Japanese GP: Hamilton Extends Title Lead, Alonso Washes Out.
Written by George Katinger · September 30, 2007
At a monsoon soaked Mt. Fuji circuit, Lewis Hamilton drove a near perfect race to take first place followed by Heikki Kovalainen and Kimi Raikkonen.
speedtv.com: F1: Hamilton Takes Crucial Win in Wet Japan Race
grandprix.com: Japanese GP - Sunday - Race Incidents
timesonline.co.uk: Wheels come off for Fernando Alonso as conditions play into hands of new kid on the block
stuff.co.nz: Kovalainen shows worth with 2nd
f1technical.net: Sutil collects first point for Spyker after penalty for Liuzzi
Much has been written by many fans hoping for a wet race, in the expectation of surprise results and more competitive racing. Careful what you wish for. This was the most boring F1 race of the season, starting with the first 19 laps led by the Mercedes Benz pace car. How any sanctioning body can run a “race” under those conditions is beyond me. Sure, wet races are a part of the lore of F1, and rain should not postpone a race. But there should be exceptions to the rules and today’s fiasco is an example. Too many drivers days were compromised by the ugly conditions and the eagerness of mid to low tier teams to score points.
The biggest disappointment has to be Fernando Alonso’s unfortunate slalom on lap 42 which put him into the Armco and not only ended his day but probably his title chase as well. A damn shame, but one of the breaks of the game. As Alonso himself suggested, he won last years championship due to Schumacher’s mechanical problems, and with two to go, he isn’t showing any quit.
Speaking of quitting, can someone tell Mr. Hamilton it’s not about him? When I wonder where Lewis developed his ability to focus the spotlight upon himself, dad provides the answer. Mr. Hamilton is now alleging that Fernando’s father won’t shake his hand. I’m sure it’s factual, but why would anyone be surprised by this or more importantly, care? Memo to Mr. Hamilton: Focus on your kid and maybe Fernando, leave his dad out of it. He at the least doesn’t seem to seek out the press or responds to them, as you do. The measured and steady character assassination committed by both Hamilton’s is beginning to grate, on me at least, and will tinge my opinion of Lewis from here on out.
And what better end to the season than Alonso Sr. and Hamilton Sr. having an old fashioned fist fight below the podium of the last race of the year? And either driver espousing the old “My old man can beat up your old man” line every kid seems to have run into growing up.
I never thought I’d say I am happy to see an F1 season coming to a close. With all of the issues surrounding the series I’m grateful for only two races left to watch unfold. We can then proceed to the silly season and speculate away about 2008 and forget 2007.
Japanese Grand Prix Results - 30 September 2007 - 67 Laps
POS DRIVER NATIONALITY ENTRANT LAPS TIME/RETIRE
1. Lewis Hamilton Britain McLaren-Mercedes 67 2h00m34.579
2. Heikki Kovalainen Finland Renault 67 8.377
3. Kimi Raikkonen Finland Ferrari 67 9.478
4. David Coulthard Britain Red Bull-Renault 67 20.297
5. Giancarlo Fisichella Italy Renault 67 38.864
6. Felipe Massa Brazil Ferrari 67 49.042
7. Robert Kubica Poland BMW Sauber 67 49.285
8. Adrian Sutil Germany Spyker-Ferrari 67 1m00.129
9. Vitantonio Liuzzi Italy Toro Rosso-Ferrari 67 1m20.622*
10. Rubens Barrichello Brazil Honda 67 1m28.342
11. Jenson Button Britain Honda 66 1 Lap
12. Sakon Yamamoto Japan Spyker-Ferrari 66 1 Lap
13. Jarno Trulli Italy Toyota 66 1 Lap
14. Nick Heidfeld Germany BMW Sauber 65 2 Laps
15. Takuma Sato Japan Super Aguri-Honda 65 2 Laps
R Ralf Schumacher Germany Toyota 55 Puncture
R Anthony Davidson Britain Super Aguri-Honda 54 Throttle Sensor
R Nico Rosberg Germany Williams-Toyota 49 Electronics
R Sebastian Vettel Germany Toro Rosso-Ferrari 46 Accident
R Mark Webber Australia Red Bull-Renault 45 Accident
R Fernando Alonso Spain McLaren-Mercedes 41 Accident
R Alexander Wurz Austria Williams-Toyota 19 Accident
* Liuzzi penalised 25 seconds for passing under the yellow flag.
FASTEST LAP:
Lewis Hamilton Britain McLaren-Mercedes 27 1:28.193
Comments
22 Responses to “Japanese GP: Hamilton Extends Title Lead, Alonso Washes Out.”
Got something to say?
You must be logged in to post a comment.
I’ve got to say I’m sick of seeing Anthony Hamilton during every race. I honestly don’t understand why he’s always in the press. At both of our tv stations, if we’re dealing with a media whore, we just start ignoring that person. That usually works. Especially if they’re prone to stupid remarks.
Lewis, on the other hand, needs to learn that keeping one’s mouth closed is a good idea. How long did he answer the first question from Mr. Windsor? I thought I was watching his autobiography for a moment. The boy’s got talent on the track, but he needs a gag order when dealing with the press. That goes for his ramblings before the race, as well.
I agree with you, George, about the start of the race. They shouldn’t have started the race if they were just going to run nearly a third of it behind the safety car.
I guess it’s the Brit press seeking out any and all “stories” on Lewis. But they both need to learn, sometimes the most effective comment is “no comment”.
LH thinks he drove an epic race like Senna?
LH wants Mclaren to sack Alonso.
LH is OMG…”COY” about a 110 million dollar deal.
LH old man thinks Alonso’s old man hates him.
LH “he can stay at Mclaren if that is what the team wants, but I am here to stay and would prefer he drive a Ferrari”
LH “Alonso drove me off the track”
LH “the team wants me to win more than Alonso”
LH I am more loyal to the team than HE…fernando, is.”
LH ” I was just crusising around at the beginning of the race, because Fernando was slow and I didn’t need to push”
I could just turn the set off by this point and not watch F1 till 2009. LH drove a great race, but he also caused about 5 accidents with his rookie brake test garb on every single lap of the safety car. How many cars were caught up in the mass total of these brake tests over half the race.
It was an OK drive, luck was on his side, especially the timing of that 1rst stop..had the race started from a normal start…who knows how the field would have made it into corner 1. There would not have been those dumb brake tests. Mclaren blew the race im my opinion. The 1 stopper was not the right way to go. The car was nearly undriveable with that much fuel onboard. It caused the midfield to get in the way becuase they were much lighter in the mid part of the race. Hindsight would be sweet. If only the rookie had been a wee bit more intelligence leading the pack from the safety car….if only the safety car had been used less, if only the pit stops had been reversed order…if only they had stuck with a 2 stop stratedgy.
Ferrari 4 stopped and still finished just behind LH….tooo much thought went into outsmarting the race..1 stop was wrong. Alonso was dealt a bad hand and then blew it. So moving on, it is becoming hard to give praise to a boy wonder that beats his own back more than his old man does. The puppet never ceases to amaze me…I know what he is going to say before he says it now. Every interview he has is a broken record. He starts with how great he did for being so new…he then slips a belittle comment in that always says I beat Fernando with 1 hand behind my back,or an excuse as to my FA beat him, then he circle jerks the team, then he spouts how great he is again, then he finishes on a note of I can’t believe I am this good and leading the WC. He says NOTHING EVER that has not already been said. At least the other drivers offer up some kind of insight, or keep it brief…but no one spews the broken record of stating what everyone already knows better than LH. With 80% self praise on top.
Alonso would beat hamilton in a slower car…for no other reason than being on a different team, where his advantages are not shared, where the team wants him to do well, where he is motivated to do well, where true teamwork exists….not even MS could have won this season in a Mclaren with LH as a team mate…not with the BS Alonso had to deal with. Next year will be a refreashing year.
You people are slightly ridiculous. Uhhh… Michael Schumacher did ALL of the same crap you’re accusing Lewis of, including brake testing, running his mouth, driving like an ass — oh, wait, Lewis hasn’t done that yet — and excoriating his teammate. Stop being Fernando apologists (by way of damning Lewis) and just give the youngster his due. He’s beating Alonso in the same equipment — and I don’t want to hear the “He was using Alonso’s settings” BS: Hamilton won in Canada and the US while ALonso was flailing all over the track, especially in Canada. Was he using Alonso’s settings then? If that’s the case, it means he drives better than Alonso on Alonso’s own settings! I’m looking forward to the rookie winning the championship. I don’t care if he’s an ass — he’s certainly not the first and won’t be the last. Face it — the kid is extremely talented and proving it.
A few thoughts. Why even bother starting behind the safety car in those conditions? It would have been far more sensible to wait until there was a break in the rain.
ITV’s pre race interview with Hamilton’s father & the whole Alonso’s dad won’t shake my hand, was British tabloid journalism at it’s best. Windsor should be stripped of his “racing/motorsport” credentials & packed off to the womens magazines. Ron should have a serious talk with Hamilton & tell him to keep his family & management in check. Windsor prompted the question twice & Anthony Hamilton didn’t have the brains to say “I’m not commenting on anything about that”. Notwithstanding that ITV could have been interviewing the left, rear, wheel gun man at Spyker, which would have been far more relevant to to programme & race.
Despite putting it on pole & not making any mistakes in taking the win in very difficult conditions, Kimi not Hamilton was my man of the day. To have driven from the rear of the grid, blinded by spray, all the way up to third place required a set of balls the size of grapefruit.
ITV can air “Big Brother” like interviews with Windsor-Hamilton Sr before the race with no qualms, & then go on to issue three on air apologies for Webber saying that Vettel “fucked up” live. Ridiculous.
Despite the chaotic start, that was one of the most entertaining races all year & it was great to see Heikki finally make the podium. Renault’s performance this year has masked a serious talent in the Finn.
I’d actually love to hear from the left, rear, wheel gun man at Spyker. It would be a better interview than ANYONE in the Hamilton family.
Gooch, it’s hard to cheer for a guy that’s his own best cheerleader. Even I, who has been singing his praises lately, am tired of his self congratulation. My first tip to any driver is “shut up and drive”.
Now, I will admit one of my guilty pleasures is listening to really good mind games between drivers every now and then. My favorite was back in 2000, I believe, when Michael and Mika were talking about how late they were going to break into the corners in the next race. Mika had the best line to finish off their banter, “Well then, we’ll see each other in the gravel trap.”
Sadly, spirited banter seems to be gone, and in it’s place a bitter tirade has been placed. I’m not sure what got me off on that tangent, but it seems to sum up how this season has progressed. It’s been one big bitter pill, and I’ll be glad to see it swallowed and washed down with a tequila chaser. I don’t where I was going with that analogy, but a shot sounds good right about now.
If Lewis can get this arrogant as a rookie wunderkind about to win a rookie title (unprecedented) what will his attitude be like next year, with a new teammate?
Not an accusation, a question that I for one will keep an open mind about, but the signals sent are not encouraging. We will find out if it was Alonso spurring on the Hamilton’s into a reactive attack mode, or the Hamilton’s just being themselves. The jury is still out, but the evidence is mounting towards the latter.
George wrote:
“If Lewis can get this arrogant as a rookie wunderkind about to win a rookie title (unprecedented) what will his attitude be like next year, with a new teammate?”
I really liked LH at first also. He was a breath of fresh air and seemed to say the right things. I have seen that begin to change as the year went on. Maybe he’ll learn from the comments he must surely hear and grow up a bit.
But if he doesn’t, I’m afraid of how he will react if next year doesn’t go well for him. He could turn into one of the biggest complainers we have seen in a long time. That would be way too tedious.
I’m an expat Brit and my wife is Mexican. As a result, as you can imagine, we see the FA/LH broo-ha from very different perspectives. When LH took pole in Japan, and David Hobbs was screaming something like “Go on son, yes !” while I was yelling “Go Lewis !” “Go Lewis !,” at the television at the top of my lungs, she emerged from the bathroom with a look of disgust, and suggested once again that, like Hobbs, I have lost all objectivity about this and descended into jingoism. Granted. But that said, LH is not only faster — he’s also no blackmailer. And if Lewis’s comments to the press have sometimes lacked maturity, imagine how YOU would have fared at 22 with most of the world’s media pointing a camera at you. Go Lewis !
No one expects perfection from our sporting hereos but whether 22 or 122, Hamilton’s off track actions smack of something more than immaturity. Character always shows under pressure, and he’s shown us a distinct lacking in that department.
Because Alonso stooped to attempted blackmail to secure a team advantage doesn’t justify the Hamilton’s catty responses. And for what it’s worth taking pole by .070 seconds was more luck than skill. As a lifelong McLaren fan it pains me to see the team suffer this season, and Hamilton has made his own contribution in that department. He has the chance to recover, let’s see how he responds when not driving one of the best cars on the grid in the years to come.
Either way, it will add tremendous interest to the sport whether rooting for him or for his competition.
I knew we would find a common ground that we can agree on George. We both dislike
(not despise, yet) our WLB. It’s amazing that only a few months after MS’s retirement we find another target for our venom.
I watched as Mercedes nurtured the 3 drivers (MS, was it HHF? and Wurz) on their sports car junior team and then got them shots at the big time. It was clear back then one of them was going to be special, but not which one. Unlike WLB’s golden road to the top, all three of the junior team had to work their way to where they ended up. MS made some enemies early in his career, but also made alot of fans towards the end(It’s too bad we never got to see the Senner/MS battles that we expected). Driving a Ferrari gains a driver millions of built in fans who will root for you no matter what you do(like Nige, Alesi,Irvine…).
Our WLB has only gained british fans because he’s british. He hasn’t driven a back-of-the-grid-car to brilliance yet(the rain dance he did at Fuji was good for his resume though). He seems to have quite the mouth on him, spouting off to dennis the menace when things didnt go his way. If the WLB continues the path he’s on now, I predict a future similar to another of our favourite drivers. You can probably figure that one out. Here’s a little hint, he won a world championship when anyone driving “that” car should have won it, and most who did drive it did win a championship. His career then spiraled down, his whining was world class, his mouth was almost as big as his ego and his driving in the latter years really showed that he didnt deserve that title.
The answer will be found in the debris around Talledega this weekend.
“The answer will be found in the debris around Talledega this weekend.”
What truly amazes me about “our” fav pilot is he hasn’t won a single race, anywhere, in anything, since 1997, after he left Williams.
And to avoid confusion, Tim has tagged Alonso as the WLB, but I assume you are jumping on the dump on Lewis band wagon.
Sorry about that mental slip of the keyboard about which WLB we are talking about today.
Like much of the media, I too have drawn similarities between LH and Tiger Woods. They both beam over their triumphs and whine about their failures. When Woods hits a bad shot he will slam the club on the ground damaging the turf. When LH has a bad quali he slams his mentor with profanity damaging their relationship. In the long term LH will probably alienate many around him. Maybe he can take the “greatest driver in the world’s” path to glory, buy his own team on some stupid sponsors dime and run it to the ground until he’s forced out.
You guys are killing me! George, could you be more biased against Lewis? My goodness, the youngster is 22! Of course he has a propensity to say stupid things, or is it that you don’t remember how your brain operated when you were 22? I know that I, a journalist for 25 years, have said (and continue to say) stupid things that a man my age, experience and intelligence shouldn’t! I’m cool with you not liking Lewis; to each his/her own. But you venom is exasperating! As for Lewis having to make a charge from the back of the grid to validate his talent — I’m sure we’ll see that during his career. BTW, Mo Ron, it was Karl Wedlinger, not Al Wurz, that made up the trifecta of Mercedes sports car drivers who were being groomed for F1.
Sorry Gooch if I offend your journalistic sense of propriety. You know the old saying about opinions and everybody having one. I don’t see my opinions as venomous, merely reactions to what I read. You want to read venom, set me off on Jacques Lebebe Villeneuve.
And Gooch, one of the FIRST things my parents beat into me, if you don’t have anything good to say about anyone, don’t say it.
If Anthony hasn’t taught him that one yet, Ron should. Sure celebrity is a tough spot light to be in, but a little restraint goes a long way. Espcially if the world is watching.
BTW, Mo Ron, it was Karl Wedlinger.
Poor old Karl, he was very lucky to survive that shunt in Monaco in 94, he was in a coma for several days. After that his F1 career never really got back on track.
George, you’re right — Lewis should just shut his mouth and let his driving speak volumes. The more I think about it, the more I like that idea! If I was his old man, he wouldn’t be speaking much to the press anyway — especially the British press, who are known to take what you say and wrap it around a BS pole before printing it!
His old man is the one mentering his pathetic press handling skills. Anothony was interviewed lately and it was like he was the won doing the driving with all of his “we” “our” “us” when referring to the hard work that has been done, the driving, the stress, the championship fight…and on and on. I thought it was Lewis answering the questions, although he never actually said “I”
Take the control freak media whore old man out of the picture and poor Lewis might have enough sense to respond like a decent person…at 22 he can’t be too set in his ways. A year away from Anthony and he might just become decent enough that even I will cheer when he wins.
Ferrari is doing all they can to taint the year…hehe
And a parting shot, Alonso lost the year…Hamilton did not win it. Or even Hamilton stole it…but didn’t earn it. Not with his Air of self greatness in the press. Does he need to convince himself?
(Whole family has a massive chip, hard done by, underdog mentallity)…so lets treat them that way. A champ would deserve the praise, because he would win by being the best…not by being the underdog and lucking into it. His media skills taints his true talent with the essense of “no confidence”. Needs to take a bit of Kimmis media sense and then add the smile.
And to all readers, please don’t misconstrue my catty Hamilton comments; I DO believe he is a talented, exciting driver who we will enjoy watching over the years. He has stumbled in his “aw shucks I’m just a humble rookie/get Fernando off the team” split personality portrayal.
I look forward to his race career and maturation over the years, and yes, doing his talking on the track as opposed to manipulating the press.
http://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/2007/10/6923.html
Hamilton under investigation over Japan drive….behind safety car …2 cars out from brake test.
(oh and Ferrarri came clean on not wanting Alonso AFTER he had zero chance of winning the 1 plate for their car…when he was looking to win it was all hush. LOL
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=_QJurnfxRm4
see the youtube video…Hamilton is a jerkoff driving this way.
Maybe the stewards read my post from sept30th…”LH drove a great race, but he also caused about 5 accidents with his rookie brake test garb on every single lap of the safety car. How many cars were caught up in the mass total of these brake tests over half the race”.
Alonso said he passed LH 4 times during the safety car due to his absurd brake tests. Kubica got a penalty for driving into the back of LH…Webber and Vettle 2nd and 3rd…taken out by this rediculous piece of driving. Webber was faster during the previous laps, closing in on Hamilton. LH was in fear of being overtaken after the safety car…so much so that his great vision up front left no common sense to what he was doing to the rest of the field. People learn from punishment. If it were anyone else…they would get a penalty.