Round 18 (25/02/07) - Interlagos, Brazil

[Daniel Finney]

Round 18 - Interlagos, Brazil[/u][/size]
Circuit Guide

Qualifying (23/02/07)

Weather Conditions[/u]


Results

Front Row	1 K.Lukow Team Lucifer 1m 15.056s
2 B.Hawn Team Pingu 1m 15.123s
Row 2	3 K.Helkonnen Team Lucifer 1m 15.144s
4 F.Callista Bramall 1m 15.163s
Row 3	5 J.Blanc 2Fast2Disney 1m 15.197s
6 J.Thiery Lisa F1 1m 15.206s
Row 4	7 T.Qamar Whizzbanger 1m 15.209s
8 N.Heppert 2Fast2Disney 1m 15.217s
Row 5	9 P.Walton VirginTR 1m 15.217s
10 P.Burgbacher Luftwaffe 1m 15.231s
Row 6	11 E.Glaston Teamo 1m 15.234s
12 M.Karpstein Luftwaffe 1m 15.238s
Row 7	13 J.Opet F1N Racing 1m 15.241s
14 J.Cederberg PharmaOne 1m 15.243s
Row 8	15 M.Santo PharmaOne 1m 15.254s
16 R.Gones Team Pingu 1m 15.255s
Row 9	17 K.Mrazik Teamo 1m 15.263s
18 A.Dubois VirginTR 1m 15.263s
Row 10	19 A.Northcutt Lisa F1 1m 15.301s
20 V.Rautakaite F1N Racing 1m 15.340s
Row 11	21 M.Bliss Whizzbanger 1m 15.374s
22 A.Adauto Bramall 1m 15.660s

Qualifying Summary[/u]
Group 1: Callista, Dubois, Opet, Cederberg, Santo, Lukow
- Callista is looking fast in the Bramall, but Lukow is even faster and takes the top spot for the moment (see Screenshot1).

Group 2: Hawn, Walton, Northcutt, Qamar, Glaston, Blanc
- Hawn is on the ragged edge but just misses out on pole (see Screenshot2)!
- Tanvi Qamar is impressive, setting provisional 5th place in his final race for Whizzbanger.

Group 3: Mrazik, Bliss, Burgbacher, Rautakaite, Heppert, Adauto
- The best anyone can manage is 7th from Heppert, the rest fall a long way short.
- At his home qualifying session, Adauto is massively held up by Bliss (see Screenshot3)!

Group 4: Gones, Thiery, Helkonnen, Karpstein
- All eyes are on Gones, the other Brazilian contender but he dissapoints managing only 16th.
- Helkonnen puts in a blinding lap and sneaks into 3rd place, making it a Team Lucifer 1-3 line up! They are tightening their grip on the championship.


Screenshot1.


Screenshot2.


Screenshot3.

Overview[/u]

- Team Lucifer appear to be tightening the screws on their opponents for the title race. Last time out in Phoenix they were the only team out of the top 4 to score points, and now they have secured 1st and 3rd on the starting grid for the race in Brazil. From Neil Devany's perspective it couldn't look more promising, from his rival's it can only look ominous.
- The local heroes, Gones and Adauto, failed to get themselves up to the sharp end of the grid for Sunday's race. This is especially dissapointing as Gones' team mate, Brandon Hawn, lines up on the front row alongside Lukow.
- There are many unusual faces in Brazil. Qamar, Burgbacher and Rautakaite are all replacing injured/banned drivers. Qamar is however in his 4th race as a stand in and is showing his growing experience by massively outqualifying his team mate, Michael Bliss...Qamar starts 7th and in comparison Michael starts 21st. Walton should also be given credit for a superb lap that Hauled his VirginTR up to 9th place on the grid.

[Daniel Finney]

Race (25/02/07)

Weather Conditions[/u]

Start of Race


End of Race


Results (21 Laps)[/u]

Position	Driver		Team	Finishing Time	Points
1	K.Helkonnen		Team Lucifer	29m 26.887s	15
2	J.Blanc		2Fast2Disney	+2.584s	12
3	K.Lukow		Team Lucifer	+4.449s	10
4	F.Callista		Bramall	+7,274s	8
5	B.Hawn		Team Pingu	+21.754s	6
6	R.Gones		Team Pingu	+24.262s	5
7	T.Qamar		Whizzbanger	+25.673s	4
8	A.Northcutt		Lisa F1	+28.410s	3
9	M.Karpstein		Luftwaffe	+30.151s	2
10	J.Thiery		Lisa F1	+32.003s	1
11	M.Bliss		Whizzbanger	+33.069s
12	M.Santo		PharmaOne	+33.666s
13	A.Adauto		Bramall	+34.220s
14	E.Glaston		Teamo	+36.359s
15	P.Burgbacher		Luftwaffe	+39.481s
16	V.Rautakaite		F1N Racing	+46.448s
17	A.Dubois		VirginTR	+1m 06.117s
18	J.Cederberg		PharmaOne	+1m 06.989s
19	P.Walton		VirginTR	Engine
20	K.Mrazik		Teamo	Engine
21	N.Heppert		2Fast2Disney	Transmission
22	J.Opet		F1N Racing	Throttle

Fastest Lap: J.Cederberg (1m 19.682s)

Summary[/u]
- Start: The track is damp and the clouds are dark but all the cars line up on the grid with dry weather tyres. Rain is imminent.
- Start: Helkonnen gets away well off the line and rockets up from 4th into the lead! Further back, Dubois is late on the brakes and slams into the back of Cederberg's car, both need to pit for damage repairs.
- Lap 1: Hawn manages to get past Lukow for 2nd place.
- Lap 2: But the American is put back down the order as Lukow retakes the position just a few corners later.
- Lap 2: Seeing an opportunity, Blanc also gets past Hawn. Does the Team Pingu car have a problem?
- Lap 3: Parts of the track are now under light drizzle as the rain clouds move ever closer to the track.
- Lap 3: Burgbacher is on the rampage! He's up a few places from his starting position and now steams up the inside of Heppert to take 7th place. The young German has a point to prove after causing the biggest crash of the season in his one and only race, back in Malaysia.
- Lap 4: Brandon Hawn is slipping back all the time now and is down 6th after both Callista and Qamar make their way past.
- Lap 6: Team Lucifer are now romping away at the front and are nearly 5 seconds ahead of the following cars.
- Lap 6: One of the wheels has come loose on the F1N Racing car or Rautakaite! The Lithuanian is forced to pit from 15th before a serious accident occurs.
- Lap 8: Pistops - Burgbacher, Mrazik, Northcutt (all drivers except Burgbacher switch to wet weather tyres).
- Lap 9: It looks as if Burgbacher's decision to stay on dry tyres has backfired, the rain is starting to come down heavier now!
- Lap 9: A throttle problem sends Jere Opet into the barriers and out of 13th place.
- Lap 9: Pitstops - Callista, Heppert, Walton, Gones, Karpstein (all the drivers swap their dry weather tyres for wet weather tyres).
- Lap 10: An electrical problem develops on Cederberg's car and he is forced to pit for repairs for the second time!
- Lap 10: Adinaldo Adauto, at his home race, develops an engine problem but is luckily only a few corners away from the pits.
- Lap 10: There is now a manic rush for the pitlane. Rain is starting to fall all over the track and the drivers all want to switch to wet tyres! Pitstops - Helkonnen, Blanc, Qamar, Hawn, Glaston, Thiery, Santo, Bliss and Burgbacher (changing his tyres after his decision to stay on drys backfired).
- Lap 11: Because Helkonnen is in the pits his team mate, Lukow, is unable to change his tyres and must continue for another lap until the mechanics are free. But he is getting held up behind Dubois and losing valuable time!
- Lap 11: Pitstops - Lukow
- Lap 12: Kraig Lukow rejoins the race track in 3rd place, right in the middle of a battle between Blanc and Callista.
- Lap 13: The running order after the pitstops is Helkonnen, Blanc, Lukow, Callista, Heppert, Mrazik, Walton, Hawn, Gones, Qamar
- Lap 14: The rain is really starting to come down heavier now.
- Lap 16: Helkonnen is beginning to pull out a slight advantage over Blanc, but the gap remains fairly constant at around 3 seconds.
- Lap 17: The 2Fast2Disney car of Heppert has had enough and a transmission failure forces him out of a promising 5th place.
- Lap 17: In an attempt to overtake Northcutt for 10th place, Eddie Glaston runs wide onto the grass and spins his car round! He rejoins down in 16th.
- Lap 18: Cruel luck for Walton! Whilst running an excellent 6th, his VirginTR engine lets go.
- Lap 18: Also encountering engine troubles is Kristofer Mrazik running 5th!
- Lap 20: Helkonnen is looking untouchable now on the penultimate lap.
- Last Lap: And he wins it! Helkonnen takes the chequered flag in Brazil only 3 seconds ahead of Blanc.


An aerial view as Helkonnen storms off the grid to take the lead.


Victor Rautakaite gets a face full of Dubois in mid air as the Englishman collides with Jan Cederberg.


Even though Hawn managed to get past Lukow for 2nd, he couldn't hold his ground.


Peter Burgbacher shows impressive pace as he overtakes Nick Heppert for 7th.


Once again, Hawn is unable to defend his position and slips down to 6th.


Team Lucifer lead the race 1-2 in the early stages.


A loose wheel brings Rautakaite to the pits for some repairs.


Meanwhile the other F1N Racing car is missing a wheel completely! A throttle failure pitches Opet into the barriers at high speed.


It was a lucky escape for Adauto as the pits were only a few corners away when engine woes struck.


Unable to pit due to the mechanics servicing Helkonnen, Lukow is forced to stay out on track behind a slow Dubois.


Transmission failure spells the end of 5th place for Heppert.


Barely visible through the spray, Glaston puts two wheels on the wet grass and subsequently spins his car.


It can't be happening for Walton! 6th place looked certain until an engine failure.


An identical problem for Mrazik who was in 5th.


Helkonnen holds his ground as the rain persists and claims his maiden win in Brazil!


Championship Standings[/u]

	Driver	Points
1	K.Lukow	98
2	O.Okihara	80
3	B.Hawn	77
4	K.Helkonnen	76
5	E.Glaston	74
6	A.Northcutt	68
7	N.Dimoulakis	67
=8	M.Santo	66
=8	J.Opet	66
10	K.Mrazik	62
11	R.Gones	59
12	J.Blanc	49
13	J.Thiery	46
14	J.Cederberg	45
15	P.Walton	38
16	A.Dubois	37
17	F.Callista	33
18	L.Concini	31
19	M.Bliss	30
20	A.Adauto	29
21	M.Karpstein	27
22	N.Heppert	18
23	L.Delaluz	8
24	T.Qamar	4

	Team	Points
1	Team Lucifer	174
2	Team Pingu	144
3	Teamo	136
4	F1N Racing	133
5	Lisa F1	114
6	PharmaOne	111
7	Luftwaffe	107
8	VirginTR	75
9	2Fast2Disney	67
10	Whizzbanger	65
11	Bramall	62

Notes[/u]

- With Helkonnen taking the win and Lukow on the final step of the podium, Team Lucifer scored an incredible haul of 25 points which catapults them 30 points ahead in the championship battle! There are now only 2 races left in the season and it will be a tall order for any team (provided they can still mathematically win) to topple the 'Team From Hell'.
- Callista once again showed good form for Bramall by finishing 4th ahead of the Team Pingu cars in 5th and 6th (Gones scoring points at his home race, much to the crowd's delight). Also, special credit should be given to Tanvi Qamar who drove his final race for Whizzbanger today and put in a great performance to net 7th place.
- And what about VirginTR? They seem to have acquired Bramall's bad luck of late. In both the previous races they have been robbed of a strong haul of points by either car or driver failure and it is looking increasingly unlikely they will add to their points tally before the end of the season.
- It was a day for the substitutes to forget. Victor Rautakaite suffered problems with a loose wheel which ruled him out of a strong result while Peter Burgbacher gambled wrongly on sticking with dry tyres just before the rain came down.