Alonso Sets the Fastest Time in Valencia

A rather gloomy day in Valencia shows Exciting Promise

24 June 2011

After a blazingly exciting Canadian Grand Prix everyone has set their hopes high for witnessing another action-packed Grand Prix riddled with bumps and crashes, controversy and nail-biting finishes. It may be a little too much to wish for, I believe we were slightly spoiled by Canada’s Grand Prix but none the less we arrive at a slightly tamer venue. Conditions were dry and warm, with no drivers or teams worrying about track conditions until Nico Hulkenberg managed to lock his tyres and crash into the concrete on two separate occasions on what can only be described as dust. The new regulations for engine-mapping have come into effect this Grand Prix and so we expected to see a less potent Red Bull force and its exactly what we got. Vettel and Webber both pushed for great times but were hard pressed for finding the right recipe for success. Alonso managed to take the fastest lap in his Ferrari, which he seems pleased with, but we’ve seen him fastest in practices before and then fail to convert that into a decent grid position. Hopefully he’ll be a bit more competitive this weekend. Alonso was closely followed by McLaren driver Lewis Hamilton and behind him came Sebastian Vettel and Michael Schumacher who put in a tremendous effort to really show off his experience. Let’s see what qualifying brings us and hope that we’re in for an exciting race.