Formula One 2008

[gerbin11]

So surely Lewis should have just sat back, made sure that he had conceded the position and any advantage gained, then got back past easily, rather than risking being sanctioned...bit naive really.

Still, he should win this year, the press can go wild, Damon Hill will be forgotten and life will go on!!

That's easy to say with the benefit of hindsight, the rules state you should hand the position back, he did this. Everyone knows how difficult it is to overtake in F1, Hamilton had to take the chance, the way the conditions were deteriorating anything could have happened. Look what happened to Raikkonen a couple of corners later, because he was trying to get back at Hamilton. Ron Dennis has stated they were even speaking to Charlie Whiting who okayed the overtake.

[redlancer]

yes, but he gained ground by cutting the corner.

If he had of avoided it, and gone back on the track...or tried too, he would of been alot further behind. He tried to pass, got squeezed out, and just went straight over the corner, he didnt even try to get back on the track.

I was a harsh penalty, but Lewis is not entirely an angel in this instance.

am i missing the point here - this is motor racing not a sunday drive.

Hamilton was in a slowing car it wasn't like he cut a corner so he was accelerating towards the ferrari he had to slow down to let it pass.

Recon it was more Raikkonen though he was OK and didn't floor it.
Lewis proved he was the fastest at that time.

It stinks. If only i had enough money to not buy a ferrari

[SouthAfricaRed]

Actually, Schumacher was in a Benetton in 1994.



He didn't, there's an excellent video here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TzKMyFCaZy0

As you can see Hamilton wasn't in Raikkonen's slipstream for any reasonable amount of time for any advantage, and according to Mclaren Kimi was also going faster than Hamilton at the start/finish line.

Please dont let facts interfere with the Conspiracy theories

[TheStig]

http://www.grandprix.com/ns/ns20747.html

From the pit wall, we then asked Race Control to confirm that they were comfortable that Lewis had allowed Kimi to repass, and they confirmed twice that they believed that the position had been given back in a manner that was 'OK'. If Race Control had instead expressed any concern regarding Lewis’s actions at that time, we would have instructed Lewis to allow Kimi to repass for a second time.

[TheStig]

This is no real shock. Ferrari have always had the FIA in their back pocket. The memorable '94 season proved that, when Schumacher drove into Hill when he had damaged his car, crippling Hills Williams and securing the World Title for Schumacher in a, you guessed it, a Ferrari.
A few years ago the constructors decided to try and form a break-away championship after being screwed by the FIA over television rights. The break away was lead by Mclaren. Only one team refused to this propesition and remained wit the FIA, you guessed it, Ferrari.
Since this Ferrari can do no wrong. Last race at Valencia, Massa made a dangerous pit manouvre, the same kind of incident in a GP2 race that weekend had resulted in a stop go penalty, this would have relegated Massa to second or third, what doeas he get a 10000 euro fine, no impact on the championship.
Yesterday I was not even slightly shocked to see a perfectly legal incident penalised by a penalty which effectively wiped 6 points off Hamilton's championship lead.

Apologies it was 1996 and it was Villeneuve he rammed into, he didn't succeed though and Villeneuve went on to get sufficient points to win the championship, Schumacher then taken out of the world championship standings ( this didn't really matter though as he had already lost it ). Such similar incidents, easy to get them mixed up.

I'm sure he was in a Ferrari in 1996

Yeah in 96 he was.

[Hass]

I'd also like to make the point that Raikonen also overtook Hamilton during yellow flags when the Williams of Rosberg had spun after the whole chicane incident...but no mention of that in the stewards enquiry...

[TheStig]

Well McLaren ****ed that up with Hamilton .

Then again Ferrari did with Kimi as well!

Will be an interesting race.

[Bari]

Hamilton has blown it again IMO.

[Jayesh87]

Hamilton has blown it again IMO.

poor lewis

[gerbin11]

Yet again, Ferrari get a helping hand. Bourdais penalised for being shunted by Massa, in the process doubling Massa's points.

[Leyton388]

Yep Hamilton has bottled it again IMO. I will be very surprised if he wins the title now. It is a carbon copy of last season. He is too hot headed when the pressure is on in these final few races. He did not need to go for the win today he should have ot as much points as possible with as little risk as was needed. I said at the start of the season that i fancied Massa for the title. I hope i am wrong but Lewis needs a good talking to in order to save the title.

[Aza]

What did the stewards want Bourdais to do?

Drive along the grass as if he was sponsored by Flymo?

He was in a perfectly legal position on the track, having just come out of the pit lane there was nowhere else he could have been.

Massa didn't give Bourdais enough room, it was his lack of judgement that caused the accident.

No Ferrari bias my arse

[Aza]

Bourdais was not at fault...

[Joe King]

Alonso vows to help Massa beat Hamilton
Monday, October 13, 2008 [Metro]

Fernando Alonso has reignited his feud with Lewis Hamilton by telling the British world championship leader he'll do everything he can to help Ferrari rival Felipe Massa win the title.

Alonso picked up his second vioctoy of the season for Renault on Sunday in Japan. But it's the race at the top which is attracting all the headlines with Hamilton now just five points ahead of the Brazilian with two races left.

And two-time cham,pion Alonso, who had a major bust-up with Hamilton at McLaren last year, said: 'Yes, without doubt. If I can help, I will help Massa.

Alonso, whose win at Fuji came two weeks after his surprise triumph in Singapore, fell out with championship leader Hamilton in an ill-fated 2007 season alongside the Briton at McLaren.

The Spaniard, who has been persistently linked to an eventual move to Ferrari, could become a factor in this year's title showdown if he continues to challenge for the podium in the remaining two races.

The 27-year-old has now scored more points (35) than any other driver in the six races since the German Grand Prix in July. Hamilton has taken 26 and Massa 25 in the same period.

Hamilton is five points clear of Brazilian Massa, whose team mate and world champion Kimi Raikkonen is now out of contention, with only this weekend's race in China and the season-ender in Brazil still to come.

Massa, a favourite to win his home race in Sao Paulo, ideally needs a Ferrari one-two in Shanghai with Alonso rounding out the podium to make the necessary inroads into Hamilton's tally.

BMW-Sauber's Robert Kubica is the third man left in the title hunt, 12 points off Hamilton who can expect no help from that quarter after the Pole criticised the Briton's driving before Sunday's race.

Raikkonen returned to the podium on Sunday for the first time since Hungary in August, ending a run of four races without a point, but many Brazilians suspect he may not be Massa's strongest ally on the racetrack.

Alonso and resurgent Renault may be of more assistance.

'We are now maybe just behind Ferrari and McLaren and this is completely amazing,' said the Spaniard, whose team were struggling just to score points at the start of the year.

In the same news conference at Fuji, his enduring hostility towards McLaren and Hamilton was evident when the top three drivers were asked whether it was right for the Briton to have been handed a drive-through penalty for his start.

'I agree,' Alonso said immediately, while Kubica and Raikkonen both said they did not have a clear enough picture to comment.

'I don't know what he did,' the race winner told reporters later. 'But it's good he's punished anyway.'



Draw your own conclusions.

[AFII]

Alonso is the best driver out there by a mile.

If Hamilton had a brain then he would win a lot more races. He acts like a beginner sometimes.