"Cato Batista" 25/10/2015 4:02:43 ID #842

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Because of the bad weather Qualifying has been postponed from Saturday to Sunday morning at 9am, with the race schedule to start at 2pm, both local times.

Rain never stopped at the Circuit of the Americas, but at least the teams had one hour of FP3 to get familiar with the conditions that will most likely face in the race, and for us it was the only opportunity to get an idea of who’s going to be fast in the rain tomorrow.

Results from FP3 left no doubt Mercedes has the best package under any conditions and in any track; HAM was the only driver under the 2 minute mark and was full 8 tenths ahead of VET’s Ferrari. Teammate ROS had an off-track excursion- like practically everyone else at one point or another- finishing 9th but he had no problem matching Lewis’ sector times. There are no bad wet-weather drivers in modern F1 racing, but some have a rather special talent and their skill shines in this conditions. VET, HUL, BOT  and rookie SAI were miles ahead of their teammates and could definitely make a difference in a wet race. Red Bull finds these conditions ideal to overcome their power disadvantage and Toro Rosso always produces agile chassis that like the slippery surface, so it was not a surprise to find 3 of the Renault-powered cars in the top 8.   

P3 results - In case QF is cancel this would be the starting grid tomorrow-

HAM VET HUL BOT SAI KVY RAI RIC ROS MAS.

While more rain is forecast for Sunday morning, the intensity is expected to be far lighter and thus allow for running to take place.

The selection on rubber for the 56 lap race will be between Intermediate and Full Wets (or “Monsoons’) The teams have 4 sets of Inters and 2 Monsoons for Saturday and Sunday. Knowing when to switch compounds according to surface conditions is the name of the game in a wet race, and the engineers in the pitwall can’t help much making those decisions.

In the 3 editions of the US GP in the COTA, VET is the only driver to have won from pole, HAM won the last 2, he has yet to start from the pole in Texas. It’s just a formality before the popular Brit clinches his second title, it will most likely happen tomorrow. He will be the first British driver ever to win 2 Championship in succession.

Without QF today we’ll have to wait until tomorrow to know our results. For the first time we’ll get our total QF and Race points in the same day, and with the unpredictable results of a wet race and the closest CFA Championship on record, get prepared for a terrifying shake-up in the standings!

If you can place your picks after the grid is established in QF, but as always, it’s a good idea to secure a selection as soon as you can. Also, you have until 9am local Texas time tomorrow to change your QF picks.

Here we go, the biggest lottery of 2015 : Cato - HAM BOT VET ROS HUL RIC

Good luck, enjoy, it’s going to be exciting!