Monday, June 23, 2008

Viva Kimi

My word! What a race by Kimi! Imagine having to drive a car whose exhaust is displaced and is not at its peak power. Add a widening hole being burnt into the side of the car from the very hot exhaust very close to the fuel intake. Throw in some aggressive drivers around you at the very demanding French Magny Cours circuit. Top it with some uncertainty of rain. Any human being would say the safest thing to do would be to either pit the limping car at the earliest or if you have to, turn the revs down and just cruise to the finish.

But, would Kimi do that? No way! He not only drove more than 30 laps of the race on the conditions mentioned above but also managed to retain his position by consistently driving at race speed, sometimes over 300 KPH. True he had to let Fellow teammate and then 2nd Massa pass him but such was Kimi's dominance in the early part of the race and determination in the latter half that despite his handicap no one could even catch him forget about challenging him for the 2nd spot. Only Kimi can drive the way he does and that's why I just worship him.

Lewis's can of woes (or worms) seems to be overflowing these days! He has to calm himself down and tone down his aggression. Whatever Steve Slater had to say about the 'rules' the fact remains that Lewis did gain a place by straight lining at the turn. We all know that he would have got the position had he stayed on track. There is no disputing that, but the rules also are very clear. If you gain a position in that fashion you have to concede immediately. Plus he nearly took out his team mate early in the race. Young he may be but he is also extremely arrogant and over confident on track! He should realise that rookies like Robert Kubica, Nelson Piquet Jr., or even Sutil can all drive as fast if they were put behind the wheels of a McLaren Mercedes. Humility will serve him well if he has a long term view of the future.

Alonso was a promising P3 but his advantage whittled away even before he reached the first corner. A rejuvenated Trulli took advantage of a slow starting Alonso and finished the race in third. His dog fight with Heiki was not only great racing but extremely entertaining. This is what Formula 1 is all about. Hard core racing. Kudos to the mandarins at FIA who have brought about the changes in technical specifications. Removing Traction Control and limiting the capacities of car's engines has clearly shown that the playing field has leveled out a lot. BMW's the one enjoying the benefits most of all.

A promising 2008 season is getting more and more exciting with every passing race.
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