Brawn GP News

Brawn GP’s Rubens Barrichello and Jenson Button qualified in fourth and fifth positions respectively today for the inaugural Abu Dhabi Grand Prix which takes place at the Yas Marina Circuit on Sunday.

The action began in daylight with darkness rapidly falling over the course of the qualifying hour and the floodlights coming on to illuminate the track. Rubens and Jenson ran consistently in the top ten for the first two sessions, favouring the harder prime tyre, and progressing easily through to the final qualifying session.

A close battle at the front in Q3 saw Rubens put his Brawn-Mercedes car on the second row of the grid in fourth position, with team-mate Jenson, who was struggling with understeer, on the third row in fifth place ahead of tomorrow’s 55-lap race.

RESULTS

Drivers Car No. Chassis No. Free Practice Qualifying 1 Qualifying 2 Qualifying 3
Rubens Barrichello 23 BGP 001-03 P3 P6 01:40.574 P6 01:40.421 P4 01:41.786
Jenson Button 22 BGP 001-02 P1 P2 01:40.378 P3 01:40.148 P5 01:41.892

Weather Very hot
Temperatures Air: 29-30°C Track: 31-33°C

RUBENS BARRICHELLO
“It was a good qualifying session for us today and I’m quite happy with fourth position and what we have achieved. The car is still very competitive but the Red Bulls and McLarens seem to be ahead of us here. It’s been challenging to get the right set-up throughout the weekend as the sessions are taking place in very different track and ambient conditions. The car seems to improve towards the end of the day with the cooler temperatures so we can hope that the track comes towards us tomorrow. It’s very close with Sebastian for second position in the Championship and I’ll be going to be flat out for the best result.”

JENSON BUTTON
“The car has felt good here all weekend and the first two sessions went well in qualifying today. Unfortunately in Q3 when we were running with high fuel and new tyres, I started to get massive vibrations every time that I hit the brakes which made the steering wheel shudder. With such a smooth circuit any kind of vibration just leads to understeer which made the car quite a handful to drive. It’s frustrating as we had the potential for a better performance today and should have been challenging for the first row behind Lewis. Hopefully we can solve the issue before the race and I’m looking forward to a good fight tomorrow.”

ROSS BRAWN
“We went into qualifying in pretty good shape this evening having confirmed some of our conclusions on the tyres during the practice session this afternoon. The qualifying hour went to plan in Q1 and Q2 although we struggled, like many others, with traffic and achieving clear laps when the tyres were at their best. Unfortunately in Q3, Jenson suffered with a significant vibration on his last set of tyres which we are now investigating and this compromised his performance. However fourth position on the grid for Rubens and fifth place for Jenson is a good result. We should be in reasonable shape for the race tomorrow and are looking forward to the challenge of finishing the season on a high.”

At the 2009 Brazilian Grand Prix Brawn GP have claimed the FIA Formula One Constructors World Championship.  They finished the race with 5 points giving them a total of 161, this is 25 points clear of Red Bull Racing.  With just 18 points available at the final race in Abu Dhabi Brawn GP have sealed the constructors championship a race early.

The focus of the Constructors Championship now turns to Ferrari and McLaren who are a point away from each other fighting for 3rd place in the championship.

After a disappointing qualifying session in Brazil, Jenson Button has proved should anyone doubt him that he is World Champion material.  He fought he way through the field with gutsy by precise overtaking manoeuvres to finish the race in 5th position and take the Formula One World Drivers Championship.

In doing this he and team mate Rubens Barrichello have also secured the Constructors Championship for Brawn GP.

After a one, two from Brawn GP at the Italian Grand Prix Brawn have extended their lead over Red Bull.  Brawn GP are now 40.5 points clear of Red Bull and with 80 points available in the next 4 races Red Bull will need a miracle to beat them.  Red Bull have a similar lead over Ferrari.  McLaren will be chasing the 3rd championship position as they aim to finish the season strongly.

The drivers championship is looking like a 2 horse race between Jenson Button and Rubens Barrichello, the two Brawn GP Drivers.  Jenson Button leads Rubens by 14 points with 4 races to go.  As Martin Brundle said Jenson just has to think it is a 4 race championship where he has a 14 point head start.  However a retirement or poor finishes could make things much closer!

Vettel is 26 points behind Button but will face tough competition from team mate Mark Webber.

Italian Grand Prix result (53 laps)

1.  BARRICHELLO  Brawn         1h16m21.706s
2.  BUTTON       Brawn         +2.8s
3.  RAIKKONEN    Ferrari       +30.6s
4.  SUTIL        Force India   +31.1s
5.  ALONSO       Renault       +50.1s
6.  KOVALAINEN   McLaren       +60.6s
7.  HEIDFELD     BMW           +82.4s
8.  VETTEL       Red Bull      +85.4s
9.  FISICHELLA   Ferrari       +86.8s
10. NAKAJIMA     Williams      +120.0s
11. GLOCK        Toyota        +163.9s
12. HAMILTON     McLaren       +1 lap
13. BUEMI        Toro Rosso    +1 lap
14. TRULLI       Toyota        +1 lap
15. GROSJEAN     Renault       +1 lap
16. ROSBERG      Williams      +2 laps
R.  LIUZZI       Force India   +30 laps
R.  ALGUERSUARI  Toro Rosso    +33 laps
20. KUBICA       BMW           +37 laps
18. WEBBER       Red Bull      +53 laps

Fastest lap: SUTIL 1m24.739s

It has been reported today by German magazine Auto Motor Und Sport that Mercedes will by a 75% stake of Brawn GP.  This would go a long way to securing long term funding and a strategic engine partnership for the team.  Many have questioned in the past why Mercedes hasn’t got it’s name on the Brawn GP car, this was because Brawn GP were only a customer, not a partner, but this looks set to change.

This would mean that Mercedes have a major investment in two F1 teams, they already own 40% of McLaren, and while the deal with Brawn is not expected to change anything it comes at a difficult time for them as one of their lead sponsors Santander prepares to move to Ferrari.

Is this how the Brawn GP 001 could look?

Brawn GP’s Rubens Barrichello will start the Belgian Grand Prix from the second row of the grid tomorrow having qualified his Brawn-Mercedes car in fourth position at the end of a thrilling qualifying hour in Spa. Team-mate Jenson Button had a more challenging session and will start the race from 14th position.

Rubens ran close to the front of the field as he worked on getting the best from his car on the softer option tyre. He progressed comfortably through Q1 and Q2 before taking part in a very competitive final session where his fastest lap was good enough for fourth position as the quickest of the drivers involved in the championship battle.

Jenson struggled with the balance of his car throughout with a lack of rear grip on the option tyre proving crucial in the middle sector. With some quick lap times being set, he was not able to make it out of Q2 and will start from 14th place on the grid.

RESULTS

Drivers Car No. Chassis No. Free Practice Qualifying 1 Qualifying 2 Qualifying 3
Rubens Barrichello 23 BGP 001-03 P16 P3 01:45.237 P6 01:44.834 P4 01:46.513
Jenson Button 22 BGP 001-02 P10 P14 01:45.761 P14 01:45.251

Weather Fine and dry
Temperatures Air: 14-16°C Track: 24-32°C

RUBENS BARRICHELLO
“I’m extremely happy with our qualifying performance today and the second row of the grid is a great starting position for the race. The results today have to be one of the biggest surprises of the year and it’s great for Giancarlo Fisichella to be up there on pole. It’s good to see that the ‘old-timers’ still have it! I took the best out of my car today, particularly in Q2 which was one of my best laps around Spa, but that was only enough for sixth position in that session. We’ve been quite aggressive on the strategy and the race is wide open tomorrow so I’ll push as much as I can and we can get a good result from here.”

JENSON BUTTON
“I didn’t expect to qualify in 14th position today but we really struggled with grip levels, particularly on the softer tyre. The car hasn’t felt quite right all weekend and unfortunately I wasn’t able to get any more out of it today. Rubens and I are usually very closely matched but he was quick on the option and I wasn’t so we need to look into the reasons for that. I just couldn’t find any grip on the softer rubber so the rear end felt unstable and I had no confidence under braking, particularly in the middle sector. It’s strange as our set-ups are different but not by much. It’s going to be very tough in the race from here but at least we have more time to choose our strategy. We need to get it right and see if we can score some points tomorrow.”

ROSS BRAWN
“It was a challenging qualifying hour today and the end result has seen one of the most mixed-up grids of the season which is great for the sport and will probably make for a very interesting race tomorrow. Rubens put in another very strong performance today and fourth place on the grid, with an aggressive strategy, puts him in a good position for the race tomorrow. It’s fair to say that qualifying got away from us a little bit today with Jenson. We have been struggling with the car balance on his side this weekend and although some changes were made overnight, we were not able to get the car to a position which he felt comfortable with. Looking on the positive side, our main championship rivals are behind one of our cars and only a few places ahead of the other. We have focused on our race performance during the practice sessions here and believe we will have the pace to take the fight to them tomorrow.”

A few tense moments towards the start of the Hungarian Grand Prix saw Lewis Hamilton take the lead after 16 laps, whilst pole qualifier Alonso dropped out of the race when his front right wheel came off following a pit-stop error.  The Brawns struggled with their tyres, leading to Button to finish in 7th, and Barrichello in 10th.  Hamilton continued on form to win, with Raikkonen and Webber taking 2nd and 3rd.  The full results are as follows:

1.  HAMILTON     McLaren
2.  RAIKKONEN    Ferrari      +11.5s
3.  WEBBER       Red Bull     +16.8s
4.  ROSBERG      Williams     +26.9s
5.  KOVALAINEN   McLaren      +34.3s
6.  GLOCK        Toyota       +35.2s
7.  BUTTON       Brawn        +55.0s
8.  TRULLI       Toyota       +68.1s
9.  NAKAJIMA     Williams     +68.7s
10. BARRICHELLO  Brawn        +69.2s
11. HEIDFELD     BMW          +70.6s
12. PIQUET       Renault      +71.5s
13. KUBICA       BMW          +74.0s
14. FISICHELLA   Force India  +1 lap
15. ALGUERSUARI  Toro Rosso   +1 lap
16. BUEMI        Toro Rosso   +1 lap
17. VETTEL       Red Bull     +41 laps
18. ALONSO       Renault      +55 laps
19. SUTIL        Force India  +69 laps

Brawn GP endured a disappointing race at the German Grand Prix today despite Jenson Button and Rubens Barrichello bringing their Brawn-Mercedes cars home in points-scoring fifth and sixth positions respectively.

Both drivers were on a three-stop strategy and started the race on the softer option tyre. Rubens had a great start to be leading coming out of turn one whilst Jenson dropped to fifth position before overtaking Massa into turn one on the second lap.

Jenson stopped first on lap 13, followed by Rubens one lap later with both drivers staying on the option tyre. They switched to the primes at their second stop on lap 30 for Jenson and lap 31 for Rubens. A problem with the fuel rig at Rubens’ stop forced the team to switch rigs, costing valuable seconds which dropped Rubens behind Nico Rosberg.

The pair pitted for the final time on lap 49 for Rubens who stayed on the prime tyre and one lap later on lap 50 for Jenson who switched to options and came out just ahead of his team-mate.

RESULTS

Drivers Car No. Chassis No. Race Result / Fastest Lap
Jenson Button 22 BGP 001-02 P5 01:34.252
Rubens Barrichello 23 BGP 001-01 P6 01:34.676

Weather Cool
Temperatures Air: 18-19°C Track: 25-32°C

JENSON BUTTON
“All points are valuable but my race started badly and didn’t get much better today. I had a poor start to drop back to fifth after the first turn and was able to get ahead of Massa at the start of the second lap but just couldn’t get past Kovalainen. His pace was way off what we could have achieved at that point of the race but there was just no way through. We struggled with graining and tyre degradation throughout with both tyres not working well for us. The problem with the fuel rig at Rubens’ second stop also affected my race as we were so close on the track and he was struggling with the prime tyre. So overall it has been a tough and disappointing day for the team. Congratulations to Mark on his first win and I’m really pleased for him as I know how good that feels. I just can’t wait to get to Hungary in two weeks where we will have new parts and hopefully warmer weather to take the fight to the Red Bulls.”

RUBENS BARRICHELLO
“I had a great start today and was really pleased to have got ahead of Mark down into the first corner despite our collision. After leading on the first lap, it is of course hugely disappointing to have finished in sixth position. It was a combination of things really which are now very clear to me having spoken to the team. We didn’t have enough pace compared to the Red Bulls to win but the fuel rig problem at my second stop where we had to switch rigs probably cost me a place on the podium. That dropped me out behind Rosberg and the extra lap which Jenson had at our final stops was enough for him to get ahead of me. We’ll put this race behind and work really hard ahead to Hungary to try and catch up to the Red Bulls. Congratulations to Mark for his first win.”

ROSS BRAWN
“Without doubt it was a very disappointing race for the team today although we were able to score some points to minimise the damage to our championship challenge. Quite simply, we didn’t have the pace to match the Red Bulls. We opted for a three-stop strategy for both cars to give ourselves the best possible chance of achieving a podium position. Both drivers were battling with the tyres throughout the race and trying very hard to keep them in the operating window whilst managing their graining issues. The problem with the fuel rig at Rubens’ second stop dropped him out behind Rosberg which compromised his race strategy and possibly prevented him for achieving third position. Jenson had a difficult start which dropped him down to fifth and he was also affected by Rubens’ problems at the second stop which resulted in the two cars being so close on the track. We will take a close look at the lessons to be learned from this weekend before Hungary and hope to come back fighting there with some performance developments which should help us close the gap to Red Bull. Finally our congratulations to Mark Webber on a very well-deserved first win today.”

Brawn GP’s Rubens Barrichello and Jenson Button fought their way through a thrilling and chaotic qualifying hour at the Nürburgring today to secure second and third positions on the grid for Sunday’s 60-lap German Grand Prix.

With rain threatening, all the cars were quickly out on track at the start of Q1 with Rubens and Jenson running on the softer option tyre and completing two runs to safely progress into the second session.

Light rain at the start of Q2 rapidly became heavier with both drivers coming into the pits after just a couple of laps to replace their slick tyres for intermediates. As the rain seemed to ease, Rubens dived back in and switched to slicks and immediately was the quickest car on track with a lap which topped the timesheets for the remainder of the session. Jenson changed to slicks with just enough time for one timed lap which he made count as the rain started to fall again.

After the drama of Q2, the conditions stayed dry for Q3 with Rubens and Jenson posting their quick laps in the final seconds of the session, achieving second and third positions respectively.

RESULTS

Drivers Car No. Chassis No. Free Practice Qualifying 1 Qualifying 2 Qualifying 3
Rubens Barrichello 23 BGP 001-01 P14 P5 01:31.482 P1 01:34.455 P2 01:32.357
Jenson Button 22 BGP 001-02 P11 P6 01:31.568 P5 01:39.032 P3 01:32.473

Weather Cold and overcast with intermittent showers
Temperatures Air: 13-14°C Track: 18-23°C

RUBENS BARRICHELLO
“I really enjoyed the excitement of qualifying today and am very happy to have come away with second and be starting from the front row tomorrow. I felt the track was just about good enough for slicks in Q2 so I radioed the team that I was coming in but didn’t hear their response so thankfully the tyres were waiting for me when I arrived in the pits! It was a great decision and gave me a much more relaxed end to Q2 than some of the others. It’s going to be a tricky race tomorrow so we’ll have to be on our toes and take advantage of whatever the weather throws at us. I’m looking forward to it.”

JENSON BUTTON
“Just getting into the final qualifying session was an achievement today so I’m really pleased to have qualified in third. It was a pretty eventful hour and Q2 in particular was madness but it was good fun. I thought it was too wet for slicks but Rubens made it work and we were able to switch tyres with just enough time to make my timed lap count. The race is going to be interesting as the forecast looks like it’s going to be a mix of wet and dry conditions. We’ve improved the car since practice yesterday but it’s still going to be tough to keep the tyres warm and you’ll need a bit of luck with the weather. Congratulations to Mark on his first pole position today. We’ll be doing everything possible to ensure that it doesn’t become his first win tomorrow!”

ROSS BRAWN
“The weather ensured an intense qualifying session for everyone today and we are extremely pleased to have come out of this afternoon with Rubens and Jenson in second and third positions. Both drivers were superb today. Rubens made an inspired call in Q2 to come in early for dry tyres and his direction was crucial in getting Jenson in and back onto slicks with enough time to complete his timed lap, which he did under great pressure as the rain fell again. Q3 was quite calm in comparison and both drivers were able to take full advantage of their well-balanced cars to get us into the top three. The teamwork in the garage was fantastic and we are all delighted and a little relieved to be starting from second and third positions tomorrow. Congratulations to Mark for his maiden pole position and congratulations to Mercedes-Benz with five car