Category: Motor Racing

As the Formula One season approaches its dramatic climax with three critical races for the four championship contenders, it was McLaren’s Lewis Hamilton who managed to rise to the occasion with a stunning lap in the final moments of qualifying to steal pole position away from team-mate Fernando Alonso.

Initially, the whole session was subject to delay as the appalling wet weather conditions around Mount Fuji fail to improve after the race organisers forced the abandonment of third practice due to fog. It seem that the qualifying hour was heading the same way – with fears it might be put on hold until Saturday evening or at worst, Sunday morning – but in the event, the conditions were deemed acceptable and qualifying took place on schedule.

It has been thirty years since Formula One raced at the Fuji Speedway – scene of James Hunt winning his only drivers title. The Toyota-owned race track is a stark contrast to Suzuka, as this re-profile circuit offers a good chance of overtaking thanks to that mile-long start/finish straight.

As ever, qualifying is essential for drivers looking to score points and Lewis Hamilton not only manage to beat his main championship rivals in the session, but also gain physiological advantage over Alonso with his fifth pole position of the year. The British rookie has won from this top grid position three times and if Hamilton manages to win at Fuji on race day, he will extend his slim championship lead as we head into the final two races of the season.

McLaren team-mate Fernando Alonso looked to be the driver to start in the top spot after setting the pace with a lap time of one minute, 25. 438 seconds. But right at the end of Q3, Hamilton banged in an amazing do-or-die lap time of one minute, 25. 368 seconds to grab pole position and head another McLaren front row.

The Ferraris were left trailing with Kimi Raikkonen in third (one minute, 25.516 seconds) and team-mate Felipe Massa fourth (one minute, 25.765 seconds). The performance between the F2007 and the MP4-22 should be fascinating as it’s still to close to call on who has the advantage on race day. The lap times between the four drivers in the top two cars are separate by a matter of tenths of a second.

Behind the usual suspects is Nick Heidfeld in the BMW-Sauber, who continues his impressive consistence in the F1.07 by again out-qualifying his team-mate Robert Kubica (the Polish driver will start in ninth).

Williams-Toyota’s Nico Rosberg originally qualified in sixth but due to an engine change in Friday’s practice session, the German will drop back ten places on the grid. This promoted Jenson Button in the Honda, who was sublime in the wet conditions. The British driver achieved his best-ever starting position after a year-long of frustration in the Earth-livery Honda. He was significantly quicker than team-mate Rubens Barrichello – a driver who is exceptionally good in the wet – and yet, the Brazilian struggled with P17.

Row four goes to the Red Bull drivers of Mark Webber and Sebastian Vettel, with the latter arguably the star of the qualifying session. The German rookie was extremely impressive in the slippery conditions, and by qualifying in eighth he earns the Toro Rosso squad their first-ever top ten start in Formula One.

Rounding out the top ten is Kubica in the second BMW-Sauber with Renault’s Giancarlo Fisichella. As for the Japanese drivers racing in their home Grand Prix, it was a day of disappointment for Takuma Sato and Sakon Yamamoto in the Super Aguri and Spyker respectively. Sato lacked pace in the wet conditions and got knocked out in Q1 (will start in P21), meanwhile Yamamoto will start his home race last thanks to Ralf Schumacher colliding into him in the Toyota…

The weather forecast remains unsettled for Sunday, and at this moment in time the 2007 Japanese Grand Prix at Fuji has the look of one of those races in which anything could happen.

Japanese Grand Prix grid

1. HAMILTON McLaren 1:25.368
2. ALONSO McLaren 1:25.438
3. RAIKKONEN Ferrari 1:25.516
4. MASSA Ferrari 1:25.765
5. HEIDFELD BMW 1:26.505
6. BUTTON Honda 1:26.913
7. WEBBER Red Bull 1:26.914
8. VETTEL Toro Rosso 1:26.973
9. KUBICA BMW 1:27.225
10. FISICHELLA Renault 1:26.033
11. KOVALAINEN Renault 1:26.232
12. COULTHARD Red Bull 1:26.247
13. TRULLI Toyota 1:26.253
14. LIUZZI Toro Rosso 1:26.948
15. SCHUMACHER Toyota 1:27.191
16. ROSBERG Williams 1:26.728*
17. BARRICHELLO Honda 1:27.323
18. WURZ Williams 1:27.454
19. DAVIDSON Super Aguri 1:27.564
20. SUTIL Spyker 1:28.628
21. SATO Super Aguri 1:28.792
22. YAMAMOTO Spyker 1:29.668

*Drops ten places due to an engine change penalty

Finland’s Kimi Raikkonen headed home Ferrari team-mate Felipe Massa in Sunday’s Belgian Grand Prix with a dominant performance that clinched the Italian outfit of the 2007 constructors’ title.

The McLarens were no match for the red cars and had to settle for third and fourth, with Fernando Alonso finishing ahead of Lewis Hamilton and narrowing the rookie’s championship lead to just two points with three races remaining.

Massa had briefly challenged Raikkonen on the outside at the start, before settling into second position. Just behind the pair, the McLarens were also wheel-to-wheel into the La Source hairpin. Alonso edged Hamilton onto the extended run-off area, but Lewis had better traction and accelerated back on track level with his team-mate.

They then ran side-by-side into Eau Rouge, with Alonso holding on around the outside at the first part of the corner before claiming third as the race track turned right.

Raikkonen proceeded to dominate the 44-lap race, easily establishing a four-second lead over Massa and maintaining it to the chequered flag.

The McLarens ran longer stints, but lacked the pace to get on terms with the leaders, and at one point in the Grand Prix was 20 seconds adrift…

Raikkonen’s victory at Spa-Francorchamps means he retains a mathematically chance of taking the title away from the McLaren duo, cutting his deficit to Lewis Hamilton to 13 points with 30 still up for grabs – although Kimi hopes that the Mercedes-powered team’s impressive reliability falters.

With McLaren losing all its championship points by the FIA this week, Ferrari only had to beat the BMW Saubers to seal its 15th constructors’ title – which it duly achieved but McLaren remain the ‘true’ champions in my opinion…

Nick Heidfeld continued his consistent points finishes for BMW Sauber with fifth though he was pushed wide at La Source to avoid hitting Alonso and Hamilton on the lap one. Nico Rosberg was sixth for Williams with Red Bull’s Mark Webber in seventh. Finishing in the last points finish was Renault’s Heikki Kovalainen after holding off the BMW Sauber from a determined Robert Kubica by half a second.

The next stop for the 2007 Formula One World Championship is the Japanese Grand Prix at Fuji at the end of the month. It will be the first time modern Formula One racing cars will be racing at the track, as the last time was back in 1977. The newly re-profile circuit (as designed by Hermann Tilke) will feature the longest straight on the Formula One calendar but in terms of challenge for the drivers, the layout of the race track is pale in comparison to Suzuka.

Belgian Grand Prix result, Spa-Francorchamps – 44 laps

1. RAIKKONEN Ferrari 1h20m39.066s
2. MASSA Ferrari +4.7s
3. ALONSO McLaren +14.3s
4. HAMILTON McLaren +23.6s
5. HEIDFELD BMW +51.9s
6. ROSBERG Williams +1m16.9s
7. WEBBER Red Bull +1m20.6s
8. KOVALAINEN Renault +1m25.1
9. KUBICA BMW +1m25.7s
10. SCHUMACHER Toyota +1m28.6s
11. TRULLI Toyota +1m43.7s
12. LIUZZI Toro Rosso +1 lap
13. BARRICHELLO Honda +1 lap
14. SUTIL Spyker +1 lap
15. SATO Super Aguri +1 lap
16. DAVIDSON Super Aguri +1 lap
17. YAMAMOTO Spyker +1 lap
R. BUTTON Honda +8 laps
R. WURZ Williams +10 laps
R. COULTHARD Red Bull +15 laps
R. VETTEL Toro Rosso +36 laps
R. FISICHELLA Renault +43 laps

Fastest lap: MASSA 1m48.036s (lap 34)

Ferrari secured their first all-front-row start of the season at Spa-Francorchamps with Kimi Raikkonen taking the top spot after beating his team-mate Felipe Massa in qualifying for the Belgian Grand Prix.

The Finn took pole position away from the Brazilian by a small margin of 0.017 seconds. Raikkonen’s lap around the Ardennes race track was one minute, 45.994 seconds. Massa felt the pressure from the ‘Iceman’ as he tried to improve his lap time that resulted him making a mistake into the final chicane.

As for McLaren – who recently received a record fine of $100 million USD in a breach of article 151c of the International Sporting Code – Fernando Alonso and championship leader Lewis Hamilton could only managed third and fourth respectively. Alonso blew his chances for a top grid position with a spin at Rivage, but the Spaniard recovered and managed to set a time faster than team-mate Hamilton.

Robert Kubica qualified his BMW Sauber in fifth but was relegated ten positions after changing his engine before the qualifying session. That promoted Nico Rosberg in the Williams ahead of Kubica’s team-mate Nick Heidfeld.

Australian’s Mark Webber lines up in eighth for Red Bull Racing. While the final two top ten spots went to Toyota’s Jarno Trulli and Renault’s Heikki Kovalainen.

Judging by the times set by the red cars, it seems the Ferraris has the speed advantage around the fast and flowing Spa circuit. Raikkonen won the event twice and he could go for win number three on Sunday. But can Massa stop him? What about McLaren? Alonso would love to continue his winning form after last weekend’s Monza triumph but I believe both he and Lewis will have difficulty in keeping up the pace over Ferrari.

Belgian Grand Prix starting grid

1. RAIKKONEN Ferrari 1:45.994
2. MASSA Ferrari 1:46.011
3. ALONSO McLaren 1:46.091
4. HAMILTON McLaren 1:46.406
5. KUBICA BMW Sauber 1:46.996*
6. ROSBERG Williams 1:47.334
7. HEIDFELD BMW Sauber 1:47.409
8. WEBBER Red Bull 1:47.524
9. TRULLI Toyota 1:47.798
10. KOBALAINEN Renault 1:48.505
11. FISICHELLA Renault 1:46.603
12. R. SCHUMACHER Toyota 1:46.618
13. COULTHARD Red Bull 1:46.800
14. BUTTON Honda 1:46.955
15. LIUZZI Toro Rosso 1:47.115
16. WURZ Williams 1:47.394
17. VETTEL Toro Rosso 1:47.581
18. BARRICHELLO Honda 1:47.954
19. SATO Super Aguri 1:47.980
20. SUTIL Spyker 1:48.044
21. DAVIDSON Super Aguri 1:48.199
22. YAMAMOTO Spyker 1:49.577

* A ten-place grid penalty for changing an engine

Former World Rally Champion Colin McRae has died in a helicopter crash. The popular Scotsman was a true star on the rally stages and his sudden death was the biggest shock to motorsport fans – myself included.

McRae was an inspiration to everyone. His skills as a professional driver were extremely impressive and I will remember him fondly for his wild powerslide moments in the Subaru and Ford Focus rally cars. His computer games were also fantastic to play and his support in the popular gaming series made him a star for video gamers.

It was deeply depressing that we lost Colin two years after another British rally hero Richard Burns passed away. Reading the various news articles, I was sadden to learn that his five-year-old son Johnny also perish in the accident along with another adult and child (Graeme Duncan, 39 and Ben Porcelli, 6).

It is reported that the helicopter developed a mechanical problem during its flight and it crashed shorted after 1600 hours in Jerviswood (Scotland) after the party were returning from a nearby village…

McRae, 39, the son of five-times British Rally Champion Jimmy, wrote his name in the record books in 1995 when he became the first Brit to win the World Rally Championship.

David Richards, boss of Prodrive, insisted it was his fearless and at times gung-ho approach that won him many admirers in the sport and fans outside it.

“That was his style. He had a real have-a-go instinct,” said Richards. “It was a special thing that you would never want to take that away from him. You could throw any car at him in any recognised motorsport and he would do well. I remember when I put him in a Formula One car at Silverstone and how great he was in that straight away. It could have been a sports car, touring car, Paris-Dakar, you name it. It’s unusual to call somebody a legend, but it’s very appropriate for Colin.”

Nicky Grist, McRae’s co-driver since 1997, said the whole of the rally world was in shock and said McRae was “such a great character”.

Speaking about his time with the former world champion, Grist said: “I have to say they were the best times of my life. We used to drive to the max and push everything to the absolute limit. But when it came to socialising we had great fun also.”

Grist added: “Colin was always regarded as being a bit of a risk-taker in cars, but when it came to flying a helicopter he was a totally different man. The one thing he always told me, he said ‘you don’t mess about with a helicopter. They are bigger and better than I am and you have to drive them as such.”‘

Fellow Scotsman and Formula One driver David Coulthard said McRae was both “fearless” and “flamboyant”.

“He and Alison were good friends and I cannot imagine either without the other,” said Coulthard, who was due to partner McRae in Team Scotland for the Race of Champions at Wembley Stadium in December.

“He was fearless, flamboyant, blindingly quick in the car. He was very down-to-earth, matter-of-fact that he was so good. He had all the good Scottish traits. I competed in the Race of Champions with him because of my respect for him. I remember him urging me on, telling to get the finger out for Scotland. We had some great times and his passing is a terrible blow for the McRae family and everyone who came in contact with him.”

Sir Jackie Stewart also spoke of his sadness at McRae’s death. “We want to extend our sincere condolences and deepest sympathy to Ali, Jimmy and the rest of the McRae family,” said the three-time Formula One World Champion. “It’s a sad loss for Scotland, of a real hero and an immensely popular friend. He really was a driver that spectators loved because the car was always moving. He just conducted his driving in a way which was so confident, so full of enthusiasm and spirit.”

Max Mosley, the president of FIA, motorsport’s governing body, said: “It’s tragic that he should die like this when he’s retired from the dangerous part of his career. I don’t think anybody disliked him, everyone was his friend in the sport. Some of his achievements in rallying were absolutely extraordinary. Everywhere he went he was an ambassador, an ambassador for the sport and for Scotland, he was terrific.”

Motorbikes legend Valentino Rossi dedicated his win in Sunday’s Portuguese MotoGP to McRae. “He was one of my idols when I was young. He was the Kevin Schwarz (US Grand Prix rider of 1990s) of motor rallies,” said the Italian. “It is a very sad day for motor sports but I’m happy to have been able to win for him today.”

Malcolm Wilson, BP-Ford World Rally Team director, added: “I was privileged to have Colin in our team driving for Ford at a time when he was at the peak of his powers.

“He achieved one of his greatest victories with us when he won the legendary Safari Rally in Kenya in 1999 on only our third event with a brand new Focus WRC. It was a victory he went on to repeat in 2002. Since retiring as a full-time driver in the WRC, Colin has done much for the sport at grass roots level and his tragic death is a huge loss to British sport in general.”

Ex-Formula One driver Martin Brundle, who swapped racing cars with McRae in a publicity stunt in 1996, said: “He was a naturally gifted driver, whatever he was in. I’ve always thought rally drivers are probably the most all-round skilled drivers in the world because of the conditions they have to cope with. Having done a couple of rallies, I know what an extraordinary challenge it is.

“He was fearless, and as David Coulthard said, one of the good guys. Why is it always the good guys it happens to? He had a cult following because he was always exciting to watch. When he drove the F1 car, he just picked it up by the scruff of the neck and gave it a thrashing.”

Colin Hilton, chief executive of the Motor Sports Association, said McRae was an “inspiration to all who knew him and to millions around the world”.

He added: “His energy, commitment and extraordinary talent brought him domestic and international success, while his uncompromising style and determination made him the hero of fans everywhere.

“Throughout a glorious career, that saw him rise from the grassroots of the sport to the pinnacle of the world stage, Colin was always a great ambassador for Scottish and UK motor sport. Since retiring from the WRC, he has continued to dedicate himself to the sport, in particular the development of the next generation of rally drivers and co-drivers.”

McRae leaves a wife, Alison, and daughter, Hollie.

Rest in peace Colin McRae. We will always remember your superb driving skills forever.

After a day-long hearing in Paris, the World Motor Sport Council has issued a verdict on the latest spying saga that has affected the McLaren-Mercedes team in this season’s Formula One World Championship. The WMCS has decided to penalise the Woking-based outfit for breach of article 151c of the International Sporting Code.

What this means is McLaren will lose all their championship points this season, effectively making Ferrari the constructors’ champions by default. In addition, the team received the biggest fine in motor racing history ($100 million / £50 million) for their possession of a 780-page dossier containing technical information on Ferrari.

However, the drivers’ championship will remain intact so the title race between Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton continues in the remaining races.

Furthermore, the WMSC said they will analyse the McLaren-Mercedes car entered to the 2008 world championship later this year to decide what sanctions, if any, should be applied on the team in next year’s championship.

Asked if justice had been done, the president of the FIA Max Mosley said “Yes”. Even Ferrari were satisfied with the decision, but both parties believe it wasn’t harsh enough…

My personal opinion is that the FIA has created a bad image on Formula One that has overshadowed a fantastic season of racing. It is not surprising that the general public are more aware of the sport thanks to the achievements by British sensation Lewis Hamilton.

I hope McLaren can move on from this spying row and win the drivers’ title this year. The on-track battle between Alonso and Hamilton has been absolutely fascinating for Formula One fans and despite Ferrari winning the constructors’ title by default; I personally believe McLaren are the ‘true’ champions.

For the full transcript of the Council’s judgement, please click here.

Fernando Alonso stamped his authority on McLaren-Mercedes team-mate Lewis Hamilton with a dominant victory at Monza, cutting Hamilton’s championship lead to three points.

It was an important result for the double world champion and for the team after a stressful few days at the Italian Grand Prix. The on-going spy scandal is still taking proceeding in Formula One and we will discover the outcome of this season’s championship in a World Motor Sport Council meeting in Paris on Thursday, September 13.

It is unclear what the verdict will be especially with new evidence coming into light (apparently McLaren test driver Pedro de la Rosa exchange some emails to race driver Alonso about top secret information on Ferrari). So for the next few days, the fight for this year’s titles could be decided in the courts than out on the race track…

Nevertheless, McLaren and Alonso should be pleased by Sunday’s race result. It was the Spaniard’s 19th career Grand Prix win and to take the chequered flag in front of the passionate Ferrari fans (tifosi) was a special feeling for the double world champion.

As for Lewis Hamilton, he still holds onto the drivers’ title lead over his team-mate by a small points margin. Finishing second was a good result for the British team but it could have been worst if Kimi Raikkonen finished in front of him. But Hamilton was in a racy mood and forced his way past the Ferrari driver with a spectacular overtaking manoeuvre into the first chicane on lap 43.

Raikkonen was caught by surprise as he just moved into second place thanks to Ferrari’s clever single pit-stop strategy to promote him a track position. Both cars locked their brakes into the first corner and it was lucky that both drivers didn’t make any contact. A great pass by the Formula One rookie but Kimi should have defended more aggressively.

Nick Heidfeld continued his consistent points finishes with a fine fourth for BMW Sauber, finishing ahead of team-mate Robert Kubica. Nico Rosberg was sixth for Williams after fighting off a determined Jenson Button. The Honda seemed to be working much better in the low-downforce configuration at Monza and it was fascinating to see the duel between Rosberg and Button in the 53-lap race. In the end though, Renault’s Heikki Kovalainen finished between the pair.

There were two non-finishes in Sunday’s Italian Grand Prix and one of them was a championship contender, Ferrari’s Felipe Massa. The Brazilian had a frantic opening set of laps trying to pass Hamilton’s McLaren. But was forced to retire early with mechanical problems, hitting his title hopes and the team’s. The other driver to retire from the race was David Coulthard. The Red Bull driver suffered a front wing failure (as the result of damage after hitting Giancarlo Fisichella’s Renault in the first chicane) and speared hard into the wall at the Curva Grande. The Scot escaped unhurt in the high speed accident.

So a perfect result for McLaren with first and second in Ferrari’s home race. This season’s Formula One World Championship is becoming tensed with four races remaining. But could politics rather than supreme driving talents of Alonso, Hamilton, Raikkonen and Massa decide the fate of the championship?

Italian Grand Prix result, Monza, 53 laps

1. ALONSO McLaren 1h18m37.806s
2. HAMILTON McLaren +6.0s
3. RAIKKONEN Ferrari +27.3s
4. HEIDFELD BMW +56.5s
5. KUBICA BMW +1m00.5s
6. ROSBERG Williams +1m05.8s
7. KOVALAINEN Renault +1m06.7s
8. BUTTON Honda +1m12.1s
9. WEBBER Red Bull +1m15.9s
10. BARRICHELLO Honda +1m16.9s
11. TRULLI Toyota +1m17.7s
12. FISICHELLA Renault +1 lap
13. WURZ Williams +1 lap
14. DAVIDSON Super Aguri +1 lap
15. R SCHUMACHER Toyota +1 lap
16. SATO Super Aguri +1 lap
17. LIUZZI Toro Rosso +1 lap
18. VETTEL Toro Rosso +1 lap
19. SUTIL Spyker +1 lap
20. YAMAMOTO Spyker +1 lap
R. MASSA Ferrari +43 laps
R. COULTHARD Red Bull +52 laps

Fastest lap: ALONSO 1:22.871

Fernando Alonso leads a McLaren one-two after a dominant performance in qualifying at Monza. The Spaniard set the quickest time in all three segments of qualifying to takes his second pole position of the season and the 18th of his Grand Prix career.

The double world champion’s pole time of one minute, 21.997 seconds was only 0.037 seconds quicker than his team-mate Lewis Hamilton.

Turkish Grand Prix winner Felipe Massa lines up in third ahead of ‘Quick Nick’. The BMW Sauber driver did a fantastic job to beat one Ferrari – that of Kimi Raikkonen – and by starting on the second row (with P4), the German could possibly spoil the weekend for the Italian team in front of the tifosi in Sunday’s race.

Raikkonen was on his back-foot after a troubled start to his weekend. First he suffered a hydraulics problem in Friday’s practice session and then during the warm-up to qualifying, had a high-speed crash under braking for the Variante Ascari chicane.

The crash caused significant damage to his chassis so Kimi was forced to switch to the spare car in order to qualify. The Finn will start tomorrow’s Italian Grand Prix in fifth, three-quarters of a second slower than his team-mate Massa.

Robert Kubica lines up in sixth for BMW Sauber with Heikki Kovalainen and Nico Rosberg – seventh and eighth for Renault and Williams respectively. Toyota’s Jarno Trulli continued his great form in qualifying by beating team-mate Ralf Schumacher for the fifth time with ninth and it was a good result for Honda’s Jenson Button who managed to qualifying inside the top ten for the second time this year.

So it will be another McLaren versus Ferrari battle in Sunday’s Grand Prix. McLaren are looking very strong after a competitive showing in last week’s testing and a win on Ferrari’s home soil will be the perfect result for the team after suffering a stressful period of accusation in the latest series of the spy scandal that has rocked this year’s championship.

Ferrari really needs to strike back in their home race to prevent rival McLaren taking the main points in its quest for the world championship. But could Heidfeld spoil the day in the fast and competitive BMW Sauber? Sunday’s Italian Grand Prix will be a fascinating contest with cars travelling around 220 miles per hour!

Italian Grand Prix grid

1. ALONSO McLaren 1:21.997
2. HAMILTON McLaren 1:22.034
3. MASSA Ferrari 1:22.549
4. HEIDFELD BMW Sauber 1:23.174
5. RAIKKONEN Ferrari 1:23.183
6. KUBICA BMW Sauber 1:23.446
7. KOVALAINEN Renault 1:24.102
8. ROSBERG Williams 1:24.382
9. TRULLI Toyota 1:24.555
10. BUTTON Honda 1:25.165
11. WEBBER Red Bull 1:23.166
12. BARRICHELLO Honda 1:23.176
13. WURZ Williams 1:23.209
14. DAVIDSON Super Aguri 1:23.274
15. FISICHELLA Renault 1:23.325
16. VETTEL Toro Rosso 1:23.351
17. SATO Super Aguri 1:23.749
18. SCHUMACHER Toyota 1:23.787
19. LIUZZI Toro Rosso 1:23.886
20. COULTHARD Red Bull 1:24.019
21. SUTIL Spyker 1:24.699
22. YAMAMOTO Spyker 1:25.084

Finland’s Marcus Grönholm has beaten Frenchman Sébastien Loeb in one of the closest-fought World Rally Championship in many years.

Grönholm managed to beat his main rival by a small margin of 0.3 seconds! The title rivals were inseparable throughout the last day of the Rally New Zealand, swapping the lead three times in the final stages and being split by less than a second for most of leg three.

The Ford Rally driver looked set for a dominant victory after setting the pace on the first day, but Sébastien had other ideas. It was a fascinating contest as the two fastest rally drivers trade stages times.

The rally was decided on the final stage, the Mystery Creek Super Special. Even though Loeb took the stage honours, Grönholm had just enough of a margin to seal the victory after three incredible days of rally action.

The result brings Grönholm’s championship lead back up to 10 points with five rounds remaining.

In contrast to the nail-biting tension of the lead battle, Ford’s Mikko Hirvonen finished a distant third but was well ahead of the other drivers to take the last remaining podium spot.

Ferrari’s Felipe Massa led home his team-mate Kimi Raikkonen with a dominant display in Sunday’s Turkish Grand Prix. The Brazilian led from the start and resisted a race-long pressure from Raikkonen to reignited his and Ferrari’s title challenge.

It was an important win for Massa as the team’s president Luca di Montezemolo had set a target of scoring 1-2 finishes in the remaining six races in order to turn the tables on rival McLaren. Now that we are heading into Ferrari’s home race in a fortnight’s time (Monza), the first stage of this target has been achieved.

It also helps that the championship leader Lewis Hamilton could only finish in fifth after suffering a puncture.

Hamilton was on course to finish in third but with just 15 laps to go, his front-right Bridgestone exploded… Luckily, he managed to get his car back to the pits but the consequent delay dropped him behind his McLaren team-mate Fernando Alonso – who had lost ground with a poor start – and BMW Sauber’s Nick Heidfeld.

And although he salvaged four points with fifth position, his misfortune gifted team-mate Alonso a podium, which allows the Spaniard to close within five points in the race for the drivers’ title.

The double world champion was lucky to inherit third as he made a poor getaway off the grid. In fact, neither McLarens got away well at the start of the race, with Hamilton immediately losing second to Raikkonen and Alonso dropping to sixth behind the two BMW Saubers.

Although the Spaniard managed to re-pass both Robert Kubica and Heidfeld during the first pit sequence, Alonso had already fallen 14 seconds adrift of the leaders by this time. He proceeded to match Hamilton’s pace, but could not gain any ground and would not have bettered fourth place if his team-mate’s race had run trouble-free.

Finishing in sixth went to Renault’s Heikki Kovalainen, who drove a strong race and at one point, actually led the Grand Prix! The Finn even had a opportunity to pass Hamilton’s damaged car in the closing stages of the race, but in the end Kovalainen crossed the line a second adrift behind the McLaren.

Nico Rosberg was another driver who put in a fine performance for Williams. The German finished in seventh, just about holding off the chasing Robert Kubica in the BMW Sauber. Kubica’s strategy of making early pit-stops cost the BMW Sauber driver dear, as he fell behind Alonso, Heidfeld and Kovalainen in the first sequence. And then he lost out another race position to Rosberg at the final stops.

But no such worries for Ferrari, as the team scored an impressive result. This was Massa’s second consecutive Turkish Grand Prix win and the Brazilian has significantly close the points gap between himself and the world championship leader Lewis Hamilton to just 15 points.

In the constructors’ championship, McLaren retain their lead with 148 points to Ferrari’s 137, while BMW Sauber are still a healthy third on 78 as the championship moves to Monza.

Turkish Grand Prix race result – 58 laps

1. MASSA Ferrari 1h26m42.161s
2. RAIKKONEN Ferrari +2.2s
3. ALONSO McLaren +26.1s
4. HEIDFELD BMW +39.6s
5. HAMILTON McLaren +45.0s
6. KOVALAINEN Renault +46.1s
7. ROSBERG Williams +55.7s
8. KUBICA BMW +56.7s
9. FISICHELLA Renault +59.4s
10. COULTHARD Red Bull +1m11.0s
11. WURZ Williams +1m19.6s
12. R SCHUMACHER Toyota +1 lap
13. BUTTON Honda +1 laps
14. DAVIDSON Super Aguri +1 laps
15. LIUZZI Toro Rosso +1 laps
16. TRULLI Toyota +1 lap
17. BARRICHELLO Honda +1 lap
18. SATO Super Aguri +1 lap
19. VETTEL Toro Rosso +1 lap
20. YAMAMOTO Spyker +2 laps
21. SUTIL Spyker +5 laps
R. WEBBER Red Bull +49 laps

Fastest lap: RAIKKONEN 1min. 27.295 secs