This week's Grapevine brings you information fresh from the paddock on: Ferrari Fiasco? Williams Unhappy

Ferrari Fiasco?

The big talking point of the US GP weekend, at least from the viewpoint of the majority of the sport's spectators, was the unexpected end of race shenanigans that saw Michael Schumacher cede the win the Rubens Barrichello. On the other hand, without it, there would be scant memories to take away from the event.

The States is seen as a vital market for Formula One - not only by the administration, but by all the teams themselves too. All the serious car manufacturers consider the USA market a vital part of their strategy, and need to be well represented there. A strong presence should bring big money from global sponsors, but also appeal well to American companies looking for a strong marketing platform into Europe, and from there, into Asia and the Middle East, on the back of the expanding calendar.

After Schumacher did his level best to convince the world he was attempting a dead heat (which would have required the cars crossing the line less than five millimeters apart), then decided it was a gift, in payback for Austria. Neither the public, the paddock nor the media accept either version - general consensus is that, whatever Schumacher was attempting, Barrichello coming up with the win was not his intention. More to the point, the timing of the stunt has been questioned - there's no doubt that the US event is an incredibly sensitive issue with the teams: a flawless weekend, preferably filled with exciting racing, was what the doctor had prescribed.

As it turns out, the unexpected ending gave the spectators and media something to talk about. Schumacher and Barrichello may not have won Ferrari any new friends amongst the spectating public, but one thing they have certainly managed to do, is raise the profile of the sport. Running on a sporting weekend that also featured a very competitive Ryder Cup (Golf), a World Superbike showdown and the build-up to the America's Cup (Sailing) on top of the usual Baseball, Basketball and American Football sporting program, there was every danger that the F1 event would barely feature in US news. At least it now stood a chance of being more than a footnote.

Not only that, but there is every chance the effect will fail to follow the predictions of the doom and gloom merchants. It is no accident that the sport's best viewing figures of the year were at the event following "Austriagate" - the Monaco Grand Prix. Between Ferrari's dominance with a "no racing" policy, and the generally less than amazing coverage that is so often available on the World Feed, the fans have been turning off in droves.

The latter is an issue that is being taken in hand: race coverage for the US GP was actually one of the two super-channels that are broadcast by Bernie Ecclestone's famous digital service, featuring more cameras at more angles, informational graphics, and an experienced director who knows how to use them, without limits, and the practice to do more than just follow the leaders, lap after lap, when there is action taking place further down the field. Regarding Ferrari's dominance, the only real solution is for the other teams to catch up, and put them back under pressure.

In the meantime, removing predictability at the front is something that can only happen when Ferrari's drivers do something unexpected. The last time they did so, F1 spent a fortnight in the headlines, and the viewing figures took a sharp rise: the fans might be upset, but the average Joe Public is more interested in scandal than a nice, tidy finish. Anyone want to put odds on viewing figures beating the predictions for Japan?

Williams Unhappy

Indianapolis is not a happy hunting ground for Williams - and the events of the GP weekend only confirm it. Strategically, Williams were looking for a morale boosting end to the season, with 100 Championship points as a target; in order to be on track, they needed at least third and fourth from this event, and even better from Suzuka. Seeing Ralf Schumacher spin out early, and Juan Pablo Montoya make a hash of his strategy, probably cost the team four points.

Instead, Williams are coming away with some fairly big question marks hanging over both of their drivers, and possibly, the package itself.

Ralf's spin, whilst frustrating, was not the worst of it. Rather, having taken only a little over a minute to replace the wing, the team watched him struggle to unlap himself past Jaguars and Saubers. It left a big disappointment with the actual performance, as well as the result, from a car that they felt ought to have been capable of a top four finish. If the car was not performing, then Williams can't understand why Ralf would say it was in the best shape of the weekend; and if it was performing, they cannot see why Ralf wasn't pushing: he should have been able to make short work of any midfield team, with no excuses.

Montoya's early pitstop had a huge effect on his race. Having come in around ten laps too early, he effectively ended up running at his slowest pace over the laps were he should have been fastest - costing him more around fifteen seconds, plus the extra time from a slow pitstop as the team did not expect him in. Putting things into perspective, Montoya's fastest lap, his last of the race, was less than a tenth under Barrichello's fastest for the race; it was set on tyres that had covered two thirds of the race distance. Had Montoya raced according to the planned strategy, then Williams believe he would have passed David Coulthard in the pitstops, and potentially pushed the Ferraris.

What makes it so frustrating, is that the team struggled to get to grips with setting up the car for the whole weekend. Then, when they did sort it out in time for the race, a couple of driver errors very effectively countered the hard work that had gone in overnight.

The US GP was an important event for Williams. They needed a solid result, just to demonstrate to BMW and their sponsors that the gap to Ferrari is closing. Now, the pressure is on to perform in Japan. Being Bridgestone's home event, that leaves the team vulnerable to the Japanese manufacturer bringing out something special for Ferrari - in which case, it's going to be another long weekend for the Grove outfit.