Renault Flying in Race Trim

If world championship points were awarded for the top-ten fastest laps of the race, rather than finishing positions, Robert Kubica would be fourth in the world championship. Prior to Monaco, he would have been just eighth. In the last three grand prix, Renault have set the second fastest lap of the race in Monaco and the fastest laps in both Turkey and Canada. The yellow car certainly flies in race trim.

Winner Takes All

It is interesting to see how the market has reacted to the news that the driver with the most race wins at the end of the season will be crowned World Champion.

2009 Not a Preview

I’ve been trying to resist writing a preview or even looking at the markets for the forthcoming Formula One season for several reasons. Firstly my records would suggest that I am not a particularly good ante post punter.

Tough Top Ten in Fuji

With cool but dry weather predicted this weekend, I’d expect the McLaren’s and Ferrari’s to be fighting out the finish of the race, and will be looking elsewhere for a wager.

Unfortunately, the Japanese race seems to have acquired an unusually low-profile since it’s move to Toyota’s circuit in the foothills of Mount Fuji, and the market I want to play (Q3 Top Ten) isn’t exactly fluid as I write 12 hours before Qualification. I therefore don’t have any prices to recommend, but I do think we can take-on the BMW’s this weekend by laying them on Betfair.

Return of the Quick Nick

In Grasshopper’s article yesterday he covered the problems that BMW seemed to be having extracting a competitive time from their machinery. Robert Kubica’s quote of “The car is nowhere – it is not working” summing this up perfectly in a Free Practice 1 which ended with Kubica and Heidfeld positioned eleventh and twelfth respectively.

Pointless Kubica?

It was a somewhat peculiar session at Spa this morning, for me. Low ambient and track temperatures should have favoured the McLaren, but the Ferrari showed its historical strength at this circuit, with Massa and Raikkonen leading the way and the McLaren’s around 6/10ths off the pace. Market-wise, it’s all going to form then – insofar as the main culprits are concerned at least – and with only a 20% chance of rain predicted for Quali and none predicted for the race itself, I’m inclined to look elsewhere.

Race Fuel Strategies

I am not the first person to notice the difference in BMW’s fuel strategy for their two drivers over a race weekend. Their current tactics seem to involve fuelling one driver lightly and sending him off as a hare in qualifying, whilst the other driver carries a heavier – and presumably more optimum – fuel load for the race on Sunday.