Ferrari looking to Dump Kimi Raikkonen

Stefano Domenicali, the Ferrari boss, has given strong indications that Kimi Raikkonen's future with the team may be in doubt.

Raikkonen's contract with Ferrari expires only at the end of the season but rumours persist that Renault's double world champion Fernando Alonso could replace him if his agreement is bought out.

Incidentally, Domenicali was full of praise for Felipe Massa, who easily outperformed Raikkonen last year, winning more races than the eventual world champion Lewis Hamilton.

Lewis Hamilton hits bulls eye in US Grand Prix

"What a dream !" claimed Lewis Hamilton after his stunning victory in the United States Grand Prix over McLaren team - mate Fernando Alonso and certainly what a dream it has been for the young Brit. A reminder to the classic beauty of F1, the race produced some moments of old-fashioned rivalry that makes F1 such a wonderful spectacle.

Vodafone McLaren Mercedes drivers Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso claimed the team’s third one-two finish of the season at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and the third consecutive win for the team. After 73 laps, Fernando finished second 1.5 seconds behind Lewis. Both drivers were on two-stop strategies. Lewis came in on laps 21 (8.8 seconds) and 51 (7.1 seconds) whilst Fernando made his stops on laps 22 (7.6 seconds) and 50 (6.5 seconds). In the Drivers’ Championship, Lewis extended his lead to 58 points ahead of Fernando with 48 points. After four wins in seven out of the season’s 17 races, Vodafone McLaren Mercedes heads the Constructors’ table with 106 points ahead of Ferrari on 71.

LEWIS HAMILTON

“It just keeps getting better and better - what an amazing week this has been. I can’t believe that I have won and am so incredibly grateful to the team who have worked to hard to continue the development which has seen us taking one-two here today. Everything went right; start, pitstops, strategy and I’m really happy. I was under pressure all the way from Fernando and we were both pushing as hard as possible. I made a good start to maintain the advantage but Fernando was right there. In the second stint Fernando managed to get really close when my tyres were graining, and he had a go at the end of the straight, but I was able to keep him behind. It’s been a long and hot day, but I have really enjoyed myself and the support from the fans. “

Frank Williams has never seen anyone like the 22-year-old Hamilton

Frank Williams says that Hamilton never seems like an ordinary 22-year-old man.
Lewis is clearly a very special driver. We have never seen anything like this in F1 before.The 22-year-old leads the championship by eight points over world champion Fernando Alonso much to the delight of Williams.

Williams says Hamilton is like no other driver he has ever seen
Alonso shows Hamilton how it's done

Frank Williams has hailed McLaren driver Lewis Hamilton's achievements this season as "remarkable" and says he has never seen anyone like the 22-year-old.

Hamilton was second-fastest in the second practice session for the Indianapolis grand prix behind team-mate Fernando Alonso and Williams believes Hamilton is unique.

He said: "In my opinion I've never seen anyone arrive and be so successful so quickly.

"That is to say from his first race. It is quite remarkable."

Williams, who has worked with Brazilian legend Ayrton Senna, says he cannot think of any other driver with who Hamilton can be compared.

"I am looking hard to find fault with him and he is very nice, which is quite unusual, too," said the Williams supremo.

The British rookie leads the drivers' world championship standings by eight points from Alonso and remains confident of his prospects at the US grand prix.

Although it is a new track to Hamilton he was still towards the top of the timesheets in practice on Friday.

He said: "We have a pretty good idea of where we are going, and it looks like we should be competitive, but as always Friday is only the start of the weekend - there is a long way to go."

The McLaren driver said he took his time getting to know the track and found some of the section quite tricky.

Alonso will hope to close the gap with his team-mate after this weekend's grand prix and is also hopeful of doing well at Indianapolis.

"This track has never been kind to me, but I really want to do well this weekend," said the Spaniard.

Fernando Alonso Dominates Opening Practice in Indianapolis

Fernando Alonso dominates opening practice in Indianapolis on Friday (15th June) with the fastest laps in each session ahead of Sunday's United States Grand Prix.
Alonso dominates both practice sessions at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

The temperatures at Indy were amongst the highest experienced so far this season but despite the tough conditions for the seventh round of the FIA Formula One World Championship, the Bridgestone Potenzas performed admirably. Alonso’s time on the first day of running was only 1.1 seconds off last year’s pole time. The medium and soft tyre combination has only been previously used at the season-opening Australian Grand Prix.


Alonso set his times on Bridgestone’s soft compound Potenza whilst BMW Sauber’s Nick Heidfeld and Alonso’s team-mate Lewis Hamilton were second and third fastest in the morning session. In the afternoon session, held in even hotter conditions, Hamilton and Ferrari’s Felipe Massa were the second and third fastest. Sebastien Vettel, standing in for Robert Kubica at BMW Sauber, impressed through the day with the fourth fastest time in the morning, and he completed the greatest amount of laps of any driver.

Kees van de Grint, Bridgestone Motorsport Head of Track Engineering Operations said:

“It was a very good session today with no tyre issues to report. The circuit was not at its best which is normal due to this being the first day of running, but despite this both compounds of Potenzas performed well. If we are critical we could say that more grip would be advantageous, but in terms of graining and consistency I am very satisfied. More grip should come as the circuit improves but competitive lap times were already set despite the circuit’s condition.

The soft Potenza was faster, as expected, with a minimum four tenths advantage over the medium Potenza. The temperature levels are not an issue to me as it is the high speeds and the banking here which are the crucial aspects. Although we have had a good day today, we should never be complacent at this circuit. ”

Stats of the Day

Total amount of laps completed by all drivers: 1366

Average number of laps per car: 62 laps

Most laps by a driver: 83 – Sebastian Vettel

Fastest lap: 1min 11.925secs – Fernando Alonso

Compounds: Medium and soft

Qualifying in 2006

Michael Schumacher and Felipe Massa made up an all-Ferrari front row with Schumacher on pole position by over four tenths with a time of 1min 10.832secs. Giancarlo Fisichella (Renault) and Rubens Barrichello (Honda) made up the second row.

Massa Vows to overcome McLaren

Ferrari star Felipe Massa has vowed to bridge the gap on Formula One frontrunners McLaren, starting at this weekend’s United States Grand Prix in Indianapolis.

Ferrari won three of the first four races of the season with Kimi Raikkonen taking the season-opening Australian Grand Prix and Massa winning in Bahrain and Spain.

Then the Ferrari campaign hit the skids, with the team drubbed in Monaco as McLaren’s Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton secured their one-two finish.

Then Massa was disqualified in Canada last weekend as the Brazilian ran a red light exiting the pit lane and Raikkonen was outpaced by BMW Sauber’s Nick Heidfeld, the Williams of Alexander Wurz and Renault’s Heikki Kovalainen as the Finn had to settle for fifth behind race winner Hamilton.

McLaren have a 28-point lead over Ferrari in the constructors’ championship, the sort of dominance enjoyed by the Italian team at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway since 2000, with Michael Schumacher winning six of the seven Grands Prix at the venue.

Alonso not ready to cede to Hamilton

Fernando Alonso has made it clear that he is not ready to give way to the young upstart Lewis Hamilton in yesterday's Montreal Grand Prix.

Alonso whipped around the Montreal Grand Prix track in his McLaren Mercedes in one minute, 16.550 seconds -- more than five-10ths ahead of Ferrari's Felipe Massa (1:17.090) and more than seven-10ths ahead of Hamilton in the other McLaren Mercedes in the second of two practice rounds.

Still, Hamilton's 1:17.307 lap around the 4.361-kilometre track was remarkable in that it was his first trip to the Montreal Grand Prix.

Alonso -- the defending Montreal Grand Prix champion -- and Hamilton are tied atop the world championship with 38 points, but Alonso has the edge with two wins to Hamilton's none. In his most recent win at Monaco, there were complaints that team orders had more to do with Alonso's victory than a faster car, but a probe by FIA -- F-1 racing's ruling body -- cleared the team of any wrongdoing.

Alonso in favour of Hamilton

Formula One champion Fernando Alonso has praised the start to the season made by his team-mate Lewis Hamilton after the furore over the McLaren team allegedly issuing team orders during the Monaco Grand Prix.

The FIA, the sport's governing body, investigated the race after Alonso and Hamilton finished first and second, with claims being made that the young British driver was ordered to back off so he did not put his stablemate under pressure.

But the Spaniard, whose team escaped punishment by the FIA, has welcomed the impact made by Hamilton.

Alonso said: "We need to wait and see how the championship develops but it has been a very good start for the team and Lewis as well."

Fernando Alonso warns rivals ahead of North American double-header

Having claimed the 1-2 in Monaco, which saw Alonso and team-mate Lewis Hamilton lap all the runners except third-placed Felipe Massa, Alonso's confidence is at an all-time high.

And the Spaniard firmly believes that, combined with McLaren's continuous development programme, his Monaco win has given him the advantage ahead of the next race in Canada.

"We have a great momentum in the team right now after such a fantastic result in Monaco, which is a positive way to be going into the North American double-header," he said.

Hamilton sacrifices personal glory for team points

Lewis Hamilton sacrificed personal glory for team points at the prestigious Monaco Grand Prix on Sunday.

The 22-year-old Formula One sensation from Tewin was second around the challenging Monte Carlo street circuit.

He crossed the line four seconds behind team-mate Fernando Alonso as Vodafone McLaren Mercedes claimed their second one-two finish of the season.

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McLaren's "Team Orders" to be investigated by FIA

The FIA has announced that it has launched an investigation into incidents involving the McLaren Mercedes team at the 2007 Monaco Grand Prix, in light of a possible breach of the International Sporting Code. This is based on claims made mainly in the media that the team played its race strategy in such a way as to help Fernando Alonso to win the race, rather than Lewis Hamilton.

The FIA will now review all the available evidence, including any radio calls between the cars and the pits and whatever other data is available. The FIA says it is simply doing its job and if that makes it unpopular that is an unfortunate part of the role of being the regulator. The FIA says that the rules were changed in 2002 after the mess in Austria when Rubens Barrichello backed off to allow Michael Schumacher to win the race.

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Did McLaren Favour Alonso Over Hamilton at the Monaco GP?

In the aftermath of a processional race in which the two McLaren drivers finished first and second with ease, but without fighting each other, Dennis said that McLaren did not favour the 25-year-old Spaniard against the 22-year-old British rookie.

He spoke out after being questioned strongly on the team's strategy and team orders, particularly as Alonso, on pole position, began the race in a car that carried five laps less fuel than Hamilton.

This meant that Alonso was not only in a lighter car for qualifying on Saturday, but also in a lighter, faster car for the first part of the race.

Hamilton accepted this after the race with a long face when he said: "I am in car number two so I am the number two driver."

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Gambling, Luck and the Formula 1 race in Monaco

Gambling will only get you so far. It is nice to win but a lot of the time luck has nothing to do with it. You win by working at it, doing the homework and not because the cards fell in your favour.

Monaco is a city built on a casino, on the foundation that luck can bring you everything you need. But on Sunday in Monte Carlo luck had nothing to with it. McLaren won the event because the team has worked for it. T

he fact that Fernando Alonso took victory in the event meant that Lewis Hamilton was second. He seemed happy with that. When you are in your fifth Grand Prix and have finished on the podium in all five, you are still excited to be there but there was something about the smiles and the body language involved that hinted that Lewis would have been happier to have won.

Everyone likes to win but there are times when luck has nothing to do with it.

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Fernando Alonso Claims Victory at Monaco F1 Race

FERNANDO ALONSO

"This win means a lot to me and our World Championship Campaign. It’s a very nice surprise to see how the team’s hard work during the last couple of weeks has made our car so competitive. I have never had the experience of being more than one minute ahead of the competition which probably makes this one of my best victories. I didn’t get off the line brilliantly from pole position, but as there is such a short run to the first corner I was pretty sure that I would be able to keep the lead. However, as I was able to save fuel in my first stint I was able to stay out for two more laps than originally planned. After that the race was pretty quiet with only the backmarkers causing a few problems especially shortly before my second pitstop when I lost a lot of time. I will enjoy this victory and look forward to the races in North America."

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Lewis Hamilton living out dream rookie season

Lewis Hamilton will continue to live his dream on Sunday when the British racing sensation competes in his first Monaco Formula One Grand Prix as world championship leader.

Getting a maiden career win in the principality in front of the rich and famous would cap one of the most stunning debuts in the sport.

"I am really looking forward to Monaco. It is one of the tracks I have always dreamed of racing at in Formula One. For me it is the best circuit of the year; there is nowhere like it for getting the adrenaline going," said the 22-year-old Briton.

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A Race of Attrition or Sheer Blinding Brilliance by One Man, Monaco Always Delivers

The streets of Monte Carlo always throw up an exciting race. Whether it’s a game of tactics, a race of attrition or sheer blinding brilliance by one man, Monaco always delivers. This time last year we arrived in Monaco with Nelson Piquet Jr at the top of the championship table.

An almost perfect weekend from eventual champion Lewis Hamilton, however, turned the tables well in the Englishman’s favour. With just the one race on the streets of the Principality, the Monaco winner can savour his victory perhaps more than at any other track of the year, and as is traditional, will take his place by Royal Invitation alongside the winner of the Formula One Grand Prix at a gala dinner on Sunday evening.

With Monaco holding its own as one of the truly individual circuits in global Motorsport, it is perhaps unsurprising that the weekend format has been slightly tweaked for this race, allowing more track time but an absolutely miniscule margin for error. Thursday sees one half hour practice session at midday, before the insanity of Friday descends. It’s all go as the Series contests a half hour practice at 09:00 with qualifying taking place at 10:30. With only an hour between sessions, a millimeter mistake could end your weekend before it’s even begun.
On Saturday it is business as usual with a 16:00 start for the 45 lap race. As in 2006, all sessions will be run on Bridgestone’s soft compound Slick Potenza tyres. On a track whose characteristics change not just by the day but by the minute, grip on the narrow streets is essential and on top of the levels of adhesion created by the Bridgestone rubber, the new 2007 aero-kit will also be called on for increased levels of downforce.