This weekends French Grand Prix had two distinct characteristics. One and perhaps the most important facet was the sheer dominance of the Ferrari team. The other aspect was controversy surrounding the stewards and the Mclaren team yet again.
Qualifying
Wherever Lewis Hamilton managed to qualify he knew already that for his mistake in the Montreal pit lane he would be penalised 10 places. Joining Hamilton in this punishment was Nico Rosberg for Williams. With this in mind the first session began.
Hamilton and the Ferrari's were quick, it appeared as though Mclaren may not be too far off the pace. Struggling for pace and grip however were the duo who led the field home 1 and 2 in Canada. Both Heidfeld and Kubica were slow in the first session.
Controversy surrounded this first session of qualifying when Mark Webber who had already done enough to enter qualifying 2 came across the Mclaren of Kovalainen and the Williams of Nakajima both about to begin hot laps in the penultimate Lycee corner. Webber was badly held up but the two drivers were in each others way as well and were also about to begin a hot lap. It was unfortunate incident which didn't damage Webber's chances and was unavoidable for the others involved. Curiously, in the pictures, Nakajima was the driver in the way on the racing line and yet Kovalainen later that day was the man slapped with a 5 place grid penalty for the incident.
Second qualifying saw the demise of Nick Heidfeld. The German was unable to find any pace whatsoever and went out of the session. Massa, as he had done before in qualifying 1 topped the times.
However, it was all change in the third session and Ferrari and Raikkonen in particular stamped their authority on the rest with blistering pace and a front row lock out for the Scuderia. Hamilton could manage only third and worse, Kovalainen 6th. Kubica struggled to 7th. It was a good day for both Toyota drivers and both Red Bull drivers, all were in the top 10. Raikkonen had sealed the 200th team Pole Position.
Race
When the lights went out the Ferrari's both left the grid in formation, Raikkonen leading away with Massa close behind. Coulthard and Mark Webber in the Red Bulls had an atrocious start and were quickly swallowed by the pack behind, which included the two Mclarens.
Lewis Hamilton had promised a charge through the field and that is what he set about delivering. He passed a few drivers at the start and then in the run up to the chicane before 180, Hamilton lunged past the Toro Rosso of Sebastian Vettel. After passing the young German, Hamilton got some oversteer and slithered onto the infield of the chicane momentarily. No advantage was gained but later, Mclaren would be slapped with their third penalty of the weekend in the form of a drive through penalty for Lewis.
Elsewhere Jenson Button had made contact with the other Toro Rosso of home boy Sebastian Bourdais and had damaged both cars. Button was forced to retire a lap later, Bourdais survived and finished the race but shed his rear wing end fence in the second fast chicane.
For Formula One's lower down teams it was a quiet and uneventful afternoon. But in the lower points positions things were hectic and hard fought. The battle involved both of the Renaults, the two Mclarens, the two Red Bulls and the two Toyotas with Robert Kubica featuring as well.
The rain that was threatening never did arrive in earnest and a few harmless spots were all that were seen. Kovalainen ended up in a hard fought battle with Toyota's Jarno Trulli with a bitter duel ending in a forcing off the circuit of Kovalainen by the very determined Italian driver. Kovalainen recovered to finish 4th.
Further back in the very closing stages Fernando Alonso slithered a bit too quickly into the Adelaide hairpin and his young and under pressure team mate Piquet managed to pass him, hanging on to finish 7th and kickstart his Formula One points account. Robert Kubica managed 5th position and Mark Webber finished 6th again scoring for Red Bull.
At the front things did not go smoothly for Kimi Raikkonen. He possessed a commanding lead but around lap 39 the Finns Ferrari had an exhaust problem with one of the outlets breaking off and the body work and airbox burning up. The exhaust section in question had broken off and was flapping around dangerously. Massa assumed the lead as Raikkonen had to back off and nurse the Ferrari home for the points.
Massa was gifted this win since he had not been able to live with his team mate all race until problems struck Kimi Raikkonen. What was perhaps curious was that the broken exhaust presented a danger to those following Raikkonen. Around the lap 50 mark the broken section swung off violently in the first turn. Why was Raikkonen not flagged to come in and have the section removed?
Controversy has surrounded the proceedings once again at the French Grand Prix as it did two weeks ago. It would appear clear at this stage that Mclaren are being perhaps victimised now by the FIA and being made an example of. Mclaren and Hamilton in particular are keeping quiet about their feelings on the matter, simply saying they disagree with the Hamilton drive through penalty. This issue and of course the Championship are sure to become more heated in Silverstone.
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3 months ago
Another bad weekend for McLaren and yet another contraversial reason why ... Yet again the FIA have waded in with their hefty clumsy feet and spoilt everything ! These guys really need to start to get some clarity on their decisions and not only that but faster than what they have been ... They are as of late taking their sweet ass time on making these decisions ! Idiots ! Another bitter weekend for McLaren and another bitter weekend for Mr Auty.
from 3 months ago
Yeah feeling the pain with you. The FIA are really beating on Mclaren and I don't really know why. As a Mclaren fan I'm bound to say that all of these penalities were unfair, but they really were. If the situation was reversed and it was happening to Ferrari, (well not Ferrari, lets say someone else) I would think the same. Do they think people can't see what is going on? Martin Brundle even alluded to people noticing while being rather careful with his words in the commentary. Roll on silverstone!!!
from 3 months ago
Yeah I noticed that ... Twice there was a comment made with regards to the treatment that McLaren are currently receiving ... Once from Martin Brundle and one from Ted Kravitz ... They both tip-toed about the subject as if they wanted to make a point about it but at the same time they were minding their P's and Q's not wanting to seem biased towards McLared even though it is glaringly obvious that there is some kind of vendetta against them right now.
I agree with you completely when you say if it happened to anyone else then you would feel the same ... Yes I would ... Definately ... While I wouldnt be as passionate I certainly would disagree with it and lets face it ... Ferrari wont ever get a penalty like this ... EVER ... Not the great Ferrari ... Oh no they must not be impeded on their route to glory ! B*llocks !
from 3 months ago
righto. the rules state that you can receive a drive-through, 10 second stop and go or a ten place grid drop if u cut a corner and pass a car while doing so. NOT if you run wide and accidently cut a corner after completitng the move. disgraceful.
another note. the rules state that the black flag with an orange circle must be shown if a piece of the car is damaged and could cause significant damage to another car if it disembarks form the car. when the flag is shown, the car is hauled into the pits and the team must make neccessary repairs to the car.
raikkonens broken exhaust comes under this rule, but of course, the fia said nothing. disgraceful.
i can see why all the other teams want a breakaway series, and ferari don't.
from 3 months ago
EXACTLY ... Its shocking ... Did you see the velocity that the exhaust left his car ... If that was in a different place that potentially could have killed someone ... But thats the way the FIA are ... Butter Ferrari up and let them get away with things like that ... Its really glaringly obvious now aswell ... It really is shocking !
3 months ago
One of the things about sport is that it is a human endeavor. To err is human, and therefore sometimes officials do make mistakes. The absolute rule of sportsmanship is that however unfair things may seem, you always accept the decision.
Hamilton's penalty was probably a bit unjust, but then again, he was in a position that allowed it to happen. If he'd stayed on the track, if he hadn't been (as you say) "charging through the field", he would not have been there and the penalty would not have been awarded.
Part of what the stewards do is not only to enforce the rules, but also to try and maintain a suitable level of safety. Hamilton was not driving a "safe" race, he was doing everything to win. And that could have made things very hairy. I see it as a wake up call to him.
Oversteer happens when you have a car problem or a driver problem. It doesn't happen because of some random circumstance. You also have to factor in that the stewards are looking at this in real time and making decisions in that time, they do not have the luxury of slow motion replays etc. They see a wonky car go off the track, and they know what can happen, so they play it safe.
I don't believe it was "victimization", but we'll have to wait and see. Like all conspiracy theories, there is at least some evidence to suggest that there is more to it than meets the eye, but if we apply Occam's Razor then the most likely explanation is that this is a combination of human error and safety consciousness, and the same thing would have happened to any other driver (as proved, actually, since Bourdais had a similar unfair penalty that favored Raikkonen).
from 3 months ago
Perhaps its true that Mclaren were in positions where the penalties could be awarded and if Hamilton was not in the wrong place, he could not be penalised. But this is a round of the Championship and he had to try and limit the damage to his points tally. The rules state that a driver would be penalised if he gains a position from going off circuit or saves himself from losing one. Lewis had completed the move on Vettel. And we have seen, nobody can deny that Ferrari have recieved very favourable treatment from the FIA for some years now. We need someone to play devils advocate however and point out we may just be raging Mclaren fanboys!
3 months ago
The officials got this decision really badly wrong. Not because I'm a McClaren fan, but because I'm fan of motor racing. The only person in that field today who had a chance of getting to the front of the grid and mixing it up with the Ferrariboys was Hamilton,and the stewards ensured that this didn't happen. Whatever effect this may have on the championship is irrelivent really, the important thing is that it had a masive impact on my, and everyone elses, chance to watch some of the best drivers in the fastest cars in the world go wheel to wheel. And lets face it, that's why we all watch the sport.
If the steward continue to penalise drivers where there is no real need too then the sport will loose it's fan base. Hamilton passing Vettel was as certain as the rain in Manchester, it might not have been the best, but a drive through penalty served only as a disapponted to racing fans everywhere.
McClaren do seam to be punished unfairly over racing incidents. Why was Raikkonen not penalised for his error in Monte Carlo, that was a far bigger mistake than Hamiltons in Canada. Also, why was Raikonen not dragged into the pits to have a dangerous exhaust removed from his car. As we saw, it came off and had it become detached at a different point on the circuit there could have been some very serious consequences for another driver, a member of the teams on the pit wall or one of our fellow fans in the crowd!
I believe that this was victimisation, but not against the McClaren team but against us!
from 3 months ago
It would appear that we "conspiracy theory" gluttons are in the majority. Except obviously its clearly no conspiracy. I agree with your points about the Ferrari penalties not being applied. It is beginning to ruin our beloved sport and lets face it its becoming fragile as it is, come on FIA, dont throw stones in your own glass house?
from 3 months ago
Couldnt agree with you more ...
3 months ago
On the plus side it's good to have BMW and Toyota starting to get more involved towards the front! Yes it's partly down to McClaren not being at the front, but they are putting in some good performances. If they can keep it up then the FIA will have to try to penalise more than just McClaren to protect their membership of the Tiffosi!
from 3 months ago
hehe Yeah this is the silver lining of the cloud isnt it? We get to see some nice racing from other cars and drivers we don't normally see up there mixing it up with the rest.
3 months ago
5 Star Read.
from 3 months ago
Thanks glad you enjoyed it!
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