Massa Back In The Hunt

Felipe Massa got his championship back on track with a dominant win at Sakhir, leading home his team-mate for a Ferrari one-two.

The Brazilian needed to produce a performance and he duly delivered. What makes his performance this week all the more impressive was that he carried more fuel than Raikkonen. Once the Ferrari’s hit the front it became apparent it would be one a Ferrari one-two but credit to the BMW’s who kept them honest to the flag.

Most of the talking points will come from the opening few laps. Hamilton bottled it at the start with his McLaren getting off the line late, leaving him mid-pack. A lap later he proceeded to run into the back of his former team-mate Alonso, much to the disgust of the ITV commentary team. Immediately the calls came that it was on purpose, that Alonso had taken revenge on his former team-mate.

Oh come on!
If someone sneezed near Hamilton they would blame them for getting a cold. Back in 1998 when a similar incident occurred between Coulthard and Schumacher, there was never a bad word said about Coulthard. But when Alonso does it, things are different. Did they ever think that he is was pissed off after a bad start and his famous patience they prattle on about go out the window?
After his car showed signs of damage as the car proved a handful on track. For some strange reason he was pointing fingers at people he was overtaking for position. Why I don’t know. He was racing for position and had no given right for these cars, albeit slower, having to let him by.

Regardless of his issues, the McLaren's didn’t have an answer for the BMW’s, let alone the Ferrari’s. Kubica’s pole was on merit and not because of a significantly lower fuel load. Heidfeld used his experience to jump up to fifth by the end of the first lap before taking Kovalainen for fourth. It’s the second year in a row that Heidfeld can add a sweet pass on a McLaren to his scrap book. BMW are quickly becoming a legitimate threat to the top teams and the points that the German-Swiss outfit take off the top two could ultimately decide the championship. I don’t know if they will contend, I think they still need to make a few more steps before that. Much will depend on how BMW keep the development on the car throughout the year. A first win is looking more and more realistic for them.

The McLaren of Kovalainen finished fifth and never really looked like he could hang with the top four. Best of the rest fell to Jarno Trulli who again produced a good race performance. Why haven’t we seen this kind of consistency from Jarno earlier in his career? Right now he’s earning a contract extension with Toyota. Webber, another hero from Malaysia continued his fine run of form, beating Rosberg and showing up Coulthard who like the rest of the Brits had a torrid day. The final point went to Rosberg who will no doubt be disappointed after showing a good turn of pace throughout the weekend to be left with a single point.
Timo Glock got his Toyota to the flag for the first time finishing ninth after early battles with Alonso rounding out the top ten; The Spaniard struggled after his altercation with Hamilton with damage to his rear wing. Fisichella had a great day in the Force India finishing 12th. Had to laugh as Martin called him the ‘Star in a reasonable priced car’, a phrased coined from BBC’s Top Gear. Maybe Martin is letting us know more of his 2009 plans there.

PC’s Driver of the Day: Felipe Massa. The Brazilian had to deliver a performance here to get not only his championship back on track but to mend his flagging reputation. Dominant all weekend there never looked a driver that could match him. Honourable mention to the BMW pair who kept both Ferrari’s on their toes and now leads the constructor’s championship.