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Massa on pole in Valencia


Brazilian Felipe Massa put Ferrari on pole position for the European Grand Prix in Valencia with McLaren's championship leader Lewis Hamilton alongside on the front row.

More StoriesQualifying: As it happened
Valencia gallery
The 27-year-old secured his fourth pole of the season, and the 13th of his Formula One career, with a flying lap in the final seconds of Saturday's qualifying.

Hamilton had already clocked 1:39.199 seconds when Massa roared around Formula One's newest street circuit with a time of 1:38.989 to push the Briton into second place.

Poland's Robert Kubica qualified in third place for BMW Sauber with Ferrari's world champion Kimi Raikkonen next to him on the second row.

Finland's Heikki Kovalainen, in the second McLaren, and Germany's Sebastian Vettel for Toro Rosso, shared the third row.

Renault's double world champion Fernando Alonso qualified 12th in front of his home crowd.

The 27-year-old secured his fourth pole of the season, and the 13th of his Formula One career, with a flying lap in the final seconds of Saturday's qualifying.

Hamilton had already clocked 1:39.199 seconds when Massa roared around Formula One's newest street circuit with a time of 1:38.989 to push the Briton into second place.

Poland's Robert Kubica qualified in third place for BMW Sauber with Ferrari's world champion Kimi Raikkonen next to him on the second row.

Finland's Heikki Kovalainen, in the second McLaren, and Germany's Sebastian Vettel for Toro Rosso, shared the third row.

Renault's double world champion Fernando Alonso qualified 12th in front of his home crowd.

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Reproduced with kind permission of the FIA
Drivers: 1st Felipe Massa (Ferrari), 1m38.989s; 2nd Lewis Hamilton (McLaren), 1m39.199s; 3rd Robert Kubica (BMW Sauber), 1m39.392s.

Q: Felipe, congratulations. Talk us through your pole winning lap.
Felipe Massa: Yeah, for sure starting on pole here is very nice. The track here is not very easy. The surface is slippery. I had a good lap and I was able to score the pole position. I think I have a good car for the race tomorrow which will be very difficult, but I will try to do my best.

Q: How did the lap go for you in terms of sectors?
FM: I think I made pole position in the first sector. The first sector was just fantastic. I made some very small mistakes in sector two when you always have an oversteer car or understeer car depending on the corner. Then I had a good sector three but everything was done in sector one.

Q: Talk us through the weekend for you and your thoughts on the track.
FM: For sure the track gets better all the time. Yesterday we saw the lap time getting crazier, improving so quick from the beginning of the session. We see that it was so green and as long as you put rubber on the track, lap times improve a lot and the balance improves a lot as well. I think yesterday we had a big, big shower which doesn’t help for the grip of the track, so today was also difficult in the morning. But it’s okay, I think it is a nice track. Let’s hope that we can have a good run tomorrow.

Q: The Ferrari car looks fabulous. How does it feel for you?
FM: For sure we have a great car. We showed that at some many races this year. We showed that at the last race, unfortunately sometimes things happen. We showed again here that we are competitive. I think that is the most important thing. The team did a great job today, yesterday and also the preparation for this race which was also very difficult. We went to the simulator trying to find a reasonable balance to start with and also the job done yesterday. The team did a great job.

Q: Lewis, on the front row. A great race to start the inaugural grand prix in Valencia. Talk us through qualifying.
Lewis Hamilton: It was quite straightforward for me really. I think we noticed we had a good car through testing and going into Q1 and Q2 it was all about getting through. There didn’t seem to be too much of a problem. The car was quick. I stayed on the option tyre for both my Q3 timed laps and I think the first one was not a great lap. I think I probably lost about a second to my second timed lap but I think the last lap was pretty good. I was quite happy with that. For sure, there is always a little bit of time somewhere but generally I am very happy. It is a good starting position for us for tomorrow and a great job done by the team.

Q: It looks like another battle between yourselves and Ferrari.
LH: Yeah, as you can see we just watched Felipe’s qualifying lap and as he said in sector one he destroyed everyone. They are going to be hard to beat tomorrow but we will push as hard as we can.

Q: What was sector one like for you?
LH: I think I was already down a tenth or two tenths after the first corner. I came though turn one or two and three, if you look on the map, and then turn three, turn four and five didn’t seem to be as strong as I would like. That is probably where the time went but generally it wasn’t too bad. It wasn’t a struggling lap. It was quite a good lap and I was quite happy with it.

Q: Robert, welcome back to the top three. It is good to see you back up here after qualifying.
Robert Kubica: Yeah, I mean for sure it has been a very good qualifying for myself and the team. After some unlucky races the pace of the car here in Valencia is not as bad as it was before but also we have a bit of a gap to Ferrari and McLaren. Qualifying went pretty smooth. The weather was playing a bit, so we were anticipating every stint and every run, in qualifying three especially to make sure that we would be fine with the lap time to go into the next qualifying.

Q: We saw a bit of rain on the camera lens. What was it like for the drivers?
RK: The rain doesn’t have any effect for the drivers. Only in qualifying two there were some drops in the last part of the main straight but it didn’t have any effect.

Q: And the tyre choice. Again we saw a spread between the harder and the softer of the two Bridgestone tyres.
RK: Well, for me it was pretty clear. We saw yesterday which tyre we would probably use and we stuck to our first choice. I went on primes in qualifying one and on options in qualifying two and again on options in qualifying three.

Q: Felipe, your thoughts on this circuit and bouncing back from that big disappointment in the Hungarian Grand Prix.
FM: Yeah for sure it is always nice to be on top after such a bad result especially how it happened. It was so bad to have a problem with three laps to go with a win completely in my pocket. After such a difficult race it is very nice to be here for the first time in Valencia and also after the problem we had in the last race and to be on the top. But for sure the race is tomorrow and we don’t know how it is going to be but it is always nice to start on pole position. We will try to do a great race. Valencia is a nice place. We always come here for testing and the city is fantastic. I have been coming here since 2000 when I was doing Formula Renault and it is amazing how the city is getting bigger and bigger and so modern and a nice place to go, nice hotels, nice atmosphere. It is very nice to be here and on pole. Let’s hope that tomorrow we can have a great race.

PRESS CONFERENCE

Q: Felipe, tell us about where you were gaining time.
FM: Already in the first lap on Q3 I was thinking the lap was good but you think people have made mistakes or didn’t do a great lap. You always need to try the second one and try to improve everything, I think compared to my first try I improved the first sector. That was really good. I think I was a couple of tenths quicker than my first try in the first sector and it was already quite good. The second sector was normal, nothing special and the third sector was okay, so I think the pole position came for sure because of the first sector which was great.

Q: You changed from the harder tyre to the softer tyre for the second run as well.
FM: Yeah, I was not sure about the tyres. This morning I was pretty sure about the hard but qualifying was a little bit strange in Q1 and Q2 to make the right lap. Then I changed my mind and tried the hard one in the first try and then the soft one on the second try and I think it was the right decision.

Q: Is there any concern about the positioning of pole position because it was on the left rather than on the right which is the more used part of the circuit?
FM: I think they’ve changed it. Now it’s on the right. Usually pole position is something that’s very important. To start first, you need to be on the right line and here everybody drives on the right hand side and it’s really strange to have pole on the left side, so it would have been better to start second. Then they changed their idea, which was the right thing because it’s normal and now it’s OK.

Q: Lewis, are you pleased with your performance so far, and with the way you and the team have tackled the whole weekend given the new nature of this circuit?
LH: I think we’ve done a great job. To come here, the way we’ve prepared, I think our approach was as good as ever. We really come here with quite a strong package and I think we are the closest to the Ferraris at least and I’m really quite happy with the job we did today. Being on the front row really puts us in a good position to fight for a win tomorrow. I’m very, very happy.

Q: Give us an idea of the state of the track because quite a few of the drivers are having little moments. Is it still quite slippery?
LH: I don’t think it’s slippery. I think there’s grip out there but when you’re pushing on the limit, you eventually go over that grip level and that’s what everyone’s doing. Unfortunately Felipe was able to stay on that line, especially in the first sector and pull it out. I think everyone’s having some lock-up issues, locking the rears, locking the fronts and it’s really trying to find the best balance there, trying not to push too much but still pushing, trying to find the limit. I don’t think it’s a problem.

Q: How’s that going to manifest itself during the race itself? Obviously during a lap that’s one thing but the lock-ups, that sort of thing, hard braking here obviously.
LH: Yeah, I think hard braking here… I think it’s quite a severe circuit for braking. I’m sure some people will be struggling but it won’t be a problem for us. I think tomorrow will be about managing the tyres and trying to make them last through a longer run but again, I don’t think we will have a problem.

Q: Robert, obviously you’re pleased to be back in the top three for the first time since Canada which of course you went on to win.
RK: Yeah, for sure, it’s better to start third than fifth or seventh. Qualifying went pretty well and here we are. The car worked better than lately but we have to remember that in Hungary, also, I was not starting far behind because I was fourth, so second row, and hopefully we will not make the same mistake as in Hungary in tomorrow’s race. Anyway, the track is quite slippery, at least for our car, so maybe we have to improve our overall grip. Trying to manage the tyres, as Lewis said, will be quite important.

Q: How difficult is it when you haven’t really got confidence in the track?
RK: I have confidence in the track. I haven’t been in any simulator. I walked a lap on Thursday before jumping in the car and after five laps I managed to find good braking points. I was quite consistent in every session, in every run without any big moments. Of course conditions are changing. Today the wind is from a completely different direction than yesterday, so it has some influence on the car balance. The grip level has changed. Yesterday it was improving but we had heavy rain last night, so it washed away the rubber a bit, so many factors are changing and you have to adapt very quickly to them.

Q: Is it more factors than normal perhaps?
RK: At least what I feel is that it’s changing very quickly and it can have a big influence, especially if you go off the line or your line is a bit difference than the others, so you have to adapt from where most people go, where they put their wheels because there is more rubber. But not all the cars take the same lines. We saw already yesterday in the first sector that we were struggling and it also happened today and in qualifying but it looks like this is our limit.

Q: And overtaking? Drivers say you have to go off-line to overtake and it makes it doubly difficult.
RK: Yeah, looking at it from the outside and from the car, there are some places for overtaking, such as at the end of the big straight at the back and also before corner 17. But it makes it difficult if everybody is so tight and so close, especially if the grip level was the same everywhere it would make it much easier but now there is a lot of dust off-line and this makes it very difficult.

QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

Q: (Frédéric Ferret – L’Equipe) Robert, first of all, what is the mistake that the team made in Hungary that you don’t want to make again, and secondly how do you explain that you’re third? Is it because it’s a new track and you like new tracks, or is it improvements on the car?
RK: First part of the question; I don’t think it’s a secret: we made a big mistake on the tyre pressures. I think probably operation-wise that was a mistake. What was unfortunately very bad in Hungary was that it was on all three sets. In the first stint, I was hoping that as soon as I put on new tyres for the second stint the problem would be gone but the problem was even bigger. But I think this is clear and we will improve. And what’s the difference? I don’t feel any difference. In Hungary I was P4, here I’m P3. I don’t see any difference. The car is the same, there is no upgrade from the last two races until now. In the end, we are just there and trying to set as best lap as possible in qualifying which we managed nearly all the time but in the race it makes it more difficult because if you’re missing grip, the tyres are wearing more if you’re sliding and your race pace is maybe worse than the top cars.

Q: (James Allen – ITV) I would like to ask Lewis and Felipe how the first two parts of this qualifying evolved for you because it seemed to take some time for both of your teams to fully get up to speed and we had some unusual names at the top of the time sheets for a while?
FM: Yes, it was a little bit strange. Usually in Q1 we start on a scrubbed set, so we already expected not to be on the top. Then with the new set I did a reasonably good lap, I was second, and in Q2 I didn’t do a good lap, so I had to use another set which was a little bit of a waste for us. Fortunately many other people used a second set as well. So people were a little bit impressed by the lap times from the others, especially Vettel did a great job, he was very quick and that was a little bit strange for us; because of that we needed to use another set of tyres. But I think it’s also related to the lap time. I didn’t do a great lap and I had to try again, to be safe inside the top ten.
LH: I thought Q1 was pretty sweet. I went out, did one lap and I was pole for the majority of the session. I’d done my time, I didn’t need to go out again and as the track evolved, people got quicker, that was quite simple I thought. In Q2 it was very, very surprising. We went out on the softer tyre and weren’t particularly able to improve the time that much, compared to the prime, and it was definitely a surprise that a few of the other teams were up front and so quick. So we did end up going out again, but again, we didn’t really need to.

Q: (Tomas Richtr – TV Nova) Felipe, what does it take to overcome such a huge disappointment from Hungary and did the summer break contribute to this or not?
FM: No, for sure the summer break didn’t help the frustration, because when you have such a bad race, you want to race again, just to at least change the result or change your frustration. But sometimes the frustration can also be good to motivate you even more, so I was in contact with my team, even during the summer (break) to motivate them because we suffered together. I know I was driving the car but I was driving the Ferrari car and the Ferrari car belongs to a lot of people who work on it, so I think it was a big frustration for everybody and it’s nice to come here and be on pole. That’s really good and hopefully we can continue in that direction tomorrow.

Q: (Andrea Cremonesi – La Gazzetta dello Sport) Lewis, you’re starting on the front row with Felipe. We saw in Hungary that he overtook you in a fantastic way. Do you think there is some room to take revenge here?
LH: As I say, it’s a good opportunity for me to start on the front row. We don’t know how the starts are going to be and being on the dirtier side or the cleaner side – I don’t particularly think there is a clean or dirty side. So I think tomorrow it’s important that we get a good start and I will be aiming to challenge Felipe but if I don’t get close enough, then I will just try to keep my position.

Q: (Andrea Cremonesi – La Gazzetta dello Sport) The second question is for everybody: we heard that there is some issue with the asphalt in the pit lane. Could you explain to us if there is some issue about it?
LH: Regarding the pit lane, I don’t think there’s a real problem, not for us, at least

Honda’s Rubens Barrichello on a tough qualifying in the RA108; local hero Fernando Alonso on failing to make it through to Q3 in the Renault; and Ferrari’s Felipe Massa on taking his fourth pole position of the year. All 20 drivers give their verdicts on Saturday in Valencia…

Felipe Massa, Ferrari (1st, 1m 38.989s):
"It's great to be on pole position, especially after the great disappointment of Budapest, but I'm well aware the race is tomorrow and so there is still a long way to go. My first run in Q3 was very good and on the second I made a good improvement in the first sector and that's where pole came from. Today, the track was still very slippery, partly because of last night's rain. After this morning's free practice, I thought the harder tyres would be the most competitive in qualifying, but at the start of the session, I didn't feel as comfortable anymore and so we went for the softer compound. The team did a great job in preparing for this event and I want to thank them for giving me such a strong car. I hope we can have a good race tomorrow."

Lewis Hamilton, McLaren (2nd, 1m 39.199s):
"We knew we had a great car and we didn't have any problems during qualifying. I felt really comfortable, and I decided to qualify with the option tyre. My first lap wasn’t perfect, and I lost almost one second compared with my second lap, but on my final lap everything went well. Second place on the grid is a good basis for tomorrow's race. However, Felipe Massa was significantly faster in the first sector, and I hope we’ll be able to improve there tomorrow. Our team did a great job, and I’m confident we’ll be strong."

Robert Kubica, BMW Sauber (3rd, 1m 39.392s):
"This was a very good Qualifying for the team and me. After some unlucky races lately the pace of the car here in Valencia is not that bad. However, there is still a small gap to Ferrari and McLaren. Qualifying went pretty smoothly, with only the weather a bit unstable. In the end there were only some rain drops in the second qualifying session, but this did not affect the result. The choice of tyres was pretty clear for me by yesterday: I went on the harder compound in Q1 and on the softer compound in Q2 and in Q3."

Kimi Raikkonen, Ferrari (4th, 1m 39.488s):
"Fourth place is not what I was looking for, but it's definitely not the end of the world. I could have been higher up the grid but on my last run in Q3, I locked the wheels at a few points and lost valuable time: it was nothing dramatic, but at this circuit, a small error is very costly. I still think I can be in the fight for the win, especially if I manage to get a good start. We have a good car, which should be especially competitive in the race."

Heikki Kovalainen, McLaren (5th, 1m 39.937s):
"The balance of my car was good and we improved continuously throughout the sessions. However I’m a little disappointed with my fifth place on the grid as I didn’t make any mistakes and performed to the maximum. It’s now up to us to score as many points as possible and make a good start from the cleaner side of the grid. Our strategy should help us to gain positions during the race."

Sebastian Vettel, Toro Rosso (6th, 1m 40.142s):
“My best result ever so I am pleased, as it has taken a bit of time to improve on my P7 that I did in my first grand prix. It’s been a fantastic day for us. We made some changes to the set-up overnight and they all turned out to be positive. The team worked hard to make the most of the data. We didn’t expect to do this well here but it’s a good thing to have both cars in Q3. My last lap should have been a bit better, but I made a mistake in turn 12, locking the rear under braking. Now we have to keep our feet on the ground, because there are a lot of laps ahead of us tomorrow. I’m looking forward to the race when I think we have a real chance to score points.”

Jarno Trulli, Toyota (7th, 1m 40.309s):
"After our difficult practice yesterday, we completely changed my set-up for today. Then we had a gearbox oil pump problem this morning that meant I could not try it out. So in a way I was driving blind this afternoon but I used my experience, I concentrated very hard and I made it through into Q3. I made a mistake on my last run but I am still very happy with what we achieved today. I'm also delighted with the way the car is developing and the fact that we can always fight for the top ten and score points. That is again our target tomorrow. It's important and realistic and it will be an interesting race. Here, more than anywhere, anything can happen and it should be a great event."

Nick Heidfeld, BMW Sauber (8th, 1m 40.631s):
"Qualifying eighth is not perfect, but I think it was about the maximum possible today as the fuel load comes into play. In Q1 I thought it was déja-vu when Timo Glock was in my way. Our team informs us on the radio how many seconds behind us a fast car is, and when we have to let somebody overtake. Apparently this isn't the case in every team. I was afraid my qualifying would be ruined, but luckily I was able to do a second lap straight away and it was good enough. Q2 was fine, as I was third fastest and could see the pace was there. Generally speaking I'm a lot happier with my car today. On Friday I was struggling a lot, but we have made a lot of changes since."

Nico Rosberg, Williams (9th, 1m 40.721s):
"It’s been a few races since we managed to get into the top ten, so this is a good result for us. We’d obviously always want to do better, but this shows we’ve made a step in the right direction and that’s satisfying. We had a better understanding of where we had to improve, so we’ve made those changes which gave us a more competitive car today. We have a good strategy for the race so anything is possible. Today has been positive which gives me hope for points tomorrow."

Sebastien Bourdais, Toro Rosso (10th, 1m 40.750s):
“This wasn’t bad. I am still having my problem of not finding grip on the 'option' tyre, so we need to work on that. But I am happy that our performance is getting better. I’m really pleased to be in Q3 for the first time. It’s a good feeling as I kept waiting to hear that I dropped down to 11 or 12! What we have seen here is that, on a new track, some teams have worked in the right direction and some have not. The team did a good job of giving me a car that was one of the best today. Now it is up to me to get the most out of it in the race. It’s bound to be a tough race but I hope to be in a position to fight for points after making a good start.”

Kazuki Nakajima, Williams (11th, 1m 38.428s):
"It was a good qualifying for us as both cars are close in the midfield. It was a shame to miss out on Q3, but actually P11 is not a bad place to start the race from because we can select our fuel level. I’ll also be on the clean side of the track tomorrow so, all in all, it was a positive qualifying session for us."

Fernando Alonso, Renault (12th, 1m 38.435s):
“I am understandably disappointed with the qualifying session because I had other hopes for today. The race tomorrow will therefore be more difficult, but, as we are on a street course, anything is possible in the race. We must continue working hard this evening to try and work out the best strategy that will allow us to be ready for all eventualities tomorrow, such as a safety car period, which seems quite likely.”

Timo Glock, Toyota (13th, 1m 38.499s):
"I don't know what went wrong but I just didn't get the lap together in the second session and that was that. We definitely had the chance to be higher, in the top ten, but it was a difficult qualifying in the end. For me the prime tyres seemed to work better but I struggled to get temperature into the tyres in the first sector of my last lap in Q2. So it was just not my day today. I had a heavy cold overnight and didn't feel particularly well, but no excuses. I think the car was good enough but it just didn't work out. Of course we will do our best to make up positions tomorrow. There could be safety car periods so we will aim to make the most of our freedom with the strategy."

Mark Webber, Red Bull (14th, 1m 38.515s):
“We’ve struggled for speed for most of the weekend. It’s a new venue here, which brings variety to the positions, but we don’t seem to have the pace we had a few races ago, which is quite frustrating. There were a few laps I was pleased with, but we didn’t make it through to Q3.”

Nelson Piquet, Renault (15th, 1m 38.744s):
“I am disappointed with my qualifying, and I could probably have set a better time this afternoon. I don’t think our result shows our true pace because Fernando also failed to reach Q3 when we both had the potential. I will now work with my engineers and prepare for an aggressive race to move up through the field tomorrow.”

Jenson Button, Honda (16th, 1m 38.880s):
"It was a really disappointing qualifying today, particularly as we have been quick all weekend. My first run on the prime tyres was good but we simply chose the wrong tyre for my final run in Q1. I had no grip with the option and it just wasn't very competitive for us. My final run was slower than my prime run, which shouldn't happen on a circuit which is improving all the time. I'm really disappointed as we have improved the car but today we didn't make the most of that."

David Coulthard, Red Bull (17th, 1m 39.235s):
“I expected to be able to make it through that first part of qualifying. On my last run, I ran wide in Turn Five and dropped about four tenths, although I pulled two tenths back, the net loss over the whole lap meant it wasn’t enough to go through. It’s just the way these qualifying sessions go. That was probably one my messiest sessions and I’m disappointed.”

Giancarlo Fisichella, Force India (18th, 1m 39.268s):
"I really tried my hardest on that lap. I think I got the maximum out of the car and the best time we could do, and in the end we are only 1.3secs from the fastest time of the session. It just shows how close everything is now, but I don't think we could have done anything more. It was a fantastic effort from the team and the car felt good. It could be an unpredictable race tomorrow, so let's see how it goes."

Rubens Barrichello, Honda (19th, 1m 39.811s):
"It has been an incredibly frustrating day for us today. We were not able to find a balance on the car in practice this morning which affected our preparations for qualifying. This afternoon I particularly struggled with rear locking which cost me a lot of time as I wasn't able to attack the lap. It's very disappointing to be starting the first race here from so far back on the grid."

Adrian Sutil, Force India (20th, 1m 39.943s):
"The first run was OK, the track was improving and the grip level was getting better with every lap. On the second run I had a good lap, except for a small mistake in Turn 14 where I lost two to three tenths, but it was still not bad. Then on the last run I had some problems with the traffic on my out lap and couldn't warm up the tyres, so they weren't ready for the first couple of corners so I locked up in the first corner. That's why I couldn't improve my lap time, which was for sure disappointing as the final run is always the quickest and I couldn't improve my time. So last on the grid, let's see for tomorrow."

f1 hall of fame the legends former world championships:



FIA Formula One World Drivers Champions 1950 - 2007
Kimi Räikkönen
2007

Fernando Alonso
2005-2006

Michael Schumacher
1994-1995, 2000-2004

Mika Hakkinen
1998-1999

Jacques Villeneuve
1997

Damon Hill
1996

Alain Prost
1985-1986, 1989, 1993

Nigel Mansell
1992

Ayrton Senna
1988, 1990-1991

Nelson Piquet
1981, 1983, 1987

Niki Lauda
1975, 1977, 1984

Keke Rosberg
1982

Alan Jones
1980

Jody Scheckter
1979

Mario Andretti
1978

James Hunt
1976

Emerson Fittipaldi
1972, 1974

Jackie Stewart
1969, 1971, 1973

Jochen Rindt
1970

Graham Hill
1962, 1968

Denny Hulme
1967

Jack Brabham
1959-1960, 1966

Jim Clark
1963, 1965

John Surtees
1964

Phil Hill
1961

Mike Hawthorn
1958

Juan Manuel Fangio
1951, 1954-1957

Alberto Ascari
1952-1953

Nino Farina
1950

Ferrari’s Felipe Massa celebrated his 100th Grand Prix and made up for his late-race disappointment in Hungary by dominating Sunday’s European Grand Prix at Valencia from start to finish.

However, his victory was only confirmed once stewards had investigated his second pit stop on lap 37, in which he was deemed to have been released unsafely into the path of Force India’s Adrian Sutil. It resulted in a reprimand for the Brazilian and a hefty €10,000 fine.

It became clear almost immediately that McLaren and Lewis Hamilton would not be able to challenge the Ferrari this time, but he boosted his world championship points lead to 70 with a solid second-place finish, 5.6 seconds in arrears. Robert Kubica failed to get by Hamilton’s McLaren at the start, but brought his BMW Sauber home third ahead of Heikki Kovalainen’s McLaren, Jarno Trulli’s Toyota and Sebastian Vettel, who continued Toro Rosso’s strong practice form with a good sixth place.

In a race remarkable for the dearth of serious overtaking, two incidents stood out: the first came on the 43rd lap when Kimi Raikkonen was released from his pit stop before the refuelling hose had been detached from his F2008. A mechanic was struck by the red car’s rear wing in the melee, and as he was being stretchered to the medical centre, the second incident occurred when Raikkonen’s engine apparently exploded as he went into his 46th lap.

That leaves Massa back in second place in the title chase with 64 points, while Kubica is back in the hunt, on Raikkonen’s tail, with 55 points to the Finn’s 57.

The final points went to Toyota’s Timo Glock and Williams’ Nico Rosberg, who led home BMW Sauber’s Nick Heidfeld, Toro Rosso’s Sebastien Bourdais and Renault’s Nelson Piquet, with Red Bull’s Mark Webber, Honda’s Jenson Button, Renault’s Giancarlo Fisichella, William’s Kazuki Nakajima, Honda’s Rubens Barrichello and Red Bull’s David Coulthard a lap down.

Nakajima was not popular with the Spanish fans after colliding with local hero Fernando Alonso’s Renault on the opening lap and wiping off its rear wing. To the intense chagrin of the crowd, the Spaniard’s car was too badly damaged to continue.

Besides Raikkonen, the only other non-finisher was Sutil, who crashed on lap 42.

next race is the on the season most exciting track:

2008 FORMULA 1 ING BELGIAN GRAND PRIX

Spa-Francorchamps
Race Date: 07 Sep 2008
Number of Laps: 44
Circuit Length: 7.004 km
Race Distance: 308.052 km
Lap Record: 1:45.108 - K Raikkonen (2004)

Fri 05 September 2008
Friday Practice 1 10:00 - 11:30
Friday Practice 2 14:00 - 15:30
Sat 06 September 2008
Saturday Practice 11:00 - 12:00
Qualifying 14:00
Sun 07 September 2008
Race 14:00

times are with clt but the clt will be changed on thursday
all races are live on al jazeera sport 1 & 2 with the commentary and studio by ayman abd al wahed

u r welcome...

Tomorrow Belgium Race,Forza Ferrari .

hamilton is now close to winning the championship this year after winning the lst race in belgium..

massa is the closest one behind him, hope kimi makes another surprise like lst year