Sky Sports’ Bruno Senna revels all about the imminent race season...
What impact will the new engine regulations have on the season?
“The thing I’m most looking forward to about this new season is seeing how teams cope with the new regulations. Last year, you could use more than 150 litres of fuel per race; this year, it’s just 100 litres. Fifty litres less is not an easy change to deal with in terms of strategy, so we’re going to see immediately which team has the biggest brain.”
Can anyone stop Red Bull and Sebastian Vettel?
“This year, the Red Bull team is struggling. It’s had technical issues in pre-season testing; the car is breaking down, not goingvery fast. However, for many teams, starting the season with a bad car means finishing it with a bad car. Not Red Bull – it has the resources to turn it around. There were reports of Vettel getting upset at testing, but he’s a four-time world champion so he’s used to having a race-winning car and it seems like at the moment, he doesn’t. In my opinion, if Fernando Alonso has a good car, he will be champion as he was in 2005 and 2006.”
Will the Alonso/ Raikkonen battle work in Ferrari’s favour?
“It will definitely be good for the sport. When you see two great drivers pushing each other, it’s always entertaining. I think Alonso is the most complete driver in F1 right now, and his teammate Raikkonen is themost naturally talented. It will be difficult for Ferrari to manage these two guys because both will be yearning for priority, to be number one. However,Alonso has the upper hand because he’s been there longer, and he’s more politically inclined. It could be a season of sparks between these two.”
How important will tyre management be?
“The cars start with less fuel, so there’s less stress on the tyres. However, the engines have more torque now, because they’redouble-charged, so the rear tyres will suffer a lot in terms of wear. We’ll see more pit-stop strategies, with the drivers taking strategic decisions on when to change tyres, rather than just trying to avoid damaging them.”
Who’s the greater British hope – Lewis Hamilton or Jenson Button?
“At the moment, Mercedes is ahead of McLaren, so Lewis [pictured left] has a better chance than Button does. But it’s a lottery with these new regulations. I am sure we’re going to see more breakdowns, people running out of fuel during the race, so it’s hard to predict. Hamilton has the upper hand, but F1 is always full of surprises.”
Sky Sports F1 is the only place to watch all 19 live practice, qualifying and race days. On TV, mobile or tablet devices via Sky Go. The 2014 season begins on 16 March
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