Fernando Alonso trimmed McLaren team-mate Lewis Hamilton’s title advantage to just three points by delivering a Monza masterclass in the Italian Grand Prix.
The world champion stamped his authority on the race from the off and was never challenged en route to his first win at the historic venue and his fourth victory of 2007.
Hamilton was unable to match Alonso’s pace but protected his points lead by putting a bold pass on Kimi Raikkonen after the Ferrari driver used a one-stop strategy to leapfrog the rookie following his second pit visit.
The 1-2 result was the best possible tonic for the beleaguered McLaren team on a traumatic weekend in which the latest developments in the spying controversy threatened to reduce the race to a mere sideshow. Results after the jump..
an Grand Prix result, Monza, 53 laps
1. ALONSO Mclaren 1h18m37.806s
2. HAMILTON McLaren +6.0s
3. RAIKKONEN Ferrari +27.3s
4. HEIDFELD BMW +56.5s
5. KUBICA BMW +1m00.5s
6. ROSBERG Williams +1m05.8s
7. KOVALAINEN Renault +1m06.7s
8. BUTTON Honda +1m12.1s
9. WEBBER Red Bull +1m15.9s
10. BARRICHELLO Honda +1m16.9s
11. TRULLI Toyota +1m17.7s
12. FISICHELLA Renault +1 lap
13. WURZ Williams +1 lap
14. DAVIDSON Super Aguri +1 lap
15. R SCHUMACHER Toyota +1 lap
16. SATO Super Aguri +1 lap
17. LIUZZI Toro Rosso +1 lap
18. VETTEL Toro Rosso +1 lap
19. SUTIL Spyker +1 lap
20. YAMAMOTO Spyker +1 lap
R. MASSA Ferrari +43 laps
R. COULTHARD Red Bull +52 laps
Thought Leader » Charl Norman » FIA open letter to McLaren drivers
[...] Despite Alonso’s victory last week at the Italian Grand Prix, all is not rosy for the Spaniard. McLaren and their world-champion driver can face a ban up to two years from F1 racing. Below is a copy of what was sent to each driver, which can be found on the FIA website. Dear Mr De la Rosa [...]
September 11, 2007 10:01 am