Turkish Grand Prix: Massa Wins, Hamilton Second
Felipe Massa has won the Turkish Grand Prix for the 3rd year running after starting from pole position. Lewis Hamilton’s conservative 3-stop strategy earns him 2nd place with Kimi Raikkonen in the final podium place.
After qualifying in pole Felipe Massa was favourite to take his 3rd Turkish Grand Prix - and done so with a perfect drive, despite pressure from a competitive looking Lewis Hamilton. Hamilton himself was in an aggressive racing mood which was evident right from the start as he dived past team mate Kovalainen before the first corner. He was hot on Massa’s tail in the early stages and was thought to have more fuel on-board than Massa. However, the McLaren driver pitted early after just 15 laps. His stop was only 6 seconds and this was the first sign of Hamilton’s unexpected race strategy.
With the lighter car Hamilton continued to put pressure on Massa, who refused to give up the lead. Around the 20th lap however, Hamilton’s lighter fuel load paid off as he executed a perfect passing move to take 3rd place - and quickly opened up a 7-second lead on the Brazilian.
Hamilton’s lead was always going to be short-lived though. Hamilton was evidently on a 3-stop strategy, while Massa was on a 2-stop. After the race, Ron Dennis explained that Hamilton’s strategy was due to a ‘technical fault’ with his tyres, and the team had to play the race conservatively or risk a retirement. If this is the case, then the team worked perfectly to ensure Hamilton could split the Ferrari’s at the finish line.
Importantly he finished ahead of Raikonnen - the championship leader - and has gained 2 points on him. Massa has gained 4 points on his Ferrari team-mate.
Raikkonen said after the race that his performance was affected by a slight collision with Kovalainen on the first corner - which left the McLaren driver with a puncture, forcing him to pit and end his chances of a podium finish.
While Hamilton looked more competitive than in recent races, thanks to an perfect and aggressive drive from the Englishman, Ferrari still look unstoppable. Raikkonen had an off day today, otherwise we may have seen a Ferrari 1-2.
Next stop, Monaco - and Ferrari are expected to dominate…..
Result of Turkish Grand Prix after 58 laps of Istanbul Park circuit:
1. Felipe Massa (Brz) Ferrari one hour 26 minutes 49.451 seconds
2. Lewis Hamilton (GB) McLaren-Mercedes 3.779 secs
3. Kimi Raikkonen (Fin) Ferrari +4.271
4. Robert Kubica (Pol) BMW Sauber +21.945
5. Nick Heidfeld (Ger) BMW Sauber +38.741
6. Fernando Alonso (Spa) Renault +53.724
7. Mark Webber (Aus) Red Bull-Renault +1:04.229
8. Nico Rosberg (Ger) Williams-Toyota +1:11.406
9. David Coulthard (GB) Red Bull-Renault +1:15.270
10. Jarno Trulli (Ita) Toyota +1:16.344
11. Jenson Button (GB) Honda one lap behind
12. Heikki Kovalainen (Fin) McLaren-Mercedes one lap
13. Timo Glock (Ger) Toyota one lap
14. Rubens Barrichello (Brz) Honda one lap
15. Nelson Piquet (Brz) Renault one lap
16. Adrian Sutil (Ger) Force India-Ferrari one lap
17. Sebastian Vettel (Ger) Toro Rosso-Ferrari one lap
Retired: Sebastien Bourdais (Fra) Toro Rosso-Ferrari 33 laps completed
Retired: Kazuki Nakajima (Jpn) Williams-Toyota one lap
Retired: Giancarlo Fisichella (Ita) Force India-Ferrari no laps
