This week's Grapevine brings you information fresh from the paddock on: Ferrari Playing For Time Time Running Out for Wilson

Ferrari Playing For Time

Despite the ignominy of being lapped by a 22-year old in a Renault the atmosphere at Ferrari is surprisingly buoyant: the disaster of the Hungarian weekend is not being seen as a real measure of the team's pace, or prospects for the remainder of the season. The two factors that really stuck out were the apparent lack of pace from Bridgestone, who simply failed to deliver tyres that would yield both performance and durability, and Ferrari's poor fortune as the race unfolded.

At another circuit, Michael Schumacher would have been mortified to remain behind a Jaguar or Renault. Jarno Trulli might be difficult to pass, but if there is anyone who is expected to find a way past, it is the reigning World Champion - as he demonstrated at the German Grand Prix. On a clear track, Schumacher was over a second quicker than the Renault or Jaguar in front of him; however, without a decent passing opportunity at this circuit, or drivers that make mistakes, taking their positions was next to impossible.

Of course, it doesn't help that Ferrari failed to maximise their results.

Rubens Barrichello's suspension failure was a bit of mixed fortune for the team. On the face of it, he should probably have finished fourth, ahead of Ralf Schumacher, denying Williams some of their Constructor's Championship points. However, that would have put Michael Schumacher out of the points, so he would have finished the day tied with Montoya in the Drivers' Championship.

Then again, whether Schumacher ran out of fuel on his way to his pitstop, or switched off the engine so that the transmission could be checked - there was more to Barrichello's breakage than the unexpected catastrophic failure of a suspension member that has been fine for two years - those extra ten seconds cost him a Championship point when he finished behind Trulli, maybe even a couple, as he probably should have been in front of Webber, too.

Whilst finishing behind a Renault and a Jaguar is being dismissed as a fluke, it's not all upbeat, though. Despite misfortune preventing them scoring better, or at least demonstrating the car was not too far off the pace, the fastest cars on the circuit undoubtedly belonged to Williams. Catching them in Monza and Indianapolis is going to be important, and Ferrari is completely dependent on Bridgestone to make up the bulk of the difference in pace. There is a new engine coming, and the Monza aero package is something the team are really proud of, but the tyres are the biggest factor in the equation. No surprise then, that the assorted collection of development tyres being lined up for assessment at the forthcoming Monza test is critical. It is going to decide Ferrari's championship.

Time Running Out for Wilson

Justin Wilson's run in Formula One is looking set to come to an end, or at least the Jaguar chapter, unless he can put something special together for the Italian Grand Prix. This despite the evidence: everyone likes him, thinks he is a great chap, and tells you he's doing a fine job when you ask.

The bottom line is, Mark Webber is doing a great job, and the team are looking for someone who can come close to matching him; Wilson, despite making a positive impression since coming on board, still has a long way to go in terms of delivering on the track.

Wilson was hired on the basis of a respectable half-season with Minardi. Whilst alongside Jos Verstappen - who is a known quantity, carrying some respect in the paddock - his performances were perfectly acceptable. He only outqualified the experienced Dutchman a couple of times, but consistently made up for it by getting away smartly at the start of the race, picking up half a dozen places more often than not. Considering the start is where more points are won and lost than anywhere else in the sport, that skill is something that is incredibly valuable, and in a Minardi, it more than makes up for being slower than his teammate over a single lap.

In Webber, they have a driver who can get the best out of the car, at least in qualifying, whenever there is a chance to do so. The Australian has qualified the car in the top six four times this season. Admittedly, this has rarely born any semblance to his finishing position: he has finished sixth or seventh in six of the nine events where the car was classified. Of those, the better performances were seventh from seventeenth on the grid in Austria, and sixth from third in Hungary. All told, an impressive season in a car that is arguably not in the same class as the 'big three' and Renault.

Antonio Pizzonia, Webber's teammate for most of the season, was not producing the performances Jaguar were hoping for. Whilst Webber was clearly on top of his game, leaving the customer Ford teams behind, Pizzonia was fighting with Jordans and Minardis to stay off the bottom of the classified sheet. Had he been bringing home results from the races, relatively poor qualifying would not have mattered. However, in the immensely political Ford environment, image is vital, so he had to go.

So, what did Jaguar hope to gain from bringing Wilson on board? His qualifying record against Verstappen was hardly earth-shattering: the only facets that really stick out were the youngster's determination to succeed, and an ability to pick up places at the start of races. His race pace has been hard to judge - a Minardi on Bridgestone tyres is a poor vehicle for comparison - though he finished ahead of Verstappen in three of the four events they both completed.

There was never a real chance that Wilson would be on the pace of Webber for his first few races: the car has little similarity to the Minardi he has left behind, so experience is a huge factor. For example, even the Cosworth power plant is a very different beast to the customer unit in the Minardi, governed by a more advanced software package. Wilson has to learn to trust in the traction control to pick up the back end when all his instincts are telling him the rear is about to break away. And then, there are the times when the traction control fails to catch the slide, and it really does break away. The power is delivered on a smoother curve than the customer unit, but the useful band is narrower, requiring more accurate gear changing: this also leads directly to more gear changes whilst cornering.

What Wilson needs, more than anything else, is track time. Failing to finish the first two races - through mechanical faults that were not his fault - is proving tremendously expensive, as it has significantly limited his running. Between the three-day Monza test and the Italian Grand Prix, Wilson needs to do enough to convince Jaguar unequivocally that he is the best man for the job. Otherwise, there are plenty of drivers who would relish a shot at the seat. Nick Heidfeld and Pedro de la Rosa, at least, are ready to climb in to the Big Cat's den.