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Qualifying for Round 5 of the 2004 F1 season at Barcelona.
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00:00:00...hours and thousands of kilometres of testing in the off-season.
00:00:04The drivers turn lap after lap until every inch of the track becomes second nature to them.
00:00:10The mechanics tweak their cars until every detail is honed to perfection.
00:00:16The engineers analyse and dissect data until the ultimate race setup is achieved.
00:00:22The endless days, the sleepless nights of winter testing will all be justified if we can just secure the whole position.
00:00:30Round 5 of the Formula 1 World Championship in 2004 returns the teams to their winter testing home,
00:00:57the Circuit de Catalunya in Barcelona, Spain.
00:01:01But before you can race the Spanish Grand Prix, you must qualify.
00:01:05Welcome to live Speed Channel coverage of Grid Qualifying.
00:01:08For Round 5 of the World Championship, I'm Bob Varsha alongside David Hobbs and Steve Matchett, as always.
00:01:14The first round of qualifying has already taken place.
00:01:17And after this morning's practice session, in which Takuma Sato reset the track record,
00:01:24there was hope we might see our first-ever Japanese Formula 1 pole sitter.
00:01:28The flag of Asturias waving for Fernando Alonso.
00:01:32But the first man on track was the winner in the previous round at Imola, Italy, Michael Schumacher,
00:01:36who set the time at 1 minute 16 and change.
00:01:39And then Jenson Button, who finished second and sat on pole at Imola,
00:01:43could not match Schumacher's pace.
00:01:46He was second quick.
00:01:47He would eventually drop all the way down to 11th.
00:01:51Juan Pablo Montoya was 7 tenths quicker than Michael,
00:01:55and he would remain the fastest man of the session.
00:01:58Fernando Alonso, with his fans cheering wildly,
00:02:01big mistake there in the turn 1 and 2 complex.
00:02:03He lost time all the way around and finished almost a second and a half off of Montoya's pace.
00:02:08Kimi Räikkönen, who finally scored a point in Imola,
00:02:11was next on the track.
00:02:13With Will Altum, he ended up 8th in his McLaren.
00:02:15And then Fischi Keller put on a steering display
00:02:18to hold himself in temporary in second spot.
00:02:21Then his teammate Felipe Massa took the track straight after him
00:02:25and ended up in third.
00:02:31And then Takuma Sato, as I mentioned, fastest man in the morning session,
00:02:35and the first man in the 1 minute 14 second zone could not duplicate that performance.
00:02:40He would eventually wind up a disappointed 10th.
00:02:46Nevertheless, a full 12 cars were covered by one second.
00:02:52And that holds the promise for an interesting round of single car qualifying to set the grid.
00:02:56Previously this year, we have had four, four, seven, and five cars in the first four rounds
00:03:02covered by one second on the final grid.
00:03:05We're not saying that's what we're going to have here today,
00:03:07but if 12 cars packed within a second in the first round of single car,
00:03:12we could have something very special in the second round.
00:03:14As you can see, a beautiful day in Barcelona.
00:03:18Once again, we will go from slowest to fastest in the first round.
00:03:22We invert the order, meaning Juan Pablo Montoya in the Williams BMW
00:03:25will be the last man on track.
00:03:28And Michael Schumacher will go out well ahead of him.
00:03:32Of course, you expect to see close times here
00:03:34because this is where they do all their testing in the winter
00:03:37and all through the early part of the season.
00:03:39In fact, at any time of the season, this is the real test track.
00:03:42So everybody really has a good setup for this track at all times, really.
00:03:46Big crowd on hand to see Felipe, let's see Alonso.
00:03:51While we have a moment, let's check out the Porsche track map.
00:03:57Well, it's an interesting track.
00:03:58It's got some very long, very fast corners,
00:04:00a tremendous loading on the drivers' necks here.
00:04:03Nearly 200 miles down into Elf, very hard on the brakes there.
00:04:06A quick right-left sweep through there, then that Renault turn.
00:04:09Long, long, long.
00:04:10Then Repsol starts to go downhill to Siat.
00:04:12Very difficult to brake for here, going downhill and just swerving left.
00:04:16Keep on going left, downhill all the way to Vert.
00:04:19Tight left there, and then out of that,
00:04:21there's a nasty wiggle at eight there.
00:04:23You'll see that in qualifying up to Camsa,
00:04:24which is on the top of the hill.
00:04:26A very fast right-hander that go wide there often.
00:04:29Down there to the La Cacha,
00:04:31which is completely different to last year.
00:04:32It's now a double apex left-hander instead of more of a loop.
00:04:35Into Banks-Sabadel, which is a tight right-hander,
00:04:38first or second gear even.
00:04:40And then the last two corners, Europa and New Holland.
00:04:43Extremely fast right-hand sweeps.
00:04:45They come out of that last corner onto the front straight
00:04:48around about 140 miles an hour.
00:04:53Now let's take a look at the weather conditions.
00:04:55There is a chance of rain later in the afternoon,
00:04:57and there you see the flags waving fairly stiffly.
00:05:01Wind very much a factor here at Barcelona, Steve Manchin.
00:05:04Yeah, the wind can play havoc with the cars here.
00:05:06It's very close to the coast,
00:05:08and you get a lot of wind blowing in,
00:05:10and dust also being blown in sand from the coast
00:05:12and depositing on the track.
00:05:14Quite often you'll see very late in the sessions
00:05:16before the cars take to the tracks
00:05:18a late decision by the engineers to change top ratio
00:05:21on that gear because of that long straight right there
00:05:24that we'll see.
00:05:24The wind looks to be blowing across the straight,
00:05:27which would figure,
00:05:29because that's where the coastline is,
00:05:31to the right of the main straight,
00:05:33looking back up it.
00:05:34Well, I'll tell you what gives the engineers
00:05:36great concern with the wind here.
00:05:37If it blows down the straight,
00:05:39it is actually possible to over-rev the engines
00:05:41because the wind will drive the car
00:05:44and over-rev the engine
00:05:45by physically driving the engine too fast
00:05:47with the effect of the tailwind.
00:05:50First car on track will be
00:05:51Jolt Baumgartner in the Minardi.
00:05:54Look at the wind ruffling those trees.
00:05:56Extra grandstands have been added.
00:05:58A big crowd here in Spain
00:05:59where motorcycle racing
00:06:00is typically the motorsport of choice.
00:06:03In fact, we're hearing
00:06:04there may be a record crowd on hand
00:06:05this weekend at Barcelona.
00:06:08Perhaps in excess of 100,000 people.
00:06:11Baumgartner on track.
00:06:12His teammate Bruni will be next.
00:06:14Welcome back to the channel coverage
00:06:15of qualifying for round five
00:06:17of the Formula One World Championship.
00:06:18A beautiful day just outside Barcelona, Spain
00:06:21in a town called Montmelo.
00:06:24Industrial sector.
00:06:26A train station right at the track
00:06:27to help the crowds from downtown Barcelona.
00:06:30Make their way out
00:06:31to watch the Formula One stars in action.
00:06:33This is the Minardi
00:06:34of Jolt Baumgartner of Hungary.
00:06:39Coming up to speed,
00:06:40trying to get heat into the tires.
00:06:42This is the New Holland corner complex
00:06:44that David mentioned earlier.
00:06:46This one's a real neck stretcher.
00:06:51I thought you were going to say something else.
00:06:52Yeah, I was.
00:06:54You want to come out of there
00:06:55with absolute maximum revs on board
00:06:57because you need to carry it
00:06:59all the way down this long straightaway.
00:07:01This straight's not as fast as you'd think,
00:07:03about 198, 199.
00:07:05You'd think they'd be doing more like 204,
00:07:07but these cars carry quite a lot of downforce
00:07:09for corners like this.
00:07:11Look at this.
00:07:11This Renault corner goes on and on forever.
00:07:14No camber to help you there.
00:07:17Then into the Repsol,
00:07:18where it's just about halfway through.
00:07:20It starts to go downhill quite steeply
00:07:23down to the Sea App,
00:07:24which is a difficult one,
00:07:25as you can see from all those skid marks
00:07:27on the road there.
00:07:28A lot of locking up going into that one.
00:07:30You continue that downhill,
00:07:31left-hand sort of swerve,
00:07:33which makes braking for this corner here
00:07:35vert difficult
00:07:35because the left side of the car,
00:07:37of course,
00:07:38is loaded
00:07:38and the inside are unloaded.
00:07:40This is that camber
00:07:41where they tend to go a bit wide.
00:07:43On exit,
00:07:44boom,
00:07:44over the old point.
00:07:46Downhill again now.
00:07:50Nearly five negative G's
00:07:51of braking
00:07:52on these Formula One machines
00:07:54for the tight corners,
00:07:55particularly at the end
00:07:56of that front straight.
00:07:56That was that re-profiled corner
00:07:59there camber
00:07:59so you can see
00:08:00much tighter than it was
00:08:02in the past
00:08:02and left the old part
00:08:04of the track there,
00:08:05which allows you to see
00:08:06the chain of the track.
00:08:06Sometimes you get that aerial shot
00:08:08and you have an absolutely
00:08:08perfect shot of it.
00:08:09We didn't have a...
00:08:10Woo!
00:08:11Give him a bit of a wiggle there,
00:08:12guy.
00:08:13Don't want to be wiggling
00:08:14around there,
00:08:14sunshine.
00:08:16Ooh,
00:08:161.21.4.
00:08:19That will not do.
00:08:20Baumgartner having a terrible time
00:08:22coming to grips
00:08:22with this track.
00:08:23Consider that
00:08:24in this morning's practice,
00:08:26Takuma Sato
00:08:26and the BAR Honda
00:08:27lapped at
00:08:281.14.836.
00:08:31That's only seven seconds,
00:08:31huh?
00:08:32Hmm.
00:08:32And here comes his teammate,
00:08:38the young Italian
00:08:39Gianmaria
00:08:40or Jimmy Bruni.
00:08:42Younger than his teammate
00:08:43but more experience
00:08:44just coming up
00:08:46on his 23rd birthday
00:08:47as Jimmy.
00:08:48Fastest car
00:08:49through the speed trap
00:08:50so far
00:08:50has been
00:08:50Jenson Button
00:08:51in the BAR Honda.
00:08:53201.204
00:08:55in the first session.
00:08:56already quicker
00:09:06than his teammate.
00:09:13The Minardi's obviously
00:09:14a bit of a handful
00:09:15because it doesn't matter
00:09:16who's driving it.
00:09:17There's an awful lot
00:09:18of moving around
00:09:19and this Jimmy Bruni
00:09:21seems to be
00:09:22a little bit quicker
00:09:23and of course the teams
00:09:24watch the guys
00:09:25who drive the Minardi
00:09:26as you can only see
00:09:27from Mark Webber
00:09:28of course now
00:09:29driving the Jag.
00:09:30You've got to start somewhere
00:09:31and even though
00:09:32the car itself
00:09:32is not terribly competitive
00:09:34it gives you
00:09:35a good indication
00:09:36of the driver's ability.
00:09:37What Minardi
00:09:38is struggling with
00:09:39the back end
00:09:40is stepping out
00:09:40too much all the while
00:09:41and the drivers
00:09:42are fighting it
00:09:42to keep draining
00:09:43in the back end
00:09:44of the car.
00:09:45I think they've got
00:09:45too much weight
00:09:46shifted towards the front.
00:09:48The new specification
00:09:48tyres
00:09:49from Bridgestone
00:09:51and Michelin
00:09:51all seem to put
00:09:52the emphasis
00:09:53on grip
00:09:54on the front end
00:09:55of the car
00:09:55which makes
00:09:55the back end
00:09:56very nervous.
00:09:59By 1.6 seconds
00:10:00Bruni
00:10:01upstages
00:10:01his teammate.
00:10:03Next on track
00:10:04will be young Italian
00:10:04Giorgio Pantano
00:10:06in the Jordan
00:10:06and then young Christian
00:10:08Clean
00:10:08in the Jaguars.
00:10:09Stay with us.
00:10:11Back to grid qualifying
00:10:12for round five
00:10:13of the Formula One
00:10:13World Championship.
00:10:14Bob Varsha,
00:10:15David Hobbs,
00:10:16Steve Matchett
00:10:16with you.
00:10:17This is Giorgio Pantano
00:10:18of Italy
00:10:19the veteran Formula
00:10:203000 runner
00:10:21who has been
00:10:23well he's been
00:10:25on the short end
00:10:25of best two out of three
00:10:26falls with this
00:10:27Jordan Ford
00:10:28thus far this weekend.
00:10:30Now we're talking
00:10:30about the Minardi chassis
00:10:31being a little bit
00:10:32nervous at the rear end.
00:10:34This chassis,
00:10:35the Jordan EJ14,
00:10:36that chassis for 2004,
00:10:37is nervous at the front
00:10:39and the back.
00:10:39It's been a real handful
00:10:41for both of the drivers
00:10:42round.
00:10:42Terribly nervous
00:10:43at the front end
00:10:43on braking too.
00:10:44I mean you see
00:10:45some of those aerial shots
00:10:46gives you really good
00:10:47input as to what it's doing.
00:10:49Giorgio Pantano
00:10:50two-time winner
00:10:51here at Barcelona
00:10:52in Formula 3000.
00:10:53There it is.
00:10:54Whoa!
00:10:54Right there.
00:10:55That was
00:10:56messed up that one.
00:10:57Yeah.
00:10:58Understeer broke
00:10:59into the car,
00:11:00tried to correct it
00:11:00and then the back end
00:11:01broke through.
00:11:04And it still ain't
00:11:04right now is it?
00:11:05Of course they've
00:11:06picked up all that
00:11:06dust and gravel
00:11:07on the tyres.
00:11:07Yeah, the tyres
00:11:08have been useless.
00:11:10There's that
00:11:10reprofiled corner.
00:11:11Very much tighter.
00:11:13Then you see
00:11:13the old corner
00:11:14there very well.
00:11:17See, the drivers
00:11:17are very keen
00:11:18to get on the power
00:11:19as soon as they
00:11:20take that first apex
00:11:21but you'll notice
00:11:22the very quick
00:11:23drivers around here
00:11:24try and leave it
00:11:25just a little bit
00:11:26longer to improve
00:11:27the traction
00:11:28and the attitude
00:11:28of the car
00:11:29before really nailing
00:11:30the throttle
00:11:31and put the power
00:11:32down.
00:11:35Well, still fast
00:11:36in the Schulten
00:11:37and it's tied
00:11:38by that.
00:11:39That was a big
00:11:40moment back there
00:11:41wasn't it?
00:11:41It was a big
00:11:41moment.
00:11:42In fact, that was
00:11:42the same plate
00:11:43right here.
00:11:44This is exactly
00:11:44where Kimi Räikkönen
00:11:45went off last year.
00:11:46He did exactly
00:11:47the same thing
00:11:48which put him
00:11:48at the back
00:11:49of the grid
00:11:49of course
00:11:49with disastrous
00:11:50consequences for him.
00:11:52It's just so hard
00:11:53to believe that
00:11:53this Jordan
00:11:54was once a race
00:11:55winning car
00:11:55and a contender
00:11:56for the World
00:11:56Championship.
00:11:57Absolutely.
00:11:57Christian Cleen
00:12:01the youngest driver
00:12:02in the field.
00:12:03Jordan's great loss
00:12:05was the loss
00:12:06of Gary Anderson
00:12:07as their technical
00:12:07director, chief
00:12:08engineer, who has
00:12:09been with Jordan
00:12:09for, well, I'd say
00:12:11decades actually
00:12:12certainly from his
00:12:133,000 days
00:12:13and he was the
00:12:15guy that designed
00:12:16that Jordan 91 car
00:12:20very swoopy
00:12:21looking thing
00:12:21it was a little
00:12:22bit Dolly
00:12:23I was talking
00:12:23about Dolly
00:12:24yesterday from
00:12:24around here.
00:12:25A great loss
00:12:26to the team
00:12:27I think
00:12:27is that
00:12:27engineering chief
00:12:28that's Dolly
00:12:29as in Salvador
00:12:30not Parkin
00:12:31right.
00:12:32It's a nice
00:12:51on-board shot
00:12:52from the camera
00:12:53a little bit
00:12:53further back
00:12:54than usual.
00:12:56Seems it anyway.
00:13:02By two full
00:13:15seconds
00:13:16Cleen goes
00:13:17to the top
00:13:18of the timesheets
00:13:18the Jaguar crew
00:13:22will be happy
00:13:22with that
00:13:22yeah
00:13:23he should be
00:13:23not as quick
00:13:26as he has been
00:13:26this weekend
00:13:27this afternoon
00:13:28or this morning
00:13:29practice
00:13:29he did a
00:13:3016-6
00:13:31but
00:13:31you again
00:13:32with qualifying
00:13:33now
00:13:33you're never
00:13:34quite sure
00:13:34what fuel
00:13:35that they
00:13:35got on-board.
00:13:39This is Nick
00:13:40Heidfeld
00:13:40Giorgio Pantano's
00:13:43teammate
00:13:43this is New
00:13:50Holland
00:13:50not too many
00:13:52years ago
00:13:52Andrea
00:13:53of Italy
00:13:54went straight
00:13:54off of that
00:13:55corner
00:13:55speared the
00:13:56wall
00:13:56and broke
00:13:57a leg
00:13:57here
00:13:58he
00:13:59yeah
00:14:01remember that
00:14:01well Bob
00:14:0194
00:14:02the car
00:14:03stopped
00:14:04right in
00:14:04front of me
00:14:04while I was
00:14:05on the pit
00:14:05wall
00:14:05putting the
00:14:06pit board
00:14:06out for
00:14:07our two
00:14:07guys
00:14:07after the
00:14:09awful
00:14:09tragedy
00:14:09of Imola
00:14:10I just
00:14:10couldn't
00:14:11believe
00:14:11what we're
00:14:11going to
00:14:11see again
00:14:12but
00:14:12fortunately
00:14:12I think
00:14:13Montemini
00:14:14just suffered
00:14:15a broken
00:14:15ankle
00:14:16199 miles down the straight there for the Jordan, not too shabby, and quicker than the Jag.
00:14:25There you see that front end twitching braking to that Seat.
00:14:33Tidebelt, pretty experienced driver now, I mean it's one of these guys that you tend to think I was being new, but this will be a 71st Grand Prix.
00:14:46.
00:14:53Still ahead of the provisional pull time.
00:14:56Jordan's problem, one of their problems, I think is just a lack of development on the car.
00:15:02They just haven't got the funds and resources to be able to keep testing and working on their chassis in the same way that the other, the big hitters have.
00:15:10.
00:15:12And they've also had problems adapting, well, I say problem adapting, but that's P1 right there.
00:15:17.
00:15:18Heidfeld goes quickest.
00:15:19He is the ultimate optimist.
00:15:20Earlier this week, talking about not testing, he says, well, we've tested less, so we haven't run at Barcelona that much, so it's not quite so boring to drive there anymore.
00:15:28.
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00:18:57Down on power going through the speed trap, 193.2.
00:19:01Lots lower than even Jordan down the straight.
00:19:04But quicker in that first sector.
00:19:08They have got that new B-spec engine in this car that came online in Imola,
00:19:14which has given them a little bit more power and about 500 more revs.
00:19:18But on the whole, this Renault engine is certainly down on power relative to the big hitters.
00:19:24At the front of the Zoologos.
00:19:25Crowd!
00:19:27Despite 900 horsepower being bucked out and making all that row, you can still hear the crowd.
00:19:33This is the very car.
00:19:35Good time there.
00:19:36That's a big increase.
00:19:38That was a lot better.
00:19:39That's a good sector time, that 52.8.
00:19:41A good combined sector time there for 1 and 2.
00:19:45And can you maintain it through these two quick corners?
00:19:47It will almost certainly enjoy provisional pole.
00:19:50And let's hear the reaction of the crowd when he gets it.
00:19:53Ooh!
00:19:55Lost a bit there.
00:19:56Oh, the crew likes it.
00:20:06Oh, Flavio Britoi says, come see, come on, not so sure.
00:20:10He keeps his job for the day.
00:20:13I don't think it's quite fast enough.
00:20:16He, unfortunately, this was a good sector here.
00:20:18He picked up nearly a second.
00:20:20And he meant to put those right side wheels off because everybody does there.
00:20:23But he lost a little bit coming out of that vital-ass corner of the car.
00:20:28He probably just lifted a tad.
00:20:30And, of course, that just helps his launch, or failed his launch over the start-finish line.
00:20:36Here comes Cristiano D'Amata, who has had a very troubled weekend in the Toyota.
00:20:42Rumors persist that at least one of the Toyota drivers will be replaced next year, and perhaps both.
00:20:49Toyota principals were asked about it at a press conference this weekend.
00:20:52And they said, we haven't made our decisions yet, and when we do, we'll let you know.
00:20:57But it must be said, their praise for their current drivers was muted.
00:21:01Well, Cristiano's in his second season.
00:21:08Doesn't seem to have done quite as well as we all thought he would.
00:21:11But Olivier Pan is 37.
00:21:14I mean, he'll be 38 next time, you know, this time next year.
00:21:16I think that's really getting a bit long in the tooth for Formula One.
00:21:20Yeah.
00:21:20Not a good opening split for Cristiano at 22-5.
00:21:25That was right on Nick Heidfeld's performance.
00:21:28Heidfeld currently second of the provisional order.
00:21:30Remember, D'Amata's ahead of Heidfeld's pace right now.
00:21:32He could be P2.
00:21:42And he is.
00:21:43But six-tenths of a second slower than provisional pole sitter Fernando Alonso.
00:21:49Not a lot of celebration from the brain trust along the pit wall.
00:21:52We'll be back with more from Barcelona, Spain in a moment.
00:21:56Welcome back to Barcelona.
00:21:58The circuit de Catalunya for the Catalunya province in northeastern Spain.
00:22:04Semi-autonomous for 25 years this year.
00:22:07This is Rubens Barichello in the Ferrari.
00:22:10Rubens are a pretty good qualifier.
00:22:14Now, these guys yesterday, it'll be interesting to see how these guys qualify.
00:22:20Ross Braun was saying that they carried out a very studious tire program yesterday, nothing out of the ordinary, but of the two tires, the hard and the soft compound.
00:22:29One gives a very quick opening lap, the other compound gives a much more stable duration through the life of the tire for 15 laps, which I'm guessing, Ross didn't say this, but I'm guessing that means the harder compound tires.
00:22:41If Ferrari have gone on the harder compound tires, we wouldn't expect to see Ferrari at the top of the grid.
00:22:47If they have the harder on and they're at the top of the grid, that is bad news for everyone else and be very afraid.
00:22:53Yeah, up to the camsor there, just off the road, but just diced on the curb, not too bad.
00:23:00And a little bit quicker down there.
00:23:03But not a whole lot quicker than Fernando Alonso, which leads to what you were saying, Steve.
00:23:07But it could be a 15.
00:23:08He could be...
00:23:09He won't be in the 15.
00:23:10He was...
00:23:11He was slow through the speed trap, 197 miles an hour, so...
00:23:16It could be indicative that the guys carrying a lot of fuel, which, again, would indicate those harder compound tires.
00:23:24He takes provisional Paul by 15.
00:23:29Interesting.
00:23:29We're expecting Paul to be around about, what, 15 and a half?
00:23:32Yes.
00:23:33Jean-Toc from Ferrari has been given a promotion.
00:23:36He is now managing director of the entire Ferrari division, which is mind-boggling to me.
00:23:42Yeah.
00:23:43Well, that was well done.
00:23:43The whole thing looked pretty smooth and cool, calm, and collected to me, I must admit.
00:23:49I think Ferrari are up to something.
00:23:53There's David Coulthard in the McLaren.
00:23:59Things looking up a bit for McLaren this weekend.
00:24:02Boy, they need to.
00:24:08Off he goes down that long straightaway.
00:24:11Very heavy braking right here.
00:24:12Keep me right, they're having one point, and David Coulthard having four, compared to Michael Schumann, which is 40.
00:24:19Things need to change for this team.
00:24:22This is their final race before they open their multi-million dollar technical centre in England.
00:24:29At which hour should be present on Wednesday next.
00:24:32We expect a full report.
00:24:34Yeah, I'm looking forward to it.
00:24:35Oh, there you are.
00:24:36Yeah, that looked good.
00:24:48Looking good, yeah.
00:24:48These guys have got a new specification.
00:24:58Mercedes engine, Mercedes-Ulmore engine, at the back of their chassis for this race.
00:25:01And Kimi Räikkönen stopped on him yesterday.
00:25:09Everybody's heart sank.
00:25:10It turned out to be a fairly minor electrical glitch.
00:25:12But, of course, it doesn't matter how minor it is.
00:25:14It stops.
00:25:15It stops.
00:25:15Projecting him third.
00:25:20So quick through the hospital.
00:25:22There it is.
00:25:23There it is, Bob.
00:25:24Three tenths off of Rubens Barrichello's provisional pole.
00:25:28And the McLaren team may be compromising their qualifying setup to be ready for the race.
00:25:34David Coulthard's qualified third here three times and qualified second once in his best position.
00:25:42Carlos Sainz, three-time World Rally Champion, taking in the Grand Prix in his home country.
00:25:51So, to Jenson Button.
00:25:53And the BAR Honda.
00:25:55Cole City at the last race.
00:25:57And in the first session, he was quickest through the speed track, 201.2.
00:26:03He and his teammate Saita have been quick all weekend and their test drive is very quick.
00:26:08324 kilometers.
00:26:09That must be 200.
00:26:12Absolutely identical time through the speed track there for Button from the first session to the second session.
00:26:17201.2 miles an hour.
00:26:22Fastest of the day so far.
00:26:25That is a big jump.
00:26:27Two half a second.
00:26:29Car was sliding quite a bit.
00:26:30Michael Schumacher yesterday after the practice session said, this is going to be the challenge for Cole as far as Ferrari are concerned.
00:26:38That man in that chassis right there.
00:26:45Oh!
00:26:46Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa.
00:26:47That's done that then.
00:26:48That's the challenge, Eric.
00:26:49That's the challenge, Eric.
00:26:51Oh, boy.
00:26:51Oh, man.
00:26:52Oh, what a shame.
00:26:54We haven't seen many mistakes out of Jenson Button this year.
00:26:57And I was about to say, this team and this driver really have their act together.
00:27:02Just tried that little bit too hard.
00:27:06Boy, he doesn't want to back off too much on his last.
00:27:09Well, you're going to go to the...
00:27:10Hasn't lost all that much time.
00:27:171.3 seconds.
00:27:20Yeah, I think he...
00:27:21I think in disguise, he went a bit slow there.
00:27:25Plus the tires rooted.
00:27:26Let's have a look at it.
00:27:29This is that cam set.
00:27:30Whoa!
00:27:31Boy, wow, that looked odd.
00:27:33I'm sure I tell you what, he only just caught that.
00:27:35Yeah.
00:27:35We saw the left wheels flick...
00:27:37The front wheels flick to the left to try to catch the slide.
00:27:40Well, of course, that 201 mile an hour on the straight, you know,
00:27:42they're probably not carrying a lot of downforce at the back.
00:27:45And that's just exactly what happened.
00:27:46The back got away from him on that very fast rising right-hand sweep.
00:27:51Of course, once you're over the curb and into the grass,
00:27:53then it's sort of in the lap of the gods of it.
00:27:54And again, that goes back to what we're saying at the top of the show
00:27:57about the way that the weight distribution across these cars
00:28:00The rear end is becoming very, very nervous
00:28:02as that emphasis seems to move towards the front tires for grip.
00:28:07Let's take another look at what happened to Jensen Button there.
00:28:10We'll do it as slowly as possible.
00:28:11Let's see if we can watch for the front wheels to flick left as his...
00:28:16Well, he's just steering into the skin.
00:28:18Incredible reflexes.
00:28:20There we go.
00:28:24Just about here, the rear end starts to swing to driver's left
00:28:30Oh, it was the tyre on the rim.
00:28:34Did you see the side with the lateral movement of the tyre?
00:28:37It must have been very close.
00:28:38I think the left rear tyre is on the low side.
00:28:40Absolutely.
00:28:41That left rear tyre must have been exceptionally close to fall into the wheel.
00:28:44Well, let's have another look at that.
00:28:45You'll see exactly what...
00:28:46This is why it looks so odd.
00:28:47If you're coming right here, you can...
00:28:49Now, Kira on the left rear tyre relative to the rim.
00:28:53Watch the bead, the part that actually contacts the rim.
00:28:55You'll start to see it move onto the inside.
00:28:58Right there.
00:28:59Oh, yeah.
00:29:00Boy, oh, boy.
00:29:01That's what caught him out.
00:29:02Caught him out.
00:29:03I think the tyre's absolutely dead flat.
00:29:05Oh, jeez.
00:29:07Wow.
00:29:09Goodness.
00:29:11So Jenson Button might have gotten away with one there.
00:29:15Absolutely.
00:29:15Plenty more action to come.
00:29:17Next on track, the sensation of the morning practice.
00:29:20Takuma Sato, the new lap record holder.
00:29:22Stay with us.
00:29:24Welcome back.
00:29:24Watching the host broadcasters from Spanish TV.
00:29:28Doing a video overlay, checking the lines of various cars through that reprofiled La Caixa corner.
00:29:34Look at the crowd there on the hillsides.
00:29:37Beautiful day in Spain and a big crowd on hand for qualifying for round five of the Formula One World Championship.
00:29:43I'm Bob Barsha with David Hobbs and Steve Matchett.
00:29:45And now on track in the BAR Honda after his teammate Jenson Button was well up on provisional pole
00:29:51before he had a problem with a left rear tyre.
00:29:54There's that completely reprofiled corner.
00:29:56You can see the old one perfectly.
00:29:58This is Takuma Sato, who went 114.836 seconds in this morning's second and Saturday practice.
00:30:07Button was obviously clearly headed for a very fast lap, but that left rear tyre deflated on him.
00:30:12Boy, oh boy, I tell you what, he did a fantastic job in saving it and cranking out a pretty good time
00:30:17for those last two right-hand corners, which are so dependent on the left rear tyre.
00:30:21Is that 202?
00:30:243.25, I think that'll be the fastest speed trap of the time, speed trap through of the day.
00:30:29202.1, yeah, for Sato, so quickest speed trap time.
00:30:33Well done, David Hobbs.
00:30:36Whoa!
00:30:37Oh, four tenths up in the first 20 seconds.
00:30:40We need to watch this guy.
00:30:43No Japanese driver has ever qualified on pole for a Formula One race.
00:30:47He wasn't quite as fast as Button in that first split, but he was very close to it.
00:30:54It's half a second up on Barrichello.
00:31:00There's that corner.
00:31:01Still a bit, a little bit wobbly through there, but of course he's doing a heck of a lick through there.
00:31:07Look at that, six tenths quicker.
00:31:09That's it.
00:31:09Nice.
00:31:10That's not too bad.
00:31:11No, it looked all right, didn't it?
00:31:13You've got to really clip that apex, just spot on, to get the rear end to come around on you.
00:31:18Now, as Button had his problem, Sato was already on track, so they could not change Sato's setup before he went out, based on what happened to Button.
00:31:28Here we go.
00:31:29Yeah!
00:31:3215-8, that might do it, but I think a 15-5 is going to be more like it.
00:31:37It's just a case of, I think, in Button's case, it wasn't a setup, it was a problem.
00:31:46Well, I wonder if they played with the tire pressures a little bit.
00:31:49Well, they, you know, dropped the tire pressures a little bit to try and increase mechanical grip on the back end of the car.
00:31:54Again, if they've been struggling with that, yeah.
00:31:57So you can reduce aero grip, get a little more straight-line speed.
00:32:00They'll have to reduce a heck of a lot for it to come off the bead like that.
00:32:03Well, here comes Sato's biggest test.
00:32:05Michael Schumacher in the Ferrari.
00:32:07Four poles in five races thus far.
00:32:11We'll make that three poles in four races for Jenson Button.
00:32:13Got him at Imola, Italy two weeks ago.
00:32:16200.5 miles an hour for the Ferrari through the speed truck.
00:32:23Slower than Sato by Mance.
00:32:25But it set the table for what Michael does better than anybody.
00:32:33See what he does with the right-side wheels in this uphill.
00:32:43Very neat.
00:32:4558 poles to his credit so far.
00:32:49That was a little wide.
00:32:51Well, you've got to do that there to maintain speed.
00:32:54Critical corner right here.
00:32:56Boy, look at that second sector time.
00:32:57Oh, and that's unusual.
00:32:59You see Michael fighting with a wheel to just try and clip it just at the perfect spot.
00:33:04But it didn't work for him.
00:33:05Lost a bit there too.
00:33:06Uh-huh.
00:33:06On a very crucial acceleration there.
00:33:08Yeah.
00:33:09I think under braking there, he just caught himself out a little bit.
00:33:13I don't think his third sector is going to be quite enough.
00:33:16And he gets Sato.
00:33:18Yes.
00:33:19Oh, by seven.
00:33:20Yes.
00:33:20Wow.
00:33:21Where did that come from?
00:33:23A 15 even.
00:33:25That is going to be tough to beat by anybody.
00:33:28And John Tocke goes back to his notes.
00:33:30Like a football coach on the sideline.
00:33:31What's the next play?
00:33:32Oh, this is where he is.
00:33:33Look at him.
00:33:34Yeah, right there.
00:33:35Where is it?
00:33:35Where is it?
00:33:36Where is it?
00:33:38And, of course, he's nailing nearly 900 horsepower at that stage from very low speed.
00:33:43It's a lot of grip to be asked for.
00:33:46RB is Ross Braun, technical director for Ferrari.
00:33:50Here is Kimi Räikkönen.
00:33:53Got a very good first run considering all that he's gone through this year.
00:33:57As David mentioned, he stopped on track yesterday with an ignition coil problem, we are told.
00:34:03He just shut down the Mercedes engine to protect it.
00:34:07Ooh.
00:34:08Boom.
00:34:18Four tenths off at the first sector.
00:34:20Oh, that lack of power that they're running, even with this new spec engine they've got here, I don't think they're running a huge amount of downforce on this chassis.
00:34:38They're taking aerodynamic grip off the car to try and claw back some of that lost horsepower, so they get a general performance gain over it, but they've got to be extremely careful.
00:34:48Oh, he's very nervous.
00:34:51Well, he went very wide there, missed that apex completely.
00:34:54Maybe he wanted to, to get a better apex there.
00:34:56Maybe after the shenanigans next week are over, the Paragon has been opened in England, and Mataran will be able to get back to concentrate on their race cars instead of their building, which is consuming all their time and a lot of their money at the moment.
00:35:10Slower than his teammate to this point, and seven.
00:35:14Ah, two and a half seconds off.
00:35:16Behind Cristiano de Mata, but one ahead of Jenson Button.
00:35:21Well, they don't look very pleased in the garage, do they?
00:35:25So that doesn't indicate to me.
00:35:26I tell you what, this is going to set up a fascinating race tomorrow, because Jenson Button's obviously got one of the faster cars out there, and he's going to be starting mid-pack at best.
00:35:35Mid-pack at best, and boy, it's going to be interesting to see him come to the field.
00:35:39Unfortunately, we'll probably only be watching Alonso's process.
00:35:41Very good.
00:35:44Here comes Australian Mark Webber in the Jaguar.
00:35:47She'll be right, mate.
00:35:48Just give us some water here.
00:35:49Get her on the straightaway.
00:35:51Let her rip, mate.
00:35:55Mark Webber's wing that came off a couple of years ago in the Minardi right about there.
00:35:59Yeah, the highest aerodynamic loading would be right on just before the braking point.
00:36:04Wow, about 2,000 kilos, 4,000 pounds.
00:36:07At which 1,500 kilos, about 3,000 pounds of downforce would be on that wing when he came off.
00:36:12Only 194 miles an hour for Mark Webber down the straight.
00:36:16Now, you can see the load going through that left front tyre there.
00:36:23See it comes, the sheen of the tyre disappears on the left front and becomes very matte as the load is shifted across the front of the axle.
00:36:31The left side tyres at this circuit take a normal beating.
00:36:35Tomorrow on our Acura pre-race show for the Spanish Grand Prix, you'll hear from Mark Webber as he shows NASCAR stars Jeff Gordon and Jimmy Johnson around the Jaguar garage.
00:36:45Now on the powerhouse.
00:36:55Must feel like it takes forever before he can jump back on the throttle.
00:36:59Good lap going for Mark Webber and the Jaguar.
00:37:02He could be in the first two rows.
00:37:04He's a good qualifier, Webber.
00:37:06They know that about it.
00:37:09One of those drivers that started with Minardi, like Alonso and several others.
00:37:13Fifth.
00:37:14Throw three.
00:37:18Lost a little time in that final segment.
00:37:21Unfortunately, he's got three, potentially three guys who could go quicker than him.
00:37:25Truly, Ralph Schumacher and Juan Pablo Montoya.
00:37:30Juan Pablo's going to be the guy to watch.
00:37:31He's the last man to run.
00:37:32Don't count out those Saubers, though.
00:37:34Massa and Fisichella, two and three in the morning in the first lap session.
00:37:42Olive Panisch, oldest driver in the field.
00:37:46These guys have got a new chassis in the pipeline.
00:37:50Coming online around the time of Hockenheim, the German Grand Prix.
00:37:54They're trying to improve the overall aerodynamic efficiency of their car.
00:37:59They say that this chassis is just too heavy.
00:38:01When you think that the top runners are running something like 75 kilos, 150 pounds of ballast on the car, that's the mark you've got to look at.
00:38:10It's so important to get that weight down low and be able to shift it around where you want it.
00:38:15You do not want it just hanging around and cock it as pumping old ballast at mass.
00:38:20The Formula One engine manufacturers, the seven big auto companies behind many of the teams, met this weekend to discuss the radical new rules for the future of Formula One proposed by FIA president Max Mosley.
00:38:34I'll pause a moment.
00:38:40Toyota, one of the manufacturers who seem to be embracing the idea of downsizing Formula One engines in the name of cost cutting.
00:38:48But the sticking point appears to be the FIA proposal for a common ECU, engine control unit, the electronics that governs things like ignition and fuel consumption and what have you.
00:38:59Toyota, one of the manufacturers, a big shout out among other manufacturers in the Khmer Maximum players in business.
00:39:17Another look at the Frenchman.
00:39:21Winner of one Grand Prix in his career at Monte Carlo years ago.
00:39:26There's the order as they stand.
00:39:28Yarno Trulli and the Renault will be next.
00:39:30Stay with us.
00:39:42Red Bull is searching for one American driver.
00:39:47To become the next Formula One world champion.
00:39:53Are you the one?
00:39:59Welcome back to qualifying.
00:40:01Five drivers still to find their place on the grid for Sunday's Spanish Grand Prix,
00:40:05which you will see live here on Speed Channel.
00:40:08I'm Bob Varsha with Steve Matchett and David Hobbs.
00:40:11Join us tomorrow morning for live coverage of the race itself,
00:40:14beginning at 7.30 a.m. Eastern with the Acura Pre-Race Show featuring Peter Windsor.
00:40:19This week, Peter will be up and down the paddock to bring us some reactions
00:40:21to the radical rule change proposal that I spoke about moments ago.
00:40:25Tomorrow morning at 7.30 Eastern, live, only on Speed, but subject to blackout.
00:40:29A pause in the action here while we watch the various lines taken by the drivers
00:40:36who have already made their one-lap qualifying attempts.
00:40:39You see Takuma Sato in the BAR.
00:40:46I mentioned that NASCAR star Jeff Gordon is here this weekend.
00:40:50Jeff said earlier this week that he was contacted by the BAR Honda team back in 1998
00:40:54about spending a year in open-wheeled racing in the United States,
00:41:00specifically the Champ Car Series,
00:41:01and then becoming a BAR test driver en route to a Formula One seat.
00:41:06Jeff said he gave it a lot of thought before turning it down.
00:41:10I think history might have changed if he had taken it up.
00:41:12Well, I think Jeff Gordon and Tony Stewart, to name but two,
00:41:17would be fantastic Formula One drivers.
00:41:19I really do, because they both came out of open-wheel racing
00:41:22and all that short oval, those bull rings.
00:41:25I'll tell you what, those guys have got absolutely incredible car control.
00:41:28I wonder what Jeff thinks watching the way the BAR Honda is performing this weekend.
00:41:31Yeah.
00:41:33But, just think of what he's done between 1998 and now.
00:41:37I mean, that's a year that lost a lot, so...
00:41:40He had an incredible career in Winston Kupman now next to L Cup.
00:41:45This is Yarno Trulli in the Renault.
00:41:48Now, Yarno Trulli's been quick all weekend.
00:41:50He was fourth fastest this morning at a 1.15.4.
00:41:55Would he be able to repeat that again this afternoon?
00:41:57Depending on the fuel that it goes.
00:41:59Yeah, that's the thing, isn't it, with this fuel load?
00:42:04With the way that qualifying works now, it's not really that we're seeing a good qualifying lap.
00:42:09We're seeing a series of good race laps, which is completely different to how it was before, isn't it?
00:42:13You're not being... The drivers have not been able to throw the car around in the way that they could do in previous qualifying formats.
00:42:21They've got to be... They've got to control the tyres.
00:42:23Remember, they have to start the race on these tyres.
00:42:25And, of course, the fuel load that's in the car is the fuel load that they will start the race with as well.
00:42:31Mr. Cameraman having a little trouble watching the Formula One car change direction.
00:42:55Boy, they go so wide on that right-hander, don't they?
00:42:59Mm-hmm.
00:43:05Fractually quickened his teammate in that first sector, 22-2 as opposed to a 22-3.
00:43:11This beautiful swoopy race car that Dali or perhaps Gaudi would appreciate.
00:43:16Yeah, absolutely, Baba Green.
00:43:18I look pretty good there.
00:43:34The car's obviously got a bit of understeer.
00:43:35This Renault's had understeer all year long.
00:43:38We've been able to watch them.
00:43:40A lot of input.
00:43:44Ooh.
00:43:46A little bit wide there.
00:43:48May have a shot at row two.
00:43:53Yep, inside.
00:43:55Yeah, I don't know.
00:43:55I mentioned at the top of the show that we have...
00:43:58We had 12 cars covered by one second in the first round of single car qualifying.
00:44:03Right now, we have two.
00:44:09He can stay on row two.
00:44:11Of course, these Renaults seem to have...
00:44:12Even though they've launched control days, they still seem to get off the line pretty quickly,
00:44:16as we saw with Alonso a couple of times.
00:44:18But again, he's out-qualified Alonso, and which would be a disappointment to old Fred Alonso here in front of his home crowd.
00:44:25Now, the heavy hitters, both Williams and BMWs went very quickly today, in all sessions.
00:44:33They've got the grunt, but that's only 198 miles an hour through the speed track for the BMW, but this thing's now kicking out 920-plus brake horsepower.
00:44:43Now, they probably count a lot of downforce, which keeps that top speed down.
00:44:48Ooh, but he's still nearly four-tenths off there.
00:44:51Just saw Ralf adjust something on his steering wheel.
00:44:53Perhaps the pressures to the hydraulic diff from corner to corner, just to try and keep the rear end of the car stable.
00:44:5922-1 would put him in position approximately three at the moment.
00:45:05Quicker than Jarno Trulli through the first split, so he may have a shot at third.
00:45:09He's got a long way to go.
00:45:13Jenson Button did a 21-8 through the first set, so he can just imagine what would have happened if he hadn't had that flat tire.
00:45:20Sorry, Esther, mentioning Jenson Button again, inadvertently there.
00:45:28You're bad, David Hopes.
00:45:30Ooh!
00:45:34Looking at fourth place right now.
00:45:35Still a good start for him.
00:45:42Fifth.
00:45:42Ooh, fifth.
00:45:43Inside row three.
00:45:46So he lost time in that last sector, too.
00:45:49In case you're wondering, by the way, Esther is a viewer who wrote us an email suggesting that perhaps David and Steve were being a bit too complimentary toward Jenson Button.
00:46:01We've corrected that, Esther.
00:46:02We'll be right back for more from Spain.
00:46:06Welcome back.
00:46:07Final qualifying, final runners.
00:46:09This is Felipe Massa, the first of the three fastest men from the first round of qualifying,
00:46:14to be followed by his Sauber teammate Giancarlo Fisichella, and the fastest man in the first round, Juan Pablo Montoya, in the BMW Williams.
00:46:22Oh!
00:46:2722-4.
00:46:31No.
00:46:34Hmm.
00:46:36Won't get him anywhere in particular.
00:46:37See that, Kamsa, just going right to the edge of the red and white stripe kerb, which is about where they all seem to want to be.
00:46:59You do not want to go to the green bit faster.
00:47:03Ooh, two seconds up.
00:47:05Wow.
00:47:11Boy, he went so quick in that, in the provisional qualifying.
00:47:22Ooh, 15th.
00:47:24Yikes.
00:47:24Well, that will be good news for Takuma Sato, who is currently second, with only two more men to run.
00:47:33Fisichella and Montoya.
00:47:34Sato can start no worse than fourth, and that would be the best ever for a Japanese driver.
00:47:40That puts him right behind, uh, Christian Clean and Heidefelt and...
00:47:46Here comes Fisichella.
00:47:50Now, Fisichella really is desperate to out-qualify his teammates, uh, master, because he's obviously a vastly more experienced driver and wants to prove that he is still quick.
00:48:04Even though Fisichella is sort of pushing the envelope a bit now, at the ripe old age of 31, 128 Grand Prix's will be.
00:48:14Fisichella just wants to impress Ferrari.
00:48:17That's what he's out to do.
00:48:17Yeah, yeah, right, exactly.
00:48:20He's had this wish, and quite right.
00:48:22So, I mean, all Italian drivers feel that way, but he wants to drive for Ferrari.
00:48:27He's made no secrets about that at all throughout all of his career.
00:48:31Well, that first sector was slow on his teammate, Felipe Massa.
00:48:35Yeah, he's...
00:48:36This doesn't look good.
00:48:41I don't understand why the Saab's not faster.
00:48:44No, you know, I would love for... I would love this chassis and Saab to be much quicker, but...
00:48:50They've got the best win time of the business, the most expensive win time of the business.
00:48:54They've got brand new Ferrari running gear, engine and transmission, and it's somehow just...
00:48:58Yeah.
00:48:59I mean, the chassis is almost a replica of the F2003, last year's double championship winning Ferrari chassis.
00:49:0811.
00:49:09Well, he picked up on those last two sectors a little bit there, so 11 are not too bad, but...
00:49:12But again, the Saab is flatter only to deceive.
00:49:15Mind you, I say, I say, I wonder why the Saab's not faster.
00:49:17That does, in fact, replace David...
00:49:20Akemi Reikler and pushes him down another spot.
00:49:24Uh-huh.
00:49:25And Sato remains in second, so...
00:49:28He'll start no worse than third, depending on what this man does.
00:49:31Yeah.
00:49:31Juan Pablo Montoya.
00:49:32Boy, I tell you what, Juan Pablo Montoya is one of these guys that can just wring the neck of any car.
00:49:37Now, San Marino two weeks ago, the Williams cars went light in the first session to run late in the second one, the only one that counts.
00:49:55He may not have that same race car now.
00:49:57Well, that car looked a bit twitchy through there, but then he does look twitchy, Montoya, because he really just pushes it and pushes it.
00:50:04Yeah.
00:50:04Well, I tell you what, 22-1, that's, uh, that's not as quick as Sato.
00:50:10There's quite a lot of flex on that front wing of this FW-22 chassis, with this walrus tusk, you know, the two, the very wide pylons that come down onto that main plane on the front wing.
00:50:20There's a lot of movement on it, which must affect the aerodynamics across the car.
00:50:24I wonder if that's making the front angle a little twitchy.
00:50:27Whoa!
00:50:28Pretty wide on Kamsa there.
00:50:29Probably didn't lose much time, a little bit, though.
00:50:31You can actually see it on the reflection, oh, excuse me, on the shadow being cast by the, by the wing main plane onto the tarmac, how much movement there is on the pylons.
00:50:40Big squiggle there.
00:50:41I'll tell you what, it's only Montoya, this car is obviously very twitchy.
00:50:45I don't think he's going to get to Sato in second.
00:50:47I don't think he is.
00:50:49Unless you just blind see these last two coins.
00:50:52We're looking for third for Juan Pablo Montoya.
00:50:56Second!
00:50:57Oh, he did it in the last section.
00:50:59Woo!
00:50:59So Sato will go to third, but he still beats his own previous best of fifth in Bahrain, and the two fifth-place qualifying performances by Ukiyo Katayama to become the best Japanese Formula One qualifier ever.
00:51:15Well, that's a front row of dreams, isn't it?
00:51:18Montoya and Ralph Schumacher on the, Michael Schumacher on the front row.
00:51:22A couple of guys who, certainly in Montoya's case, just does not like Michael Schumacher at all.
00:51:28After that move on the first lap two weeks ago at Imola, and afterwards, Juan Pablo gave him the universal signal for, you're number one with me, and then in the interviews afterwards, he turned to Michael and said, I never congratulate you on anything.
00:51:43Yeah, he's a bit of a whiner, is Montoya.
00:51:45Well, actually, after that incident, Montoya and Williams did get the FIA to investigate that incident, and the FIA and the race officials, the stewards said, no, nothing to answer for, but it's clear that these two are very much at loggerheads with each other.
00:51:59Yeah, well, I mean, I find Montoya very, very sort of one-sided as thought, because, you know, just a couple of minutes later or seconds later, he pushed his own teammate onto the grass at about three times the speed, and said, that's just defending a position.
00:52:12So what's the difference?
00:52:13I mean, well, the old Bridgestone looking pretty lonely there, the two Ferraris.
00:52:18I wonder if that's Barrichello on those harder compound tyres we were talking about, which he may have more fuel than be going for a longer stint, or maybe even for a two-stopper.
00:52:26I'm expecting most of these guys to be on three stops tomorrow.
00:52:29A wider gap there, Bob, than we were talking about earlier, 1.6 seconds across the top ten, but of course, it's such a diverse opinion on what they've got in fuel, isn't it?
00:52:38Well, Kimi Raikkonen will start back in 13, alongside Jenson Button on row four.
00:52:43Watching them at the start should be interesting.
00:52:45Button's lucky to be taking part in the race at all tomorrow, if you've got away with that.
00:52:49We've got some difficult people to overtake as well.
00:52:53But the front row will be Schumacher and Montoya, followed by Takuma Sato and Yarno Trulli, and the way the Renaults have been starting this year, Trulli could be battling for P1 at Turn 1.
00:53:07We'll be back with more from final qualifying for the Spanish Grand Prix in a moment.
00:53:15Welcome back to the Circuit de Catalunya, near Barcelona, Spain.
00:53:26Bob Barsha, Steve Matchett, David Hobbs with you.
00:53:28The crowd milling around now, waiting the start of the support races, while the top qualifiers from today's session, including that man, Michael Schumacher, his 59th career pole.
00:53:39Remember the all-time record by the late Ayrton Senna, he's 65.
00:53:43Having a quick look at the LP, he always, always, always susses out the opposition.
00:53:48Goes and looks at the tires, particularly on his competitors' cars.
00:53:51He never fails.
00:53:52And that is the reason he's the most successful race driver in the world at the moment, because he puts more into it than anybody else out there by a factor of about three to one.
00:54:04Now, this is his helmet, what, Bob, on his pole lap here?
00:54:07I was looking at that latch on his visor.
00:54:10I've never seen anything like that on another helmet.
00:54:13But it's very expensive too, right?
00:54:14Oh, yes.
00:54:19Interesting to see what it says about this, Lucas.
00:54:21I tell you, there were a couple of points where he, you know, he was fighting for that apex, right?
00:54:27It wasn't, it didn't flow particularly well to my eyes.
00:54:32Well, you watch the steering input through here, though.
00:54:34Yeah, I mean, that's, that's that campsite where a lot of people got caught.
00:54:37You watch him right round here, though, under braking.
00:54:39He brake balance now.
00:54:41Where is it?
00:54:42Where, where, where?
00:54:43There.
00:54:44Come here, you brute.
00:54:45Yeah, exactly.
00:54:47And the rest of it's kind of back to normal again.
00:54:49He reached over this right here.
00:54:50A lot, I thought he was going to lose a lot there.
00:54:53Because he did have to lift out of it.
00:54:56But he's, look at the dead smooth through here.
00:55:00Well, not much of a lift there.
00:55:01Not much of a lift at all.
00:55:02Of course, because Michael ran fairly early in the session for him, he couldn't have known that that would be the pole lap.
00:55:13And one Pablo Montoya came up about six-tenths of a second short.
00:55:17All right, it's a beautiful track, isn't it?
00:55:20Isn't that fantastic?
00:55:21It is a gorgeous place.
00:55:22A huge crowd on hand.
00:55:23And look at the park, the paddock area there with all the rigs lined up absolutely immaculately, as Mr. Eccleston demands.
00:55:30And now we'll go to the interview room where Speed Channel's Peter Windsor is standing by to interview the top three qualifiers.
00:55:41Cloud, cloud coming up in the back right there.
00:55:44I wonder if we're going to have a big thunderstorm, which of course will change the track for tomorrow.
00:55:47Yeah, you can never discount the weather here.
00:55:53No, it is very close to the coast.
00:55:54Yeah.
00:55:55Mind you, the Mediterranean coast is as good a coast to be close to if you're going to be close to a coast.
00:56:00See in the pit lane there, all the drivers have taken the time to lay down rubber on their pit box.
00:56:07This is taking longer than normal.
00:56:09Yeah, it is.
00:56:10I think Michael's been doing a bit of glad handling as well as looking at cars.
00:56:17Crowd dispersing.
00:56:19It's beautifully wide, that pit lane, isn't it?
00:56:20Compare that to Monaco.
00:56:22Yeah.
00:56:23Monaco's about a third of the width of that track.
00:56:25Monaco's about this little bit over here on the left.
00:56:27Yeah, like the red stripe in the other middle.
00:56:30Here we go.
00:56:30From the Marlborough Spanish Grand Prix, congratulations to our fastest three qualifiers.
00:56:34Third quickest for Lucky Strike, BAR Honda, Takamu Sato.
00:56:38Second quickest for BMW Williams, Juan Pablo Montoya.
00:56:41And on the pole for Scuderia, Ferrari, Marlborough, Michael Schumacher.
00:56:44Michael, the run continues.
00:56:46Your fourth pole in your fifth race of the season looked pretty difficult.
00:56:51P12 after that first session this morning.
00:56:54Yeah, surprisingly far back.
00:56:56I mean, I saw every time how we dropped one position.
00:57:01And I was a little bit worried because the circuit obviously improved a hell of a lot.
00:57:07And I really wanted to take the better end.
00:57:10And being where I started wasn't really the best.
00:57:12It was a compromise.
00:57:14And finishing where we did finish, it was really fantastic.
00:57:18Because the circuit really gave a lot of improvement to the first time I had been out.
00:57:22Well, Jensen was on a quick lap and went off at turn nine just before you went out.
00:57:27Did that change your thinking in any way on your approach to the lap?
00:57:30Put it this way, I knew that I had a very good first and second sector in.
00:57:35So that meant that I was able to just be safe on the last sector and then not overdo anything.
00:57:42It's very easy to make a mistake, especially into turn 10.
00:57:45But I don't think actually it did cost a lot.
00:57:48And I just had a very nice and perfect lap.
00:57:51Well, they say this is a very technical circuit.
00:57:52A lot of testing done here over the winter.
00:57:55And yet the Ferrari package still looks brilliant.
00:57:57Different from the other circuits, but still right there.
00:58:00A bit surprising, honestly, because we saw and followed the testing of what BRR had done.
00:58:04And we were very impressed of their pace.
00:58:07Obviously, we will not find out what Jensen could have done.
00:58:11But all weekend they were very strong.
00:58:12So to be where we are and to be that much up front, those guys, is a bit of a surprise.
00:58:18But we'll happily take it.
00:58:21Thank you, Michael.
00:58:23Well, Pablo, good to see you at BMW Williams on the front row of the grid for the first time this year.
00:58:27Yeah, I think it's pretty good.
00:58:29You know, I was surprised at Michael's lap a little bit.
00:58:33You know, expecting to have a really nice balance after the first qualifying.
00:58:36But it just had way too much oversteer.
00:58:39And I lost quite a bit of time with that.
00:58:41But, no, I'm very pleased, I've got to say.
00:58:43You know, you always want more.
00:58:44Nobody gets really a perfect car.
00:58:45But I think we've got a good race car.
00:58:47And we'll see what happens, really.
00:58:49You know, it's a long day tomorrow.
00:58:51You know, this truck, it's pretty hot on the car, on the tyres and everything.
00:58:55So we'll see how it plays.
00:58:57Can't help but notice, of course, that you're next to your friend from Imola, Michael,
00:59:00on that long run down to the first corner.
00:59:02And it's a tight first corner here, too.
00:59:03Yeah, you know, we'll have to run and see what happens when we get there.
00:59:06What do you think?
00:59:07Exactly.
00:59:08It'll be good fun.
00:59:10Absolutely.
00:59:11Takeomo, fantastic to see you here.
00:59:14The team's run continues.
00:59:15But put into your own words what it means to you to qualify third here today in Barcelona.
00:59:20It means a lot today to me and the teams.
00:59:22Obviously, I'd like to say big thanks to them, the teams and, you know, people who are supporting us.
00:59:29And from a personal point of view, you know, to get a grid like this is really, really happy.
00:59:35And obviously, had a really successful free practice this morning.
00:59:40We knew we could be really strong on the qualify.
00:59:44But saying that, you know, yesterday I had a little bit of difficulty on the problem.
00:59:47But I'm just getting past.
00:59:49And, you know, it's really nice to up here.
00:59:53Well, you've been quick here whenever you've run in testing.
00:59:55But, of course, it's one thing to do it in untimed practice.
00:59:58It's quite another to do it under pressure in qualifying.
01:00:00What was it like just before you went out?
01:00:02Jensen had made that mistake.
01:00:03How did you feel?
01:00:04Surely.
01:00:05And that corner is inside faster corner.
01:00:08And also the wing, you know, it's blowing up.
01:00:11So it's difficult.
01:00:13And we knew it's going to be a little bit twitchy there.
01:00:15But I just had a nice balance.
01:00:19And I just didn't worry too much about it.
01:00:22And I just considerate my luck.
01:00:24And I'm obviously very happy in the end.
01:00:27Great result.
01:00:28Michael, back to you.
01:00:29Your thoughts on that rundown of the first corner and Juan Pablo?
01:00:32Obviously, we all saw that there was some sort of incident at Imola two weeks ago.
01:00:36Does that carry through now?
01:00:37Not to me.
01:00:40I mean, we have an interesting fight in Imola.
01:00:43And we'll find out whether we have one tomorrow.
01:00:46But it's part of racing to have a battle and to have a tight business.
01:00:50I have no problems with that.
01:00:52To have another one.
01:00:53Great.
01:00:54Now if we could have some words from you in your own language.
01:00:56Ah, yes.
01:00:59Keep your cards close to your vest.
01:01:01Should be an interesting first corner tomorrow.
01:01:04We'll be back in just a moment.
01:01:05Channel's coverage of the FIA Formula One World Championship is brought to you by Circuit City.
01:01:10Circuit City.
01:01:11Check us out at CircuitCity.com.
01:01:13Welcome back.
01:01:20The crowd in Spain taking its seats once again.
01:01:22Winning the support races of Barcelona.
01:01:24Sadly, we won't be able to bring those to you.
01:01:26But we can bring you the 59th pole lap in Michael Schumacher's glittering Formula One career.
01:01:33Let's go along with him.
01:01:34Just six shy now of certain centers.
01:01:3865 into turn one.
01:01:40200 miles an hour.
01:01:43Brake so late for that first corner.
01:01:46This is all going through that right-hander, the Renault right-hander, which they exited about 160.
01:01:55This is the Repsol right-hander.
01:01:57I mean, they have gone through over 180 degrees there at over 150 mile an hour.
01:02:03Top of the old neck.
01:02:04Downhill Seattle.
01:02:05We heard Michael Schumacher say he was just trying to get a couple of good segment times in.
01:02:09And when he had them, he knew that he was in good shape.
01:02:13Coming up to the corner where Jenson Button had that problem.
01:02:16And of course, it wasn't his fault it turned out.
01:02:18That tire was definitely deflating.
01:02:21This is the turn 10 that Michael Schumacher said was so important.
01:02:24Not to overdrive.
01:02:26That's where you saw him just really struggling to get that apex.
01:02:29Here we see it.
01:02:30This is where I thought he'd lost a bit of time.
01:02:32Just right there, coming up through the Sabatel, Banks-Sabatel corner.
01:02:35And he had nearly half a second to play with.
01:02:44And he actually gained time on then-provisional pulse hitter Takuma Sato.
01:02:52Juan Pablo Montoya tried but could not beat Schumacher, so they'll start shoulder-to-shoulder on row one.
01:02:57Remember to join us tomorrow morning for the sounds of speed from today's Spanish Grand Prix Qualifier.
01:04:05Welcome back.
01:04:24Final qualifying is now complete for round five of the Formula One World Championship for 2004, the Spanish Grand Prix.
01:04:30Here are the results brought to you by Circuit City.
01:04:33On the bowl for the 59th time, Michael Schumacher with a 1.15 flat, call it that, which is two and three quarter seconds quicker than his bowl position last year.
01:04:42It's also his seventh bowl position here at Spain.
01:04:46Juan Pablo Montoya, six tenths behind him.
01:04:48Kube Sato, great thing there with the BAL Honda, Trulli and Barrichello rounding out the top five.
01:04:53There's the second of the Williams, Ralph Schumacher, a 1.271 behind.
01:04:59And Olivier Panettin, Fernando Alonso, not the result he wanted at all.
01:05:03Cristiano Di Mata in the Toyota will slide in 11th alongside Giancarlo Fisichella.
01:05:08And to the back of the grid, Jolt Baumgartner continues to struggle along with the Minardi.
01:05:14That about wraps up qualifying from Barcelona, where we've watched Michael Schumacher creep ever closer to the all-time record for pole positions.
01:05:23Remember to join us tomorrow morning for live coverage of the Spanish Grand Prix beginning at 7.30 a.m. Eastern, starting with the Acura Pre-Race Show and Peter Windsor.
01:05:30Until then, for David Hobbs and Steve Matchett, I'm Bob Barsha.
01:05:34We'll see you tomorrow for the Spanish Grand Prix live here on Speed Channel.
01:05:39Hasta luego, everyone.
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