race pace. Qualifying is good but, again, it is all about what fuel loads are being carried at the time and, sometimes, that flatters to deceive. We need to see whether Honda can produce something stronger in race guise, and if Button can make a bit more of it.
Imola could suit the Hondas and Button's smooth driving style. Obviously, Rubens Barrichello will want to do well having been at the circuit several years past with Ferrari. He will want to do a solid job, and both drivers have got different areas to address at this point.
As for the team's decision to retire Button in Oz, when he could have coasted across the line to take sixth, I must admit that, if it had been my personal decision - and only my personal decision, I would have taken the points. I think they would have not only had short-term value, but also long-term benefit in terms of the overall picture too. But someone made the call and obviously felt that was the right thing to do.
Maybe, in several races' time, it will turn out to be a wrong decision, but we will have to wait and see. There are bigger brains and a lot more brain power sitting on the pit wall at Honda than me.
Arch Japanese rivals Toyota turned things around big time in Melbourne and, after a poor start, popped up to take third. I think Ralf Schumacher did a solid job all weekend.
Off the track, though, there has been a bit of turmoil in some ways and the dismissing of - or the 'amicable spilt' with - Mike Gascoyne, the head design guy, was an interesting one - especially as it followed their best result of the year.
It appears to have come about due to a difference of opinion in terms of the direction they need to take. If the majority of the team and the management above Gascoyne feel that there is one way to go, and the technical side feel they should go another, it is not harmonious and doesn't work - full stop. They obviously came to a decision and it will be interesting to see where Mike turns up and how Toyota continues.
Mike will be on 'gardening leave' now, which is what they call these things. Whether he will spend must time in the garden, I don't know!
Big question marks are still hanging over Toyota, and answers are needed. They are just starting to deliver them.
BMW Sauber were another team to get a good result, what with Nick Heidfeld finishing fourth and Jacques Villeneuve sixth. I think they would have been very pleased with the overall weekend result. The team are making very steady progress, and pulling off a result like that with two cars is a good achievement. It underlines the direction they are heading in and they are making solid headway.
Villeneuve and Heidfeld are driving very well. They are getting the best out of what is underneath them, which is critical to make an impact on the season. At this stage, JV is looking good to retain his place in the team in 2007 and Heidfeld is doing as good a job as ever to make sure he stays there as well. I would hope that everyone there had some degree of a smile on their face come the end of the Oz Grand Prix.
It wasn't so good for Williams though, and it was really unfortunate for Mark Webber that he was forced out when he was in such a strong position. I am sure Williams will be optimistic with the pace they can run, but are probably a little disappointed in terms of reliability.
Webber, obviously, would have loved to have had a good result at his home race and I think everybody down the pit-lane would like to have seen him up there as well. But I still think, overall, Williams and Webber are doing a good job. They are making a few people sweat and springing a few surprises in terms of pace.
For team-mate Nico Rosberg, Australia didn't go according to plan either and going out on the first lap was a shame. He is going to have a little blot on his copybook but, sometimes, to learn, you have to make mistakes along the way and that is part of being a rookie.
Red Bull took the final point a few weeks ago, although it was David Coulthard who ended up eighth, not Scott Speed in the 'B' team car.
It was no doubt tough for Speed to miss out, as it was a situation where he should have been in the points and should have been there on merit. But that is another issue that has to be addressed and looked at in some detail. While it was a little disappointing for Speed, I think DC would have been very happy to get a point. He drove reasonably solidly all weekend, and wanted to get valuable points for the team.
It is, however, difficult to understand the make-up of those two organisations. They are owned by the same individual and promote the same brand, and yet they are fighting internally. That is an interesting one to look at, but it is also part and parcel of F1. The sport is very much dog eat dog.
Staying with STR, their use of that V10 continues to cause waves, particularly with Midland and Super Aguri, who sent a letter to the FIA complaining about it post-Melbourne.
We all said there would be a level of unease if STR showed strong pace, and they have that compared to what they are up against at the back of grid. Obviously, the people who are getting beaten have come out and put their foot down and tried to make a point. Interestingly, STR/Red Bull have come out now and said they will probably use a V10 next year as well.
It is a bit of war of words at the moment – and a little bit of a war of sentiment, I think, as well. We will have to see what the big guns and the officials say, if anything, and if anything does get done about it. But, at this moment in time, it seems the situation is normal.
To sum up, I reckon Renault will again be victorious come the finish on Sunday, with Alonso ahead of Raikkonen and Schumi Sr, the latter giving the tifosi at least a little to smile about. Then I reckon it will be JPM and Honda's duo, Button and Barrichello.
Enjoy the grand prix...
As we turn up in Italy, there is quite a lot to look forward to, as we have had a lot of excitement already in the early races. All in all, it is looking very exciting.
Imola, of course, is a home race for the fanatical tifosi and the venue has a lot of tradition and heritage. It is one of the older circuits and, as such, the run-off areas are not quite as big as they are at the new venues such as Bahrain, where a vast amount of land has been used to build the track and facilities. Imola is a lot more compact which, in some ways, makes it quite nice and cosy, whether it is on or off the track.
Unfortunately, I don't think the tifosi will have much to scream about at this moment in time. I would love Ferrari to head out of the pit-lane at Imola with have a chance of winning, but I think that is a bit far-fetched. However, saying that, you never know...
There is no doubt that they will pull out all the stops for the first of their two 'home' races. We might see something more adventurous on the engine side, we might see something turn up from Bridgestone too, and we might see some developments from the team on the chassis. All of sudden, the Scuderia and Michael Schumacher could be up there in contention to win. It will be a long shot, but it's not out of the question.
My money, though, is on Renault. Having been the class of the field in the first three events, I think they are again going to be tough to beat. Giancarlo Fisichella, being an Italian, will be pumped up to do well and Fernando Alonso never seems to fail of late. The consistency and reliability is just continuing from last season.
However, there is a lot going on with Renault off the race circuit at present, with a few things muted for future and maybe some top personnel there going in different directions. There could be some developments on that front soon.
McLaren, meanwhile, will turn up and should be strong. Indeed, I think it will be good competitive battle between those two teams. McLaren are not to far away from that first win now for '06 - they just need a little more pace and with that pace a bit more consistency to go with it. They are going to have to start making inroads soon though. They can't let Renault go on winning more and more races, otherwise it will all be done and dusted by mid-season in terms of the championships. Someone has got to turn up and put pressure on them, and McLaren look like the team most likely to do that.
Honda were disappointing in Melbourne, especially after qualifying so well and putting Jenson Button on pole, and they are still struggling with their race pace. Qualifying is good but, again, it is all about what fuel loads are being carried at the time and, sometimes, that flatters to deceive. We need to see whether Honda can produce something stronger in race guise, and if Button can make a bit more of it.
Imola could suit the Hondas and Button's smooth driving style. Obviously, Rubens Barrichello will want to do well having been at the circuit several years past with Ferrari. He will want to do a solid job, and both drivers have got different areas to address at this point.
As for the team's decision to retire Button in Oz, when he could have coasted across the line to take sixth, I must admit that, if it had been my personal decision - and only my personal decision, I would have taken the points. I think they would have not only had short-term value, but also long-term benefit in terms of the overall picture too. But someone made the call and obviously felt that was the right thing to do.
Maybe, in several races' time, it will turn out to be a wrong decision, but we will have to wait and see. There are bigger brains and a lot more brain power sitting on the pit wall at Honda than me.
Arch Japanese rivals Toyota turned things around big time in Melbourne and, after a poor start, popped up to take third. I think Ralf Schumacher did a solid job all weekend.
Off the track, though, there has been a bit of turmoil in some ways and the dismissing of - or the 'amicable spilt' with - Mike Gascoyne, the head design guy, was an interesting one - especially as it followed their best result of the year.
It appears to have come about due to a difference of opinion in terms of the direction they need to take. If the majority of the team and the management above Gascoyne feel that there is one way to go, and the technical side feel they should go another, it is not harmonious and doesn't work - full stop. They obviously came to a decision and it will be interesting to see where Mike turns up and how Toyota continues.
Mike will be on 'gardening leave' now, which is what they call these things. Whether he will spend must time in the garden, I don't know!
Big question marks are still hanging over Toyota, and answers are needed. They are just starting to deliver them.
BMW Sauber were another team to get a good result, what with Nick Heidfeld finishing fourth and Jacques Villeneuve sixth. I think they would have been very pleased with the overall weekend result. The team are making very steady progress, and pulling off a result like that with two cars is a good achievement. It underlines the direction they are heading in and they are making solid headway.
Villeneuve and Heidfeld are driving very well. They are getting the best out of what is underneath them, which is critical to make an impact on the season. At this stage, JV is looking good to retain his place in the team in 2007 and Heidfeld is doing as good a job as ever to make sure he stays there as well. I would hope that everyone there had some degree of a smile on their face come the end of the Oz Grand Prix.
It wasn't so good for Williams though, and it was really unfortunate for Mark Webber that he was forced out when he was in such a strong position. I am sure Williams will be optimistic with the pace they can run, but are probably a little disappointed in terms of reliability.
Webber, obviously, would have loved to have had a good result at his home race and I think everybody down the pit-lane would like to have seen him up there as well. But I still think, overall, Williams and Webber are doing a good job. They are making a few people sweat and springing a few surprises in terms of pace.
For team-mate Nico Rosberg, Australia didn't go according to plan either and going out on the first lap was a shame. He is going to have a little blot on his copybook but, sometimes, to learn, you have to make mistakes along the way and that is part of being a rookie.
Red Bull took the final point a few weeks ago, although it was David Coulthard who ended up eighth, not Scott Speed in the 'B' team car.
It was no doubt tough for Speed to miss out, as it was a situation where he should have been in the points and should have been there on merit. But that is another issue that has to be addressed and looked at in some detail. While it was a little disappointing for Speed, I think DC would have been very happy to get a point. He drove reasonably solidly all weekend, and wanted to get valuable points for the team.
It is, however, difficult to understand the make-up of those two organisations. They are owned by the same individual and promote the same brand, and yet they are fighting internally. That is an interesting one to look at, but it is also part and parcel of F1. The sport is very much dog eat dog.
Staying with STR, their use of that V10 continues to cause waves, particularly with Midland and Super Aguri, who sent a letter to the FIA complaining about it post-Melbourne.
We all said there would be a level of unease if STR showed strong pace, and they have that compared to what they are up against at the back of grid. Obviously, the people who are getting beaten have come out and put their foot down and tried to make a point. Interestingly, STR/Red Bull have come out now and said they will probably use a V10 next year as well.
It is a bit of war of words at the moment – and a little bit of a war of sentiment, I think, as well. We will have to see what the big guns and the officials say, if anything, and if anything does get done about it. But, at this moment in time, it seems the situation is normal.
To sum up, I reckon Renault will again be victorious come the finish on Sunday, with Alonso ahead of Raikkonen and Schumi Sr, the latter giving the tifosi at least a little to smile about. Then I reckon it will be JPM and Honda's duo, Button and Barrichello.
Enjoy the grand prix...