McLaren driver Heikki Kovalainen set the fastest time in Friday’s practice for today’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
Kovalainen, who is widely expected to depart McLaren after the race and is seeking to impress other teams, set a time of 1 minute, 41.307 seconds around the new Yas Marina circuit, edging teammate Lewis Hamilton by 0.2 seconds.
“The whole day was pretty good,” Kovalainen said. “We’d already done some good work in Woking preparing for this circuit, so we had a good balance right from the start this morning. On the straight, KERS gives us an additional benefit. We can use it for maximum performance and it’s worth three-and-a-half to four-tenths.”
PHOTO: EPA
Hamilton said he believed McLaren could translate Friday’s pace into a challenge for pole position in yesterday’s qualifying as the team seeks to win the unofficial title of best team in the second half of the season.
‘BACK TO THE FRONT’
“Our car is probably driving better than it has all year — it’s just been getting better and better,” Hamilton said. “In a way, it’s been an excellent year. It’s a bit like a race when you start from the back of the field and fight back to the front.”
Brawn GP world champion Jenson Button was third fastest, ahead of Red Bull driver Sebastian Vettel, who was on course to challenge for fastest time before being baulked by another driver on his final flying lap.
Vettel is second place in the championship standings, two points ahead of Brawn GP driver Rubens Barrichello, who was eighth fastest on Friday.
Toyota driver Kamui Kobayashi, preparing for only his second career race after a debut in the previous round in Brazil, was fifth best, in front of Toro Rosso’s Sebastien Buemi and Red Bull’s Mark Webber.
Second through seventh were separated by just 0.18 of a second, indicating a close race today on a circuit that creates headaches for engineers, who must balance the need for straight-line speed on the two long straights with downforce in the twisty and technical sections.
GETTING DARK
Friday’s second practice session gave drivers their first opportunity to experience the transition from a twilight start to a finish in the darkness of early evening — mirroring the times of today’s race.
It appeared to create no problems for the drivers, with generous runoff areas meaning no collisions with tire walls and no damage to cars.
The only casualty was BMW Sauber driver Robert Kubica, who blew an engine early in the second session. The strong performances by Kovalainen and Hamilton showed that McLaren was well poised to hang onto third place in the constructors’ championship ahead of rival Ferrari.
Ferrari, whose drivers Kimi Raikkonen and Giancarlo Fisichella could only manage 10th and 17th, respectively, in Friday’s practice, are one point behind McLaren.
The lights dimmed and the crowd hushed as Karoline Kristensen entered for her performance. However, this was no ordinary Dutch theater: The temperature was 80°C and the audience naked apart from a towel. Dressed in a swimsuit and to the tune of emotional music, the 21-year-old Kristensen started her routine, performed inside a large sauna, with a bed of hot rocks in the middle. For a week this month, a group of wellness practitioners, called “sauna masters,” are gathering at a picturesque health resort in the Netherlands to compete in this year’s Aufguss world sauna championships. The practice takes its name from a
Roger Federer on Wednesday said that staying involved with tennis in retirement helped him avoid feeling “like an alien” ahead of this week’s Laver Cup in Berlin. Federer, who helped create the tournament, retired at the Laver Cup in London two years ago and has since stayed involved with the competition as an ambassador. “I’m happy I went back right away to some tournaments,” the 43-year-old told reporters. “I feel I ripped the Band-Aid off quite quickly and when I walk around the tennis sites I still feel I belong there,” he said. “I don’t feel like an alien, which is a
Japanese players are moving to English soccer in record numbers and more look set to follow with clubs attracted by their quality, strong work ethic and value for money. Kaoru Mitoma is the standout talent of five Japanese players in the English Premier League, with eight more in the Championship and two in League One. Liverpool midfielder Wataru Endo, the captain of Japan, believes his compatriots are “being held in higher esteem” by English clubs compared with the past. “The staff at Liverpool ask me about lots of Japanese players, not necessarily with a view to a transfer, but just saying this or
Taiwan yesterday survived Bosnia and Herzegovina to win their Davis Cup World Group I tie at the Taipei Tennis Center. The tight series started on Saturday with world No. 123 Jason Tseng losing 3-6, 7-5, 6-4 to Mirza Basic in the opening singles matchup. However, teammate Tony Wu kept the tie even, dominating world No. 86 Damir Dzumhur 6-2, 6-1. Yesterday, 24-year-old Ray Ho and partner 25-year-old Hsu Yu-hsiou kept up the momentum, making short work of Basic and Nerman Fatic, winning 6-3, 6-4. Tseng then suffered another defeat, losing 6-4, 2-6, 6-2 to Dzumhur in a brutal match that lasted more than two