Formula One 2010

[Rasputin]

Alonso wins chaotic, rain-swept F1 race

NUERBURG, Germany - Two-time defending Formula One champion Fernando Alonso passed Felipe Massa of Ferrari on a slippery track late in the race Sunday to win the European Grand Prix.

The McLaren driver closed to within two points in the standings of leader Lewis Hamilton. The rookie was ninth, finishing out of the top three for the first time in 10 races this season.

Massa was eight seconds behind in second place, and Mark Webber was third for Red Bull to equal his career best.

[Rasputin]

Bahrain to begin 2008 F1 season

The 2008 Formula One season will start with the Bahrain Grand Prix, rather than the traditional opening race in Australia, it has been announced.
The Australian Grand Prix Corporation (AGPC) said the Melbourne race would also start 90 minutes later than usual to cater for European TV viewers.

"This is the best option for our event and the people who support it," said AGPC chairman Ron Walker.

The changes are subject to approval by motorsport's governing body the FIA.

Walker also confirmed that having had initial discussions on the subject with F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone, they would not be pursuing the idea of staging a night race.

"Our investigations have convinced us that as things currently stand, the disadvantages outweigh the advantages," he said.

"Instead, we have decided to run the F1 race later on Sunday, moving the start time from 1400 local time to 1530.

"We need to ensure all of our partners are comfortable with this and we're working through that process now."

The new time slow means the race will start at 4.30am in the UK rather than the usual 3am.

[Rasputin]

McLaren cleared over F1 spy case

McLaren were cleared overnight by Formula One's governing body the FIA of any wrongdoing in the espionage affair that has engulfed the sport this season.

An extraordinary hearing of the 25-strong World Motor Sports Council (WMSC), the sport's highest body, ruled that there was no evidence the British team had benefited from the confidential Ferrari documents that were found in the possession of their chief designer.

A relieved McLaren team boss Ron Dennis said on leaving the hearing at the FIA headquarters at Place de la Concorde: "The punishment fits the crime."

If guilty McLaren, whose driver Lewis Hamilton leads the drivers' championship from team-mate Fernando Alonso, had faced having points deducted.

In clearing McLaren the FIA added a warning that if in the future McLaren were found to have used the information passed to Mike Coughlan, their suspended designer, by a disaffected Ferrari employee then they risked being kicked out of the 2007 and 2008 season.

An FIA statement said: "The WMSC was satisfied that McLaren was in possession of confidential Ferrari information and is therefore in breach of Article 151c of the International Sporting Code.

"However there is insufficient evidence that this information was used in such a way to interfere improperly with the FIA F1 championship.

"We therefore impose no penalty."

The statement added: "But if it's found in the future that the Ferrari information has been used to the detriment of the championship we reserve the right to invite McLaren back in front of the WMSC where it will face the possibility of exclusion from the 2007 champion but also the 2008 championship."

The FIA said it would be summoning the two men at the centre of the affair, Ferrari's Nigel Stepney and Coughlan, to their Paris HQ "to show reason why they should not be banned from international motorsport for a lengthy period".

The affair erupted after Coughlan was caught in possession of a 780-page Ferrari technical dossier following a search of his home by High Court-appointed officials.

Dennis had always strenuously denied that anyone at McLaren other than Coughlan had set eyes on the dossier.

Hamilton heads the drivers' standings on 70 points, two clear of world champion Alonso, with Ferrari duo Felipe Massa and Kimi Raikkonen in third and fourth with 59 and 52.

McLaren also top the constructor standings, with 138 points, 27 clear of Ferrari.

[Rasputin]

THE F1 'SPY' ROW TIMELINE

Formula One's governing body, the FIA, have sent the spying case involving McLaren and Ferrari to the Court of Appeal.

Here, PA Sport looks at how developments unfolded these past few weeks.

June 21: Ferrari announce the launch of a criminal investigation against their head of performance development Nigel Stepney. No details are given as to the reason behind the investigation.

June 24: Stepney claims he is at the centre of "a dirty tricks campaign" after reports claiming he tampered with Ferrari cars in the lead-up to the Monaco Grand Prix in May appear in the Italian media, and expresses his confidence he will "be cleared by the legal process".

June 25: Ferrari boss Jean Todt maintains his team "has discovered something unlawful."

July 3: Following an internal disciplinary investigation, Stepney is dismissed by Ferrari. McLaren suspend a senior technical member of staff after discovering that person had become the subject of a Ferrari investigation regarding the receipt of "a package of technical information from a Ferrari employee at the end of April." Ferrari later allege a link between Stepney and McLaren chief designer Mike Coughlan, presenting a case to the Modena tribunal "concerning the theft of technical information". Ferrari also confirm a warrant was obtained for the search of the McLaren engineer's home.

July 4: World motorsport's governing body, the FIA, launch their own investigation into the matter. McLaren claim they have completed their own thorough investigation and found that "no Ferrari intellectual property has been passed to any other members of the team or incorporated into its cars."

July 8: Stepney categorically denies copying or passing on any technical documents to Coughlan, insisting "they came from another source". He also claims to have fled Italy after being involved in "high-speed car chases", while adding his fiancee was being stalked and his car tracked.

July 10: Coughlan appears in the High Court in London for a preliminary hearing, with wife Trudy by his side. Both are accused by a lawyer representing Ferrari of "behaving disgracefully" with regard to the copying of 780 pages of technical information.

July 11: The hearing is called off after the Coughlans provide sworn affidavits relating to how they came into possession of the documents, and on the proviso the information is not released to the Italian authorities still conducting their own investigation for fear of self-incrimination.

July 12: The FIA summon McLaren to answer a charge of unauthorised possession of documents belonging to Ferrari at an extraordinary meeting of the World Motor Sport Council in Paris on July 26.

July 16: McLaren express their concern at apparent leaks from the affidavit in which other team members are implicated. McLaren insist no-one, other than the suspended employee, knew of the 'unsolicited material' prior to July 3.

July 20: McLaren submit a full account of their role in the saga to the FIA, to be used as the basis of their defence. Mercedes motorsport boss Norbert Haug claims he does not believe the team "are guilty in any way" of wrongdoing.

July 26: At a hearing of the World Motor Sports Council, McLaren escape punishment after the FIA decide there is insufficient evidence. However, the FIA announced if the information stolen from Ferrari is found to be used in the future, McLaren could face the ultimate penalty of exclusion from this year's championship, and also in 2008.

July 31: FIA president Max Mosley refers the case to the Court of Appeal.

[Rasputin]

Race stewards stripped Fernando Alonso of his Hungarian Grand Prix pole position on Sunday and barred his championship-leading McLaren team from scoring constructors' points in Monday's race.

McLaren, 27 points clear of Ferrari in a title contest overshadowed by a spy controversy linking the two increasingly bitter rivals, said they would appeal against their penalty.

Alonso was given a five-place demotion for unnecessarily impeding his team mate and championship leader Lewis Hamilton in the pitlane in the final seconds of qualifying.

The decision left 22-year-old British rookie Hamilton, who leads Alonso by two points with seven races left, in top slot with BMW Sauber's German Nick Heidfeld also on the front row.

Hamilton had led the session until Alonso pipped him by 0.107 seconds with his final lap right at the finish after blocking him in the pitlane.

The Briton had to sit in his car behind Alonso with the seconds ticking away and the Spaniard, who would regain the championship lead if he won on Sunday, failing to move off.

The extra 10 second wait left Hamilton unable to get round the circuit in time to start a final flying lap before the chequered flag.

The stewards blamed the team and Alonso.

Prejudicial actions

"The actions of the team in the final minutes of qualifying are considered prejudicial to the interests of the competition and to the interests of motor sport generally," the stewards said in a statement.

"The penalty to be applied is that such points (if any) in the 2007 Formula One constructors championship as accrue to the team as a result of their participation in the 2007 Hungarian Grand Prix will be withdrawn."

Dennis had said Hamilton was to blame for failing to obey repeated team instructions to let Alonso go past earlier in the session at a stage when drivers were burning off excess fuel.

"They were out of sequence because Lewis should have slowed and let Fernando past and he didn't. He charged off," said Dennis.

Alonso, facing pointed questions about the incident at a stormy team news conference, said he had been told by the team to wait for a gap in traffic and saw nothing unusual in doing so while his engineer counted down the seconds.

"Every qualifying we stop and we wait," he said. "Sometimes 10 seconds, sometimes five, sometimes 45 as with the first stop today."

Hamilton, whose relationship with Alonso has been distinctly edgy since he started beating the 26-year-old champion, disagreed openly with the Spaniard.

Asked how much more time he would have needed to cross the start/finish line before the end of the session, Hamilton said: "About the same amount of time I was held up in the pitstop.

"I really don't understand why I was held back. So I guess you should ask the team and I definitely will do when I go back and have a debrief," said the Briton.

He and Dennis also exchanged angry words on the radio at the end of qualifying.

"I was quite firm on the radio and he was reasonably firm back," said Dennis of their conversation.

Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen, a winner in 2005 with McLaren, moved up to third place on the grid with Germany's Nico Rosberg in fourth place for Williams.

Ferrari's Brazilian Felipe Massa, third in the championship and 11 points adrift of Hamilton, will start 14th after a pitlane misunderstanding left him without fuel.

Briton Jenson Button, who took an emotional first grand prix win from 14th place in a wet race in Hungary last year, qualified his Honda in a disappointing 17th position.

[Rasputin]

F1: Tensions remain high at McLaren

McLaren had a weekend full of contradictions at the Hungarian Grand Prix.

Lewis Hamilton won Sunday's race ahead of Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen, but only after the governing body of world motor sports punished his team by -- ironically -- putting Hamilton in pole position.

"It was a very emotional race and an eventful weekend," Hamilton said. "I just tried to keep a smile on my face and try to remain positive for everyone."

"Without the penalty ... victory would have been possible today as you can see on my lap times when I had a clear track," Alonso said. "The fight for the championship is still open."

The British team admitted on Sunday that "tensions were undeniably high" during the qualifying session but said it did not believe the sanctions were "appropriate."

McLaren said it intended to appeal against a points ban it was handed by the FIA, and has 48 hours after the race to present its case to the FIA's court of appeal. It cannot appeal Alonso's relegation.

With six races remaining, McLaren will have its hands full managing the two best drivers so far of this season.

"The process of managing two such exceptional talents as Fernando and Lewis is made more challenging by having a race-winning car," the team said.

The strains in that task have become clear.

Asked after the race about his relationship with Alonso, Hamilton said he continued to have respect for the Spaniard.

"He doesn't seem to have been speaking to me since yesterday, so I don't know if he has a problem," Hamilton said, adding he felt a "big cloud" over him during the race.

"It was difficult to stay focused because you had the feeling in the team that [McLaren] won't get any points and you didn't know whether the team hated you, [or] they just hated the situation," he said.

McLaren boss Ron Dennis acknowledged the difficult situation.

"It was a weekend full of stress and emotion. The issues that faced us ... tested the resolve of the whole team," Dennis said. "Both drivers did great jobs in difficult circumstances."

[Rasputin]

McLaren Boss to Sell Out ?

According to F1GrandPrix.it, Ron Dennis could sell McLaren before the end of the season. The rumour has been going on for several months, but the current difficult moment for the Woking team could persuade Dennis to take this step.

The espionage scandal, then the burst of the Alonso-Hamilton struggle: Ron Dennis appeared visibly stressed at the end of the Hungarian GP. This is not the first time the English manager is managing difficult situations inside his team, but lots of insiders think this is the worst period in McLaren history.
While he was able to manage the Senna-Prost saga, Dennis doesn't seem to succeed in controlling his driver line-up anymore. Himself ammetted the quarrell between Alonso and Hamilton is worse than the ones he experienced in the late 80s.

At sixty, Dennis could have reached the time to retire. Mercedes, after increasing his shares in the team during the last seasons, is keen on buying 100% of the historic English team.

Also, the worsened relationships with the Prodrive team seem to exclude Dennis from taking a role into the second Mercedes team after leaving McLaren. After 27 years in the stressful Formula One world, this could be the time for Ron Dennis to quit the business.

[Rasputin]

F1 Teams to court Fernando Alonso

McLaren team principal Ron Dennis can expect a knock on the door this morning from rival team bosses bearing bounty. At the head of the queue will be Flavio Briatore, desperate to repatriate Fernando Alonso at Renault.


Breakdown: Ron Dennis reacts to McLaren's qualifying debacle
Saturday's qualifying debacle here was all the incentive required by Formula One's ever-ready vultures sensing a fatal breakdown in relations between Alonso and his employers.

Events in Budapest exacerbated an already fraught set of circumstances at a team struggling to keep two championship balls in the air. Renault would take back Alonso at the drop of a crash helmet, and have suspended negotiations with Giancarlo Fisichella to facilitate that very outcome. BMW have yet to pen a deal with Nick Heidfeld and would not baulk at the cost of signing the world champion.

Even before Alonso plunged into his own Rascasse moment, emulating the desperate play made by Michael Schumacher during qualifying for the 2006 Monaco Grand Prix, relations between Alonso and the McLaren hierarchy were frazzled. The irony in Budapest was that he actually had his bosses on his side when he took the law into own hands to rain retribution on his non-compliant team-mate, Lewis Hamilton.

In a righteous statement, McLaren yesterday rejected the stewards' decision to knock Alonso five places on the grid for his part in the collusion that saw Hamilton's final qualifying lap impeded. The lady doth protest too much, me thinks.
Despite digging around in the evidence for more than eight hours, the race stewards could find none to support McLaren's version of events. Alonso, with or without the blessing of the team, blocked Hamilton's path to pole just as assuredly as Schumacher did his by parking his Ferrari at Rascasse.

Dennis' account stretched the imagination as well as the patience of the stewards.

Two things appeared certain to the officials: what happened in the pit lane when Alonso sat idle after the lollipop went skywards with Hamilton stuck behind had little to do with plotting a route through traffic or determining the legitimacy of the tyres.

Hamilton was probably misguided in refusing to let Alonso through in qualifying as agreed, but botching his final run was no way to deal with it. So how did matters come to such a pretty pass?

Kevin Garside: Lewis Hamilton shows steel to win in Hungary
The antecedents are rooted in the difficulty of managing the structural contradiction inherent in F 1, which asks championship contenders to be rivals as well as team-mates. With only two points separating Hamilton and Alonso, they can't be both.

Alonso, as double world champion, believes that the weight of McLaren's effort should be behind him. McLaren did not expect to have a decision to make in that regard. They did not anticipate the heavyweight punch that Hamilton packs. His emergence as a genuine title contender has forced upon Dennis a need to manage a near-impossible situation. Along the way McLaren have, in the eyes of Alonso, failed him.

Dennis' heavy-handed treatment of Hamilton, who refused numerous requests to allow Alonso to resume track position during the final qualifying session, was probably as much to do with currying favour with a disgruntled champion as slapping down the precocious upstart. It was policy made on the hoof and fatally flawed.

In the heated exchange between Hamilton and Dennis after qualifying, Dennis appeared to have achieved a rare double - alienating both his drivers.

Dennis stubbornly hangs on to the notion that in F 1 it is possible to plot a course that pleases both contenders. "There is no real innocent party in every aspect of the team. We will consider carefully after the weekend our way forward. It is extremely challenging to give both drivers equality. But that is our commitment. If the price of equality is a few bumps or even pot holes along the way, we will take that." The price might be greater than that. In the mind of Alonso, a decision might already have been made. F 1 repairs to the beaches for the next fortnight. Like Prime Minister Gordon Brown, Dennis might find his holiday interrupted. In his case to deal with an outbreak of foot in mouth.

[Rasputin]

Fernando Alonso in Turkey denied that he is contemplating retirement or a 'sabbatical' at the end of the 2007 season.

Amid the reigning world champion's obvious discontent at McLaren this year, it has been suggested that he would be happier to actually sit out 2008 rather than spend another season alongside boss Ron Dennis and British teammate Lewis Hamilton.







But the Spaniard told the newspaper 'Diario As' in Istanbul: "I am certain that I am going to be competing in formula one also next year.

"Right now I am not even contemplating sitting out a season."

26-year-old Alonso would tellingly not, however, confirm that he will still be a McLaren driver next year.

"At the moment all I am thinking about is winning this world championship," he said.

"I do not know where I will race in 2008; all I know is that I can race here at McLaren."

[Rasputin]

McLaren hit back in F1 'spygate' row

McLaren team boss Ron Dennis has hit back at Italian prosecutors' decision to serve the team legal writs at the paddock prior to qualifying for Sunday's Formula One Grand Prix in Monza.

Spain's double world champion Fernando Alonso secured pole position for McLaren ahead of championship-leading teammate Lewis Hamilton on Saturday, but their joy was tempered by the earlier arrival of police.

McLaren are facing allegations of illegally obtaining technical information on rivals Ferrari, and the affair which has been dubbed 'spygate' looks far from over.

But ahead of a potentially crucial meeting by the sport's world ruling body the FIA this week, team boss Dennis hit out at prosecutors whom he says had tried to shake up his team ahead of qualifying for Sunday's race.

"McLaren was not charged with anything," said the team in a statement on Sunday.

"We strongly suspect that the nature and the timing of this wholly unnecessary contact, just before the start of qualifying, was to disrupt our preparation for this important session and Thursday's world motor sport council hearing.

"McLaren is completely confident that were any proceedings of this type ever to be brought we would be completely exonerated."

The team issued its statement in reaction to widespread and inaccurate reporting of Saturday's events when the team were merely advised that Italian magistrates were including them within their range of inquiries into the so-called industrial espionage story following the leaking of a 780-pages Ferrari technical dossier to McLaren earlier this year.

A spokesman for the team said: "The team was informed on Saturday evening by Modena magistrates that they are involved in an ongoing investigation."

It was confirmed that the named individuals under investigation included McLaren team chief Dennis, former Ferrari engineer Nigel Stepney, suspended McLaren chief designer Mike Coughlan, McLaren chief executive Martin Whitmarsh and senior McLaren employees Paddy Lowe, Jonathan Neale and Rob Taylor.

It was reported, but not confirmed, that all of them might in due course be served an "avviso di garanzia" by the prosecutor in Modena, a legal notification that the person is suspected of a crime and is being investigated. This does not mean necessarily that it will lead to a charge.

A similar investigation involving the Simtek and Williams Formula One teams followed the deaths of Austrian Roland Ratzenberger and Brazilian Ayrton Senna at the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix at Imola.

The investigation, and the 'spy story', centres on allegations that Coughlan received the dossier of technical information, which was found in his home in England following a search, from Stepney.

Coughlan has been suspended and Stepney dismissed. Stepney has denied the accusations against him.

[Rasputin]

مکلارن قلب ایتالیایی ها را شکست

سیزدهمین مرحله از مسابقات گراندپری فرمول یک در قلب خانه طرفداران فراری، مونزا برگزار شد و اینبار برخلاف سالهای گذشته این خوش شانسی عدد 13 بود که باعث شد فرناندو آلونسو راننده اسپانیایی تیم مکلارن که تا کنون در این پیست مقامی کسب نکرده بود به پیروزی برسد.


مجموع امتيازات رانندگان (مونزا)

۱- فرناندو آلونسو(مکلارن بنز)----۱۰ امتياز
۲- لوئیز همیلتون(مکلارن بنز)----۸ امتياز
۳- کیمی رایکونن(فراری)-------- ۶ امتياز
۴- نیک هایدفلد(بی.ام.و)--------- ۵ امتياز
۵- رابرت کیوبیتزا(بی ام و)-------۴ امتياز
۶- نیکو رازبرگ (ویلیامز)--------۳ امتياز
۷- هیکی کوالاینن(رنو)-----------۲ امتياز
۸- جنسون باتون(هوندا)-----------۱ امتياز

لوئیز همیلتون راننده بریتانیایی تازه وارد تیم مکلارن پس از جدال با رقبای خود فلیپه مسا از برزیل و کیمی رایکونن از فنلاند رانندگان تیم فراری، در طول مسابقه بر رایکونن غلبه و در مقام دوم از خط پایان گذشت.

مونزا قلب خانه فراری که تا کنون شاهد پیروزی های زیادی از سوی رانندگان مختلف این تیم در این پیست بود این بار نه تنها به پیروزی نرسید بلکه نفرات اول و دوم آن هم از تیم مخالف، طرفداران پروپا قرص فراری بودند.

در همان مراحل اولیه مسا سعی کرد تا از همیلتون سبقت بگیرد ولی همیلتون در را به روی او بست، و با این که دو اتومبیل به همدیگر اصابت کردند تنها همیلتون کمی کنترل اتومبیلش را ازدست داد.

دیوید کولتهارد راننده بریتانیایی تیم ردبول در حالی که با سرعت بیش از 200 کیلومتر در ساعت رانندگی می کرد بال جلوی اتومبیلش شکست و او را به شدت به دیواره پیست زد.


اتومبیل ایمنی از جایگاه خارج شد و تا پنج دور مسابقه پشت اتومبیل ایمنی در جریان بود.

پس از اینکه مسا با وجود مشکل فنی از ادامه مسابقه باز ماند فراری سعی کرد تا با داشتن تنها راننده باقیمانده رایکونن و استفاده از یک استراتژی قوی او را دیرتر برای سوختگیری مجدد و تعویض تایرها به جایگاه بیاورد تا از دو راننده مکلارن جلو بیافتد.




استراتژی آنها عملی بود و او از همیلتون جلو افتاد اما همیلتون با یک اقدام شجاعانه در یکی از پیچهای خطرناک این مسابقه از رایکونن سبقت گرفت و در نهایت رایکونن به مقام سومی رضایت داد.

تیم مکلارن که در طی هفته های اخیر بخاطر در اختیار داشتن غیرقانونی اطلاعات مربوط به اتومبیل های فراری، مورد تهدید اقدامات نهادهای بین المللی ناظر بر اتومبیلرانی بوده، این هفته پنج شنبه باید در دادگاه قانونی فدراسیون جهانی اتومبیلارنی از حق خود دفاع کند. اگر متهم شناخته شوند امکان از دست دادن امتیازات قهرمانی، جریمه سنگین نقدی و صلب امتیاز از رانندگان نیز را دارد.

اما آنها در طی مسابقه تمام این مشکلات احتمالی آینده را کنار گذاشته و برای رسیدن به پیروزی نهایت تلاش را کردند و ران دنیس رئیس این تیم از پیروزی تحت احساسات شدیدی قرار گرفته بود.

پیروزی در این پیست به لحاظ دارا بودن مسیرهای مستقیم و پیچهای تند و کوتاهی که دارد، آرزو و از افتخارات رانندگان رقابتهای فرمول یک است.

سال گذشته نیز این پیست به لحاط اتفاقات تاریخی در عرصه فرمول یک از جمله پیستهایی بود که سرنوشت خیلی از مسایل خارجی فرمول یک را روشن کرد و از جمله مهمترین آن اعلام بستن کارنامه 15 ساله مایکل شوماخر قهرمان هفت دوره رقابتهای فرمول یک و خداحافظی او با رقابت در عرصه اتومبیلرانی و قهرمانی لوئیز همیلتون در مسابقات GP2 و پیوستن او به تیم مکلارن بود که مورد توجه علاقمندان این ورزش شد.

[Rasputin]

Raikkonen wins but Hamilton retains title lead

Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton were left trailing as Kimi Raikkonen won the Belgian Grand Prix.

The McLaren team-mates started in third and fourth places respectively on the grid and battled with each other on the opening lap while Raikkonen and his fellow Ferrari driver Felipe Massa pulled clear.

Hamilton was edged wide by Alonso going into the La Source hairpin, but recovered and seemed to have the edge as they climbed the hill at Eau Rouge.

However, Alonso managed to defend his third place and held his advantage for the rest of the race.
But he could not catch Massa's Ferrari so he only claimed one point more than Hamilton, closing the gap at the top of the drivers championship to two points with three races to go.

Alonso said: "I was lucky to be on the inside and get the right line. I was quite confident because I knew my car had less fuel."

And McLaren team boss Ron Dennis was happy to see his drivers tussling. "They weren't too aggressive and they didn't touch each other," he said.

Raikkonen and Massa claimed the top two positions for the third time this season as they dominated and Raikkonen's fourth victory of the season means he is 13 points behind Hamilton in the championship.

Raikkonen said: "There weren't really any issues during the race. It was pretty difficult to pass people but it was the same for everybody."

Jenson Button suffered another disappointment as he was forced out by hydraulic failure with seven laps left. He has retired from five of the 12 races so far this season.

[Rasputin]

Alonso's F1 title hopes still alive

Fernando Alonso said he needed a miracle to keep his Formula One title hopes alive and the Spaniard got the break he needed Sunday to push the championship fight to the final race of the season.

Lewis Hamilton, who had dominated the opening stages of the Chinese Grand Prix in wet conditions, ran wide at the entrance of the pit lane on lap 31 and became stuck in the gravel trap, ending his chances of his clinching the title in Shanghai.

Afterwards, McLaren officials said it was their fault for keeping Hamilton out on the track too long on deteriorating tires.

"I think with hindsight we left him out a lap too long and I think his tires were pretty worn," team CEO Martin Whitmarsh told ITV. "The weather was pretty changeable at that time and we wanted to make sure that we weren't taking any risks and that we had to cover Kimi.

"For Lewis it was a very disappointing day, but for Fernando he is very much in the championship fight. It is going to be a very tense Brazil."





Hamilton's first DNF of the season gave new life to both Kimi Raikkonen and Alonso, who went on to finish one-two and create a three-way championship fight heading into the season ending race in Brazil in two weeks time.

"We were having a great race and we didn't know if it was going to rain or not," Hamilton told ITV. "The tires were getting worse and worse and you could almost see the canvas underneath. When I came into the pits it was like ice, I couldn't do anything about it.

"You cannot go through life without making mistakes. But I am over it and we look forward to Brazil."

Even Alonso admitted afterwards it might be too much to ask for a second miracle in Brazil.

"It will still be very difficult for the championship. I know that it will not be easy to take the four points off Lewis. I still need something really dramatic if I want to win. With a normal race it will be impossible."

For Raikkonen it was his 14th career win, moving him into second place among active drivers on the all-time list behind Alonso. It was also Ferrari's 200th career Grand Prix victory.

"(Alonso) was pushing hard," Raikkonen admitted. "He was catching me at first while I had some problems with the front tires but once they started to work I could keep the gap the same. We're back in the championship and it will be interesting in the last race."

Felipe Massa rounded out the podium in third, helping Ferrari score its 600th podium result in F1 competition.

Youngster Sebastien Vettel recorded his second point scoring result of the season, posting a career best fourth place result despite starting 17th because of a penalty.

It was a good day for the Toro Rosso squad as Vitantonio Liuzzi finished sixth - his best career result. That also moves the Red Bull sister squad ahead of rival Spyker, Honda and Super Aguri in the constructors standings and it means every team has scored at least one point this season.

Jenson Button finished sixth for the embattled Honda team - their best result of the season.

Nick Heidfeld in the BMW-Sauber was seventh while David Coulthard held off Heikki Kovalainen to finish eighth.

Coulthard's single point allowed Red Bull to move to within four points of Williams in the constructors chase. Both Alexander Wurz and Nico Rosberg finished out of the points for the Grove-based team. Wurz was 12th while Rosberg ended a dismal weekend in 16th.

[Rasputin]

قهرمانی فرمول یک به مسابقه آخر کشیده شد


با پیروزی در شانگهای شمار بردهای کیمی رایکونن در فصل جاری به پنج رسید (یک برد بیشتر از آلونسو و همیلتون)، اما او دو مسابقه را به دلیل نقص فنی به پایان نبرده است
کناره گیری لویس همیلتون از ادامه گراندپری چین باعث شد رقابت برای کسب عنوان قهرمان فصل به روز یکشنبه 21 اکتبر، و آخرین مسابقه فصل کشیده شود.
لویس همیلتون، راننده بریتانیایی تیم مکلارن-مرسدس که در اولین فصل حضور خود در فرمول یک، با 12 امتیاز اختلاف پیشتاز مسابقات فصل بود، در میانه مسابقه در اثر اشتباهی که تیم مکلارن به اندازه او در آن مقصر بود، موقعیت برای کسب افتخاری تاریخی را از دست داد و
مجبور به کناره گیری از مسابقه شد.

پس از آن کیمی رایکونن، رقیب فنلاندی او در تیم فراری، پیشتاز مسابقه شد و تا آخر پیشتازی را حفظ کرد تا با پیروزی در این مسابقه، اختلاف امتیاز با همیلتون را به 7 امتیاز کاهش دهد.

پس از او فرناندو آلونسو، راننده دیگر تیم مکلارن بود که (در مکان سوم) از خط پایان عبور کرد تا با 103 امتیاز در جدول رانندگان، در فاصله 4 امتیازی همیلتون قرار گیرد و برای کسب سومین عنوان قهرمانی، بخت داشته باشد.

این اولین بار از فصل 1986 است که سه راننده در مسابقه آخر فصل، برای کسب عنوان قهرمانی رقابت می کنند.

تقدیر، اشتباه تیمی و خطای راننده

در شرایطی که شرایط متغیر جوی به شدت تیمها را برای انتخاب لاستیک مناسب دچار مشکل کرده بود، تیم مک لارن تصمیم گرفت همیلتون را که در مکان اول بود، کمی بیشتر درون پیست نگه دارد.

همیلتون که مسابقه را از مکان اول و با لاستیکهای مخصوص پیست مرطوب (Intermediate) آغاز کرده بود، توانست اختلاف با کیمی رایکونن، راننده فراری را (که در تعقیب او بود) تا میانه مسابقه حتی به چهار ثانیه هم برساند.

اما عمر لاستیکهای "مرطوب" همیلتون رو به پایان بود و حتی در یکی از لاستیکهای عقب او، عاج لاستیک تا اندازه ای رفته بود که لایه های زیرین سفید رنگ به وضوح دیده می شد.

در حالی که اصطکاک میان لاستیکهای اتومبیل همیلتون با زمین به حداقل رسیده بود، تیم مکلارن هم تصمیم گرفت او را برای یک دور بیشتر در پیست نگه دارد تا شاید وضعیت جوی مشخص شود.

خروج لویس همیلتون 22 ساله از گراندپری چین، اولین اشتباه عمده او در فصل اول حضورش در فرمول یک بود

همین مسئله باعث شد تا یک دور بعد، وقتی همیلتون سعی داشت برای تعویض لاستیک و سوختگیری، با خروج از پیست وارد مسیر گاراژ شود، سر پیچ جاده خروجی منتهی به گاراژ، لغزید و وارد حاشیه های شنی کنار جاده شد.

همیلتون هرچند تلاش کرد تا اتومبیل خود را روشن نگه دارد، اما تلاش او و معدود ناظران چینی اطراف محل مسابقه برای بازگرداندن اتومبیل به جاده بی نتیجه ماند.

همیلتون و مکلارن خود باعث ناکامی شدند.

نبرد در پشت جبهه

در حالی که رانندگان فراری و مکلارن مشغول نبرد برای کسب پیروزی بودند، در مکان های پایینتر وضعیت آرام نبود.

برنده بزرگ سباستین وتل، راننده 20 ساله تورو روسو بود که گرچه مسابقه را از مکان هفدهم آغاز کرده بود اما با بکار گیری استراتژی "یک توقف" به مقام چهارم (بهترین نتیجه کسب شده در تاریخ تیم تورو روسو) دست یافت.

او یک هفته قبل، در گراندپری ژاپن، با یک اشتباه در هوای به شدت بارانی با مارک وبر، راننده تیم ردبول تصادف کرد تا موقعیت ایستادن بر روی سکو از هر دو گرفته شود.

تونیو لیوتزی، دیگر راننده تورو روسو هم توانست حملات متوالی نیک هایدفلد، راننده ب ام و را تحمل کند و با کسب مقام ششم، کمک کند تا تیم تورو روسو از مکان نهم جدول، دو پله بالاتر برود و بالاتر از تیم هوندا قرار بگیرد.

جنسون باتن، راننده هوندا هم که بعنوان یکی از رانندگان ماهر در پیستهای خیس و مرطوب شناخته می شود، به مقام پنجم دست یافت.

مسابقه آخر رقابتهای فرمول یک در سال 2007، در روز 21 اکتبر در پیست اینترلاگوس برزیل انجام خواهد شد.

[Rasputin]

Lewis Hamilton breathes life into gasping F1

With a touch of luck yesterday, he would have become the first rookie to win a Formula One world championship. And the first black man.

Speaking before McLaren's decision to appeal, Hamilton said he was content with his first-up campaign.

"It's been a crazy year and I honestly can't say I'm really, really gutted," he said.

"I'm not. I finished second in the world championship, I beat my teammate (Fernando Alonso, courtesy of more second places), under extremely difficult circumstances.

"I beat the two-time world champion, that was the goal.

"The team are going to keep pushing. I'm going to keep pushing. We've got the experience now, we can start afresh. For sure, we all wanted to win, we wanted to win the World Cup, we wanted to win the world championship, it's obviously not England's turn this year," he said, referring to England's loss to South Africa in the Rugby World Cup final.

Hamilton, 22, has had to face a double world champion as his teammate, had to face up to a Ferrari team that has used every trick in the book -- and some well outside the rules -- in the title fight; had to learn new tracks and new rivals, and even battled through lousy weather and the inevitable investigations into his personal life by the pit-lane paparazzi.

Triple world champion and motor sport legend Jackie Stewart said the youngster was exceptional.

The verdict of the former voice of Formula One, broadcaster Murray Walker, was even more pronounced: "Lewis Hamilton is a phenomenon the like of which I have never seen before and, I think it is fair to say, one that has never existed in the history of motor sport.

"The young man has lifted all our spirits. There is no doubt that if he carries on as he is, he will be one of the greatest drivers of all time.

"He has rekindled worldwide interest in F1 at a time when the domination of Michael Schumacher had left the sport in a despondent state. His youth, and I suppose his colour to an extent, has revived it in a way I have never seen before."

When Hamilton landed in Melbourne in March to begin his first year in Formula One, he looked like a nice young man. He was well mannered, well groomed, well prepared and well grounded in what he would need to make a successful start to his career with McLaren.

Sitting with him at the Stokehouse restaurant, swapping a few sentences during his team's pre-season meet-the-press session, Hamilton seemed very young. His conversation was very intelligent but also very guarded, while Alonso, sitting beside him, talked up his chances of a triple title run following his switch from Renault and the retirement of Schumacher.

Hamilton seemed like the sidekick who was being given a big break by Ron Dennis, the McLaren team boss who had groomed him from the time he was a teenager in kart racing.

He obviously had talent, but his experience in F1 was a big zero and his biggest asset was Dennis and, some believed, the colour of his skin.

But on race day Hamilton was instantly at the front of the pack, and he left Melbourne with third place in his kick and a growing reputation as something special.

By the middle of the year, as he fired up for the British Grand Prix at home, no one had any doubts. Hamilton had claimed a pole position, had won a race, and was leading the world championship.

Yet he still looked squeaky-clean, quiet and focused.

Then there was a masterful qualifying lap at Silverstone that gave him pole position from Alonso, Raikkonen and Felipe Massa of Ferrari.

Hamilton did exactly what Schumacher or Ayrton Senna would have done, leaving his best to last to have his rivals gasping. It was a pivotal moment, one when Hamilton the boy wonder showed he was a superman.

And there have been plenty more since. Hot laps, on-track confrontations, wins and more and more championship points.

Hamilton has also wrapped the McLaren team around himself, leaving Alonso in the cold. His Spanish rival -- not really a teammate -- has resorted to paying bonuses to his crew members any time he beats Hamilton.

He has also run Hamilton off the road and, most famously and stupidly, sparked a pit-lane confrontation when he blocked the youngster's final qualifying run in Hungary. It cost Alonso a grid penalty but, more importantly, showed just how much he was battling to beat the kid.

Since Hungary, Hamilton has absorbed all the pressure from Alonso, and Ferrari, and the fallout from the F1 spying scandal. He has also steered around questions about his personal life, even though he is now a friend of P. Diddy and has dumped his former girlfriend, Jodia Ma, for a newer model.

Hamilton is also looking for a hot new bachelor pad in Monte Carlo after admitting the growing attention from F1 fans will force him to leave his home in Britain.

He is also believed to be shopping for an F1-style powerboat for weekend relaxation.

What does it all mean?

Hamilton is so much more than just a race car driver. He is a worldwide phenomenon.

He is now known just as Lewis, the same way Ms Minogue is just Kylie and Mr Woods is just Tiger.

He was groomed by Dennis and McLaren after asking for a break when he was only 12. But he has delivered at every level, from championships in karts through to a title last year in GP2, the final open-wheel stepping stone to Formula One.

"I first started watching Formula One when I was about five or six. I spent my weekends with my dad at his house and we always watched the grand prix together," Hamilton said. "The two red-and-white McLarens were the cars to be in. They were the most attractive and they had the two best drivers, Alain Prost and Ayrton Senna. I always preferred Ayrton, he was a phenomenal driver."

Hamilton has the same inspired touch as Senna, but it is matched by the on-track aggression that marked Schumacher as the first of a win-or-else generation.

Stewart, who rewrote the rules on safety and professionalism when he was racing in the 1970s, said: "I think he is going to rewrite the book. We will see a new generation of what I call properly prepared professional racing drivers.

"I don't think there is one who is that. Schumacher became that but I am talking about fully rounded. Schumacher was not as good as he should have been, not in terms of the driving but the total package.

"Lewis will create the new benchmark for a whole generation of drivers. Niki Lauda and James Hunt changed the culture of racing drivers. They were not role models. They said nothing, didn't give a damn. Lewis Hamilton can become the role model. Everybody needs one."