With McLaren closing the gap on Ferrari, it was no surprise to see Lewis Hamilton take pole position today.
Even though we do not know what the fuel strategies are, the McLarens have looked like their package is getting better, as both drivers have had pole position success this year. McLaren have two drivers who can perform at a level Ferrari have maintained for years.
I know that last year Alonso was doing well with the team, but this was overshadowed by the thoughts of the two drivers and what was supposedly reported in the press.
Alonso showed that he was again able to get the best out of his car taking fifth, whilst his teammate failed to make it through the first round of qualification. This was just behind the flying Jarno Trulli and shows that the Spaniard has not lost any of the hunger to perform as he did when he took two world championships.
Kimi Raikkonen seemed to be struggling with both under steer and over steer and was not getting the best out of the Ferrari, unlike Felipe Massa, who looked like he had his car set up nicely. I was not sure if Kimi was driving a Ferrari or a Fiat Panda!
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This was similar to Felipe at Silverstone, and I cannot see this continuing throughout the season. Ferrari will sort out their set up's and get the correct downloads into their car in the near future.
I have been proven wrong. I keep thinking Kimi is losing it; then he will have a bad race but still get points, something Lewis has to learn to do. Every race weekend, I wonder which Ferrari will turn up and be the fastest.
Heikki looked like he was very strong. Although he made a mistake on his first flying lap, he was able to pull it together and get third. He is starting to develop his knowledge of the McLaren car and team.
Both of the McLarens have been strong in the dry during qualifying, and the Ferrari looked fast in the rain on Friday. Maybe they will be able to compete if there is some rain in the race tomorrow.
Kubica wasn't driving strongly and took seventh on the grid. His teammate was not able to get into the top 10 shootout, a trend that is starting to become more apparent throughout this season. Will Heidfeld be able to make some of this back in the race?
The Honda drivers looked to be struggling again, but maybe if it rains they will come into their element as we saw at Silverstone. The Red Bulls and the Toro Rosso of Vettel looked very strong, all them able to get into the top 10 shootout.
The qualifying did not throw up any surprises for me. I thought Lewis was strong enough to take pole, and Ii really think that Ferrari are going to start looking at supporting Massa more than Kimi, because he is showing that he is the better driver this year.
Now that I have mentioned that, Kimi will probably storm through and win by a country mile!
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about 1 month ago
McLaren have been the bee's knees all weekend ... Fastest in Practice 1, fastest in Practice 2, fastest in all 3 Qualifying sessions ... Fingers crossed, fastest tomorrow, the boys are back in town baby ! COME ON !
about 1 month ago
I didn't liked what i saw today and what i have been listening since i woke up. I expected to see McLewis-Mercedes on pole, and Räikkönen was struggling a lot. So, the race is tomorrow, and now we just have to wait and see what will happen.
about 1 month ago
Thanks for the comments guys, i was happy with what i saw as the Mclaren boys did so well, bit used to one of the Ferrari's struggling throughout the race weekend, its good for Lewis but not for the Ferrai fans. Come on Lewis, come on Heiki!!!!
from about 1 month ago
you mean McLewis team? tarää, i think you missed on letter in Kovalainen first name. I think his name is Heikki.
There is no chance to see Heikki win tomorrow's race, not if it's Hamilton in front of him.
about 1 month ago
You are correct i missed a K out of his name, i do apologise. It is getting to the point where the teams have to decide who is going to be going for the title, as Ferrari will have to do. They were allowed to race at Silvestone, or so we were to believe, the move Lewis put on Heikki did look a bit sus, a bit too easy.
about 1 month ago
Good article on the qualifying session: informative and thoughtful.
I sure hope Kimi will win by the mile, but if it turns out to be Lewis i'll not be sad, I have a tough time choosing between the two (and that with my son being a die-hard Massa fan, means we often celebrate the winner at our home, ha ha)
from about 1 month ago
Thanks for the comment, I am a Lewis Hamilton fan, but i also like Kimi since his Mclaren days, i always thought he had a great driving style, and is always composed, look at the Canada incident, Kimi was calm when Lewis ruined his race. I like Kimi and Lewis and Massa also, i have all the bases covered, oh and Jenson, god it is hard!
about 1 month ago
Well, let's say that when its hard to choose, you all the more enjoy the races because you hardly ever lose, ha ha
about 1 month ago
Your right there, you can never lose with some many favourite drivers. Lewis and Jenson are my top drivers being British.
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