Hunt for Glory: Nathan Mckane's 2nd Season

[RealRacingRoots]

2011 Indian Grand Prix Weekend

Practice Report:
The local and international press were out in hordes around the garage today, with Narain taking Tonio's seat this weekend. I'm fine with the fact that he is taking the spotlight this weekend, he deserves it. There is still the odd journalist asking me a question, but being second in the WDC doesn't seems to be their focus. Narain was the first car out for practice, albeit, only for a install lap. A few minutes later once a few cars had come in it was time for our first run on the Buddh. Coming out of the shade of the pit complex and out of turn 1, the heat is immediately noticeable. The air temp is 33 degrees Celsius, and it's going to be the hottest weekend since probably Valencia. The pace of the car looked good, no, the pace of the car looked very good. P1 within the first few laps of going out was a good sign, on the Harder tire. On the sixth lap, I got the braking wrong going into turn 1 and went out onto the run off. Some rocks or rubble was still on the road there and one struck the front left tire, puncturing it. Lovely, doing a whole lap on three tires and one that looks to wreck the suspension. So I pitted and stayed there for a duration of the session. It eventually took Button on the softer tires to get a faster time, by six tenths no less. My time was done very early in the session and Button did this time much later on. Then Massa became the first driver to break into the 1:26s, soon followed by Hamilton and Vettel. A red flag came out as a dog somehow got on track, sending a near packed track to silence. Once the green flag waved, I put on a set of the softer tires (a rarity in practice for me, I know) and went out on the last run of the day. As it turns out, it was time to make a statement. Once you see the time below, you will understand what I say. I need to show Hamilton, and Vettel, and Webber, and Alonso that repeating as the WDC, isn't a mere hope, as I will make it reality.

Practice Results:
1st The Big Red Machine 1:26.194
2nd The Finger +0.715
3rd Heartbreak Hamilton +0.723
...
5th Surrender Monkey +0.927
...
8th Aussie Brit +1.337
...
22nd The Bookworm +5.887
23rd The Ganges Hydrofoil +6.015
24th Dorsal Fin +6.297

Qualifying Report:
A little bit of cloud cover has converged on the circuit, cooling it down a bit. It's still hot out, and will get hotter as it is now time to qualify. The other Indian contingency in a Force India was the first car to get out on track, with me following behind Sutil. While in the first three lap run I was on provisional pole, I wasn't happy with being blocked by the Sauber of Perez or Sutil. I wanted to make that statement to the others, even if it did cost me another set of Option tires. But, looking at who was near the top, it looked like it may not be necessary; namely because the highest ofhet title contender with 10 minutes left was Hamilton in 8th. So it seems hesitation has gotten to the better of my agitation. Eventually other title contenders did rise in the standings. The on track action was tough as there was traffic everywhere holding everyone up. There was no time to sympathise, as I took a commanding pole, even with the traffic issues. The other contenders did eventually get near the front, but they were still miles away from what I've done in both sessions.

Qualifying Result:
1st The Big Red Machine 1:26.671
2nd The Finger +1.360 (He was sitting 18th for the longest time)
3rd Heartbreak Hamilton +1.373
4th The Sushi Chef's Son from Amagasaki +1.394 (He was sitting 2nd for the longest time)
...
6th Aussie Brit +1.636
7th Surrender Monkey +1.639
...
19th The Reverend +3.233
20th The Ganges Hydrofoil +4.529
21st The Bookworm +5.955

[RealRacingRoots]

McKane, "We Will Win"
In an interview after qualifying, reigning World Champion and pole sitter guaranteed a victory at today's Indian Grand Prix and the repeat of the World Driver's Championship.

"The racing between the title contenders has been very close, but I feel that it's time that I break away and get the job done. We have been getting the job done in qualifying, but it's Sunday where you earn the points; it's Sunday where championships are won, and this Sunday is where my second title dreams will being to be realised. And that starts with a win tomorrow. I will win the Indian Grand Prix, and the World Driver's Championship in Brazil."

Such an emotional talk from McKane is highly unusual for the usually quiet Scotsman. He is currently second in the World Driver's Championship, being 14 points behind Lewis Hamilton.

Race: 2011 Indian Grand Prix

Race Report:
I can't think of another race weekend where I was more focused on the race. When Martin Brundle tried to ask me a question during his pitwalk, I completely ignored him. I wasn't in the mood for the typical distractions. The race started, and while Vettel got a good start but only managed to get side by side with me before I out braked him into turn 1. I began to try and build a gap to Vettel and the rest of the field, which slowly began to build over the next few laps before the Option tires began to wore out. Once they began to wore out, Vettel began to return to the back of me. With DRS, he took a shot at an overtake even though I got a great launch onto the back straight and Vettel was only at the maximum 1 second required for the DRS. He did manage to get past on the outside as I gave him room on the outside although I will have the better line for braking. And I retook the spot with ease. The lap after this one was when both Vettel and I were going to pit, and I was having a little bit more issues on the Options than Vettel as I went wide onto the runoff at turn 15, letting Vettel past. I took a strong lunge at him at the next turn, but just wasn't close enough to make the pass there. Vettel got a better launch onto the front straight and tried to get a gap which I closed quickly under braking for turn 1. Then I made a huge risk and made a big dive at turn 3, I got the inside line and took the position, and got DRS to boot on the long straight. He did get back in my slipstream but only able to get beside me right before the braking zone which guaranteed the position for me before we both pitted. Behind us, a bunch of the other front runners pitted, and with Vettel having the first pit-stall, forced a delayed exit for him as a few cars entered, allowing me to exit the pits first, although currently in fifth. With the first stop of 2 done, and now on Primes, it was now time to leave Vettel behind and guarantee that victory. After taking the out-lap gingerly with the cold Primes, I began to drop Vettel lap after lap, as I took the fastest lap of the race on this run. The other runners did pit and I took back the lead as the gap continued to widen. Soon it was time to go through the back markers, which I did with relative ease. The amount of time lost was minimal compared to Vettel before we pitted some laps latter for the final set of new Primes. This time, I exited in 2nd as the Ferrari of Massa was on an alternate strategy and managed to work his was up to 2nd. So now the goal was to pass him on the track and take the win. With Massa on worn tires, the gap began to shrink by every lap after my primes got warmed up. The opportunity to overtake arose after getting close at turn 1, and the lunge at turn 3 like on Vettel. But as I locked my brakes and ran a little wide, Massa got a great run on exit and got in front as I got DRS. Massa then took to the inside line and I got behind him to get the slipstream as well as the DRS speed. I then took to the outside line and Massa nearly squeezed me onto the rumble strips but I outbraked him and got passed. Massa remained on the inside, near my right rear, but backed off as soon as I began going to the inside to prepare for the next turn. The pass was made, and now it was about keeping a consistent pace until the end of the race. I was still dropping Massa before he pit for option tires, giving Vettel back second. I ran a lonely race from there on out, except for some lapped traffic from backmarkers and some midfielders at the end. The win that I needed was the win that I got, and I was happy to get it. Once I made it back to the pits and parked the car, I took a moment of silence to myself before getting out of the car to wish the best to Dan's family. Then I took off my belts, removed the head rest and just stood up and yelled at the top of my lungs. I patted my hands on my helmet and pointed to the sky, this one's for you Dan.

Race Results:
1st The Big Red Machine
2nd The Finger +13.810
3rd Gucci Warrior +32.564
...
5th Aussie Brit +43.307
6th Heartbreak Hamilton +51.384
...
17th Yours Truly +2 Laps
18th The Ganges Hydrofoil +2 Laps
19th The Bookworm +2 Laps

Not Classified:
Glassy Gachot - Engine
Surrender Monkey - Suspension
Britney Spears - Hydraulics

[RealRacingRoots]

Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QuJxly0zuOk

WDC Standings:
(Bold signifies drivers still with a mathematical chance at winning the WDC)

1st McKane 206
2nd Hamilton 203
3rd Vettel, Webber 173
5th Alonso 148
6th Button 124
7th Massa 117
8th Petrov 105
9th Schumacher 102
10th Heidfeld 87
11th Rosberg 81
12th Perez 71
13th Kobayashi 45
14th Maldonado 22
15th Buemi 19
16th Barrichello 16
17th Alguersuari 15
18th Di Resta 9
19th Sutil 1
D'Ambrosio, Trulli, Liuzzi, Glock, Kartikeyan, and Kovalainen all have 0.

WCC Standings:
(Bold signifies constructors still with a mathematical chance at winning the WCC)

1st Red Bull 346
2nd McLaren 327
3rd Ferrari 265
4th HRT 206
5th Renault 192
6th Mercedes 183
7th Sauber 116
8th Williams 38
9th Toro Rosso 34
10th Force India 10
Virgin and Lotus both have 0.

In Game Press Clippings

Magnificent Win For McKane in India
HRT's Nathan McKane took a dominant win at the Buddh International Circuit after starting from pole and taking fastest lap. His victory gave him a 3 point lead over Lewis Hamilton in the championship.

Indian Grand Prix Post-Weekend Quote:
Nathan McKane, HRT (1st)
"After a disappointing race in Korea, we needed to bounce back in a big way here in India.The track itself proved to be a real treat to drive and race on as it had a great flow through the corners. We were on the pace all weekend, and that pace continued in the race where we were able to maintain a pace faster then the cars immediately behind us, including getting fastest lap of the race. The whole team worked hard this weekend, and we were rewarded with a much needed 25 points. This is the first time in my F1 career that I've been in the points lead during the season, and with two races to go as well. The game is on now for the championship"

Big announcement coming up.

[RealRacingRoots]

October 31st, 2011
(It's all going down on Halloween, YYEEEAAAHHHH)

Press Conference set for Monday
Officials from HRT have confirmed that a press conference with officials from HRT and a unknown team being present. It has been speculated that the announcement will be about where current points leader Nathan McKane's will drive next season. The teams that the Scot have been linked to include Sahara Force India, Williams and Ferrari.

On the Thursday of the Indian Grand Prix weekend, between autographs and a track walk, I had meetings with with my agent and officials with a total of 5 teams throughout the day.

In this Order:
Ferrari
Force India
Sauber
Williams
HRT (In case I want to extend my contract)

They all wanted me as their #1 driver, they all wanted me to compete for wins (and in the case for Ferrari,) and possibly championships. In the case of Sauber, Williams and Force India, they also wanted me to help out the development of their younger drivers with my experience at winning at least one WDC. As for the actual contracts, it ranged from a multi-year, mega-millions from Ferrari, to the humble one year with an option from Sauber and HRT, with Williams and Force India being somewhere in the middle. They all made their cases, and all gave me until Saturday to make my decision. Phone calls were made concering my decision, and the conference was made for the day after the race.

Press Conference, Buddh International Circuit
Everybody and their dog who was in the F1 press was here for the announcement, the huge facility was packed to the brim. To being, It was Colin Kolles and I talking about the last two years.

"These last two seasons have been an amazing journey for myself and the team; becoming the first of the three new teams to get points, win a race, and have one of their drivers win a championship. The support the team has given me has been unbelievable in allowing me to be where I am today, fighting for another championship. And after assisting with the team in their development and planning for the future, they are well on their way to continue what I have started. My contract with HRT ends this season which opened the door for new opportunities in my F1 career. I would like to thank HRT for their support, as I enter the next chapter of my F1 career next season......


with Sauber."

A rush of keyboard typing and murmurs came from the crowd. Monisha Kaltenborn and Peter Sauber came out and both sat to my left, and Peter began talking about the opportunity that the team has been given and the success they have had this season with Checo and Kamui, and their intent to continue that success with me joining the team.


Once they finished, the floor opened for questions.
(That means you, yes you. You with the face, and is a user at F1Rejects. You got questions, Nathan has answers.)

[pasta_maldonado]

Jenny Journalist: "Who will you be replacing at Sauber Nathan?"

[Shizuka]

Random Autosport UK journalist: Did you get offers from other teams too?

[TomWazzleshaw]

Random Journalist from Australia: With several drivers joining the exodus from Formula One from the F1RWRS including Rhys Davies and with many rumours that you were the 'anointed one' at both Mercedes last year by Daniel Melrose and this year by Davies, why didn't you take up the offer from either team?

[RealRacingRoots]

Who will you be replacing at Sauber Nathan?

Nathan looks towards Peter and give him a nod, telling him he can answer the question:

With the performances of both Kamui and Checo (Sergio Perez) so far, we will wait until after the season ends to make our decision about who will be driving for us next season beside Nathan.

I won't know until I play F1 2012, put it simply.

...

Did you get offers from other teams too?

There were numerous other offers from other teams up and down the grid. The interest in my services for 2012 and potentially beyond was huge after what I've done with HRT over these last two seasons.

...

With several drivers joining the exodus from Formula One to the F1RWRS including Rhys Davies and with many rumours that you were the 'anointed one' at both Mercedes last year by Daniel Melrose and this year by Davies, why didn't you take up the offer from either team?

I wanted to enter Formula 1 with a team I would be able to take my time and get as much as possible about every race weekend. I saw the expectation at Mercedes when I was in the GP2 Asia series and it wasn't something I wanted to be thrusted into when I started my Formula 1 career. With coming to HRT, it gave me the opportunity to race without the fear of expectation. I have become family with this team, and I wanted to stay with them in the option year of my contract, before I really leapt into the deep end of F1. Although everybody says I am in the deep end. *laughs*

I will probably get cracking on Abu Dhabi this weekend, no guarantees. Bro-ing it out with my friends, playing magic and watching Iron Sky does take time out of Video Games. I pulled an Ajani, Caller of the Pride when playing magic with them recently.

[dr-baker]

I will probably get cracking on Abu Dhabi this weekend, no guarantees. Bro-ing it out with my friends, playing magic and watching Iron Sky does take time out of Video Games. I pulled an Ajani, Caller of the Pride when playing magic with them recently.

Ah yes, Iron Sky. Watched it twice so far, and it is funny. Particularly the end credits, when it states that any similarity to real people, whether living or dead, is entirely coincidental. Because Iron Sky's US President resembling a real person really is a pure coincidence that was not intended...

[RealRacingRoots]

Oooookay, I got bored today and decided to do a spreadsheet which shows the points going into Brazil, and going out of Brazil. I will do one after Brazil, since it would be way too complicated to do one at the moment with two races to go. So lets begin.

Nathan McKane can win the WDC in Brazil IF:
*McKane Wins and Hamilton finishes ninth or lower.

McKane and Hamilton will be tied for first after Brazil IF:
*McKane finishes third and Hamilton finishes second. (221)
*McKane finishes fourth and Hamilton finishes third. (218)
*McKane finishes tenth and Hamilton finishes eighth. (207)

Webber and/or Vettel will remain mathematically in contention for the championship IF:
The Hamilton note was added if Hamilton takes the points lead after Brazil.

*Webber or Vettel wins (198), McKane finishes third or lower, Hamilton finishes second or lower.
*Webber or Vettel finishes second (191), McKane finishes sixth or lower, Hamilton finishes fourth or lower.
*Webber or Vettel finishes third (188), McKane finishes seventh or lower, Hamilton finishes sixth or lower.
*Webber or Vettel finishes fourth (185), McKane finishes ninth or lower, Hamilton finishes seventh or lower.
*Webber or Vettel finishes fifth (183), McKane finishes tenth or lower, Hamilton finishes eighth or lower.

This is going to be good.

[RealRacingRoots]

Abu Dhabi Preview Quote:
Nathan McKane, HRT
2010 Qualifying - 7th, Race - 1st
"One year ago, we won the World Driver's Championship here at the Yas Marina circuit. I come back here in the thick of the battle for back to back championships. This track is notoriously tricky for overtaking even with the two long straights followed by slow corners. We are going to need to work hard to find a setup that will work both in the technical last sector, and the very fast first two sectors. The win in India gave us the points lead back, and here everyone still in contention will be working their hardest to get the win."

2011 Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi Weekend

Practice Report:
A strong haze and a cool, sea- breeze brought the coolest weather of the weekend and of the last week ago in this part of the middle east. But getting that key balance in the setup would be necessary any way you looked at it. We chose to start the program with a abnormally long Prime run, banking on the fact that most of the race will be done on those tires. On the early laps we found the speed that we were looking for after we cleared slower cars. The longer the Prime run went, the trickier it was to control the car at lower speeds. A hit of oversteer on mid-apex and exit was apparent in the slower bits. It turned into my demise in the session as I exited out of Turn 17, the car continued to turn into the inside wall, and ran into that barrier. It straightened out, but was apparent that the front right suspension was broken, as was the front wing. Well, that's my session over. That sucked, even if I ended up getting the fifth fastest time since no body else used Options (outside of Button and Petrov), and the only other contender ahead of me being Vettel. So there was some optimism from the session.

Practice Results:
1st Alonso 1:40.318
2nd Vettel +0.046
3rd Petrov +0.110
...
5th McKane +0.157
6th Webber +0.319
7th Hamilton +0.373
...
19th Barrichello +2.444
20th Liuzzi +4.577
21st D'Ambrosio +4.967


Qualifying Report:

Overtaking isn't easy here. Getting a fast lap for Hamilton and myself was easy because of the fact that we were the first two out and we were only held up by the same car during both of our first runs. Hamilton, however, did get the better time on track during the run by two tenths of a second. He was behind me on the our first flyer and he got a healthy slipstream on both of the long straights which improved his time. Then everybody went out for there second run, including Hamilton. I elected to wait if I got booted off of the front row and if I had time left before I made the decision to go out for a second run. The other front runners found more speed in the first sector, (Hamilton did a 17.7 in sector 1) but failed to improve their times with tough luck in the second and third sectors, so there was no reason for me too go out for a second run. That meant the two main title protagonists were on the front row of the grid with two races to go. The race will be a wild one at the front.

Qualifying Results:
1st Hamilton 1:39.471
2nd McKane +0.190
3rd Rosberg +0.402
4th Vettel +0.661
...
6th Webber +0.926
...
23rd D'Ambrosio +6.148
24th Liuzzi +6.230

[RealRacingRoots]

Since the chaos that was the F1RWRS market has died down, I can finally post the race. I do like the idea of the open market, it reminds me of Free Agency in most western sports; but I digress.

Race: 2011 Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi

Race Report:
If I wanted to get the lead as easy as possible, I would need to get a cracking start and make the pass stick on Hamilton. Hamilton stuck to the outside line after he got off the line. He crept away on the straight but left me miles on the inside to make the move. Hamilton's hope for leading from turn 1 was up in smoke as I ran into the distance after a sluggish exit out of turn 1 from Hamilton. He was once again hesitant going through turn 2,3 and 4 which allowed me to widen the gap. He made it onto the straight after turn 4 and I was under braking for the turn 5/6/7 complex, he was that slow. He had his chances, on the pair on long straights on this track over the next laps of the first stint. It took DRS for Hamilton's first chance to get past on the first long straight. I stayed near the middle of the road as Hamilton took to the outside which quickly was swallowed up before braking for Turn 8, which mean the lane I took before was the new outside, although I went for the divebomb and made the pass before turn 8. The DRS and straight line speed advantage the others had had caught up to me as the gap I wanted to build before had gone, but everything they made the pass on the straights I took it back in the corners. Behind Hamilton it was a scrap between the two Red Bulls, Alonso and Rosberg as I was slowing the front runners up on the quickly wearing out Option tires. A bunch of the front runners soon pitted for the first time, myself included. I took options, the others took prime tires for their second run. I exited in front of the Force India of Di Resta and behind the Toro Rosso of Alguersuari. They pitted one lap after giving me free air to push on the fresh Options. The gap to second place Alonso began to widen with every lap, including myself putting in the fastest lap of the race. I was long gone, with no one around me for some time. It was a prime time (hah) to pit for Primes leaving one stop to go. I exited in front of Rosberg who pitted for Primes in the first stop and had yet to pit for the second time. He managed to keep close with me on cold tires, but I began to get away as my tires reached heat and his primes hit the wall. I was fourth until the guys ahead pitted for the option tires, except for Button on primes which gave me the lead back. The sun was now setting at a constant rate, it was beginning to get into some of the driver's eyes, although we had to work through it as this phase would be over and going into the night. I was running a lonely race at the top, this was what I wanted to help get me my championship. With most of the front runners having only a Prime run left, except Button, we all pitted on the same lap allowing me to maintain the lead. Massa was to pit on lap later which meant he was able to catch right up as I was being slowed by the to be lapped car of Alguersuari. There was no way to get past him through turn 11 to 14, until the inside opened up going into 17, which I took and Massa attempted, until he ran into the back of the back marker destroying his front wing and his hopes to play spoiler for the other title contenders. It was smooth sailing there to the end of the race, no one in sight and 25 crucial points were in the bag. As clean as a win can get, and the hopes to repeat as champion grow by the day.

Race Results:
1st McKane
2nd Button +6.355
3rd Hamilton +11.142
...
8th Webber +41.123 (Eliminated from contention for WDC)
...
19th Vettel +1 Lap (Spun at Turn 8, turned out to be slow puncture on front which delaminated and broke front wing. Was no where after that, ROTR. Eliminated from contention for WDC.)
...
22nd D'Ambrosio +1 Lap
23rd Liuzzi +1 Lap

Not Classified:
Kovalainen - Fire

[Shizuka]

Not Classified:
Kovalainen - Fire

Seriously?
Also, nice job, that was possibly the most important win of the year.

[RealRacingRoots]

Not Classified:
Kovalainen - Fire

Seriously?

I make the reasons for non-classification, so I had a little fun. Although this fire was from a front brake duct getting clogged by a large mayble at the far end of the track and the brake catching fire. But whatever you want to believe.

Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6qWoNN0TT1I

WDC Standings:
(Bold signifies drivers still with a mathematical chance at winning the WDC)

1st McKane 231
2nd Hamilton 218
3rd Webber 177
4th Vettel 173
5th Alonso 160
6th Button 142
7th Massa 117
8th Petrov 113
9th Schumacher 103
10th Heidfeld 93
11th Rosberg 81
12th Perez 71
13th Kobayashi 47
14th Maldonado 22
15th Buemi 19
16th Barrichello 16
17th Alguersuari 15
18th Di Resta 9
19th Sutil 1
D'Ambrosio, Trulli, Liuzzi, Glock, Kartikeyan, and Kovalainen all have 0.

WCC Standings:
(Bold signifies drivers still with a mathematical chance at winning the WCC)

1st McLaren 360
2nd Red Bull 350
3rd Ferrari 277
4th HRT 231
5th Renault 206
6th Mercedes 194
7th Sauber 118
8th Williams 38
9th Toro Rosso 34
10th Force India 10
Virgin and Lotus both have 0.

Now for some spreadsheetness.

McKane will win the WDC IF:
(I'm fairly sure McKane has tiebreakers)
*McKane finishes at least fourth or higher (243 at 4th)
*McKane finishes seventh or higher (237 at 7th) and Hamilton doesn't win (236 for Hamilton's 2nd)
*McKane finishes ninth or higher (233 for 9th) and Hamilton finishes third or lower (233 for Hamilon's 3rd)
*Hamilton finishes fourth or lower

Hamilton will win the WDC IF:
*Hamilton wins (243 for win) and McKane finishes fifth or lower (241 for McKane's 5th)
*Hamilton finishes second (236 at 2nd) and McKane finishes eighth or lower (235 for McKane's 8th)
*Hamilton finishes third (233 at 3rd) and McKane finishes tenth or lower (232 for McKane's 10th)

Woo. Woo. Woo. Hope I don't blow it.

[RealRacingRoots]

GP of Abu Dhabi Post-Weekend Quote:
Nathan McKane, HRT (1st)
"With how important every point is at the end of the season, this was the most important win of my career. Getting the pass made on my main rival in the title chase was what needed to be done with this track being not the easiest to overtake on. After that the race was largely clear sailing and it showed the hard work the team has put into making this car as good as it can be throughout the season. Everything has come together leading to the last race of the season in Brazil, where we have a shot at another World Driver's Championship."

In-Game Press Clippings:

McKane's Last Race For HRT:
As the Formula One season draws to a close, world champion Nathan McKane will be having his last race for HRT in Brazil. While he is still in the battle for the World Driver's Championship, he has confirmed that he will be moving to Sauber next season.

Brazilian Grand Prix Prix Preview Quote:
Nathan McKane, HRT
2011 Qualifying - 2nd, Race - 4th
"We arrive at the final race of the season at Interlagos with the Driver's Title on the line. I always enjoy the atmosphere of coming to Brazil to end the season and the Interlagos track helps and create drama in the final laps of a championship. We have found ourselves on a strong wave of momentum when it matters the most with wins at the two most recent races, which have given us the major boost we needed to lead in the points coming to Brazil. The team has given me a great platform which has allowed me to perform at my best in qualifying and in the race; and in my last race for HRT, I wish to leave on the highest note possible."


Some Housekeeping

The weather for Brazil.
Practice - 63% chance of rain. (starts with rain, so there's the rain)
Qualifying - 21% chance of rain. (classified as "light cloud" by the game)
Race - 23% chance of rain. (see Qualifying)

The Video for Brazil will include these songs.
Moments in Grace - Broken Promises

Daft Punk - Clu

Adele - Set Fire to the Rain Only if I win the WDC.

[RealRacingRoots]

2011 Brazilian Grand Prix Race Weekend

Practice Report:
As it turns out, the typical November weather in Brazil struck hard in the first session. It had been raining hard since the night before and was only showing signs of letting up part way through the session. We still went out for a wet tire run, as rain will be still apparent come qualifying and the race. The team and I liked what we saw from the car after a 5 lap run on wets, even though we didn't get the most out of the car on the run. The fastest lap was four tenths off of the best, Hamilton, but we had the best time in the second sector, with a lot more left to show. But I figured it was best to wait until the rain died down and the track dried a bit before going for a second run, either on Inters or on dry tires. About half way through the session, the rain went away and dry and inter running began, with Petrov leading the way early on. The times did fall, by a large margin through the dry running. Off line the track was still largely wet, so it was a laboured long run on the Primes. The car itself feels great, but with the track still being largely wet we couldn't show our true pace, and most of the others were doing option runs too. It just wasn't worth it, using another set of dry tires and potentially damaging the car at the most crucial time in the season. So after the wet and prime runs, we called it a session. The rain began to pick up again with about ten minutes to go in the session, with most people finishing their programs on the dry tires, with Sutil planning on a Inter run to end the session.

Practice Results:
1st Button 1:13.285
2nd Buemi +0.736
3rd Vettel +0.972
...
5th Hamilton +1.167
...
16th Sutil +2.434
17th McKane +2.817
18th Perez +2.839
...
20th Maldonado +3.180
21st Liuzzi +5.155
22nd D'Ambrosio +5.809

Qualifying Report:
While some of the clouds from last night's rainstorm did remain. The rain stopped hours before the day at the track began and it was fully dry by the time F1 qualifying was next. The track was still largely green, which mean a fast lap in the first 2 laps of the run wasn't going to happen. But Maldonado, who got out before me, got the provisional pole on his third and final lap of his run when he got a clean track. On my fifth lap, I got the clean run Maldonado got and put in a time one tenth of a second slower than the Williams driver. Hamilton was fifth on the time sheets with six minutes to go, as he went out for another option run. He showed the potential with going purple in the first sector, but got traffic in the second sector; he was intent on getting as good of a position as possible to see if he can take the title away from my hands. Except Massa got a better time, bumping him down to sixth, where he would remain until the end of the session. SO, a Williams pole for the first time in six years, with myself on the first row beside him and Hamilton on the third row. We got what it takes to win this championship.

Qualifying Results:
1st Maldonado 1:12.882 (Barrichello qualified 19th, +1.715 for those who are wondering)
2nd McKane +0.103
3rd Webber +0.128
...
6th Hamilton +0.261
...
22nd Kovalainen +3.947
23rd Liuzzi +4.699
24th Trulli +4.842

[Aerospeed]

Maldonado on pole? Buemi second in practice? WTF?

[RealRacingRoots]

Maldonado on pole? Buemi second in practice? WTF?

Buemi snook in a good time on Options when the track was at it's driest before the rain came again.

Maldonado got clean track for a lap, so he got a cracking lap.

And the race starts in the wet, with everyone starting on Intermediates. I've been doing a few practice starts to get my eye in for the beginning few laps. One of my favorite moments of these was when Maldonado and Alonso took me 3 wide on the front straight. We squeezed Maldonado and broke his front wing. This is going to be a good one.

[RealRacingRoots]

Race: 2011 Brazilian Grand Prix

*Cue The Final Countdown*

Race Report:
After qualifying, the rains picked up again. It was as hard as it had been throughout the whole weekend until one hour before the race began. The rain lightened up and the track began to lose some of it's excess lakes around the track. Race control said the race will begin under normal circumstances, on time, and every runner must start on either Intermediate or Rain tires. The formation lap showed no signs of major puddles across the track, and Inters were the best choice. The pressure began to set in for Maldonado and I as soon as we were in our starting positions; the long wait before our destinies, whatever they may be.

Maldonado got a little bit better of a start, but with him starting on the outside I began to squeeze him to the outside so I can take the lead in the first turn. He got in front of me enough to make that not possible, so I took the inside line and made the pass in the first Senna S. Maldonado retained second with Webber taking third by the time we reached Turn 4. It was clear Maldonado didn't have the pace to keep up, but with passes tricky with the wet weather, Webber wasn't able to get past. I began to gap the field. The wet going was fun, once I found a consistent rhythm. My pace was consistently faster the Maldonado who was now holding up the field. The rain began to taper off 20 minutes into the race, and it was gone and blue skies were becoming viewable 10 minutes after. A dry line was viewable and the Intermediates were nearly worn to the extent of no tread on them. The goal now was to keep it on the road, keep the tires cool, and hold the gap which had grown to 10 seconds before the pack all pitted for option tires. I wanted to stay on the Inters for a few laps longer in the case of changing to dry tires too early could lead to a spin with having no grip. So I waited an additional three laps to pit after everyone else did. The pit crew took the worn out Inters off and put on.... INTERMEDIATES?!

I was furious. They put on the wrong tires on my car. By now, the pack was already putting in new fastest laps. (I held FL in the wet) So the team and I had to scramble to get the Primes ready and pit the next lap. My 10 second lead, gone. I exited fourth, ahead of me Maldonado and lapped cars. But Maldonado made one move too many when trying to negotiate the Marussia-Virgin, and smashed his front wing on the rear of the Marussia-Virgin at one of the fastest points of the track. Alguersuari, who was behind me, caught up after we went past the wounded Williams at the exit of Turn 4. With his options and my cold Primes, he remained close, and got DRS on the run to the start/finish line. I let him through on the inside, he then took the outside line for braking, then I swept to the Inside to outbrake him into the Senna S. The persistent hounding of me by Alguersuari continued, until his Options wore out and he pitted. Soon everybody else pitted for Options for the second time. I got back the lead, as I only intended to pit one more time for a set of Options to finish the race. So, yeah, more lonely running except for the occasional backmarker. The time soon came for me to pit for the final time for Options. Dropping me to third while everybody else's Options were beginning to wear out. A few laps later, everybody else pitted for Options again, so all the pit stops were done.

The chase was on. Webber wanted the win and he had the car, and the pace, to do it. With a handful of laps to go, my lead evaporated with him on fresher Option tires. We were both seldom help up by the lapped cars of a Renault and a Force India. I could see him visibly get closer every time we went up the pit straight. And so it came to pass, that he got DRS on the last lap, after my tires were teetering with the edge. He got a toe and DRS, he was flying. It was now a game of possum, who would make the move that would win the race? I made a double-take to the inside then to the outside. Webber stuck to the outside and STORMED by. Webber took the win, but I took second AND THE WORLD DRIVER'S CHAMPIONSHIP! YES! WOOOOOOOO! As it turns out, we all made the same amount of pit stops by the end of the race, being three. But oh, how this could have been a Win and a Championship if my Pit-Crew didn't let me down, again.

WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS! AGAIN!

Race Results:
1st Webber
2nd McKane + 0.176
3rd Massa +6.287
...
7th Hamilton +47.706
...
22nd Glock +2 Laps
23rd Liuzzi +2 Laps
24th Trulli +2 Laps

[Shizuka]

YES!

[RealRacingRoots]

I'll do the Season Highlights video eventually, but in the mean-time: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fxuQ3w5TpRQ

Final World Driver's Championship Points Table:
If someone wants to make a Wikipedia-template style table for the season, I'll make a spreadsheet with all the results and send it to you. (When I get time, I got a job so I'm not on during the day)

1st McKane 249
2nd Hamilton 224
3rd Webber 202
4th Vettel 183
5th Alonso 168
6th Button 154
7th Massa 132
8th Petrov 113
9th Schumacher 103
10th Heidfeld, Rosberg 93
12th Perez 71
13th Kobayashi 48
14th Maldonado 22
15th Buemi, Alguersuari 19
17th Barrichello 16
18th Di Resta 9
19th Sutil 1
D'Ambrosio, Trulli, Liuzzi, Glock, Kartikeyan, and Kovalainen all end with 0.

Final World Constructor's Championship Points Table:
See note below WDC title

1st Red Bull 385 (Webber's win did enough to win the WDC)
2nd McLaren 378
3rd Ferrari 300
4th HRT 249
5th Renault 206
6th Mercedes 196
7th Sauber 119
8th Williams, Toro Rosso 38
10th Force India 10
Virgin and Lotus both end with 0.

Brazilian Grand Prix Post-Weekend Quote
Nathan McKane, HRT (2nd)
"What a way to finish the season in style. I tried my hardest to hold Webber off at the end but I didn't want to risk a crash jeopardizing the World Title for me, and the Constructor's Title for him. To come back from a major pit stop error to nearly win the race was a major feat for me and the team. We were the only team to use the Prime tires in the race and it proved key in the result, only having to pit for option tires once. I cannot be more proud of what the team did this season and these last two years, they made it possible for me to be in this position; looking to make it three World Championships in a row.

In-Game Press Clippings:

Magnificent win for Webber at Sao Paulo
Red Bull's Mark Webber took the chequered flag at Sao Paulo with a sublime drive capped with taking the lead and win in the last straight of the race. After the race, he stated that the car had been perfect to drive all weekend. With the win, Red Bull secure the World Consctuctor's Championship for the second year in a row.

Oookay so.

My Pit Strategy from Brazil: Start on Inters, pit for Inters (woops), Pit for Primes 1 Lap later, Pit for Options -> End of Race
Everyone Elses' Pit Strategy from Brazil: Start on Inters, Pit for Options, Pit for Options, Pit for Options -> End of Race

Discuss away!