The
2007 Formula One season was the 58th
FIA
Formula One World Championship season.
It began on 18 March and ended on 21 October after seventeen
Grands Prix.
The Drivers'
Championship was won by Ferrari
driver
Kimi Räikkönen by one point
at the final race of the
season, making Räikkönen the third Finnish driver to take the
title. An appeal by McLaren
regarding
the legality of some cars in the final race could have altered the
championship standings, but on 16 November, the appeal was
reportedly rejected by the International Court of Appeal,
confirming the championship results. Räikkönen entered the
final race in third position in the drivers' standings, but emerged
as champion after the chequered flag, a feat that had been
accomplished only by
Giuseppe Farina
in
1950.
A major
talking point of the season had been an espionage controversy
involving Ferrari and McLaren, which led
to McLaren being excluded from the World Constructors'
Championship. As a result,
Ferrari clinched the championship at the
Belgian Grand Prix.
The 2007 season was significant in that it heralded the end of the
existing
Concorde Agreement
between the existing
Formula One constructors
and
Bernie Ecclestone. In
particular,
Mercedes-Benz,
BMW, and
Honda (collectively the
Grand Prix
Manufacturers' Association) had a number of outstanding
disagreements with the FIA and Ecclestone on financial and
technical grounds. They had threatened to boycott Formula One from
the 2008 season onwards and instead stage their own rival series,
before signing a
memorandum
of understanding (MoU) at the
2006 Spanish Grand Prix.
The
2007 Australian Grand
Prix was the first time since the
1986 Spanish Grand Prix that there
was a Formula One field without a
Cosworth
engine.
This was the last season for all the race cars to use
traction control since
2001.
Honda F1 ran with an "Earth livery" on
their
RA107 car, the first time since
1968, when sponsorship in
the sport became widespread, that a team ran sponsor-free for an
entire season.
Pre-season testing
Pre-season
testing began in November 2006 at the
Circuit de
Catalunya
, with ten of the eleven teams participating in the
test sessions. The most notable absentees were Fernando Alonso and Kimi Räikkönen, who were still
under contract at Renault
and McLaren
respectively. Jenson Button was
also absent as he had suffered a hairline fracture on his ribs
after a go-karting accident in preparations for the November tests.
Lewis Hamilton made his first
appearance in a McLaren since being confirmed as Alonso's team-mate
for 2007.
Felipe Massa topped the times on the
first two days of testing.
Massa's testing partner, Luca Badoer, took the fastest time on the third
day, although interest was on the fact that double World Champion
Mika Häkkinen joined Hamilton and
de la Rosa at McLaren for a one off test, although the Finnish
driver was
over three seconds slower then Badoer's time, completing 79 laps of
the Spanish
circuit. He hopes to be of continued benefit to McLaren over
the coming winter.
The other big story of 2007 is the return to a single tyre formula
(
Bridgestone). It is possible that this
accounts for some of the reason why Ferrari led the most recent
test, although it has been claimed by Bridgestone that the 2007
tyre is of a completely new build, thus minimising any real benefit
for the 2006 Bridgestone teams (
Ferrari,
Toyota,
Williams,
Midland/
Spyker and
Super Aguri).
Toyota was the only team out for the fourth day of
testing at Barcelona, as the Japanese
works team
chose to miss the first day of testing. Both
Ralf Schumacher and
Jarno Trulli's fastest laps were quicker than
Massa and Badoer's times during the previous three sessions.
Testing
resumed on December 6 at Jerez
, with the majority of teams attending the
session. Both Ferraris of Massa and Badoer were first and
second fastest, with McLaren's Lewis Hamilton making up the top
three in third. Hamilton improved on his position the following day
by taking the fastest time, a second faster than Renault's
Giancarlo Fisichella.
Japanese works teams
Honda and
Toyota topped the times for the next two
days of testing: Honda's
Rubens
Barrichello and Toyota's
Franck
Montagny were fastest, although Toyota had the Jerez track to
themselves when Montagny took the fastest time.
Heikki Kovalainen and
Pedro de la Rosa took the fastest times on
the fourth and fifth day of testing at Jerez. Also of note, on the
last day of testing Fernando Alonso made his McLaren testing debut
after an agreement with manager
Flavio
Briatore. This did not call for an end to his agreement (which
ended on the 31st of December).
Teams and drivers
The following
teams
and
drivers participated
in the 2007 Formula One season. Drivers are numbered as per the
official FIA 2007 entry list. All team details are as per the
Formula 1
Official Website, except where noted. Note that there is no
driver number 13 as per the historical tradition.
Notes
- All engines conform to the Formula One 2.4L V8 specifications
introduced in 2006.
- Test drivers in bold have taken part in Friday practices during
Grand Prix weekends
New car launches
The following teams launched their 2007 entries as below.
| Constructor |
Chassis |
Launch Date |
Launch Location |
| Toyota |
TF107 |
January 12 |
Cologne, Germany |
| Ferrari |
F2007 |
January 14 |
Fiorano Circuit , Maranello , Italy |
McLaren -Mercedes |
MP4-22 |
January 15 |
Circuit de Valencia , Spain |
| BMW Sauber |
F1.07 |
January 16 |
Circuit de Valencia, Spain |
| Renault |
R27 |
January 24 |
Amsterdam , Netherlands |
| Red
Bull-Renault |
RB3 |
January 26 |
Circuit de Catalunya, Spain |
| Williams-Toyota |
FW29 |
February 2 |
Grove, Oxfordshire , United
Kingdom |
| Spyker-Ferrari |
F8-VII |
February 5 |
Silverstone Circuit , United
Kingdom |
| Toro Rosso-Ferrari |
STR2 |
February 13 |
Circuit de Catalunya, Spain |
| Honda |
RA107 |
February 26 |
London , United
Kingdom |
| Super Aguri-Honda |
SA07 |
March 14 |
Melbourne , Australia |
Formula One 2007 race schedule
| Rd. |
Official Race Title |
Grand Prix |
Circuit |
Date |
Time |
| Local |
UTC |
| 1 |
ING Australian
Grand Prix |
Australian GP |
Albert Park Grand Prix
Circuit , Melbourne |
18 March |
14:00 |
03:00 |
| 2 |
Petronas Malaysian
Grand Prix |
Malaysian GP |
Sepang International Circuit , Kuala
Lumpur |
8 April |
15:00 |
07:00 |
| 3 |
Gulf Air Bahrain
Grand Prix |
Bahrain GP |
Bahrain International Circuit , Sakhir |
15 April |
14:30 |
11:30 |
| 4 |
Gran Premio de España Telefónica |
Spanish GP |
Circuit de Catalunya, Barcelona |
13 May |
14:00 |
12:00 |
| 5 |
Grand Prix de Monaco |
Monaco GP |
Circuit de Monaco , Monte-Carlo |
27 May |
14:00 |
12:00 |
| 6 |
Grand Prix du Canada |
Canadian GP |
Circuit Gilles Villeneuve , Montreal |
10 June |
13:00 |
17:00 |
| 7 |
United States Grand
Prix |
United States GP |
Indianapolis Motor Speedway |
17 June |
13:00 |
17:00 |
| 8 |
Grand Prix de France |
French GP |
Circuit de Nevers , Magny-Cours |
1 July |
14:00 |
12:00 |
| 9 |
Santander
British
Grand Prix |
British GP |
Silverstone Circuit |
8 July |
13:00 |
12:00 |
10
|
Grand Prix of Europe |
European GP |
Nürburgring |
22 July |
14:00 |
12:00 |
| 11 |
Magyar Nagydíj |
Hungarian GP |
Hungaroring , Budapest |
5 August |
14:00 |
12:00 |
| 12 |
Petrol Ofisi
Turkish
Grand Prix |
Turkish GP |
Istanbul Park |
26 August |
15:00 |
12:00 |
| 13 |
Gran Premio d'Italia |
Italian GP |
Autodromo Nazionale Monza |
9 September |
14:00 |
12:00 |
| 14 |
ING Belgian
Grand Prix |
Belgian GP |
Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps , Spa |
16 September |
14:00 |
12:00 |
| 15 |
Fuji Television Japanese Grand
Prix |
Japanese GP |
Fuji Speedway , Oyama |
30 September |
13:30 |
04:30 |
| 16 |
Sinopec Chinese
Grand Prix |
Chinese GP |
Shanghai International
Circuit |
7 October |
14:00 |
06:00 |
| 17 |
Grande Prêmio do Brasil |
Brazilian GP |
Autódromo
José Carlos Pace , São
Paulo |
21 October |
14:00 |
16:00 |
- On 29 August 2006,
The FIA published a provisional calendar for the 2007 Formula One
season. The San Marino
and European Grands Prix were excluded, although the European
round would later make a comeback (see below). The final
calendar (above), which confirmed that the San Marino Grand Prix
would not return, was released on October
18, 2006.
- For
the first time in nearly half a century, there was not a German Grand
Prix
in 2007 after the 2 Grands Prix previously held in
Germany begin to
alternate between Hockenheim
and Nürburgring. Hockenheim controls the descriptor "German Grand
Prix" and an agreement could not be reached between the
two circuits for the naming rights. The Nürburgring event
therefore retained its usual Grand Prix of Europe title.
- It
had been suggested that the Italian Grand Prix might do the same,
swapping between Monza and Imola
, but this now appears to have been rejected with
the possibility that Imola could again host the San Marino
Grand Prix in 2008.
- After
twenty years, the Japanese Grand
Prix will move from the Honda-owned
Suzuka
Circuit
to Toyota's rebuilt Fuji Speedway, a circuit that F1 has not raced at since 1977.
- For the first time since 1975, all races are held in
different countries (only one race for any one nation).
Changes
Rule changes
- Although the FIA had planned to introduce a regulation single
tyre manufacturer from 2008, there will be a sole supplier
(Bridgestone) from 2007 to 2010, since
Bridgestone's only rival, Michelin, ended
their participation in Formula One after the 2006 season.
- Tyres are supplied in accordance with the revised Sporting
Regulations, which provide for a total of 14 sets of dry weather
tyres per driver over the race weekend: four sets for Friday only,
and 10 for the rest of the weekend.
- Also, during the race, both compounds of tyre (hard and soft)
have to be used at least once during the race. Initially, in the
Australian Grand Prix, soft tyres were marked with a white spot.
However, this was difficult to see when the car was in motion and,
as of the Malaysian Grand Prix, one of the four grooves in the soft
compound tyre is painted white.
- The teams finishing 5th–11th in the previous seasons'
Constructors' Championship are no longer allowed to run a third car
on Friday following a rule change. The teams that finish 1st–4th
are already banned from doing so.
- Engine development is frozen from the 2006 Japanese Grand Prix,
with these engines being used for the whole of 2007 and 2008. This
is described as engine "homologation" by the FIA. It was previously
set to be introduced in 2008.
- All cars are fitted with red, blue and yellow cockpit lights.
The purpose is to give drivers information concerning track signals
or conditions. The lights must be LEDs each with
a minimum diameter of 5 mm and which are fitted in order that
they are directly in the driver’s normal line of sight.
- In order to give rescue crews an immediate indication of
accident severity each car must be fitted with a warning light
which is connected to the FIA data logger. The light must face
upwards and be recessed into the top of the survival cell no more
than 150 mm from the car centre line and the front of the
cockpit opening and as near to the marshal neutral switch as is
practical.
- The two Friday practice sessions expanded from 60 minutes to 90
minutes. All teams are allowed to use two cars, which may be driven
by either the two race drivers or a nominated third driver.
- The engine penalty is now only applied in the second day of the
grand prix weekend. Any engine change in the first day is not
penalised.
- No car is allowed to enter the pits to refuel during a safety car period until all cars are in the group
following the safety car and they have been advised that the pit
lane is now open. This prevents drivers from racing to the pits
immediately after a safety car is deployed. In addition, any lapped
cars in front of a car on the lead lap are required to pass the
safety car and restart at the end of the line-up instead of
maintaining their physical position.
- The Formula One teams have unanimously agreed to the voluntary
early introduction of the testing agreement scheduled for 2008.
This limits each team to an annual limit of 30,000 km.
- The team's second car now has to run with a yellow coloured
roll bar instead of a black one. The first cars will still run with
a red/orange roll bar. This is intended to help spectators
distinguish between first and second cars at further
distances.
Driver changes
- 2005
and 2006 World Champion Fernando
Alonso switched to McLaren after 5
years at Renault.
- Juan Pablo Montoya, who was a
McLaren driver until aftermath of the 2006 United States Grand Prix
moved to NASCAR, racing in the Nextel Cup series for 2007, effectively ending
his Formula One career, as announced on July
9, 2006.
- On August 2, 2006,
Williams announced that test and reserve
driver Alexander Wurz would step up
to a race seat for 2007, replacing Australian Mark
Webber.
- On August 7, 2006,
Red Bull Racing announced their 2007
driver line-up of David Coulthard
and Mark Webber, displacing Christian Klien.
- On August 7, 2006,
BMW Sauber announced that Jacques Villeneuve's contract had been
terminated immediately and for the rest of the season would be
replaced by test driver Robert Kubica.
Kubica was later announced on October 19,
2006 to retain the race seat for the 2007
season, with Sebastian Vettel
remaining as the team's test driver. On December 21, 2006 BMW
announced GP2 driver Timo Glock as their second test driver.
- On
September 6, 2006,
Renault confirmed
Heikki Kovalainen as the team's
replacement for Fernando
Alonso.
- On September 10, 2006, Scuderia Ferrari
confirmed Kimi Räikkönen as
a replacement for the retiring Michael Schumacher.
- On November 15, 2006, Super Aguri
confirmed Anthony Davidson as
Sakon Yamamoto's replacement.
- On
November 24, 2006,
McLaren confirmed
Lewis Hamilton as their second
driver.
- On December 21, 2006, Spyker confirmed
Adrian Sutil as their first
driver.
- On July 10, 2007,
Spyker announced that Christijan Albers would no longer be
driving for the team. The given reason was a failure to pay
sponsorship monies due. Markus
Winkelhock raced Spyker's second car at the European Grand
Prix.
- On
July 25, 2007 Spyker
confirmed that the Japanese driver Sakon Yamamoto
would compete in the remaining seven Grand Prix for
them.
- On July 31, 2007,
Scuderia Toro Rosso replaced
Scott Speed with BMW test driver
Sebastian Vettel following an
alleged physical altercation between Speed and STR Team Principal
Franz Tost.
- On October 8, 2007, Williams driver
Alexander Wurz announced his
immediate retirement from Formula One racing. Williams test driver
Kazuki Nakajima replaced Wurz for
the Brazilian Grand
Prix.
Team changes
- Ferrari technical director,
Ross Brawn, was to take a sabbatical year for 2007, after 10 seasons
at the Italian team. However, it was later announced that he would
leave the team. In 2008,
Ross Brawn is working with Honda.
- McLaren changed their name to Vodafone McLaren Mercedes after signing a primary sponsorship
deal with the telecommunications company late in 2005.
- With the loss of Vodafone, Scuderia Ferrari began work Alice, a brand of Telecom Italia.
- Mild Seven
confirmed that they would not renew their contract with Renault following its conclusion at the end of 2006 due to
current European tobacco laws.
- British American
Tobacco's Lucky Strike and 555 brands ceased to sponsor the Honda F1 team, leaving them to seek another primary
sponsor.
- Williams changed their engines from
Cosworth to Toyota
in a three-year deal. Contrary to recent speculation, the engines
will not be rebadged as Lexus.
- On September 9, 2006, MF1 Racing was
officially sold to a Dutch-Arab consortium owned by Michiel Mol, along with the aid of Spyker Cars. The team has officially been
renamed Spyker MF1 Team, keeping the MF1 for the rest
of the season due to Concorde Agreement rules.
- On September 30, 2006, Spyker announced that
their engine supplier would be Ferrari.
- On
October 16, 2006,
Renault confirmed that the Dutch banking
company, ING, would become their main
sponsor to replace Mild
Seven.
- On October 20, 2006, Williams announced
AT&T as their new main sponsor.
- On October 24, 2006, Spyker announced they
would change their name from Spyker MF1 Team to Spyker
F1 from 2007 onwards, subject to all other teams giving their
agreement.
- On October 31, 2006, Red Bull confirmed
their engine situation for 2007. Renault engines was used by Red
Bull Racing, while Scuderia Toro
Rosso used Ferrari
engines.
- On
March 15, 2007, Spyker
announced their new title sponsor for the 2007 season: United Arab
Emirates
airline company Etihad
Airways.
Television coverage
- Formula One Management
became the sole host
broadcaster for all but three of the 17 Grands Prix in 2007.
All coverage was produced in anamorphic
16:9 widescreen for the first time.
- ITV Sport, Premiere, OBN, ORF1, RTL7, TF1
and
TV3 were among the first
broadcasters to provide a standard 16:9 widescreen programme at the
opening race in Australia.
- For the United States TV coverage, except Speed Channel, FOX also broadcast 4 Formula One
races. Those were the 2007
Canadian Grand Prix, 2007 United States Grand Prix,
2007 French Grand Prix and
2007 British Grand Prix. The
2007 Canadian Grand Prix
and 2007 United States
Grand Prix were televised live.
- In Poland, F1 broadcast has been moved into Polsat from
TV4.
Circuits
- A new chicane has been inserted into the straight between
Europcar and New Holland (final corner) at the Circuit de
Catalunya, Barcelona. This was installed in order to slow the cars
down before the long main straight, and provide more overtaking
opportunities into turn 1.
- Spa has also undergone track changes, with a new paddock area,
a reprofiled Bus Stop Chicane, an extension of the start-finish
straight and a change to La Source hairpin.
- The
largest-scale repair in the last 35 years will be done to Autódromo
José Carlos Pace in São
Paulo, Brazil
, to
fundamentally solve problem of the asphalt. All present
asphalt will be removed and replaced with new asphalt. At the same
time, the pit lane entrance will be enhanced to improve safety. The
circuit is closed and no event held for five months to work, from
June to October, until immediately before the event.
Results, standings and statistics
Grands Prix
- † Fernando Alonso qualified in
pole position but was demoted 5 places due to blocking Lewis Hamilton in the pit lane.
- ‡
McLaren were not awarded a trophy on the
podium.
- ‡*
McLaren were not awarded constructors points or a trophy on
the podium.
Drivers
- † Driver did not finish but was classified, having completed
more than 90% of race distance.
Drivers statistics
Constructors
| Pos |
Constructor |
Car
No. |
AUS
|
MAL
|
BHR
|
ESP
|
MON
|
CAN
|
USA
|
FRA
|
GBR
|
EUR
|
HUN
|
TUR
|
ITA
|
BEL
|
JPN
|
CHN
|
BRA
|
Pts |
| 1 |
Ferrari |
5 |
6 |
5 |
1 |
1 |
3 |
DSQ |
3 |
2 |
5 |
2 |
13 |
1 |
Ret |
2 |
6 |
3 |
2 |
204 |
| 6 |
1 |
3 |
3 |
Ret |
8 |
5 |
4 |
1 |
1 |
Ret |
2 |
2 |
3 |
1 |
3 |
1 |
1 |
| 2 |
BMW
Sauber |
9 |
4 |
4 |
4 |
Ret |
6 |
2 |
Ret |
5 |
6 |
6 |
3 |
4 |
4 |
5 |
14† |
7 |
6 |
101 |
| 10 |
Ret |
18 |
6 |
4 |
5 |
Ret |
8 |
4 |
4 |
7 |
5 |
8 |
5 |
9 |
7 |
Ret |
5 |
| 3 |
Renault |
3 |
5 |
6 |
8 |
9 |
4 |
DSQ |
9 |
6 |
8 |
10 |
12 |
9 |
12 |
Ret |
5 |
11 |
Ret |
51 |
| 4 |
10 |
8 |
9 |
7 |
13 |
4 |
5 |
15 |
7 |
8 |
8 |
6 |
7 |
8 |
2 |
9 |
Ret |
| 4 |
Williams-Toyota |
16 |
7 |
Ret |
10 |
6 |
12 |
10 |
Ret |
9 |
12 |
Ret |
7 |
7 |
6 |
6 |
Ret |
16 |
4 |
33 |
| 17 |
Ret |
9 |
11 |
Ret |
7 |
3 |
10 |
14 |
13 |
4 |
14 |
11 |
13 |
Ret |
Ret |
12 |
10 |
| 5 |
Red
Bull-Renault |
14 |
Ret |
Ret |
Ret |
5 |
14 |
Ret |
Ret |
13 |
11 |
5 |
11 |
10 |
Ret |
Ret |
4 |
8 |
9 |
24 |
| 15 |
13 |
10 |
Ret |
Ret |
Ret |
9 |
7 |
12 |
Ret |
3 |
9 |
Ret |
9 |
7 |
Ret |
10 |
Ret |
| 6 |
Toyota |
11 |
8 |
15 |
12 |
Ret |
16 |
8 |
Ret |
10 |
Ret |
Ret |
6 |
12 |
15 |
10 |
Ret |
Ret |
11 |
13 |
| 12 |
9 |
7 |
7 |
Ret |
15 |
Ret |
6 |
Ret |
Ret |
13 |
10 |
16 |
11 |
11 |
13 |
13 |
8 |
| 7 |
Toro
Rosso-Ferrari |
18 |
14 |
17 |
Ret |
Ret |
Ret |
Ret |
17 |
Ret |
16 |
Ret |
Ret |
15 |
17 |
12 |
9 |
6 |
13 |
8 |
| 19 |
Ret |
14 |
Ret |
Ret |
9 |
Ret |
13 |
Ret |
Ret |
Ret |
16 |
19 |
18 |
Ret |
Ret |
4 |
Ret |
| 8 |
Honda |
7 |
15 |
12 |
Ret |
12 |
11 |
Ret |
12 |
8 |
10 |
Ret |
Ret |
13 |
8 |
Ret |
11 |
5 |
Ret |
6 |
| 8 |
11 |
11 |
13 |
10 |
10 |
12 |
Ret |
11 |
9 |
11 |
18 |
17 |
10 |
13 |
10 |
15 |
Ret |
| 9 |
Super
Aguri-Honda |
22 |
12 |
13 |
Ret |
8 |
17 |
6 |
Ret |
16 |
14 |
Ret |
15 |
18 |
16 |
15 |
15 |
14 |
12 |
4 |
| 23 |
16 |
16 |
16 |
11 |
18 |
11 |
11 |
Ret |
Ret |
12 |
Ret |
14 |
14 |
16 |
Ret |
Ret |
14 |
| 10 |
Spyker-Ferrari |
20 |
17 |
Ret |
15 |
13 |
Ret |
Ret |
15 |
17 |
Ret |
Ret |
17 |
21 |
19 |
14 |
8 |
Ret |
Ret |
1 |
| 21 |
Ret |
Ret |
14 |
14 |
19 |
Ret |
14 |
Ret |
15 |
Ret |
Ret |
20 |
20 |
17 |
12 |
17 |
Ret |
| EX |
McLaren-Mercedes |
1 |
2 |
1 |
5 |
3 |
1 |
7 |
2 |
7 |
2 |
1 |
4† |
3 |
1 |
3 |
Ret |
2 |
3 |
0‡ (203†) (218) |
| 2 |
3 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
3 |
3 |
9 |
1† |
5 |
2 |
4 |
1 |
Ret |
7 |
| Pos |
Constructor |
Car
No. |
AUS
|
MAL
|
BHR
|
ESP
|
MON
|
CAN
|
USA
|
FRA
|
GBR
|
EUR
|
HUN
|
TUR
|
ITA
|
BEL
|
JPN
|
CHN
|
BRA
|
Pts |
|
|
- † After an incident at the end of Qualifying Session 3 at the
Hungarian Grand Prix, an
FIA decision was made that, due to team infringements during
qualifying, McLaren would not be awarded any points. The drivers,
however, do retain the points won. (Alonso was demoted five places
from pole on the start grid).
15 points were lost by the team in this event. This punishment
could have been appealed, but the team did not following the
greater punishment later.
- ‡ McLaren lost all their points in the Constructors
Championship as a result of a World Motorsport Council decision
over the espionage
controversy.
Constructors statistics
- † After an incident at the end of Qualifying Session 3 at the
Hungarian Grand Prix, an
FIA decision was made that, due to team infringements during
qualifying, McLaren would not be awarded any points. The drivers,
however, do retain the points won. (Alonso was demoted five places
from pole on the start grid).
15 points were lost by the team in this event. This punishment
could have been appealed, but the team did not following the
greater punishment later.
- ‡ McLaren lost all their points in the Constructors
Championship as a result of a World Motorsport Council decision
over the espionage
controversy.
Season review
Races
First races without Michael Schumacher
The season started at
Albert Park in
Australia on 18 March and Kimi Räikkönen took a lights to flag
victory there with Fernando Alonso coming second and debutant Lewis
Hamilton finishing 3rd. Felipe Massa took his first pole of the
season in Malaysia but Fernando Alonso won his first race with
McLaren with rookie, Lewis Hamilton, continuing his excellent pace
to finish second. Felipe Massa won from lights to flag in Bahrain
and Spain and in both races Lewis Hamilton finished second,
becoming the first rookie to finish on the podium in more than his
first two outings. McLaren would dominate Monaco with Fernando
Alonso winning from Lewis Hamilton after the pair had lapped
everybody apart from themselves and Felipe Massa, who was not too
far from being lapped.
Drama and controversy
The Canadian GP was a very dramatic affair with 4 safety car
periods and one of the biggest crashes of Formula One in recent
years. The race started off with the second all McLaren front row
with Lewis Hamilton taking his first pole position followed by
Fernando Alonso. Alonso made a mistake in turn 1 losing several
places while Lewis Hamilton was opening a gap between himself and
Nick Heidfeld. On lap 22 the first safety car period began after
Adrian Sutil hit the cement wall. The safety car went into the pits
on lap 28 but before the lap could be completed Robert Kubica made
one of the most bizarre accidents in the history of Formula One. He
apparently lost his front wing after hitting Jarno Trulli. He then
went wide and hit a bump on the grass that launched him into the
air and into a massive impact with the retaining barrier at a peak
G Force of 75G. The safety car was once again deployed and went in
on lap 35. Lewis Hamilton once again opened up a gap to second
placed Nick Heidfeld until lap 50 when Christian Albers left a lot
of debris on the track after a crash forcing the deployment of the
safety car. The race restarted on lap 55 and was deployed again on
lap 56 after Vitantonio Liuzzi hit the so called `Wall of
Champions`. The safety car period was extended after Jarno Trulli
hit the tyre barrier at the exit of the pitlane after trying to
catch up with the field. On the restart Lewis Hamilton led to the
finish to claim his maiden win in only his sixth race. The next
race at Indianapolis saw Lewis Hamilton take a lights to flag
victory after a 300kph side by side battle with Fernando Alonso for
the lead. Ferrari took their first 1-2 finish in France with Kimi
Räikkönen winning from polesitter, Felipe Massa.
In Britain Lewis Hamilton thrilled his home crowd by taking his
third pole position in front of them. It wasn't to last, however,
he went on to finish a distant third behind winner, Kimi Räikkönen
and Fernando Alonso. Europe (Germany) would see Lewis Hamilton's
run of consecutive podiums come to an end. After a mighty crash in
qualifying he started in 10th in the race. On lap 4 he aquaplaned
off the circuit in a torrential rainstorm but fortunately for him
the race was stopped. He restarted after his car was pulled out of
the gravel but after taking a gamble to change to dries on a drying
track he spun off several times but recovered to finish 9th, just
missing out on the final point.
After a controversial qualifying incident between
Fernando Alonso and
Lewis Hamilton, Alonso was demoted to 6th on
the grid at the
Hungarian
Grand Prix. Lewis Hamilton then took a lights to flag victory
with Raikkönen coming second. In Turkey Felipe Massa took a
dominant lights to flag victory followed by Kimi Raikkönen and
Fernando Alonso. Lewis Hamilton finished fifth after he suffered a
tyre failure while running in 3rd. In Italy Fernando Alonso won
from Lewis Hamilton followed by Kimi Raikkönen. In Belgium
Raikkönen won from Felipe Massa and Fernando Alonso.
Dramatic season conclusion
The Japanese Grand Prix moved to Fuji Speedway and this event was
marked by treacherous weather and was started under safety car
conditions. Lewis Hamilton survived a brush with Robert Kubica to
win from Heikki Kovalainen and Kimi Räikkönen. At the last 3
corners Robert Kubica and Felipe Massa ran side by side in a battle
for 6th and Fernando Alonso aquaplaned and crashed on lap 41 of 67.
In China Lewis Hamilton won his 6th pole of the season and led up
to lap 28 when he was overtaken by Kimi Räikkönen and he then spun
off entering the pitlane. The season finale marked the first time
since 1986 that 3 drivers had a chance of becoming world champion
at the season finale, and the first time since the inaugural season
in 1950 that the man stood in third before the final race went on
to win the championship, the driver then being Giuseppe Farina.
Lewis Hamilton was the favourite with 107 points followed by
Fernando Alonso on 103 points and Kimi Räikkönen on 100 points.
Lewis Hamilton started 2nd but dropped to the back of the pack
after a gearbox problem. He recovered to 7th but Kimi Räikkönen won
the race and the championship. The final standings were Räikkönen
on 110 points followed by Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso each
on 109 points.
References
- San Marino, Europe dropped for '07 Formula1.com.
Retrieved 29 August 2006
- FIA 2006 Technical Regulations FIA.Com Article 22. Retrieved 26 September
2006
- Longer Friday practice among 2007 changes. Retrieved
October 19,
2006.
- Vettel replaces Speed at Toro Rosso
autosport.com, retrieved on August 3, 2007.
- McLaren hit with constuctors' ban, BBC News
article (Retrieved 13 September 2007)
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