Hopes were high, pressure was on, and the skies were clear making for a much better Grand Prix in Japan then the previous year. As the Grand Prix kicked off this Thanksgiving morning, it was a free for all racing down the longest straight away in the formula one circuit. Kimi Raikkonen starting in second opposite of Lewis Hamilton made a quick leap into first place but coming into turn one, both Mclaren's taking the inside were able to bump Raikkonen off course followed by Felipe Massa putting Ferrari in a an unwanted position considering there are only two races to follow (China, then Brazil) and the constructor's cup being so close between the three top teams of Ferrari, Mclaren-Mercedes, and BMW Sauber. Hamilton was therefore penalised for forcing Kimi Raikkonen wide leaving him nowhere else to go on the track but off it, giving Hamilton a drivethrough penalty. The other main contender for a win at the Japan Grand Prix, Massa, also recieved a penalty for being deemed causing an avoidable collission when turning Hamilton right around. Between the two of them only one point was gained, Hamilton finishing in 12th place, and Massa pulling in a 7th place finish due to Torro Rosso's Sebastien Bourdais drop from 6th to tenth because of a clash with Massa.
It was a sad day for Mclaren for both drivers having Heikki Kovalainen retire early on in the race due to mechanical problems, and Hamilton finishing behind Massa and out of the points race. Ferrari not finishing in the respect they would have liked still managed to scoop enough points to put them in the lead for the Constructor's Cup with 142 points, leading the Mclaren team with 135pts and BMW with 128pts. With Massa not gaining much points for the driver championship, Hamilton's position stays unchallenged through the Japanese Grand Prix as he sits atop the list with 84 pts followed by Felipe Massa of Ferrari with 79pts and Robert Kubica of BMW holding 72pts. Fernando Alonso taking the win in Japan, making this his second win in a row after winning in Singapore, has really boosted the overal morale of the Renault team after having numerous conflicts at the beginning of the race season with his crew and team. However, he is till far from being a contender in points in the drivers championship and his team sits far below the top three teams in the Constructor's Cup with only 66 points accrued to date.
The Japan Grand Prix results are as follows:
1) Fernando Alonso (Renault)
2) Robert Kubica (BMW Sauber)
3) Kimi Raikkonen (Ferrari)
4) Nelsinho Piquet (Renault)
5) Jarno Trulli (Toyota)
6) Sebastian Vettel (STR-Ferrari)
7) Felipe Massa (Ferrari)
8) Mark Webber (Red Bull-Renault)
9) Nick Heidfeld (BMW Sauber)
10) Sebastien Bourdais (STR-Ferrari)
11) Nico Rosberg (Williams-Toyota)
12) Lewis Hamilton (Mclaren -Mercedes)
13) Rubens Barrichello (Honda)
14) Jenson Button (Honda)
15) Kazuki Nakajima (Williams-Toyota)
16) Giancarlo Fisichella (Force India-Ferrari) **Retired from race**
17) Heikki Kovalainen (Mclaren Mercedes) ** Retired from race**
18) Adrian Sutil (Force India-Ferrari) **Retired from race**
19) Timo Glock (Toyota) ** Retired from race**
20) David Coulthard (Red Bull-Renault) ** Retired from race**
With only two races left in the 2008 season of Formula 1 it's anyone's game in the Ferrari, Mclaren, and BMW camp's. Stay tuned in two weeks for a full write up on the practise and qualifying sessions as well as a full race review of the Chinese Grand Prix.
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