Big team, simple mistakes
Strategic Error!
By Jay
April 3 2010
Ferrari demonstrated today, that when you are as big a team as it is, you can make mistakes that’s couldn’t even escape from a rookie team’s eyes.
With rains hitting the track just a few minutes before the first qualifying session, all teams scurried to the track at the start to post a good faster lap, as the prediction, reported on BBC Live, were rains to get stronger, up until the end of Q2.
The only teams that remained in the pits were Ferrari and Mclaren, hoping the situation will change, and they can use better track conditions to post quick laps.
However, when the situation didn’t seem to settle, the teams sent their respective drivers in the final 5-7 minutes, only to see them aquaplaning all over the track.
While Fernando Alonso finished a dismal 19th, Felipe Massa was down two more places to him at 21st. The McLaren duo of Jenson Button and Lewis Hamilton finished at 17th and 20th, respectively (or, rather dismally, I say).
This simple calculative mistake of not putting the drivers on track at the start of Q1, when the forecast predicted rains to stay up until end of Q2, was rather amateur from Ferrari.
Especially, when you consider first timers in F1 too opted to send their drivers at the start.
Fernando Alonso, however, has not yet lost hope, "For sure we need to avoid these type of mistakes. We really thought the rain had finished so we waited in the garage but it got heavier. We were in the wrong place at the wrong time. But the race is tomorrow - we saw last week in Melbourne that we can get results from the back of the grid so we will just have to make sure we do that."
Felipe Massa, who looked equally dismal after the team’s error, said "We were waiting for the rain to stop before we went back out, but it just got heavier. It was a mistake and the wrong call."
With Red Bull looking dangerously quick on pace, a wet weather, was just the best way to catch up with them, for Ferrari and others.
However, it seems Ferrari have to really get down to work and come up with the best strategy for tomorrow’s racing, and get into points, to stay atop the point standings.
____________
Go to: Malaysian GP Discussion Thread
