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Round 4: Spain; Race report
Topic Started: May 13 2007, 02:17 PM (263 Views)
Red Andy
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SPANISH GRAND PRIX
Race report by Red Andy

Felipe Massa's return to form with victory in Bahrain was just what the Brazilian needed to establish himself as a serious contender for the world championship. And when he slotted his Ferrari onto pole position for the Spanish Grand Prix alongside local hero and world champion Fernando Alonso, it looked as though he could do it again.

Alonso, on the other hand, was desperate to win the race after a disappointing spell in Bahrain. His best chance, he knew, was to get by Massa into the first corner and control proceedings from there on in - a procedure he knew well from his days in the dominant Renault of early 2006.

The start of the race was aborted after Jarno Trulli's Toyota stalled in sixth place, suffering from fuel pressure problems, but on the restart Alonso and Massa rocketed away from the rest of the field, including the second-row challengers Kimi Raikkonen and Lewis Hamilton.

Alonso attempted to go around the outside of Massa into the first corner and snatch the lead. But Massa, in a clever move he could only have learned from his former teammate Michael Schumacher, forced Alonso wide and into the gravel. The Brazilian was thus clear, with the home hero down to fourth. Meanwhile, Hamilton had slid by Raikkonen to claim second place.

So the order was Ferrari, McLaren, Ferrari, McLaren with the de jure "number one" drivers in each team occupying the lower positions. But this order would not last long, with Raikkonen forced out after just ten laps with electrical problems. Disappointed at his premature end to the race, the Finn left the circuit long before the end of the race.

Around the first pit stops, the race began to get eventful. The Hondas of Rubens Barrichello and Jenson Button tangled, with Button forced to pit for a new nose after it was taken off - impressively cleanly - by his teammate when the Brit tried an ill-advised challenge into the first corner. Massa caused a stir in the pit lane when his Ferrari briefly burst into flames as he exited his box, but thankfully the damage was only superficial and nobody was hurt. And the BMW pit crew were slightly bemused when a sharp-footed Toyota mechanic handed them a wheel nut that had fallen off Nick Heidfeld's car as he pulled away.

Out on the track, Alonso was showing signs of struggling. McLaren gambled and put him onto the harder compound of tyre for his second stint - after pleasing results had been reported from the harder tyre in free practice - but he could do nothing to lessen the deficit to Hamilton or Massa. Even when he switched to the soft compound for his final stint he struggled, and was unable to catch his youthful teammate.

The Ferrari was clearly the car to beat, and Massa won easily from Hamilton, who now leads the world championship after four successive podium finishes. Alonso was a distant and disappointed third, his hopes of success all but dashed in his first-corner scrap with Massa. Fourth was Robert Kubica, the Pole driving a quiet race in the BMW to claim the position that had been his teammate's in all of the first three races. Heidfeld himself had retired earlier, gearbox problems ending what had been a day to forget for the German.

Adrian Newey's tireless work with the Red Bull team paid off with fifth place for David Coulthard, who struggled with a problematic gearbox in the closing laps. From Mark Webber's early retirement, however, we can deduce that the reliability problems plaguing Red Bull this season have not totally been dialled out just yet. Coulthard did, however, manage to fend off Nico Rosberg, who was also promising as the Williams claimed sixth spot. A charging Heikki Kovalainen was seventh, fuel rig problems at Renault limiting the Finn's success, which could have been even greater.

The same fuel rig problems also hampered Giancarlo Fisichella, who was forced to pit late in the race and yield the final points-paying position to Takuma Sato, who jubilantly - and deservedly - claimed the first point for the Super Aguri team. It was a well-earned success for the Japan-based team, who continue to embarrass their "parent" outfit at Honda, who once again struggled with a lack of pace.

Lewis Hamilton leads the world championship entering the Monaco Grand Prix in two weeks' time. However, he has to be wary of his main opponents when he goes there. Felipe Massa will be looking to capitalise on his recent excellent form. Kimi Raikkonen will be hoping to compensate for his retirement in this race. And Fernando Alonso will be more determined than ever to regain control of a season that could well be slipping away from him.
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Monty
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Great stuff <clap>
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The Saint
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Quote:
 
But Massa, in a clever move


Good article, but more a lucky move than a clever one. Massa (along with Alonso) were BOTH very lucky to get away with their 'incident'. Little nudges like that often cost championships.
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Monty
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I think it was really Alonso's fault as Massa had the racing line and wasnt going to back off like in Malaysia. I can understand him trying his hardest though as getting past Massa was his only oppurtunity to win the race, i remember Villeneuve trying a similar move on Fisi for the lead in the 98 Canadian gp.
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The Saint
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DavidColthard202,May 13 2007
10:18 PM
I think it was really Alonso's fault as Massa had the racing line and wasnt going to back off like in Malaysia. I can understand him trying his hardest though as getting past Massa was his only oppurtunity to win the race, i remember Villeneuve trying a similar move on Fisi for the lead in the 98 Canadian gp.

Im not trying to aportion blame, I am simply saying that Massa did not back off (when he should have) and was lucky to remain in the race - it was not a clever move - more a stupid one, which ultimately worked well for him. He could have just as easily been limping home with a broken wishbone.
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everythingoes
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There was no reason for Massa to back off. He had the line and it wasn't as if he was making a lunge from way back. Alonso was probably counting on Massa backing off and got taken by surprise when that didn't happen.
It was more a case of Alonso being a little ambitious rather than Massa being foolhardy.
Its not as if such a thing has not happened before, some drivers, from time to time will make a move counting on the other to relent, MS has done it often enough, so has Alonso. Its a bit of intimidation drivers tend to indulge in. Sometime it works, sometimes it doesn't. End off.
The Schumacher - Montoya battles were a case in point of neither driver willing to relent. When it came off, it was called classic driving, when it didn't, it was hello gravel :)
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dcoulthard19
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nice report Red Andy
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The Saint
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Here is a nice comparison of the laps times between ALonso and Hamilton in Spain

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dcoulthard19
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cool, thats a really interesting diagram, keep on adding them in each race <bow>
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The Saint
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just let me know who you wish to compare

I can add all the drivers, but the pic woudl be huge!
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Monty
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It seems Alonso had more damage than i originally thought ;), it would be great if you could put them all up after the race Saint, im sure no one would mind about the size of the screen.
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The Saint
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will do
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