Qualifying Differentials

	by Marcel Borsboom, Netherlands

Atlas F1 is going to keep an eye on the battle between teammates throughout the season with a simple measurement: we compare the qualifying times of each driver against his teammate's result. After every Grand Prix, we will show how teammates have fared up against each other, and where they are overall since the beginning of the season. At the end of the season, the World Champion of Qualifying Differentials will be elected - the driver who was most beaten by his teammates, in seconds. Only those who participate in at least 15 of the 17 rounds are eligible for the coveted crown; and for those who made the efforts and participated in all 17 races, the best and worst result will be scrapped. With two qualifying session completed for 2000, the differentials are once again on a roll! Let's see which drivers deserve bragging rights. Brazil Notables The Sauber Boys. Both Mika Salo and Pedro Diniz managed to run just three laps each due to the rear wing problems Sauber were suffering on Friday and Saturday. Consequently, the team withdrew from the Brazilian Grand Prix and therefore we have accepted their withdrawal from this Qualifying Differentials round. Just as a matter of interest, however, on that one timed lap Diniz outqualified Salo by 1.525s... Zonta and Button. The two youngsters, Ricardo Zonta and Jenson Button, both managed to outqualify their more experienced teammates. And although the gap was less than a tenth of a second in both case, the feat was a fantastic one - especially for Zonta, who, on home ground, pulled his best qualifying performance ever. The excuses: Michael Schumacher and Nick Heidfeld were driving the spare car. Changes since Melbourne: Jean Alesi and Jos Verstappen are now ahead in the overall averages of their teammates Nick Heidfeld and Pedro de La Rosa, respectively. The average gap between teammates in Brazil was 0.455s (excluding the gap between Salo and Diniz). This, compared to Australia, where the average gap was 0.874s.

Marcel Borsboom	© 2000 Kaizar.Com, Incorporated.
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