Renault Rolls in Malaysia
The second round of the 2006 Formula 1 World Championship did little to show a definite favourite to earn world champion
status. Renault's Giancarlo Fisichella took the pole and checkered flag from teammate and defending world champion Fernando Alonso.
Behind the lead two, things were somewhat clouded. Both Williams cars - that have shown great speed - retired, as did McLaren's Kimi Raikkonen, who had contact in the first corner [remember what I said last week about bad luck for Raikkonen]. Jenson Button dragged his Honda up to third, with Juan Pablo Montoya in fourth. For Canadians, seeing Jacques Villeneuve pass Jarno Trulli's Toyota to finish a solid seventh was enough to bring smiles to many faces.
Ferrari
had a decent enough race, but Felipe Massa passed team leader Michael Schumacher on the last stop and finished ahead of the seven time world champion. Given Michael's comments from round one, where he said "every point is important", it would have seemed possible that Massa might have gone a little too deep, or a little wide somewhere to let Michael through - maybe times are finally changing at Ferrari.
Probably the biggest 'truth' to come out of Malaysia was the performance of Rubens Barrichello. Remember I pointed out that for former Ferrari drivers life tends not to be too rosy after leaving the stables of the prancing horses. Barrichello,
despite what he seems to think, is consistently 1 to 1.5 seconds a lap off of Button's time.
"It's certainly been an eventful weekend and it was disappointing to end it with a stop-go penalty when I was in with a chance of at least coming away with a few points," Barrichello said after the race. "These past two races have been a bit of a learning curve, but I'm sure things will pick up for the next few races and we can start to realize more of the car's potential."
Right.... Rubens, want to see the car's potential? Look at your teammate's performance.
Obviously,
Fisichella was very happy with the win, but I wouldn't get too wound up just yet. Fisichella has won early on before and been nowhere the rest of the year, so to call him a legitimate threat just yet is a little premature.
"It was a perfect race for me, but it was very tough physically and mentally," said Fisichella. "It was really, really hot out there and I began to feel it from mid-race onwards. I knew it would be hard but there was no choice but to push all the way to the end. So I did. I didn't want to lose concentration in the last laps, and everything went well, the car and engine were perfect too. I am really so happy for this win."
As the series heads to Australia, Alonso is in good shape, and should the reliability and speed of his Renault stay the way it is now, it could be tough for anyone - other than Schumacher - to make a serious run at the title.
The second round of the 2006 Formula 1 World Championship did little to show a definite favourite to earn world champion
 |
| Renault's Giancarlo Fisichella maintained front position from beginning of the Malaysian Grand Prix to the end. (Photo: Renault F1) |
Behind the lead two, things were somewhat clouded. Both Williams cars - that have shown great speed - retired, as did McLaren's Kimi Raikkonen, who had contact in the first corner [remember what I said last week about bad luck for Raikkonen]. Jenson Button dragged his Honda up to third, with Juan Pablo Montoya in fourth. For Canadians, seeing Jacques Villeneuve pass Jarno Trulli's Toyota to finish a solid seventh was enough to bring smiles to many faces.
Ferrari
 |
| Seeing Jacques Villeneuve pass Jarno Trulli's Toyota to finish a solid seventh was enough to bring smiles to many faces. (Photo: BMW Sauber F1) |
Probably the biggest 'truth' to come out of Malaysia was the performance of Rubens Barrichello. Remember I pointed out that for former Ferrari drivers life tends not to be too rosy after leaving the stables of the prancing horses. Barrichello,
 |
| Honda's Jensen Button put in a solid performance for the third spot on the podium. (Photo: Honda F1) |
"It's certainly been an eventful weekend and it was disappointing to end it with a stop-go penalty when I was in with a chance of at least coming away with a few points," Barrichello said after the race. "These past two races have been a bit of a learning curve, but I'm sure things will pick up for the next few races and we can start to realize more of the car's potential."
Right.... Rubens, want to see the car's potential? Look at your teammate's performance.
Obviously,
 |
| It was a love-in at Renault thanks to a 1-2 finish. (Photo: Renault F1) |
"It was a perfect race for me, but it was very tough physically and mentally," said Fisichella. "It was really, really hot out there and I began to feel it from mid-race onwards. I knew it would be hard but there was no choice but to push all the way to the end. So I did. I didn't want to lose concentration in the last laps, and everything went well, the car and engine were perfect too. I am really so happy for this win."
As the series heads to Australia, Alonso is in good shape, and should the reliability and speed of his Renault stay the way it is now, it could be tough for anyone - other than Schumacher - to make a serious run at the title.
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