A lack of grip and confusion over the best car setup were complaints heard throughout the day in Montreal on Friday, as drivers were spinning all over the place. In FP1, Carlos Sainz stopped on track with his Toro Rosso smoking gently, whilst Fernando Alonso also stopped at the hairpin for another McLaren disappointment.

Stroll was celebrating his home race, but struggling with setup, whilst both Ferrari drivers had sizeable spins. Lewis Hamilton narrowly avoided the local wildlife but went on to post the fastest time. For FP2, Ferrari took over the top spot with Kimi leading Hamilton and then Vettel. But it was spins that dominated the session. Many, many drivers were struggling but Romain Grosjean took the biscuit with two spins in two laps and then a third just to make sure.

Hülkenberg and Ericsson brushed the Wall of Champions barriers, whilst Vettel had a good catch to avoid them. At Red Bull, it was a disappointing afternoon as both drivers missed out on some running due to engine problems.

Copyright http://sidepodcast.com

It was always going to be an adjustment for Fernando Alonso to return to Formula One, after having so much fun (and doing so well!) in the Indy 500 last month. However, he’s due to return to the car in Canada and for the rest of the season. After that? He’s not so sure.

The Spaniard says: “We have to win. If we are winning before September, when I will make my decision, I will stay. I joined this project to win the title. If you are not in a competitive position, maybe you change project.”

It’s a huge ask for the team to turn their fortunes around, considering they haven’t even got a point on the board yet and struggle to get both cars to the end of each race. That’s something McLaren boss Zak Brown blames Honda for, saying: “I don’t want to get into what our options are. Our preference is to win the world championship with Honda. But at some point you need to make a decision as to whether that’s achievable. And we have serious concerns.”

Copyright http://sidepodcast.com

It’s a sight we’ve been waiting for for a long time, but Robert Kubica has participated in, and completed, a full test with the Renault team at the Valencia circuit in Spain. The Polish driver was last in a car in 2010, before his F1 career was interrupted by a horrific rallying crash that caused severe injuries to his arm.

Whilst his drive with Lotus-Renault was put on hold, Kubica continued to race in rallying championships once his rehabilitation was complete. But there was always a question mark over whether he would be able to drive a Formula One car again.

Now he’s completed 115 laps in Valencia in an older F1 car, the 2012 edition, mixing up fast lap qualifying practice alongside longer high fuel race simulations. Afterwards, Kubica said: “For me, it’s been an important day from an emotional point of view. It has been a long time away from the paddock… a few years ago I felt it was impossible. I’m proud with what I achieved today, but also it shows what I have lost.”

Copyright http://sidepodcast.com

It’s never a sight you want to see, and thankfully one you don’t see very often: an F1 car on its side up close against the barriers. That’s what happened when Jenson Button tipped Sauber’s Pascal Wehrlein into an accident in Monaco, which thankfully ended with everyone unharmed. Wehrlein took a little while to extricate himself from the car and was taken away for medical checks but was ultimately okay and has been cleared to race in Canada.

There’s been some criticism of the incident, given that Button was on a one-off return and cannot serve the penalty that was handed to him by the stewards. Monisha Kaltenborn was understandably annoyed, saying: “I don’t understand how one can assess a situation and get it so wrong. There was no way he could pull the move off, that’s why I don’t know why he would try to do such a move.”

Wehrlein was initially cautious about his status, considering his Race of Champions crash in December that kept him out of the car for two races already this season. But he shared on social media: “Checks all done, see you in Montreal.”

Copyright http://sidepodcast.com

Antonio Giovinazzi has already had a taste of driving Formula One cars this season, after an unexpected stint as Pascal Wehrlein’s replacement at Sauber. The Ferrari reserve driver will get another chance to show his skills behind the wheel as he has been given the opportunity to run the Haas car in seven Friday free practice sessions.

Giovinazzi will make his first appearance at Silverstone, and replaces Kevin Magnussen for all but one of his practice sessions, where he will take Grosjean’s car. The Italian driver said: “Being the third driver with Scuderia Ferrari is obviously a great place to be, and getting seat time in these FP1 sessions with Haas F1 will keep me sharp. I’m proud of the faith Ferrari and Haas have in me and gracious for the seat time Kevin and Romain are sharing with me.”

Magnussen is clearly giving up more of his seat time than Grosjean, which comes down to contractual stipulations and Gunther Steiner, boss at Haas, also goes out of his way to thank the pair for sharing.

Copyright http://sidepodcast.com

The first half of the Monaco Grand Prix was, let’s face it, a bit dull, but things picked up as the race started to unravel. One-stop strategies were the norm, and the pit stop action allowed Vettel to get ahead of Räikkönen, and Ricciardo to get ahead of both Bottas and Verstappen. Thus it was Ferrari and Ricciardo that took to the podium once the chequered flag was waved.

The second half of the race brought a touch of chaos though, as Button collided with Wehrlein, pushing the Sauber on to its side against the barrier. Thankfully he was unharmed. Ericsson managed to crash under the safety car. Kvyat and Pérez collided, whilst Stroll retired before the end of the race. Hamilton survived it all to finish seventh, whilst both Haas drivers finished in the top ten for the first time.

Copyright http://sidepodcast.com

Ferrari always seemed to have the upper hand during qualifying in Monaco, easily making it through the first few sessions. It was no surprise to see the Sauber pair, as well as Palmer and Stroll all dropping out in Q1, but it was a shame for the patched up, Ocon, who also missed out on Q2.

The big surprise came during the second session when Lewis Hamilton, who was struggling for pace, failed to get through. He was improving when Vandoorne crashed into the barrier, and brought out yellow flags.

It was the 1st time this year both McLarens have been in Q3, although both have penalties to take. Meanwhile out front, Räikkönen set the benchmark, with Vettel joining him on the front row. Bottas settled for third, with the two Red Bulls rounding out the top five.

Copyright http://sidepodcast.com

First practice on Thursday in Monaco was dominated by the sight of drivers locking up and pushing the limits of the track – both Ferrari drivers kissed the barriers at various points throughout the session. Jenson Button was back on it for his first day behind the wheel this season, and finished two places behind teammate Vandoorne. Lewis Hamilton was fastest with Sebastian Vettel second.

The German driver picked up the pace for FP2, with Mercedes dropping back. The overriding image from the second session, however, was the Williams of Lance Stroll being hauled away by crane after he crashed into the barriers at Casino Square. The always impressive Monaco marshals sorted the situation in about five minutes, allowing the session to continue. Jolyon Palmer also had an interrupted session, his Renault crawling to a halt with a power unit failure.

Meanwhile, Sebastian Vettel was the fastest with Daniel Ricciardo behind him, and the Mercedes pair all the way down in 8th and 10th. Button moved to within four hundredths of a second of his teammate as he quickly got up to speed.

Copyright http://sidepodcast.com

The Force India squad have announced a multi-year partnership with Breast Cancer Care, with the goal of “reaching more people affected by breast cancer faster.” The charity’s logo is the pink ribbon, which goes nicely with Force India’s rebranded pink image this season, and the cars will proudly bear the logo in Monaco this weekend.

In fact, Channel 4 presenter and Breast Cancer Care ambassador Lee McKenzie was tasked with applying the sticker to the car in the Monaco pit lane, as the news was revealed. She initially tweeted about the pressure of the situation, saying: “How tricky can it be to apply a sticker, straight, no bubbles, the right way up. Sorry in advance!” But later confirmed that it all went well.

Meanwhile, Andy Harris, a director at the charity says: “Force India are committed to help achieve our ambition of doubling the number of men and women we support by 2020. We want to make sure everyone affected by this life-threatening disease gets the care and support they need.”

Copyright http://sidepodcast.com

Sebastian Vettel snatched the lead of the race from polesitter Lewis Hamilton off the line, as the Spanish Grand Prix got underway. Behind them, Valtteri Bottas nudged Kimi Räikkönen who had a hard impact with Max Verstappen, knocking both drivers out of the race. With tyre strategy the main area to make gains or losses, Bottas remained out the longest of the front runners and managed to hold up Vettel, but things still looked like they were going Ferrari’s way.

That is until Stoffel Vandoorne beached his McLaren in the gravel after contact with Felipe Massa. The virtual safety car was deployed and Hamilton essentially got a free pit stop. When Vettel’s next stop came he rejoined side by side with the Mercedes, kept the position but some tense laps followed. Hamilton made it past, took the lead and never looked back. Vettel stayed second, with Daniel Ricciardo a distant and lonesome third.

The only other retirement of the day was Bottas, whose engine was smoking as he pulled to a halt off track. Pascal Wehrlein finished in the top ten to bring home Sauber’s first points of the season, whilst Force India finished fourth and fifth to consolidate their fourth place in the championship.

Copyright http://sidepodcast.com