Difficult time for Williams in Chinese Qualifying


Mark Webber
By Andrew Hooper
September 30 2006

It would be a difficult time for the WilliamsF1 in Qualifying for the 2006 Chinese Grand Prix. Both Mark Webber and Nico Rosberg would failt to make it into the final qualifying period. Both drivers would have spins and when interviewed Nico would say that they simply weren't quick enough.

 
Chinese GP Qualifying
 

The start of Q1 would see Kimi Raikkonen first out onto the wet track. Yamamoto, Speed, Sato, Albers, Barrichello, Trulli and others head out. The weather was still playing havoc with a wet track resulting in poor visibility. Both Mark Webber and Nico Rosberg were out on the track. the only drivers yet to come out were the Ferrari's of Massa and Michael Schumacher.

WebberThe first time was set by Raikkonen with Button moving into second, 1m:47.416.
Barrichello was in third followed by Nico, Sato, and Liuzzi. But Coulthard and
Doornbos would move into second and third. De la Rosa was now in fifth, 1m:48.211, but this became eighth as Alonso and Fisichella moved into first and second. Liuzzi was now in third with Speed fourth. Both Ferrari's were now out on the track. The Renault's were the only cars in the 1m:44 second bracket. Alonso's time was a 1m:44.128. De la Rosa would improve with a 1m:45.377 to now be in third. Button was now in fourth. Nico was now down in twelfth and Mark seventeenth with seven minutes remaining. Liuzzi would move ahead of Button and into fourth, 1m:45.564. Mark was to spin his car. He was joined in this by Barrichello who was in fourteenth. Fisichella would pit while Kimi moved back into fourth.

Michael was in twelfth, 1m:47.716, after his first lap. Liuzzi would pit. Alonso would set a new fastest first sector time. Nico was now in fifteenth and Mark sixteenth, with four minutes remaining. Alonso would pit. De la Rosa would pit. Mark and Nico were only just inside the cut off zone. mark would pit with three minutes remaining. The red flag would come out after Monteiro was to park his Spyker in a dangerous position. Team-mate Albers was to also stop, making it a bit of a disaster for the Spyker team. Everyone would pit giving the drivers just one lap with three minutes remaining.

The Bridgestone runners were certainly struggling in the conditions, with none in the top ten. The order was Alonso from Fisichella, de la Rosa, Raikkonen, Liuzzi, Button, Coulthard, Kubica, Speed, and Heidfeld. With the restart of the session both Nico and Mark would come out, joining a flood of drivers all looking to put in that one final lap. The top five driver were staying in their pits. Replays showed that Mark's spin was simply a case of sliding off in the wet conditions.

With the end of the session several drivers were on their final laps. The Toyota team would see both their drivers to final to make Q2. They were joined by both Spyker and Super Aguri cars. Mark would spin at Turn one in the dying moments of the period, but was able to continue back to his pit. So Q1 was a struggle for both Mark and Nico with both drivers having spins and off-track moments.
 
Q2 would get underway with both Mark and Nico taking part. Everyone was out except the Renault's and Raikkonen. Conditions were still very difficult with Liuzzi spinning but been able to recover. The first time would be set by Coulthard, 1m:50428. Mark was fastest with a 1m:50.060 while Nico was in fourth. Button would go fastest, 1m:47.244. Bt the Ferrari's of Massa and Michael would move into first and second. But de la Rosa would take the top spot with a 1m:46.738.

RosbergHeidfeld was now in fourth, 1m:47.155. Button would set a time of 1m:45.952 to go fastest. Mark was now in eighth and Nico ninth. Both Renault's were now out on the track, joined by Raikkonen. Liuzzi would again spin. Even Alonso would run wide at Turn one. Fisichella would also visit the gravel but was able to continue. de la Rosa was in fifth followed by sixth placed Kubica. Alonso was down in tenth. Mark would pit from tenth. Nico was down in twelfth. Coulthard would move into second, 1m:45.968. Alonso was on a quick lap with four minutes remaining. He would go fastest with a time of 1m:44.123. Everyone was out on the track. Fisichella was now in second, 1m:44.842. Button had moved in third followed by Barrichello, de la Rosa and then Coulthard. Mark and Nico were down in fourteenth and fifteenth and facing not making the cut. Barrichello would spin, taking to the gravel.

We had the Renault's followed by the Honda's and the McLaren's and the Red Bull's. All these teams are on Mi8ichelin's, such is the French tyre manufacturers domination of the wet conditions. With the end of the session Mark and Nico were in fifteenth and sixteenth. They would fail o make Q3 even with Mark improving in his last lap to be thirteenth. With the end of the period Heidfeld had moved into fourth and Kubica seventh.

Joining Mark and Nico in not making the cut were Speed, Coulthard, Massa, and Liuzzi. For Massa he was already facing a ten place grid penalty due to an engine change. The top ten was Alonso, Fisichella, Button, Heidfeld, de la Rosa, Barrichello, Kubica, Raikkonen, Michael Schumacher, and Doornbos. Michael was lucky to pull his car up to eighth.
 
With both of the WilliamsF1 drivers sitting out Q3 it would get underway with Alonso leading the drivers out onto the track. The process of burning of fuel would begin and with even minutes remaining de la Rosa would set the early quickest time, 1m:46.494. He was followed by Kubica, Button, Alonso, Michael, Barrichello, Heidfeld, Doornbos, and Raikkonen. Fisichella would pit as Raikkonen was to lose his right mirror.

WebberBoth McLaren's would pit for fresh tyres. Alonso was still fastest from Heidfeld and now Raikkonen, 1m:46.309. Heidfeld would make his first stop, joined by Barrichello, Michael, and Button. Button would get a new nose cone, possibly as a result of hitting Raikkonen's mirror. Fisichella was now in second as Alonso would pit with four minutes left in Q3. Fisichella would also pit. Alonso was till fastest with Raikkonen now in second, 1m:45.926. De la Rosa would move ahead of Kimi and into second but Barrichello would move ahead of the McLaren pair and into second, 1m:45.503. Alonso was on a quick lap and would finish with a time of 1m:44.360 to maintain his spot at the top of the times . De la Rosa would have a major spin at Turn five but was able to keep going.

Fisichella was now in second, 1m:44.992, followed by Barrichello. But was in fourth followed by Raikkonen and Michael. De la Rosa was in seventh followed by Heidfeld, Kubica, and Doornbos. With the end of the period it would turn out to be a great result for Renault. When interviewed Nico said that they were "just wasn't quick enough."