Formula One Report: Spanish Grand Prix
Kimi ran wire to wire, while some of the contenders back in the field bounced of each other and various inanimate objects at the Spanish GP.
The Ferraris kept to business, able to hold more than a second on the field without apparent strain. The hometown hotshot, Fernando Alonso qualified second and Renault looks to be gaining capability as the season progresses. Unfortunately on lap 35, while running in fifth place, Alonso’s French machine did major damage to itself and he parked it.
Lewis Hamilton ran hard all day but didn’t have enough to get by either Ferrari. His third place finish leaves him nine points back from Raikkonen in the championship. Robert Kubica’s BMW Sauber ran another strong race, keeping pressure on Hamilton in the McLaren all the way.
On the twenty-second lap Heikki Kovalainen’s McLaren broke something important at high speed turn eight and shot across the gravel pit into the tire wall. It took ten agonizing minutes to extract Kovalainen from his mangled car but the crowd was relieved to see him give a thumbs-up as he was carried to the ambulance on a gurney. Kovalainen was flown to a hospital in Barcelona for further checks but reportedly only suffered a concussion and is expected to be fit for the next round in Turkey.
Kimi Raikkonen and Felipe Massa put Ferrari on the top two podium steps joined by Lewis Hamilton in third. Kubica brought the BWM-Sauber home fourth followed by Mark Webber in fifth for the Red Bull folks. Jenson Button’s Honda (6th) and Kasuki Nakajima’s Williams (7th) rounded out the top half of finishers.
Comments
The Stig
That was fantastic seeing Alonso's engine let go during his home race. Couldn't have happened to a nicer guy.
Jeb
I saw the last run at qualifying on Saturday morning but unfortunately a mild bout of food poisoning and a kid who was determined to watch PBS Kids on Sunday morning scuttled any plans to watch the race. Reading the recaps here makes up for it.
Brad
Amazing that Kovalainen was not hurt worse than he was. I was watching the race and when it happened, the way the corner workers were frantically waving their hands, I was afraid that something more tragic had occured.
Kal
Did they ever determine if this was a rim or rotor failure???
Jeff
Turned out to be a rather exciting race, just not up front. I couldn't have been more thrilled that Alonso's engine destroyed itself in front of the only group of people in the world that like him, that was classic. Of course, he was able to keep pace only because he was light on fuel by several laps over everyone else. Still, I bet he liked being back at a press conference (for quals) after so long without one.
I'm very glad that Heikki is ok, that was quite a crash there, and the amount of light showing under his car led me to think his legs would be screwed, but I guess not. He really buried that car though, that's hopefully gonna be one of the more violent collisions of the season. It's easy for us to forget how hard those cars can crash and have the driver escape almost unharmed. That was a 130 km/h impact, and he's being released from the hospital today with no injuries whatsoever.
I'm glad BMW seems to be a force this season. Sort of came out of nowhere, but still, it's good to mix up the establishment. It's been a long time coming, and I would be very happy if they are here to stay and we have 3 front-runners in F1 now.
dieselhead
Now that there are at least 3 teams running competitive cars (and maybe more), I'd like to better understand what is wrong with circuit design. Passing still seems too difficult; too much of the race is qualifying on Saturday.
Jonathan Fung
I need to figure out a way to get F1 here. Hmmm...
Jonathan Fung
F1 coverage that is. And I don't want to pay for digital since I don't watch much TV anyway. (Although a F1 race in Hawaii would be nice too, I guess...even though we definitly don't have the infrastructure.)
Winding Road » Archive » F1 Report: Turkish Grand Prix
[...] and fourth slots on the grid with the McLarens packed between them. While Felipe Massa took his Ferrari out of the way into the lead, the rest of the field diced for advantage. Lewis Hamilton got around his teammate Heikki [...]
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