Pole, fastest lap & win.

His second after Japan 2007.

The 138th time in F1.

M Schumacher 22
Clark        11
Prost         8
Ascari        7
Fangio        7
Senna         7
Mansell       5
D Hill        5
Stewart       4
Ickx          4
Häkkinen      4
Moss          3
Brabham       3
Surtees       3
Lauda         3
Piquet        3
Alonso        3
Massa         3
G Hill        2
Hunt          2
Jones         2
Laffite       2
Andretti      2
Berger        2
J Villenueve  2
Barrichello   2
Räikkönen     2
Farina        1
Vukovich      1
P Hill        1
Brooks        1
Siffert       1
Rindt         1
Peterson      1
Reutemann     1
Regazzoni     1
G Villeneuve  1
Coulthard     1
Montoya       1

It’s the 18th instance in the last five years:

M Schumacher       714 AUS 2004
M Schumacher       716 BRN 2004
M Schumacher       718 ESP 2004
M Schumacher       720 EUR 2004
M Schumacher       726 HUN 2004
R Barrichello      728 ITA 2004

F Alonso           758 GBR 2006
M Schumacher       760 USA 2006
M Schumacher       761 FRA 2006

K Räikkönen        769 AUS 2007
F Massa            771 BRN 2007
F Massa            772 ESP 2007
F Alonso           773 MON 2007
F Alonso           781 ITA 2007
L Hamilton         783 JPN 2007

K Räikkönen        789 ESP 2008
F Massa            797 EUR 2008
L Hamilton         802 CHN 2008

Hamilton also led every lap except for three at the time of his
first pit stop. This achievement is sometimes termed a grand
slam. It has been achieved by a driver 48 times.

Clark         8
Ascari        5
M Schumacher  5
Stewart       4
Senna         4
Mansell       4
Piquet        3
Fangio        2
Brabham       2
Hawthorn      1
Moss          1
Siffert       1
Ickx          1
Regazzoni     1
Lauda         1
Laffite       1
G Villeneuve  1
D Hill        1
Berger        1
Häkkinen      1

Only two instances in the last five years:

M Schumacher      714 AUS 2004
M Schumacher      726 HUN 2004

Hamilton missed a grand slam by only three laps, but those three
were led by his team mate so McLaren achieved a team GS for the
33rd time in their history. They are second to Ferrari who have
39. I don’t have the complete data for teams. McLaren’s last
was at Melbourne this year, while Ferrari did it in France this
year.

–

Brian W Lawrence
Wantage,
Oxfordshire, UK
Brian_W_Lawre…@msn.com

Jules and I went to Pete’s funeral service yesterday. It was very
moving, and blessedly short – about 14 minutes or so, which Pete would
have appreciated. Ian Dalziel was also there, and Em and her family, as
well as Pete’s Dad and Sister went on to say how much they’d
appreciated all the postings here and on t’other newsgroup, and how
much these postings had meant to them, had shown them a side of Pete
which none of them had known about.

It was very moving, very sad yet somehow joyful in the memories.

Thank all of you who posted your memories and your condolences, both
here and elsewhere. It has seriously helped both Pete’s family and Emma
and her family in their loss.

RIP Pete.
—
Paul-B

After the end of last season I compiled a list which showed
how many events and how many days various drivers had led the
WDC table.

The number of events and durations do not include the final
event of the season or the off season – they only include
time and events while the season is ‘active’. However, both
events and time include any where the WDC was confirmed
before the final race.

Lewis Hamilton goes into next week’s Brazilian GP in the lead,
and both the number of events and time will cease on November
2 regardless of the result.

Hamilton has added another 12 events and 155 days to his tally;
Räikkönen has added 4 events/63 days; Massa (2 events/28 days)
and Kubica (one event/14 days) are new entries.

Number of GPs spent leading the WDC

* never won WDC

                   Days  GPs
=============================
 1 M Schumacher     1624  122
 2 A Prost          1176   81
 3 A Senna           717   49
 4 N Lauda           665   42
 5 F Alonso          483   39
 6 JM Fangio         987   34
 7 J Stewart         595   33
 8 G Hill            545   28
 9 E Fittipaldi      517   28
10 M Häkkinen        378   27

11 L Hamilton      * 343   26
12 N Mansell         399   25
13 J Brabham         553   24
14 J Clark           672   22
15 N Piquet          301   21
16 J Scheckter       281   17
17 D Hill            231   17
18 M Andretti        295   16
19 A Ascari          315   15
20 C Reutemann       278   15

21 D Hulme           267   14
22 K Räikkönen       196   13
23 A Jones           160   11
24 S Moss          * 236    8
25 J Rindt           112    8
26 B McLaren       * 174    7
27 G Regazzoni     * 168    7
28 M Alboreto      *  84    7
29 G Farina           64    7
30 E Irvine        * 112    6

31 M Hawthorn        105    6
32 J Villeneuve       77    6
33 P Hill             69    5
34 J Laffite       *  91    4
35 D Coulthard     *  63    4
36 D Pironi        *  42    4
37 J Behra         * 133    3
38 W von Trips     *  84    3
39 R Arnoux        *  78    3
40 P Collins       *  63    3

41 P Taruffi       *  49    3
42 J Watson        *  42    3
43 K Rosberg          27    3
44 E de Angelis    *  42    2
45 G Villeneuve    *  35    2
46 B Vukovich      *  28    2   [Indy 500 winner]
   P Depailler     *  28    2
   F Massa         *  28    2
49 M Trintignant   *  14    2
50 P Rodriguez     * 125    1
51 L Bandini       *  21    1
52 L Wallard       *  18    1   [Indy 500 winner]
53 G Fisichella    *  14    1
   R Kubica        *  14    1
55 L Musso         *   8    1
56 J Parsons       *   5    1   [Indy 500 winner]
57 J Surtees           0    1
   J Hunt              0    1

Neither Surtees nor Hunt led the WDC until the final event of their
winning season, and neither ever led again.

Number of days spent leading the WDC

                   Days  GPs   years/weeks
===========================================
 1 M Schumacher     1624  122     4.44 yrs
 2 A Prost          1176   81     3.22 yrs
 3 JM Fangio         987   34     2.70 yrs
 4 A Senna           717   49     1.96 yrs
 5 J Clark           672   22     1.84 yrs
 6 N Lauda           665   42     1.82 yrs
 7 J Stewart         595   33     1.63 yrs
 8 J Brabham         553   24     1.52 yrs
 9 G Hill            545   28     1.49 yrs
10 E Fittipaldi      517   28     1.42 yrs

11 F Alonso          483   39     1.32 yrs
12 N Mansell         399   25     1.09 yrs
13 M Häkkinen        378   27     1.04 yrs
14 L Hamilton      * 343   26       49 wks
15 A Ascari          315   15       45 wks
16 N Piquet          301   21     ~ 43 wks
17 M Andretti        295   16     ~ 42 wks
18 J Scheckter       281   17     ~ 40 wks
19 C Reutemann       278   15     ~ 40 wks
20 D Hulme           267   14     ~ 38 wks

21 S Moss          * 236    8     ~ 34 wks
22 D Hill            231   17       33 wks
23 K Räikkönen       196   13       28 wks
24 B McLaren       * 174    7     ~ 25 wks
25 G Regazzoni     * 168    7       24 wks
26 A Jones           160   11     ~ 23 wks
27 J Behra         * 133    3       19 wks
28 P Rodriguez     * 125    1     ~ 18 wks
29 J Rindt           112    8       16 wks
30 E Irvine        * 112    6       16 wks

31 M Hawthorn        105    6       15 wks
32 J Laffite       *  91    4       13 wks
33 M Alboreto      *  84    7       12 wks
34 W von Trips     *  84    3       12 wks
35 R Arnoux        *  78    3     ~ 11 wks
36 J Villeneuve       77    6       11 wks
37 P Hill             69    5     ~ 10 wks
38 G Farina           64    7      ~ 9 wks
39 D Coulthard     *  63    4        9 wks
40 P Collins       *  63    3        9 wks

41 P Taruffi       *  49    3        7 wks
42 D Pironi        *  42    4        6 wks
43 J Watson        *  42    3        6 wks
44 E de Angelis    *  42    2        6 wks
45 G Villeneuve    *  35    2        5 wks
46 B Vukovich      *  28    2        4 wks
   P Depailler     *  28    2        4 wks
   F Massa         *  28    2        4 wks
49 K Rosberg          27    3      ~ 4 wks
50 L Bandini       *  21    1        3 wks

51 L Wallard       *  18    1      ~ 3 wks
52 M Trintignant   *  14    2        2 wks
53 G Fisichella    *  14    1        2 wks
   R Kubica        *  14    1        2 wks
55 L Musso         *   8    1       ~ 1 wk
56 J Parsons       *   5    1
57 J Surtees           0    1
   J Hunt              0    1

–

Brian W Lawrence
Wantage,
Oxfordshire, UK
Brian_W_Lawre…@msn.com

For the 26th season in the 59 years of the WDC the title will be decided
at the final race. These were the standings before each of the previous
25:

YEAR  Champion     Date    GP   Points before final race                  lead
==============================================================================
1950  G Farina     Sep 03  ITA  Fangio 26, Fagioli 24, Farina 22           2/4
1951  JM Fangio    Oct 28  ESP  Fangio 27, Ascari 25, Gonzalez 21          2
1956  JM Fangio    Sep 02  ITA  Fangio 30, Collins 22, Behra 22            8
1958  M Hawthorn   Oct 19  MAR  Hawthorn 40, Moss 32                       8
1959  J Brabham    Dec 12  USA  Brabham 31, Moss 25.5, Brooks 23           5.5

1960  J Brabham    Nov 20  USA  Brabham 40, McLaren 33                     7
1962  G Hill       Dec 29  RSA  Hill 39, Clark 30                          9
1964  J Surtees    Oct 25  MEX  Hill 39, Surtees 34, Clark 30              5
1967  D Hulme      Oct 22  MEX  Hulme 47, Brabham 42                       5
1968  G Hill       Nov 03  MEX  Hill 39, Stewart 36, Hulme 33              3

1974  E Fittipaldi Oct 06  USA  Fittipaldi 52, Regazzoni 52, Scheckter 45  0
1976  J Hunt       Oct 24  JPN  Lauda 68, Hunt 65                          3

1981  N Piquet     Oct 17  LV   Reutemann 49, Piquet 48, Laffite 43        1
1982  K Rosberg    Sep 25  LV   Rosberg 42, [Pironi 39], Watson 33         9
1983  N Piquet     Oct 15  RSA  Prost 57, Piquet 55, Arnoux 49             2
1984  N Lauda      Oct 21  POR  Lauda 66, Prost 62.5                       3.5
1986  A Prost      Oct 26  AUS  Mansell 70, Prost 64, Piquet 63            6

1994  M Schumacher Nov 13  AUS  Schumacher 92, Hill 91                     1
1996  D Hill       Oct 13  JPN  Hill 87, Villeneuve 78                     9
1997  J Villeneuve Oct 26  Eur  Schumacher 78, Villeneuve 77               1
1998  M Häkkinen   Nov 01  JPN  Häkkinen 90, Schumacher 86                 4
1999  M Häkkinen   Oct 31  JPN  Irvine 70, Häkkinen 66                     4

2003  M Schumacher Oct 12  JPN  Schumacher 92, Häkkinen 83                 9
2006  F Alonso     Oct 22  BRA  Alonso 126, Schumacher 116                10
2007  K Räikkönen  Oct 21  BRA  Hamilton 107, Alonso 103, Räikkönen 100    4/7

Notes

LV  - in 1981 & 1982 the title was decided at the Caesars Palace GP in Las
Vegas

In 1982 Didier Pironi was in second place, but had been badly injured and was
not able to take part in the final race

2008               Nov 02  BRA  Hamilton 94, Massa 87                      7

–

Brian W Lawrence
Wantage,
Oxfordshire, UK
Brian_W_Lawre…@msn.com

Apologies – Something has changed the way Outlook Express is setup and the
default font is no longer fixed pitch.

Brazilian Grand Prix

First Practice – Friday 31 October 2008 – 10.00-11.30

##  Driver        Team              Time     Lps   Gap  %Gap   Km/hr    mph
=============================================================================
 2  F Massa       Ferrari           1’12.305  24  0.000 0.000 214.541 133.310
22  L Hamilton    McLaren-Mercedes  1’12.495  23  0.190 0.263 213.979 132.960
 1  K Räikkönen   Ferrari           1’12.507  18  0.202 0.279 213.943 132.938
 4  R Kubica      BMW Sauber-BMW    1’12.874  24  0.569 0.787 212.866 132.269
23  H Kovalainen  McLaren-Mercedes  1’12.925  20  0.620 0.857 212.717 132.176
 5  F Alonso      Renault           1’13.061  25  0.756 1.046 212.321 131.930
10  M Webber      Red Bull-Renault  1’13.298  24  0.993 1.373 211.635 131.504

 6  N Piquet      Renault           1’13.378  39  1.073 1.484 211.404 131.360
 3  N Heidfeld    BMW Sauber-BMW    1’13.426  28  1.121 1.550 211.266 131.274
12  T Glock       Toyota            1’13.466  33  1.161 1.606 211.151 131.203
11  J Trulli      Toyota            1’13.600  24  1.295 1.791 210.766 130.964
 7  N Rosberg     Williams-Toyota   1’13.621  23  1.316 1.820 210.706 130.927
14  S Bourdais    T Rosso-Ferrari   1’13.649  30  1.344 1.859 210.626 130.877
17  R Barrichello Honda             1’13.676  28  1.371 1.896 210.549 130.829
16  J Button      Honda             1’13.766  13  1.461 2.021 210.292 130.669
 8  K Nakajima    Williams-Toyota   1’13.806  24  1.501 2.076 210.178 130.599
15  S Vettel      T Rosso-Ferrari   1’13.836  30  1.531 2.117 210.093 130.545
 9  D Coulthard   Red Bull-Renault  1’13.861  19  1.556 2.152 210.022 130.501

20  A Sutil       F India-Ferrari   1’14.704  21  2.399 3.318 207.652 129.029
21  G Fisichella  F India-Ferrari   1’14.821  21  2.516 3.480 207.327 128.827

Weather: Air 17, Track 22, Humidity 86%, Wind 3.5 mps, Mainly dry (overcast, some drizzle)

Notes: Occasional drizzle made the track greasy at times. Hamilton was quickest
for most of the session, but Massa went slightly faster on his final run.
Räikkönen spun off at the Senna S during one of the brief spells of rain, but
continued without damage. Button and Coulthard (in a new one-off livery) did
not do much running.

–

Brian Lawrence
Brian_W_Lawre…@msn.com
Wantage, Oxfordshire, UK

As you might know there is a new F1 test track near Portimão, in Algarve,
Portugal. The first test will be in December 15-17 with McLaren, Honda
and maybe others. It is not yet known if it will be included in the
list of allowed test tracks for 2009.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aut%C3%B3dromo_Internacional_do_Algarve

The strongs points of this track are:
 - the weather (for instance, today it is sunny, although cold, there)
 - Tilke was _NOT_ involved;
 - the architects adjusted the track layout to the relief and it shows.

You can find a number of videos of the track in youtube (search for
Autódromo Portimão or Autómodromo Algarve). On those videos you can
see the large altitude differences, which will cause some difficulties
to the drivers (IIRC in the middle of the parabolica there is a sudden
drop and in another place the braking zone for a corner starts before
you can actually see the corner).

Also, today and tomorrow there is a superbike race there. So if you have
Eurosport you can see the track there (I think it is live in the British
Eurosport at this moment).

–
http://www.mat.uc.pt/~rps/

.pt is Portugal| `Whom the gods love die young’-Menander (342-292 BC)
        Europe |    Villeneuve 50-82, Toivonen 56-86, Senna 60-94

Final Average Starting Position 2008 – after Interlagos, Qualifying #18
=======================================================================

2008     2008                        2007     2006     2005      2004      2003
Pos.     ASP                       Pos. ASP Pos. ASP Pos. ASP  Pos. ASP  Pos. ASP
==================================================================================
 1.      2.94 (-0.12) F Massa        4  4.24  2  6.67 17 11.89  18 13.50   –  -
 2.      3.89 (+0.01) L Hamilton     1  2.59  -  -     –  -      -  -      -  -
 3.      4.39 (+0.04) H Kovalainen  10 10.71  -  -     –  -      -  -      -  -
    (4)  4.39 (-0.08) K Räikkönen    3  3.53  4  5.83  2  5.68   9  8.22   6  6.81
 5.      5.83 (+0.42) R Kubica       6  7.00  9  8.83  -  -      -  -      -  -
 6.      6.89 (-0.05) F Alonso       2  3.18  1  4.28  1  3.95   7  7.56   8  7.88
 7.      7.61 (-0.33) J Trulli       8  9.24 14 10.28  5  6.11   6  6.71   7  7.31
 8. (9)  9.00 (-0.06) N Heidfeld     5  5.41 10 10.17 12  9.57  21 16.00  15 12.31
 9. (8)  9.17 (+0.17) M Webber       7  9.06  7 11.06  8  8.00  13  9.72  11  9.88
10.(11) 11.00 (-0.24) S Vettel      15 14.38  -  -     –  -      -  -      -  -
11.(10) 11.11 (-0.07) T Glock        -  -     –  -     –  -     22 16.50   –  -
12.     12.11 (+0.35) N Rosberg      9  9.88 12 13.33  -  -      -  -      -  -
13.     12.83 (+0.07) D Coulthard   13 13.35 13 14.17 16 11.00  10  9.39   9  8.50
14.     13.50 (-0.15) N Piquet       –  -     –  -     –  -      -  -      -  -
15.     13.67 (-0.27) S Bourdais     –  -     –  -     –  -      -  -      -  -
16.     14.72 (+0.13) J Button      14 13.94  3  7.78  4  5.94   3  5.50  13 11.33
17.     14.83 (+0.01) R Barrichello 16 15.00  6  7.61 13 10.53   2  4.56   1  3.63
18.     15.11 (+0.05) S Nakajima    22 19.00  -  -     –  -      -  -      -  -
19.     18.33 (+0.04) G Fisichella  11 10.82  3  5.61  3  5.74  17 12.33  19 13.88
20.     18.94 (+0.06) A Sutil       23 20.29  -  -     –  -      -  -      -  -
21.     20.75         T Sato        20 17.29 20 19.67 14 10.88   8  8.06  16 13.00
22.     21.25         A Davidson    19 16.06  -  -    22 15.00   –  -      -  -

Averages include all demotions such as engine/gearbox change penalties, but not
last minute changes such as pitlane starts.

Final Average Team Starting Position 2008 – after Interlagos, Qualifying #18
============================================================================

  2008                       2007      2006     2005      2004      2003      2002
Pos. ASP                   Pos. ASP  Pos. ASP  Pos. ASP  Pos. ASP  Pos. ASP  Pos. ASP
=======================================================================================
 1.  3.67 (-0.09) Ferrari    2.  3.88  2.  6.06  6.  9.37  1.  4.25  1.  3.94  1.  2.35
 2.  4.11 (+0.02) McLaren    1.  2.88  3.  6.89  2.  6.61  5.  8.81  4.  7.66  3.  5.62
 3.  7.42 (+0.18) BMW-Sauber 3.  6.18  6. 10.81  8. 11.95  8. 12.92  8. 12.81  5. 10.97*
 4.  9.36 (-0.20) Toyota     4. 10.79  5. 10.11  3.  7.47  7. 11.81  5. 10.09  8. 14.59
 5. 10.19 (-0.10) Renault    5. 10.82  1.  4.94  1.  4.84  4.  7.47  3.  7.59  4.  9.50
 6. 11.00 (+0.12) Red Bull   6. 11.21  8. 14.65  7. 11.24  6. 11.69  7. 11.84  9. 15.79*
 7. 12.33 (-0.26) T Rosso    9. 16.21  9. 15.83 10. 17.50 10. 18.53 10. 18.66 11. 20.32*
 8. 13.58 (+0.20) Williams   7. 12.65  7. 12.19  5.  9.32  2.  6.39  2.  5.03  2.  3.21
 9. 14.78 (+0.07) Honda      8. 14.47  4.  7.75  4.  8.53  3.  6.78  6. 11.48  6. 12.71*
10. 18.61 (+0.05) F India   11. 20.82 10. 18.06  9. 16.97  9. 16.36  9. 15.53  7. 13.33*
11. 21.00         S Aguri   10. 16.68 11. 20.14  -   –     –   –     –   –     –   –

*  Red Bull = Jaguar (2002-04), Honda = BAR (2002-05), BMW-Sauber = Sauber (2002-05),
   Force India = Spyker (2007) = Midland (2006) = Jordan (2002-05), Toro Rosso = Minardi
   (2002-05)

Note: Throughout my 2007 season posts the data in the 2006 columns was incorrect.

Final Team-mates Head-to-Head 2008 – after Interlagos, Qualifying #18
=====================================================================

Team        Driver-1          Driver-2     Posn.
================================================
Renault     Alonso      18-0  Piquet       +119

Red Bull    Webber      15-3  Coulthard     +74

BMW-Sauber  Kubica      13-5  Heidfeld      +57
Toyota      Trulli      13-5  Glock         +51
Williams    Rosberg     13-5  Nakajima      +49
Toro Rosso  Vettel      13-5  Bourdais      +48
McLaren     Hamilton    13-5  Kovalainen     +8

Ferrari     Massa       12-6  Räikkönen     +26

Honda       Barrichello 10-8  Button         -2

F India     Sutil        9-9  Fisichella    -11

S Aguri     Sato         2-2  Davidson       +2

Notes: "Posn." shows the advantage in qualifying positions to date. A
positive number shows the driver on the left has the advantage and a
negative number the driver on the right.

2008 Grid Penalties
===================

                       Qual  Penalties (reason)
=========================================================================
01 AUS  Timo Glock      9th  2 x 5-place (gearbox & blocking)
01 AUS  Adrian Sutil   19th  pitlane start (changed engine)

02 MAL  H Kovalainen    3rd  5-place (blocking)
02 MAL  Lewis Hamilton  4th  5-place (blocking)
02 MAL  K Nakajima     18th  10-place (caused accident in AUS)

05 TUR  G Fisichella   19th  5-place (exited pits through red light)

06 MON  D Coulthard    10th  5-place (gearbox)
06 MON  S Vettel       18th  5-place (gearbox)
06 MON  G Fisichella   20th  5-place (gearbox)

07 CDN  S Bourdais     16th  5-place (gearbox)
07 CDN  Jenson Button  19th  5-place (gearbox)
07 CDN  S Vettel       20th  5-place (gearbox)

08 FRA  Lewis Hamilton  3rd  10-place (caused accident in CDN)
08 FRA  H Kovalainen    5th  5-place (blocking)
08 FRA  Nico Rosberg   15th  10-place (caused accident in CDN)

09 GBR  Nico Rosberg   18th  pitlane start (changed car after qual)

11 HUN  S Bourdais     14th  5-place (blocking)

12 EUR  R Barrichello  19th  pitlane start (changed car after qual)
12 EUR  Adrian Sutil   20th  pitlane start (changed car after qual)

14 ITA  K Nakajima     18th  pitlane start (changed setup after qual)
14 ITA  Jenson Button  19th  pitlane start (changed setup after qual)

15 SIN  Nick Heidfeld   6th  3-place (blocking – pitlane)

17 CHN  Mark Webber     6th  10-place (changed engine)
17 CHN  Nick Heidfeld   7th  3-place (blocking)

Appearances in Each Qualifying Session
======================================

                Q-1  Q-2  Q-3
=============================
H Kovalainen     18   18   18
F Massa          18   18   18

L Hamilton       18   18   17

K Räikkönen      18   18*  16   AUS (0 laps)

F Alonso         18   18*  15   SIN (1 lap)
R Kubica         18   18   15*  GBR (2 laps)

J Trulli         18   18   14

N Heidfeld       18   16   13

M Webber         18   18*  12*  AUS (2 laps), CDN (0 laps)

S Vettel         18*  14   10*  AUS (2 laps), CDN (0 laps)

T Glock          18   18    8

N Rosberg        18   16*   7   HUN (0 laps)

S Bourdais       18   12    6

D Coulthard      18   14    5*  MON (0 laps)

N Piquet         18   12    3

J Button         18    9    1
K Nakajima       18    9    1
R Barrichello    18    9    1

G Fisichella     18*   1    0   SIN (2 laps)
A Sutil          18    0    0
T Sato            4    0    0
A Davidson        4    0    0

* Set no time in one or more sessions.

Best Qualifying Performances (Current Drivers)
==============================================

               Best in 2008     Best in   Best in   Best before 2006
Driver         Posn.(#) GP(s)   2007 (#)  2006 (#)  Posn. (#) First  - Last
=============================================================================
L Hamilton     Pole (7) . . .   Pole (6)  —       —
F Massa        Pole (6) . . .   Pole (6)  Pole (3)  4th   (3) AUT 02 – BRA 04
K Räikkönen    Pole (2) FRA     Pole (3)  Pole (3)  Pole  (8) Eur 03 – TUR 05
R Kubica       Pole (1) BRN     4th  (1)  6th  (1)  —
H Kovalainen   Pole (1) GBR     6th  (2)  —       —
S Vettel       Pole (1) ITA     7th  (1)  —       —

F Alonso       2nd  (1) ESP     Pole (2)  Pole (6)  Pole  (9) MAL 03 – CHN 05
M Webber       2nd  (1) GBR     5th  (1)  2nd  (1)  2nd   (2) MAL 04 – ESP 05
J Trulli       2nd  (1) BRA     6th  (1)  3rd  (1)  Pole  (3) MON 04 – USA 05
S Bourdais     4th  (1) ITA     —       —       —
N Heidfeld     5th  (4) . . .   2nd  (1)  3rd  (1)  Pole  (1) Eur 05
N Rosberg      5th  (2) CDN/ITA 4th  (1)  3rd  (1)  —
T Glock        5th  (1) HUN     —       —       16th  (2) CDN 04 – CHN 04
D Coulthard    7th  (1) FRA     5th  (1)  7th  (1)  Pole (12) ARG 95 – MON 01
N Piquet       7th  (1) GBR     —       —       —
J Button       9th  (1) BRN     6th  (1)  Pole (1)  Pole  (2) RSM 04 – CDN 05
R Barrichello  9th  (1) CDN     9th  (1)  3rd  (2)  Pole (13) BEL 94 – BRA 04
K Nakajima     10th (1) SIN     19th (1)  —       —

G Fisichella   12th (1) ITA     4th  (1)  Pole (1)  Pole  (2) AUT 98 – AUS 05
A Sutil        16th (1) CDN     19th (3)  —       —
T Sato         19th (1) MAL     10th (1)  17th (2)  2nd   (1) Eur 04
A Davidson     21st (3) . . .   11th (2)  —       15th  (1) MAL 05

Personal Bests set at Interlagos 2008
=====================================

      Career            2008 Season
======================================
Pole  F Massa (15)   F Massa (6)
2nd                  J Trulli

Most Pole Positions
===================

    1950-2002 (Top 25)                Since 2003 (Top 10)
=========================         ========================
 1 Ayrton Senna        65         1 Michael Schumacher  18 +
 2 Michael Schumacher  50 +       2 Fernando Alonso     17
 3 Jim Clark           33         3 Kimi Räikkönen      16
   Alain Prost         33         4 Felipe Massa        15
 5 Nigel Mansell       32         5 Lewis Hamilton      13
 6 Juan Manuel Fangio  29         6 Rubens
…

- We’ve just had a fantastic race.

- It was won at a bloody canter by a kid in a Minardi.

- Yes it was.

- Oh, all right; it’s owned by a couple of Austrians now.

- One of them is Gerhard Berger.

- Despite that, they played the Italian national anthem. (Wonder what
   the "senior" Red Bull team will get – I’m betting Austria.)

- Forza Minardi!

–
Duncan Snowden.

Has there been any more news on whether full slick tyres will be
reintroduced next year or not?

I remember hearing about it, but nothing further.

Mark.

While I recognize that curb/kerb-hopping has become the de facto way to
a quick lap, especially at circuits like Monza, I am beginning to think
that something needs to be done to control it.  As awesome as the Grand
Prix of Italy was yesterday, I was disturbed by how often I saw drivers
not only on the curbs/kerbs but over them such that their outside tires
were inside the red/white paint and fully into the green paint.  Now, I
realize that it was very wet and all, but back in the day when I did my
time behind the wheel, one was expected to keep the car "on the island"
and "the island" was defined by that bit of tarmac between the markers.
SCCA stewards were not very forgiving of drivers who went off course in
attempts to defend or to attack.

Am I just being an old fuddy-duddy here or does anybody else think that
precise driving is becoming something of a lost art?  This just seems a
situation that has progressively been allowed to get out of hand.

Cheers!

Mudge

–
Life is change: How it differs from the rocks!
I’ve seen their ways too often for my liking.
New worlds to gain: My life is to survive . . .
. . . and be alive for you.