2013 Chinese Grand Prix, Shanghai: Preview and weekend times

Did you survive? It's been two very long weeks, two very long weekends without Formula 1. But the four wheels, with a clear advantage over the two wheels (Superbike and MotoGP), are already preparing for the third round of the world championship. China, mystical China: we are ready to be fascinated by oriental culture and... by one of the longest straights in the world championship!

But before going any further, let's take stock of the situation. The drivers arrive from two weeks of relaxation/hard work to improve the car. The performances of the various teams in Sepang confirmed and denied the Melbourne showdown.

Absolutely top in Malaysia we found Redbull: who could achieve the first double of 2013? The answer is clear and obvious. A one-two (and not two-one) that crushes every opponent and takes Vettel to the top, once again first in the world championship. The Mercedes were also really fast, placing third and fourth, with a sore point regarding fuel: too little for Lewis to push hard and finish the race. From the series “And so, give me full power!”. Nico Hulkenberg's performance was also top notch, giving both Lotuses a hard time for at least half the duration of the GP; great performance for the “FDA” Jules Bianchì, thirteenth with a very modest Marussia (the Ferrari leaders don't let him slip away).

Anonymous performance for the two Lotuses, who struggled throughout the race and never had the pace to reach the podium, nor to pass Felipe Massa: another protagonist of a rather anonymous GP, at least until the last pit: then he started to come back, but that's all he had to do.

Alas, in this round we have numerous flop. Sensational flop for Fernando Alonso and the Ferrari wall: the first, for having inexplicably hit Vettel at turn 2, the second for deciding to let the Spaniard stay out with the wing damaged in that way. It goes without saying how it ended (then it was still not really clear who made that decision, and in any case it was the wrong decision). Wasted opportunity for Force India, who were well placed in both qualifying and the race, only to then withdraw both cars due to the same bolt problem. The deep crisis of McLaren continues, which only scores two points with Pérez (what can we say about him?): Button is good, but it seems that the troubles in the pits are not over. Certain spirits hover over the McLaren pitch, could it be Hamilton? To close the flops we must dutifully quote Pastor Maldonado: two races and not even a checkered flag... "they called it consistency".

Did you think we forgot about it? But no! How not to mention the infamous multiple 21? And the soap opera that took place before the podium between the trio of actors Vettel-Newey-Webber? So, let's recap the mess. Webber was first and Vettel second. After the last pit stop Redbull said “habemus resultum” and ordered them to maintain their positions. Vettel pretended not to hear, he invented a thrilling overtaking and went on to win. To be brief, let's mention Webber's middle finger after immediately overtaking. Mark was definitely not happy. There are two positions among fans:

– Vettel was extremely unfair, he had to respect the wishes of the team like Rosberg did with Hamilton. If the roles had been reversed there would have been an uproar between Webber and Redbull.

– Vettel was in his interest: he was faster and therefore passed the Australian. Spectacular overtaking, and if Webber had been fast enough he would have regained his position instead of giving up immediately and acting offended.

Vettel's apology arrived a few hours later, but are we sure it was really his? Meanwhile, alternatives to Formula 1 have sprung up like mushrooms for Mark, even a Porsche steering wheel for Le Mans, as if he were already a finished driver. If he really abandons Redbull we'll see some good things.

But let's turn the page and come to the long-awaited Grand Prix weekend that awaits us. For the third round of the world championship the cheerful company of the FIA ​​stops in China. More precisely in Shanghai. We are in a the circuit even more modern than Malaysia, in fact the construction of this spectacular track dates back to 2002, and the first Formula 1 race was hosted in 2004. The complex of grandstands, the shape of the track and the spectacularity of some curves has nothing to be envied by the Sepang circuit. In fact, the road surface of this track is as wide as that of the Malaysian track, and therefore offers numerous overtaking opportunities while avoiding unnecessary risks. There are two main characteristics of this track: turn one, which is spiral and narrows, places particular strain on the front left tyre; the longest straight of the Formula 1 world championship, where numerous overtaking can be made (even more than one at a time) thanks to the narrow "harpin" hairpin that must be tackled at reduced speed immediately after the straight. The curve that leads into this section of the circuit is also particular: in fact, turn 13 is slightly elevated, to guarantee excellent traction for the cars exiting the slow turns 11 and 12. 5451 meters long, the track winds along a shape reminiscent vaguely the ideogram shàng, from which the word Shanghai derives. The circuit is of the latest generation and the architect who built it, yes, him: Tilke, used particular polyester foundations to cope with the very marshy terrain of the area. The stands, however, are protected from the rain by singular roofs in the shape of a lotus flower, a typical symbol of the country. The two DRS activation zones will be located on the two main straights. Here in China, Pirelli will bring the yellow soft compound for the first time in 2013, combined with the silver medium: a choice made to better cope with the challenging bends of this track.

Let the drums roll, the trumpets ring, a great celebration for all fans: the Chinese GP will be broadcast live from Rai! Well yes, we will finally have direct confirmation, even if the time will not be the best to reach the maximum share, but if anyone had advanced early hypotheses at the dawn of the first GP regarding the Rai-Sky data, they will have the opportunity to deny or confirm your ideas. And in any case, everyone will finally be able to enjoy a race in peace, without jumping streams in unknown languages, without the need for a satellite dish to connect to Swiss or German channels, without waiting in religious abstinence from television and the internet and then listening 5 minutes before the start “Success of… in China!” on the news. In short, we're finally all back on the sofa enjoying our good old Formula 1, Mazzoni and Capelli included.

Previous editions:

2004 edition: at the beginning of the weekend, Ford announces the sale of the Jaguar F1 Team, Cosworth and other companies. Trulli was badly dumped by Renault after some disagreements with team manager Flavio Briatore, and Jacques Villenueve took his place. Ralf Schumacher returns after 6 races of absence caused by the accident in the US GP. In qualifying the fastest is Barrichello on Ferrari, with him on the front row is Kimi Räikkönen on McLaren – Mercedes while Schumacher is forced to start from the pit lane after replacing the engine. In the race on 26 September the Brazilian wins, fighting for a long time with the Finn but also with an excellent Jenson Button on BAR – Honda who, with the strategy of only two stops, manages to obtain second place ahead of Räikkönen.

2005 edition: race played on 16 October. In qualifying the fastest was Fernando Alonso (Renault Team) in 1.34.08 followed by his teammate Giancarlo Fisichella. In general, all the teams that use Michelin tires obtain excellent placings, while those on Bridgestone, including Ferrari, are in difficulty. In the race Alonso won, Räikkönen second on McLaren – Mercedes and third was an excellent Ralf Schumacher on Toyota who made up for the disappointment of the previous year. The Ferraris did poorly: Barrichello was only 12th while Michael was forced to retire due to a spin.

2006 edition: takes place on the weekend of the first week of October and is crucial for the purposes of a championship that sees Alonso - Schumacher go head to head; in qualifying the fastest is the Spaniard while the German only starts from sixth place, but the race is a completely different matter: in pouring rain Michael wins in 1h37'32''747 and thus moves to equal points in the championship while in the constructors' championship Renault surpasses the Maranello company by 1 point thanks to Giancarlo Fisichella's third place; regret for the other Red rider Felipe Massa following a contact with Yamamoto on Super Aguri – Honda.

2007 edition: an edition remembered above all for the mistake made by a young Hamilton and his team. In fact, the Englishman could have become world champion but by postponing his entry into the pits as per the orders, the wear of the tires was such that right on his return he went off the track and was forced to retire, thus favoring his direct rivals, namely Kimi Räikkönen and Fernando Alonso who classified first and second respectively, thus bringing the gap between the three drivers to less than 10 points. Third was Felipe Massa who could not in any way worry the other three but thus increased the gap between the Ferrari team in the constructors' championship.

2008 edition: open fight between Lewis Hamilton and Felipe Massa for the world championship with Alonso referee who before the weekend says he wants to favor the Brazilian for the victory, however this time the Englishman makes no mistakes and goes on to win under a very cloudy sky ahead of the Ferrari driver, bringing his advantage to +7 (94 against 87); third was the other Ferrari driver Räikkönen, while in the constructors' championship Ferrari pulled ahead of McLaren.

2009 edition: the race becomes the third of the championship (as it still is) and takes place on 19 April. Four days earlier the FIA ​​had rejected the appeal against the technical solutions adopted by Brawn GP, ​​Williams and Toyota, so the rankings of the first two grands prix of the season remain unchanged; McLaren and Renault also promptly took action by installing new diffusers. However, the winner was Sebastian Vettel on RBR – Renault followed by teammate Mark Webber, thus beating the favorites Barrichello and Button on Brown GP.

2010 edition: Red Bull dominated in qualifying with Vettel first (1'34''558 at the end of Q3) and Webber second, Alonso third on Ferrari at +0.355. in the race, however, the two McLarens dominated - Mercedes with Button 1st and Hamilton 2nd followed closely by Nico Rosberg on Mercedes GP, Alonso came fourth, Vettel sixth and Webber eighth. In this way Button takes the lead in the world championship with 60 points.

2011 edition: first season for Pirelli on this track in which the riders complain about too much debris left by the tyres, the famous "marbles", however reassured by the manufacturer who states that they are not dangerous given the structure of the track. In qualifying, Sebastian Vettel took pole on RBR – Renault in 1'33″706 (Q3 time), then Jenson Button and Lewis Hamilton on McLaren – Mercedes; fifth and sixth were the two Ferraris of Alonso and Massa. However, the German does not dominate the race: Hamilton wins, Webber third. Subsequently, the FIA ​​punishes the Toro Rosso team with a €100.000 fine for the accident in the Alguersuari pits which caused a wheel to come off during the race, while it takes no action against Nick Heidfeld and Paul Di Resta for an alleged contact during the race.

2012 edition: race held on 15 April, sees Nico Rosberg on the Mercedes GP and Lewis Hamilton on the McLaren – Mercedes lining up on the front row (then dropped 5 positions due to the gearbox replacement). A pole for Mercedes that had been missing for 57 years, which took place on the Monza racetrack thanks to Juan Manuel Fangio. The German also takes the victory followed by Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button. Kamui Kobayashi makes his first career fastest lap and is the second Japanese to do so since 1989 (thanks to Satoru Nakajima). Bad luck for Vettel who allowed himself to be overtaken in the final laps, thus finishing fifth and also for Alonso who finished ninth, gaining only two points in the standings.

Friday April 12

Free Practice 1: 4pm-00pm (Sky Sport F5 HD – Rai Sport 30)

Free Practice 2: 8pm-00pm (Sky Sport F9 HD – Rai Sport 30)

Saturday April 13

Free Practice 3: 5pm-00pm (Sky Sport F6 HD – Rai Sport 00)

Qualifying: 8pm (Sky Sport F00 HD – Rai 1)

Sunday 14 April

Race: 9:00 ̶ 56 laps ̶ 305.066km (Sky Sport F1 HD – Rai 1)

* all times indicated refer to Italy: there is a 6 hour difference between Italy and China.

Distance per lap: 5.451km

Number of curves: 16

Direction of travel: hours

RECORD

Test lap: 1:34.012 – R Barrichello – Ferrari – 2004
Race lap: 1:32.238 – M Schumacher – Ferrari – 2004
Distance: 1h29:12.420 – R Barrichello – Ferrari – 2004
Driver victories: 2 – L Hamilton
Team victories: 3 – Ferrari, McLaren
Driver pole: 3 – S Vettel
Pole team: 3 – Red Bull
Best driver laps: 2 – L Hamilton
Best team laps: 3 – McLaren
Driver podiums: 4 – K Raikkonen
Team podiums: 7 – McLaren

Hall of Fame

1. 2004 R Barrichello – Ferrari
2. 2005 F Alonso – Renault
3. 2006 M Schumacher – Ferrari
4. 2007 K Raikkonen – Ferrari
5. 2008 L Hamilton – McLaren Mercedes
6. 2009 S Vettel – Red Bull Renault
7. 2010 J Button – McLaren Mercedes
8. 2011 L Hamilton – McLaren Mercedes 9. 2012 N Rosberg ̶ Mercedes

Andrea Villa, Matteo Bramati