There was a lot of bubbly spraying in the paddock after Red Bull's 1-2, but otherwise it was a pretty quiet night in Shanghai last night with a lot of personnel rushing to the airport. Red Bull Racing had a private party in their hotel which, by Red Bull standards, was very low key and I guess a pretty good illustration of how everyone is trying to look understated as the recession bites. It was just 40-odd engineers and mechanics - no Formula Una girls this year to provide glamour - and Sebastian Vettel got up to say a few words as a (terrific) slideshow of photos from the day played behind him. David Coulthard got up, too, and said how even when he was younger and faster he wasn't that fast. A modest admission, and bloody right and all.
After a couple of hours with my Red Bull mates, I went over to the Four Seasons where they were having an F1 party. The ballroom was vast, the turn out very small and we were all just huddled in a corner. Nico Rosberg, Tonio Liuzzi, Christian Klien and Kimi Raikkonen were there and all on good form. Kimi bought the drinks, so he's my favourite driver for this week. The Kimster, unlike most drivers, can always be relied upon to stay until he gets thrown out. At 5am he and I were arguing with the manager that the party was still kicking and we needed another round of Tsing Taos. We won the argument.
The circuit is quite a long way from the city, and because I was staying close to the track last night was the first night I came into town. I wanted to get a hotel room downtown and, as my mate Eddy from Alpinestars was leaving Sunday night, he very kindly offered me his room at the Great Tang Hotel. I got in a taxi from the circuit, gave the driver the address, and five minutes later pulled up at the hotel - it was right by the bleeding track and I could see the main grandstand from my bedroom window. Doh!
After last nights excess - Red Bull's champagne and Kimi's Absolut - I needed to just flop today, so I have returned to Shanghai and have moved into one of the top hotels in town - Le Royal Meridien - where I can recover in luxury. I have the best view of the Oriental Pearl Tower.
Hair of the dog later tonight, no doubt...
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