Felipe Massa was quick from practice all the way to qualifying. Unfortunately for him, his teammate Kimi Raikkonen had the slight advantage and Massa was forced to settle for P2 during the race start. And during the first half of the race, it seemed that Massa had no choice but to settle for second place.
However, there are times that it is better to be lucky than good. And for the French GP, Massa had his share of good luck. Midway through the race, Kimi Raikkonen’s Ferrari was plagued by a damaged exhaust. The reigning champion couldn’t keep up his pace and was then forced to let Massa pass. From that point onwards, Massa never looked back as he built a decisive lead that would seal the race victory.
The win propelled Massa on top of the driver’s standing making him the first Brazilian since the late Ayrton Senna to lead the formula 1 drivers’ championship.
Kimi Raikkonen would no doubt be disappointed with a second place for the French GP. He was undeniably the quickest driver during the weekend. His pole position and fastest lap time was proof of the Finn’s blistering pace. But then again, Raikkonen should still be relieved that he still managed to walk away with 8 points instead of none at all. The exhaust damage sustained by his Ferrari literally destroyed a huge chunk of bodywork of his car. Retirement was definitely a possibility considering that the damage happened with more than thirty laps left to race. Fortunately for Raikkonen, he still managed to bring the car home.
The drive of the day however belongs to Jarno Trulli who drove his Toyota to an impressive third place. The Italian veteran had to work hard for the result as he had to defend his position from Kovalainen’s McLaren and Kubica’s BMW-Sauber who were storming close from behind. But Trulli’s experience proved to be the edge that allowed him to snatch the last podium position against stronger opposition. When Trulli got out of his car, he faced the camera and pointed to his black armband: an indication that he was dedicating the podium finish to the team’s former team boss Ove Anderson who was tragically killed in a classic rally incident last week.
The French GP would be a race to forget for the McLaren team. Both McLaren drivers had been plagued by penalties before the race even began. Kovalainen was forced to start 10th on the grid for impeding during qualifying while Lewis Hamilton had to start all the way down from 13th on the grid for failing to follow the pit lane lights during the Canadian GP. Unfortunately for McLaren, Lewis Hamilton was given another penalty for gaining an advantage by cutting through an apex at the start of the race. Kovalainen’s fourth place finish from tenth was really all about damage limitation. The team would look to bounce back during its home race in Silverstone in two week’s time.
After spectacularly winning the Canadian GP last time out, Robert Kubica had to settle for fifth place. The BMW-Sauber team didn’t have the best package for the French GP as both Kubica and Heidfeld struggled all weekend long.
Mark Webber finished sixth with his Red Bull Renault. Behind him were the IGN Renault drivers’ Nelson Piquet jr. and Fernando Alonso finishing seventh and eighth respectively.
