Lewis Hamilton completed his domination of the week-end in China by a victory Sunday afternoon, in Shanghai.
The British was followed by his rival Felipe Massa who discreetly got passed his teammate Kimi Raikkonen on lap 49 of 56. The tactics is considered "normal" by the vast majority in the paddocks at this stage of the championship, Massa, Raikkonen and Hamilton included.
This was a race of no specific history, except the one of Heikki Kovalainen, the McLaren driver being of the three drivers that had to retire from the race. He at first suffered from a flat, then a technical problem complicated his race and he was forced to retire near the end, on lap 49.
As Hamilton increases his lead in the championship to 7 points on Massa, Ferrari is still leading the Constructors championship with 11 points on McLaren. A fifth place finish in Brazil would be enough for Hamilton to secure the 2008 World Champion title.
Fernando Alonso, Nick Heidfeld, Robert Kubica, Timo Glock and Nelson Piquet were the other drivers in the points Sunday, in China.
Only Hamilton and Massa are still in contention for the 2008 championship. Last race of the season will take place in two weeks, in Sao Paulo, Brazil.
Race Results:
1 - Lewis Hamilton (McLaren MP4/23-Mercedes) - 56 Laps 1.31'57"403
2 - Felipe Massa (Ferrari F2008) - 14"925
3 - Kimi Raikkonen (Ferrari F2008) - 16"445 Laps
4 - Fernando Alonso (Renault R28) - 18"370
5 - Nick Heidfeld (BMW Sauber F1.08) - 28"923
6 - Robert Kubica (BMW Sauber F1.08) - 33"219
7 - Timo Glock (Toyota TF108) - 41"722
8 - Nelson Piquet (Renault R28) - 56"645
9 - Sebastian Vettel (Toro Rosso STR3-Ferrari) - 1'04"339
10 - David Coulthard (Red Bull RB3-Renault) - 16"387
11 - Rubens Barrichello (Honda RA108) - 1'25"061
12 - Kazuki Nakajima (Williams FW30-Toyota) - 1'30"847
13 - Sebastien Bourdais (Toro Rosso STR3-Ferrari) - 1'31"457
14 - Mark Webber (Red Bull RB3-Renault) - 1'32"422
15 - Nico Rosberg (Williams FW30-Toyota) - 1 Lap
16 - Jenson Button (Honda RA108) - 1 Lap
17 - Giancarlo Fisichella (Force India VJM01-Ferrari) - 1 Lap
Fastest Lap: Lewis Hamilton 1'36"325
DNF
Lap 49 - Heikki Kovalainen
Lap 14 - Adrian Sutil
Lap 4 - Jarno Trulli
Drivers' Standings
1.Hamilton 94; 2.Massa 87; 3.Kubica 75; 4.Raikkonen 67; 5.Heidfeld 60; 6.Kovalainen 51; 7.Alonso 53; 8.Trulli, Vettel 30; 10.Webber 21; 11.Glock 22; 12.Piquet 19; 13.Rosberg 13; 14.Barrichello 11; 15.Nakajima 9; 16.Coulthard 8; 17.Bourdais 7; 18.Button 3.
Constructors' Standings
1.Ferrari 156; 2.McLaren 145; 3.Bmw Sauber 135; 4.Renault 72; 5.Toyota 52; 6.Toro Rosso-Ferrari 34; 7.Red Bull-Renault 29; 8.Williams-Toyota 26; 9.Honda 14.
** Non-official Results **
The British was followed by his rival Felipe Massa who discreetly got passed his teammate Kimi Raikkonen on lap 49 of 56. The tactics is considered "normal" by the vast majority in the paddocks at this stage of the championship, Massa, Raikkonen and Hamilton included.
This was a race of no specific history, except the one of Heikki Kovalainen, the McLaren driver being of the three drivers that had to retire from the race. He at first suffered from a flat, then a technical problem complicated his race and he was forced to retire near the end, on lap 49.
As Hamilton increases his lead in the championship to 7 points on Massa, Ferrari is still leading the Constructors championship with 11 points on McLaren. A fifth place finish in Brazil would be enough for Hamilton to secure the 2008 World Champion title.
Fernando Alonso, Nick Heidfeld, Robert Kubica, Timo Glock and Nelson Piquet were the other drivers in the points Sunday, in China.
Only Hamilton and Massa are still in contention for the 2008 championship. Last race of the season will take place in two weeks, in Sao Paulo, Brazil.
Race Results:
1 - Lewis Hamilton (McLaren MP4/23-Mercedes) - 56 Laps 1.31'57"403
2 - Felipe Massa (Ferrari F2008) - 14"925
3 - Kimi Raikkonen (Ferrari F2008) - 16"445 Laps
4 - Fernando Alonso (Renault R28) - 18"370
5 - Nick Heidfeld (BMW Sauber F1.08) - 28"923
6 - Robert Kubica (BMW Sauber F1.08) - 33"219
7 - Timo Glock (Toyota TF108) - 41"722
8 - Nelson Piquet (Renault R28) - 56"645
9 - Sebastian Vettel (Toro Rosso STR3-Ferrari) - 1'04"339
10 - David Coulthard (Red Bull RB3-Renault) - 16"387
11 - Rubens Barrichello (Honda RA108) - 1'25"061
12 - Kazuki Nakajima (Williams FW30-Toyota) - 1'30"847
13 - Sebastien Bourdais (Toro Rosso STR3-Ferrari) - 1'31"457
14 - Mark Webber (Red Bull RB3-Renault) - 1'32"422
15 - Nico Rosberg (Williams FW30-Toyota) - 1 Lap
16 - Jenson Button (Honda RA108) - 1 Lap
17 - Giancarlo Fisichella (Force India VJM01-Ferrari) - 1 Lap
Fastest Lap: Lewis Hamilton 1'36"325
DNF
Lap 49 - Heikki Kovalainen
Lap 14 - Adrian Sutil
Lap 4 - Jarno Trulli
Drivers' Standings
1.Hamilton 94; 2.Massa 87; 3.Kubica 75; 4.Raikkonen 67; 5.Heidfeld 60; 6.Kovalainen 51; 7.Alonso 53; 8.Trulli, Vettel 30; 10.Webber 21; 11.Glock 22; 12.Piquet 19; 13.Rosberg 13; 14.Barrichello 11; 15.Nakajima 9; 16.Coulthard 8; 17.Bourdais 7; 18.Button 3.
Constructors' Standings
1.Ferrari 156; 2.McLaren 145; 3.Bmw Sauber 135; 4.Renault 72; 5.Toyota 52; 6.Toro Rosso-Ferrari 34; 7.Red Bull-Renault 29; 8.Williams-Toyota 26; 9.Honda 14.
** Non-official Results **