AQSA'S PODIUM

Now that we've had time to reflect on the weekend's action I've been able to think about who my top three drivers of the weekend were. I thought the majority of drivers performed well considering they didn't really know what to expect for the race after a wet, rain-disrupted Qualifying session. Nevertheless, hearts will be broken as I can only choose my top 3 for this feature...

3. Kimi Raikkonen

Kimi was involved in a few interesting on-track battles during the race, particularly when he overtook Vettel at the start of the race only to lose position a turn later. He made up a position on his Qualifying place, which is always good, and all his overtaking manoeuvres were clean but effective.

2. Romain Grosjean

Kimi's Lotus teammate comes in at number 2. He qualified in 10th and finished in 6th. Romain continue to impresses me this season and he is proving why he deserved his second chance in Formula 1. I expect great things to come for the young Frenchman.

1. Mark Webber

Mark, the winner of the Grand Prix, takes the number 1 spot on my list for the second week in a row. He was my pick as driver of the day for the European Grand Prix because he moved from 19th on the grid to finish 4th. This time round it's because he kept a cool head during the race and maintained his second place well. Then, when it mattered, he really attacked leader Fernando Alonso; timing everything perfectly. A well deserved win for the Aussie who finally confirmed where he will be driving next year. So congratulations to Mark for taking the top spot in Aqsa's Podium for two weeks running. I'm sure this is the best news he'll receive all week...

Aqsa, @aqsasformula

(Image 1, 2, 3)

F1 MOMENTS #2

So this is the feature where I pick the best moment of the weekend's race. For the European Grand Prix I picked the Hamilton-Maldonado collision that ended Lewis' race. Last time out we were in Silverstone for the British Grand Prix and so when I was thinking about what my absolute favourite moment of the weekend was I realised that I am going to have to cheat and choose a moment that doesn't actually have anything to do with the racing. Or any of the drivers...

My favourite moment from the British Grand Prix weekend took place on the Saturday, but it has nothing to do with Qualifying. Well not directly... Ok, I'll end the suspense now! My moment of the weekend had to be when Murray Walker, the man, the legend, appeared on the BBC's coverage of Qualifying to join commentators Ben Edwards and David Coulthard in the commentary box during the red flag period. Murray Walker was commentating on F1 before my time, well before I was old enough to actually understand and enjoy the commentary so I never got to experience everything he added to an F1 race. Nevertheless I, like any true F1 fan, have heard his commentary on certain classic races and understand why he is a legend for the sport. So to hear his classic '"GO, GO, GO!" live on TV was a truly special moment!

I know this isn't directly related to any of the great track action Silverstone treated us to but it was the best moment of the weekend, in my opinion!

So, what was your moment from the British Grand Prix weekend? Would you agree with my choice or were you watching with Sky/ do you live abroad meaning you didn't get to see it?

Aqsa, @aqsasformula

SETTING THE SCENE.

Silverstone was all about the 'local' team Red Bull, in my opinion. The Milton Keynes based team took home a double podium, astonishingly their first of the season, with Mark Webber winning the Grand Prix and Sebastian Vettel coming in a respectable 3rd position. The team have a great record at Silverstone and this just adds to it. It also cements their lead at the top of the Constructors' championship; they now have a 64 point lead over nearest challengers Ferrari. Therefore this is my choice as my 'Setting the Scene' picture:

The results from today also mean that Mark Webber has; cut the lead Fernando Alonso had in the Drivers' championship, increased the lead he has over teammate Vettel and become the second driver to take two wins this season. A successful weekend at the office! There have been questions about Webber's future and all he has confirmed so far is that he will be in Formula 1 next year; he has not specified with whom. He has now outqualified his teammate in 5 out of 9 races and has 2 wins to Vettel's 1; not bad for a number 2 driver.

Aqsa, @aqsasformula

MARK MAKES IT TWO UNDER THE SILVERSTONE SUN

I'll begin with apologies for the late review; I was recovering from that Wimbledon match! I can't go into detail as I'll just get emotional.

So the rain defied expectations, stayed away and we had a dry race in Silverstone. This meant all teams were essentially venturing into the unknown in terms of strategy and how they compared to others. Consequently, we had different teams and drivers going for alternative tyre strategies so before the race had even begun we knew tyres and strategy would play a vital role. If you follow me on Twitter you may have seen me tweet about how nothing quite excites me like alternative tyre strategy. This was not an exaggeration. As the drivers in the top 10 had qualified on the intermediates, they were able to choose what tyre they wanted to start on. Lewis Hamilton and pole-man Fernando Alonso notably decided to start on the  harder compound tyre whilst their rivals at Red Bull, and most others on the grid, chose the soft tyre to start the race. 

Anxious to not have a repeat of 2011 when Vettel overtook Mark, who was on pole, going into the first corner Fernando went defensive to retain his lead. Vettel got a bad start this year slipping behind Felipe Massa. After the race Vettel did say that the first stint and falling behind Massa and Schumacher hurt his chances of winning the race.

One of three British drivers at this weekend Paul Di Resta lost any hope of impressing in front of his home crowd just one corner into the Grand Prix. Contact with Romain Grosjean's Lotus led to a puncture on a rear tyre. Di Resta was able to make it to the pits for a change but in doing so sustained too much damage to the floor of the car and his race was over. I am sure Paul is feeling really disappointed with what happened and I don't know whether the fact that there was no one to blame helps that or not. There was another early retirement for one of the Caterhams. Vitaly Petrov's race was over before it had even begun. The team kindly tweeted me to confirm that it was an engine failure that caused the premature retirement but they will only know more once engine suppliers Renault "strip down the engine and find out what happened". It's fair to say that Renault have not had the best fortnight. Vettel and Grosjean retired due to problems with their alternators and now Petrov was unable to race.

During the first stint Alonso was able to maintain his lead to Webber, who also had a comfortable lead over Schumacher, Massa and Vettel. The latter two were all within the DRS zone to the man in front but only Massa was able to gain a place. Red Bull had to try the undercut and pit first to switch Vettel onto the harder tyre. They had to try a roll of the dice and were essentially the first team to blink. Luckily, it paid off. After Massa and Schumacher pitted they emerged behind Sebastian. Alonso stayed out longer than most, as he was on the harder tyre, but he did eventually pit and resume his place in front of Mark Webber. Hamilton didn't need to pit as soon as everyone else and so he enjoyed a brief period where he was leading the race; a real treat for the British fans!

Nevertheless, normality then resumed. Hamilton was shuffled down the pack and Alonso reclaimed the lead. It was all calm at the front, for a while...

Another race, another incident involving Pastor Maldonado. Whether you love him or hate him, there can be no denying that Maldonado had been involved in far too many collisions in his F1 career and, this season particularly, has cost his Williams team a lot of points. This time round he clashed with Sergio Perez and the young Mexican's race was ended. Looking at the collision I think it is something you would usually class as a racing incident and the stewards seem to agree by not awarding Maldonado with any grid-place penalties for the next race. However, Pastor is a driver with past form for getting involved in collisions that end others' races. Sergio Perez was damning in his verdict on Maldonado and even said that his dangerous driving is a concern amongst most drivers. Perhaps he does have some bad feeling towards him after the incident in Monaco a few races ago but his anger was clear. Maldonado has also been given a reprimand by the stewards and it is his second one so should he get one more it will be a grid-place penalty that awaits him.

Then followed the next rounds of pit stops. Those who had started on the soft tyre were following a strategy of soft, hard, hard. Those on the hard were mainly going for hard, hard, soft. Hamilton was an exception. He went for the soft tyre for the second stint and only used it for around 8 laps. It was strange strategy from McLaren but I think they knew that they would have to try something different if they were to challenge for the win. Qualifying, albeit the conditions were different, showed they didn't really match up in terms of pace.

By the time of the second round of pit stops Mark Webber had managed to reduce some of the lead Alonso had after Mark had pitted. He needed to reduce it by approximately a further four seconds but Alonso headed in, put on his soft tyres and emerged in front of Webber. Mark's Red Bull team told him to start cutting down the difference and to just be patient as Alonso's tyres would eventually fall away from him. Mark did as he was told and amazingly managed to but down a 6-second lead in a few number of laps. He then got incredibly close, tried to use DRS but had to settle for using it to reduce the gap rather than overtaking. When the time came Mark went round the outside of Alonso for a great overtake for the lead of the British Grand Prix. I do honestly think that if there were a few more laps of the race Sebastian Vettel could have had a go at Alonso as well...

Felipe Massa really impressed me during the race. He finished 4th; his best result of the season and I really hope that a podium is possible for him this season. It can't be easy for any driver to hear the rumours surrounding your future and hearing other drivers talk about the possibility of them having your seat next year. Despite what many say Massa is a good racing driver and he can overtake. His priority now must be to focus on Qualifying. Should he sort that out, I'm sure podiums await!

The race was really disappointing for the Brits on the grid. Paul had a DNF and McLaren's Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button finished 8th and 10th respectively. Clearly, this means that the car was just not up to it and, for once, it wasn't a problem with Button's balance and set-up. The issue didn't even seem to come from high tyre degradation, something Jenson had struggled with, and they were equal with other teams on making tyres last. McLaren did have upgrades for this race but Ferrari and Red Bull were still just out of reach for them. No doubt there will be some head-scratching at the MTC as the team try to pinpoint why they were so far off the pace and how they can recover some of that form in time for Hockenheim.

The British Grand Prix was a great one. Silverstone truly is one of the greatest circuits in the world, even if it doesn't traditionally throw up a lot of overtakes, and it was a pleasure to watch F1 come back to the UK. The weather forecast may have deceived us as the rain that was expected never came but all other promises were delivered. Silverstone lived up to the high standard of Formula 1 in 2012, in my opinion anyway, and it's a shame that we have to wait another year for it.

That's the end of my race recap and, I don't know how obvious this is, I have done it slightly differently to how I usually do. Let me know what you think about the review and the race itself and keep coming back as I have more post-race posts to add!

Aqsa, @aqsasformula

(Images: Mail Online)

SILVERSTONE SERVES UP A SATURDAY SPECTACLE.

There was utter chaos over in Silverstone today as the teams and drivers took to the track to qualify for the British Grand Prix. The session was red flagged with just over 6 minutes of Q2 to go but the action on either side of the red flag more than made up for the rain delay.

It was clear from the get go that this was going to be a Qualifying session full of shocks and surprises! All the drivers were eager to get out straight away and get some timed laps in whilst conditions were still manageable. This led to yet another traffic jam in Silverstone in a weekend when that has been one of the biggest news stories surrounding the event only this time it was queues of F1 cars not F1 fans. Lap times were set and, although they weren't very fast, drivers did need a lot of control and skill to keep their cars on track. There was a lot of slipping and sliding as the rain began to have a big effect on the track action.

Caterham were enthusiastic about Qualifying today. They have brought major upgrades to Silverstone making changes to their front wing, rear bodywork and exhausts and had claimed that they expected it to give them about half a second in pace. To the casual F1 fan that may seem insignificant but with strict regulation limiting what designers and engineers can do to their cars it is quite extraordinary to make such gains in pace. Whether the team have actually made this progress is as yet unclear; it is likely that the weather conditions today didn't allow them to really show their hand. Nevertheless, they once again failed to make it through to Q2 despite their early confidence. Petrov and Kovalainen qualified in 19th and 20th respectively but will start a position higher as a result of Jean-Eric Vergne's penalty from Valencia. We know that Caterham can progress into Q2 so perhaps we will just need to wait for a Qualifying session in normal conditions to see their upgrades come into effect. Behind the two Caterhams are your usual suspects; Glock, De La Rosa, Karthikeyan and Pic. However, Vergne will be the man starting 24th, after qualifying in 16th, so all the aforementioned drivers will also move up one grid position.

Jenson Button. What is there to say about Jenson Button? The Brit's woes continued in front of his home fans. After a promising FP3 result, finishing 2nd, I'm sure Jenson and many others thought he would have an easier time of it in Qualifying than he has recently had. However, conditions were different for FP3 and with even less (of Jenson's arch nemesis this season) grip in the wet it just wasn't to be in Silverstone. This is a disappointing results by anyone's standards let alone someone who is trying to relaunch his title bid! Speaking to the BBC's Lee McKenzie after the premature ending of his involvement in Qualifying, Jenson was still feeling optimistic about the race. Conditions will be wet tomorrow, surprise surprise, meaning there will be plenty of opportunity to climb up the order and overtake. I also doubt tyres will play as big a role tomorrow due to the low degradation of the wet tyres and so, as this is an area Button has particularly struggled with this season, I think he is right to be feeling optimistic. The weekend is not over yet...

In Q2 it was clear that the rain had gotten so much worse. There were literally deep puddles that the drivers were having to drive through and I did find myself thinking that a red flag was imminent. It looks like race control agreed with me and, as I mentioned above, the session was stopped for an hour and a half with 6 minutes and 19 seconds of Q2 remaining. Fernando Alonso made his thoughts on the need for a red flag very clear on his team radio. He wasn't setting lap times good enough and was down in 16th before the red flag.

There was a lot of criticism of the decision to red flag the session. I was watching the BBC coverage and technical wizard Gary Anderson made his feelings very clear. The argument was that drivers should qualify whatever the condition and it should be that whoever is the best in those circumstances gets to reap the benefits. This is a very hazy area and there are varied opinions on it. I was one of those people thinking there had to be a red flag and that drivers couldn't possibly qualify or even drive in that rain. Hearing the arguments from the likes of Gary Anderson has made me think that a red flag may have been too drastic. But when you see the extent of the rain and how deep it was, was there anything else Charlie Whiting and co could have done? It was a case of damned if you do, damned if you don't! At least it meant there was time for a Mexican wave or two...

Topping the timesheets before the stop was Sergio Perez. Sauber had got everything right; tyre choice and when they sent their driver out to set a timed lap so they were set to be the real losers as a result of the red flag period. And lose it, they did! When the session resumed, Perez was unable to keep close to the rest of the pack. He blamed the tyre decision for this. He ended up coming last out of all the drivers in Q2 and qualifying in 17th. However, he gets to move up thanks to Vergne and his Sauber teammate. Kobayashi qualified in 12th but will start from 17th due to a penalty from Valencia when he crashed into Felipe Massa. Sauber looked strong in practice yesterday when conditions were fairly similar to today so it is a surprise to see them fail to progress to Q3.

Also failing to progress to Q3 were Paul Di Resta, Nico Rosberg, Daniel Ricciardo and Bruno Senna. All of them, apart from Ricciardo, had to see their teammates make it through which tells you just how mixed up the pack was. I'm sure they will be disappointed to be the teammate that didn't progress but they can take comfort from the fact that they saved tyres and with a wet race ahead they can still come out on top tomorrow, when it counts!

Now on to the top 10 shoot out; the climax of an exciting day's action! There were many contenders for pole position; Hamilton, Vettel, Alonso and Webber would all be up for the fight and no one was to be written off. Romain Grosjean beached his Lotus at the end of Q2 so, despite making it through to Q3, he was unable to run and starts 10th. A few drivers, including Hamilton, decided to come out on the full wets but it soon became apparent that the intermediate tyres would have to be the way to go! Alonso was consistently topping the leaderboard after, pretty much, every single lap he completed. Even Felipe Massa enjoyed some time at the top showing that Ferrari had managed to 'do a Vettel' and switch something on just when it mattered most! Webber went first, Schumacher went first; all were in for a real shot! The two obvious names missing from the battle were Sebastian Vettel and Lewis Hamilton. Vettel would seemingly be on a fast lap but then towards the end of the middle sector it looked like he kept backing off. It was strange to see him so far away from his teammate's pace, to say the least. Nevertheless he ended up qualifying in 4th and on the second row; a respectable position! Lewis Hamilton was the big shock of Q3! Not only did he set a fairly average lap time to go 6th but then had to watch as drivers kept beating his time. He therefore starts from a lowly 8th on the grid. Felipe Massa, Kimi Raikkonen and Pastor Maldonado are sandwiched between Vettel and Hamilton and they start 5th, 6th and 7th respectively.

Alonso, Webber and Schumacher were clearly the strongest drivers in the pole position shoot out and just found a lot more pace than their competitors. It was Alonso who came out on top as he took his first pole position of 2012. Webber joins him on the front row showing Red Bull do still have pace but it's just a different driver at the front for them. And Schumacher continues to prove his worth in an F1 seat by qualifying ahead of Vettel.

I don't think the qualifying positions will be that important for tomorrow's race. Naturally, it won't hurt to start at the front but drivers behind shouldn't feel disheartened. There is a long race ahead and it is guaranteed that a lot will happen. I wouldn't rule out a red flag out, let alone a safety car and tyre strategy may prove crucial. Decisions of when to change tyres to adapt to changing circumstances and track conditions will be an important part of who will manage a strong finish.

If today was anything to go by Sunday at Silverstone won't fail to disappoint the hundreds of thousands of fans who will show up in force, and have been told to do so by organisers, to the Grand Prix tomorrow. Make sure you are back here after the race to review everything that happens with me in my race review and other features throughout the week!

Who will win the race? I don't think anyone can give an answer with full confidence and I certainly have no predictions. I'm just ready to enjoy what the British Grand Prix will bring and, with a lot at stake championship-wise, the drivers won't hesitate to show us some fantastic racing, regardless of what Mother Nature will throw up!

Aqsa, @aqsasformula

(Images: Mail Online)

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT.

The Silverstone weekend is well and truly under way! FP1 and FP2 took place today, obviously, but both sessions were affected by rain meaning we can't really learn too much from the final standings at the end of the sessions. Then again, it looks like Qualifying and the race will be rain-hit as well so maybe there was something to gain from the sessions.

Fernando Alonso would probably disagree. He only went out towards the end of FP1 and if you were watching the session on TV you would have seen him sitting very comfortably in his chair; and not the one in his Ferrari! As a result his time wasn't that fast in FP1 or 2. Like I said previously, I don't think we can learn a lot from these times. Alonso is fast and his Ferrari is capable of performing in the rain. The last race that was really affected by rain was in Malaysia; which, as you know, Fernando went on to win. I'm sure some teams were using the sessions to gain a better understanding of what their car can do in the rain at this circuit. Massa fared slightly better than Alonso in FP1 but did a lot more running; he ultimately finished in fifth. FP2 results for Alonso and Massa were 10th and 15th respectively. Ferrari and Alonso know what is at stake this weekend. Their decision to go for limited running does therefore seem slightly strange. We will find out the exact reasons, I'm sure, sooner or later and we will discover Ferrari's true form tomorrow in Qualifying.

Lewis Hamilton was the man topping the timesheets at the end of FP2 and a strong display in FP1 when he finished 3rd indicates that he may have a strong weekend at his home Grand Prix; which he is making everyone aware of with his helmet choice! Many have already started to talk of another win in the wet for Hamilton in Britain; his first was in his championship winning year 2008. These predictions may be a little premature as this weekend still has a long way to go. Setting the fastest time in FP2 does not mean you will have a strong Qualifying; think Vettel in Barcelona, and with ever-changing conditions, fuel loads and set-ups for cars nothing is set in stone. Nevertheless, this is a positive start to the weekend for the Brit and it certainly gave fans something to cheer about.

There was little to no running for almost an hour which, as Sebastian Vettel pointed out, was a real shame for the thousands of fans who endured hours of traffic and the pouring rain to watch some Formula 1 action. The rain was really heavy, something I hope does not continue for the weekend! I would hate to see Qualifying or the race disrupted by the rain; for fans at home, in the grandstands or those crazy, unfortunate few who are camping.

Speaking of Vettel, he also said that he thinks Red Bull have managed to save tyres by not running; tyre consumption is turning into a bit of a worry this weekend with only a limited set of intermediate tyres available. He admitted that he and team did not manage to learn a lot and with some new upgrades for the RB8 this may be a concern for Red Bull. Mark Webber did not even set a timed lap in FP2 and Vettel finished in 11th so they will be eager and hopeful of getting some running before Qualifying tomorrow. I also wanted tell you about the ESPYS, just quickly. The ESPYS are sports awards, run by ESPN, and include categories on all sorts of sports. 'Best Driver' is one category and Sebastian Vettel is nominated. He is the only F1 driver nominated. If you want to show some support and vote for him, click here. You can vote in the other categories as well, if you want to!

Sauber looked strong in both practice sessions today with both drivers finishing in the top 10 for both sessions. Malaysia saw Perez take his first ever F1 podium. Sauber clearly like the rain... This season they have been known for great tyre management and things are looking up for them this weekend. If they can manage the tyres better than those they qualify near they have a strong chance of yet another podium. With Kobayashi looking strong this weekend as well, they can pick up a nice batch of points for the Constructors' championship. I expect them to be qualifying near Force India and Jenson Button so we'll see how my prediction turns out.

I've already told you that we cannot gain a lot from these practice sessions. Even if the race is full of rain and the conditions are similar to today teams didn't get to run a lot or as much as they would have liked. This means they themselves don't really know what will happen, let alone us bystanders! One thing we do know is that we are in for a cracking weekend. Qualifying will be intense, as it has always been this season, but the weather makes it so much more unpredictable. In normal conditions I would have picked Vettel but I have no idea who will be on the front row tomorrow. It may not even matter that much with heavy rain often meaning safety cars and possibly even a red flag.

Kimi Raikkonen, as ever, summed up what we learnt from these sessions perfectly; "It was wet."


Aqsa, @aqsasformula

KEEP CALM AND... SILVERSTONE!

The moment is almost upon us; practice for the British Grand Prix will take place tomorrow, officially marking the beginning of, as a British fan, my own home Grand Prix. Sadly, I won't be watching from Silverstone but instead on my TV screen in Birmingham. Nevertheless, wherever you may be watching from, I can guarantee we will all enjoy it and relish the spectacle that Silverstone will bring.

Last time out, Valencia shocked us all, in the best way possible, to provide one of the most exciting races of the season so far. So if that's anything to go by, Silverstone will definitely give us a lot to talk about!

I guess the best thing to begin with in my preview will be to mention the weather forecast. It's not looking great! We can expect rain, rain and more rain for Qualifying and the race. This will certainly cause a bit of havoc and possibly ruin any expectations or predictions you may have had. Rain is commonplace in Silverstone and I think we are getting used to it by now but there's no doubt that it may lead to some unexpected outcomes. I just hope that it adds enough excitement without making the race and results too unpredictable. But it would be nice to get someone on the podium who may not have had a chance otherwise; almost like Perez in Malaysia.

In Valencia the thing that stood out, for me, was the immense pace of the Red Bull. Sebastian Vettel, who had dominated the race until his retirement caused by an engine failure, was lapping almost a second faster than anyone else. To find such pace, especially in a season as tight as this one, is a great achievement. Red Bull made updates to their car but they didn't seem too drastic and definitely not drastic enough to completely outperform the rest of the field. Mark Webber demonstrated this by climbing up from 19th on the grid to finish 4th. I don't think Red Bull will enjoy such dominance in Silverstone. The circuit is different to the one in Valencia and is a higher speed circuit as well. Furthermore, most teams will also be bringing upgrades for this race, most notably McLaren, so Red Bull's advantage may be cut. I still think they'll have a strong race this weekend! They seem to like Silverstone, with strong finishes in the past, and so if everything can come together for them this weekend; tyre management and strategy, engine reliability and so on, and they continue with the development of the RB8, I think they are definite challengers for the win and podium spots.

I mentioned McLaren bringing upgrades above and, putting it kindly, they really need them! They were simply off the pace in Valencia but have argued that Silverstone is a track that suits their car more; much like Montreal, where they won. Teams are always developing their cars so the fact that McLaren are bringing upgrades isn't groundbreaking but they need upgrades that will not only catch but also beat Red Bull. Will we see a repeat of 2011 when they left it far too late to close the gap to the reigning world champions? I don't think so as McLaren have been around long enough to learn from past mistakes and failures and regulation changes make it harder to dramatically change the cars. Lewis Hamilton had an unpleasant race in Valencia. A poor pit stop and race-ending collision with Pastor Maldonado were the worst aspects and so he will be looking to right some wrongs. He won in Canada and so that is one hurdle crossed. Things would have been much harder for him had he not won a race when his championship rivals already had so he can take comfort from that. As for Jenson Button, I can't imagine he is feeling very comfortable. It's no secret that he has been struggling as of late and has been unable to match his teammate in terms of performance; on Saturdays and Sundays. His home Grand Prix and in front of all of his most loyal fans would be the perfect setting for an almost heroic comeback to winning or at least podium-finishing ways. It's worth mentioning that Jenson has never won or been on the podium in the British Grand Prix; not the most encouraging fact! But runs like that are meant to be broken and after the season he has been having 2012 would be the best time to impress in Britain.

The next 'top team' I'll look at is Ferrari; struggling in the Constructors' championship but leading the Drivers' with Fernando Alonso. A bit of luck helped them to win the race in Valencia but they still deserve the credit of having the first driver to win two races. Realistically, I do think it may be too late for Ferrari to mount a challenge for the Constructors' as they currently stand in 4th. However, if there's one thing I've learnt from Formula 1 in 2012 it is to never say never. They do have some work to do, and a bit more luck would probably help greatly, to catch up with Red Bull and McLaren and they also require both drivers to be getting strong points finishes; yes Mr Massa, that was addressed to you! I can't write a preview to Silverstone without mentioning that the race in 2011 was Alonso's first and only win of the season; if he can win here in 2012 he will have incredibly won two races in a row. I'm sure he will be very hungry for the win, in a determined F1 champion sense not like a predator, and he knows what is at stake. Should he win this weekend the lead he will have in the Drivers' Championship will be staggering.

Lotus have been looking more and more likely to take a race win as the season has progressed but, so far, the best they have managed is 2nd place. The weather at Silverstone may do more harm than good for Lotus in terms of optimising performance but if it bunches the pack up a bit more, they have two drivers who have more than proven their overtaking ability this season. I am really interested in hearing your thoughts on this; who will win first out of the Lotus teammates? Kimi or Romain? I don't know if Lotus can win here in Britain but I'm sure they'll have a shot at it and I can definitely picture their black and gold on the podium!

Paul di Resta and Force India enjoyed a good weekend in Valencia and they will be hoping for more of the same in Britain. Paul is a British driver and so where better for him to win his first podium? His chances may not be great but if everything falls into his and the team's favour on Sunday then it is possible. When drivers like Perez finish on the podium for the first time they are never usually in anyone's predictions to do so! Di Resta may not be a favourite but the support at a home Grand Prix and the fact that this year isn't his rookie year could mean this may be his weekend.

I am totally confident that the race will be amazing! We will have overtakes, interesting (to say the least) weather, many drivers challenging for the win and crucial battles for both championships. I cannot wait!

So, are you as excited for the British Grand Prix as I am? How important will the weather be in determining the outcome of the race? Can British drivers Button and di Resta get on to the podium, finally? Will we get an all-British podium? There are now less than 24 hours for the weekend to kick off and, even though I won't be at the circuit, it feels great to have F1 in Britain.

I'll see you back here to look at all the events from the two practice sessions and look ahead to Qualifying...

Aqsa, @aqsasformula

(Image 2, 3)