Goodbye Europe: A Beating in Your Own Backyard

Billy SextonSep 10, 2008

Well well well.

Last weekend at Spa Francorchamps, 42 of the 44 laps were pretty monotonous. The only interest was in the battle for the last four points between BMW Sauber and Toro Rosso.

But then the heavens opened.

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Kimi Raikkonen was leading. As soon as he saw the first spots of rain fall onto his helmet visor, his heart sank. The current rain master was in P2, and had caught the Iceman by 1.3 seconds in a single sector.

Lewis Hamilton made his move going into the Bus Stop chicane and was wheel to wheel with Kimi Raikkonen, who forced him off circuit. Therefore, Hamilton had to cut the chicane to prevent any sort of accident or collision.

The McLaren driver had come out in P1 illegally. Realising he had broken the rules, Hamilton gave P1 back to Kimi Raikkonen on the start finish straight and was four mph slower going into the final laps.

Car 22 then made a second move going into La Source, this time climbing up to P1 legally. Later on in the lap Lewis had to take a trip across the wet grass to avoid a Williams back marker. Raikkonen regained the lead only for a small amount of time as he spun less than five seconds after.

Hamilton then had the lead while Raikkonen struggled and crashed his F2008 into the wall. Hamilton went onto win.

Two hours later, after a stewards investigation took place, Lewis was given a 25 second penalty for cutting the chicane, demoting him to third and handing Felipe Massa the win.

We all know what happened then; articles flooded the F1 Bleacher Report community, almost everyone was up in arms. Every single newspaper on Monday morning had Hamilton on the back page (I should know, I deliver them ha ha). Niki Lauda has voiced his opinion, as has Felipe Massa. McLaren have lodged their appeal. We all await the verdict...

Until then, we have the Italian Grand Prix to look forward to.

Held at the historic track of Monza, the round in Italy is always looked forward to. Tifosi flood the grandstands, whilst the Woking Boys oppose the men in red.

We head into Round 14 with McLaren and Ferrari neck and neck. I seriously mean that, I have struggled with my predictions for this race, I don't think there is anything whatsoever to choose between them.

Apart from the drivers of course.

Lewis Hamilton. Winner of the last race. On a high? Or low? You decide. Either way, he'll be hunting for the win this weekend. McLaren are always strong at Monza and he looks like he wants revenge. His lack of interviews suggests this.

Felipe Massa. The lucky guy. After looking favourite to win at Spa, the race didn't go well for Massa. Passed by his team mate on the first lap and then struggling to stay in touch may suggest the pressure is getting to the little Brazilian. He'll be hoping to please the Ferrari fans this weekend.

As will Kimi Raikkonen. Many say the "Iceman is melting." I disagree. Until it started raining in Spa, Raikkonen was on for the win, no doubt about it. He controlled the race after going into the lead and was going to take his fourth successive win at Spa. Although the championship looks bad for Raikkonen, remember that he came from a long way back last season. The Iceman is still very much frozen.

His fellow Finn Heikki Kovalainen will be hoping to bounce back from a dismal race last time round. He got a bad get away in Spa and a drive through didn't help his race situation. The fact that he and his team mate have never been on the podium together this season will hopefully make him more determined than ever.

So lets take a look at the track info: