This was race that could have been a little boring, but with Lewis Hamilton on a 3 stop strategy and more passing and re passing on the track than usual, there was plenty to watch. In the end, Felipe Massa does own Istanbul Park as he won his 3rd consecutive Turkish Grand Prix.

The race started in typical fashion with the cars bunching up into the first turn. Kovalainen and Raikkonen had a minor touch which slightly damaged Raikkonen’s front wing and punctured Kovalainen’s left rear causing a slow leak. Kovalainen after going in for a tire change re entered the circuit way back. Being loaded heavy with fuel and at the back of the grid, Kovalainen spent the rest of the day fighting hard to move up.

Even though bad luck hit Kovalainen, he put on a good show for us with some great passing. He and Timo Glock went back and forth for a while including a pass and re pass before Kovalainen’s faster McLaren got rid of Glock on the long straight. It was a bitter pill for Kovalainen because in the end 11th was all he could manage.

After Jarno Trulli was almost stopped after being held up in the first turn, Fisichella came storming up behind everyone and before he could even think of stopping his car, he was hard into the back of Nakajima and then up in the air and over top stopping dead in his tracks in the gravel trap. Nakajima with horrible damage to the rear of his car initially thought he could continue, but in the end, both he and Fisichella were the first lap casualties. There was something new however, Sebastian Vettel made it past lap one and actually finished the race.

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Felipe Massa wants to win in Turkey to make it 3 years in a row. He has had a pretty good run there not only winning the last 2 races, but also getting poll and he is pretty clear saying it’s a special circuit to him and that there is ‘no 2 without 3′.

His car may complain a little having to use an engine for the second race and his gearbox on it’s 4th race. Massa doesn’t think this is an issue though and isn’t hiding his desire to win.

If Massa finds himself in 2nd place on the track behind Raikkonen will he try and get into position to attempt a pass or will ‘team orders’ prevent him?

I see something to this. In 2005 at the US Grand Prix, Rubens Barrichello was told on radio to slow and let Micheal Schumacher get close enough to pass him. This, as he says was the last straw and he left Ferrari at the end of the season.

Felipe Massa has faced criticism this year for erratic driving and his seat next year has been rumored to be available. Given that Massa wants to win and really isn’t passive enough to only be Raikkonen’s aid, it is conceivable that if ‘team orders’ prevent him from winning this race, Massa may want out himself at the end of 2008.

Tags: felipe massa, ferrari, kimi raikkonen, turkish grand prix

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There are a lot of rumors swirling around Felipe Massa and his contract with Ferrari. Currently Massa is under contract with Ferrari until the end of 2010, but rumors say this is a bit of a question considering his poor start with no points.

Talk is weather Massa will be with Ferrari in 2009. This is of course because he has failed to finish in both Australia and Malaysia and is at the bottom of the driver points standings, 14 points behind Lewis Hamilton. Possible replacements for Felipe Massa at Ferrari are Sebastien Vettel and of course Fernando Alonso and in his style, Alonso when asked has jumped all over these rumors.

First let’s look at Massa’s short career with Ferrari which started in 2006 along side Michael Schumacher.

In the first race of the season in Bahrain, Massa qualified 2nd, but in Saturday practice Massa spun out. In the race, he again spun out and just missed Fernando Alonso. In Malaysia Massa came from 21st to 5th.
In Australia, he crashed his Ferrari in qualifying and then in the race he crashed into Christian Klien and Nico Rosberg in turn one.
Things started looking up after this and at the Nurburgring, Massa finished 3rd behind Michael Schumacher and Fernando Alonso.
Along with a bunch of podiums, Massa won in Turkey and his home race, the Brazilian Grand Prix.
His final tally of the season, 3 poles, and 2 wins with 80 points.

In 2007 at the Australian Grand Prix, he had gearbox problems in qualifying and needed an engine change. He ended up starting from pit lane. After a one stop race, he ended up in 6th place.
In Malaysia he qualified on pole, but in the race, he over cooked it when trying to pass Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton and ran off the track. He did recover in 5th and finished the race in 5th.
From there, Massa got it together and won the Bahrain Grand Prix and the Spanish Grand Prix, both of them from pole position.

Technorati Tags: Felipe Massa, Ferrari, Australia, Malaysia, Lewis Hamilton, Sebastien Vettel, Fernando Alonso, Michael Schumacher, Christian Klien, Nico Rosberg, Brazilian Grand Prix, Australian Grand Prix, Bahrain Grand Prix, Spanish Grand Prix

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Now that we’ve got a bit of testing out of the way I can begin to see how things may unfold. My big word is “may”. Most teams have put a lot of testing miles on the new cars using both primary drivers as well as test drivers. Weather has been a factor in some sessions (as it should be). There have been long and short stints, simulated qualifying sessions etc.

Since day 1 when Ferrari launched their car and put it through a shakedown, little has gone wrong. They have consistently been at or near the top of testing times with all drivers performing well and the F108 appearing to handle just about every specific test they throw at it. Both Kimi and Felipe are by all accounts happy with what is taking place in their camp and are itching to get the season under way.

The latest from Bahrain has Kimi Raikkonen on top enjoying another good and productive day.

Barring a complete meltdown at Ferrari, this team is going to be tough to beat this year.

McLaren have also for the most part been breezing through testing with no real surprises. The MP4-23 seems to be where they expect it to be at this time. Short testing, long reliability stints, tires, and the car remains at or near the top. Lewis has had a few hiccups, but nothing worth speaking about. Heikki Kovalainen seems so happy to be at McLaren, he can hardly contain himself. That enthusiasm is really showing on track and he has been at the top in testing consistently as well.
Martin Whitmarsh seems happy but predictably subdued:

“The progress we are making is quantifiable and the drive within the team to continue to push remains high.”

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The battle between Felipe Massa and Robert Kubica was a classic. This would have been a great battle in dry conditions, but considering that it was extremely wet, this is a great highlight reel.
Both Massa and Kubica wouldn’t give an inch pushing each other all over the track and off. Worth watching a few times.

Massa vs Kubica Battle In Fuji 2007

Technorati Tags: Massa and Kubica, massa, kubica

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