Can the 2012 season get any more competitive? Four rounds in and we’ve had four winning drivers and four winning teams. That hasn’t happened since 1983! Sebastian Vettel and Red Bull added their names to the list in Bahrain on Sunday, proving that you should never write off the reigning champions. Not only that, Lotus made good on their recent promise, with Kimi Raikkonen pushing Vettel all the way, despite an 11th place start, suggesting their first 2012 victory is only a matter of time. We look back team by team on an enthralling 2012 Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix…

Red Bull
Sebastian Vettel, P1
Mark Webber, P4
Red Bull got right back on form in Bahrain, thanks to massive work by their mechanics and endless fettling with both new and old parts. Vettel led from the start, and was only challenged once when he had to rebuff Raikkonen in Turn One on lap 36. Webber’s KERS went awol momentarily at the start, but he fought back to take his fourth fourth place of the season. The win, their first of the year, puts Vettel on top of the drivers’ points and Red Bull on top of the constructors’.

Vettel, the winner in Brazil in 2010, won 11 races this season but finishes the year without victories in the last two races. He retired on the first lap in Abu Dhabi because of a puncture.
The second-place finish came a day after the two-time champion captured his 15th pole position of the season to break Nigel Mansell’s 19-year record. The 24-year-old German was trying to win his 12th race of the year, which would allow him to finish the season only one victory shy of Michael Schumacher’s record set in 2004.
Vettel had clinched the title four races ago, at the Japanese GP. Red Bull also had already won the constructors’ championship, with McLaren finishing second and Ferrari third.
On a dry track despite forecasts of rain, Webber took the lead when Vettel gave his teammate plenty of space at the end of the main straight.
Red Bull told Vettel on lap 14 that data from his car showed a gearbox problem and asked him to short shift when in second gear. The problem then got worse and the team later said Vettel had to short shift in every gear, considerably slowing his lap times.
After Webber got past, though, Vettel again increased his pace and had no problem staying behind his teammate. He even set fastest laps a couple of times. Webber eventually finished with the race’s best lap.

Fernando Alonso of Ferrari was fourth and crowd favorite Felipe Massa, in his 100th race for Ferrari, was fifth. Adrian Sutil of Force India finished sixth and Nico Rosberg of Mercedes was seventh.

Lewis Hamilton, the winner in Abu Dhabi two weeks ago, also had a gearbox problem on his McLaren and eventually retired on lap 48.
Seven-time champion Schumacher of Mercedes had a punctured left-rear tire while trying to pass Bruno Senna of Renault at the end of the main straight. Schumacher had already got past Senna when the Brazilian’s car touched his tire and forced him to make an unscheduled pitstop that led to a 15th-place finish.
Senna also had to make a stop because of damage to his car and eventually received a drive-through penalty for the incident and finished 17th.
Veteran Brazilian driver Rubens Barrichello, who is yet to secure a drive for next year and could have made his last F1 race after an 18-year career, got off to a slow start from 12th position and finished only 14th.
Timo Glock of Virgin had a tire come off his car after a pit stop and he had to retire at the exit of the pit lane on lap 23.

Despite speculation over the future of the event, the Tasmanian Government has committed to invest $2.08 million to ensure V8 Supercars continue racing in Tasmania until at least 2014.

“V8 Supercars is delighted with this new agreement that will ensure our large fan base here in Tassie will get their annual fix of the world’s best touring cars,” said acting V8 Supercars CEO Shane Howard.

“It reinforces our intent to remain a truly national sport, supporting motorsport in Australia whilst also expanding our international footprint.

“The State Government has listened to the people to ensure the states’ largest annual event continues at Symmons Plains, injecting significant economic benefit and tourism profile to the region.

“All through our discussions with the Government and Motorsport Tasmania there was a strong will to make this happen for the state.”

Since first holding an Australian Touring Car Championship event in 1969, Symmons Plains hosted the nation’s top series continuously through to 1999 before a break of four seasons until the V8 Supercars returned in 2004.

Holden drivers Peter Brock and Garth Tander remain the most successful men in ATCC/V8 Supercars Championship history at Symmons Plains, each with seven race wins.

Last year’s races were won by Craig Lowndes and Mark Winterbottom, while Bottle-O driver Paul Dumbrell scored his first career podium finish in the Sunday race.

This year’s Falken Tasmania Challenge will be held at Symmons Plains on November 11-13 with V8 Supercars supported by Formula Ford, Formula 3, Australian Superbikes and Aussie Racing Cars.

For more information on the event: http://tasmania.v8supercars.com.au/

Located on the spectacular Yas Island, the track is set to revolutionise the design of future Formula One circuits. Boasting top speeds of 320 km/h and average speeds of 195 km/h, it features nine right turns and 11 left turns and is one of the few venues on the calendar to run in an anti-clockwise direction.

Designed by renowned circuit architect Hermann Tilke, Yas Marina has a waterfront setting scenic enough to rival the likes of Monaco and Valencia. And with the track wrapping itself around the island’s glamorous newly-built marina, there’s plenty of mooring space for the paddock’s plethora of yachts.

Its distinctive design also boasts several innovative elements including the stunning five-star, 500-room Yas Marina Hotel, which straddles the circuit; the 60-metre solar powered Sun Tower, which offers unrivalled views for invited guests; and a pit lane which sees the cars exit via a tunnel passing under the track.

Another world first is that all of the grandstands, including the massive hairpin seating area, are covered to protect spectators from the desert sun, whilst the state-of-the-art pit building boasts 40 air-conditioned garages. Luxuriant comforts and first-rate views are clearly the watchwords for Abu Dhabi race goers.

The track itself was designed with racing in mind. As well as the waterside marina area, there are high-speed sections (including the longest straight on the F1 calendar), tight corners for overtaking, and even a twisty street circuit-style sector. Overall, its diverse elements come together to create one of the longest and most demanding tracks in the world, where close and competitive racing is guaranteed.

To check out all the action go to: http://www.formula1.com/

Amazingly, after twice being lapped on the race track, Edwards salvaged a decent run and retained his lead in the Chase standings with a ninth-place finish, as his two closest pursuers entering the race, Matt Kenseth and Brad Keselowski, both experienced late trouble and finished 31st and 17th, respectively.
Jeff Gordon ran third, followed by Kevin Harvick, who climbed to third in the standings, 21 points behind Edwards. Denny Hamlin came home fifth, with Jeff Burton sixth and Dale Earnhardt Jr. seventh.

After a wild first half of the race had settled into a 97-lap green-flag run after the midpoint, Hamlin squeezed past Gordon on Lap 320 and stayed out front in traffic until Burton’s spin caused the 10th caution of the race.
That started a spate of cautions that gave Harvick and Stewart a chance to move to the front with two-tire calls — and allowed Edwards to return to the lead lap under the 12th caution with a free pass for the highest-scored car one lap down.

The Red Bull driver’s latest triumph was one of his most straightforward of his ultra-successful year. As his front row partner and team-mate Mark Webber was attacked by Jenson Button’s McLaren and Fernando Alonso’s Ferrari at the start, Vettel was free to pull clear.

He sat on a four to five second lead for most of the distance, as he led every lap and completed a perfect performance with the fastest lap of the race as well.

Button got through to second on the first lap, as Alonso twitched under braking and ran wide, letting Webber keep third. The Australian mounted some vigorous attacks on Button over the opening laps, before the McLaren managed to escape and head off for an ultimately uncontested second.

Webber then lost third to Alonso at the final stops, when being the first of the frontrunners to change to the hard Pirellis cost him.

Lewis Hamilton and Felipe Massa’s turbulent season continued with yet another collision between them. The Ferrari had got ahead of the McLaren on the first lap and was a safe distance ahead until an error just before half-distance left Massa vulnerable to attacks from Hamilton.

They eventually collided as Hamilton went down the inside at Turn 5 – with the stewards deciding Massa was at fault for leaving insufficient room and giving the Brazilian a drive-through penalty. Massa later retired when he smashed his suspension on a kerb, just as he had in qualifying, while Hamilton recovered from ninth to seventh after pitting for a new front wing.

He finished behind the two Mercedes, which were led by Michael Schumacher, who had moved onto Nico Rosberg’s tail with a fast start then jumped him for fifth with a late final pitstop.

Toro Rosso looked set to get both cars in the points until Sebastien Buemi stopped with smoke pouring from his machine. Jaime Alguersuari went on to take eighth, ahead of Adrian Sutil in the leading Force India, and Sergio Perez, as the Sauber man proved the most successful of those who ran ultra-short opening stints on hard tyres then switched to softs for the duration.

Perez narrowly beat Renault’s Vitaly Petrov, who followed the same strategy. Bruno Senna challenged for points in the second Renault but was hampered by KERS issues and finished 12th, followed by Paul di Resta (Force India) and Heikki Kovalainen’s Lotus – which showed strong race pace to run as high as 10th.

The Buddh layout proved tricky for the field to safely navigate as one on the first lap. First a brush between the two Williams sent Rubens Barrichello into Kamui Kobayashi’s Sauber, which then rejoined in the path of Timo Glock’s Virgin. Among several other brushes of wheels around the lap, Jarno Trulli was left with a puncture after his Lotus was punted into a spin by an HRT.

PROVISIONAL RACE RESULTS

The Indian Grand Prix
Buddh International, New Delhi, India;
60 laps; 307.249km;
Weather: Dusty.

Classified:

Pos Driver Team Time
1. Vettel Red Bull-Renault 1h30:35.002
2. Button McLaren-Mercedes + 8.433
3. Alonso Ferrari + 24.301
4. Webber Red Bull-Renault + 25.529
5. Schumacher Mercedes + 1:05.421
6. Rosberg Mercedes + 1:06.851
7. Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes + 1:24.183
8. Alguersuari Toro Rosso-Ferrari + 1 lap
9. Sutil Force India-Mercedes + 1 lap
10. Perez Sauber-Ferrari + 1 lap
11. Petrov Renault + 1 lap
12. Senna Renault + 1 lap
13. Di Resta Force India-Mercedes + 1 lap
14. Kovalainen Lotus-Renault + 2 laps
15. Barrichello Williams-Cosworth + 2 laps
16. D’Ambrosio Virgin-Cosworth + 2 laps
17. Karthikeyan HRT-Cosworth + 3 laps
18. Ricciardo HRT-Cosworth + 3 laps
19. Trulli Lotus-Renault + 4 laps

Fastest lap: Vettel, 1:27.457

Not classified/retirements:

Driver Team On lap
Massa Ferrari 33
Buemi Toro Rosso-Ferrari 25
Maldonado Williams-Cosworth 13
Glock Virgin-Cosworth 3
Kobayashi Sauber-Ferrari 1

World Championship standings, round 17:

Drivers: Constructors:
1. Vettel 374 1. Red Bull-Renault 595
2. Button 240 2. McLaren-Mercedes 442
3. Alonso 227 3. Ferrari 325
4. Webber 221 4. Mercedes 145
5. Hamilton 202 5. Renault 72
6. Massa 98 6. Force India-Mercedes 51
7. Rosberg 75 7. Sauber-Ferrari 41
8. Schumacher 70 8. Toro Rosso-Ferrari 41
9. Petrov 36 9. Williams-Cosworth 5
10. Heidfeld 34
11. Sutil 30
12. Kobayashi 27
13. Alguersuari 26
14. Di Resta 21
15. Buemi 15
16. Perez 14
17. Barrichello 4
18. Senna 2
19. Maldonado 1