Spy Games

Okay – Can someone answer this for me. McLaren are deemed guilty of being in possession of documents that belonged to Ferrari, but do not get any sort of penalty. McLaren claim that they did not know about the documents and they didn’t have any of the pieces on the car but, think about it this way – if you trespass in someone’s house but don’t actually steal anything, you still get charged with trespassing and get done for it.

So why did McLaren get away with it?

This is what baffles me. It really does. They would not have been called up on it if there wasn’t enough evidence. The whole thing was a waste of time with not charging them. What is the point with a ‘we know you are guilty but if we find anything else that incriminates you further, then maybe we will give you penalties.’ It’s hard to believe McLaren’s ‘we know nothing stance’ especially since they were allegedly told to appeal certain elements of the Ferrari car earlier in the season. Hard to try to pick and choose what they want to have fed to them. Was it by chance that McLaren's car advantage seemed to all but disappear when the whole 'Spy-gate' scandal broke around the French grand prix. I've joked in company that the reason for Ferrari making up the distance was down to McLaren removing any Ferrari inspired pieces off their car but hey! Maybe it did happen like that. Food for thought.

Ferrari have appealed, well – to be more precise the Italian motorsport body have and in this appeal Ferrari will be able to lay their case out in more detail than was allowed in the first meeting. This could shed more light on things and at the very least, help bring an end to this whole spy scandal. While I would hate to see the championship affected by it, rules are there for a reason. If you break them one must be prepared to feel the pain for it.

It's raining, it's pouring...

...but the old man is certainly not snoring! When Mother Nature intervenes it really provides for a great race and the Nurburgring was no different. In a matter of minutes a dry track became a lake, which sparked memories of the constantly changing conditions we have seen in the past at Spa.

The weekend was an eventful one for Hamilton. The car smashed up in qualifying after a mechanical problem, he took full advantage of the wide first corner to make up ground before been caught by the BMW’s. When the rain fell he joined a plethora of drivers in the first corner parking lot. It was a great presence of mind for him to keep the motor running but I’m of the opinion he shouldn’t have been carried back onto the track. In any other race he would have been out. There was no way he could have gotten out of the kitty litter. He was extremely fortunate to be carried out and allowed to keep running again.

Once back out on track and receiving the ‘Lucky Dog’ (for those of you unfamiliar with the term, this is where the lapped car is allowed to pass the safety car line and rejoin at the end of the lead lap) they blow it – I say ‘they’ because it has remained unclear if it was a team, driver or a combination which made the call – to bring him in and put him on slicks. Gutsy? Maybe. Perhaps he believed his own hype of his greatness and felt he could thread on water like Schumacher or Senna could. He was wrong.

So for the first time he is off the podium. A new experience for him. All credit to him that he comes out and says he has learned allot from the race. Hamilton will learn more from the bad days than the good ones.

Now he has to deal with the incoming threat of Alonso on Massa who both capitalized on his misfortune. Harsh words between the pair after the race was interesting to see, of course it would have been nice to actually hear what they were saying! Alonso firstly accused Massa of trying to take him off deliberately. It didn’t look nothing like that and reckon it was heat of the moment. Like I said in previously Alonso needs to learn to take it as much as he gives it.

Would The Real Kimi Raikkonen Please Stand Up?!

“Paging Kimi Raikkonen. Would the real Kimi Raikkonen please step forward and show your talent.”

Something along those lines must of been the call the Finn got as he boarded the plane home from North America. Since his return from a lacklustre pair of races – or to be more precise a lacklustre season so far, the Iceman seems to have finally found his feet in Ferrari.

At France and then in England we bore witness to the Kimi of old. The racer, the fighter, the Iceman. It begs to question where the real Kimi Raikkonen has been all season. After a dominant victory in the season opening Australian grand prix at Melbourne Kimi has been a ghost stuck in the shadows of Felipe Massa. Questions were rightly asked of his commitment and his drive, especially when he chose to storm out of the Ferrari garage when things went awry at Spain and then at Monaco. This was the man charged with replacing Michael Schumacher.

Now with the return to Europe we finally see the Kimi Raikkonen that drove balls to the walls in a McLaren for victory, even if it resulted in the car breaking down. This was the man that Ferrari coveted to replace Schumacher. This was what we expected from the Finn.

Why has it taken so long for him to become settled? I expected him to struggle at first to find his feet at Ferrari given that Massa was already snug in the team. But the depth of his struggles has been surprising. His rise in form coincides with the re-emergence of Kubica and Alonso to the performance levels expected. The paddock talk has been that the three of them have struggled to adapt to the new Bridgestone compound. After half a season they seem to have finally gotten to grips with how to use them allowing them to challenge their team-mates on a more consistent basis. Raikkonen more so still has a long way to go in adapting his style to turn his raw speed into consistent results. Looking at the reliability of the McLaren’s compared to the Ferrari this year against last year it would appear that Raikkonen’s ‘bad luck’ with reliability has carried over.

Perhaps it is more than ‘bad luck’. McLaren’s Martin Whitmarsh commented that he felt Raikkonen drove too aggressively which led to the high amount of reliability issues. His run of reliability woes in the Ferrari lends credence to these comments. Raikkonen will need to learn to adapt if he is finally unlock the potential we all know is there.

Hamilton's First

It was only a matter of ‘when’ and not ‘if’ Hamilton was going to win his first race. And like when you are waiting for a bus, when the first comes a few more come after it in succession. In Hamilton’s case he followed up his victory in the action packed Canadian grand prix with victory at Indy a week later.

Straight out of the box it was easy to see that Lewis had taking to Formula One like a duck to water. He’s given his world champion team-mate the run-around on a number of occasions earlier in the year and seeing him on the top step was only going to be a matter of time. When all those around him in Canada lost their head, he kept his. Like the parting of the Red Sea, as all those around him fell to pieces with silly mistakes, such as Massa running the red light at the end of the pit lane along with unavoidable instances of needing to pit when the pit lane was closed for Alonso – all that was required of Hamilton was to keep it on the island (literally) and bring the car home. Heidfeld’s BMW and Wurz’s Williams produced two great drives but were never going to challenge the McLaren for raw pace. At this stage in the season the front two teams are still a long way ahead in terms of race pace.

In a race full of incident we were witness to the strength of today’s Formula One crash test procedures. Robert Kubica was a passenger in a massive shunt heading down to the hairpin that saw him like a ping pong ball across the track, narrowly missing the parked Torro Rosso and everyone else before coming to a rest. Despite original statements claiming broken bones the Pole got away with just a concussion and a sprain. A fine example of how far car safety has come. His desire to jump straight back in and go driving a week later at Indy was admirable even though he had to sit it out on medical grounds. A safe bet given Indy’s history with high speed crashes, something Ralf Schumacher can attest to.

Media Bias? Never!

If there was ever a chance to show blatantly how the English media is willing to cover up the mistakes of their national drivers we certainly saw it on the Monaco grid.

British sensation Lewis Hamilton gets interviewed on his front row start on the advantages off avoiding not been stuck in the middle-to-end of the pack and having to deal with the added burden of traffic. Track position is vital at Monaco in its cramped state, with little to know overtaking chances at the Principality. Hamilton then comments that the back markers at the tail end of the grid were ‘monkeys’. That’s right – monkeys. Am I the only one who finds this a racist remark? If anything it is nothing short of offensive. Yet he gets away it. The British commentary team sweep it under the carpet like it never happened and don’t mentioning it again to ensure the pristine reputation of the driver.

This begs the question of what would have happened if anyone else had made that comment. Especially with Hamilton been the first black driver in Formula One. They would have been all over them by tying the comment ‘monkey’ to Hamilton’s skin colour – since history has littered with the term been associated with dark skinned individuals.

I’m disappointed in the youngster for his comparison but more so in the media for failing to latch onto it and highlighting it more.

Weekend Of Whingers

So there went another weekend of sport and a bunch of whingers and complainers arose - and they ain't even called 'Jose' (Mourinho for you non football watchers)!

The whinger award goes to current Formula one champion and McLaren driver Fernando Alonso. The Spaniard blew his chance to win in front of the home crowd at Barcelona as he tried a risky move around Massa at the first lap of the race. Massa had the inside line, left the champ out to dry and we see Alonso scuttling across the gravel trap much to disdain of the home crowd. Alonso then turns around and complains that Massa was pulling a risky move? Fernando were you driving the same race we were watching? Just because Felipe cocked up at Sepang in similar circumstances does not mean he is going to let the same thing happened twice.

Talking about 'risky' moves - this is coming from the same guy who did a balls to the walls move on Schumacher at 130R in Suzuka a few years ago! That was risky. This was plain common sense that he thought Massa would cave. The champ got it wrong and paid the price. Common sense would've been to dab the breaks, stop her going across the kitty litter to avoid battering the car, the excuse given by McLaren for why he couldn't challenge (and I use the word 'excuse' here because McLaren always have an excuse for when they get out raced by Ferrari.) The pressure is showing now on Alonso. This is two races in a row he has been beaten by his 'rookie' (again, I'm using this term lightly with Hamilton because he drives like a veteran.) This is what could make or break Alonso's ability to cement himself as a legend many presume him to be. Time will tell.

An honourable mention also goes to Kimi Raikkonen here. His impact at Ferrari has been few and far between as he is getting shown up my Massa. His decision to leave the track early is not the sign of someone who has fully embraced the Ferrari team spirit. Especially when it was noted that over the weekend the returning Schumacher often stayed later in the paddock.

Why You Shouldn't Leave Before The Chequered Flag

While this blog is about Formula One, this one piece of international motorsport news couldn't escape me.

At a recent race in Texas in the NASCAR series there was an accident which involved Kyle Busch and Dale Earnhardt Junior. Both cars limped back to the pits to be repaired. Here is where the similarities end however. Bush went home, with his team later citing a 'miscommunication' for the mix-up. His team stayed on and worked hard to get the car race worthy for the last few laps. They succeeded but found out they were lacking a driver.
Enter Busch's crew chief, a friend of Junior, who asked him if he would be interested in driving the car for the last few laps. Now remember, this is for a different team, a different crew and it would not earn Junior any more points, in fact he would earn Busch's car more points. (NASCAR has a complicated points system I won't go into now!)

Junior said yes. Without hesitation. That's class. He recognized that the crew had worked hard to get the car going and he did them the service of putting it back out on track. Where else in the world of motorsport would we such such sportsmanship? Shame on Busch for his early exit. One must ask why was he in such a hurry to leave? Given the amount of money these drivers earn he could've stayed around. If I was a driver that's what I would've done. Junior stayed and look at the impact he was able to make. It even ties in with the example set by Michael Schumacher in his time where he spent day and night in the Ferrari garage with the mechanics.

The publicity of the lesson is sure to not be lost on Busch though. He won't make the same mistake twice. As for Junior, his actions will only enhance his reputation as a class act and a top bloke in the NASCAR paddock.

Heidfeld Struts His Stuff

Finally Heidfeld has a car that can showcase his talents.

For most the first time they will start rating the German will be this year, after a trio of fourth places. Those with a long term interest in the sport will know that this rise to the front of the grid has been a long time coming for Nick. A former McLaren protege, who battled with Juan Montoya for the F3000 (now GP2) title, he had a strong of middle to low end seats that saw his talent wasted.

The closest Heidfeld came to a front line drive was in his first stint at the Sauber team, when he was overlooked for Mika Hakkinen's vacant McLaren seat for his Sauber team-mate Kimi Raikkonen. While Kimi would go on to challenge for the wins and championships over the next few years, Heidfeld became a nomad, driving for Prost, Sauber, Jordan before moving to Williams and showing up his over hyped team-mate Mark Webber.

His performances and BMW's desire to have a German driver in their outfit saw Nick move back to the Sauber bought outfit. This move has seen Heidfeld finally show his true worth with out driving former world champion Villeneuve on many occasion. The arrival of quick rookie Kubica has seen Heidfeld raise his game this year to beat off the upstart with confident performances this year, including a stunning move on champion Alonso at Bahrain.

With his contract up at the end of the year Toyota are said to be sniffing about. A move I think would be bad for Heidfeld given the sleeping Japanese giant's lack of success since they have come in. BMW's insistence on waiting till the end of the year could force Nick's hand, especially with youngster Vettel vying for his seat. The example made of Villeneuve last year will still be in his mind. To drop Nick would be a bad move on the part of BMW. Kubica has shown he still has alot to learn about Formula One and to lose someone of Nick's experience and race craft would be a sad loss for a team aspiring to take on Ferrari and McLaren as the season goes on and afterwards.

Boy Wonder

What more can be said about the début of Lewis Hamilton. The boy done good. For someone in his first grand prix he held his nerve extremely well against the best in the world. It was a début to remember. I don't think anyone, including himself, could've thought things would go so well. His qualifying effort showed the nerve of a seasoned racer and his race pace compared to his team-mate was even more impressive.

For once in his career, Alonso has a team-mate that can more or less match him. This will be a true test for the man many expect to take Schumacher's mantle as the best driver in the sport. Of course he has to adhere to the first rule of racing - you have to beat your team-mate.

The rise of Hamilton's star coincides with the wane of Button's. He is quickly becoming the forgotten man of British support and their realisation that he isn't good enough to become world champion. One thing to watch will be how the pressure tells on Hamilton, especially when he makes mistakes. The British press are talking him up like he is the next messiah. ITV's commentary crew, one that I used to respect so much has also gone this direction with only Brundle as a credible source to listen to. The likes of James Allen and Mark Blundell, who had the audacity to say that Hamilton's qualifying in one of the best cars in Formula One was comparable to Schumacher's in a poor Jordan in 1991, have the lips firmly pressed on Hamilton's butt cheeks.

That is something that I fear will work against Hamilton having a worldwide support. The over hyping and butt-kissing preformed by the press, which should be unbiased and balanced is a clear drive-off. It's a shame because I think the kid has the potential to go all the way.

Honda Go Green

We've heard for months now about Honda going to come up with a new image for the team that would be green. I don't think anyone expected the results. A satellite shot of the world that has been moulded around the car shape. What a horrid scheme. Honda brought in the PR guru Simon Fuller, better known for managing the Spice Girls. Maybe this is why the Spice Girls went downhill.

It’s when one looks beyond the colour scheme and the foray of Honda attempting to do good for the environment that we truly see the deficiencies. The loss of the tobacco sponsorship at the end of the 2006 season saw Honda lose Lucky Strike, which has been the team’s title sponsor since its original inception as BAR in 1999. The attempted appeasement in an age where green politics are all the rage appears to be nothing but a cover up for Honda’s inability to gain a new title sponsorship while its rivals did. Honda spent in the range of $380 million last year. Hardly pocket money and without a major sponsor the manufacture now shoulders the cost.