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The '''2006 Chinese Grand Prix''', formally the '''[[Chinese Grand Prix|III Sinopec Chinese Grand Prix]]''' ('''2006中石化中国大奖赛''' or alternately '''2006 Zhōngshíhuà zhōngguó dàjiǎng sài''' in Chinese) was the sixteenth round of the {{F1|2006}} [[FIA]] [[Formula One|Formula One World Championship]], staged at the [[Shanghai International Circuit]] in Shanghai, China, on [[October 1|1 October]] 2006.<ref name=GP></ref> The race would be notable as the 91st and final [[victory]] for [[Michael Schumacher]], and would move the German ace to the top of the 2006 Drivers' Championship.<ref name=GP></ref>
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The '''2006 Chinese Grand Prix''', formally the '''[[Chinese Grand Prix|III Sinopec Chinese Grand Prix]]''' ('''2006中石化中国大奖赛''' or alternately '''2006 Zhōngshíhuà zhōngguó dàjiǎng sài''' in Chinese) was the sixteenth round of the {{F1|2006}} [[FIA]] [[Formula One|Formula One World Championship]], staged at the [[Shanghai International Circuit]] in Shanghai, China, on [[October 1|1 October]] 2006.<ref name=GP>'China 2006: Top Schuey!', ''crash.net'', (Crash Media Group, 01/10/2006), https://www.crash.net/f1/race-report/57080/1/china-2006-top-schuey, (Accessed 10/02/2020)</ref> The race would be notable as the 91st and final [[victory]] for [[Michael Schumacher]], and would move the German ace to the top of the 2006 Drivers' Championship.<ref name=GP></ref>
   
 
[[Qualifying]] had not suggested it would be a good race for Schumacher, however, for the German ace could only muster sixth on the grid for {{Ferrari-CON}}.<ref name=GP></ref> Instead, it was Championship leader [[Fernando Alonso]] who emerged on [[pole|pole position]], setting the fastest time in all three qualifying sessions ahead of teammate [[Giancarlo Fisichella]].<ref name=GP></ref>
 
[[Qualifying]] had not suggested it would be a good race for Schumacher, however, for the German ace could only muster sixth on the grid for {{Ferrari-CON}}.<ref name=GP></ref> Instead, it was Championship leader [[Fernando Alonso]] who emerged on [[pole|pole position]], setting the fastest time in all three qualifying sessions ahead of teammate [[Giancarlo Fisichella]].<ref name=GP></ref>
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| {{POR}} [[Tiago Monteiro]]
 
| {{POR}} [[Tiago Monteiro]]
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| {{RUS}} [[Midland F1 Racing|Spyker MF1 Racing]]
 
| {{Midland-CON}}
 
| {{Midland-CON}}
 
| [[Midland M16|M16]]
 
| [[Midland M16|M16]]
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| {{NED}} [[Christijan Albers]]
 
| {{NED}} [[Christijan Albers]]
| {{RUS}} [[Midland F1 Racing|MF1 Racing]]
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| {{RUS}} [[Midland F1 Racing|Spyker MF1 Racing]]
 
| {{Midland-CON}}
 
| {{Midland-CON}}
 
| [[Midland M16|M16]]
 
| [[Midland M16|M16]]

Revision as of 12:23, 11 February 2020

The 2006 Chinese Grand Prix, formally the III Sinopec Chinese Grand Prix (2006中石化中国大奖赛 or alternately 2006 Zhōngshíhuà zhōngguó dàjiǎng sài in Chinese) was the sixteenth round of the 2006 FIA Formula One World Championship, staged at the Shanghai International Circuit in Shanghai, China, on 1 October 2006.[1] The race would be notable as the 91st and final victory for Michael Schumacher, and would move the German ace to the top of the 2006 Drivers' Championship.[1]

Qualifying had not suggested it would be a good race for Schumacher, however, for the German ace could only muster sixth on the grid for Ferrari.[1] Instead, it was Championship leader Fernando Alonso who emerged on pole position, setting the fastest time in all three qualifying sessions ahead of teammate Giancarlo Fisichella.[1]

Heavy rain on race morning meant that the circuit was very damp ahead of the start and hence meant that the field started on intermediates.[1] This favoured the Michelin shod drivers in the field, and hence would put those on Bridgestones on the back foot.[1]

Alonso duly aced the start to claim an early lead, sprinting ahead of Renault teammate Fisichella who eased into the first corner to allow Alonso to escape.[1] Behind, Jenson Button initially managed to fend off the attentions of Kimi Räikkönen, while Robert Kubica was barged off the track by Robert Doornbos in the #15 Red Bull-Ferrari.[1]

The race quickly settled down, with Schumacher the main source of entertainment as he battled his way pas the two Hondas of Rubens Barrichello and Button.[1] Räikkönen would also make progress by diving past Fisichella, who had been defending heavily from the Finn since the opening lap, and duly went about demolishing Alonso's fifteen second lead.[1]

After fifteen laps the circuit was showing signs of having a dry line, a fact which enabled those on Bridgestone tyres to come to the fore.[1] As such there was little surprise when Schumacher closed right onto Fisichella's tail, while Räikkönen was on the verge of catching Alonso, until a throttle failure ended his challenge.[1]

The top three made their first pitstops on consecutive laps, beginning with Schumacher and ending with Fisichella on lap 23.[1] Interestingly both Fisichella and Schumacher would stick with the same set of intermediate tyres, while Alonso opted to have just his front tyres changed for a new set of inters.[1]

That, however, would unbalance the #1 Renault, which was steadily reeled in by both Fisichella and Schumacher during the second stint.[1] By lap 29 Fisichella was on the attack and after a failed attempt into the hairpin claimed the lead, with Schumacher following the Italian racer through.[1]

Alonso opted to switch to slicks a few laps later, although lost even more time courtesy of a sticking wheel nut.[1] Fisichella and Schumacher, meanwhile, would be among the last to switch to slicks, with Fisichella paying the price for cold tyres by sliding wide at the first corner and handing the lead to the German ace.[1]

With that Schumacher was away, with Fisichella dutifully allowing a recovering Alonso to pass for second without issue.[1] The Spaniard quickly blasted away to hunt down Schumacher, although time was fast running out as the race entered its final throes.[1]

Ultimately, time would run out for Alonso, who succession of fastest laps was not enough to catch Schumacher, who claimed his 91st victory and the Championship lead.[1] Fisichella was a distant third to complete the podium, with Button, Pedro de la Rosa, Barrichello, Nick Heidfeld and Mark Webber claimed the remaining points.[1]

Background

Victory for Michael Schumacher in front of the tifosi had completely changed the Championship picture, for the German ace had eliminated Fernando Alonso's lead. Indeed, the Spaniard had seen his twelve point advantage demolished to just two after Schumacher's win and his engine failure, with those two now the only title contenders. Behind, Felipe Massa had retained third, although both Kimi Räikkönen and Giancarlo Fisichella had closed to within five points of the Brazilian.

In the Constructors Championship it had been a very good home race for Ferrari, as they moved ahead of Renault for the first time all season. The Scuderia established a three point lead over the French manufacturer, with those two officially in a duel for the title much like their lead drivers. Behind, McLaren-Mercedes had almost secured third ahead of Honda, who likewise had a healthy lead over fifth placed BMW Sauber.

Entry list

The full entry list for the 2006 Chinese Grand Prix is outlined below:

No. Driver Entrant Constructor Chassis Engine Model Tyre
1 Spain Fernando Alonso France Mild Seven Renault F1 Team Renault R26 Renault RS26 2.4 V8 M
2 Italy Giancarlo Fisichella France Mild Seven Renault F1 Team Renault R26 Renault RS26 2.4 V8 M
3 Finland Kimi Räikkönen United Kingdom Team McLaren Mercedes McLaren MP4-21 Mercedes FO 108S 2.4 V8 M
4 Spain Pedro de la Rosa United Kingdom Team McLaren Mercedes McLaren MP4-21 Mercedes FO 108S 2.4 V8 M
5 Germany Michael Schumacher Italy Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro Ferrari 248 F1 Ferrari 056 2.4 V8 B
6 Brazil Felipe Massa Italy Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro Ferrari 248 F1 Ferrari 056 2.4 V8 B
7 Germany Ralf Schumacher Japan Panasonic Toyota Racing Toyota TF106B Toyota RVX-06 2.4 V8 B
8 Italy Jarno Trulli Japan Panasonic Toyota Racing Toyota TF106B Toyota RVX-06 2.4 V8 B
9 Australia Mark Webber United Kingdom Williams F1 Team Williams FW28A Cosworth CA2006 2.4 V8 B
10 Germany Nico Rosberg United Kingdom Williams F1 Team Williams FW28A Cosworth CA2006 2.4 V8 B
11 Brazil Rubens Barrichello Japan Lucky Strike Honda Racing F1 Team Honda RA106 Honda RA806E 2.4 V8 M
12 United Kingdom Jenson Button Japan Lucky Strike Honda Racing F1 Team Honda RA106 Honda RA806E 2.4 V8 M
14 United Kingdom David Coulthard United Kingdom Red Bull Racing Red Bull RB2 Ferrari 056 2.4 V8 M
15 Netherlands Robert Doornbos United Kingdom Red Bull Racing Red Bull RB2 Ferrari 056 2.4 V8 M
16 Germany Nick Heidfeld Germany BMW Sauber F1 Team BMW Sauber F1.06 BMW P86 2.4 V8 M
17 Poland Robert Kubica Germany BMW Sauber F1 Team BMW Sauber F1.06 BMW P86 2.4 V8 M
18 Portugal Tiago Monteiro Russia Spyker MF1 Racing Midland M16 Toyota RVX-06 2.4 V8 B
19 Netherlands Christijan Albers Russia Spyker MF1 Racing Midland M16 Toyota RVX-06 2.4 V8 B
20 Italy Vitantonio Liuzzi Italy Scuderia Toro Rosso Toro Rosso STR1 Cosworth TJ2006 3.0 V10 M
21 United States Scott Speed Italy Scuderia Toro Rosso Toro Rosso STR1 Cosworth TJ2006 3.0 V10 M
22 Japan Takuma Sato Japan Super Aguri F1 Super Aguri SA06 Honda RA806E 2.4 V8 B
23 Japan Sakon Yamamoto Japan Super Aguri F1 Super Aguri SA06 Honda RA806E 2.4 V8 B
Test Drivers for Practice Sessions Only
35 Austria Alexander Wurz United Kingdom Williams F1 Team Williams FW28 Cosworth CA2006 2.4 V8 B
36 United Kingdom Anthony Davidson Japan Lucky Strike Honda Racing F1 Team Honda RA106 Honda RA806E 2.4 V8 M
37 Germany Michael Ammermüller United Kingdom Red Bull Racing Red Bull RB2 Ferrari 056 2.4 V8 M
38 Germany Sebastian Vettel Germany BMW Sauber F1 Team BMW Sauber F1.06 BMW P86 2.4 V8 M
39 France Alexandre Premat Russia Spyker MF1 Racing Midland M16 Toyota RVX-06 2.4 V8 B
40 Switzerland Neel Jani Italy Scuderia Toro Rosso Toro Rosso STR1 Cosworth TJ2006 3.0 V10 M
41 France Franck Montagny Japan Super Aguri F1 Super Aguri SA06 Honda RA806E 2.4 V8 B
Source:[2]

Practice Overview

Qualifying

Q1

Q2

Q3

Qualifying Results

The full qualifying results for the 2006 Chinese Grand Prix are outlined below:

Pos. No. Driver Team Q1 Q2 Q3 Grid
Pos. Time Pos. Time Pos. Time
1 1 Spain Fernando Alonso France Renault 1 1:44.128 1 1:43.951 1 1:44.360 1
2 2 Italy Giancarlo Fisichella France Renault 2 1:44.378 2 1:44.336 2 1:44.992 2
3 11 Brazil Rubens Barrichello Japan Honda 12 1:47.072 6 1:45.228 3 1:45.503 3
4 12 United Kingdom Jenson Button Japan Honda 6 1:45.809 3 1:44.662 4 1:45.503 4
5 3 Finland Kimi Räikkönen United Kingdom McLaren-Mercedes 4 1:44.909 8 1:45.622 5 1:45.754 5
6 5 Germany Michael Schumacher Italy Ferrari 14 1:47.366 9 1:45.660 6 1:45.775 6
7 4 Spain Pedro de la Rosa United Kingdom McLaren-Mercedes 3 1:44.808 5 1:45.095 7 1:45.877 7
8 16 Germany Nick Heidfeld Germany BMW Sauber 10 1:46.249 4 1:45.055 8 1:46.053 8
9 17 Poland Robert Kubica Germany BMW Sauber 8 1:46.049 7 1:45.576 9 1:46.632 9
10 15 Netherlands Robert Doornbos United Kingdom Red Bull-Ferrari 11 1:46.387 10 1:45.747 10 1:48.021 10
11 21 United States Scott Speed Italy Toro Rosso-Cosworth 9 1:46.222 11 1:45.851 11
12 14 United Kingdom David Coulthard United Kingdom Red Bull-Ferrari 7 1:45.931 12 1:45.968 12
13* 6 Brazil Felipe Massa Italy Ferrari 13 1:47.231 13 1:45.970 20
14 20 Italy Vitantonio Liuzzi Italy Toro Rosso-Cosworth 5 1:45.564 14 1:46.172 13
15 9 Australia Mark Webber United Kingdom Williams-Cosworth 16 1:48.560 15 1:46.413 14
16 10 Germany Nico Rosberg United Kingdom Williams-Cosworth 15 1:47.535 16 1:47.419 15
17 7 Germany Ralf Schumacher Japan Toyota 17 1:48.894 16
18 8 Italy Jarno Trulli Japan Toyota 18 1:49.098 17
19 18 Portugal Tiago Monteiro Russia Midland-Toyota 19 1:49.903 18
20* 22 Japan Takuma Sato Japan Super Aguri-Honda 20 1:50.326 21
21 23 Japan Sakon Yamamoto Japan Super Aguri-Honda 21 1:55.560 19
EXC 19 Netherlands Christijan Albers Russia Midland-Toyota EXC 22
Source:[3]
  • T Indicates a driver used their test/spare car to set their best time in that session.
  • Bold indicates the fastest driver's time in each session.
  • * Massa and Sato both received ten place grid penalties for changing their engines.[3]
  • Albers was excluded from the results of qualifying for missing a weighbridge check.[3]

Grid

Pos. Pos.
Driver Driver
______________
Row 1 1 ______________
Fernando Alonso 2
______________ Giancarlo Fisichella
Row 2 3 ______________
Rubens Barrichello 4
______________ Jenson Button
Row 3 5 ______________
Kimi Räikkönen 6
______________ Michael Schumacher
Row 4 7 ______________
Pedro de la Rosa 8
______________ Nick Heidfeld
Row 5 9 ______________
Robert Kubica 10
______________ Robert Doornbos
Row 6 11 ______________
Scott Speed 12
______________ David Coulthard
Row 7 13 ______________
Vitantonio Liuzzi 14
______________ Mark Webber
Row 8 15 ______________
Nico Rosberg 16
______________ Ralf Schumacher
Row 9 17 ______________
Jarno Trulli 18
______________ Tiago Monteiro
Row 10 19 ______________
Sakon Yamamoto 20
______________ Felipe Massa
Row 11 21 ______________
Takuma Sato 22
______________ Christijan Albers

Race

Report

Results

The full results for the 2006 Chinese Grand Prix are outlined below:

Pos. No. Driver Constructor Laps Time/Retired Grid Points
1 5 Germany Michael Schumacher Italy Ferrari 56 1:37:32.747 6 10
2 1 Spain Fernando Alonso France Renault 56 +3.121s 1 8
3 2 Italy Giancarlo Fisichella France Renault 56 +44.197s 2 6
4 12 United Kingdom Jenson Button Japan Honda 56 +1:12.056 4 5
5 4 Spain Pedro de la Rosa United Kingdom McLaren-Mercedes 56 +1:17.137 7 4
6 11 Brazil Rubens Barrichello Japan Honda 56 +1:19.131 3 3
7 16 Germany Nick Heidfeld Germany BMW Sauber 56 +1:31.979 8 2
8 9 Australia Mark Webber United Kingdom Williams-Cosworth 56 +1:43.588 14 1
9 14 United Kingdom David Coulthard United Kingdom Red Bull-Ferrari 56 +1:43.796 12
10 20 Italy Vitantonio Liuzzi Italy Toro Rosso-Cosworth 55 +1 Lap 13
11 10 Germany Nico Rosberg United Kingdom Williams-Cosworth 55 +1 Lap 15
12 15 Netherlands Robert Doornbos United Kingdom Red Bull-Ferrari 55 +1 Lap 10
13 17 Poland Robert Kubica Germany BMW Sauber 55 +1Lap 9
14 21 United States Scott Speed Italy Toro Rosso-Cosworth 55 +1 Lap 11
15* 19 Netherlands Christijan Albers Russia Midland-Toyota 53 +3 Laps 22
16 23 Japan Sakon Yamamoto Japan Super Aguri-Honda 52 +4 Laps 19
17 7 Germany Ralf Schumacher Japan Toyota 49 Exhaust 16
DSQ 22 Japan Takuma Sato Japan Super Aguri-Honda 55 Disqualified 21
Ret 6 Brazil Felipe Massa Italy Ferrari 44 Accident 20
Ret 8 Italy Jarno Trulli Japan Toyota 38 Water leak 17
Ret 18 Portugal Tiago Monteiro Russia Midland-Toyota 37 Spun off 18
Ret 3 Finland Kimi Räikkönen United Kingdom McLaren-Mercedes 18 Gearbox 5
Source:[4]
  • T Indicates a driver used their test/spare car.
  • * Albers was handed a 25-second time penalty for ignoring blue flags.[4]
  • Sato was disqualified from the race for ignoring blue flags.[4]

Milestones

Standings

A second victory in succession for Michael Schumacher had moved the German ace level on points with long-standing leader Fernando Alonso atop the Championship, both ending the weekend on 116 points. However, courtesy of having seven wins to the Spaniard's six, it was the German ace who headed to Japan at the head of the title hunt. Behind, the battle for third had also intensified, with Giancarlo Fisichella having moved a point ahead of Felipe Massa.

In the Constructors Championship Renault had moved back to the head of the pack, albeit by just a point after their double podium in China. Ferrari had been forced to make way for them, and could potentially concede the title fight in Japan, if Renault claimed a one-two and the Scuderia failed to score. Behind, McLaren-Mercedes would claim third in the Championship if Honda failed to outscore them by ten points in Suzuka, while BMW Sauber had eased away from Toyota in fifth.

World Championship for Drivers
Pos. Driver Pts. +/-
1 Germany Michael Schumacher 116 ▲1
2 Spain Fernando Alonso 116 ▼1
3 Italy Giancarlo Fisichella 63 ▲1
4 Brazil Felipe Massa 62 ▼1
5 Finland Kimi Räikkönen 57
6 United Kingdom Jenson Button 45
7 Brazil Rubens Barrichello 28 ▲1
8 Colombia Juan Pablo Montoya 26 ▼1
9 Germany Nick Heidfeld 22
10 Spain Pedro de la Rosa 18 ▲2
11 Germany Ralf Schumacher 18 ▼1
12 United Kingdom David Coulthard 14 ▼1
13 Italy Jarno Trulli 12
14 Australia Mark Webber 7 ▲2
15 Canada Jacques Villeneuve 7 ▼1
16 Poland Robert Kubica 6 ▼1
17 Germany Nico Rosberg 4
18 Austria Christian Klien 2
19 Italy Vitantonio Liuzzi 1
World Championship for Constructors
Pos. Team Pts. +/-
1 France Renault 179 ▲1
2 Italy Ferrari 178 ▼1
3 United Kingdom McLaren-Mercedes 101
4 Japan Honda 73
5 Germany BMW Sauber 35
6 Japan Toyota 30
7 United Kingdom Red Bull-Ferrari 16
8 United Kingdom Williams-Cosworth 11
9 Italy Toro Rosso-Cosworth 1

Only point scoring drivers and constructors are shown.

References

Images and Videos:

References:

  1. 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 1.14 1.15 1.16 1.17 1.18 1.19 1.20 1.21 'China 2006: Top Schuey!', crash.net, (Crash Media Group, 01/10/2006), https://www.crash.net/f1/race-report/57080/1/china-2006-top-schuey, (Accessed 10/02/2020)
  2. 'China 2006: Entrants', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2015), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2006/chine/engages.aspx, (Accessed 10/02/2020)
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 '2006 FORMULA 1™ Sinopec Chinese Grand Prix - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2006), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2006/races/805/china/qualifying.html, (Accessed 10/02/2020)
  4. 4.0 4.1 4.2 'China 2006: Result', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2016), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2006/chine/classement.aspx, (Accessed 10/02/2020)
  5. [Archived] '2006 Chinese GP', chicanef1.com, (Chicane F1, 2014), https://web.archive.org/web/20190409190834/http://chicanef1.com/racetit.pl?year=2006&gp=Chinese%20GP&r=1, (Accessed 10/02/2020) - Original
  6. 6.0 6.1 6.2 '16. China 2006', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2014), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2006/chine.aspx, (Accessed 10/02/2020)
V T E China Chinese Grand Prix
Circuits Shanghai International Circuit (2004–present)
ShanghaiCircuit1
Races 20042005200620072008200920102011201220132014201520162017201820192020202120222023
V T E 2006 Formula One Season
Teams Renault • McLaren • Ferrari • Toyota • Williams • Honda • Red Bull • BMW Sauber • Midland • Toro Rosso • Super Aguri
Engines BMW • Cosworth • Ferrari • Honda • Mercedes • Renault • Toyota
Drivers Alonso • 2 Fisichella • 3 Räikkönen • 4 Montoya • 4 De la Rosa • 5 M. Schumacher • 6 Massa • 7 R. Schumacher • 8 Trulli • 9 Webber • 10 Rosberg • 11 Barrichello • 12 Button • 14 Coulthard • 15 Klien • 15 Doornbos • 16 Heidfeld • 17 Villeneuve • 17 Kubica • 18 Monteiro • 19 Albers • 20 Liuzzi • 21 Speed • 22 Sato • 23 Ide • 23 Montagny • 23 Yamamoto
Other Drivers Badoer • Davidson • Hamilton • Kovalainen • Piquet • Sutil • Vettel • Wurz
Cars Renault R26 • Ferrari 248 F1 • McLaren MP4-21 • Honda RA106 • BMW Sauber F1.06 • Toyota TF106 • Red Bull RB2 • Williams FW28 • Toro Rosso STR1 • Midland M16 • Super Aguri SA05 • Super Aguri SA06
Tyres Bridgestone • Michelin
Races Bahrain • Malaysia • Australia • San Marino • Europe • Spain • Monaco • Britain • Canada • United States • France • Germany • Hungary • Turkey • Italy • China • Japan • Brazil
See also 2005 Formula One Season • 2007 Formula One Season • Category
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