Since its inception in 2004, the GP2 Series has established itself as a serious breeding ground for Formula One talent - with the likes of Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton as evidence. And official tyre suppliers to the series, Bridgestone, are helping to do the same for motorsport journalism, with their e-reporter competition.
The nine 2008 finalists will each get to report from one European round of the series, and will be supplying Formula1.com with details of the GP2 action, plus a diary reflecting their experience as a first-time paddock correspondent. For Europe, it’s 21 year-old Spanish writer, Tabatha Valls Halling...
Qualifying report - practice makes perfect
Valencia is a brand new circuit. There is a lot to learn and digest in very little time. And today’s GP2 qualifying laps were filled with events, as drivers made contact with the track for the first time. All of them had everything studied but, as Pastor Maldonado (Piquet Sports) said before getting into his car, they needed to "try it out as it’s completely new and different form the other circuits. So we don’t know exactly how to regulate the car".
In fact, today nobody really knew what was going to happen. Andy Soucek (Super Nova Racing) said he had "analysed all the compiled data", and the engineers at all the teams didn’t know exactly what to expect and therefore had done more simulation work than for any other tracks on the calendar.
It wasn’t long before we got to see the first mistakes. Early in the qualifying session Kamui Kobayashi (DAMS) drove too near the wall after a curve and hit his right-rear tyre.
The track had not yet been measured by the drivers and the GP2 cars were difficult to control on a track that still had limited tyre grip. Carlos Iaconelli (BCN Competicion) and Karun Chandhok (iSport) were the next to check that the track was still a bit dirty and slid across it.
Luckily, as Jerome D’Ambrosio (DAMS) said, "there are a lot of run-off areas, it’s a different type of circuit, in between a real street circuit like Monte Carlo and a normal circuit, because there are walls and you have to be careful as it’s easy to face into them". It certainly looked easy to do, with all the drivers brushing the walls on many occasions.
Luckily, the Valencia Street circuit also has run-off areas, and so many of the drivers’ mistakes were quickly solved, as they continued with the session. Alvaro Parente (Super Nova Racing) braked too late and also performed a slide in the middle of the track.
After a good fight with Maldonado, Giorgio Pantano (Racing Engineering) was able to secure first place for the first time in Valencia: "It’s great, and we’ve shown we can make the difference," said Pantano. But it’s still too soon to make any conclusions. Maldonado, Vitaly Petrov and Romain Grosjean seem to have good feelings and hope to have the same consistency they had on Friday for the race.
Friday diary - living the dream
I’m finally in Valencia. After many months waiting for this day, it has arrived at last. Full of energy and eager to experience this world from the inside, we arrived at the GP2 Paddock early in the morning.
Walking in, familiarising myself with the motorsport environment was the first step. And a quick chat with Alexa Quintin, GP2 media and communications manager, made me more than ready to get going.
I started by asking GP2 drivers and engineers their impressions about the new track and how they had prepared for it. It’s great how freely you can walk around the paddock and ask questions to everyone you see. There’s just no problem and I felt like any other journalist doing their job. I was really surprised how kind everyone is here: drivers, engineers, Bridgestone or GP2 personnel, everyone has a bit of their precious time to share with you.
All the teams were getting ready for the first practice. Time had come. I felt I was in my element. The noise of the engines, the roar of the cars so near to you: it’s all a magical experience. And that was only the morning.
We had lunch at the Bridgestone motorhome in the Formula One Paddock where it was great to be able to share a table with Adam Hay-Nicholls, a journalist who really looks for creative and original subjects to write about - something that I think is essential in journalism.
I also got to know a 2005 Bridgestone e-reporter finalist, Lawrence Barretto. After that I got to walk around the F1 paddock for a while; it is very different from the GP2 paddock. You really get to see how much luxury and money is involved here. Everything is less accessible, but it is really admirable. It’s just a dream to be able to be here.
We went back to watch the GP2 qualifying session, and after that I interviewed the drivers who qualified on top. And then came one of the best moments of the day as I had the opportunity to interview Hirohide Hamashima, Bridgestone Director of Motorsport Tyre Development, as the European Grand Prix coincides with Bridgestone’s 200th race in Formula One.
It was really great to have this opportunity, and I very much enjoyed it. But that was not all. I got to speak with my favourite journalist, Antonio Lobato of Telecinco, who I’ve followed on TV for many years, and on Saturday I’ll have the chance to interview him. But that’s tomorrow. Today has been too exciting and better than I would have ever expected. I’m living a dream, and I don’t want to wake up.
For more on the Bridgestone e-reporter competition, http://www.bridgestone-ereporter.eu/home/index.php?mode=home
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