Formula 1 2008 - Lewis Hamilton World Champion !!!

He's done it !!!

Lewis Hamilton is the new Formula 1 Champion of the World !!!

Felipe Massa won the race which meant Lewis just had to finish 5th or better to take the title. It was far from plain sailing.

A short spell of rain delayed the race by 10 minutes, then stopped. All teams were now in a quandary as to which tyres to use. Not ideal, when Lewis just wanted a nice boring race.

Starting fourth on the grid, Lewis was far less aggressive in turn 1 than last year and focused on keeping the car on circuit. Team mate Kovalainen was able to give him some protective cover.

For most the race, Hamilton concentrated on remaining in the top five, taking as little risk as possible. This was a good plan had it not been for more rain.

Pit stops threw the race up in the air as everyone pitted late on to change to Intermediate tyres from slick low grip. Everyone that is except Toyota driver, Timo Glock. Glock gambled on slicks. This put him way ahead of Hamilton on the track.

Hamilton came out in fifth, the minimum position he needed, but he had, young gun, Sebastian Vettel all over his gear box in the Torro Rosso. Lewis couldn't afford for him to overtake, otherwise the Championship was gone. Vettels car was dealing with the wet conditions a lot better than Hamilton's Mclaren and he struggled to keep ahead.

This was high drama.

Then disaster. Hamilton went wide coming on to the start finish straight with just a few laps to go. Vettel passed by on the inside and heads went down in the Mclaren garage. Lewis tried desperately to keep up with Vettel, but he was slowly edging away, the position had gone. 6th was no good. Meanwhile, Felipe Massa's Ferrari was way ahead of the pack and the title was surely his going into the last lap.

Massa crossed the finish line and all the Ferrari pit crew and Massa's father started to celebrate. He had won! But wait....

Struggling badly on slick tyres, Timo Glock lost 18 seconds on the final lap. Lewis surely couldn't have believed his eyes. Glock was in sight travelling extremely slowly. As they hit the start/finish straight for the last time, Hamilton passed him to retake 5th place and become the youngest Formula 1 World Champion of all time!!!

It was probably the most exciting finish to a World Championship ever. It was absolutely unbelievable. Massa had it, then Lewis came back from the dead within the last quarter of a mile. Championship battles surely can not get any closer than this. Lewis Hamilton wins at the season end by just 1 point.

Next year he races with the coverted Number 1 on his car. One suspects there will be more Championships to come.

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Formula 1 2008 - Brazil - Interlagos Qualifying - Hamilton verses Massa

With just one race left in the F1 Grand Prix Championship, Saturday's qualifying was all important. Interlagos is a relatively short lap circuit, meaning all qualifying times would be very close together with any mistakes being very costly. In terms of the F1 2008 World Champion, it is Lewis Hamiltion verses Phillipe Massa.

Massa set the early pace in the first qualifying session although it was clear that both Ferraris was suffering from slight under steer. Shockingly, both Williams cars were eliminated at this stage. Williams driver, Nico Rosberg said,

"We were suffering from tyre graining, but I didn't think it would go that bad."

David Coulthard, competing in his last Grand Prix sneaked through in 15th place to go the the second session. Unfortunately he could progress no further. The Red Bull car was suffering from tyre graining and was struggling for grip in the second sector.

The second session saw the Toyotas looking unusually fast. It was possible one of them could get in the way of the Hamilton/Massa Championship battle. Both Toro Rossos also looked fast and qualified for the final session in which Kovalainen went quickest.

In the final session, Phillipe Massa grabbed pole position for the third year in succession with an amazing lap of 1:12.368. This was a staggering four tenths quicker than the second place man.

Who was second place man?

Toyota's Jarno Trulli !!!

Although far from disastrous for the Championship, this is not what Lewis needed. One suspects that the Mclaren is a little heavier on fuel than the Toyotas. Kimi Raikonnen made it to third spot with 1:12.825 with Lewis in fourth in a virtually identical time.

Lewis has both Ferraris in front of him, but most worryingly of all, he has Fernando Alonso positioned immediately behind him on the grid. Fernando has publicly said he doesn't want Mclaren to win and would like to see Massa take the Championship. Alonso has nothing to lose and it is likely he will be fairly aggressive going into the first turn. Lewis also threatens breaking Alonso's record of youngest ever F1 Champion... unless some one bumps into him of course.

Trulli has a history of being quick in qualifying and slower in the race. He could well provide a bit of an obstacle with a dangerous unpredictable train of cars behind him.

Pole Position for Massa, 4th for Hamilton. If Lewis can survive the first lap chaos he stands an excellent chance of becoming the youngest driver ever and first black driver to win the Formula 1 World Championship. It is probably that this race will be with incident as rain is also predicted.

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Formula 1 - A Lap of Interlagos

Youtube can be very handy at finding that elusive bit of footage.

The last race of the Formula 1 season happens this Sunday at Interlagos, Brazil. It is a fast undulating track with some segments of tight bends. Here is a Youtube video of the Benetton of a view seasons ago racing a lap. The commentary is from the knowledgeable, Martin Brundle.

The main place for overtaking is the long start/finish straight at the end, under breaking. If you are close enough to the driver in front, there is also a great chance to get a tow in the clean air and pass.

Lewis Hamilton is currently 7 points ahead of Massa in the Championship and is quoted at odds of 1/8 on to win. (That's £8 to win £1). Massa is listed at 9/2. Lewis was in a similar position last year however, but Kimi Raikkonen won at 12/1.

Should be a good race with some controversy and outrageous maneuvers... I hope.

Related Story
Lewis Hamilton, Second Time Lucky?

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Formula 1 2008 - Lewis Hamilton, second time lucky?

He was in a similar position in his rookie year, but things didn't work out. Can it be second time lucky for British F1 Driver, Lewis Hamilton?

If so, he will become the first Brit since Damon Hill in 1996 to win and become the youngest World Champion in F1 History. The record is currently held by Fernando Alonso at 24 years, 59 days. You may have heard of him.

Hamilton leads the Drivers Championship by 7 points with just a single race remaining. The last deciding race takes place this weekend at Interlagos race track, Brazil.

Last year, Hamilton was defeated by Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen for the Championship and this year it is his Brazillian team mate, Phillipe Massa's turn to try to upset the party. 2007 World Champion Raikkonen, has suffered a mysterious drop of form the second half of 2008 and is way out of the running. He could however, still provide a bit of a nuisance to Hamilton during Sunday's Grand Prix.

In interview Hamilton said,

"I know we didn't have the pace to win last year, but things could be very different this season. I'm really looking forward to getting out on the track at Interlagos and seeing where we stand."

Last year, after an eventful race, Lewis was forced to retire with gearbox failure.

Astonishingly, Mclaren haven't had a Drivers World Champion since Mika Hakkinen in 1999. Team Boss, Ron Dennis and all his pit-crew will surely be keeping their fingers crossed as will most of the British viewing public.

Massa was second at Interlagos last year and won the race the previous, we know he is quick at the track. All this makes for a potentially exciting and nail biting race. Phillipe will be racing to become the first Brazillian World Champion since Ayrton Senna. That surely is incentive enough.

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