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Kimi
Raikkonen picked up three
points for finishing the
Brazilian Grand Prix in
sixth place and Giancarlo
Fisichella brought his F60
home in eleventh spot. With
Lewis Hamilton finishing
third, the situation is that
Ferrari has slipped to fourth place
in the Constructors’
championship, just one point
behind McLaren-Mercedes.
That means there is just one
more chance – at the Yas
Marina circuit in Abu Dhabi
in a fortnight’s time, at
the final race of the
season, for the Scuderia to
reach its long-stated aim of
finishing third in the
Constructors’ Championship.
The winner
of that title, and also the
Drivers’ crown was decided
today, in favour of Brawn GP
and Jenson Button, who
finished fifth, while his
team-mate Rubens Barrichello
managed a single point for
eighth, having started from
pole before encountering his
usual Interlagos misfortune,
picking up a late race
puncture.
The opening
lap effectively ruined
Kimi’s race, after he had
secured a great fifth place
on the grid in yesterday’s
amazing qualifying session.
Barrichello led from Webber
and Kimi was already up to a
point where he could attack
the Red Bull driver, but he
damaged his front wing in
the attempt and had to pit
for a new one. Kovalainen’s
McLaren was also damaged
after spinning at Turn 2,
which affected Giancarlo’s
race, as the Ferrari man was
forced onto the grass, thus
losing momentum. Trulli and
Sutil collided, with the
Force India car also
collecting Alonso’s Renault,
forcing all three of them to
retire. Kovalainen left the
pits just ahead of Kimi, but
the fuel line was still
attached to the McLaren.
Fuel from the nozzle sprayed
all over the Ferrari, with
Kimi temporarily blinded
when he got some in his
eyes. Then, there was a
horrifying moment as the
fuel exploded in a bright
orange ball of flame.
Fortunately, the fire went
out as quickly as it started
and the Finn was able to
continue, albeit at the back
of the pack. He then
produced yet another
stunning drive – how many
there have been this season!
– and eventually took the
chequered flag in sixth
place.
The race win
went to Mark Webber: the
Australian had started from
second on the grid and his
lead was guaranteed when he
was able to run a longer
first stint than
Barrichello. From then on,
he put on a faultless
performance and was never
really worried. One Ferrari
driver was linked to the
winner, as Felipe Massa had
the honour of handling the
chequered flag at the end of
a weekend where he delighted
so many of his friends in
the paddock and the
grandstands by making his
first visit to a Grand Prix,
since his Budapest accident
back in the summer. Webber
was joined on the podium by
BMW’s Robert Kubica and
McLaren’s Lewis Hamilton.
However,
there were other winner’s
today, as a fifth place for
Jenson Button was enough for
the Englishman to clinch the
Drivers’ World Championship
crown, while his Brawn team
are now also unbeatable in
the Constructors’
classification. Red Bull
Racing are guaranteed second
place so the real fight is
now between ourselves and
McLaren-Mercedes, for the
final step of the
Constructors' podium, with
Toyota currently 15.5 points
behind us.
Stefano Domenicali:
“First and foremost, on behalf of the
entire team, I want to congratulate
Jenson Button and Brawn GP for winning
both world championships today. I am
particularly pleased for an old friend
like Ross. As for us, obviously we are
very disappointed, because today we had
the chance to extend our advantage in
the Constructors’ classification, but we
have ended up one point down. What
happened on the opening lap penalised
Kimi heavily, as he had to restart from
the back of the pack. It’s a shame,
because today, our driver could match
the pace of the best and could certainly
have been fighting for a place on the
podium: once again he delivered a great
drive. After yesterday’s qualifying,
Giancarlo started from the back row and
faced a difficult race: he tried his
best, but he could not get into the
points. Now, we look forward to the
final Grand Prix of the season at the
new Yas Marina circuit in Abu Dhabi.
There, we will have to do all we can to
bring home a third place finish in the
championship, which we are very keen to
do and I am sure that all of us, drivers
and team, will do all in our power to
try and reach this target.”
Giancarlo Fisichella:
“Obviously, starting from the back row,
my race was already compromised. Then
there was also the incident with
Kovalainen, who spun in front of me,
forcing me onto the grass, which
prevented me from trying to make up a
few places in the fight on the opening
lap. We had opted for a one-stop
strategy and it was a good one, but in
the final part of the race, the soft
tyres began to develop a bit of graining
and I was not able to match the pace of
those ahead of me and I even lost a
place. On top of that, the KERS worked
in fits and starts. Looking at my
experience with Ferrari so far, I don’t
want to hide that I feel a bit upset, as
there has not been a single weekend in
which everything went to plan. Now we go
to Abu Dhabi which will be a new venue
for everyone: I will do my very best to
help the team retake this third place
which slipped away from us today.”
Kimi Raikkonen:
“What happened on the first lap ruined
my race. First I was hit at the first
corner, then when trying to pass Webber,
I was hit and lost the front wing. At
the pit stop, I ended up with some drops
of petrol in my eye, from the fuel line
stuck on Kovalainen’s car and then I was
engulfed in flames and blinded: I was
going to stop, but luckily the flames
soon went out. Even now, my eyes are
still burning, but I’m alright. After
the restart, I could only try and use
the strategy to move up the order and at
least I brought home a few points. I am
disappointed because today I’m sure we
could have made it to the podium. There
is one race to go: let’s see what we can
do in Abu Dhabi to get back that third
place.”
Chris Dyer: “A
very disappointing race for us.
Yesterday already, Kimi had done a
fantastic job, obtaining a good grid
position and today, he did it again,
climbing up from the back of the pack,
all the way up to sixth place after the
accident with Webber, which meant he had
to pit to change the front wing. At this
moment, his race was compromised, which
is a real shame. With Kimi, we chose to
use the soft tyre first and given how
things went, it was the right decision,
but then we had to use the hards, as the
first part of the race would be very
long. Giancarlo was stuck in traffic in
the first stint and then, when he had a
clear track, his lap times were
reasonable. At the start of his second
stint, when he was on the soft tyres,
his pace was better, but then towards
the end, he suffered with graining. Now
we will do all we can in Abu Dhabi, to
recover the third place that slipped
from our grasp today.”
Race details:
K. Raikkonen: 6th
1:32.56.421 + 33.340, 71 laps, chassis
279
G. Fisichella:
11th 1:33.33.746 + 70.665, 71 laps
Chassis 280
Weather: air
temperature 27 °C, track temperature
33/37°C, partially cloudy
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