66 DECEMBER 2008

FORMULA 1 SEASON REVIEW

As the dust settles and the tears of joy and agony dry up at the end of the 2008 Formula One season, let’s dig into the rivalry that led to the final 30 seconds at Interlagos.BY RAHUL RAVINDRAN

Nobody believed that Felipe Massa was a real contender for the crown in the 2008 season. But

Lewis Hamilton was expected to be in the thick of things with McLaren showing faith in him over a two-time world champion. And the jockey-esque Brazilian did little to help his cause by scoring all of zero points from the first two races of the season. He then turned it around with a win in Bahrain. The topsy-turvy season was to follow this up and down pattern.

MYSTERY MASSA Massa was undeniably the only man on the track who delivered every time it was required. Every time it looked like he was slipping and the world championship was drifting away, he would pull off a string of results which would shut the critics up, and, more importantly, shuffle the leader board.

THE VICTOR AND THE VANQUISHED: Lewis

Hamilton (L) is all smiles after grabbing a championship defning

pole in China while Felipe Massa is seen

here thumping his chest and pointing to his

heart, standing atop the winner’s step on the

podium at the Brazilian Grand Prix.

Wrap!Its a

After his early hiccups, he took off with four straight podiums which included two victories in Bahrain and Turkey. He added another win in France and it seemed like he had finally broken out of the shell of a really good second driver, taking the lead for the first and, surprisingly, only time. Defending world champion Kimi Raikkonen, eventual champion Hamilton and he were all locked at 48 points at the half way mark.

Britain, Germany and Hungary spelt doom for Massa. He scored only four points off these three races when it was really tight at the top. This was horribly disappointing for the millions of Ferrari fans and Hamilton almost had to start looking for a new championship challenger.

Again, Massa responded with two wins in a row – the European and the Belgian Grands Prix. Italy, Singapore and Japan saw him score only five points. Hamilton slipped too, but Massa wasn’t there to snatch it out of his hands. Pinned against the wall, once again, Massa made a fight of it with second place in China and a home win in the last two races to almost pull off one of the greatest championship victories in the history of the sport.

Unfortunately, Massa’s biggest strength was brought out only because of his biggest weakness. Like Hamilton last season, he showed immaturity at crucial points in the season. The F1 world loves him for what he is, but it is said that nice guys don’t make champions and that saying held true again.

CONSISTENT HAMILTON While Massa was busy providing the entertainment with his dramatic circus acts, Hamilton was at his consistent best. Having learnt from last season he knew that no lead was good enough and worked hard to grab every point that was on offer and

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capitalised on every opportunity presented to him. He didn’t score as many as last season, but in no way was this season easier than the last.

His scoring ratio changed and that almost cost him the title this season. Hamilton’s strength, if we analyse his first two seasons, has been the first half of the season. In the first nine races last year, he scored a whopping 70 points while this season he could only conjure up 48, making it tighter than it needed to be. It also didn’t help that it was a close constructors’ battle as well.

Hamilton looked in control for the most part and it almost seemed impossible that he’d throw it away in the last few races again. But the champions of the past had made it a habit to end the season on a high with Michael Schumacher, Fernando Alonso and Raikkonen all scoring 30+ points from the last five races – meaning a podium finish at least with an average of six points a race. Hamilton can count himself lucky in a way, as he has failed to do so in both seasons. He scored 25 and 23 points in the last five races in 2007 and 2008

FORMULA 1 SEASON REVIEW

2008 DRIVERS CHAMPIONSHIPPosition Driver Team Points

1 Lewis Hamilton Mclaren-Mercedes 98

2 Felipe Massa Ferrari 97

3 Kimi Raikkonen Ferrari 75

4 Robert Kubica BMW Sauber 75

5 Fernando Alonso Renault 61

6 Nick Heidfeld BMW Sauber 60

7 Heikki Kovalainen Mclaren-Mercedes 53

8 Sebastian Vettel Scuderia Toro Rosso-Ferrari 35

9 Jarno Trulli Toyota 31

10 Timo Glock Toyota 25

11 Mark Webber Red Bull Racing-Renault 21

12 Nelson Piquet Jr Renault 19

13 Nico Rosberg Williams-Toyota 17

14 Rubens Barrichello Honda 11

15 Kazuki Nakajima Williams-Toyota 9

16 David Coulthard Red Bull Racing-Renault 8

17 Sebastien Bourdais Scuderia Toro Rosso-Ferrari 4

18 Jenson Button Honda 3

19 Giancarlo Fisichella Force India-Ferrari 0

20 Adrian Sutil Force India-Ferrari 0

21 Takuma Sato Super Aguri-Honda 0

22 Anthony Davidson Super Aguri-Honda 0

2008 CONSTRUCTORS CHAMPIONSHIP

Position Constructor Points

1 Ferrari 172

2 Mclaren-Mercedes 151

3 BMW Sauber 135

4 Renault 80

5 Toyota 56

6 Scuderia Toro Rosso-Ferrari 39

7 Red Bull Racing-Renault 29

8 Williams-Toyota 26

9 Honda 14

10 Force India-Ferrari 0

11 Super Aguri-Honda 0

Hamilton’s strengtH,

if we analyse His first two seasons, Has been tHe first

Half of tHe season.

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FORMULA 1 SEASON REVIEW

POINTS PROGRESSION

2008 Hamilton Massa Difference

AUS 10 0 +10

MAL 14 0 +14

BHR 14 10 +4

ESP 24 18 +6

TUR 28 28 0

MON 38 34 +4

CAN 38 38 0

FRA 38 48 -10

GBR 48 48 0

GER 58 54 +4

HUN 62 54 +6

EUR 70 64 +6

BEL 76 74 +2

ITA 78 77 +1

SIN 84 77 +7

JPN 84 79 +5

CHN 94 87 +7

BRA 98 97 +1

respectively. Last year he wasn’t kayoed by a charging Raikkonen who snatched a huge 42 points off the Brit in the last five GPs. Massa could manage only 23 this season. If we look at the points each scored when the other failed to score during a race weekend, Hamilton was a good eight points ahead – 34 to Massa’s 26. This is what he does best and this is what could very well have sealed his maiden crown or the “first of many” as he put it.

But don’t be mistaken,

FAB FERNANDO

After the McLaren debacle, Fernando Alonso was forced to fill the only vacant seat offered by the

French manufacturing giant. They had worked amazingly as a team and the day Alonso left with his double World Championship bling, it was almost like the shock sent their development into a standstill. It seemed like a similar scene when he returned, with Renault struggling through the first half of the season.

But this time it was the testing work of the Spaniard, often overlooked, that was keeping the team busy. The development work seems to be on a completely different level when Alonso is in the garage. Their work paid off and if you look at the last eight races of the season, rather astonishingly, Alonso is right on top; five points clear of Massa and eight points clear of Hamilton. No fluke that!

Through all the forgettable moments that Alonso has been involved in, it has always been clear that you get 100 per cent from him as long as he can see a better future for himself. In keeping with that, the last eight races have helped Renault keep a firm grip on their two-time World Champion – Alonso has extended his contract for another two years. For the big boys, the playing field has been levelled to an extent with the introduction of slicks and a complete change in the aerodynamic setup expected.

Renault seem to have learnt a bit from BMW and are taking it slowly and not rushing their development; it will be extremely interesting to watch if they can join the top three; Renault had a great run but the off season springs huge surprises, both good and bad. At least we know now that if they provide the engine, they have a driver who will bring them glory once again.

BMW: SOBER NO MORE

Finally, a constructor has come out of nowhere and showed the value of systematic and strategic

development in a span of only three years. Formed in 2006, BMW were 170 points off Constructors’ Champions Renault. Last year, they reduced the gulf to 103 points from Ferrari. This year, they were only 37 points off the pace in the race for the Constructors’ Championship.

In their arsenal, they have a young Polish driver, Robert Kubica, who did what no one expected by taking the lead in the Drivers’ Championship and bringing the team their first Grand Prix victory. His future looks only positive. He’s been down and come back from a mid-season crash in 2007. He worked with the team and helped them push the bar higher. Along with Sebastian Vettel, he is one of the fastest, most naturally gifted drivers in the mix. What remains to be seen is whether he can do what Alonso did with Renault to bring home the Championship.

What was really surprising though was the form of Nick Heidfeld. The German, true to his roots, is known for his constancy and controlled aggression, unlike his team-mate. But this season just did not work out for him. He looked out of sorts even when he put in some respectable second place finishes. But BMW have shown complete faith in him by not questioning his worth and assuring him a drive next season; he will have to fire if they are to seriously challenge for the Constructors title.

Mario Thiessen & Co have done in three years what Toyota with their massive budget haven’t been able to for what seems like eons now. If they can consistently rub shoulders with the top two in the business they surely have something super going on in the backyard. So what is the secret?

Mr. Thiessen was unavailable for comment.

Hamilton is a consistent driver, but by no means a bore. In fact, he is one of the most exciting drivers around if not the most. His overtaking manoeuvres are breathtaking and his complete disregard for the opposition is reminiscent of many a past champion. But his show was unfortunately stolen by the character-defining wins produced by a scarlet Brazilian. But do you really think he’s complaining, sitting next to the Drivers Championship Trophy?