Red Bull and Teuton Sebastian Vettel Rudely Ruin Brawn GP's Homecoming Fete.
Formula 1 always offers its enthusiasts the unexpected, and Silverstone serves as the dish for the 2009 season. Most observers laud Brawn GP and its controversial diffuser as the most brilliant engineering coup in years while Britons gleefully await the return of its own William (Button) after a stunning global campaign that earns the conqueror six of seven circuit trophies. Just as Brawn triumphantly wades through its deep tide of press clippings, Red Bull brazenly unfurls an ambush of its own at Silverstone with wunderkind Sebastian Vettel (15 Red Bull Renault). Vettel easily seizes the pole, crushes the field with a blitzkrieg-like wire-to-wire victory, and along the way shatters the seemingly impermeable veneer that surrounds Brawn engineering. The Brawn entries prove no match for Red Bull speed despite their lighter fuel loads, and non-British observers allow themselves a small grin as a sudden new contender pushes its way onto the stage.
Mark Martin (5) Feathers the Pedal and Coasts Home on Fumes For a Dramatic Last Lap Win at Michigan.
As the wide-track Michigan contest winds down to the final laps, all of the lead drivers take on fuel during a caution with forty-seven laps remaining, two or three circuits longer than the calculated fuel window. Faced with the prospect of running dry before the finish, Greg Biffle (16 Roush Fenway Ford) goes for broke and dashes for the ticket window as fellow contenders Mark Martin (5 Hendrick Chevrolet) and Jeff Gordon (24) clearly drop off the pace in order to save themselves a few precious laps. Jimmie Johnson (48) makes an attempt to conserve fuel, yet Biffle’s widening lead proves too much to suffer and he burns off some fuel in order to join Biffle in close battle. Both cars endure for forty-six laps, yet on the final lap, Johnson hiccups on the backstretch as his cell runs dry, and a frantic Biffle curses in horror as his fuel pressure falls to zero in the middle of Turn 3. The patient Martin, who chose the safe strategy, finally catches the coasting Biffle in Turn 4 and crosses the line for the victory just moments before his own car gasps and loses the fire. Johnson shrugs off his poor judgment in regards to his futile sprint to the flag, while a devastated Biffle simply cannot swallow the notion that his defeat all reduces to a just a few missing sips of petrol.
The Determined French Finally Topple the German Diesels and Avenge Their Heartbreaking Loss at Sebring.
Race Two of the Sportscar Triple Crown comes to life by way of Le Mans and its annual twice around the clock trial near the Sarthe. The Diesel War again dominates the headlines as home favorite Peugeot, still staggering after its heartbreaking loss to Audi at Sebring, scrambles to find the reliability to match the Germans, winners of eight races at the venerable eight-mile circuit since 2000. Audi surprises observers in the early hours with uncharacteristic mechanical troubles and a pair of driver run offs that in turn lift rival Peugeot to a wide lead margin. The race takes a cruel turn in the sixth hour when the 8 Peugeot entry and its sentimental French driving contingent stops for a rear axle change, allowing its sister entry (9 Peugeot HDi FAP, Marc Gene-David Brabham-Alexander Wurz) to steam past into the lead. The lead Peugeot never falters during the night, the Teutons never regain the proper race pace, and the French avenge their shattering Sebring defeat in façonnable style before a jubilant nation.
Brawn GP Racer Jenson Button Stands as a Man Apart After Winning Six of Seven Outings on the F1 Circuit.
Formula 1 returns to Byzantium with its traveling roadshow and Jenson Button (22 Brawn Mercedes) remains the dominant headline after slipping past pole sitter Sebastian Vettel (15) on Lap 1 and races away from Red Bull antagonist Mark Webber (14) to snare his sixth circuit victory in seven starts, virtually ensuring him a role in the final act later in the season.
The FIA and the Team Manufacturers Go to War Over Revenue Sharing, Constructor Expenses, and the Heavy Hand of FIA supremo Max Mosley.
Bigger news looms on the horizon, however, as a nasty spat between FIA president Maxwell Mosley and several club principals threatens to tear Formula 1 apart at the seams. Ferrari, McLaren, Renault, BMW, and Red Bull, upset with Mosley’s mendacity and F1 supremo Bernard Ecclestone’s bountiful cut of franchise revenues, refuse to sign a new agreement with F1 unless all parties renegotiate a revenue sharing arrangement and the FIA defangs the patrician Mosley. Ecclestone and Mosley bristle at the attempt to clip their wings, and the teams make preliminary arrangements to establish a rival breakaway series. Both sides creep to the brink before Ecclestone drags Mosley off from his perch, and F1 survives the immediate crisis. Mosley and Ecclestone will still manage to slip in one more punch before the new deal takes effect.
