Massa fastest for Williams on day 3 in Bahrain - MotorSportsTalk

Felipe Massa has finished quickest on the penultimate day of winter testing in Bahrain by setting the fastest time across the course of the pre-season period at Sakhir.

Massa’s lap of 1:33.258 saw him finish ahead of Mercedes’ Nico Rosberg as the two drivers traded fastest times in the final hour of the session. The German driver eventually fell two-tenths short of the Brazilian’s time and was forced to settle for second place.

However, Rosberg was a full 1.9 seconds ahead of third placed Kimi Raikkonen as the Ferrari driver focused on a race simulation in the afternoon.

The talking point from today’s running in Bahrain was Red Bull’s continued problems. The team appeared to be on the verge of an improvement after a good day of testing for Daniel Ricciardo yesterday, but defending world champion Sebastian Vettel struggled greatly. Upon starting his first run, Vettel managed just half a lap before the Red Bull RB10 ground to a halt.

It was soon recovered and returned to the pits, but when Red Bull sent the car out for a second run, it lasted but a few seconds as Vettel stopped at the end of the pit lane. With just half a lap on the board and one day of pre-season testing left, Red Bull appear to be in trouble.

Besides Vettel’s stoppages, there were also red flags for French duo Jules Bianchi and Romain Grosjean on Saturday in Bahrain. Bianchi finished the day in seventh place for Marussia ahead of closest rivals Caterham, whilst Grosjean was the last classified driver to post a time down in ninth position. Adrian Sutil also hit trouble as a fire on his Sauber C33 early in the morning session meant that he failed to post a time.

Although the Mercedes-powered teams dominated once again, occupying four of the top six positions, Renault showed signs of improved reliability. Toro Rosso’s Daniil Kvyat finished the day in fifth position with 81 laps under his belt, whilst Caterham’s Marcus Ericsson completed the most mileage with 117 laps. Despite Red Bull’s disastrous day, these are good signs for the French engine supplier.

With just one day to go in pre-season testing, the teams will get a final shot tomorrow to understand their cars and perfect their procedure ahead of the first round of the season in Australia (live on NBCSN on March 16).

Bahrain Day 3 – Times

1. Felipe Massa Williams 1:33.258 (99 laps)
2. Nico Rosberg Mercedes 1:33.484 +0.226 (103)
3. Kimi Raikkonen Ferrari 1:35.426 +2.168 (87)
4. Kevin Magnussen McLaren 1:35.894 +2.636 (88)
5. Daniil Kvyat Toro Rosso 1:36.113 +2.855 (81)
6. Nico Hulkenberg Force India 1:36.205 +2.947 (115)
7. Jules Bianchi Marussia 1:37.087 +3.829 (78)
8. Marcus Ericsson Caterham 1:38.083 +4.825 (117)
9. Romain Grosjean Lotus 1:42.166 +8.908 (33)
10. Adrian Sutil Sauber no time (1)
11. Sebastian Vettel Red Bull no time (0)

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Vicki Golden has earned a career worthy of a thousand stories and 805 Beer tells at least one of them, as “Inverted Perspective” premiered March 30 on the company’s website and YouTube channel.

Golden did more to break the glass ceiling in SuperMotocross than she ever thought possible. She knows this because riders have never felt the need to explain any of her accomplishments with the disclaimer, “for a girl”.

At this point in Golden’s career, she’s been the first woman to finish top 10 in AMA Arenacross Lites, the first woman to qualify in the Fast 40 in Monster Energy AMA Supercross and the first woman to compete in freestyle Moto X competition, earning a bronze medal by doing so.

Her love for moto came from childhood while she watched her dad and brother ride. By seven she was on her bike and making waves throughout Southern California.

Golden, 30, is still madly in love with the sport and has no plans on moving away but her career is already one to talk about. 805 Beer’s film series wanted to do exactly that.

“I’m taken aback by it all,” Golden told NBC Sports about the documentary. “It’s just crazy to see your story, it’s one thing to live your life and battle everything that comes about but it’s another to just sit there and talk about it.”

805 approached Golden about the feature by asking, “Do you even realize that what you do, and your story is special?”

Golden took the question as a blank canvas to map out the highs and lows of her career and life.

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The title “Inverted Perspective” came from a brainstorming session with Dominick Russo and it highlights Golden’s outlook on the sport of SuperMotocross and her life in general.

“My whole life, my whole career was thinking differently and looking at things that shouldn’t be done and aren’t there, while being able to make a place for myself, where no one thought there should be a place,” Golden said. “It’s inspiring someone to think in different ways. It sums up my life.”

*Vicki Golden is not “fast for a girl”; she’s just fast. – 805 Beer*

While Golden is no stranger to the spotlight, this was the first time she’s been fully involved with the storytelling and creation of a feature about herself.

“It’s not like a full new experience,” Golden said. “Obviously, you get your standard questions about your upbringing and accomplishments, but I’ve never really put into perspective things that happened in my past with my dad and putting that to light. Also, certain other things that maybe got overlooked in previous interviews or films. I wanted to touch on these and Dom wanted to create a story. It’s just cool to see it come to light, it’s a nearly impossible thing to tell somebody’s life story in 40 minutes.”

Golden’s father was left paralyzed after an ATV accident, robbing him the opportunity to ride again. This happened a few months before the father-daughter duo was set to compete in the Loretta Lynn’s Amateur Nationals when Vicki was 12. While she might have been unable to grasp the severity at the time, it’s something she carries with her. Golden continues to ride in his honor.

Years later, an accident in 2018 nearly sidelined the then 25-year-old Vicki when a freestyle accident almost resulted in the amputation of her lower leg.

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Golden 805 Beer — *Vicki Golden has ridden a variety of disciplines in SuperMotocross, which gives her a unique perspective. – 805 Beer*

“Inverted Perspective” highlights her father’s diligence in helping Vicki continue with her career and the kindness and strength he carried while fighting his own battle.

“My dad was the entire reason that I started riding in the first place,” Golden said. “So, to honor his memory and to honor what we went through and how hard he pushed to keep our dream alive and keep everything going – in that sense then, it was really special to be able to honor him and talk about him.”

The 40-minute feature was filmed entirely in black and white, a stark contrast from the oversaturated world of motocross where the brighter the suit the easier it is for fans to find their rider and follow him in the race. By filming in monochrome Russo and Golden had the chance to focus on the race and track from a different perspective.

“It was cool to be able to film it differently,” Golden said. “It created a challenge in the sense of what was going to be more visually impactful for the film.

“I couldn’t be here without the companies that back me but at the same time, it’s not like the logos or colors disappeared, it’s just different lights shed on different spots. It’s just a cool way to do it and to take color away and still be impactful. When you think of black and white, you think of old school, the OG way of doing things.”

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