Part three reviews another exciting week off the track for Formula 1 and previews the third race of the season, the China GP. It also looks at the first round of matches in this season's County Championship.
Brawn GP continue to dominate Formula 1 at the third race of the season in Shanghai in China.
In the first two practices, Jenson Button finished second and first with team-mate Rubens Barrichello finishing third in both sessions.
The continued success on the track follows excellent news off the track this week for Brawn when their rear diffuser was declared legal by the governing body FIA.
This ruling came despite Ferrari lawyer Nigel Tozzi QC weighing in with an ill-though description of team manager Ross Brawn as “a person of supreme arrogance”.
Perhaps it’s not surprising to see Ferrari act in this way – it’s not often they are without a point after the first two rounds – but it does not leave it any less distasteful.
The other big news in midweek was the confirmation of the expected departure of Ron Dennis from McLaren.
Dennis denied the timing of his departure was linked to McLaren’s FIA hearing on April 29 where the team will answer charges of
He had attended the Australian GP (although he was not in team colours) but watched the Malaysian GP on television having handed over complete control of McLaren Racing to Martin Whitmarsh at the start of the season.
Dennis said he found it “surprisingly easy” to keep his emotions in check as a remote viewer.
And McLaren have been much easier on the eye this weekend. Lewis Hamilton was fastest in the first practice session and team mate Heikki Kovalainen was fourth.
In second practice, though, the two McLarens dropped to ninth (Kovalainen) and 13th.
And so the early signs are that Brawn GP’s main competition may come from the Toyotas of Jarno Trulli and Timo Glock, Red Bull’s Mark Webber (5th then 4th) and Williams’ Nico Rosberg (2nd in session two).
The Ferraris of Kimi Raikkonen (11th then 14th) and Felipe Massa (15th then 12th) have been nowhere so far this weekend.
Likewise Fernando Alonso (9th and 19th) has shown very little.
In the drivers’ championship, Button on 15pts leads team mate Barrichello on 10pts with Trulli on 8.5pts and Glock on 8pts in third and fourth.
In cricket, the County Championship began this week although defending champions Durham are not in action this weekend after beating Durham UCCE in an MCC match earlier today.
The first win of the season came at the Rose Bull where Hants (216 & 107-3, 18 points) beat Worcestershire (132 & 189, 3 points) by seven wickets within three days.
In the only other first division match, Ian Bell scored 172 as Warwickshire racked up 500 in their first innings. Somerset have so far reached 435-4 with James Hildreth not out on 188 in a likely draw.
In division two, Derbyshire (326 & 4-1 currently) enjoy a first innings lead over Essex (194) in a match which saw only 23 overs bowled on day two.
And Gloucestershire, who scored 333 in their first innings, have also been frustrated by the unsettled spring weather which washed out all of day three. They had Surrey on a perilous 18-3 at the end of day two.
Finally, after no play on day two, Leicestershire are still struggling at 102-7 in reply to Northants’ 387, short by 135 of avoiding the follow-on.
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