French GP 2007

The red cars are back!

http://images.teamtalk.com/07/07/330/07Kimiwins_459672.jpg

Race Results
1) Kimi (The Iceman is back) Raikkonen- Ferrari
2) Felipe Massa- Ferrari
3) Lewis (Mr. Podium) Hamilton- McLaren
4) Robert Kubica- BMW Sauber
5) Nick Heidfeld- BMW Sauber
6) Giancarlo Fisichella- Renault
7) Fernando (Losing ground) Alonso- McLaren
8) Jenson (Finally scored a point) Button- Honda
9) Nico Rosberg- Williams
10) Ralf Schumacher- Toyota


With their dominant reliability and consistancy in the first half of the season and Lewis Hamilton's excellent performance in North America, McLaren came into France looking very strong, but it would appear that an extra week of testing was all Ferrari needed to come back into form. To compound on Ferrari's newfound form, McLaren's 2006 reliablity poked its head up again in the form of a bad gearbox for Alonso in Q3, which left him in 10th to start the race.

Massa had a clean start to the race, but it was Kimi Raikkonen, the man that people were starting to count out of this championship (myself included) that stole the spotlight on the first corner by passing Lewis Hamilton for 2nd (the first time he's been passed on track). Kimi kept up with Massa through the the first 2/3 of the race and due to a heavier fuel load, some rediculously fast in-laps, and Massa being stuck in traffic, Kimi was able to pass Massa in the 2nd round of pit stops. Now Alonso, Hamilton, Kimi, and Massa all have two wins under their belts so far this season.

Hamilton had what some might call a "dissapointing" race, which is rediculous because he still managed to stay on the podium. His 3-stop strategy didn't seem to work out and the McLarens just wern't as quick today. He will definitely want to return to his North American shape back in Britain next week. He also extended his lead over Alonso, which is great for him, but lost some ground on the Ferraris.

Yet another solid race from BMW. Kubica managed an excellent 4th place on his first race back since his horrific Canadian crash. Great job for him. Heidfeld was managing rib pain as well, so no good job for him placing 5th as well. Beating Alonso and Fisi is not an easy thing. He did a great job of holding Alonso back for so many laps. Their 2 stop strategy was the biggest reason they did as well as they did.

At last, a point for Honda and Jenson Button. In a race that wasn't plagued with dropouts as well. This could be a sign that Honda could be climbing their way back towards some sort of respectability. Good for him.

Man of the Race: Kimi Raikkonen, no question. Easy pick today. Passed Hamilton off the line and Massa in the pits. Exactly the race he needed to have.

Pass of the Race: Alonso over Heidfeld. Revenge from Bahrain. Great maneuver after Heidfeld had managed to hold Alonso back for so long.

Finally, I want to take this opportunity to brag a little bit. This is a quote from my November 2006 predictions about 2007.

Kimi should begin to perform well around mid season

Granted I also thought Button would had a great year... Oh well...

Slept through the damn thing. I set my alarm but I was entirely too tired.

Slept through the damn thing. I set my alarm but I was entirely too tired.

You didn't miss much. Probably the most boring race of the season to date. The only one really passing and making moves was Alonso. Watching Albers rip the hose off the fuel rig was entertaining...thankfully nobody was injured.

Congrats to the Ferrari's. Can't say I'm happy to see them finish 1-2 but it looks like this season may get very interesting quickly. Alonso looked like he was a bit better than Hamilton in this one but that may be because he was in the middle of the pack and had to fight his way through. Would've been a much better result for McLaren had he been able to finish qualifying.

Next up, Silverstone. Ferrari may be back, but I'm going with a McLaren 1-2 finish in their home race. Can't wait to see all the Hamilton support. :smokin:

You didn't miss much. Probably the most boring race of the season to date. The only one really passing and making moves was Alonso. Watching Albers rip the hose off the fuel rig was entertaining...thankfully nobody was injured.

Congrats to the Ferrari's. Can't say I'm happy to see them finish 1-2 but it looks like this season may get very interesting quickly. Alonso looked like he was a bit better than Hamilton in this one but that may be because he was in the middle of the pack and had to fight his way through. Would've been a much better result for McLaren had he been able to finish qualifying.

Next up, Silverstone. Ferrari may be back, but I'm going with a McLaren 1-2 finish in their home race. Can't wait to see all the Hamilton support. :smokin:

Most boring to date? What about Australia, Spain, and Monaco? US wasn't particularly great either. It wasn't as good as Canada, but I though it was fairly good for a race that wasn't confused by crashes or rain. Kimi getting Hamilton off the line and crushing Massa in the second pit stop was pretty interesting to watch in my books. Alonso's passes were pretty good too, but they didn't seem to help him much as he ended up behind both Heidfeld and Fisichella, both of whom he passed, only to lose the spot due to his pit strategy. If you judge the interesting-ness of a race based on grid changes in the front 3 spots, France was way better then the USGP or Monaco. I'm sensing a sour McLaren fan :) but its ok, I do the same for Ferrari.

Maybe you're right. It's always different when your two boys are leading the race rather than trailing. :)

Loved watching Kimi passing Massa in the pits, not to mention Massa's attitude change in the post-race interview. Better for Alonso and Hamilton when Kimi wins.....unless, of course, if Kimi miraculously becomes a reliable threat.

FERRARI ONE-TWO!!!! yes I know I'm a week late again, was it broadcasted on Fox? This whole race was pit strategy because passing was not an easy task. I don't think any F1 race is boring for the fact that all the teams are trying very hard, the only part I hated was that the top pack coasted to the finish, about 1.5 to 2 seconds from their hot laps, whereas there was more racing at the USGP. I understand though that a race is a race if you win it, and so what if it's not more exciting because you're staying behind your teammate? You're getting championship points, DAMNIT!!!

I saw Alonso try to pass a lot of times today but imho he was braking too late, and I don't know if it was because of the loss of downforce or not. I feel like if he had tried braking early behind fisichella that he might have had a chance to accelerate infront of fisi. That's just me.

I have a new F1 hero, so shows my avatar, yes Robert Kubica coming back from that horrific crash to get 4th place!!! NO FEAR!!! THAT is racing.