| Circuit | Circuit of the Americas – Austin – Texas |
| Date | 17.11.2013 |
| Laps | 56 |
| Distance | 308,405 km / 191,675 miles |
| No | Driver | Ferrari | S/N | Team | Result |
| 3 | Fernando Alonso | F138 | 299 | Scuderia Ferrari | 5. |
| 4 | Felipe Massa | F138 | 298 | Scuderia Ferrari | 12. |
United States GP – Not much drama
Posted: 18.11.2013
Source: Ferrari
Stefano Domenicali: “This weekend ended with a result that can’t be seen as satisfactory. The race lacked any major dramatic moments and the outcome was decided on the first lap. Once again, the qualifying result conditioned our performance and on this occasion, the regret is even stronger. The gap to fifth place yesterday was minimal and if we’d started from the clean side of the track, maybe we would have witnessed a different race. Unfortunately, it didn’t turn out like that and now we must grit our teeth all the way to the end in Brazil, trying our best to maximize the car’s potential, because I expect the team to react in Interlagos. Today’s result rewards Fernando’s extraordinary consistency, second on three occasions in the last four years, a small reward up against the Red Bull steamroller. Thanks to his fifth place, the battle for second in the Constructors’ Championship is still open, even if we will have to keep an eye on Lotus, which although fourth, seems to be, to all intents and purposes, the second force in the Championship. Felipe couldn’t do any more today but I am sure that in Brazil he will be competitive again for what will be his last race in red and a very emotional weekend for the whole team”.
Fernando Alonso: “Finishing in the top five today is a very positive result when you consider how difficult this weekend has been and the fact I had to start from the dirty side of the track. We were well aware it would be very difficult to maintain position and in fact I lost it to Perez. In the first part of the race, we weren’t quick and we decided to save the tyres and then attack round the pit stop. We were more competitive on the Hards, we passed Perez and set off to get Hulkenberg, but even if our situation compared to Mercedes has improved, we were unable to beat them. I am very proud of this second place in the Drivers’ Championship, it’s a small reward for me, the same as being first of the “mortals” behind Red Bull. My back is okay, as I did a good warm-up before the race and it didn’t bother me. I feel more tired from all the tension of the race, but now I have three days to rest and arrive in Brazil feeling a hundred percent. We really must improve there, because our goal is still to finish second in the Constructor’s Championship”.
Felipe Massa “It’s been a really difficult weekend and I was struggling right from Friday, unable to get the tyres up to temperature or to run at a good pace. At the start, I didn’t make up any places and then for all the race I was stuck in traffic, on a track where overtaking is not that easy. We knew that making a second stop was not the best choice, but I already found myself in a difficult situation and so we decided to risk stopping for a set of Medium tyres: if anything had happened ahead of us, maybe a Safety Car, we might have profited from the situation. Unfortunately, nothing happened and the tyre wear of those ahead of me was very low, so I was behind them ending up in the same position from which I started. It’s a real shame because we could have done better. Now we must keep concentrated for the final round of the season in Brazil, my final race with Ferrari on my home track: it’s bound to be a very emotional weekend because of that. I hope I can be more competitive there and even if our rivals are very quick, we will do our best right to the very end.”
Pat Fry: “Once again we proved to be more competitive in the race, even if today’s result is not the best testimony to that. Those who started from the clean side of the track, like Hamilton, Perez and Bottas, managed to make up a few places. We on the other hand, aware of the difficulties of starting on the dirty side, opted in Fernando’s case on a strategy of staying out for a few extra laps: thanks to his talent, Fernando made up the place lost to the McLaren at the start and then took fifth place. With the hard tyre, he had a good pace and was able to attack Hulkenberg at the right moment and stay ahead, controlling the tyre wear. From thirteenth on the grid, Felipe managed to get away well, but he was then immediately stuck behind a Force India. From then on, his race was an uphill struggle and while trying a different strategy, in the hope that something might happen to those ahead of him, we didn’t manage to get him in the points. It’s a real shame having lost to Mercedes again, because today we could have been in the fight. We will definitely try again in Brazil.”
United States GP – Second place secured in the Drivers’ championship
Posted: 18.11.2013
Source: Ferrari
Austin, 17 November – Fernando Alonso is classified second in the Drivers’ World Championship: the Spanish Ferrari man cannot be overtaken now with one race remaining, having picked up ten points for his gritty drive to fifth place. In the other F138, Felipe Massa looked to heading for the points, but the need for a second tyre stop put that out of reach and he came home thirteenth, where he had started, later promoted to twelfth, when Vergne ahead of him got a post race time penalty. Having picked up 14 points today, the Mercedes team has edged further away from the Prancing Horse in the Constructor’s table now leading us by 15 points.
Perfect warm and sunny conditions greeted the 22 drivers as they lined up on the grid, Fernando in sixth place and Felipe in thirteenth. The entire field was on the Medium tyre, apart from Vergne in the Toro Rosso on Hards. As they headed up the hill to turn 1, the order was Vettel from pole, while Grosjean and Hamilton got ahead of Webber now fourth, followed by Hulkenberg Perez, Alonso, who lost a place to go seventh, Bottas, Di Resta, Ricciardo Rosberg, Kovalainen, Massa, still thirteenth. Behind him came Button and Vergne. Sutil crashed heavily in the Force India after a coming together with Maldonado’s Williams and that immediately brought the Safety Car out on the opening lap. Guttierez was the only driver to take to the pits at this point to switch to the Hard tyre.
The race resumed on lap 4, with the order remaining unchanged, although a battle for fifth was developing as Perez in the McLaren and Fernando were chasing down Hulkenberg in the Sauber, while ahead of this trio, Webber in the Red Bull had closed on Hamilton’s Mercedes, helped by the DRS being enabled on lap 6. Still thirteenth, in these early stages, Felipe trailed Kovalainen in the Lotus by 0.8 and led Button by the same margin. On lap 13, Webber managed to get ahead of Hamilton to take third place. One lap later and Felipe was coming under attack from Button in the McLaren. Kovalainen started the run of planned stops on lap 17, fitting the Hard tyre. On lap 20, Button pitted, while Fernando had now closed to around half a second off sixth placed Perez in the other McLaren. Felipe changed tyres on lap 21, fitting the Hards and found himself fifteenth. Lap 22 and Fernando was right on Perez’s tail as the Mexican pitted, as did Di Resta, Rosberg and Ricciardo.
Hamilton pitted the Mercedes from fourth on lap 25 and one lap later, Fernando pitted from fifth, taking on the Hard tyre and this later stop meant he got ahead of Perez.
Race leader Vettel brought the Red Bull in on lap 27, as did Hulkenberg in the Sauber from fourth. When Webber changed tyres on lap 28, it promoted Grosjean, the only man not to have pitted, into the lead, while out on track, Fernando dispensed with Gutierrez to be sixth and further back, Felipe was fourteenth. The lead Lotus came in on lap 29, with the majority clearly planning a one-stop race. The order on lap 31 with 25 to go was now Vettel, Grosjean, Webber, Hamilton, Hulkenberg, a comfortable 4.2 ahead of Fernando in sixth, while behind the Spaniard, we had the battle of the Mexicans between seventh placed Perez and Guttierez. Further back, Rosberg got his Mercedes past Kovalainen, the Finn having to pit for a new nose.
The race ordered seemed set for a while, but as we have seen so often this season, different rates of tyre wear would lead to more excitement in the closing stages. frozen now, any possible changes maybe coming towards the end as tyre wear would begin to be a factor. Rosberg was still moving up, now passing Di Resta in the sole Force India to go tenth. At this point the excitement was provided by a battle for eighth as Bottas took a couple of laps of wheel to wheel dicing to pass Gutierrez and when the Mexican pitted for a second time, taking on the Medium Pirellis, it promoted Felipe to twelfth, except that on lap 39, he too needed an additional set of tyres, which dropped him back to sixteenth. Fernando was chipping away at Hulkenberg’s lead and by lap 40 it had come down to 1.8 from over 4 a few laps earlier. Three laps later and it was under the one second mark, meaning the Ferrari man would get a shot at using the DRS to pass and on lap 45, Fernando got ahead into fifth spot. Could he work a miracle to close on the Mercedes of Hamilton ahead of him in fourth with ten laps to go? Answer no, because he too was running out of grip and, on the very last lap, the hard charging Hulkenberg briefly relegated Fernando to sixth at Turn 1, but the Ferrari man steered back inside and got the place back.
Joining Vettel on the podium, for his record eighth consecutive victory was Romain Grosjean for Lotus and Mark Webber in the second Red Bull.
United States GP – The statistics
Posted: 17.11.2013
Source: Ferrari
4 the races in which Felipe Massa has failed to score points out of the 18 so far this season. The no-score in Austin comes on top of the ones in Sakhir, Monaco and Nurburgring. Today also brings to an end a run of eight consecutive races in the points for the Brazilian.
5 the number of consecutive races without a Ferrari driver on the podium. The last top three finish dates back to the Singapore Grand Prix, where Fernando Alonso finished second. That was also the last time the Scuderia’s points total topped the 20 mark (26.)
6 the number of top three finishes for Fernando Alonso in the Drivers’ World Championship. Today’s fifth place seals his third second place out of four seasons with Ferrari, that go along with his two title crowns with Renault and a third for McLaren.
United States GP – Alonso a gritty fifth, Massa thirteenth
Posted: 17.11.2013
Source: Ferrari
Austin, 17 November – Fernando Alonso finished fifth at the Circuit of the Americas, with Felipe Massa thirteenth. The Spaniard therefore cannot be beaten for second place in the Drivers’ championship on 227 points. In the Constructors,’ Scuderia Ferrari is still third on 333 points, fifteen behind Mercedes and eighteen ahead of Lotus.
Both Ferraris started on the Medium and the Spaniard dropped one place off the line, to go seventh, while Massa crossed the line thirteenth. The Safety Car was out from the opening lap to the fourth when Sutil had a crash and after that, there were no changes of position until the first run of pit stops.
Massa changed tyres at the end of lap 21, switching to the Hards, as did Alonso 6 laps later. By delaying his stop, the Spaniard managed to get ahead of Perez’s McLaren to go sixth. At the end of lap 38, Massa made a further stop, going back to the Mediums, rejoining sixteenth. With 12 laps remaining, Alonso mounted a successful attack on Hulkenberg’s Sauber to take fifth. Sebastian Vettel won the race for Red Bull.
United States GP – Rock Grand Prix
Posted: 17.11.2013
Source: Ferrari
Austin, 17 November – Among the many celebrities cruising the Circuit of the Americas paddock, Sting was on hand to pay Scuderia Ferrari a visit. The popular English singer, who was performing last night at Austin’s Moody Theater in a special event organsied by the Texan city for the championship event, revealed this was his first time at a Formula 1 race. “It’s my first time at a Grand Prix and it’s really exciting. The cars make a lot of noise, more than a rock concert!” commented the star when he came to the Ferrari garage. “I live in Italy, so I have to love Ferrari, it’s like a faith.”
United States GP – Texan ups and downs
Posted: 16.11.2013
Source: Ferrari
Fernando Alonso: “I feel reasonably satisfied with the result of today’s qualifying, because after the problems we have had almost all weekend long and even in Q1, we had little hope of getting through to the third part. It just goes to show how much things can change with around ten degrees higher track temperature: here we have suffered a lot in getting the tyres to work, especially in the morning sessions, when the temperatures were lower. But looking at the pace we showed in the afternoon, I think that the sunshine predicted for tomorrow could help us to have a good race. It would be nice to make it to the podium, but my main aim is to help the team to take second place in the Constructors’ Championship. In order to do that, we need to beat the Mercedes, preferably right from the start, which will condition the way the race goes, even if it will not be easy, as the dirty side of the track here in Austin is one of the worst of the year”.
Felipe Massa: “That was a very difficult qualifying. From yesterday afternoon onwards, I haven’t been able to drive the car properly, something isn’t working and we haven’t managed to work out why. I don’t think I’ve got a specific problem, but there really is very little grip, both at the front and the rear and I wasn’t quick on either compound. It is very strange, because Fernando managed to adapt better to the car-tyre package and I can’t understand why I can’t do the same, especially as I like this track a lot. I never expected to find myself struggling so much. Now we must find a solution for tomorrow, because even if it will be a difficult race, we have to do our utmost to move up the order and bring home points that will be valuable for the Constructors’ classification”.
Pat Fry: “Leaving aside the outcome of this qualifying, it’s hard to give a clear explanation of how the weekend has gone. The performances seen up to today have been affected by a series of variables and, if one leaves out the Red Bulls, I think that for the rest of the field, it’s been more demanding than usual to understand the behaviour of the cars. The changing weather and the varying levels of grip have added an extra challenge when it comes to establishing the set up and understanding the behaviour of the compounds chosen for this race. I am sorry for Felipe who didn’t manage to get to Q3. Even though he gave it his all, he struggled a lot to find the right feeling, mainly because of the lack of grip. Fernando was better able to adapt and the result he got today during a very difficult weekend, is down to his great talent. Certainly our aims are higher than a sixth place, but the reduced gap to third place is a great boost for all the team to do their very best in this final part of the season”.
United States GP – Always a gamble
Posted: 16.11.2013
Source: Ferrari
Austin, 16 November – Looking at Scuderia Ferrari’s race prospects for tomorrow, it would take a brave person to predict that Fernando Alonso could end the United States Grand Prix on the podium, but in terms of its battle to regain second place in the Constructors’ championship, the situation looks a little brighter, when looking at how Mercedes and Lotus fared today. The Spaniard is in sixth place on the grid, starting alongside the Mercedes of Lewis Hamilton. Whether Felipe Massa can also bring home some valuable points will depend on how the race pans out and if he can stage one of his well known climbs up the order. Today, he struggled in qualifying and was left stranded in Q2 with the fifteenth fastest time, although a penalty for Jenson Button, after the Englishman overtook under red flags on Friday, means the Brazilian actually starts from fourteenth. In fact, being on the dirty side of the track now might be more of a hindrance than a help. Felipe was mystified as to why he has been struggling so much here, but is still hopeful that he can have a good race.
For both Ferrari men, the key moments will be the split second when the red lights go out for the start: lightning reflexes and a well set-up clutch to launch the F138s off the line have often proved a valuable combination, setting up both men for a better afternoon than their grid positions might have led one to believe. After that, it will be a case of chasing every glimmer of a gap in the hectic opening lap: that is always a gamble, but at this point of the season there is little to gain by being cautious.
Of course, the Red Bulls have locked out the front row again and also again, it’s Sebastian Vettel on pole ahead of Mark Webber. These two were in a class of their own, beating third placed Romain Grosjean by three quarters of a second. These three were so confident of their pace, they did not even use the softer compound Pirelli to get through the first part of this lunchtime’s qualifying. Sharing the second row with the Lotus driver is Nico Hulkenberg for Sauber. The other drivers that the Scuderia will be watching closely in terms of its championship hopes are Heikki Kovalainen, eighth in the other Lotus and Nico Rosberg, who had a bad day in the second Mercedes and will start from thirteenth on the grid.
Tyres have again been a major topic this weekend, with suggestions that Pirelli’s decision to bring the Hard and Medium compounds, in other words, its hardest two compounds, is a very conservative choice, but that doesn’t mean we are in for a dull race tomorrow. In a situation where a one stop race looks like the most obvious strategy, one could expect the Lotus to challenge the Red Bulls, as the former are usually kinder on tyres if not as quick as the latter. However, the Red Bulls seemed to be able to make the Mediums last quite well on Friday, which could see its two drivers take off and leave the rest behind. But if higher temperatures expected tomorrow influence tyre degradation, which so far has been minimal, it might spice things up a bit. The weather which has gone from icy mornings to hot and muggy afternoons, could again play a part tomorrow, along with the usual requirement for a well executed race strategy.
United States GP – A sunny outlook
Posted: 16.11.2013
Source: Ferrari
Austin, 16 November – A photo on the pit wall this morning marked the signing of a new multi-year sponsorship agreement which, as from today, sees Scuderia Ferrari linked to the Oakley brand. Outside the Maranello team’s garage at the Circuit of the Americas on qualifying day for the United States Grand Prix, Colin Baden, CEO of the company that is a world leader in the field of sports sunglasses and the Scuderia Team Principal Stefano Domenicali posed together. The new adventure links two companies who share the same philosophy of design and a common passion for technical innovation.
United States GP – Third row for Alonso, seventh for Massa
Posted: 16.11.2013
Source: Ferrari
Austin, 16 November –Track conditions at the Circuit of the Americas were a key factor in the first part of qualifying in Austin today, as the wind affected car performance considerably. The situation gradually improved after half an hour, so that the Q3 times were those that had previously been expected. It was a mixed session for Scuderia Ferrari, with Fernando Alonso fighting it out to set an encouraging sixth fastest time. However, things did not go well for Felipe Massa, as the Brazilian didn’t make the cut to Q3 and had to settle for fifteenth place.
In Q1, the two drivers did a first run on the Hard tyres, switching to Medium for the last five minutes, but the times did not improve as much as expected so that Fernando and Felipe were fifteenth and sixteenth, in 1.38.929 and 1.39.094 respectively.
They started Q2 on the same tyres on which they finished Q1 and halfway through, they pitted to fit a new set of Mediums. Alonso was a brilliant third in 1.37.368, while Felipe was down in fifteenth in 1.38.592. The Brazilian will start from fourteenth place tomorrow, as Jenson Button has a 3 place grid penalty.
For Q3, Alonso took his F138 out on track with two and a half minutes of the session remaining, doing just one flying lap on his last set of new Medium tyres. He set the sixth fastest time in 1.37.376, just eight hundredths off fourth place. Pole went to Sebastian Vettel in the Red Bull with a lap in 1.36.338.
United States GP – No surprises this morning
Posted: 16.11.2013
Source: Ferrari
Austin, 16 November – Saturday in Austin started with the Red Bull duo topping the time sheet of the final free practice session for the United States Grand Prix. It was unseasonably warm at the Texan track as Sebastian Vettel once again went quickest in 1.36.733 ahead of Mark Webber (1.36.936) and Lewis Hamilton (1.37.064) in the Mercedes. The Ferraris of Fernando Alonso and Felipe Massa are eleventh and seventeenth on the time sheet in times of 1.37.763 and 1.38.408 respectively. They both ran two sets of Hard tyres, before a final run on new Mediums.
United States GP – An unusual Friday in Austin
Posted: 15.11.2013
Source: Ferrari
Fernando Alonso: “I had no problem being back on track today. My back felt fine and I was able to drive the same as always. Compared to last year, the track conditions seemed better: for the first Grand Prix here, it was too new and there was a bit of oil on the track, while now there’s a lot more grip. As expected, there was very little degradation today as Pirelli’s choice of the Medium and Hard compounds here in Austin are an ultra-conservative choice. Generally, there were no major surprises and now we must wait and see how things go tomorrow and especially Sunday”.
Felipe Massa: “Today was hard to interpret, because in the morning we got off to a good start and it seemed the track was well suited to the characteristics of our car, but then that changed in the afternoon and we were unable to set competitive times. Compared to recent races, the car has stayed the same and therefore we cannot expect a very different level of performance. But it’s definitely important to understand why the car changed so much between the two sessions, especially as compared to last year, the asphalt has improved a lot and the grip has increased considerably. I don’t think that is down to the rise in temperature, but maybe the wind didn’t help. Now we have a lot of work ahead of us to try and improve for the rest of the weekend”.
Pat Fry: “Because of the fog in the morning, our first practice session was shortened to just half an hour of track time and that meant we had to reorganise our programme, concentrating mainly on aerodynamic testing, centred on the front and rear wings in order to find the best balance for the car. In the second session, before the usual long run tests, we tried a few different mechanical solutions aimed at completing our set up work. Compared to last year, the track seems to have improved and there is every chance that the more abrasive surface will ensure there is more grip. Tyre degradation is still an unknown factor to be assessed carefully, especially in the light of the data we acquired from the long runs. As usual, it will be very important to work out the best strategy and the number of pit stops to make during the race.”
United States GP – An early start for a long wait
Posted: 15.11.2013
Source: Ferrari
Austin, 15 November – They like to talk about the “big sky” in Texas, but unfortunately this morning, it was a foggy sky over the Circuit of the Americas that greeted the Formula 1 circus on its second visit to Austin, for the penultimate round of the World Championship. The USA GP timetable involves getting up much earlier than usual, with practice today and tomorrow starting at 9 in the morning, and once the dawn broke, it became clear that warmer temperatures had delivered fog. Therefore FP1 had to be extended to cope with a delay at the start and in the middle, but the second session resumed at the normal time, with the sunny weather we had been promised finally putting in an appearance.
Having stayed away yesterday, to allow extra recuperation time for his back, Fernando was perfectly comfortable at the wheel of the F138, eventually setting the tenth fastest time, two places ahead of Felipe. Last year the track could have been renamed the Ice Rink of the Americas, as the brand new asphalt was not bedded in and was oozing oil and so everyone in the paddock was pleased to see that the situation had improved as a result of the track being a year older and having seen some action since the last F1 race. Nevertheless, especially in the colder conditions that prevailed in FP1, Pirelli’s choice of the Hard and Medium tyre currently seems a bit on the hard side. That might improve as the track rubbers in and if the higher temperatures promised for the next two days materialise. In general, both Ferrari men were not satisfied with the performance of the F138 today, as they worked through the usual programme of looking for a good set-up and analysing tyre behaviour over short and long runs.
The World champions elect continue to stamp their authority on the time sheets, with Sebastian Vettel fastest ahead of Red Bull team-mate Mark Webber. Respecting the current view of the car hierarchy at the moment, the two Mercedes were next, with Nico Rosberg third ahead of Lewis Hamilton and still on-message in terms of the performance pecking order, a Lotus was next in fifth place. But it was a new name on the time sheet, as Heikki Kovalainen makes a return to racing for the final two rounds of the season, standing in for Kimi Raikkonen, who underwent planned surgery on his back in Europe today. Esteban Gutierrez went well for Sauber, to go sixth fastest at what is almost a home race for him, as last year we saw a huge influx of visitors from his native Mexico here in Austin.
United States GP – A hard day to read
Posted: 15.11.2013
Source: Ferrari
Austin, 15 November – Conditions for the second session were much warmer than in the foggy morning and lap times came down considerably by the end of it. Fernando Alonso was tenth fastest, two places higher than Felipe Massa. The Spaniard completed 33 laps, with Felipe doing 37.
The lack of laps in the morning did not have any repercussions on the afternoon programme, which saw both Alonso and Massa start on a set of Hard tyres. The Spaniard did 8 laps on this set, ending up sixth in 1.38.827, while Massa did 11 with a best time of 1.39.616.
Back in the garage, the two F138s continued with the usual Friday afternoon programme, fitting the Mediums for a qualifying simulation, which ended with Alonso posting a 1.38.461 and Massa a 1.38.938. Neither man managed to improve on that with the second sector proving to be the most problematic.
The last 30 minutes were given over to a race simulation, with both men also do practice pit stops and starts. The times over the long run were good, especially on the Medium tyre. Sebastian Vettel was fastest for Red Bull in 1.37.305.
United States GP – Twenty years of passion
Posted: 15.11.2013
Source: Ferrari
Austin, 15 November – This weekend, the Circuit of the Americas hosts the final round of eight of yet another North American Ferrari Challenge Trofeo Pirelli series. Returning from Italy and last weekend’s Finali Mondiali in Mugello, which saw Onofrio Triarsi take the title in his Ferrari of Central Florida car in the Trofeo Pirelli category, with Marco Muzzo driving for Ferrari of Ontario victorious in the Coppa Shell, competitors in the Stars ‘n Stripes one-make series will be back in action for two races, running on the same card as the Formula 1 Grand Prix. There was a group photo taken prior to the weekend, with competitors joined by Scuderia Ferrari Team Principal, Stefano Domenicali, Felipe Massa and the President of Ferrari North America, Marco Mattiacci, alongside two 458 Challenge cars, including the red and gold version celebrating twenty years of the series.
United States GP – United States GP – Fits and starts
Posted: 15.11.2013
Source: Ferrari
Austin, 15 November – The first free practice session for the United States Grand Prix, the penultimate round of the championship was first delayed and then featured another pause, adding to a total delay of 30 minutes delay, because of fog. The rules state cars cannot run if the Medical Helicopter cannot fly and that was the case this morning at the Circuit of the Americas. Quickest in the shortened session was Fernando Alonso in the Ferrari, who completed 16 laps, the best in 1.38.343, ahead of Jenson Button in the McLaren (1.38.371) and Valtteri Bottas in the Williams (1.38.388.) In the other F138, Felipe Massa was seventh in 1.39.005, running two sets of the Hard tyre, as did his team-mate. The two men ran different aero set-ups, as they worked on finding the best set-up for the Texan race on a weekend where, as predicted by the local forecast, temperatures are set to rise over the course of the next couple of days.
United States GP – Massa: “very happy moments on a sporting and human level”
Posted: 14.11.2013
Source: Ferrari
Austin, 14 November – Felipe Massa appeared to be in a gastronomic mood as you will discover further on, when he met the media on this the first day at the Circuit of the Americas on the outskirts of Austin. With the official announcement that the Brazilian driver will be joining the Williams team as from next year, Felipe spoke about his feelings at leaving the Scuderia that has been his home for so long. “I am very honoured to have spent such a long time with Ferrari,” began the Paulista. “I’ve had incredible moments, very happy moments on a sporting and human level and of course I have had many victories with Ferrari. I am one of the drivers who has driven the most races for Ferrari, in fact second behind Michael (Schumacher.) And because I actually had a contract linking me to Ferrari since 2001, actually in terms of time, I have been with the team even longer than Michael was. I am pleased that our time together is coming to an end in a happy way for both me and for Ferrari. It will always be part of my history and I will always feel close to this team. We had a very nice party in Mugello last weekend in front of lots of fans for the Ferrari Finali Mondiali and even with all the rain, all these people came to say goodbye, as I drove a Ferrari for the last time in Italy. It was a very emotional day and I was even crying a bit, seeing all the people there. I had not expected to find 15,000 people there for me.“Maybe the pasta!” joked Felipe when asked what he would miss most about the Maranello squad. “I will miss being part of the family, sleeping at the house at the Fiorano track when I went to the factory, I just felt I was at home. I will miss the human element with all the friends I have made there. I need to say thank you first and foremost to Stefano, as head of the team and as someone I am very close to and also to Montezemolo, the President, who did all he could to help me and also Jean Todt, who was the first person who gave me the opportunity to come to Ferrari, plus all the mechanics, engineers, the best logistics people in F1 for sure and everyone else in the whole factory. I will come back to eat some pasta!”Back to the present and the Ferrari man spoke about the team’s pursuit of second place in the Constructors’ classification. “We need to be optimistic and try everything we can to achieve our goal, but it won’t be easy because Mercedes has a quicker car and so does Lotus,” admitted Felipe. “We need to have two good races to get ahead of Mercedes.” Regarding the future, he explained his decision to go to Williams. “I am very enthusiastic and happy about signing the contract with Williams for next year,” he said. “I am looking forward to what will be a new challenge in my career and I feel very motivated. I feel I have a lot to give to the team to help it get out of this difficult moment it is going through this season. Williams is part of the history of Formula 1. I have seen many changes of personnel within the team which is a good sign and of course everything can change with the new rules. My racing life has been spent mainly with Italian teams even before F1, so now I will have to adapt to an English team. Maybe I need to try some fish and chips!”
United States GP – Quickly on the mend
Posted: 14.11.2013
Source: Ferrari
Austin, 14 November – This morning, Fernando Alonso underwent a medical examination, as requested by the FIA, following the accident in the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, back on 3 November, to clear him to take part in this weekend’s United States Grand Prix, which takes place this weekend at Austin’s Circuit of the Americas, in Texas. The Spaniard took a heavy blow to his back when he landed on a kerb while trying to pass Jean-Eric Vergne in the Toro Rosso. He suffered muscular pain as a result and was treated during the week since the last race. This morning at the circuit Medical Centre, Dr. Steve Olvey, along with FIA medical delegates, carried out a series of precautionary checks, which all proved positive, thus leaving Fernando able to race this weekend. However, as he is not yet in perfect shape, the team decided he should have a further day’s rest today so as to help his recovery as much as possible. The Spaniard will be on track tomorrow, starting with the first free practice session.
United States GP – The final journey
Posted: 12.11.2013
Source: Ferrari
Maranello, 12 November – On these days, the Scuderia Ferrari team members will get on a coach at the factory in Maranello, bound for the airport and a flight to the USA on the first leg of the final journey of the 2013 season. On these days, the Scuderia Ferrari team members will get on a coach at the factory in Maranello, bound for the airport and a flight to the USA on the first leg of the final journey of the 2013 season. It will see them race in Austin and Sao Paolo before, like migrating birds, heading home for the winter. With all the talk in recent weeks being about the team’s struggle to deliver a competitive car, its uphill battle to be on the pace, the fight to match the opposition, one could be forgiven for thinking the mood in the camp on the eve of the season’s finale would be a sombre one. Nothing could be further from the truth, because going racing is at the very core of the Scuderia’s and indeed the whole of Ferrari’s raison d’etre. As its Sporting Director Massimo Rivola says, “I think that when you work in Ferrari, the motivation is in your blood.”Motivation is an important factor, but on its own it’s not enough to sustain the wellbeing of the team in a hectic end of season that will have featured five Grands Prix in just seven weeks, including crossing the globe from east to west. Ensuring that the men and women in red are always in top shape is one of Rivola’s responsibilities. “It’s true that the end of the season is pretty tough but it’s also true that we have known the calendar since the beginning of the season, so rather like a football team, we try to plan our training in term of several factors, which includes looking after the mental and physical aspects,” says Rivola. “It’s a matter of education, with a proper programme in place to ensure everyone is eating the right thing, that they get the right amount of sleep and that they work in the best possible environment during the day, all aimed at keeping everyone in the best shape possible.”
Apart from being in good shape, the team members have to be in the right place at the right time, with all the equipment ready for use. That too is a Rivola responsibility. “The figures are pretty impressive in terms of manpower and kilos,” he says. “Including the Ferrari people who work for our customer teams, we number around a hundred.” These ‘flyaways’ outside Europe are more complex as the cars and equipment travel by air, so the paddocks feature a mass of pallets and flightcases that all have to be unpacked and packed in a certain order at the track. “It’s a bit more complicated in a way but our guys have a lot of experience so even when you have some new people joining the team, it’s good that they have very experienced teachers to help them understand the job,” explains Rivola.
The majority of team members involved in setting up everything at the start of the race week also have a job to do in the garage, either as a mechanic, an IT specialist, a tyre man and so forth, which means that when the race is over on Sunday evening, some of them will have been working hard since the previous Monday. “After they have done their job, which might include being part of the pit stop crew, they have to pack up everything,” continues Rivola, “so we need to be very vigilant at these times, as this is an easy moment for people to get hurt.”
Currently the Scuderia is third in the Constructors’ classification with Alonso second on the Drivers’ points sheet and getting second place in both is now the end of year target for the men in red. “It’s a source of motivation, even if, at the start of the year we were hoping for a different result,” admits Rivola. “As I said before, at Ferrari, our racing DNA means we don’t really need any extra motivation to try our best. The most important thing, as we come to the end of the season, is to prove to all our fans that we never give up.” On the subject of fans, as has always been the case in the USA, the Scuderia can count on plenty of support in Austin, when Formula 1 returns there for a second time this weekend. “I had missed racing in the USA and still remember the first time we went to Indianapolis in 2000,” recalls Rivola. “The way the American crowd lives the event and their enthusiasm is such that I remember it was almost impossible to hear the F1 engines above the noise of the crowd.” In fact, Rivola feels Formula 1 could learn some lessons from the way Americans handle their homegrown racing series such as Nascar. “Formula 1 is perhaps more geared to the TV audience, while in America they have much closer contact with the race fans, making the paddock more open and the cars and drivers more accessible to the fans and, to be honest, I like that culture which brings Formula 1 back to the people, so I hope this race in America continues to be a success and maybe we can eventually even have two Grands Prix in the USA.”
USA and F1 – a Long Playing record
Posted: 12.11.2013
Source: Ferrari
The history of Formula 1 in the United States has been something of a rollercoaster ride, as it has careered up and down with peaks of amazing levels of interest before plunging into oblivion. That at least is the opinion of we Europeans when it comes to assessing the relationship of the American public with the blue riband of motor sport events. Up until 1960, the Indianapolis 500 Miles, which along with the Le Mans 24 Hours and the Monaco Grand Prix, is one of three most famous races in the world, was part of the F1 championship, but already, the year before, a first USA Grand Prix had been held at Sebring. In total, there have been 62 races counting towards the World Championship held on American soil, at eleven different venues. Scuderia Ferrari has won twelve of these, in what has been for some time now, the company’s most important market for road cars. The wins came in two historic periods. The first got underway in 1975, when the honour of being the first Ferrari driver to stand on the top step of a United States podium falling to Niki Lauda, who won at Watkins Glen in a fantastic finale to that season. The following year, Clay Regazzoni triumphed, this time at the Long Beach street circuit. For a few years, these two venues would host a race each, one near the start of the season and the other towards the end. It was the first of seven one-twos for the Prancing Horse in the USA, but even more magical was the two year period 1978-’79, when Ferrari won all four races held across the Pond, the first year with Carlos Reutemann, the second with Gilles Villeneuve.
This incredible run in the Seventies ended and then came a twenty one year wait before Ferrari returned to winning ways in the USA Grand Prix. From 1980 to 1991, when the race took place in no less than five different venues – Long Beach, Las Vegas, Detroit, Dallas and Phoenix, Ferrari never won, managing just three second places in 17 Grands Prix. From 1992 to 1999, there were no Formula 1 races in the USA and one had to wait until 2000 for the next Ferrari win. The victory was sealed on the race’s return to Indianapolis, albeit on a track that only included one corner and one straight of the Oval used for the Indy 500. In one of the cradles of motorsport, on a global rather than just American scale, Ferrari won no less than six times from eight starts, five of those victories courtesy of Michael Schumacher and once with Rubens Barrichello. One way or another, each one of these wins made history. The first and third (2000 and 2003) probably played a decisive part in taking the championship title; the second in 2002, because it featured an amazing attempt at a parade finish, with Rubens beating his team-mate by a neck; the fourth in 2004, because it was the result of crushing superiority; the fifth in 2005, because it came at the end of the tyre saga weekend, with the entry paired to the bone, as only the Bridgestone runners – Ferrari, Jordan and Minardi – took part, after all the Michelin runners retired at the end of the formation lap; the sixth in 2006, because it signalled a fantastic fight back from Michael in the championship as he closed on Alonso, then with Renault, which only faded in style at Suzuka.
From 2008 to 2011, there was a second unfortunate hiatus in the continuity of Formula 1 in the land of Stars ‘n Stripes. Not ‘til last year did our sport return to the USA in a new and spectacular setting, the Circuit of the Americas, on the outskirts of Austin. There had already been a race in Texas, when the Scuderia managed a second place in Dallas in 1984, courtesy of Rene Arnoux, and last year the Prancing Horse was back on the podium, thanks to Fernando Alonso who finished third, one place ahead of team-mate Felipe Massa.
Last year’s Austin podium was number 32 for Ferrari in the USA: apart from twelve wins, there are five second places and seven thirds. This weekend, even a third would be a nice way to get on the podium. 33 and a 1/3rd. A Long Playing record, another American invention, but of course, for Fernando and Felipe a Single would seem even better!
Alonso to race in Austin: a strong sign
Posted: 11.11.2013
Source: Ferrari
Maranello, 11 November – Anyone doubting Fernando Alonso’s dedication to the Ferrari cause should think again. The Spaniard will be in Austin, Texas, right on cue to take part in the USA Grand Prix, as he himself confirmed on Twitter.
As a result of the compression injury to the back that he suffered after hitting the kerb in Abu Dhabi, nine days ago, he will struggle to be in perfect shape, but he is still totally determined to play his part for the team in this final part of the season, when every point is important in the fight for second place in the Constructors’ Championship.
“I am pleased to see that Fernando is so keen to give it his all, even when he’s not at his best,” President Luca di Montezemolo told www.ferrari.com. “It shows how attached he is to us and I am sure that his example will be a further boost for the whole team in its efforts to end this season in the best way possible.”