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The 1st Aggregate Qualifying Session for Round 3 of the 2005 F1 season at Sakhir.

I do not have the 2nd Aggregate Qualifying Session.
Transcript
00:00:06Ah, yes, the subject is speed, and we have it in abundance as we welcome you to first
00:00:10round qualifying, single car, single lap, to set the running order for the second round
00:00:15of qualifying for the Formula One Grand Prix of Bahrain.
00:00:19Hello, everybody.
00:00:20I'm Bob Varsha.
00:00:20Joining me, as always, David Hobbs and Steve Matchett.
00:00:23No fewer than nine drivers in this morning's free practice broke Michael Schumacher's one-year-old
00:00:29lap record for pole.
00:00:31Now, after their dominating performances in 2004, it's hard to believe that neither Ferrari
00:00:35has qualified in the top ten this season.
00:00:37This past week, their tire supplier, Bridgestone, took much of the blame for those last luster
00:00:42outings and have come up with something new this weekend.
00:00:45Here's Peter Windsor with more.
00:00:50Yes, a crucial qualifying session for Bridgestone and Ferrari.
00:00:53Two races now where neither Ferrari driver has managed to qualify in the top ten, and
00:00:57here in Bahrain, qualifying is very important in terms of determining how you're going to
00:01:02go in the race.
00:01:02If they qualify midfield, it's going to be very difficult for them to reach the podium.
00:01:07So what are going to be Bridgestone's and Ferrari's approach to this qualifying session?
00:01:11Can Bridgestone perhaps be a little bit more aggressive with their tire choice?
00:01:16We understand that the qualifying grid is very important to have some advantage for the race
00:01:24situation, but this year, especially this year's regulation, the tire needs to last for
00:01:31entire race distance, which means that if we concentrate on qualifying performance and
00:01:38then if we fail to survive for the race distance, that would be a big problem.
00:01:43So we basically are thinking, of course, we are taking account about performance in qualifying,
00:01:50but mainly concentrate on trying to find the best race tire performance.
00:01:56I think qualifying in some ways is more difficult now because you can't compromise the tires.
00:02:01I mean, the tires have to last the race, whereas before you could go for a very aggressive tire,
00:02:07you could accept that it might compromise your strategy, but all that would mean is an extra
00:02:12pit stop.
00:02:13So you could attack the race in that way.
00:02:16It's much more difficult to attack the race now because the tire has to last.
00:02:19You've got no choice.
00:02:20So we don't have any options on strategy we can do during the race.
00:02:26And that's one of the challenges that we've faced, that in trying to develop a tire and
00:02:31car which are good for the whole race, we've also got to try and find qualifying performance.
00:02:39It is a difficult situation, but the difficult times teach you how to, you know, it shows how
00:02:45strong we can be.
00:02:46So right now I have a smile because we have the new car.
00:02:48The new car is a faster car.
00:02:50If it's fast enough, we don't know yet.
00:02:54But I'm going to be driving the new car.
00:02:55That means that I'm going to go out there and it's my job to find the best setup possible.
00:03:01And I'm sure I'm going to have a much different situation in qualifying.
00:03:05Obviously, it's not going to be night and day.
00:03:07We're going to be on pole here.
00:03:08We're going to be still fighting for the situation, but hopefully a bit more towards the
00:03:13front.
00:03:14Well, those were Rubens Barrakello's comments on Thursday here in Bahrain.
00:03:20And he didn't know how prescient he was being.
00:03:22You see, Rubens Barrakello suffered a gearbox failure in his new Ferrari that kept him out
00:03:27of Friday's second round of practice all of Saturday morning practice at Bahrain.
00:03:32And there is a question down in the pit lane as to whether Rubens Barrakello, listed number
00:03:36eight in the running order down there, will be able to take his new Ferrari F2005 on track
00:03:42in this qualifying session.
00:03:44Prescient.
00:03:45That is a word for this time of the morning.
00:03:48Well, let's go right for the heavy iron this morning.
00:03:50There you see the rest of the running order.
00:03:53Lackluster, lackluster, lackluster.
00:03:56Fernando Alonso is the winner of the most recent round in Malaysia, will be the last man on
00:04:00track.
00:04:00Once again, this is light on fuel, cars with their wings paired back, simply determining
00:04:06the running order.
00:04:07Ultimate speed in preparation for the second round of qualifying with race fuel.
00:04:12That will set the grid for Sunday's Grand Prix, which you will see live here on Speed Channel.
00:04:18You can see that flag in the background there, the flag of Bahrain, the royal flag of Bahrain.
00:04:22A big flag, and it's whipping, it must be a pretty strong breeze blowing across the track.
00:04:28It is blowing from the driver's back on the short infield straightaway.
00:04:35As you see the current driver's standings, you see Juan Pablo Montoya's names on the tire
00:04:40warmers for that particular McLaren.
00:04:42But there is Pedro de la Rosa of Spain standing in for the injured Montoya.
00:04:47While we're talking about the racetrack, let's turn right to our Porsche track map and have
00:04:51a closer look, David.
00:04:52And I think when you see the map here, you'll see how crucial qualifying is.
00:04:55There's really only two opportunities for overtaking here, into turn one and into turn
00:04:59four.
00:05:00Possibly into turn 14, but that's a very fast approach.
00:05:03It's a pretty fast corner, that.
00:05:04Obviously, very little elevation change here.
00:05:06Big runoff areas everywhere, so people get very brave.
00:05:09Nine and ten is a difficult one.
00:05:11You've got to break through nine hard for ten.
00:05:13Eleven, twelve, and thirteen are a good set of sweepers.
00:05:16And the 13 to 14 straights are very undulating.
00:05:20It's about the only elevation change on this track.
00:05:23All in all, qualifying today is going to be very important to get to the front because
00:05:26it's hard to overtake here.
00:05:28Look at those weather conditions.
00:05:30In Fahrenheit, we're looking at approximately 108 degrees air temperature, 128 track temperature.
00:05:38Look at that humidity, 11%.
00:05:41As they say in Arizona, it's a dry heat.
00:05:44And, of course, that stiff breeze here, of course, blows desert sand across the track,
00:05:48which means conditions change all the time.
00:05:52They see Pedro de la Rosa.
00:05:54His first Grand Prix start of the year will be the first man on track.
00:05:57As he warms up, we'll take a quick break and return to see how he does in Bahrain.
00:06:04Welcome back to First Round Qualifying.
00:06:07Saturday, single car, single lap efforts at Bahrain International Circuit.
00:06:12With Steve Matchett and David Hobbs, I'm Bob Barsha.
00:06:14This is Pedro de la Rosa of Spain, substituting for the injured Juan Pablo Montoya in the McLaren Mercedes.
00:06:21Down is that very tight, turn one.
00:06:23Turns it a nice little complex here, right, left, right sweep.
00:06:28So no overtaking going on there.
00:06:29Yeah, that stiff breeze has already blown some dust onto the track.
00:06:32We saw that on his warm-up lap.
00:06:34Saw that straight-line speed, 331 kilometers an hour.
00:06:37That's 205 miles per hour.
00:06:40Just fractionally slower than what Kimi Räikkönen did this morning.
00:06:44In the second practice session, 208 miles an hour from Räikkönen.
00:06:49But McLaren and Mercedes have been leading the way in straight-line performance at Bahrain.
00:06:55And we're looking at the track map earlier on, Chapson.
00:06:58That tight infield section is so different from that huge long straight.
00:07:03Of course, then you have that playoff for the engineering and the driver.
00:07:07What do you do?
00:07:07You want to take wing off the car to really maximize the straight-line performance.
00:07:11But you do that.
00:07:13Get a great time coming down the start-finish straight.
00:07:15And then you compromise yourself.
00:07:16But right here, for instance, this swerving section here, 11, 12, 13.
00:07:20You need a lot of...
00:07:21There's that dust, too.
00:07:22You watch it.
00:07:22It comes around 13 here and sets off on this long straight.
00:07:25A lot of dust there.
00:07:27That sand being blown in from the desert,
00:07:28which is obviously going to change for every single driver out there.
00:07:34It's a problem for parts on the car, too.
00:07:36Bearings.
00:07:37Obviously, the air filters to the engine have to be open here.
00:07:41All the teams design air filters specifically for this track.
00:07:45De La Rosa takes a provisional pole in this first session, of course,
00:07:49by virtue of being the first car out.
00:07:50But it's not just the air filter that these guys are designing filters for as well.
00:07:54It's things like alternator cooling and ECU cooling
00:07:57for the onboard computers and the engine management system.
00:08:00Everything has to be screened to try and keep the dust and the sand.
00:08:05What the engineers have been telling me,
00:08:06that they're finding an incredibly fine sand as well.
00:08:08So they put a very fine mesh on to start with.
00:08:11But even that is being eaten up and eroded
00:08:14by this very coarse and very fine sand.
00:08:17And of course, it gets it everywhere, even through the fine filter.
00:08:21All of the engine manufacturers have brought special filters to this track.
00:08:25This is Takuma Sato, who did not race in Malaysia
00:08:30due to a high fever.
00:08:32He was replaced by Anthony Davidson.
00:08:33And as you may know, if you were with us for that race two weeks ago,
00:08:36both Honda engines exploded within the first three laps of that Grand Prix.
00:08:43They've had gearbox problems here as well.
00:08:48Another team with a gearbox problem.
00:09:13He saw yellow on the monitor, meaning he was behind De La Rosa's pace in the first intermediate split.
00:09:19He saw yellow on the monitor, meaning he was behind De La Rosa's pace in the first intermediate split.
00:09:22Here comes the second one.
00:09:33Stil behind 4 tenths.
00:09:35And just as we saw in Malaysia in this first qualifying session,
00:09:39the temperature continues to rise.
00:09:41We've just had about a 5 degrees temperature increase
00:09:43since Sato has been on track
00:09:46so track conditions changing all the while
00:09:49and of course the hotter it gets
00:09:50that will sap horsepower
00:09:55sap's horsepower changes tire requirement
00:09:57which of course as we heard
00:09:58from Rubens Barrichello
00:10:00and Ross Braun is so important
00:10:0438 hundreds off of De La Rosa's performance
00:10:07so Sato slots into second
00:10:08we'll be right back
00:10:15welcome back to the island nation of Bahrain
00:10:18and first round qualifying
00:10:20for the third event on the 2005 Formula One season
00:10:24I'm Bob Barsha with David Hobbs and Steve Matchett
00:10:26now on track young Austrian Patrick Freisacker
00:10:31in the Minardi
00:10:35once again this weekend Minardi has been tagging around
00:10:37at the back of the pack
00:10:38but while the times up front in practice
00:10:41have improved by about two seconds
00:10:42from Friday's first free practice
00:10:44through this morning's fourth practice
00:10:46the times at the back
00:10:48have improved by more than four seconds
00:10:53Freisacker well off the pace
00:10:541.1 seconds at the first intermediate
00:10:58this is still the updated 2004 Minardi
00:11:26already waiting for their new car which is said to be pretty radical
00:11:30we should see it within the next couple of races
00:11:33well all being well we should see it at Imola
00:11:36three weeks from now
00:11:37look at how he's fallen off
00:11:393.3 seconds behind now
00:11:41they don't bring out a new car very often
00:11:43because it's just such an expensive project for the guys
00:11:53but they were the first team I believe to introduce a Castatanium transmission on that car
00:12:00everybody has their contributions to make
00:12:03which is great technical feedback
00:12:10well we were hoping for some radio communication there
00:12:13as we get only four seconds of Pedro de la Rosa's time
00:12:16not that bad really
00:12:18as we pointed out yesterday
00:12:20Minardi is the launching pad for a lot of Formula 1 careers
00:12:23the first four drivers on the grid two weeks ago in Malaysia
00:12:26were former Minardi drivers
00:12:28and of course the 1-2 finish
00:12:29were also both men who started their careers with Minardi
00:12:33now here comes Jenson Button
00:12:36he too felled within three laps of the start in Malaysia
00:12:40when the engine let go
00:12:46noticeably down on straight line speed
00:12:48321 clicks
00:12:58it's only about 199 miles an hour
00:13:01huh pathetic that's all
00:13:04already two tenths off
00:13:10the big problem BAR Honda have been having with their transmission is
00:13:15they developed this very quick shift transmission
00:13:19where they could get the transmission to shift
00:13:21within like 25 milliseconds ratio to ratio
00:13:25the FIA said
00:13:26actually you know that is so quick
00:13:28it's almost seamless
00:13:29and seamless transmission is illegal to our regulations
00:13:32you need to slow it down a little bit
00:13:34so they have managed to slow it down
00:13:36if you can make something go quick
00:13:37you can certainly make it go slower in Formula 1
00:13:39so they managed to get legal
00:13:40but sorry about the loss of feed
00:13:44but BAR transmission is legal now
00:13:46but the problems they've been having
00:13:48the way the transmission is put together
00:13:50to change ratios for example from third to fourth
00:13:53in an ideal world to keep the transmission safe
00:13:56if you deselect the third ratio
00:13:58then you select fourth ratio
00:14:00and everything works smoothly
00:14:01the way BAR are making this gearbox work very quick
00:14:04is to gate one ratio out and start to engage the other one
00:14:07at exactly the same time
00:14:08and if you get that just fractionately wrong
00:14:11the gearbox explodes
00:14:12trying to get our transmission back
00:14:14but in half a second slow
00:14:15at the second
00:14:17you're in between
00:14:18Taku and De La Rosa
00:14:20not as quick as we would have liked
00:14:23130.9
00:14:27is P2 as you see
00:14:29well that was a confidence builder for the driver
00:14:31not as quick as we would have liked
00:14:33no
00:14:33everyone wants to get on pole dude
00:14:34that's the idea
00:14:35exactly
00:14:36you don't say
00:14:38oh man
00:14:38I never thought of it that way
00:14:39there's a guy with plenty of baggage this weekend
00:14:4297 world champion
00:14:43Jacques Villeneuve in the Sauber
00:14:46still trying to
00:14:47consistently about
00:14:48half a second to a second
00:14:49at an over a second slow
00:14:51and his teammate Felipe Massa
00:14:52which is
00:14:52never a good sign
00:15:02rumors already swirling about
00:15:04whether Villeneuve will last out the season
00:15:07the first form of world champs
00:15:09since I guess Nigel Mansell
00:15:10in 95 to attempt to come back
00:15:12to Formula One
00:15:13with about the same results
00:15:17Villeneuve just brushes aside
00:15:20all the speculation
00:15:31and that Sauber
00:15:32is surprisingly quiet
00:15:33we've lost our
00:15:35net sounds from the racetrack
00:15:38there we go
00:16:04his first time at the racetrack
00:16:07not a bad run
00:16:09for Villeneuve
00:16:101.593 seconds
00:16:12off of provisional pole
00:16:14never raced here before
00:16:16Villeneuve said
00:16:16he learned the racetrack
00:16:18with his beloved computer games
00:16:22well that one
00:16:23will not cut it
00:16:25Robert
00:16:25I'm afraid
00:16:27that is a lot
00:16:28off the pace
00:16:29we're speaking in relative terms
00:16:30here
00:16:31let's have a look
00:16:31at that bubble
00:16:34considering that detour
00:16:36I thought it was actually pretty smart
00:16:37about half a second
00:16:38it was one and a half
00:16:39and I don't think he lifted
00:16:40at all during that little
00:16:41on-off excursion
00:16:42well of course
00:16:43that's the beauty of having
00:16:43all this lovely paved run-off area
00:16:45you don't have to lift
00:16:46but it's very very dusty
00:16:47I know
00:16:48I'd be tempted to lift
00:16:49it can lead to all sorts of
00:16:52disasters
00:16:52unless carefully approached
00:16:56safety car
00:16:57button
00:16:57right
00:16:57and panel
00:16:58button
00:16:58left
00:16:59you've got no car behind you
00:17:01you can drive a very slow in
00:17:02you are in position 4
00:17:04position 4
00:17:07ah
00:17:08that was interesting
00:17:09it sounds to me
00:17:10like Sauber
00:17:11have developed
00:17:11an electronics
00:17:13adjustment
00:17:13whereby
00:17:14they will just
00:17:14press a switch
00:17:15on the dash
00:17:16and set the car
00:17:17into
00:17:17a condition
00:17:19to allow it to run
00:17:20behind the safety car
00:17:21conserving fuel
00:17:23well
00:17:24and who thought
00:17:24these radio transmissions
00:17:25weren't going to be very
00:17:26interesting
00:17:26that's fantastic
00:17:27Felipe Massa on the right
00:17:30he'll be coming out
00:17:3112th in the running order
00:17:34I guess I'm guilty
00:17:35of rooting a little bit
00:17:36for Vilnius
00:17:37alright
00:17:38we'll relegate him to 4th
00:17:39and be back
00:17:40with more
00:17:41of first round qualifying
00:17:50this is when you've got to push
00:18:06welcome back
00:18:08here's Mario Tyson
00:18:09BMW's engine project director
00:18:12good look around
00:18:13the Williams garage
00:18:14we'll be seeing
00:18:16Mark Weber shortly
00:18:17here he comes
00:18:18fastest man
00:18:19in this morning session
00:18:20and right now
00:18:21holder of the track record
00:18:23with a lap
00:18:23at 129.527
00:18:25on a morning
00:18:26when nine drivers
00:18:27broke Michael Schumacher's
00:18:29year old
00:18:30pole lap record
00:18:36engineer asking Weber
00:18:37to warm up the brakes
00:18:39and David
00:18:39you were
00:18:39commented on that
00:18:41at dinner last night
00:18:42that
00:18:43you could hear
00:18:43the engine revs
00:18:44dropping
00:18:44when the drivers
00:18:45are warming up the brakes
00:18:46preparation
00:18:46for the flying
00:18:47yeah they've got to get
00:18:48them warmed up pretty quickly
00:18:49so they just drive around
00:18:50their left foot
00:18:51while their left foot
00:18:51on the brake
00:18:52obviously
00:18:52which is what they do
00:18:53anyway
00:18:53but
00:18:55you've got to be a bit
00:18:56careful
00:18:58not need to put too much
00:18:59heating
00:19:01especially
00:19:01especially when the
00:19:02ambient temperature is 107
00:19:03and the track
00:19:04is up around about
00:19:05the 130 mark
00:19:06well I tell you
00:19:06in engineering terms
00:19:07what the problem is
00:19:08with that
00:19:08it's the long
00:19:09straight
00:19:10coming off
00:19:10of
00:19:11the last turn
00:19:11turn 14
00:19:12cools it down
00:19:13and this circuit
00:19:14demands that you
00:19:15want to stop off
00:19:15the brakes
00:19:16right until the
00:19:17last moment
00:19:17and then stamp
00:19:18on the brakes
00:19:19and have everything
00:19:20available
00:19:21so this is where
00:19:21now as the car
00:19:23is going down
00:19:23this long straight
00:19:24the temperature
00:19:24is spilling away
00:19:25and cooling off
00:19:26the brakes
00:19:26and all of a sudden
00:19:27you're going to
00:19:28demand about
00:19:284.5 G on the
00:19:30braking
00:19:32that's when you
00:19:32want the temperature
00:19:33next ride on board
00:19:34as you go through
00:19:352 and 3
00:19:36199 miles an hour
00:19:38straight line speed
00:19:38for Weber
00:19:40this is one of
00:19:41those hard braking
00:19:42areas coming up
00:19:42right here
00:19:43very hard
00:19:44in the turn 4
00:19:45good overtaking spot
00:19:46there
00:19:47I think the teams
00:19:48might have been
00:19:48caught out a little
00:19:49bit by the heat
00:19:50the average
00:19:51annual temperature
00:19:52for this time
00:19:52of year in Bahrain
00:19:53is about 84 degrees
00:19:54today it's about
00:19:55107
00:19:58it'll be highly
00:19:59unlikely he'll be
00:19:59as quick this
00:20:00afternoon
00:20:00because of that
00:20:01temperature change
00:20:02as he was this
00:20:03morning
00:20:03to be able to do
00:20:05a 129.5
00:20:06like this morning
00:20:07yeah
00:20:07it's going to be
00:20:08difficult
00:20:09look at the big
00:20:10shrouds around
00:20:10the exhaust pipes
00:20:11on the back
00:20:12of the bodywork
00:20:12on the FW27
00:20:14the bigger those
00:20:15shrouds are
00:20:15around the exhaust
00:20:16the more
00:20:17air you can get
00:20:18away
00:20:19you can extract
00:20:20from underneath
00:20:20the bodywork
00:20:21that's the idea
00:20:21and of course
00:20:22as you guys
00:20:22have just been
00:20:23saying
00:20:23that's a sure
00:20:24indication of
00:20:25how hot it is
00:20:25there because
00:20:26they're struggling
00:20:26to vent
00:20:27the underbody
00:20:28temperature
00:20:29Williams came
00:20:30here looking
00:20:30for a big
00:20:31improvement
00:20:31they've
00:20:32completely redone
00:20:33the rear end
00:20:33of this car
00:20:35Weber fairly
00:20:36close to
00:20:37De La Rose's
00:20:37base
00:20:37very close
00:20:48holding a good
00:20:49tight line
00:20:49there
00:20:52and he takes
00:20:53over provisional
00:20:54pole
00:20:55130.592
00:20:57that after a
00:20:58129.5
00:21:00in this
00:21:01morning's
00:21:01second practice
00:21:02Nick Heidfeld
00:21:03looking on
00:21:04BMW engine
00:21:05power helping
00:21:06on that last
00:21:07sector
00:21:07which is
00:21:08the last sector
00:21:09is very fast
00:21:10all the way
00:21:11through that
00:21:11turn 13
00:21:12and then down
00:21:12that long
00:21:13long straight
00:21:14and the last
00:21:14fast right-hander
00:21:16well this has
00:21:17been the team
00:21:17to beat
00:21:18so far this
00:21:19year
00:21:20two races
00:21:21under the belt
00:21:21two race wins
00:21:22under the belt
00:21:23two poles
00:21:23under the belt
00:21:24this was the
00:21:25pole sitter
00:21:26and race winner
00:21:26in the opening
00:21:27round of the
00:21:28season
00:21:28in Melbourne
00:21:28Australia
00:21:30Giancarlo Fisichella
00:21:35yesterday we
00:21:35were talking
00:21:36about the
00:21:37exciting way
00:21:38I think that
00:21:38they've worked
00:21:39the rear wing
00:21:40just have to look
00:21:40at the rear wing
00:21:41end plates
00:21:41how different
00:21:42it is
00:21:42how cut away
00:21:43and sculpted
00:21:43it is
00:21:44from the
00:21:44element
00:21:46to the
00:21:46end plates
00:21:47themselves
00:21:47very different
00:21:49treatment
00:21:49Renault
00:21:50put on that
00:21:50rear wing
00:21:51quicker in
00:21:51that first
00:21:52sector
00:21:52now we
00:21:52come to
00:21:53the second
00:21:53sector
00:21:53where handling
00:21:54is at
00:21:54absolute
00:21:55premium
00:21:56will he
00:21:56be able
00:21:56to pick
00:21:56up even
00:21:57more time
00:21:57in the second
00:21:58sector
00:22:00with that
00:22:01sculpted
00:22:01rear wing
00:22:02and then
00:22:02plate
00:22:09well it gets
00:22:10off the corner
00:22:11well doesn't it
00:22:12does and it looks so
00:22:13smooth I wish we could
00:22:13have an on-board shot
00:22:14see how much or how little
00:22:18he is working that steering
00:22:21well
00:22:21second intermediate
00:22:23coming up
00:22:23oh boy I think he's
00:22:24going to be inside here
00:22:25I think he is too
00:22:27two tenths
00:22:28two and a half tenths
00:22:30and Fisikella wants to get
00:22:32back on top here
00:22:34over his teammate
00:22:36talking the team was
00:22:37you know the problem with
00:22:38Fisikella Alonso is just so
00:22:40quick
00:22:40he's just quick
00:22:42everywhere
00:22:42so Fisikella needs a
00:22:44good lap
00:22:45come on
00:22:49now 30.4 he takes over
00:22:51provisional pole but he
00:22:53does not dip below that
00:22:54one minute 30 second
00:22:56barrier so Fisikella moves
00:22:57to the top of the charts
00:22:58over Weber and Daniel
00:22:59Rosa will be right back
00:23:06welcome back to first
00:23:08round qualifying for the
00:23:10Grand Prix of Bahrain
00:23:12Bob Barshish Steve
00:23:14Matchett David Hobbs with
00:23:15you we weren't sure
00:23:16Rubens Botticella was
00:23:17going to get on track in
00:23:18his new Ferrari after an
00:23:19emergency gearbox repair
00:23:21that kept him out of
00:23:22practice Friday afternoon
00:23:23and Saturday morning but
00:23:25here he is the team flew in
00:23:26a new gearbox oh well I'm
00:23:30about to say he's got this
00:23:31huge task ahead because he
00:23:33has no time in the car
00:23:34he's only got about 10
00:23:35laps all together so very
00:23:38down on practice here for
00:23:40everybody else and that's
00:23:42what you saw over
00:23:43aggressive at turn one and
00:23:45this just to confirm
00:23:46chaps this is the new car
00:23:47they have not switched
00:23:48Barrichello into the 2004
00:23:50car because they haven't
00:23:51been able to get the
00:23:51transmission fixed this is
00:23:53the new car they certainly
00:23:54don't want to do that they
00:23:55don't want to change
00:23:56Barrichello to in the old
00:23:57car because the new engine
00:23:58would not fit in the old
00:23:59chassis and therefore they
00:24:00would have to take a 10
00:24:01spot penalty for doing that
00:24:03so whatever Ferrari have
00:24:05done to get that car on
00:24:06track must have been a
00:24:07fantastic phenomenal effort
00:24:08by the team now he's down
00:24:12to the driver that 0.8 of a
00:24:13second difference on that
00:24:15first sector is going to
00:24:16make sure he's back quite a
00:24:17few spots anyway Steve let me
00:24:18ask you are you surprised
00:24:19that Ferrari has so few parts
00:24:21available for these cars I
00:24:23mean they've been testing this
00:24:24car around the clock since it
00:24:27rolled out of Ferrari shops it
00:24:29was due to roll out on track
00:24:30and race in just five weeks
00:24:32time at Spain yeah the problem
00:24:36Bob what they have is their
00:24:37transmission units are cast
00:24:39titanium and the process is
00:24:41very long-winded the lead time
00:24:42now I'm guessing the lead time
00:24:44on this because of what other
00:24:45teams have told me can be up
00:24:47to three months so bearing in
00:24:48mind that this car wasn't
00:24:50scheduled to run for another
00:24:51two races they're really on the
00:24:53back foot they would have every
00:24:54other component of the car but
00:24:56they wouldn't have the
00:24:56transmission can you imagine
00:24:57how frustrating that would be
00:24:58for a team of Ferrari's
00:24:59capability to be sort of
00:25:02bant on somebody else's work
00:25:05well Villeneuve went off the
00:25:06track as well and gets bumped by
00:25:08Rubens Botticello I thought that
00:25:09bobble down in turn one would
00:25:11cost him he recovered for sixth
00:25:13but well off provisional pull
00:25:15pace 1.381 seconds to be
00:25:18specific now here's another guy
00:25:19we weren't sure we were going to
00:25:20see Christian Albers of the
00:25:21Netherlands in the minority he's
00:25:24had an engine change he has a
00:25:25new Cosworth in the back of that
00:25:27chassis so he will pay a 10 grid
00:25:30position penalty but likely to
00:25:32start around Saudi Arabia anyway
00:26:00he looks a lot smoother than his
00:26:01team mate
00:26:05he's not by the night he's
00:26:06doing it though
00:26:16you can really see his fingers
00:26:17working those shift paddles
00:26:32way ahead of his team mate
00:26:34Patrick Freysacker
00:26:45well ahead of Freysacker but behind
00:26:48Jacques Villeneuve for eighth
00:26:52that's his girlfriend his name
00:26:55escapes me I'm sure David knows it
00:26:56well yeah absolutely look at me
00:27:01there's another look at Rubens down in
00:27:03turn one locking up that right front
00:27:05Bridgestone
00:27:07no doubt thrashing himself mentally
00:27:12here's Portuguese driver Tiago Montero in the first of the Jordans
00:27:15Jordan Toyota
00:27:18also on Bridgestone tires
00:27:29these guys did a huge amount of laps in yesterday's practice session to try and get an idea of which
00:27:35tire compound of construction to go for something like 107 flying racing laps they did
00:27:44the race itself is 57 laps so they should have a good idea of which tire to go for
00:27:52of course Toyota power now so obviously that's being very reliable given an opportunity to do those laps
00:27:58it hasn't
00:27:59it hasn't I have to say I think they've done a great job of getting that Toyota lump to fit
00:28:03inside
00:28:04that last year's chassis completely different engine mountains they've had to come up with adapter players to make the thing
00:28:09work but
00:28:10there's a result of it they've got the car together
00:28:15Toyota's made a great point
00:28:18making sure everyone knows that their cars their engines keep getting to the finish
00:28:22including the Jordans as well as the factory team
00:28:28in general reliability over the last five or six years has been quite stagnant from pretty
00:28:33much all the teams in the day when I was racing back in the 90s cars would be falling out
00:28:39of the
00:28:39races every sort of I don't know 10 laps
00:28:42well absolutely I mean 20 years ago to when he went into every race it wasn't the case of
00:28:46without winning it it was the case of whether I'm going to finish first
00:28:47he could finish exactly yeah
00:28:50Montero slots into eighth ahead of Albers and Freysacker
00:28:54Mix P0 Mix P0
00:28:56seventh again nice slow revs for the in lap fuel saving
00:29:02well that says it all
00:29:05fuel saving practice no doubt yeah today it doesn't really matter
00:29:09tomorrow in second round qualifying it certainly will we'll take another break
00:29:13and return up next Naren Kartikeyan
00:29:30welcome back to first round qualifying for sunday's grand prix of bahrain here on speed channel
00:29:36this is indian driver Naren Kartikeyan in the jordan toyota
00:29:42Naren a newcomer to formula one a newcomer to big power engines unlike his teammate
00:29:47Diego Monteiro and uh Kartikeyan's really been showing Monteiro a pretty good clean pair of heels
00:29:53mostly so far has done most of the practice sessions here
00:29:56beat him by two tenths in practice this morning
00:30:03tricky corner this looks wide open coming into it and uh very tempting to overdo it
00:30:14uh
00:30:27so
00:30:28you can see the forces on the driver's neck there has been twisted to the left and uh
00:30:33push back very much uh push forward there on braking
00:30:45these are the sort of spots you definitely are not overtaking
00:31:11through the gearbox in a hurry
00:31:13we're just talking about race reliability i'm amazed that these things stopped together
00:31:17about 10 seconds listening to that engine note
00:31:21hold on two weekends isn't that remarkable entire weekend i mean it's incredible
00:31:32i mean look at this corner looks so tempting
00:31:46eight seems to be the magic spot driver after driver goes quicker than those behind
00:31:52quite able to get to jack bilder and seventh yet that chassis looks considerably better birthday
00:32:00Anita that's a well-prepared crew it was yeah yeah they knew they were going to be on camera right
00:32:07David i don't know why you thought but the jordan chassis to me looked a lot more stable a lot
00:32:12smoother than we've seen in the first two races so far yeah well all last year absolutely Felipe
00:32:18Massa
00:32:21good straight line speed 330 clicks 205.2 miles an hour that's a 2005 spec ferrari engine there
00:32:32so it should be pretty quick ferrari are pretty good at building engines
00:32:36and of course sauber have the best wind tunnel into business and he is faster wow
00:32:41wow faster than fishing killer now that is something don't let it go to your head
00:32:47lad because they know this all the time because they know where they are at all times yeah
00:32:55this is the 200th grand prix weekend for the sauber team
00:33:00first team to hit 200 since jordan back in 2003 in brazil
00:33:08and incidentally that brazilian grand prix was won by a jordan driver Giancarlo Fisichella
00:33:15so if you're into numerology here's your pick for the weekend not as quick in that second section
00:33:20in fact a lot off there through the handling part of the track well that's just what we're talking about
00:33:24at the top of the show you take the wing off to get great speed down the straight but when
00:33:29you need
00:33:29the wing to give you extra downforce and control the car in the corners you're gonna suffer but you
00:33:34need speed down here so that you can out brake people at the end so sometimes that straight line
00:33:39speed will help you and fourth that's a really good time for Felipe Massa not bad at all splitting
00:33:46de la rosa and button nice round of 18th green golf applause from the crew we'll take a break and
00:33:55be right back
00:34:00welcome back to the island nation of bahrain an archipelago of 36 islands
00:34:06bahrain international racing circuit is on the largest bahrain island about 19 miles southwest of
00:34:11the capital at manama and we are with you in temperatures of about 107 approaching 108 degrees
00:34:18air temps in the bahraini desert as kimmy raikkonen brings the mclaren mercedes out this team has been
00:34:26going a lot better this weekend and he is quicker in the first intermediate by 87 thousands of a second
00:34:32than our provisional pole sitter Giancarlo Fisichella in the renault just fractionally slow through the speed
00:34:38shot then massa 205 miles an hour spot on for kimmy raikkonen 205.2 for mclaren was the last team
00:34:47to
00:34:47win the first two rounds of a season and not win the championship they did it in 2003 winning in
00:34:52melbourne
00:34:54and in sepang in malaysia of course ferrari went on to sweep the championships
00:34:59other than that the last 11 times the team has won the first two rounds of the season
00:35:05they have won the world championship and that of course would be renault again he might break into
00:35:09that 29 it's going to be close not enough time there gained yet to get into the 29s but he
00:35:16could be in
00:35:16a like the 130.1 30.2 well to be fastly through sector one the straight line stuff and fastly
00:35:24through
00:35:24sector two the infield that's good that's boding well no he can't get to the 29 he had that little
00:35:31bubble there coming off that last corner and it lost him that time wow there's pedro de la rosa
00:35:37ron dennis a wry sort of ron grimace there
00:35:43christian clean has been going very well all weekend in the in the red bull because they've
00:35:48been going very well all year yeah there's big surprise of the year young christian horner running
00:35:52the team now he's been going better than his teammate david coulthard this weekend a lot
00:35:58yeah quite a bit better david coulthard apparently is having difficulty finding a balance for the car
00:36:02but christian clean seems to have done it and that has thrown the team's strategy of rotating clean
00:36:09out of the car and putting last year's formula 3000 champion viet antonio luzzi in christian clean the
00:36:15youngest driving formula one at the moment 22 years old this will just be his 21st grand prix
00:36:22well he's off in that first sector but look at that not much off they're talking about keeping
00:36:28clean in the car and farming out luzzi to another team should someone need one of course everybody
00:36:33turned immediately toward the sauber garage and the villner groomers well everybody of course said that
00:36:38this you know great key competition between lit clean and and luzzi to keep them both up to scratch
00:36:44to me i mean i think it's incredibly destabilizing for the driver to do as well as clean done in
00:36:50the
00:36:50first three races they'll be yanked out for the fourth one would be crazy
00:36:56having a good clean run on this lap by the look of it
00:36:59park temperature has jumped a little bit again 131 degrees now so another climb of
00:37:06climb around three degrees so it continues to get hotter and hotter through this session well this
00:37:10lap could be as if he had a very very good last sector here he could be up there with
00:37:15delaroza in
00:37:16fourth or fifth delaroza currently lying fourth he could just snatch it by him but probably not oh he does
00:37:24two yes now that is a terrific wow lap by bishop clean this of course would have been the the
00:37:322005 jaguar
00:37:34but obviously it's now the red bull keep in mind this guy's just 22 years old the only younger driver
00:37:40on the grid is alonzo now we're gonna have another little look at that kimmy's on off
00:37:50just enough here we see it on board
00:37:57well it shows you it doesn't take much yeah but look at the steer look at the calm way
00:38:01dealt with that too just not letting it get away from him
00:38:06excuse me actually alonzo is older clean is actually the youngest driver on the grid
00:38:11now here comes the seven-time world champion michael schumacher in the new ferrari
00:38:18fractionally down on straight line speed 204 miles an hour i want to be seeing over 205 to be going
00:38:25quicker but this is the first qualifying lap for ferrari's brand new f2005 the car that they are
00:38:35hoping will turn the championship around for them bridgestone produced significantly quicker on that
00:38:40first yeah buddy oh but wide there that's unusual for schumacher he's usually very tidy and ferrari
00:38:47and i know michael schumacher will want the pole position they want the debut car they want to take
00:38:53pole position with it to stamp the authority on the event a little bit of a lock up there for
00:38:56that nine but
00:38:57not much now this is that crucial sector it looks like it's carrying quite a bit of wing to me
00:39:02at the back
00:39:03this car rich stone engineers say their problem has been this one lap qualifying format they can't
00:39:11get the tires up to temperature as quickly as they'd like this looks like he should be able to crack
00:39:16it
00:39:16yeah and you're right david hobbs that is the extra wing on the back of the chassis so being able
00:39:22to carry
00:39:22the straight line speed with that wing is a good sign they were down a little bit remember one mile
00:39:27an
00:39:27hour down which is indicative of that wing and boy did it pay off in that second sector but of
00:39:32course
00:39:32it's not enough to hurt his our chances to go past people on that straight this should be in the
00:39:3829s
00:39:38no but he takes provisional pole 130.237
00:39:46michelle yo the actress on the right jean tot the team manager stealing a glance at the woman he says
00:39:53is
00:39:53his fiancee the woman she says is her steady boyfriend well they'll be happy with that absolutely
00:39:59well they will be but of course she got some really hot runners the two toyotas that have come and
00:40:04of
00:40:05course alonzo this is going to be a great struggle and you could tell michael was trying with a little
00:40:12bit of lock up here and there using a little more track than he normally does
00:40:16i think he's going to be lucky to hold on to pole with that time
00:40:19it's been an historic season of struggle for ferrari thus far is the 2005 car the answer
00:40:26last story is yet to be told this weekend right now it's looking good
00:40:59welcome back to first round qualifying for the grand prix of bahrain
00:41:04there's david coulthard's fiancee simone her man is on track
00:41:12we're with you for the final five qualifiers to determine the running order for tomorrow's
00:41:17second round of qualifying on board the red bull car
00:41:30david coulthard now the greatest point scorer among british drivers in formula one history
00:41:37he passed nigel mansell two weeks ago in malaysia it's an incredible achievement it seems such a low
00:41:45key achievement for cool talk isn't that somehow he turned 34 last sunday
00:41:51third oldest driver on the grid 170 this will be 178th grand prix second only to michael sumar
00:41:58two hundred four top ten at first intermediate yeah well 15th
00:42:26yeah and again we must remember we can't put any of this dropping pace down to
00:42:30carrying fuel for the race this is a this is a true low fuel flat-out qualifying run for all
00:42:36these drivers only in tomorrow's session will they have to run race fuel we've been over it
00:42:41before this is the part of the weekend that Coulthard likes least he's had a terrible time
00:42:46coming to grips with single car single lap qualifying speaking of British drivers five
00:42:58days from now will be the 37th anniversary of the death of Jimmy Clark racing crash at Hockenheim
00:43:05Coulthard 10th well behind his teammate but ahead of Rubens Botticello's Ferrari
00:43:13different tire compound between the two drivers perhaps perhaps but still an all you know I mean
00:43:18even going into the season if you'd have told me the Red Bull to be qualifying in the top 10
00:43:23at all
00:43:23I'd have been amazed at Christy Clean here's his fifth now the Toyota the absolutely magically
00:43:30transformed Toyota of Ralph Schumacher what a car this has been uh the last this special last race
00:43:36he did a 29.7 in this morning's second practice session with Ralph oh he got a little crossed up
00:43:42there 321 clicks down the straight he's off the pace in far straight line speed to his opposition
00:43:50199.5 so just a fraction under 200 remember 205 is the target time for a quick straight line speed
00:43:56round
00:43:57here is that the extra wing on the car let's see what happens in sector two not that far off
00:44:04Mark Webber did a 29.0 in his first sector and he stands third that's why the extra wing should
00:44:11have
00:44:11helped him if it was on board he's catching up Coulthard very quickly
00:44:29as we said at the top of the show qualifying here is very important at Bahrain there's really only a
00:44:34couple of
00:44:34overtaking spots
00:44:39oh that blanket no my goodness me at that time he's going to be wow he'd be down in uh
00:44:44with
00:44:45Sato in ninth or tenth yeah lucky to be in the top ten
00:44:49he could be behind David Coulthard well he'd be right about David Coulthard time at the moment
00:44:56which is not what Toyota were hoping for Coulthard's out of the way straight run to the finish for the
00:45:01German eight seven tenths he had a good third sector just slower than Felipe Massa but he bumps
00:45:09Jenson Button back into ninth and David Coulthard is bumped out of the top ten
00:45:15Jenson Button might be happy with that so we got the two Asian makes the two the back of the
00:45:20Asians
00:45:20which I keep talking about over the last two years well we're not looking too good
00:45:28he had a quick look at Ralph's wife Cora
00:45:32therein lies a story she was racing this weekend I believe in a an event full of minis
00:45:39here comes Nick Heidfeld on the podium two weeks ago in Malaysia
00:45:46now there's obviously tremendous rivalry between Nick Heidfeld and Mark Webber in the
00:45:50uh Williams BMW team I felt uh getting on the podium as he said two weeks ago in Malaysia can
00:45:56he be
00:45:56quick as his teammate Mark Webber Mark Webber currently lying third on the second row
00:46:03well point three up there about the same time as his teammate but he's got to pick it up in
00:46:09the next two seconds
00:46:10well I'm suggesting he may well be able to do that maybe because he does seem to have a large
00:46:15rear wing on this car
00:46:16look at that in comparison to what we've just seen on the Toyota again that extra downforce this is exactly
00:46:22the part of the track where it's going to pay off
00:46:25unfortunately I didn't get a straight line speed for him coming down the straight to see to get a comparison
00:46:30between the uh of the cars
00:46:32he does seem to have wing on board
00:46:34now Mark Webber was very quick in the last sector
00:46:39how is he in the second sector now coming up to the end of it
00:46:43well that should put him uh right with his teammate Webber he should could be third or fourth depending how
00:46:49he
00:46:49gets down this straight through the last turn
00:46:53this is where Webber picked up a little bit of time
00:46:58see if he can bump Christian clean and do everything we'd be saying that
00:47:04oh yeah what a third segment from Nick Heidfeld who moves into second wow wow
00:47:14now sir Frank gets a little smile out of that yeah it doesn't get much better than that for Frank
00:47:19does
00:47:19it for a smile no it doesn't no that was a an outstanding last sector wow so pretty impressive
00:47:27just two hot guys to go and here he is Jano truly second last week
00:47:32qualified on the front row qualified on the front row in Australia he was in the 29s in this morning's
00:47:38practice fourth quickest behind Webber Ralph Schumacher and Giancarlo Fisicala 200 mile an hour flat down
00:47:45straight a little bit off the face there but let's see how that holds him up in that vital second
00:47:52sector
00:48:11well he's got a lot of work to make up now if he wants to try and knock Michael Schumacher
00:48:14off that whole position
00:48:15yeah 28.7 for sector one
00:48:21well he's got a lot of work to make up now if he wants to try and knock Michael Schumacher
00:48:22off that whole position
00:48:25Alonso sitting in the pits watching all this on the monitor while he sits in his car, his heart rate
00:48:30already going up as he can see this pole position getting closer and closer every minute. Let's see how this
00:48:36second sector works out. Pretty good time up to that spot there. Yes, look at that. It's thousands of seconds
00:48:42up on Michael Schumacher. Much tidier lap than his teammate.
00:48:48Now we don't need to push it or something. What do you do? Truly is a good qualifier. His attention
00:48:54span in the races that's been his undoing in recent seasons. That's smooth now. Push across this line. Push it.
00:49:01Yes! Wow! Well done. Oh my goodness. Well done. He come off that last corner. The car looked fantastic, didn't
00:49:10it? Then just horsepower. Push.
00:49:12Push. Good job, Yarno. Paul, good job. You're the P1. Safe fuel. Take ease in. Very good job. I'll tell
00:49:20you when the next car is coming in.
00:49:24That was a very good job. That was a terrific two sectors. And in the battle between teammates, truly is
00:49:32P1, Ralph Schumacher, P10.
00:49:36Now here is the winner two weeks ago in Malaysia. The pride of all Spain, to the point that he's
00:49:42appealed to his countrymen to leave his parents alone.
00:49:46Such is their pleasure over his victory and the fact that a Spaniard is leading the Drivers' World Championship for
00:49:51the first time ever.
00:49:52This is Fernando Alonso in the Renault.
00:49:54Boy, if he does a really good lap here, that could push Michael Schumacher.
00:49:57Oh, look at that. Two and a half tenths.
00:50:01This will push Michael Schumacher back to the second row.
00:50:15A tightristic snap in there with Alonso.
00:50:27Look how smooth it is to you there, though.
00:50:29That is awesome.
00:50:31Sector 2, does he get it?
00:50:32Oh, he's going to get that.
00:50:33Are we going to see Green?
00:50:33I think he's going to do that easily.
00:50:35If we see Green, I reckon it's all over.
00:50:38Well, he's still got that final corner.
00:50:40Alonso's been known to throw it off the road at qualifying.
00:50:43This is going to be about a 29-4.
00:50:46Remember, yeah, this is Renault absolute flat-out qualified performance, low fuel.
00:50:50Oh, this is all that the chassis can give.
00:50:53Oh, there you go.
00:50:55Remember, this is just the first of two rounds, but yes.
00:51:00Oh, wow.
00:51:01Lost a little time in that third sector, but he got it done.
00:51:07Mixture 1, Fernando. Mixture 1, please.
00:51:10Low revs.
00:51:12And oh, by the way.
00:51:12Okay, Mixture 1.
00:51:15Mixture 1, B1.
00:51:17Business as usual.
00:51:19Of course, that is true.
00:51:20We talked about Powell, and obviously this is just the reason we have another run tomorrow
00:51:25when they will have raised fuel on board, and of course they take the aggregate time.
00:51:30But nevertheless, that was an outstanding lap of Alonso in the Renault.
00:51:34It was.
00:51:35Again, just wide at that last corner, cost him a little bit.
00:51:39I think there is more performance to come from this car here at Bahrain.
00:51:43Renault have every ride to be delighted about that.
00:51:47A good result for Ferrari with that debut of the F2005 in Schumacher's hands, but wow,
00:51:52they have still got a mountain to climb if they want to overthrow those guys.
00:51:56They are just not in the same class right now with Renault and Toyota.
00:52:01Toyota, of course, the change of the year, just extraordinary there.
00:52:05Yarno, truly, in particular, doing such a good job with it.
00:52:08Now, remember, this is the first of two rounds of qualifying, the load-up with race fuel and
00:52:12race aero settings, and do it again on race morning.
00:52:15But through the first two races of this season, the top three in first round qualifying remained
00:52:21the top three in second round.
00:52:23And if Michael Schumacher can hang on to that second-row start, it'll be the first time
00:52:27a Bridgestone shot car has qualified in the top ten this year.
00:52:31There you see Yarno, truly, sitting there in a proud second spot.
00:52:35But Ralph Schumacher, his teammate, down at 11th, not good for him at all.
00:52:39And right behind him, the two BAR Hondas, not good for them either.
00:52:43Well, with less than four-tenths of a second separating the top three cars, second-round
00:52:47qualifying ought to be pretty interesting when race strategy comes into play.
00:52:51We'll be back with more from Bahrain in just a moment.
00:53:08Welcome behind the scenes at Bahrain International Circuit.
00:53:12Yarno Trulli just shared a hug with our provisional pole sitter, Fernando Alonso, right there.
00:53:19If their relative position holds, it'll be the same front row we saw two weeks ago in Malaysia.
00:53:25Alonso on pole, Trulli alongside.
00:53:28It is amazing how the balance of power appears to have changed in Formula One.
00:53:34That little shot there, we don't get to see that very often.
00:53:36It's the FIA waybridge, but not just the waybridge.
00:53:40It's the flat platform from which all dimensions on the car are checked.
00:53:44Wing height, chassis height, step plane height.
00:53:47Nothing is checked from the floor because, of course, the teams could raise or lower the suspension
00:53:51and circumnavicate the regulations.
00:53:54Everything is measured from the flat underside of the chassis face itself,
00:53:59the face to which the FIA legality plan can fault it.
00:54:03Our third fastest qualifier, Michael Schumacher, is already on his way to the interview room
00:54:07and our Peter Windsor, there you see Alonso and Trulli making their way in.
00:54:11And Michael took a nice, leisurely stroll through Park for May,
00:54:14looking very closely at all of his opponent's cars.
00:54:18Sucking on his drink bottle, but nevertheless having a jolly good look
00:54:22as he went by all of those cars, there's no doubt about it.
00:54:24Spent a lot of time with that new rear-end treatment on the Williams.
00:54:27And, of course, checking out the Michelin tire wear.
00:54:31It's something we see from him time and time again, isn't it,
00:54:34that he never gives up an opportunity just to look at the tires,
00:54:38or, Bob, as you were just saying there, to actually run his hand along the leading edge
00:54:42of the Williams wing.
00:54:43We're seeing it right there.
00:54:43He's very keen just to see, just to feel the profile of the car.
00:54:47It never gives up an opportunity to learn anything.
00:54:51Good look at the new rear-wing treatments in 2005 under the new regulations,
00:54:56modifying the location of that rear-wing package.
00:54:59See how much the radiators bulge out to the side of the Red Bull chassis there,
00:55:03how tight the bodywork is around the components underneath.
00:55:07There's hardly any room at all for airflow.
00:55:09Notice the fans with the little day-glow yellow strips on.
00:55:13Fans at the front and fans at the back.
00:55:16After the first official qualifying session for the Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix,
00:55:20we welcome the fastest three qualifiers.
00:55:24Third quickest was Scuderia Ferrari Marlborough, Michael Schumacher.
00:55:27Second quickest for Panasonic Toyota, Yano Trulli.
00:55:31And quickest for Mild 7 Renault, Fernando Alonso.
00:55:34Fernando, the momentum continues, but it was very, very close there against Yano.
00:55:38Yeah, again, like in Sepan, Yano was our main competitor.
00:55:44And, yeah, at the end, I saw the times now.
00:55:47I lost nearly two and a half tenths in the third sector and was really close.
00:55:54Tomorrow I hope to do a better lap and to keep more distance.
00:56:00Well, coming off that great win in Malaysia,
00:56:02it appears as if so far the weekend's gone very, very well for you.
00:56:05Yeah, it has been a good weekend again.
00:56:09No problems in the car at all.
00:56:11Again, the team did a fantastic job to prepare the car for this race.
00:56:15Everything was quite okay in the first run on Friday.
00:56:20And we touched a very few things in the car because it was already there.
00:56:24And, you know, today with a little bit less fuel than yesterday and now in Quali, empty.
00:56:29The car is really quick again, really nice to drive.
00:56:33And, you know, also the tyres seem to work again perfectly in hot tracks.
00:56:40And we have also, I think, a big advantage on that.
00:56:45Let's talk a little bit about the conditions we may expect on race day.
00:56:48Very hot, perhaps a bit windy, sand.
00:56:51Yes, quite windy.
00:56:53This morning we noticed the wind was changed and was very strong.
00:57:00Now in Quali as well.
00:57:03And for the race it will be a little more difficult with these conditions to keep the concentration,
00:57:09the car on the track, with all tyres, with everything.
00:57:13It will be an interesting race for sure.
00:57:15Well done.
00:57:16Jano, another great performance from you and from the team as well.
00:57:20Yeah, you're right.
00:57:21I mean, you know, I'm performing well because the team is doing a great job.
00:57:25The engineers, mechanics, everybody have to thanks because it looks like that if we can get everything right during the
00:57:32weekend we can perform well.
00:57:34And we have to keep this momentum and carry on working because it's going to be an interesting race but
00:57:40an interesting season for us.
00:57:42You were talking yesterday of a little bit of problems with oversteering to the corners.
00:57:46How's the car today?
00:57:47It was slightly better.
00:57:48I'm still suffering oversteering.
00:57:50This is my main problem here.
00:57:51And this morning I was working on the car setup.
00:57:56The car seems quick but a bit not as I like or as I prefer.
00:58:02But anyway, both me and Rafi were quick.
00:58:04And I think tomorrow we can do hopefully again another good job.
00:58:09Well done.
00:58:10Michael, what a weekend for you so far.
00:58:11Coming out of not such a good weekend at Malaysia.
00:58:14Coming here with the new car.
00:58:15Difficult to get everything together.
00:58:17Not going out when the track was at its quickest.
00:58:19You must be very, very happy to be where you are right now.
00:58:21Yes, certainly we are.
00:58:24In particular after you said Malaysia was a bit of a wake-up call for us.
00:58:28And it was a great effort from everybody in the team to get the new car pushed forward to this
00:58:35Grand Prix due to the two race engine rules.
00:58:39It was really needed.
00:58:40And it pays out.
00:58:42That's the reason why we're back up on top.
00:58:45We're in a reasonable distance to the two guys in front.
00:58:49And yeah, we're feeling quite good.
00:58:53It is obviously a team sport, but it appears as if Bridgestone had some problems in Malaysia.
00:58:57Here they appear to be right back again.
00:59:00It's a team sport and there's no reason to say one part is responsible for a whatever loss of a
00:59:08race.
00:59:09We have been winning together for five years.
00:59:10We have had two difficult races, a particular one.
00:59:13I don't think that's any worry as long as we find our way back on track.
00:59:18We seem to.
00:59:20Your thoughts on the race at this point?
00:59:22How do you think it might go?
00:59:26Usually, in particular in Malaysia, we have been pretty far off in qualifying.
00:59:31We looked a bit better in race, still not good enough.
00:59:33Now we look in reasonable condition in qualifying and race performance seems to be comparable as well.
00:59:39So we're not too bad.
00:59:42Finally, switching back to you, Fernando.
00:59:45Unusual situation for you.
00:59:46First time you've been in this situation.
00:59:48As successful as you are with the momentum that you have.
00:59:51Enjoying it?
00:59:52Yeah, of course.
00:59:53I feel great.
00:59:55From Australia.
00:59:57I was P1 in Sepan on Saturday, Sunday morning race and now here again.
01:00:04So the important thing is to be tomorrow afternoon.
01:00:09But for sure that the car is working perfectly.
01:00:14All the Renault team is doing all the effort to keep this moment in the team.
01:00:21And the atmosphere is fantastic.
01:00:23And I feel happier than I've ever been.
01:00:26Thank you very much.
01:00:27Now we'd have some words from you in Spanish.
01:00:57Okay, well, Fernando Alonso shifts into Spanish.
01:00:59Really, plenty of road left.
01:01:00As he came out of turn one, he had a ton of room left.
01:01:03Fastest for a sector, obviously, with a 28.6.
01:01:06Look at this winding sector here, which is very difficult.
01:01:11Coming up to this 8 and 9 complex now where you break hard.
01:01:149 and 10, rather.
01:01:17A little whiff of smoke.
01:01:18That characteristic late turner, isn't it?
01:01:21Yeah, right.
01:01:22Yeah, and he gives the old wheel a good yak over there.
01:01:27Quickest corners coming up.
01:01:30Very little steering input there.
01:01:32Just a little bit of understeer possibly going in.
01:01:34But look how it's going through these fast right sweep.
01:01:39And a huge advantage in that second sector.
01:01:42That was a 38.8 second sector.
01:01:44And the chassis not botting me out anywhere near to the degree that, like, the Toyota chassis was with a
01:01:51plank smoke off the underside.
01:01:55A little bit wide on that last corner, which probably cost him, as he said, about two tenths.
01:02:00He was actually four tenths slower than Jarno Trulli in that third sector.
01:02:03But cumulative, Alonzo got it done.
01:02:07We'll be back to Bahrain.
01:02:08Stay with us.
01:02:12Welcome back to Bahrain.
01:02:13First round qualifying for the Grand Prix on Sunday is now complete.
01:02:18Now let's turn to everyone's favorite segment of the program.
01:02:21Turn up the volume and enjoy the sounds of speed.
01:02:56The Grand Prix on Sunday is now complete.
01:03:17The Grand Prix on Sunday is now complete.
01:03:18The Grand Prix on Sunday is now complete.
01:03:24The Grand Prix on Sunday is now complete.
01:03:33Oh, my God.
01:04:31Oh, my God.
01:04:58Oh, my God.
01:05:20Oh, my God.
01:05:49Oh, my God.
01:05:54Oh, my God.
01:06:23Oh, my God.
01:06:27Oh, my God.
01:06:30Oh, my God.
01:06:30Oh, my God.
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