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Lewis Hamilton wins dramatic German GP ahead of Piquet Jr. and Massa |
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Written by Paul Logothetis, THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
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Sunday, 20 July 2008 |
McLaren Mercedes Formula One driver Lewis Hamilton of Britain celebrates after winning the German Formula One Grand Prix in Hockenheim, Germany, Sunday, July 20, 2008. THE ASSOCIATED PRESS/Oliver Multhaup
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HOCKENHEIM, Germany - Lewis Hamilton used two dramatic overtaking moves to overcome a McLaren strategy gaffe and win the German Grand Prix on Sunday, seizing the lead in Formula One's championship race.
Hamilton overtook Ferrari's Felipe Massa and then runner-up Nelson Piquet Jr. of Renault at the same hairpin corner after Timo Glock's earlier crash had brought out a safety car that nearly cost the McLaren driver his fourth victory of the season.
Most teams chose to pit when the safety car was out, but McLaren left its star driver out only to see him fall to fifth place when his turn to pit with 17 laps to race finally came.
But Hamilton, who now leads Massa by four points in the overall standings, worked his way through the field before nudging past the Ferrari driver from the inside at turn No. 6 and then holding off his outside challenge soon after.
Piquet Jr., who earned his first career podium after starting from 17th, couldn't hold off Hamilton as the 23-year-old Briton closed in at the same corner three laps later.
"Sorry we had to make it a little bit difficult for you," McLaren team principal Ron Dennis told Hamilton over the radio. "Absolutely fantastic job."
Hamilton, who earned his eighth career win from 27 races, replied with a chuckle. But he also said later that he was a bit baffled by the call.
"I think we probably should have come in, (but) at the end of the day I don't always know what's happening (in the garage). Perhaps we could have done a better job," he said. "It just made my job a little harder."
It was Hamilton's second straight victory, after winning the British GP at Silverstone on July 6.
Piquet Jr. also secured Renault's first top-three finish of the season to put two Brazilians on the podium for the first time since 1991, when his father Nelson Piquet finished third at Belgium behind winner Ayrton Senna.
"I was so concentrated, I just wanted to look forward. I didn't want to spend too much time looking at how many laps but just focusing," the 22-year-old driver said after his first ever podium in his 10th GP. "It was an incredible feeling."
Ferrari was a step behind its rival all weekend.
Massa's car lacked the pace and grip to hold off the McLaren, and high temperatures in the brakes kept the 27-year-old driver from challenging Piquet Jr. down the stretch.
"I didn't have the car to fight. It was not possible today," said Massa. "The last stint I had some problems with the brakes ... that lost performance a lot."
With teammate and world champion Kimi Raikkonen finishing sixth, Ferrari team principal Stefano Domenicali said the Italian team must sort out its problems before the next GP at Hungary on Aug. 3.
"We were too slow and we need to understand why," Domenicali said.
Nick Heidfeld worked his way up from 12th to finish fourth ahead of McLaren's Heikki Kovalainen, who helped Hamilton at the hairpin when he easily let his teammate get by as he was chasing the leaders with the laps counting down.
"Heikki is incredibly sporting, he knew the situation, he knew it wasn't his day and he took the decision," McLaren chief executive Martin Whitmarsh said.
Raikkonen now trails Hamilton by seven points, while Robert Kubica of BMW Sauber is 10 behind after finishing seventh. Sebastian Vettel of Toro Rosso earned the last point.
Glock was accelerating through turn No. 12 before his rear suspension appeared to snap. The 26-year-old German's car spun across the track and went backward into the opposite wall at high speed, with the Toyota driver emerging clutching his back before going to hospital.
"It is too early to determine exactly what the cause of the incident was but of course we are investigating," Toyota team principal Tadashi Yamashina said.
Hamilton was cruising before Glock's accident, building a lead of more than 10 seconds. McLaren's decision not to pit with the safety car meant Hamilton needed to build a 23-second lead to ensure he could retain the lead after his pit stop. He only had a 13.7-second edge when he pitted on lap 50.
"I knew it was kind of impossible," said a cool Hamilton after securing McLaren's first victory at Hockenheim since Mika Hakkinen triumphed here a decade ago.
"It's a good feeling to come off that strong win at Silverstone and win here. It's great to see the pace we have," Hamilton said. "We have to make sure that we can continue with this performance."
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Last Updated ( Sunday, 07 September 2008 )
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