Red Bull hope to get Italian job done



Red Bull Racing have not had the best fortune at the Italian Grand Prix and they have never finished on the podium at Monza. The long straights, sweeping bends and three chicanes, which make up the layout of the track in northern Italy, have not been too kind to the team over the years.

Sebastian Vettel's fourth-place finish last year, when the reigning champion finished 28 seconds adrift of Ferrari's Fernando Alonso, was Red Bull's highest placing in six attempts to date.

Vettel, however, knows what it takes to win at Monza, claiming his first victory in stunning circumstances in 2008 for Toro Rosso.

It is a triumph Vettel concedes he "will never forget", recalling he had "goose bumps standing on the podium with the fans below".

As for Mark Webber, he has never finished higher than sixth at Monza - again last year - so he is hoping the good fortune his team experienced in the last race at Spa in Belgium continues.

On that occasion, at another circuit not supposed to favour Red Bull, the Australian finished runner-up to Vettel in the Belgian Grand Prix.

They secured their 10th one-two for the team and maintained their run of claiming pole position at every race in 2011 thus far.

Ahead of this weekend's event, as he attempts to close the 92-point gap to Vettel, Webber said: "Monza is one of the best races of the year because the atmosphere is amazing with the 'tifosi' supporting Ferrari.

"There is an immense amount of history with the old banking still in place and the beautiful park where the Italian Grand Prix has been staged over the past 80-odd years.

"It's also the shortest grand prix we take part in as we can knock out the 300-kilometre race distance very fast because of the exceptional average speed.

"So you need a car that's very quick on the straights and still manage to have sensible downforce for cornering.

"Unfortunately it's the last European race of the season. But we were spoilt with how good the race unfolded in Spa, so let's hope Monza is the same."

COMPANY PROFILE
Name: ARDH Collective
Based: Dubai
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Sector: Sustainability
Total funding: Self funded
Number of employees: 4
The specs

Engine: 4.0-litre, six-cylinder

Transmission: six-speed manual

Power: 395bhp

Torque: 420Nm

Price: from Dh321,200

On sale: now

The specs

Engine: 3.8-litre V6

Power: 295hp at 6,000rpm

Torque: 355Nm at 5,200rpm

Transmission: 8-speed auto

Fuel consumption: 10.7L/100km

Price: Dh179,999-plus

On sale: now 

The biog

Simon Nadim has completed 7,000 dives. 

The hardest dive in the UAE is the German U-boat 110m down off the Fujairah coast. 

As a child, he loved the documentaries of Jacques Cousteau

He also led a team that discovered the long-lost portion of the Ines oil tanker. 

If you are interested in diving, he runs the XR Hub Dive Centre in Fujairah

 

Our legal columnist

Name: Yousef Al Bahar

Advocate at Al Bahar & Associate Advocates and Legal Consultants, established in 1994

Education: Mr Al Bahar was born in 1979 and graduated in 2008 from the Judicial Institute. He took after his father, who was one of the first Emirati lawyers

TRAP

Starring: Josh Hartnett, Saleka Shyamalan, Ariel Donaghue

Director: M Night Shyamalan

Rating: 3/5

Jigra
Director: Vasan Bala
Starring: Alia Bhatt, Vedang Raina, Manoj Pahwa, Harsh Singh
Rated: 3.5/5
The specs
Engine: Long-range single or dual motor with 200kW or 400kW battery
Power: 268bhp / 536bhp
Torque: 343Nm / 686Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Max touring range: 620km / 590km
Price: From Dh250,000 (estimated)
On sale: Later this year
Eyasses squad

Charlie Preston (captain) – goal shooter/ goalkeeper (Dubai College)

Arushi Holt (vice-captain) – wing defence / centre (Jumeriah English Speaking School)  

Olivia Petricola (vice-captain) – centre / wing attack (Dubai English Speaking College)

Isabel Affley – goalkeeper / goal defence (Dubai English Speaking College)

Jemma Eley – goal attack / wing attack (Dubai College)

Alana Farrell-Morton – centre / wing / defence / wing attack (Nord Anglia International School)

Molly Fuller – goal attack / wing attack (Dubai College)

Caitlin Gowdy – goal defence / wing defence (Dubai English Speaking College)

Noorulain Hussain – goal defence / wing defence (Dubai College)

Zahra Hussain-Gillani – goal defence / goalkeeper (British School Al Khubairat)

Claire Janssen – goal shooter / goal attack (Jumeriah English Speaking School)         

Eliza Petricola – wing attack / centre (Dubai English Speaking College)


Middle East Today

The must read newsletter for the region

      By signing up, I agree to The National's privacy policy
      Middle East Today