Williams fire victim flies back from Spain after sustaining second degree burns to 15 per cent of body

Posted on May 16, 2012 by adminsports

UPDATED:

20:10 GMT, 15 May 2012

The Williams mechanic who suffered second-degree burns to 15 per cent of his body when the team garage erupted in flames after Sunday’s Spanish Grand Prix flew home after being released from hospital.

Martin Betts, 50, was airlifted to the burns unit of Barcelona’s Vall d’Hebron hospital after the celebrations to mark Pastor Maldonado’s maiden Formula One win and Williams’ first victory in eight years were brought to an abrupt halt as the fire broke out.

Inferno: Williams team members attempt to extinguish the blaze in the pits

Betts left hospital in an ambulance and Williams confirmed he was on his way back to the United Kingdom.

Meanwhile, Jean Todt, the president of world motorsport’s governing body, has received eyewitness accounts of the blaze from FIA officials who attended.

Danger zone: The Williams garage quickly became hazardous

Sportsmail understands that while those on duty had been impressed with the level of medical care, concerns have been raised over the response time of the fire services.

One paddock source claimed that by the time the fire engines made it to the track, the inferno had been extinguished thanks to the speedy and brave actions of Williams’ staff and those of the other teams who rushed to their aid.

Whitmarsh hopes Hamilton will stay with McLaren

Posted on May 15, 2012 by adminsports

Whitmarsh hopes Hamilton will stay with McLaren 'for years to come'

UPDATED:

23:05 GMT, 14 May 2012

McLaren team principal Martin Whitmarsh is clinging to the hope Lewis Hamilton will continue to drive for his team 'for years to come' despite another calamitous race weekend casting doubt of the 2008 world champion's future with the Woking-based outfit.

Hamilton had to use all of his skill and determination to finish eighth at the Spanish Grand Prix after a fuel mix up in qualifying saw him penalised by being stripped of pole position and shunted to the back of the grid.

Staying power: Lewis Hamilton has had an indifferent start to the season

The mistake was just the latest in a catalogue of errors by McLaren which have meant Hamilton has been unable to translate his stunning performances in qualifying into race wins.

Even so, Whitmarsh is crossing his fingers that Hamilton's loyalty to the team he joined as 13-year-old will see him sign a new contract with McLaren to extend his current deal which expires at the end of the season.

'The relationship with Lewis and team is stronger and better and hopefully we will work together for a long time,' said Whitmarsh who admitted it had been impressed with the way Hamilton had reacted to this latest adversity.

'I have to say he had some greatness I had not seen before. /05/15/article-2144493-130DD8C5000005DC-549_634x432.jpg” width=”634″ height=”432″ alt=”Talking a good game: McLaren Mercedes team principal Martin Whitmarsh” class=”blkBorder” />

Talking a good game: McLaren Mercedes team principal Martin Whitmarsh

'To say I was disappointed is a modest expression of what I felt. 'He was saying we win and lose as a team. He was a great, great driver in Spain. To be a great driver like Fangio you need greatness in handling setbacks, challenges off the track and he has excelled in that. My affection and admiration for Lewis have been enhanced by events at the weekend.'

Hamilton continues to profess that, despite the extra challenges he is being handed by his team, his focus remains on staying in touch in the championships fight rather than his long-term future.

'I am not looking at the bigger picture,' insisted Hamilton who currently occupies third place in the standings, eight points behind co-leaders Fernando Alonso and Sebastian Vettel .

'I am just looking at the season and I want to win the championship.

Demoted: Mechanics push Lewis Hamilton's McLaren Mercedes back to their garage

'The situation I have been in in these last five races has not helped. We could have a healthy lead in the championship if we had capitalised on the performances we had in qualifying but we have been a little bit unfortunate.

'At some stage, things will come together for our team and we will get the points and finishes we deserve. It is bound to happen.'

The unpredictable nature of the championship with five different winners in five different cars so far means it is certainly still wide open as the teams prepare for the next race in Monaco.

But Hamilton's teammate, Jenson Button, remains concerned by McLaren's alarming drop-off in pace since his victory at the season opener in Australia.

'We're struggling in terms of pace and I'm definitely struggling in terms of finding a balance with the car,' said Button who finished ninth in Spain.

'It's just the last two races when it's been hotter. We expected it to be quicker when it was hotter because we expected to get our tyres working. But it hasn't really been the case.'

Sawgrass title for Matt Kuchar

Posted on May 14, 2012 by adminsports

Joy for home favourite Kuchar as Donald falls short on final day at Sawgrass

UPDATED:

00:16 GMT, 14 May 2012

American Matt Kuchar battled his own nerves and the valiant efforts of the likes of Rickie Fowler and Scotland’s Martin Laird to claim the US Tour’s flagship event, the Players Championship on Sunday.

A member of the last US Ryder Cup team, this win, the biggest of the 33 year old’s career, all but confirmed he will be playing in this year’s match as well in Chicago in September.

Whether Laird will be playing for Europe is more debatable but this joint runner-up showing after a final round 67 will certainly catapult him up the qualifying points table and into the thinking of captain Jose Maria Olazabal.

Just champion: Matt Kuchar emerged victorious in a tough field at Sawgrass

Laird finished on the same 11 under par mark as former Masters champion Zach Johnson, former Open Champion Ben Curtis, and Fowler, the new darling of American golf who had two birdies in his last three holes.

Fowler had the chance of an even better finish following a marvellous long iron to just 6ft at the last. But the ensuing birdie putt and a chance to pile the pressure on Kuchar lipped out and his frustration was plain.

'It was a lot of fun over the closing stretch but I’m obviously a bit upset to let that golden chance slip at the end,’ said the 23 year old, who was bidding to win for the second week in a row.

Fowler’s miss certainly looked costly when Kuchar three-putted for a bogey at the 17th. He would have been only one stroke ahead going to the nerve-wracking finishing hole.

On form: Rickie Fowler continued his impressive run of results

As it was, a two shot lead allowed him to play it like a long par five and he duly made a four to win by two shots.

'It feels just magical to win this event,' said Kuchar.

Laird made his move with three birdies in a row on the back nine. At that point he was six under par for his round, the joint leader, and with all the momentum.

But a bogey at the 14th took some of the wind out of his sails and there was another at the difficult 18th that cost him a six-figure sum in this 6.5million event.

Still, there were plenty of positives for the 29-year-old to take from the week.

'It was one of the best rounds I have played under the circumstances and I feel like it has set me up for the summer,' he said.

And so another week, another winner on the US Tour. Believe it or not, 21 strokeplay events this year have yielded 21 different winners, with 17 of them being American. The only player to win twice was Hunter Mahan, who won the Houston Open and the Accenture Match Play Championship.

It was a nearly sort of day for the British contingent, with Englishman Luke Donald coming desperately close to reclaiming the world No 1 spot back from Rory McIlroy.

Donald was so groggy owing to a sinus problem last Thursday he felt like he had just stepped off a boat. What a contrast to his buoyant mood on Sunday, following a final round 66.

The Englishman began the day in joint 27th place with seemingly no chance of wrestling back top spot. Needing to finish solo fourth for that to happen and instigate a switch at the top for the fourth week in a row, he came home in 30 strokes to lie tied third at the conclusion of his round. He had to settle for sixth.

Life's a beach: Luke Donald fought hard to reclaim world No 1 spot

'I would certainly have taken that at two over par after 16 holes on Thursday,' said Donald.

His caddie, John McLaren, was hopeful something good would happen when he met his man on the practice ground beforehand.

'For the first time all week I feel human again,' Donald told him.

His back nine was other-worldly, and perhaps left some regrets regarding his misfortune at waking up feeling so poorly on the first day.

Is there anything he can do going forward

'There is an option of getting surgery but my sinuses have been a lot better this year,' he said. 'Two or three years ago I was having problems four or five times a year. Now it’s coming up once or twice and not quite as intense.'

Do we need to talk about Kevin There was certainly no escaping the subject of controversial American Kevin Na following his 68 on Saturday to take the lead into the final round.

Pulling the trigger: Kevin Na

He suffers from a mental problem characterised as struggling to pull the trigger. Which is ironic, given that most spectators would happily have had him shot.

Into one of the great golf seasons of recent memory a little darkness had to fall, it seemed, as Na tried on numerous occasions to stand up and hit the ball, only to continually back off, unable to draw the club back and complete a swing.

'Pull the trigger!' he screamed to himself at one point, thereby echoing the thoughts of the 45,000 spectators crammed on to the stadium course.

Perhaps we shouldn’t be too hard on him. After all, he doesn’t walk around in a bubble of blithe indifference. On Saturday he apologised on several occasions to his playing partner Johnson, who was plainly fed up by the end.

As Na acknowledged: 'As ugly and as painful as it is, believe me it is really tough for me. And I’m trying.'

He certainly tried on Sunday but it must be horrendous having to deal with the pressure of a final day while coping with such a nervous condition. He closed with a 76 to finish tied seventh.

Norwich 2 Aston Villa 0: McLeish"s men survive the drop

Posted on May 13, 2012 by adminsports

Norwich 2 Aston Villa 0: Canaries have McLeish's men in final day flap

UPDATED:

16:16 GMT, 13 May 2012

Goals from Grant Holt and Simeon Jackson helped Norwich commemorate a successful campaign back in the Barclays Premier League with a comfortable final-day victory over Aston Villa at Carrow Road.

Many had expected Paul Lambert's Canaries to be battling at the wrong end of the table on their first return to the elite for six seasons.

However, a string of industrious displays kept Lambert's hard-working side clear of danger well before this afternoon's final day visit of Villa, who barring a monumental goals swing, were also secure of top-flight status, albeit after what has been an uninspiring campaign under Alex McLeish.

Holt end: Grant Holt hit Norwich's first goal in a victory that ended a successful campaign

Match facts

NORWICH: Ruddy, Naughton, Martin, Ryan Bennett, Lappin, Elliott Bennett, Johnson, Hoolahan, Howson (Crofts 76), Holt (Morison 68), Jackson (Wilbraham 68). Unused subs: Steer, Drury, Surman, Fox.

Goals: Holt 8, Jackson 21

Booked: Holt

ASTON VILLA: Given, Cuellar (Gardner 66), Collins, Dunne, Lichaj, Ireland, Clark, Herd (Bannan 46), Warnock (Baker 81), Agbonlahor, Heskey. Unused subs: Guzan, N'Zogbia, Delfouneso, Carruthers.

Booked: Clark, Ireland

Referee: Martin Atkinson

Click here for the final Premier League table

First-half goals from leading scorer
Holt and Jackson made for a party atmosphere in the Norfolk sunshine –
where the several thousand Villa fans sent a loud and clear message they
expected better next season.

It was a strong start by the home
side, who had been outclassed in their last two matches here by
Manchester City and Liverpool.

After Holt was booked for failing to
retreat at a free-kick, the Norwich captain fired the Canaries in front
after eight minutes.

James Collins bundled over Simeon
Jackson, 25 yards out on the right. Bradley Johnson floated the
resulting free-kick into the Villa box, where Holt got up between two
defenders at the far post, the ball cannoning off his shoulder and past
Shay Given for a 15th Premier League goal.

Norwich continued to press and Jonny
Howson let fly from 20 yards, with Given taking no chances as he turned
the shot, which was going wide, around the post at full stretch.

Going close: Emile Heskey fires in a shot but Villa were to leave empty-handed

The Villa goalkeeper was then let
down by his static defence as Norwich went 2-0 up after 22 minutes. A
long ball forward from right-back Kyle Naughton was headed back across
his own six-yard box by Carlos Cuellar, straight into the path of
Jackson.

Given was out quickly to make a smart block, but the diminutive Canada striker calmly slotted the rebound into an empty net.

Norwich had a strong shout for a
penalty when Jackson's cross hit Cuellar's outstretched arm – but
referee Martin Atkinson saw nothing untoward and waved play on.

Early bird: The Canaries scored quickly thanks to Holt and never looked back

Villa showed little in way of
attacking intent, with Norwich enjoying a spell of possession which just
lacked a final telling pass.

Lambert has been touted as a
potential candidate should owner Randy Lerner look to make a change at
Villa Park during the summer – with both sets of fans chanting the
Scotsman's name, one as a sign of appreciation and the other as a
message to their board.

The visitors finally sprung to life
five minutes before the break as American defender Eric Lichaj strode to
the edge of the Norwich penalty area and sent in a low shot which John
Ruddy palmed around the post.

On the slide: Ciaran Clark (centre) is thwarted by Norwich's Jonathan Howson

Cuellar blocked Howson right on the
left corner of the penalty area, with the referee giving a free-kick
rather than pointing to the spot, despite replays suggesting the offense
took place just inside the line.

Villa made a change for the start of
the second half as midfielder Chris Herd was replaced by Barry Bannan,
and they quickly had a dominant spell.

Ruddy pushed Emile Heskey's low shot
around the post before tipping over Stephen Ireland's 20-yard rising
drive. Norwich, though, were soon back on the offensive themselves, with
Jackson stretching the Villa backline.

Under pressure: Villa boss Alex McLeish (third right) may not survive after a dismal season

After 63 minutes, the Canada striker,
whose goal at Portsmouth this time last season had secured promotion
back up to the top flight, sent a low, 20-yard effort goalwards, which
Given turned behind at full stretch.

Villa were unfortunate not to pull a
goal back when Gabriel Agbonlahor cut in from the left and his shot was
touched on to the inside of the far post by Ruddy, with Russell Martin
hacking the loose ball clear.

Norwich were still creating chances at
the other end, where substitute Aaron Wilbraham blazed over before
winger Elliott Bennett did the same.

Premier League wish Grant-ed: Holt instrumental in helping Norwich extend their top-flight stay

Cooking up a storm: Norwich joint-owner Delia Smith watched another victory at Carrow Road

Heads we win: Kyle Naughton battles with Villa's Gabriel Agbonlahor

Cooking up a storm: Norwich joint-owner Delia Smith looks on as Kyle Naughton battles with Gabriel Agbonlahor

Serena Williams faces Victoria Azarenka in Madrid Open final

Posted on May 12, 2012 by adminsports

Serena to face top-ranked Azarenka in Madrid Open final

UPDATED:

17:17 GMT, 12 May 2012

Final flourish: Serena Williams celebrates during her semi with Lucie Hradecka

Serena Williams will meet top-ranked
Victoria Azarenka in the final of the Madrid Open after both players
dispensed with their opponents in straight sets on Saturday.

Williams beat qualifier Lucie
Hradecka 7-6 (5), 6-0 on the new blue-clay court after Azarenka ousted
fourth seed Agnieszka Radwanska 6-2, 6-4.

On the men's side, Tomas Berdych
edged Juan Martin del Potro 7-6 (5), 7-6 (6) to advance to Sunday's
final against the winner of the other semifinal between Roger Federer
and Janko Tipsarevic.

Federer can displace Rafael Nadal as the second-ranked player if he wins the tournament.

Nadal lost to Fernando Verdasco on Thursday.

A Hradecka's night: But it was not Lucie's day against Williams

The ninth-ranked Williams edged the tenacious Czech to have a shot at her second title of the season.

Azarenka has won four tournaments this year.

'Victoria has been so consistent in her game this year,' Williams said. 'She is so consistent, so amazing and so, just nearly perfect. I am going to the final with nothing to lose.'

Williams holds a 6-1 head-to-head record against Azarenka, whose only win came in 2009.

This will be the first time they meet on clay.

Power play: The ball appears to merge into Williams' racket

'She's one of the best players in the world and one of the toughest opponents to play against so we'll see,' Azarenka said.

'But as I said, it's going to be a different story.'

While both Nadal and Novak Djokovic promised to never play again on the blue clay, neither women's star saw their big-hitting style overly hampered by the surface many players have called slippery.

Williams held off Hradecka's seven early aces in a first set, which she won in a tiebreaker.

She then broke Hradecka three times in the second to cruise to her 12th consecutive win on clay this season.

Triumph: Williams shows her delight after reaching the final

'She just did everything really well and I was able to come through in the tie break,' Williams said.

'After that I was able to relax, to make less errors and make more shots and be more aware out there.'

The 105th-ranked Hradecka had upset defending champion Petra Kvitova and U.S. Open winner Sam Stosur to reach the semi-finals.

Azarenka had little trouble beating Radwanska for the sixth straight time.

Victoria victory: Azarenka was an easy straight sets winner

Azarenka hit a deep return to set up a slam and break her Polish opponent's first service game, and went on to hit 14 winners and held at love to wrap up the first set.

The players traded a pair of breaks in the second set before Azarenka, the runner-up last year, won a decisive third break with a crosscourt return.

'I'm really happy. All the top players are here and I'm in the final and looking forward to it,' said the 22-year-old Belarusian.

Service charge: Azarenka was unstoppable

'(Radwanska and I) keep meeting each other. I'm glad to win today. The score maybe wasn't so close, but it was a good match.'

Tottenham players talk about the lasagne incident

Posted on May 12, 2012 by adminsports

Lasagne-gate! When Tottenham failure was so hard to stomach

UPDATED:

21:00 GMT, 11 May 2012

Martin Jol returns to White Hart Lane on Sunday with Fulham for the first time since he was sacked by Tottenham Hotspur in October 2007.

The Dutchman came close in 2006 to taking Spurs into the Champions League for the first time, only to suffer a final-day 2-1 defeat by West Ham United after 10 Tottenham players were struck down by illness.

Arsenal finished fourth instead and Spurs blamed the lasagne the squad had eaten the night before, but the hotel, the London Marriott in West India Quay, was later cleared of any wrongdoing.

Return: Martin Jol is going back to White Hart Lane

Six years on, a win for Jol’s Fulham could see Tottenham miss out on fourth spot once again.

Sportsmail spoke to some of the men involved in ‘Lasagne-gate’.

West Ham goalkeeper Shaka Hislop, now a pundit for ESPN: ‘We heard the day before that this bug seemed to be sweeping through the Tottenham camp. I recall thinking, “If we can keep ourselves in this until half-time, their strength is likely to fade”.’

Ex-Spurs midfielder Teemu Tainio, 32, now at New York Red Bulls:
‘You go into the last game and know that victory would secure a Champions League place, so we were in control. Then this episode came up, everyone got sick, and we had a fair chance to win the game but we didn’t. It is still the biggest disappointment of my career.’

Worst: Teemu Tainio (left) said the game against West Ham was the biggest disappointment of his career

Ex-Spurs centre-back Anthony Gardner, 31, now at Crystal Palace:
‘I was playing at the back with Michael Dawson, who wasn’t feeling great, and Michael Carrick was struggling too — he had to go off. On the day we didn’t play very well, but it was tough to take that we didn’t make it in that way.’

Martin Jol:
‘We were in fourth position for a long time. We had to go to West Ham and Arsenal played a home game so that was easier.

‘That was the first time they were above us so they ended up in the top four and we were fifth. It was a bit too much for us.

‘(But) Spurs are as good as Arsenal now. When I was at Spurs I don’t think we were.’

Players Championship 2012: Ian Poulter leads, Tiger Woods in trouble

Posted on May 11, 2012 by adminsports

Poulter's drive puts him in front as Tiger faces missing second consecutive cut

UPDATED:

23:46 GMT, 10 May 2012

One of the best rounds of his career has left Ian Poulter a step closer to the car of his dreams.

The not so shy and retiring Englishman shot a brilliant first round 65 at the Players Championship on Thursday and intends to treat himself to a $1million Ferrari Enzo should he claim the $1.7m winner's cheque on Sunday night.

It's over half a century now since Viv Nicholson won the pools and promised to 'Spend, Spend, Spend.'

Water display: Poulter shares the lead with Laird after a brilliant first-round display from the Englishman

Our Poults might be the modern-day
golfing equivalent with the notable difference it's not luck that has
put him in this enviable position but his own skill and work ethic.

Just as well, mind, given his lavish
tastes. On Sunday night, Poulter finally moves into his new home in
Orlando that has taken, would you believe, almost three years to build.
Such is his love of cars the multi-story garage alongside it is already
full of exotic specimens.

'I'll find room for one more, you can be sure of that,' said the 36 year old, smiling.

Late surge: Martin Laird joined Poulter at the summit of the leaderboard after his seven-under par 65

On a tricky day of capricious breezes
and tough pin positions, Poulter's golf was Ferrari-good, and left him
in a tie for the lead with the American-based Scot, Martin Laird.

Thanks to his victory in the Arnold
Palmer Invitational last year, 29 year old Laird already has a victory
in Florida to his name and chipped and putted beautifully for his
bogey-free score.

From the 9th, Poulter had one of
those runs that happen to even the best putters only once or twice a
season, when the hole looks the size of a bucket. He had nine single
putts in a row, taking full advantage of a series of imperious iron
shots.

Out of sorts: Casey was forced to withdraw after taking 42 to the turn

'It was back to the good old days as
a junior when I'd hole it from everywhere,' he said. A bit different,
of course, doing it in a $7m event rather than for a Mars bar.

Luke Donald had talked in the
build-up about the importance of a great short game here and that's
exactly what Poulter has when he is on his game. Nothing was better than
the 25 yard bunker shot he played at the par five 11th to just 4ft.

In his last two appearances in
America, Poulter finished third at Bay Hill and seventh at the Masters.
After a slow start to the season he is showing a burst of acceleration
akin to the cars he likes to drive.

Picture perfect: But Woods was in danger of missing a second consecutive cut after his two-over par 74

Laird and Poulter finished a shot ahead of a 36-year-old American called Blake Adams, and fair play if you've heard of him.

As is invariably the way on tough
venues these days, while the in-form were blazing away on one side of
the golf course, Tiger Woods was playing the role of the infirm on the
other.

In the last two years in this event he has pulled up lame and is now in danger of another early exit after a dismal opening 74.

Another low beckons, for a poor round
today would see him missing a second successive halfway cut for the
first time in his career.

The UK's big three were all out in
the afternoon and, with the greens drying out, struggled to live up to
their billing as the three best players in the world.

Rory McIlroy, Donald and Lee Westwood
will all hope for kinder conditions this morning to get themselves back
into contention after shooting prosaic scores of 72, 72 and 71
respectively.

McIlroy became yet another victim of
the notorious island green par three 17th, finding the water with his
tee shot to spoil a decent round.

He was playing with Phil Mickelson
and drew comfortably the largest crowd seen all day. Over the front nine
the 23 year old lived up to his pre-tournament promise to curb his
natural instincts and some smart golf saw him reach the turn in a
two-under par 34. The back nine was disappointing by comparison and leaves him with work to do.

'It was certainly disappointing to
give a couple of shots back but nothing that a few birdies on the front
nine in the morning won't cure,' said Rory.

Westwood didn't play the 17th hole
too convincingly either to run up a bogey four. The real damage to his
card, however, was done at the par-four seventh where, after a run of
three birdies in five holes, he had bunker trouble and carded a double
bogey.

'I'm a glass half-full person, so I'll think about the seven birdies I made and take it from there,' said Westwood.

Playing alongside him, Donald endured
a very un-Donald-like round as he mixed birdies with bogeys. At the
14th he even hit Westwood's manager Chubby Chandler with a wayward
drive, the ball ricocheting 40 yards to the right. Donald's caddie John
McLaren raised a laugh when he attempted to give Chandler a golf ball as
compensation. Two birdies in his last three holes, however, got Donald
back to parity and he will look to build on that momentum.

Elsewhere, consistent Londoner Brian
Davis continued the splendid run of form that has seen him post two top
four finishes recently with a 68. Ireland's Padraig Harrington shot 69.

As ever round here, there were a
litany of minor disasters to go alongside the fine play. It was hard not
to feel sympathy for Simon Dyson and the injury-prone Paul Casey who
withdrew with sciatic and shoulder injuries respectively.

Then there was former Masters and US
Open Champion Angel Cabrera, who ran up a nine at the 17th and then
announced he was withdrawing for 'personal reasons.' Perhaps he'd run out of golf balls.

McLaren axe pit crew

Posted on May 10, 2012 by adminsports

McLaren axe hapless pit crew: Whitmarsh rings changes after errors cost Hamilton and Button points

UPDATED:

07:35 GMT, 10 May 2012

McLaren have confirmed changes have been made to the pit crew in light of recent mistakes.

Errors in the last two races in China and Bahrain, in particular by the man operating the left-rear wheel gun, have cost Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button points.

In Shanghai, Button was denied a shot at victory by a slow final change of tyres as the left wheel nut cross-threaded at the first time of asking.

That's the pits: McLaren have been forced to ring the changes

A week later in Bahrain, Hamilton encountered two issues with his left-rear wheel, after the second of which team boss Martin Whitmarsh replaced the mechanic operating the gun for the last stop.

Whitmarsh was forced to console the man concerned after the race as he admitted he had taken the situation 'very badly'.

Following an internal review of their pit-stop procedures during the recent mini-break that included last week's test in Mugello, further alterations have been made ahead of this weekend's Spanish grand prix in Barcelona.

Whitmarsh said: 'We've looked at what we are doing and have made some changes to the team and the process and we'll see them on Sunday in Barcelona – or you may see them on the earlier days if you are interested enough to watch pit-stop practice.

'There's enormous pressure on the guys. At a team like McLaren you are targeting a sub three-second stop.

'It's a huge physical challenge. If you've held a wheel gun it's really heavy and it's not an easy task.

Pressure-cooker: The teams are under enormous pressure to nail the stop

'It's being done on some very hot components with the eyes of hundreds of millions bearing down on your back.

'So I am always in awe of the level of the volunteers we have, but we have made some changes as you might expect following the last race.

'I wondered whether we'd have volunteers for some of the more critical elements, but I was astounded by how many guys in the team wanted to put themselves in that very challenging position.

'It reflects well on the spirit of the team. There's since been a reasonable amount of practice and we'll see at the weekend. I believe we'll have good stops.'

Phil Duncan F1 blog

The two errors in Bahrain resulted in Hamilton finishing eighth and losing his lead of the championship to Red Bull's reigning champion Sebastian Vettel, who holds a four-point advantage.

With four different winners of the four races to date, Hamilton is naturally itching to make it five in five, a feat achieved just three times in F1 history.

Last season's runner-up to Vettel said: 'Our performance at Barcelona during winter testing looked promising.

'But the form of the season is still very hard to read, so it's difficult to predict who'll be at the front this weekend.

'Nonetheless, we had a great race there last year. I pushed Sebastian all the way to the finish.

'I think we have a comparatively stronger car this year, so I hope we can have another strong race.'

Martin Whitmarsh blasts Pirelli criticism

Posted on May 9, 2012 by adminsports

McLaren chief Whitmarsh tyred of Pirelli criticism after Schuey's 'raw eggs' remark

UPDATED:

17:52 GMT, 9 May 2012

McLaren team principal Martin Whitmarsh believes it is wrong to criticise Pirelli for the quality of their tyres this year.

Seven-times champion Michael Schumacher has been particularly outspoken, claiming he has so far been unable to drive on the limit in races due to the rapid rate of tyre degradation.

The 43-year-old Mercedes star continued his attack on Pirelli by claiming the current rubber was like driving 'on raw eggs'.

Critical: Schumacher has spoken out against this year's Pirelli tyres

Whitmarsh, though, feels there is a considerable amount of skill required to get the best out of the tyres, which comes down to a combination of driver and team working in harmony.

'There's no doubt the tyres are a definite challenge within Formula One and they have added to the spectacle,' said Whitmarsh.

'There's also no doubt when a driver has had a bad race he will complain about them.

Tyred: Whitmarsh has called on the Pirelli detractors to get on with it

'But if they made tyres that were very robust and not challenging in terms of management from either the team or driver's perspective then I'm sure the spectators will be critical of the tyres as they won't create the right spectacle.

'In summary, they are challenging and there have been times when they have certainly given up.

'The last race in Bahrain was certainly one of those times, where we weren't in the right window of operation and that affected our performance in the race quite dramatically.

'But I think it would be wrong to criticise the tyre. I think you've got to look at you as a team and what the drivers are doing and look at how to manage the situation.'

After a particularly problematic race in Bahrain last time out when Lewis Hamilton finished eighth and Jenson Button retired a lap from the finish, Whitmarsh knows McLaren have to raise their game for the start of the European season this weekend in Spain.

Phil Duncan F1 blog

One aspect that has been raised is the nose of the car which was put through its paces on the final afternoon of last week's three-day test in Mugello.

Although still far removed from the stepped noses of some of their rivals this season, it is clear McLaren are desperately seeking ways to improve performance.

Whitmarsh has conceded there is 'a reasonable chance' it will be used around Barcelona's Circuit de Catalunya.

'If you look at the detail, the height of the front of the nose is one of the more minor pieces of the new front wing assembly,' said Whitmarsh.

'There are a range of things. We gathered a lot of information.

'It's unusual at this stage for us to have an in-season test so we felt we had to use that to log some data.

'As you saw, there were all sorts of appendages and sensors etc. fitted to the cars to measure things.'

Don"t stop crazy clubs from failing – Martin Samuel

Posted on May 9, 2012 by adminsports

It's a shame for the fans, but don't stop crazy clubs from failing…

UPDATED:

23:55 GMT, 8 May 2012

Something must be done. Blackburn Rovers have been relegated and lessons need to be learned. There should be rules, there should be controls. It cannot be allowed to happen again. What exactly cannot happen again, we are not sure.

Absentee foreign owners, maybe; or over-promoted assistant coaches with unfounded belief in their own abilities. Quite how the legislation will look we have no clue, also. Venky's may have run the club like madmen but as the Marx brothers said, there ain't no sanity clause.

Perhaps we could redraft the Premier League articles to include a subsection outlawing stupid owners acting stupidly. The whole silly fuss reminds most of Father Ted and Father Dougal campaigning fruitlessly against an allegedly blasphemous film. Ted carries a placard that reads, 'Down with this sort of thing.' Dougal's says, 'Careful now.'

It never rains, but it pours: Rovers are heading down after making a series of bad decisions