Fernando Alonso took his second victory of the season in style, winning back-to-back Grand Prix's by crossing the line first in this morning's 2008 Japanese Grand Prix.
Having done the same thing as the Singapore Grand Prix by claiming that it would be impossible for him to repeat his victory feat, the Spaniard was again at the right place and right time to take the top step on the podium.
At the start of the race, Ferrari's Kimi Räikkönen was able to get a good start ahead of McLaren's Lewis Hamilton. However, coming up to turn 1, Hamilton out-braked himself and forced Kimi Räikkönen off the racing track.
The McLaren and Ferrari teams were involved in their own battles and that allowed BMW's Robert Kubica and Renault's Fernando Alonso to jump ahead at the chance and took the race lead.
Meanwhile, David Coulthard was the first casualty of the race as he spun on the track with rear suspension failure and a gentle nudge from a Toyota, his Red Bull car shattering before hitting the tyre-wall.
Felipe Massa then led the chase to catch up with Hamilton, while Heikki Kovalainen was settled comfortably in third place behind Robert Kubica and Fernando Alonso.
Massa got alongside Hamilton at turn 11, before running on the chicane and then plunging his nose into the side of Hamilton, putting the Brit into a spin.
As a result, Hamilton had to watch the rest of the field pass by him before he could rejoin the back of the pack.
Massa was then handed a drive-through penalty for this move, while Hamilton was similarly handed a drive-through penalty for forcing Räikkönen wide at Turn 1.
The penalties dropped Massa and Hamilton to the back of the field. However, Massa was on a charge and hungry for any point he could salvage from this disastrous weekend.
He got into a tangle with Toro Rosso's Sebastien Bourdais as the latter came out of the pits, and this incident will be investigated after the race by the stewards, but Ferrari can only keep their fingers crossed that the investigation will not change Massa's eighth-place finish in any way.
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Fernando Alonso was later able to jump ahead of Robert Kubica with a well-executed pit strategy. Kubica seemed to be lacking the race pace as he fell further back and was under huge pressure from third-place Kimi Räikkönen. But it could have been a conservative strategy from the Pole, as he later responded and pulled away from the Finn.
Nelson Piquet Jr. drove a quiet but composed race to come in fourth, scoring proud points for the Renault team. Jarno Trulli was the only one left to fly the Toyota flag high as his teammate Timo Glock retired from the race after just seven laps.
McLaren's hopes for scoring any points went up in smoke along with the engine failure of Heikki Kovalainen. The Finn could only wonder what could have been with a good start and taking the third place but it was not to be.
Both Toro Rossos finished sixth and seventh, with Bourdais ahead of Vettel.
Nick Heidfeld was not able to do anything spectacular, and finished in 10th place, ahead of Williams' Nico Rosberg. Rosberg's Japanese teammate, Kazuki Nakajima, was not able to fly the Japanese flag high as he got into a spin at the first lap and had to pit for some repairs. He was subsequently trailing the field and ended the race in last place.
Robert Kubica had made his displeasure about Hamilton's racing antics clear this weekend with his comments. If anything, the penalty meted out to the Brit will just be yet another reminder to himself that he has to reflect upon his racing tactics.
Victory is one thing, but sportsmanship's another. Formula 1 has no place for dirty racing, and certainly Hamilton does not have to think too hard when he wonders why he has possibly the most number of penalties against him so far.
Hamilton has admitted that he "made a mistake and I paid a price for it," but was unhappy about receiving the same penalty as Felipe Massa when he did not cause anyone to spin with his move, while the Brazilian had put him into a spin.
Perhaps he has a point there, but one must not forget that the victim he forced out (Kimi Räikkönen) had lost out on his good start all because of Hamilton's move.
Räikkönen did not benefit in anyway from Hamilton's penalty, and certainly lost four points thanks to Hamilton's move.
With just two races to go (Grand Prix of China next week and the Brazilian GP on Nov. 2), Ferrari has once again emerged ahead of McLaren in the Constructors' Championship.
Räikkönen scored some vital points for Ferrari, while McLaren failed to get any point out of the Japanese GP. Desperation might just drive Hamilton to commit more silly (and unwarranted) moves on his rivals, and Ron Dennis will certainly need to give a pep-talk to Hamilton if he wants the Drivers' Championship this year for his young star.
Results
01 F. Alonso Renault 1:30:21.892
02 R. Kubica BMW + 5.200
03 K. Räikkönen Ferrari + 6.400
04 N. Piquet Jr. Renault + 20.500
05 J. Trulli Toyota + 23.700
06 S. Bourdais Scuderia Toro Rosso + 34.000
07 S. Vettel Scuderia Toro Rosso + 39.200
08 F. Massa Ferrari + 46.100
09 M. Webber Red Bull + 50.800
10 N. Heidfeld BMW + 54.100
11 N. Rosberg Williams + 1:02.000
12 L. Hamilton McLaren + 1:18.900
13 R. Barrichello Honda + 1 laps
14 J. Button Honda + 1 laps
15 K. Nakajima Williams + 1 laps
Did not finish
16 G. Fisichella Force India F1 + 46 laps
17 H. Kovalainen McLaren + 51 laps
18 A. Sutil Force India F1 + 58 laps
19 T. Glock Toyota + 60 laps
20 D. Coulthard Red Bull + 67 laps
Times from PlanetF1.com
*Photo: Reuters/Issei Kato
The writer is the editor of F1GPSG.com - the Singapore community fansite for Formula 1.
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about 1 month ago
Very nice article Moriker. Hamilton was an impulsive fool, but full credit to Alonso for the win.
about 1 month ago
Nicely written article. I sometimes wonder if Hamilton's disposition for unforced errors arises from starting F1 in a top team.
from about 1 month ago
THanks Peter.
I don't think his disposition for unforced errors stemmed from him starting from a top team, but his arrogance certainly is. He's much luckier than many of the rest (Alonso, Kimi etc) who had to start from the lower teams and work their way up slowly. He compares himself to the likes of Senna, and I don't think even Fernando Alonso did that. He has a lot to prove, and he thinks the whole world is against him, but it's only because he has yet to prove himself before he can stake such claims.
from about 1 month ago
Hamilton started in F1 in a top team because he had proven himself as an excellent driver in other championships. He was destined to be Vodafone Maclaran Mercedes number 2 driver behind then World Champion Fernando Alonso but managed to prove himself to be worthy of the number 1 seat. As for Hamilton being lucky..... you do not know what you are talking about!! Is it lucky that every single stewards decision goes against you? Is it lucky that you get the same penalty as another driver despite performing a far less dangerous maneouvre?
from about 1 month ago
Jenn, you obviously haven't got a clue! In racing, Money is everything, and with enough of it anyone can be fast, being a great kart driver does not necessarily mean that person will be a car car driver, so you cannot prove yourself as a racer in karting, only learn race craft, if I had 11 million spent on me since I was 8 and then put straight into the fastest car with the current 2 time WDC as my teammate and mentor I would be in contention for the f1 WDC title, as would anybody who has any driving skill whatsoever!
from about 1 month ago
Jenn, can you plz back your claim with evidence that Hamilton was the most successful youngsters in the history of motor racing before he started f1 in mclaren?
from about 1 month ago
Isuru, I never claimed that Lewis was the most successful youngster in the history of motor racing ever, I have no idea where you got that idea from, but hey I can't blame you for thinking it ;-)
Jamie, I'd like to see you try mate! The problem is that you have answered your own point in your reply. It is the race craft that Lewis developed that enabled him to so quickly get the hang on an f1 car. It is this race craft that allows him to win races. He may have made some rather naughty over taking moves lately but in the past he has shown that he is one of the best guys at that out there. So thankyou for telling me that I "obviously don't have a clue", at least I can make a sensible post without contradicting myself.
The jealousy of Lewis Hamilton's skill bewilders me. I guess it's just tough to be at the top!
from about 1 month ago
Jenn, to be quick in karting is very easy, cars are a totally different breed, i have a friend who was a british kart champion and could not make the transition to cars, just because somebody has good race craft does not necessarily make them a good racer, i know that sounds odd but it i true, kart are point and go flat most of the time and hardly ever use the brakes, whereas in f1 you have to be millimeter perfect on the brakes with the right brake pressure and off the brakes in time to turn and on the power soon enough to be quick, in layman terms, but with £11m spent on you from being a good karter and being with the top team in every lower formulae you enter with the biggest budget and the most time on track and driver coaching which not a lot of people can afford and lewis hamilton definitely has had (as have nico rosberg and piquet jr (whilst is f1)) it is extremely hard to not be fast, and yes I believe I would be in the same position as Lewis is right now if I had all that thrown at me, and so would anybody with any skill, just look at David Coulthard, only ever in f1 because his dad was very rich and only got his drive at mclaren because his dads firm had contacts with mclaren and he brought big sponsorship money, but with the experience at the higher teams it is impossible to be totally useless, although I do think that DC is! just look at a few of the drivers in f1 at the moment, Rosberg, Piquet and Nakajima, are they in F1 because of their underlying talent passed down by their fathers.....NO! they have had endless streams of cash thrown their way since they were little and anot be slow, now obviously they have to have some kind of skill and interest in motorsport otherwise they wouldnt be where they are but MONEY IS THE DECIDING FACTOR on whether most drivers are successful or not!
about 1 month ago
excellent article 5 stars & POTD
from about 1 month ago
Thanks for reading! You can catch me commenting on every race on my website www.f1gpsg.com ;)
about 1 month ago
So as an unbiased journalist you feel that it is appropriate to hand out the same penalty to someone who gets a little over keen and as a result goes wide (along with the rest of the pack). If you have eyes you can see that Hamilton doesn't even brush Raikkonen to someone who in his madness to get points cuts a chicane (in itself worth a stop go penalty) and then ploughs into another car, how convenient for Massa that the other car was Hamiltons!!! As for the Bourdais incident, that is just ridiculously unfair, Bourdais did nothing wrong at all. Disgusting stewards decision!!!
In other news though, Alonso and Kubica both drove fabulous races and fully deserve their high points. As for Raikkonen...come on!! Do you really think he would have held it together for the win, what planet are you on?!?!?!
from about 1 month ago
Wow. I think it's clear which side are you on, but well, that happens. There's always the Hamilton camp vs the Ferrari camp.
I don't agree with the Sebastien Bourdais penalty, that is for sure. He did nothing wrong, and it is a shame that the FIA had to do something like that to make the anti-Ferrari camp gather evidence that they are helping out the Ferrari team.
I don't know, what other kind of penalty do you suggest we impose on Hamilton then? A ten-second stop-go penalty in the pits, a 25 second post-race added to his timings, or a 5 grid penalty in the next race?
Or do you think we can just shove someone off the track and get 5000 euros from him as a compensation? The drive-through penalty is fair enough, and if you want to moan about it, then I think the only thing that can be said is perhaps Massa's penalty should have been more severe.
I didn't say that Räikkönen drove a fantastically orgasmic race, but he certainly could have gotten more than just those 6 points had Hamilton not forced him wide in the first corner. It is evident and anyone who is rational enough can see that. Alonso and Kubica deserved their points, I don't disagree with that, but they were also helped by the fact that the McLaren team were busy shoving the Ferraris off the track and provided them with a clear road ahead to take the lead.
The F1 world is not biased against Hamilton - Hamilton put himself into the position where he ought to be penalised and then moan about it. He admitted that he made the mistake and conceded the penalty for it, just the severity, so I don't know why are you still contesting the validity of the penalty with the offender himself has admitted to his folly.
from about 1 month ago
Hamilton is wreckless. When he makes a mistake, he gets mad and drives dangerously. What is he had done that on the first corner last week in Singapore? He would have taken out half the field. Amateur...
from about 1 month ago
Why not a 5000 euro penalty, indeed wasn't a 10000 euro penalty handed out when a Ferrari was given an unsafe release from the pits. Or how about ignoring completely Raikkonen narrowly missing crushing a mechanics head because he couldn't tell the difference between green and red?! I have watched the incident involving Lewis and Kimi numerous times and if anything Heikki hits him not Lewis!
I am not a blind Lewis Hamilton fan, he drove like an idiot at the beginning of the race, especially after all of his promises to be conservative, the stewards just do not display any consistency. People often make errors at the beginning of a race like this and are rarely penalised. If lewis deserved a drive through, Felipe deserved himself a stop-go, and perhaps another for nearly running Bourdais off the track!!!
from about 1 month ago
Ha! Is Raikkonen the only person who can't tell the difference between green and red?
If Raikkonen is colour blind, Hamilton is completely blind.
(Type into youtube: pitlane, candian gp)
about 1 month ago
good article, better than how i've written it.
about 1 month ago
Robert Kubica had made his displeasure about Hamilton's racing antics clear this weekend with his comments. If anything, the penalty meted out to the Brit will just be yet another reminder to himself that he has to reflect upon his racing tactics.
Victory is one thing, but sportsmanship's another. Formula 1 has no place for dirty racing, and certainly Hamilton does not have to think too hard when he wonders why he has possibly the most number of penalties against him so far.
Hamilton has admitted that he "made a mistake and I paid a price for it," but was unhappy about receiving the same penalty as Felipe Massa when he did not cause anyone to spin with his move, while the Brazilian had put him into a spin.
Perhaps he has a point there, but one must not forget that the victim he forced out (Kimi Räikkönen) had lost out on his good start all because of Hamilton's move.
Räikkönen did not benefit in anyway from Hamilton's penalty, and certainly lost four points thanks to Hamilton's move.
With just two races to go (Grand Prix of China next week and the Brazilian GP on Nov. 2), Ferrari has once again emerged ahead of McLaren in the Constructors' Championship.
Räikkönen scored some vital points for Ferrari, while McLaren failed to get any point out of the Japanese GP. Desperation might just drive Hamilton to commit more silly (and unwarranted) moves on his rivals, and Ron Dennis will certainly need to give a pep-talk to Hamilton if he wants the Drivers' Championship this year for his young star.
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I liked the article until i got to the part above , complete and utter bullshit mate , sorry but it is .
from about 1 month ago
Well, thanks for reading. As they say, you can't please everyone, can you? :)
about 1 month ago
Is good to see this boys mix it up once in a while rather than have a tea and muffins as they drive the no overtake race on most dates. WHERE HAVE YOU GONE MICHAEL S. AND PLEASE COME BACK JUAN PABLO MONTOYA , THIS SPORT IS TURNING INTO A BORRING NO CHARECTER SPORT , ALL THE DRIVERS LOOK THE SAME , but i guess this sport has never been realy about the drivers or other manefacturers , its all about enzo's cars ,isnt it ...lol...lol
about 1 month ago
No, al. This sport has come to be all about Bernie. More than a few years ago he said, "Formula One was a great sport until I f----d it up." If you prefer bumper cars to Formula One you can always watch NASCAR drivers take turns spinning each other out and causing massive multi-car crashes. That's where Montoya (who was a pretty good F1 driver most of the time) has gone.
about 1 month ago
It looks like times have changed. Now pretty much every improperly executed overtaking warrants a penalty, with no such thing as a "racing incident". Cast your mind back to last year when Vettel hit the back of Webber. All he got back then was a reprimand.
FIA really has to be blamed for all this "penalty paranoia". In my opinion Lewis shouldn't have got the penalty. Heikki was right - you do see this type of stuff go on at the start anyway! Lewis simply braked too late! No malice or whatever - simply a "racing incident". Especially as this was the first corner, how can this be a penalty for "forcing Kimi out of the track"? There is no doubt in my mind that the fact that it involves a Ferrari and McLaren caused the investigation. If anything it was the way he sliced between Heikki and Kimi was dangerous, but I'm not sure there's a rule for that.
As for Bourdais' penalty - well that's just laughable.
from about 1 month ago
Hamilton left Kimi with nowhere to go. Had he not left the track, there would have been a lot of debris, hence a penalty was given to Hamilton. Not that it helped Kimi in any way.
about 1 month ago
Like I said before, it's not exactly the first time there's this kind of incident and it would be regarded as "racing". Just because Kimi lost places meant that it warranted a penalty - and like I've said it's purely this aspect that has changed with the stewards. Infact it wasn't really Hamilton that left Kimi with nowhere to go, Kovalainen dived up on the inside as well. And anyway Kimi wasn't exactly that fast was he? He wasn't stuck behind any traffic either.
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