Fun F1

Christijan Albers exited the Japanese Grand Prix in a spectacular fashion when the rear end of his Spyker exploded into bits due to a mechanical failure. The exact cause of the failure is unknown, but pictures have emerged of an inexperienced rogue mechanic who may have some more information..

Fernando Alonso gained a huge advantage over Michael Schumacher in the 2006 Formula One World Championship when Schumacher’s Ferrari engine failed during the Japanese Grand Prix on Sunday.

It is always a great shame when a championship is swayed due to mechanical failure. However, for Fernando Alonso there was a sense of justice. He has had his share of mechanical problems this year, not to mention some dubious decisions in Ferrari’s favour (most notably his penalty for supposedly blocking Felipe Massa during qualifying in the Italian Grand Prix). The sense of relief on his face during Sunday’s post-race press conference was evident.

Not all is lost for Schumacher though. Alonso might still have a DNF in Brazil and Michael might win. That would be the ultimate send-off for the many-many-many-times World Champion. Sure, the odds are against him, but the difficult odds are exactly what would make such a win the sweetest ever. I wouldn’t rule him out just yet.

Now to the points from Suzuka:

• Michelin - Full credit to Michelin for producing a good race tyre. Sure, it wasn’t good for qualifying, but the race is where it counts. A big surprise for everyone. 
• Michael Schumacher – Probably would have won the race if it wasn’t for his engine failing. Bad luck? Or good luck that he has had only one engine failure since 2001?
• Fernando Alonso – Yet another race where he had to fight hard. Managed to get his due reward this time.
• Giancarlo Fisichella - Great job under difficult circumstances.
• Felipe Massa – Got completely screwed having to slow to let Schumacher by. But hey, I’m sure he knew the deal when he signed with Ferrari. Biggest shame is I don’t see things changing in 2007 as Kimi Raikkonen will be Ferrari’s golden boy.
• Pedro de la Rosa – Was he racing at Suzuka? I didn’t see him.
• Kimi Raikkonen – I guess he did a lot better than Pedro de la Rosa at least..
• Red Bull – My goodness.. it’s Jaguar 2.0!! Start out the season fairly strong then just go backward.. Only this time it’s 4 cars instead of just 2. Good news for the likes of Spyker and Aguri though!

There have been conflicting reports circulating regarding the title sponsor for Renault in 2007. Their contract with Mild Seven is due to expire at the end of the year as a result of anti-tobacco sponsorship laws which come into effect next year.

Some news sources have pointed toward ABN AMRO as the major sponsor for Renault in 2007, but it has been reported that a spokesperson for ABN AMRO has denied these claims. This leaves ING Bank the most likely candidate to fill the seat.

Expect to see a yellow, white and orange Renault in 2007…

It’s time for our usual “post-race points”.. only this time they come nice and late thanks to Channel Ten Australia. Despite the Chinese Grand Prix being in almost exactly the same timezone as Australia, the local broadcaster decided it would be better to show the Grand Prix at 11:50pm at night! Thanks Ten!

Anyway, enough of my rant.. I “watched” the Grand Prix on the net via the official live timing. It’s the most exciting Grand Prix I’ve watched without actually seeing a car! So let’s get to the points:

• Michael Schumacher – Nothing magical here. No reigenmeister this time. Just benefited from Alonso’s bad luck. Nothing more, nothing less.
• Fernando Alonso – He doesn’t have that much bad luck all up. Certainly not like Kimi Raikkonen’s bad luck. When you think about it, he once again made the best of a bad situation.
• Giancarlo Fisichella – Fantastic drive from Fisi in the wet, but in the dry..?? Methinks he had a wet setup while Fernando had a dry setup.
• Kimi Raikkonen – DNF….. again. Nuff said. Hmm.. has Pedro de la Rosa had any mechanical failures yet?
• Honda – Bl**dy nice to see some different colours on the track!! Please keep it up for next year of I’ll be seeing red.. red on cars that is.. Ferrari.. McLaren.. Toyota.. Honda.. Super Aguri.. MF1 (ok, they’re orange now).
• Takuma Sato – Ok, he could have picked a better place to let everyone pass, but can he be blamed for other people crashing into him?

While Michael Schumacher managed to draw level with Fernando Alonso in the Driver’s Championship in China, Renault took the lead in the Constructor’s Championship thanks to a strong showing from Giancarlo Fisichella and bad luck for Felipe Massa.

Going into the final two rounds of the season, Renault have gained back a fair bit of performance. They may even be equal to Ferrari in terms of pace, setting us up for an amazing finish to the 2006 Formula One Championship.