The ‘real’ season has kicked off in Spain and there are no more excuses left. The teams have done a ton of testing and development since Bahrain 3 weeks ago and arguably, the true pecking order was revealed on Sunday. Here are are a few other points that revealed themselves in the race.

1. No one has an answer to Ferrari’s pace

More and more, all indications are that the season is going to be painted red. McLaren seem unsure of how to take the fight to Ferrari and BMW have neither the experience nor the outright pace to power past the Prancing Horse. If any challenger wins races from this point forward, it will be more likely a Ferrari mistake than from pure performance.

2. The 2009 aerodynamic rules can’t get here fast enough

You know it’s a seriously boring grand prix when the “overtaking move of the race” is Nick Heidfeld passing a Force India into the braking zone of a kilometer long straight. What prevents a BMW that qualified nearly 2 seconds faster than the Force India from passing it for 9 laps during the race? - a slight breeze apparently! Obviously aerodynamic downforce limitations when following another car need to be addressed. The new rules (2009) emphasizing mechanical grip can’t get here soon enough. Fans don’t want to see strategic chess matches in the pits, they want to see racing (passing) on the track and with these cars, it just ain’t happening.

3. Renault and Alonso are a match made in heaven!

There is a symbiotic relationship working between the team and Alonso that is almost magic. Alonso brings his consummate skill as a driver to the team and they respond with a development program that apparently produced a staggering leap forward in just three weeks. He repays the team’s hard work by pulling off a qualifying lap in Barcelona that was simply awesome. I believe that the success of Renault and Alonso are tied to one another and neither will be as formidable on their own as they will together. It’s very good to see Fernando back on form.

4. When it comes to the rules - procrastination is the name of the game

In June of 2007 a safety car was deployed in Montreal and under the new rules at the time, the pit lanes were closed to the drivers - even those nearly out of fuel. This destroyed the race for Alonso and Nico Rosberg and they both took 10 second penalties for pitting

rather than run out of fuel on the track. Everyone admitted at the time that the rule was not fair and needed to be changed. But, here we are a year later and it’s the same story. This time Nick Heidfeld was caught out and a 5th place turned into a 9th. Some folks have suggested that he should have stopped on the track to demonstrate the absurdity of the rule and they’re right! A year has passed and the simplest of rules haven’t be changed - pathetic!

5. Crash testing saves lives

Seeing Heikki Kovaleinen’s car stuffed into the tire wall brought back memories of Luciano Burti’s crash a few years ago at Spa. It’s a sickening feeling for everyone watching as they extract a driver from a big wreck like that. I, like every fan in the world, was thankful to see the thumbs up from the little Finn and a BIG thank you goes out to the FIA for the strict safety tests they require every year from every team for every new design. A decade ago that crash could have been fatal. Making safety a priority has saved countless lives and thankfully today a driver doesn’t need to travel with a dark suit for the far too frequent funeral following a race.

BONUS: The Mosley saga is poisoning F1

What more needs to be said? Max loves power more than he love motor racing. He will tear Formula 1 and the FIA apart to serve his own ego. Clearly the man has no shame and no understanding of the greater good.

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