U.S. GP 2012 - Race

Ladies and Gentlemen,

On top in every session, Vettel will start from the pole, but it was Hamilton who came very close to end Red Bull’s domination on the closing moments of Q3. Webber was half a second off in third ahead of both Lotus. Ferrari struggled when it matter the most, Alonso even more than Massa, they finished 7th & 9th. Schumacher surprised in 6th; Hulkemberg 8th & Maldonado 10th completed the top 10. Grosjean will take a 5 grid position penalty for a gearbox replacement dropping to 9th.

The grid for tomorrow:

VET  HAM  WEB  RAI  SCH  MAS  HUL ALO GRO MAL (BUT 12th)

Our QF marks were above average, with Matias and I taking 4-point plenums plus 10 members with double points.

In such a tight championship race, every point is making a difference in the standings, check it out.

The compound selection for this track is too hard and has produced a situation never seen before:  the tyres just can’t reach working temperatures, in the words of one driver “if Red Bull needs 8 to 10 laps to heat them up, what hope is there for the rest of us?” and that’s on the primes! This brings an interesting development: cars will be very slow in the opening laps of their second stint making the strategic call for the expected 1-stop a very critical one. Staying out as long as possible with the starting set of primes could be the key to unlock the 56-lap race. The second factor is the grid; there’s no grip for those starting on the even-number stalls: HAM  RAI  MAS  ALO.  Red Bull’s plan is based in taking off from the pack from the very first corner; they are running shorter 7th gears and could be vulnerable on the long DRS second straight. With the limited amount of on-track passing expected the start of the race and the traffic jam at the top of the hill in corner 1 are going to be very scary.

We are running out of time, let’s make the best out of the penultimate opportunity!

Cato – VET  HAM  WEB  RAI  ALO  MAS

Enjoy

In the attached photo, Maria & Fernando, our daughter & father CFA ambassadors in Austin.

 

 

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