Brazilian GP: Raikkonen Wins It All; Maybe.
Written by George Katinger · October 21, 2007
A funny thing happened at the Brazilian GP today; a race broke out! And it wasn’t due to rain or other physical conditions, just hard racing, some brilliant driving and one god-awful mistake.
That god-awful mistake would be committed by the then driver championship leading Lewis Hamilton. After his tragic error at the Chinese GP Hamilton had stated he learned his lesson; he had to focus on the title and not the race. A lesson he failed to apply today. On the opening lap Fernando Alonso made some nice opening moves to claim 3rd place and it was not apparently to Hamilton’s liking. On an attempted pass to reclaim 3rd, Hamilton went off track on the outside of turn 4 and rejoined in 8th place.
With Massa in 1st, Kimi in 2nd and Alonso in 3rd, Lewis was still in a position to move up and claim the driver’s championship. He drove somewhat out of control and committed another mistake nearly resulting in another off. I suspect his run off the kerb in turn 5 on lap 3 or 4 may have caused the damage to his gearbox which resulted in his dropping all the way back to 17th, before his McLaren came back to life. Race over, driver’s championship over.
The racing behind the leaders was highly competitive, especially between the Saubers, Williams, and the Red Bull of David Coulthard. The pass of the day occurred on lap 61. Rosberg’s attempt on Heidfeld at turn one resulted in both cars locking up and drifting wide right, allowing the ever opportunistic Kubica to drive by into 4th, where he would finish.
I am sure Hamilton will be roundly criticized for his gaff, but you have to respect the fact the kid is a competitor and will never concede a position without a fight. Unfortunately for him his ambition exceeded his talent and cost him dearly.
I had previously expressed my total disgust with both McLaren drivers earlier in the week and had hoped for the two McLaren’s to do themselves harm resulting in a Raikkonen win. Alonso drove a great race, Hamilton hurt only himself, and Kimi won the title he should have previously won in a McLaren. At last he was the beneficiary of good luck as opposed to the bad luck he usually encounters.
And what of the drive by Felipe Massa? I thought if it as Ruben-esque as he consistently outpaced his teammate and yet “allowed” Kimi to take the necessary lead and ultimate double victory. Much has been written about Felipe’s new contract extension. There is no doubt in my mind it was the incentive he needed to keep in line and to insure he followed team orders if the chance of Kimi winning the title presented itself. And to his credit, he gave up a near certain home victory to benefit his team and teammate. Good for you Felipe, I just hope the extension wasn’t bait, just for this occasion.
But wait, the race may be over but the driver’s championship may still be in doubt. Why? The 4th, 5th and 6th place cars are under investigation for improper fuel temperatures. If they are DQ’d, guess who would be the driver’s champion? You know it, Lewis Hamilton. With the Stepney spy saga gifting Ferrari the constructor’s title, would it be poetic justice if they lost the driver’s to DQ’s of other cars on the grid? It may restore my faith in the possible intervention of a higher moral authority, and I’m not referencing that twit Max Mosley! Kimi deserves the title, he won it where it counts, on the track, and as much as some people want Hamilton as a rookie champ, I don’t think the steward’s will take it away.
Stay tuned, we should know the results later tonight.
Brazilian Grand Prix Results - 21 October 2007 - 71 Laps
POS DRIVER NATIONALITY ENTRANT LAPS TIME/RETIRE
1. Kimi Raikkonen Finland Ferrari 71 1h28m15.270
2. Felipe Massa Brazil Ferrari 71 1.493
3. Fernando Alonso Spain McLaren-Mercedes 71 57.019
4. Nico Rosberg Germany Williams-Toyota 71 1m02.848
5. Robert Kubica Poland BMW Sauber 71 1m10.957
6. Nick Heidfeld Germany BMW Sauber 71 1m11.317
7. Lewis Hamilton Britain McLaren-Mercedes 70 1 Lap
8. Jarno Trulli Italy Toyota 70 1 Lap
9. David Coulthard Britain Red Bull-Renault 70 1 Lap
10. Kazuki Nakajima Japan Williams-Toyota 70 1 Lap
11. Ralf Schumacher Germany Toyota 70 1 Lap
12. Takuma Sato Japan Super Aguri-Honda 69 2 Laps
13. Vitantonio Liuzzi Italy Toro Rosso-Ferrari 69 2 Laps
14. Anthony Davidson Britain Super Aguri-Honda 68 3 Laps
R Adrian Sutil Germany Spyker-Ferrari 43 Damage
R Rubens Barrichello Brazil Honda 40 Engine
R Heikki Kovalainen Finland Renault 35 Accident
R Sebastian Vettel Germany Toro Rosso-Ferrari 34 Hydraulics
R Jenson Button Britain Honda 20 Engine
R Mark Webber Australia Red Bull-Renault 14 Transmission
R Sakon Yamamoto Japan Spyker-Ferrari 2 Accident
R Giancarlo Fisichella Italy Renault 2 Accident
FASTEST LAP:
Kimi Raikkonen Finland Ferrari 66 1:12.445
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36 Responses to “Brazilian GP: Raikkonen Wins It All; Maybe.”
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You know, I was actually yelling at the TV for Bob Varsha to shut his yap when he declared Kimi the Champion before the other drivers had finished their laps because the way they were racing, anything could have happened. And appearantly it still could.
It would gut me if the title is taken away from Kimi, he really is the only driver that kept his head down and did what a champion does, drive hard on the track and keep his trap shut when off it.
Now, what is this nonesense of fuel temperature? That’s a new one to me. I’m glad I didn’t call a buddy of mine to gloat after the race.
I guess in the end both Mclaren drivers are happy with the results. FA because LH did not win the Driver’s championship and that must real hurt for RD. LH because he beat his team mate that he really likes so much…
I am happy for Kimi and sad for McLaren. Sad not for RD, FA or LH, but for all the foks that put so much effort this year and certainly deserved a lot more. Let’s see how McLaren does next year with boy wonder and no FA.
Whew! Finally, the stewards decided not to penalize the 2 BMW cars and Nico’s Williams-Toyota. Kimi is The Champ!
It was nice to see a smile on his face at the post-race press conference. There’s a personality in there after all. Did anyone else notice the slight dig at McLaren when he was talking about how happy he was to be driving for Ferrari? Ron Dennis just can’t catch a break anywhere.
Just 146 days until the next Grand Prix!
Congratulations Kimi ! It’s about time you got what you deserved - the World Championship ! Great drive !
D*es this mean the 2**7 F1 seas*n is finally *ver?
The simple answer to your question RobertK is NO. McLaren just announced their intention to appeal the stewards decision to the FIA. So it ain’t over!
Too right George, that’s the championship McLaren should have provided him with! I hope Kimi is found rolling drunk in the car park at McLaren HQ in the company of a dozen pole dancers, Take that Ron, no sooner was Kimi out the door last year before you started bad mouthing him. I was resigned to seeing one of the McLaren drivers taking the WC (preferably Hamilton over the blackmailer Alonso). But it was to be Kimi taking an unlikely title he deserves. As for the constructors title, I don’t hold Kimi accountable for the actions of the nefarious Jean Toad.
As for any protest from McLaren. You would think that Ron would have the brains - after all that has happened this season - to shut up & start afresh in 08……but nooooooo!!
Just extremely happy that Hamilton didn’t win it. And there’s no way that Bernie can twist it to make him win unless he wants a heck of a lawsuit.
Never been a big Kimi fan, but he’s a good driver. Happy that he made it happened and won.
BTW, win are Japanese drivers going to be banned from F1 and sent back to drifting? ;-{D
I felt bad for Massa, but he knew it was the right thing to do for the team. If he gets off to a good start then kimi may fall into the support role next year. Seeing Mika in the pitts reminded me of better times for the Mclaren boys when they were the class act act the rest of the field acted like idiots and drama queens. How things have changed. Frankly, I feel a lot of it has to do with the finn temperment. I never thought I would root for Ferrari, but these Finns are a class act and I have to follow them.
On to Louis. How could he be dumb enough to make the same mistake twice? Racing people you have already beat? Ron must be furious like a dad whose son just wrecked his car right after dad warned him about driving safely. He through advice and control out the window and went with his gut and lost te championship. I don’t think I will use his name in the same breath as Prost, Senna, and Schu, no matter how many championships he wins. His out of pit antics on Kimi’s hot lap for qualifying show you the kind of guy he is. Mclaren should be embarrassed by what they have become. Mika shouldn’t hang with the boys in silver anymore.
CONGRATS KIMI!!! About time my boy!!!
I have no clue what some of you people, like Gary, are talking about. What antics from LH? Looked to me as though he moved over and got out of Raikkonen’s way. And like it or not, LH was a rookie this season, and had the best season of any rookie ever in the sport. I don’t give a crap if you don’t like him, but don’t denigrate his performance just because of your dislike. The kid is a talent and should be a major player in F1 for years to come. I expect at least two championships from him.
That said, Kimi is a deserving champion. I only wish he were more like Mika and let more of his personality show during the news conferences.
That pass from FA totally unwound the kid. He will never be WC unless someday he grows up and thinks about winning the year and not beating his team mate. Sum up the year…since Hungary the entire team has been racing FA, so in the end they won…too bad RD and LH felt that beating FA was more important than the WC. Racing your team mate sets oneself up for this kind of outcome. Look at every mistake the RD LH camp made in the last half of the season….all were decisions around, not the WC but around beating Alonso. There is not 1 WC of the past that would be so stupid as to risk the year to beat there somehow biggest enemy. LH wil win races, but not WC’s. Next year will be very difficult for him…nico could do the same thing to him that FA did this year. For LH to win the WC next year he needs a 1 man team.
I’ve read elsewhere that Ron had his fondest wish come true. His two drivers, both on equal equipment, finished the year equal at 109 points; unfortunately 2 points less than required to win anything!!
And I am torn over the fuel issue and Kimi’s title. While I am truly pleased for Kimi, I would dearly love for Ferrari to “lose” the driver’s title in the same manner they “won” the constructor’s, via a legal proceeding. The bleating and wailing from Maranello may be sufficiently intense to induce medical retirements from my two fav people, Luca and Le Toad.
But fear not Ferrari fans, Max has the teams back as he has finally, openly, admitted.
George, I was going to refrain from any more dennis the menace bashing since there seemed to be an end to the season of ill repute.
After a season that will go down in history(too bad its for all the wrong reasons), Mr. Menace seems he wants to drag the season out to its final glory. I find it hard to believe that anyone could favor his decision to file an appeal over anything but flagerant foul by Ferrari.
Now mr menace seems to be trying to make friends up and down the pit lane too. It only makes sense to me that he knows he’s on the way out the door, sent packing by the corporate giants that enabled him to stay at the top of the game(and middle and bottom) for so long. Dennis the menace has taken one of the greatest names in the history of motorsports and ground it into the tarmac. Bruce must be spinning his wheels in his grave. This whole season he has deceived, lied and whined. If he had just come clean before any stolen documents where used by his employees, told the FIA and Ferrari about them, he would have been the hero that some people thought he was at one time. But after so many gaffs in one year, how could anyone keep his job, much less his dignity? Ron, Max, Bernie, Toad, they all need to go. If we ever go through another season like this, the sport will never recover. After the miSHITlin(don’t buy their tires if you ever need to go through fast corners) gaff of 05 people were just getting their feet under them. Now they’ve been knocked to the floor again. Yes LH has the potential for greatness, yes Kimi deserved to win the drivers championship that MM should have given him, yes FA is a 2 time WC and should have been given such treatment over a rookie, no matter how good that rookie may be “someday”(remember how great JV was in an unbeatable car?). But after all is said and done what do we take from the year?
A load of manure. Thanks Ronnie the gardener. Maybe Dennis the menace was just trying to stock pile it for his new career.
One last thought. Dennis the menace’s explanation for the appeal is that the teams using illegal fuel had an unfair advantage is a little weak in my opinion. Considering the unfair advantage MM had by using another teams setup info. Dennis the menace should be happy that he even got to finish the season considering the disrepute he has already brought to the sport, he just doesnt get it it does he?
Dennis the menace just filed his appeal claiming that he did it not to win the WC but in interest of clarifying the rules. I would also like a clarification of why hamilton wasn’t given the same penalty for using illegal tyres as was given previously, which was a 1 minute penalty applied to the qualifying time. Instead the stewards deemed a few pennies a sufficent penalty. Does dennis the menace really think the FIA is going to award him the drivers title? A small monetary penalty is all that should be applied. Let’s just add one more name to the above list of pink slips, stewards. Can them all, hire full time professionals and let us get back to some real racing next year.
Mo Ron, why do you insist that McLaren used Ferrari’s setup? That’s ridiculous and exposes you for what you really are (not that it isn’t blindingly obvious) — a McLaren hater. What could McLaren possibly gain from Ferrari’s setup? Two completely different cars, different drivers with different driving styles, yet you think the team used another’s setups. Psssh!
Hate Dennis all you want, but at least be reasonable.
Actually, Gooch, a lot can be gained from knowing another teams set-ups, even if you don’t use them. As a team that hadn’t run on Bridgestone tires for many seasons, knowing what Ferrari were doing for their set-ups would let them know which direction to go with their own set-ups.
I think enough information was gained between Pedro and Fernando to give them a bit of a push in the right direction. But, having said that, that’s not enough to punish McLaren so severely. I still contend that it was de la Rosa and Alonso that should have been punished with the loss of points and the possible loss of their superlicenses. McLaren (Ron Dennis) should have been more forthcoming with the FIA and Ferrari about what was happening, but the punishment should have been a hefty fine, not the loss of points.
All in all, this season was f***ed from the get go because just a few people ruined the outcome of what could have been the most exciting season in nearly a decade. Ron Dennis, Jean Todt, Luca di Montezemelo and Max Mosely badly compounded the treachery of Stepney and Coughlin. All these men should be reviled by everyone that loves motorsport.
The appeal will get nowhere the Brazilian stewards have acknowledged that their temperature measuring procedures are “unclear” (quote). Hell they are not even certain what the ambient temperature at the track was. BMW & Williams will be given the benefit of the doubt & the whole appeal will be dismissed.
I was looking forward to putting the political crap of 07 behind & being optimistic about an exciting 08, but alas Ron Dennis had to drag it out until Xmas
The BEST of the whole shooting match were Kimmi’s comments after the race. He explained that he had had his most enjoyable year EVER, even without the title. He was thanking his team for not only being his paycheck but also for supporting him as a person!
Ferrari is like that. They have the best post race demonstration because they really do care about each other.
I have spoken in the past about my reasons for supporting Ferrari, and this is a big one. Italians invite you home - not just sign your check. Kimmi gets it and will be back.
As for ‘tragic error’ and ‘god awful mistake’, I’ll leave that to you George. McLaren got all it deserved this season - and next year will be no better. Maybe, someday, we will see Hamilton on a team that deserves him.
“It’s been a crazy year and I honestly can’t say I’m really gutted. I finished second in the world championship. I beat my team mate under extremely difficult circumstances. I beat the two-time world champion. That was the goal” -F1 world championship runner-up Lewis Hamilton demonstrates that his rivalry with Fernando Alonso was clearly his priority……..This says it all. Even after somehow losing with a 17 point lead to a ferrari with only 20 points available…he still is spouting about the actual thing that cost him the title. Such a grave error it was to put all the eggs in 1 basket…the beat FA basket. Wanna bet there are 21 seasoned F1 drivers on the grid that could have brought 3 points home in those last 2 races…in a Mclaren. Any other rookie in the world would have loved to have the opportunity to back FA for 1 year while learning the ropes, and kicking his butt on occasion while learning. Ungratefull comes to mind. LH drove like the best in the world right up to the point where he somehow thought he could have won Monaco and felt he was the number 2 driver…this is where Ron dropped the ball…no father son talks about you’ll get your glory next season, and maybe even this season..just drive and do your best. As for the pace of Brazil…well he had new tires and 3 stopped so was light the entire ride…Mclarens pace sucked, he did not drive the wheels off it, account for wieght and he was 1 second easy off a coasting along Ferrari. Somehow Ferrari found speed this day that was absurly fast in race trim….Kubica as well passed Alonso, not because he is a superstar, but it was a lap before pitting and he was also a 3 stopper with good tires. The stories that have been published lately are so out of touch with reality. That pass of the century…yeah Rubins lifted and let him by…LOL I had to laugh when that was reported on live coverage. We all know Lewis shut the car off too right? He hit the wrong button and then it took 20 seconds to reboot the program. He admitted it was his doing….while he was off in the weeds getting 6th place back on that lap.
“Italians invite you home - not just sign your check”.
Doug, what fairy tale land do you live in? They not only pushed the winningest driver in F1 history out the door, they effectively screwed Ross Brawn as well. And I guaranttee it wasn’t over a plate of pasta at Luca’s casa!
If they had invited good old Nigel to dinner maybe he wouldn’t have felt snubbed and turned rat on the team. I said before, you support Ferrari, I respect that, but they do live in the land of Machiavelli and can be as brutal and ruthless as any other business entity when it suits them. Ask Rubens for how much “love” he felt!
As for Hamilton he’ll be with McLaren for many years, much to my chagrin. I hope Alonso goes to Ferrari, poor Felipe will be demoted to a tester, and Ron will have lost a world champion before gaining another. Next years McLaren will not be competitive due to all of the lost design time this year. It may take poor Lewis 2-3 years to regain the same opportunity he pissed away this year.
As a McLaren fan I’ll summarize the 2007 season with this quote: “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times”.
Well, to read these postings has been interesting. But I’ll ask the question anyway… Has anybody heard of the word parity? The dictionary definition is “Equality of value or standing.” We might not like it but McLaren is just asking that the rules be applied equally to everybody. Especially since the rules have been applied so equally to them…
Regarding this Fuel Irregularity Issue: Cooler fuel allows the car to be fueled quicker. Cooler fuel produces a performance “spike” of increased horsepower (some say 5-12% higher) giving the cars an extra advantage. BMW Sauber had been warned twice before about this exact thing. So do the rules apply only to some people sometimes but not to others?
Personally, I’m with Stirling Moss, who said that to win the title in the courts would be tainted and LH should throw it back at them. LH has even gone on record as saying that he wants to win the title fair and square on the track instead of in the courts. However he goes on to say that if it was McLaren that had been found infringing on the rules with being under weight or with wing irregularities, the team would be penalized. So, he seems to be saying fair is fair.
I think that the racing should be on the track. However I will be really interested to see how the Federation twists out of this one. If they can.
One more thing. I find it very interesting, the reactions regarding Hamilton. When he first started in Australia and finished third, nobody knew quite what to make of him. He was an oddity. Even the Speed Vision T.V. announcers in the United States fumbled badly when one of them said, “That’s the darkest face that’s ever been on a podium.” They didn’t know quite how to deal with the race issue. The next few races, they mentioned that he was black and the significance (which was newsworthy). Meanwhile, LH kept in the top three. Then he won. Then he won again. And all of a sudden he was a real threat to the established order. I find it fascinating that this young man kept his composure as well as he did with all of the second guessing, investigations and other numerous destractions that were thrown at him during the season. Now it looks like despite all that effort he may be handed the World Driver’s Championship on a technicality because two other F1 teams couldn’t play by the rules.
I think Kimi is a worthy champion but unfortunately Ferrari seems to have their own set of rules and everyone seems to look the other way when Ferrari is involved in mischief. So Kimi may end up with the short straw. I hope Lewis Hamilton does the right thing and takes the Stirling Moss route and throws the honor back and says “Wait ’til next year!”
My fairy tale land - bet you wish yours was as good, eh George?
Was Mike the best driver - or was he driving the best car? I never really liked Mike - from crashing out Damon in Australia to win his first championship, thru the turn in to Jacques in Spain, to the ’stop’ in Monte Carlo. A good ‘tech’ driver for a golden time for the Italian car.
Was Nigel the great guy you remember or was he a cry-baby who knew Williams was about to shine with the ‘active’ car and made Ferrari look bad on the way out? Oh, that’s right - he’s English, so of course you love him.
And Ross will be back next year. He must really hate it at Ferrari.
So many ways to look at things.
Also remember, it’s not Lucas’ pasta - it’s the gas guy and the tire carrier that make Ferrari a joy to work around. Italy (read Ferrari) has such a great atmosphere because the people have a wonderful spirit. And the only ‘in house’ car too boot!
I will live forever in my fairy tale land - and watch you from the podium.
George, it’s been a great year. Beating good competition (on and off the course). A great season to watch.
The best of times and the best of times!
Doug, perhaps you should have said “”Italians invite you home - not just sign your check”………….right up until the point where their self serving knife stabs you in the back.
Prost, Mansell etc, Ferrari threw out the red carpet to get them in the door, as for what happened a few seasons down the track? George’s Machiavelli line rings true. Ask Schumi with his shove out the door, even he didn’t see that one coming.
Anyway, I’m going to think nice thoughts for 08. (God I’m naive)
You may not believe it Doug, but i’ve enjoyed our off track opinion “competitions” almost as much as the on track racing this year. Regardless of each of our positions almost every comment has shed different perspectives on the relevant subject under discussion.
A big “thank you” to all, if the racing team principals had as much “principle” as exhibited herein, we would not have had half the controversy this year. And maybe less than half the fun!
As I’ve said before Lou — you cannot possibly think that anyone in a McLaren (and let’s be real: McLaren is second only to Ferrari for name recognition, wins, championships and reputation in F1) is going just get in the car to “learn” and “be happy to drive behind the double world champ and learn the ropes.”
The reason Hamilton was in the car is precisely because he had already learned the ropes! McLaren knew what it had — perhaps they did not expect him to excel as quickly as he did, but there is no way Ron Dennis would have put this rookie in the car if all he wanted was someone to follow Alonso. No sir — LH pushed FA, and FA showed exactly what he is made of. I don’t blame team McLaren for turning on Alonso as it did — and by the way, what is wrong with that? Hamilton made fewer mistakes during the season and he was leading the championship — so who are you going to throw your weight behind? It’s ridiculous that anyone even brought up this “equality” BS. Was there ever equality between Schumacher and any of his teammates at Ferrari? No.
What is the true reason you hate LH so? It can’t be because of his talent or his results.
I hate his lack of respect towards the rest of the field. There is wisdom in the rising star that can keep wuite even for 6 months before expecting the whole world will listen to him. Every time the mouth was opened he had a foot in his mouth. The podium was polished, but even the comments inthe pressroom were silly. Either how good he was, or how bad the rest were, or the worst…how easy it was. This is complete BS to say it was EASY with kimi and FA next to you…easy is a relative term, and not appropriate when in the company of drivers that are great and came from the worst cars in the field. What LH needs is to be pounded into place for a reality check. e will have more respect next year from the drivers having lost this year instead of winning it. For me, once he treats the rest of the drivers with some respect, and controls his condecending remarks…then I am onboard for the next bright star. Saying he wants to win on track was the best thing he has said all year….strange FA said the same thing 6 hours before that and was torn a new one by the media…I hope LH meant it.
Mclaren hater?
I thought the kiwi was one of the most talented driver/engineers of the time. If there is any hate involved it is the level of disrespect given to such a once great team. I hated Honder’s unbeatable lump in the back of the 88′ car. I hated Senner for the constant poles and fastest laps and Prost and he winning all but one race. And now, I hate Dennis the menace for trashing one of the best names in racing’s history. It’s funny that there never was the same feelings toward Williams when they had the unbeatable all singing all dancing cars of the 90s. It was probably because I respected how Frank developed the infrastructure to develop such a car, and I forgot to mention his brilliant move to the Renault V10 when others were still using Cossies. To credit dennis the menace for creating the infrastructure that has brought such disrepect to a once great team would be a gift. If ronnie didnt have the zillions that Merc has spent the team would be in the trash pile. It’s one thing to be a great engineer, it’s another to be a great manager.
It seems ronnie has been out of his league as a manager. Spend, spend, spend. He buys the best driver in the field yet treats him like dirt. He has the best facilties, yet still feels the need to cheat. He has the best manufacturer, yet can’t even get one project done for them(SLR) without his huge ego getting in the way.
Look what happened a couple of years ago when he was building his new facility, midfield cars. It all equals poor management.
So you are right about the hate Gooch, just wrong about where it is directed and the reasons.
As I said in previous posts, ash can the lot of them, Dennis the menace, Toad the frog, Max the knife, and Bernice the shrew. Then maybe we can all get along.
Memo to Alonso and Hamilton, on how to win a driver’s championship.
“Maybe I had the best start of the season and maybe I could have passed also Felipe at the first corner, but I had a plan and it didn’t involve a fight with my teammate,” Raikkonen said.
“We could have had more pace and I want to thank Felipe again for his support: he did what he could do, just like a perfect teammate”.
Not a whole lot of driver-teammate respect coming out of McLaren is there?
George, did you see how happy Massa was to help his teammate win the title and Gran Prix? He did not seem to happy to me, but I am pretty sure the folks at Maranello told him if the who is No.1 story.
Joseph, I didn’t say Felipe was happy, I said he was loyal to the team, and Kimi was appreciative of his situation and grateful to Felipe.
And if the shoe were on the other foot, I’d bet Kimi would do the same. Ferrari know how to keep their driver’s in line, for whatever is best for the team. And I don’t disagree with the approach, if Ron had more brains, less ego, and bigger balls, Alonso would be champ.
But George, wasn’t it you who was crying foul when Shuey let Rubino pass at Indy?
A different guy, a different situation. And I believe Rubens screwed up, the Scumster was trying to get a 1-2 photo op and Rubens slipped by for the inadvertant win.
We lose sight of the true purpose of having 2 car teams in F1. Win the constructor’s title by scoring the most points, and have your best pilot win the driver’s title. After all, they both can’t win it, can they?
If both McLaren’s scored 111 points, there would been some form of tie breaker to determine the champ, even if it came down to paper-scissors-rock.
Yeah your right George, every team since the beginning has had the goal of capturing the drivers and, or constructors crowns. Just some were a little more inept than others at how they acheived that goal. If I said there would be no more dennis the menace bashing, then I will keep to my word. He has done a good enough job this year of trashing himself witout using words, I will try the same tact from now on.
the 2008 season can’t get here soon enough for me. Hopefully we will have a new cast of clowns to bash by then.
And by the way George, a big thanks for the forum to vent through. Where else could we find so many mclaren lovers in one place? They’re easier taregts for bashing than Bush lovers.
I guess LH did the right thing after loosing, go have fun. Check this Youtube video out:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m2mY-9xk3Ik
http://sport.guardian.co.uk/motorsport/story/0,,2200756,00.html
Coutard might not be the fastest, but hs tells it like it is. He is nearly the most experience on the grid these days.