FORMULA 1 - 2010

[OZCUBAN]

Alonso buoyed despite missing pole

Fernando Alonso said he was not disappointed to miss out on the first pole of his Ferrari career by a tiny 0.002s - as he was delighted just to be in a position to fight for pole given his team's struggles this season.

The result was still the first time Alonso had taken a front row spot since joining the legendary Italian squad for 2010.

He had been quickest in Q1, Q2 and the first part of Q3, before Sebastian Vettel snuck ahead and snatched pole away.

"I think we have to be happy - we are on the first row of the grid for the first time this season, so that's definitely a step forward for us," Alonso insisted.

"We've been competitive all weekend.

"I'm very confident with the car, very happy in Q1, Q2 and Q3, so finally we did a perfect Saturday.

"Obviously we lost pole position by a small margin, but this is not important - the points are tomorrow, not on Saturday.

"So let's stay focused, repeat a good day tomorrow and try to score as many points as possible."

He said Vettel's Q3 surge came as no surprise.

"I think we always expected the Red Bulls to give something more in Q3," said Alonso.

"Sometimes we've seen them be very close in practice, very close in Q1 and Q2, then in Q3 Red Bull is half a second in front of everyone.

"So I was expecting a very strong reaction in Q3 from Red Bull and very tough competition."

Alonso added that he had been thrilled with Ferrari's progress in the last few rounds, and felt its strong Hockenheim qualifying performance - with team-mate Felipe Massa also competitive in third - proved that the team was back in contention at the front.

"We're definitely going in the right direction," he said.

"In the last two or three grands prix, there have been massive steps forward for the Ferrari team.

"Now we're both here in the top three, so this is the way we have to continue - and keep improving."

[MIKA27]

Sutil handed gearbox penalty

Adrian Sutil will start Sunday's German GP from the 19th slot on the grid after being handed a gearbox change penalty.

Sutil, who had set the pace in Friday's first practice session at the Hockenheim circuit, came undone on Saturday morning when his Force India ran into troubles.

Just two laps into his morning session, the German suddenly slowed to a crawl out on track and limped his way back to the pits, failing to make an appearance for the remainder of the session.

Force India subsequently revealed that he had suffered a driveshaft failure, which meant the team was forced to change his gearbox.

As such the German, who could only manage P14 in Saturday afternoon's qualifying, will start Sunday's race from 19th place on the grid.

[MIKA27]

Kobayashi: Not thinking about the future

Kamui Kobayashi is in no hurry to decide his future, conceding that his results over the rest of the season will determined its course.

The Japanese driver secured a deal with Sauber for this year's Championship after an impressive two-race debut last season with Toyota. However, 2010 has not gone quite according to plan.

Sauber struggled in the opening rounds, and it wasn't until Turkey that Kobayashi finally bagged their first point of the campaign. He followed that up with two more top ten finishes in the following three races, including his best result, a P6 at the British GP.

His Silverstone points sparked reports that Kobayashi could be on his way to Renault next season, with the team believed to have short-listed him as Vitaly Petrov's replacement.

But for now, Kobayashi says he's just focusing on scoring points for Sauber.

"I'm not really thinking about the future," he told Autosport. "To me this is all just political stuff.

"What I need to do here is just to drive, to score points - because for me there is no point to think about anything else at the moment.

"Still we have nine races, which can change a lot, and if we have bad results then maybe I have no choice to drive for any team. My job is to focus here."

[MIKA27]

Webber: It just wasn't good enough

Mark Webber concedes his final flying lap in Saturday's qualifying at Hockenheim "wasn't good enough".

For only the third time this season, one the result of a gearbox penalty, Webber failed to qualify in the top two positions on a Saturday afternoon, dropping to P4.

The Aussie, though, admits it was his own fault as he made a small mistake at the start of his final flying lap.

"I got a little bit wide on the entry to Turn One. It wasn't good enough and I lost the position to Felipe which was a shame," he told the BBC.

"I knew is was going to be tight. It would have been good to be amongst it."

But at least one Red Bull racer was all smiles as Sebastian Vettel claimed pole position for his home grand prix.

"Seb did a good job to get on pole so it's a good day for the team," said Webber.

[MIKA27]

Schumi: Podium hopes aren't looking too good

Michael Schumacher admits his chances of finishing on the podium in Germany are all but over after a disappointing qualifying.

Schumacher returned home to Germany this weekend, conceding that while a victory was out of his reach, a podium finish could be a possibility.

However, his hopes were dashed on Saturday afternoon when he failed to reach the final qualifying segment, booted out of the top ten by fellow German, Nico Hulkenberg.

"It's a little disappointing because we were expecting to be fifth and sixth not ninth and 11th and it is not too optimistic for tomorrow even though we are stronger on race pace," he told the BBC immediately after qualifying.

"So the hope of getting a podium for our fans here is not looking too good."

But with a bit more time to reflect, Schumacher did at least find one positive aspect when it came time for Mercedes GP to put out their post-qualifying press release.

"If I want to find something positive, it is that at least I will be starting from the better side of the grid and in the end, I prefer 11th to 10th place because of that," he said.

"We are a bit stronger in race pace than in qualifying but we clearly wanted to achieve more for our fans. Let's hope that tomorrow the race will develop in a way that we can still show them something."

MIKA: I've seen worse situations. Should there be a shunt at turn 1 and 2 as I'm sure Alonso will want to beat Vettel to the turn, anything can happen.

[MIKA27]

I'm watching the German GP, it's lap 49 out of 67 and WTF do you think just happened?! Ferrari management order Felipe Massa to pull back and allow Alonso in front.

Alonso as usual at around lap 38 is complaining, sulking as usual because he's in P2 behind Massa who is in P1. Massa hasn't won a race since 2009, this is his chance for victory but team orders do the unthinkable?!

I'm going for MercedesGP along with Renault but as a fan regardless, I feel this is utter rubbish.

Yes, the same occurred when Schumi was at Ferrari, but I thought F1 had evolved since Austria 2002 where Barrichello was in P1 and team orders required Rubens fall back with less than 400 metres to the finish line to allow Schumacher through and claim the win.

Any thoughts?

[Smooth]

  MIKA27 said:

I'm watching the German GP, it's lap 49 out of 67 and WTF do you think just happened?! Ferrari management order Felipe Massa to pull back and allow Alonso in front.

Alonso as usual at around lap 38 is complaining, sulking as usual because he's in P2 behind Massa who is in P1. Massa hasn't won a race since 2009, this is his chance for victory but team orders do the unthinkable?!

I'm going for MercedesGP along with Renault but as a fan regardless, I feel this is utter rubbish.

Yes, the same occurred when Schumi was at Ferrari, but I thought F1 had evolved since Austria 2002 where Barrichello was in P1 and team orders required Rubens fall back with less than 400 metres to the finish line to allow Schumacher through and claim the win.

Any thoughts?

it's bloody disgraceful and a blight on the sport...

Im awaiting the press conference.

[MIKA27]

  Smooth said:

it's bloody disgraceful and a blight on the sport...

Im awaiting the press conference.

I've just watched the press conference and Alonso sure avoided the questions at hand related to his complaints earlier in the race about being faster even though he was behind Felipe.

I wont quote here but Alonso was asked about his overtaking of Felipe to which Alonso managed to make it sound as though he was unsure what occurred to Felipe which allowed him to pass. He knew very well what and why Felipe Massa slowed.

Massa on the other hand just spat it out in a way that was perfect PR for the team but also allowed one to clearly read between the lines which screamed to all that he was ordered to pull aside for Alonso to pass.

This race was one year to the day where Massa had that horrible accident at the Hungarian GP. Would have been a dream win for Massa.

Im sorry to all Alonso fans but I really hate that bloke. He just doesnt stop complaining.

[MIKA27]

Ferrari fined $100,000 for using team orders

Fernando Alonso gets to keep his German GP victory but may have to take a pay cut after Ferrari were fined $100,000 for using team orders in Germany.

The Scuderia caused outrage in Germany on Sunday when they ordered Felipe Massa to move aside, allowing Fernando Alonso to take the victory and the much-needed 25 points.

Ferrari were immediately called into the stewards' office to answer charges of bringing the sport into disrepute with their use of team orders, which are banned.

The Scuderia, though, insisted that it was not a team order but rather a "driver decision".

"We didn't give any instruction at all. I don't think anything wrong has been done, or regulation breached," communications director Luca Colajanni told the BBC.

"Fernando was slightly quicker at that stage, and we informed the drivers."

However, the stewards did not agree, deeming Ferrari to have contravened Article 39.1 of the Formula 1 Sporting Regulations, which states that 'team orders which interfere with a race result are prohibited.'

They were also charged with a breach of article 151c of the FIA International Sporting Code.

That relates to 'any fraudulent conduct, or any act prejudicial to the interests of any competition or to the interests of motor sport generally.'

The Italian marque have been handed a $100,000 fine, although the race results and Alonso's victory still stand.

Ferrari, though, could face further sanctions as the matter has also been referred to the FIA World Council 'for further consideration.'

However, the Scuderia have already confirmed they will not appeal the decision.

"As for the Stewards' decision, given after the race, in the interests of the sport, we have decided not to go through a procedure of appealing against it, confident that the World Council will know how to evaluate the overall facts correctly," said team boss Stefano Domenicali.

MIKA: Of course it was team orders, why else would they apologise to Massa 'LIVE ON AIR' when they informed him Alonso was faster than he!? Weather Alonso was faster or not, Massa was still in the lead.

[MIKA27]

Alonso gifted victory in a Ferrari 1-2

Fernando Alonso managed his second victory of the season, albeit in a bitter fashion which involved team orders between himself and Felipe Massa, the Brazilian managing second.

Sebastian Vettel lost his race in the first corner tussling with Alonso, but duly managed third ahead of the two McLaren's.

Race Report:

Felipe Massa came out as the leader after turn one, having overtaken Sebastian Vettel and team-mate Fernando Alonso as the two tussled for position.

Lewis Hamilton capitalised on the first corner bunching, taking his team-mate, then using his straight line speed advantage to pass Mark Webber.

As the remainder of the pack reached the hairpin, the two Toro Rosso drivers collided, resulting in Sebastian Buemi retiring and Jaime Alguersuari needing a new front-wing. Adrian Sutil also lost his front-wing in the carnage, whilst the second Force India of Vitantonio Liuzzi pitted for new tyres - the two then pitted again having taken each others tyre sets which is against FI A regulations.

Jarno Trulli became the second retiree after slowing on the second lap with a mechanical issue.

Lap 13 saw the first strategic pit stop. The Red Bull team pitted Vettel which led to the Ferrari team immediately reacting by pitting second placed man, Fernando Alonso, on lap 14, along with Mark Webber.

Race leader Felipe Massa chose to pit on lap 15 along with Lewis Hamilton - handing the lead to Jenson Button.

Robert Kubica and Michael Schumacher had a brief tussle, reminiscent of the Candian GP, which saw the Pole come out ahead of the German after his stop.

On lap 21, Alonso had his best opportunity so far to pass Massa into the hairpin, but backmarkers hindered his exit leaving the order unchanged.

Button made his first stop on lap 23, slotting in behind his team-mate but crucially ahead of Webber, whom he was behind at the start of the race.

Vitaly Petrov used a slow Schumacher to his advantage at the hairpin to pass Kamui Kobayashi to take 12th on lap 25.

Felipe Massa continued to repeatedly set the quickest lap throughout the middle part of the race despite struggling for grip on his new tyres.

Lap 48 saw the message fans never want to hear, move over Felipe, Alonso's quicker - albeit worded a little differently (Alonso is faster than you, can you confirm you understood that message? - Rob Smedley delivered in a dull tone). One lap later the inevitable happened and Massa immediately slowed to allow his team-mate through.

Rob Smedley then apologised to Massa, saying the following: "OK mate, good lad. Stay with him now. Sorry."

The order then remained unchanged since the switch, leading to a Ferrari 1-2, the second of the year.

Race results for the German GP:

Pos Driver Team Time

01 F. Alonso Ferrari 1:28:38.866

02 F. Massa Ferrari +4.196

03 S. Vettel Red Bull +5.121

04 L. Hamilton McLaren +26.896

05 J. Button McLaren +29.482

06 M. Webber Red Bull +43.606

07 R. Kubica Renault +1 lap

08 N. Rosberg Mercedes +1 lap

09 M. Schumacher Mercedes +1 lap

10 V. Petrov Renault +1 lap

11 K. Kobayashi Sauber +1 lap

12 R. Barrichello Williams +1 lap

13 N. Hulkenberg Williams +1 lap

14 P. de la Rosa Sauber +1 lap

15 J. Alguersuari Toro Rosso +1 lap

16 V. Liuzzi Force India +2 lap

17 A. Sutil Force India +2 lap

18 T. Glock Virgin +3 lap

19 B. Senna Hispania +4 lap

20 H. Kovalainen Lotus Retired

21 L. di Grassi Virgin Retired

22 S. Yamamoto Hispania Retired

23 J. Trulli Lotus Retired

24 S. Buemi Toro Rosso Retired

[MIKA27]

Horner: That was a team order

Christian Horner has led the way in criticising Ferrari after the German GP by describing the radio message given to Felipe Massa as "the most obvious team order I have ever heard".

With Massa giving up the lead to Fernando Alonso following a less-than-subtle communication from Rob Smedley, the Red Bull boss has challenged the FIA to investigate whether the sport's rules, which outlaw team orders, have been breached.

Asked if, in identical circumstances, he would have given the same instruction, Horner replied: "No. I would have let my drivers race."

Team orders have been banned since 2002 following another incident involving Ferrari. On that occasion Rubens Barrichello blatantly moved aside for Michael Schumacher who in embarrassment actually handed the top step of the podium to the Brazilian while the crowd booed.

Red Bull boss Horner wants to see a response from the stewards for this incident.

"It will be interesting to see what the stewards make of it because for me it was as clear as 2002, which is why the rule was brought in. It's wrong for the sport. The drivers should have been allowed to race. Massa did the better job. He was in the lead and the regulations are pretty clear - team orders are not allowed."

MIKA: I hope Alonso is penalised for this.

Yes, the team ordered Massa to pull back but it was Alonso earlier on in the race complaining to the team that he was faster than Massa.

[BigGuns]

Bittersweet day for Ferrari. Glad they finished 1-2 (Big Red fan here, sorry fellas!). Not sure I'm pleased with the "order". I can see both sides of the argument, but not sure I agree outright with either. I was happy today, nonetheless...

[MIKA27]

Sunday's German GP press conference

Race winner Fernando Alonso, team-mate Felipe Massa and third place finisher Sebastian Vettel attended Sunday's FIA press conference...

Q. Fernando, as the team told you at the end you have indeed been very quick this weekend. Frustration though for much of the race and you said on the team radio at one stage 'this is ridiculous' but in the end it ended very well for you.

Fernando ALONSO: Yeah, I think it was a good weekend overall. We did improve the car a lot and immediately from Friday we felt very competitive. The car behaved very well and all the set-up adjustments worked really well here in Hockenheim. We know that some circuits will be better, some circuits will be worse. In the race as well we were competitive. We performed really well. Some parts of the race we were fighting very close for first position and it was a little bit dangerous but in the end I think it was a little bit more space between all the cars and we finished the laps with no more risky manoeuvres.

Q. It certainly wasn't a risky manoeuvre when you managed to get past Felipe. It looked rather easy from where we were watching.

FA: Well, I think I don't know what happened, but at the exit of turn six I saw Felipe a little bit slow and tried to overtake. You have to take every opportunity you have as it is a very difficult circuit to overtake and you only have one chance into turn six. I was never close enough to do an attempt, so at that point I overtook the other car and then it was 15 or 20 laps to the end. Some more cars to lap. That was some risk at some times as it is a very narrow circuit, especially the last sector, so it was not an easy race but very interesting.

Q. We heard in Australia this year you saying to the team 'look I am faster than Felipe, let me pass him'. At any stage were you saying that this afternoon?

FA: Well, I think sometimes you are quick, sometime you are slow depending on what stage the tyres are. Sometimes you have a little bit of graining and sometimes you have some other problems. In some parts of the race maybe I was quicker than him. Some other parts of the race Felipe was very quick and pulling away from Sebastian and me, so it is very difficult to judge but it is a very strong result for the team. Top three in qualifying and top two in the race and the best thing as well is that the car keeps improving. It is not a result down to the weather conditions or to anything like that. It is a good performance from the team and hopefully next week in Hungary we can do a good weekend as well and score some strong points for the team. (Avoids the question)

Q. Felipe, a year to the day since your accident in Hungary. A win would have been the perfect way to mark that anniversary. Did you feel you deserved a win this afternoon?

Felipe MASSA: Well, I think so. The start was just fantastic and also the pace on the soft tyres was really great. Then I was struggling a little bit on the hard, but anyway it was a very good race for us.

Q. You were told by Rob Smedley, your race engineer, that Fernando was the faster car than yourself. A couple of laps later, turn six at the hairpin, talk us through what happened?

FM: Well, I don't think I need to say anything about that. (Massa looked pissed off when answering this question with a look as if to tell the interviewer to 'read between the lines)

Q. Fernando managed to get past you. Did you make a mistake? Was it under braking?

FM: He passed me.

Q. Then Rob Smedley said 'Good lad, sorry'.

FM: Yeah.

Q. Did you feel that you weren't allowed to win that race?

FM: The only thing I feel is that we are working for the team and we are doing a very good job for the team and that is the most important thing.

Q. How pleasing is it for you that Ferrari are back up there competing with Red Bull?

FM: Well, I think it was a great job for the team during the last month I would say. We were pushing hard. This was a very good track for us but anyway I think we did a good job, good working inside the car, so the car became faster and faster race by race and I think that is very important for sure when you get to the track that you see your car is very, very competitive, so the best you can do is to do first and second on the track. This is what's happened today, so I think as a team we achieved the maximum that is possible for this race.

Q. Sebastian, another pole that sadly for you, you could not covert into victory. It was the start once again?

Sebastian VETTEL: Yeah, usually we have very good starts. Yesterday I was told Ferrari have good starts but I think up to today we had better ones. Not really sure what happened. I had quite a lot of grip, dumped the first clutch, so I had a big of a bog, so the first five to 10 metres of the acceleration were very poor. I was lucky I didn't stall the engine. I could get going again but lost the momentum, so I knew that it would be very tight with Fernando who was already side-by-side, so there was no way I could stay ahead of him. Then I was a little bit surprised when I saw Felipe come from the left. But still after that I think we had a good race. We knew it would be very tight. The closer you get you start to feel the tyres losing a bit of grip, starting to have a bit of graining but I think the majority of the race the Ferraris were probably just that tenth or two quicker than us, so it was difficult for us to keep up the pace. Towards the end we were able to push again a little bit but it is very tricky. You cannot really do your own rhythm as then you get so many lapped cars and depending on where you find them on the circuit, especially the last sector where it is very narrow, you can drop a lot of time and lose a lot of time but the race is done, so we finished third. I think we can be proud of that. We achieved our maximum today, so congratulations to Ferrari and I am pleased to be on the podium. Very special for me for my home grand prix to see the people here, be on that podium and see everyone cheering. It is very nice and emotional.

Q. Fernando, you needed a win before the summer break to re-ignite your championship challenge. Do you feel you have done that this weekend? You are back in business?

FA: I think apart from the win the most important thing is to feel confident with the car again, to feel that we are going in the right direction in terms of developing the car. The new parts on the car we introduced in the last couple of races seemed to work really well, so despite the win the better news for us in the last two or three races is that we are competitive. There were some grands prix that we were not quick enough to fight for pole positions, for wins, for podiums and we had to be conservative and now I think we can push a bit more, be more aggressive and try to score points. There is one race in one week. We did nothing today. I think we cannot go too low when the things were not very good for us and we need to be very calm after this strong result. We are happy, but we did nothing. This is the first step.

PRESS CONFERENCE

Q. Fernando, your feelings of a Ferrari one-two. I think it is a certain amount of frustration over the last few races but now you have finally done it.

FA: Yeah, I think we deserved this result for the team. No points for Felipe and me in Valencia and Silverstone with a competitive car for different reasons and very bad luck. We came back here with some upgrades in the car and with some new parts and they seemed to work really well. From Friday morning we felt competitive. We felt happy with the car, so we just were concentrating on finishing and doing a good Sunday with no mistakes and no problems and everything went fine. To win a race is always special, but to win a race for Ferrari is even more special. Two races we did well this year we were first and second, so this is a very strong result for the team. We just need to continue like this. I think we are going to go down when we have some disappointing races and we cannot be too excited after a strong result. This is a very long championship and we need to remain very focused for 10 months. Today is very important for the team, for the motivation of all the guys and especially for the technical people that keep working day and night to improve the car and this result is thanks to them. This is a good motivation for everybody in Maranello as well but as I said in four days we are in Hungary, so there is no time to really be too excited.

Q. How important is this win here but do you feel the car will be similarly suited to the Hungaroring?

FA: I think so. I don't see any reason to be pessimistic for Hungary. The car was competitive in Valencia and Silverstone, more competitive here, so in eight days hopefully the picture doesn't change so much, very strong competition with Red Bull and McLaren, but at least we are in the fight. There were some races this year when we were very close to Renault, to Mercedes and very far away from Red Bull and McLaren. Now I think we feel strong enough to fight with them for important points, so hopefully we can do a good weekend again in Hungary.

Q. Tell us about the start as you were a bit worried about being on the dirty side. There was a certain amount of pressure from Sebastian.

FA: The start was very good. We felt good grip already in the formation lap and then in the start itself it was okay. I felt I had a better start than Sebastian who lost a little bit of ground in the first metres. Then I was very close to the wall. Unfortunately I think this battle we lost a couple of metres close to the wall and we lost one position both to Felipe who started very good in third, so we arrived at the first corner quite close but enough to overtake Sebastian, so it was a super start, I think.

Q. Your view of the start. You must have been interested watching what was going off to your right.

FM: Well, I think the car first of all did a fantastic start. I think I prepared the tyres very well and then I just had a good grip, Sebastian not pulling away like I expected. He was a bit slower than I expected in terms of wheel spin or whatever. Then I just saw him coming to the right, so the only possibility was to go to the left, so I went to the left and then were fighting each other, so I took the chance to pass both, so it was a great start.

Q. After that how was the pace of the car? Did you feel it was pretty perfect?

FM: Yeah, I think it was very good on the soft tyres. It was really good, so I could manage to put a good pace lap by lap. The tyres behaved even better than I expected, the soft in terms of degradation, especially rear degradation. Then I arrived at the time to change to the hard and I was struggling a little bit more on the hard tyres, so it was no news about that. Anyway the car was behaving after but I think I lost a little bit of pace on the hard tyres.

Q. Then Fernando got past you. Was that your decision to let him past?

FM: Yeah, definitely.

Q. Yes, definitely?

FM: (No verbal answer)

Q. Sebastian, what was your feeling about the pace of the Ferraris today?

SV: Not a nice one. I lost two positions at the start. I think the formation lap start was fine, then coming to the race start the lights came off I released the first clutch lever and the revs dropped a lot. The first five to 10 metres the acceleration was very poor, so I lost a lot of momentum. Then it was difficult to recover. You lose that most crucial phase. I knew it would be tight with Fernando. I think he didn't have a great start either. Obviously he had to start from the dirty side, so I was trying to defend my position. But then he was side-by-side and as soon as I saw that there was no reason to go any further. The guy I am focused on is the guy closest to me at that stage and it was Fernando. Then Felipe came around the outside. It was tight then going with more or less three cars into the first corner but not a big deal. I lost two positions after turn one and that was it. After that I think our pace was fine. I felt comfortable in the car. But we were just this tenth or two slower today than the Ferraris. Both of them were pulling away at the first sting a little bit and then the gaps were consistent around I would say three to five seconds. Very difficult then to say as you never really get into a rhythm with the lapped cars. You lose out more than the others, sometimes less. It is tricky. In the end we were never close enough. In the end I think we were a bit quicker again but they had no reason to keep pushing that hard. I was getting closer to Felipe, but he didn't do any mistakes. None the less I am happy to be on the podium. It is special for myself, my home grand prix. Nice to be on the podium even if not the top step and see all the people. Very nice. Lots of energy and big boost for next week. I think we have a very competitive car and today our maximum was finishing third which we did. I would have loved to take a bit more points, but 15 points is still a lot looking at the championship. A lot of race left, so I am happy today.

QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

Q. (Ian Parkes - The Press Association) Fernando and Felipe, via a coded message it appears that we've just witnessed a clear case of team orders being handed out. To Fernando, do you feel embarrassed about taking such a win, and to Felipe do you feel angry about having to give up such a win?

FM: For sure, you always want to win. That's always what we're working for. For sure we don't have team orders, so we just need to do the race that we can and if you see that you cannot do the race that you can, you need to think about the team. I think that's the most important thing.

FA: Yeah, same. What's important is the team result, so I'm happy.

Q. (Fredrik Af Petersens) Felipe, you said earlier that you lost out to Fernando on the hard tyres. How come that after you were passed, that you were doing more or less exactly the same lap times, a couple of times even faster?

FM: I was pushing hard as well but maybe I think he slowed down, I don't know. He was controlling the pace.

Q. (Alan Baldwin - Reuters) Felipe, after this afternoon, do you now think you're the number two driver at Ferrari?

FM: Well, I cannot say that I'm there fighting for first position in the championship. I've lost many points, important points, and the only thing I can say is that I know what I can do, I can win races, that's what counts and everybody saw today that I can win races and I can be competitive. For sure, what happened today is something that has happened in many races this year: when I put on the hard tyres I struggle. This is exactly what happened in the race. On the soft tyres, I was very strong and then when we went onto the hard, I was struggling again, so there's no news about that. So I know why sometimes I'm a little bit penalised, it's just because of the very hard tyres that we have this year. I don't think it's a good thing, to be honest, because you don't have strategies any more. Then also the grip level on hard tyres for me was always a little bit of an issue this year, and most of the races that we used these tyres I was struggling. And this is another one where I was very good on the soft tyres in the first part of the race, and then we put on the hard tyres and I was struggling again. It's a similar issue that we have had in some races.

Q. (Livio Oricchio - O Estado de Sao Paulo) Alonso, in a normal race, do you think you could have overtaken Massa, and Massa, in a normal race do you think Alonso could overtake you?

FM: Well, I think I was holding in a good way anyway, but the race is long and you always have many laps, so you never know what can happen in 20 laps. So maybe yes.

FA: Yeah, I think there was one moment also on (I don't know) which lap it was but we were side-by-side into turn six, especially with the people we were lapping - always there is a better chance to overtake and even though we didn't see too many overtakings here today we've seen a lot in the past on this circuit but this year maybe with the new cars etc we didn't see too many.

Q. (Ian Gordon - News of the World) Fernando, you said after Valencia that the race had been manipulated in favour of Lewis. Those words seem a bit hollow now. Where will this victory rank in your career, is it up there with Singapore 2008?

FA: I think you have a very strong result from Ferrari today, one and two, a very strong performance all weekend and if the final thought of the weekend is your question it's because maybe you didn't see the whole practice, qualifying and the race, so maybe it's too early for you that Ferrari came back so strong.

Q. (Ian Gordon - News of the World) Team orders are banned in Formula One. They were banned in 2002, that was blatant team orders.

FA: Sure.

Q. (Ian Gordon - News of the World) Eddie Jordan just said that you two should be kicked out of the race.

FA: Again, if this is the final thought of the weekend for you, I think it is because you didn't see the performance of the team and the performance from our car this weekend.

Q. (Juha Päätalo - Financial Times Germany) Fernando, I think we all know what happened on lap 48 and we don't need any fairy tales about tyres or anything to be clear of that. I just want to ask you, because in 2006 in Monza you said that Formula One is not a sport any more for you but was that which we saw today a sport?

FA: I think we tried to do our race, we tried to do as good as we can. We are professional drivers, we try to work in a team and we try to do the best we can every day, not only here on the track but also between the races, at the factory etc, preparing the races. Again, I think we've been doing a good job over the last couple of races and finally we got a strong Sunday with a strong result. I think we are happy with this, although there are things which are more for you if you want to write all these things.

Q. (Carlos Miquel - Diario AS) Fernando, do you feel that some people are worrying because you are back in the championship?

FA: Maybe it seems like this, yes.

Q. (Byron Young - The Daily Mirror) Fernando, what have you got to say to the people who would call this a dirty win and if you win the championship, a dirty champion?

FA: I have 19 races to... look at the overall races, there are a lot of points that we win sometimes and a lot of points that we lose sometimes. As I said, today was a good day, some other races were bad days for us, disappointing but as I said before, we need to remain focused, keep working, keep developing the car, not to be too excited when we win, not to be too down when we lose. In November, (we need to) try to be in the fight for the championship, not forgetting that Red Bull has so far been very dominant, not scoring many points on Sunday, or the points that they should have scored on Sunday, but remain very strong and McLaren as well, leading both championships, so there is still a long way to go for us.

Q. (Byron Young - The Daily Mirror) The reality is, though, that you couldn't beat him on the track, so you had to get the team to do it for you.

FA: If that's your opinion.

Q. (Byron Young - The Daily Mirror) I'm asking you, is that not your opinion?

FA: No.

Q. (Byron Young - The Daily Mirror) He had to give you this win, didn't he, Fernando?

FA: No.

Q. (Ian Parkes - The Press Association) Fernando, you've said that you're happy with this win but to be honest, I've never seen a driver look less happy in the middle of a podium there today, and in the middle of this press conference here. Why can't you just be honest with us for once, and just admit that this win was handed to you on a plate today?

SV: Can I go? Q. (Ian Parkes - The Press Association) Go Sebastian! Sebastian, give us your thoughts?

FA: Hopefully the next question is for Sebastian. No, stay, stay. As I said, I think we were competitive on Friday, I was very competitive on Friday, first position. Finishing second in qualifying by 12 centimeters, I heard yesterday and today I think we scored the fastest lap of the race, so overall I don't think I was very slow this weekend.

Q. (Miran Alisic - Korpmedia) I have a question for Sebastian. I think you had some not similar but close situations with Mark as well. Do you feel proud that what has happened at Ferrari today hasn't happened in your team?

SV: Don't you have another question maybe? Yeah, maybe they should have crashed. I don't know, I haven't seen the incident. I was too far back. I always saw them going into the hairpin when I was coming out of turn five, so I don't know what you're all talking about. I can guess but I don't know. For sure my advice would not be it's better to crash because also then you get a lot of questions that you have to answer so... Yeah, for me I was focusing on my own race and trying to do my thing, trying to stay close enough, trying to get closer, trying to put them under pressure. It didn't work, so I'm not pleased with that. No matter who you race, it's always difficult in Formula One to pass people and sometimes you have to take a lot of risk. When you don't have to race your team-mate, you're racing for the team, both of you, both drivers and on the other hand everyone looks for his own advantage. We had a couple of situations this year in our team, so it's quite a comedy that we are not in focus at this stage but life changes quickly, so... It's never wise to say anything that you might regret. Maybe in a week's time. I'm happy where we are now, as a team. Again, I can only repeat that from the outside there was more of a fuss made than there was inside. I can assure you that Mark and myself are always looking to do our best but on top of that, I think we understood many times this year that the team is the main priority and we are racing for the team, in the end. We don't get our cheque from you guys, we get it from the team. I think that's something we always have to respect.

Q. (Ralf Bach - R & Felipe, you said it was your decision to let Fernando past, so my first question is why did you take this decision, as a racing driver in Formula One, and my second question is do you have any idea why Rob Smedley said sorry to you?

FM: No. (Regarding your first question) As I said, because I was not so strong on the hard, so we need to think about the team.

Q. (Livio Oricchio - O Estado de Sao Paulo) Felipe, Rubens damaged his image a lot in Brazil when he did what you did today. Until now you had the support of the country; aren't you worried that now after you did what Rubens did you have deeply damaged your image in Brazil?

FM: For sure not, for sure not. I'm very professional and I've showed in my career how professional I am. You are professional as well, you work for a company. I believe you are doing what you have to do, so I'm professional and today I showed how professional I am. That's it.

Q. (Tony Dodgins - Tony Dodgins Associates) Fernando you're getting quite a bit of flak but as you say, you've been the quicker Ferrari driver for most of the weekend. We see it so often that the guy who is second on the grid gets beaten away by the guy who is third. Is there ever a case for actually asking to reverse the positions on the grid?

FA: I think there are some circuits where the clean side is an advantage. There are some circuits where it is not an advantage, for example in Hungary next weekend, it will be crucial to be on the clean side. There are other circuits like that. There's nothing we can do. We have a fifty percent chance of being on the clean or dirty side of the grid, unless you are the quickest which secures the clean side. The only thing we can do is to fight for pole position which allows you to be on the clean side. If not, I don't see any other possibility. Maybe there should be more distance. Instead of eight meters, maybe 12 or whatever. (The dirty side is Alonso's)

Q. (Tony Dodgins - Tony Dodgins Associates) Take today, if you'd been able to opt to start third instead of second and actually swap places, would you have done it?

FA: Maybe I would have done a bad start, you never know. I think it was a good start today, overtaking Sebastian and that was our target today. You never know.

Q. (Anne Giuntini - L'Equipe) To both Fernando and Felipe, we always talk about the show, the necessity of the show in Formula One. Can you conceive that race lovers and show lovers might be a bit frustrated today?

FA: Well, I think we try to put on a good show always for people, for spectators but as Felipe or Sebastian said, we work for companies, we work for teams. Sometimes, as we saw this year, there are crashes between team-mates and the loss of 42 points for the team. Today Ferrari has 42 in their pocket, so I think it's what we are here for.

Q. (Ted Kravitz - BBC Sport) Fernando, after the pit stop, when you were behind Felipe, we heard a radio message, it wasn't very clear, but it sounded like you were telling the team guys 'think of the victory.' Did you say that?

FA: No.

[MIKA27]

  BigGuns said:

Bittersweet day for Ferrari. Glad they finished 1-2 (Big Red fan here, sorry fellas!). Not sure I'm pleased with the "order". I can see both sides of the argument, but not sure I agree outright with either. I was happy today, nonetheless...

As an F1 fan, I think it was great that Ferrari won today, congratulations to all the fans.

However, I think the 1-2 finish should have been the reverse with Massa finishing deservedly first. :blush:

[MIKA27]

Schumi: Not nervous but we need to sit down

Although Michael Schumacher insists Mercedes GP are not 'nervous' after another dismal race weekend, he does admit something needs to be done.

Despite heading to Germany with high hopes, Schumacher and his team-mate Nico Rosberg failed to deliver on the day, finishing eighth and ninth with Rosberg ahead.

But perhaps more worrying, is the fact that both drivers were lapped by race winner, Fernando Alonso, and that Schumacher admits that was the best result they could possibly achieve.

"I had a pretty good start today but from then onwards, there was not much more that we could do," he said.

"We were targeting to stay out long but we changed the strategy to react to the circumstances and maybe I could have finished slightly higher. But in the end, that would not have changed much in a race where we had hoped to be more competitive.

"What we achieved after my stop was the maximum that was possible. Of course I would have wished for more, especially as our race performance tends to be better than qualifying, but it did not work out.

"We will certainly not get nervous but we have to sit down, analyse the reasons and put the right solutions in place."

As for Rosberg, he called his P8 'damage limitation.'

"We made the best of our situation today but it is frustrating after being on the podium at the last race," he said.

"Achieving eighth place is damage limitation really and we were able to minimise the loss to Robert in terms of points but it has generally been a struggle this weekend.

"My strategy was good and the guys made a fantastic effort with my pit stop being the quickest of the race. There are surely better times ahead in Hungary."

[MIKA27]

Hamilton: Rivals were phenomenally quick

Lewis Hamilton admits McLaren need to improve their pace - and fast - if they hope to retain their lead in both Championships.

Having lost out to Ferrari and Red Bull in qualifying, it was more of the same for McLaren in Sunday's 67-lap German GP as the Woking outfit had no answer to their rivals' pace.

Hamilton eventually finished the grand prix in fourth place, having overtaken Jenson Button at the start and Mark Webber at the first tour through the Hairpin.

However, that was as far as his progress went as he just could not catch the trio ahead of him.

"I did everything I could at the start, because I knew that that was the place where I could really make up some ground. Unfortunately, the guys in front were phenomenally quick, but I still managed to make up a couple of places," he said.

"It was a very tough race today - the car didn't feel fantastic and the Ferraris and Red Bulls were very fast. We hoped the gap would be closer in the race than it was in qualifying, and it was - but, even so, we've got to make up some pace on our main rivals.

"We need to go back and figure out where we can improve, and pick it up again very quickly. Today, we did everything we could do - now we just have to work harder than ever to get ahead of the cars in front."

Meanwhile, team boss Martin Whitmarsh concedes that while McLaren leave Hockenheim still in the lead of both Championship races, they will have to "work as hard" as they can to ensure it remains that way.

"Today we saw yet another impressively competent day's work from both our drivers - and the result was 22 very valuable World Championship points.

"In truth, in the circumstances, that's probably about as many as we could have hoped to score today.

"We arrived in Germany in first place in the Constructors' Championship and in first and second places in the Drivers' Championship - and we leave Germany in exactly the same positions. So that's extremely positive.

"From here on in, we'll work as hard as we can to maintain and improve our positions at the head of both World Championships.

"We'll continue to develop our car in the weeks and months ahead, with a view to adding as many World Championship points to the milestone total of 300 we've amassed this season as of today."

[MIKA27]

Webber calm about sixth place]

Mark Webber said he was not too concerned about only finishing sixth in the German Grand Prix, as he is confident that the points battle will continue to fluctuate in the coming rounds.

The Australian had thrust himself firmly back into title contention by winning at Silverstone, but lost a little ground at Hockenheim today, when he fell behind both McLarens during the race then had to back off to nurse a potential engine issue as his Red Bull-Renault began guzzling oil at a worrying rate.

That meant the gap between Webber - who remains third in the standings - and leader Lewis Hamilton has increased to 21 points, but Webber said he wouldn't be losing any sleep over Hockenheim.

"Unfortunately I wasn't in [the lead fight] today, but I'll be back," he said.

"Sixth in the old days was a disaster but these days you still get a good few points.

"It's competitive at the front and that's how it should be."

Having been passed by Hamilton amid the first lap jostling, Webber pitted early to try and get back around the McLaren but ended up in traffic - which meant he lost another place to Jenson Button as well.

"I was actually enjoying the first part of the race," Webber said.

"I had a good little scrap with Lewis, he didn't look too comfortable on the option [tyre] and I was getting held up a bit there so thought 'yeah, we'll take the race to the pit stops.'

"We decided to pit and I thought he might come in with me, but obviously he stayed out a lap longer.

"The guys did a good job in the pit stop but we came out in traffic.

"Obviously it was a little bit of a gamble to try and jump Lewis, and we lost a bit of track to him, and then Jenson tried a different strategy and went longer so he jumped me as well."

MIKA: Well now that both Vettel and Webber are equal in points, the team can give both drivers the same parts!

[MIKA27]

Tyre blunder earns Force India reprimand

Force India’s wretched German Grand Prix was compounded by a post-race reprimand from the stewards for fitting the wrong tyres to both its cars during a chaotic start to the race.

The Silverstone-based squad was already facing an uphill struggle to salvage a decent result from Hockenheim after a difficult Saturday saw its drivers qualify near the back of the field, Tonio Liuzzi crashing in Q1 and Adrian Sutil picking up a five-place penalty for a gearbox change.

Its drivers then collided on the opening lap, which broke Liuzzi’s front wing and necessitated a pit stop for repairs – but Sutil was also making his way to the pits at the same time as the team had already decided prior to the race to make his one mandatory stop at the end of the first lap should he not make up substantial ground.

The confusion saw the team fit Sutil’s tyres to Liuzzi’s car, and visa versa – something prohibited by Formula 1’s regulations.

And although the team immediately called both drivers in on the next lap to put the right tyres on their respective cars, after the race stewards pulled Force India up on the transgression and reprimanded it for "fitting of tyres not allocated to the relevant car number”.

Sutil and Liuzzi finished two laps down in 17th and 16th positions respectively, but the latter is confident Force India’s Hockenheim weekend struggles will prove to be a one-off.

“What can we say, it's been a very disappointing weekend,” he said.

“The first lap I had some contact with Tonio and lost some positions. It was always our strategy that, if after the start I had not made up places, I would pit on the first lap to change to the prime tyres and make up positions when other cars stopped later on.

“Tonio had radioed to say he was coming in for a front wing change and as we both arrived at the same time the tyre sets got mixed up and then I had to come in and pit again to get the correct set.

“Once they were on I got going and I could get quite far up the field but then I had to stop when the set went off.

“This weekend we've just not been quick enough but we feel it's just a blip and not anything too serious - at some races you just don't run well, so it's best to write it off and look forward to the next races.”

Liuzzi too was frustrated with how his race panned out, but took solace from the fact he was still able to set the day’s seventh-fastest lap.

“It's been a pretty disappointing race weekend overall,” he said.

“I had one contact on the first lap and we believed we had damaged the front wing, so I came to the pits for a change but there was a mix-up in the stop with the tyres so I had to come back in again.

“It was a shame as I had had a good first lap until that point and afterwards we had a really strong race pace.

“It was always going to be tough, but the pace we showed was the same as the top 10 runners. We have to look at these positives and look forward to the next race in Budapest.”

[MIKA27]

Renault has mixed feelings on seventh

Renault team boss Eric Boullier felt his squad could be relatively happy with seventh and 10th in the German Grand Prix - even though both Robert Kubica and Vitaly Petrov were lapped by the victorious Ferraris.

With its F-duct not due to run until the Belgian GP, Renault has acknowledged that it is fighting a rearguard action at present.

So even though it was a long way from challeging for the lead at Hockenheim, Boullier was pleased that Kubica kept the Mercedes at bay and Petrov stayed of the midfield.

"There were some very positive points from today's race," said the Renault boss.

"The team did a strong job on the strategy and with the pit stops; Robert achieved the full potential of the car and showed we were the fourth quickest team this weekend; and Vitaly produced an excellent drive.

"He showed good pace, pushed when he needed to in order to gain positions and scored the final point."

But he acknowledged that being so far behind the leaders hurt, although he is confident that the next upgrade package will transform Renault's prospects.

"In terms of pure performance, we cannot be satisfied to be lapped by Ferrari," said Boullier.

"It shows that we still have a lot of work to do, but we know that we have some good upgrades on the way."

Kubica agreed that he could at least be satisfied that he had achieved everything the car was capable of.

"It was quite a good race for us, but there was nothing more to do than defend seventh position," he said.

"When you are fighting for P7 and you are lapped, it's okay but it's not what you would like to see."

[MIKA27]

Kovalainen reprimanded for clash

Lotus driver Heikki Kovalainen has been given a reprimand following his clash with Pedro de la Rosa during the German GP.

The Sauber driver made contact with Kovalainen when lapping him near the end of the race, the Finn closing the door on de la Rosa after having let another car by.

De la Rosa had to pit for repairs while the Lotus driver retired.

Kovalainen, who admitted the incident was his fault, was given a reprimand by the race stewards.

"A disappointing end but it was just one of those things that can happen when you're having to let cars past," Kovalainen said.

"It was my mistake but I didn't see the Sauber coming. I thought I was letting the Williams past, and didn't see the Sauber so I closed the door and that was the end of the race."

[BigGuns]

By the way, the only reason they finished the way they did was because of Vettel's RIDICULOUS start. What was he thinking???

[MIKA27]

  BigGuns said:

By the way, the only reason they finished the way they did was because of Vettel's RIDICULOUS start. What was he thinking???

Massa caught Vettel sleeping!

[MIKA27]

Ten Reasons Why Ferrari Were Wrong

Ferrari have been fined $100,000 for issuing a team order during the German GP. But they were in the wrong not just because they broke the rules...

1) Because It Was Blatant And Shameless

There was nothing subtle about the message given to Felipe Massa and though Rob Smedley's communication was phrased as a question only a naïve fool would have heard anything but an order. How could Ferrari not expect all of us to understand precisely what was being said? How could the team be so blatant? How could they be so shameless?

Team orders are nothing new in F1. But the outlawing of such directives is a relatively-new matter and the real outrage of Ferrari's machinations is that they didn't even have the decency to be subtle about it. They thought themselves untouchable and they thought the rest of us to be gullible fools.

The what was terrible; the how was utterly scandalous.

2) Because Ferrari Continued To Handle It So Very Badly

For a little while after the race there was a nagging suspicion that the team might had forgotten that this was the first grand prix in which all radio communications were available to television. Then came the realisation they really thought they'd get away with it: the adamant denials, all made without so much as a red cheek of a shamed-face, culminating in the laughable how-stupid-do-they-think-we are? claim that Alonso only took the lead because "Massa made a small mistake when shifting up three gears at once". It would be funny if only it wasn't so mocking.

Perhaps, just perhaps, if they had respected our intelligence, and offered a hint of remorse rather than insisted it was all Massa's doing, then it wouldn't have felt quite so outrageous.

A summons to the stewards was their just deserts. With the call to account only being made an hour after the race, it was apparent that it was the public's outrage at their appalling arrogance that belatedly put them in the dock.

In one critical regard, Coulthard is entirely right. The rule needs to be re-written. It needs to state that 'team orders are banned unless the team concerned have sufficient public relations skill and savvy to handle the inevitable outcry without insulting the public and making an embarrassment of themselves as well as the sport'.

3) Because Team Orders Are Banned For A Good Reason

It was Ferrari's manipulation of the Austrian GP in 2002 that prompted the FIA to ban team orders and though reflection on this weekend will quickly descend into a debate of semantics, and the question of whether Smedley's words were sufficiently coded to protect the team from punishment, the centrepiece for all discussions ought to be the reminder of why such instructions are illegal.

On the BBC, David Coulthard described the rule as "silly", but there speaketh a man who has only ever looked at F1 from the inside. It is the people looking from the outside, ie the fans and viewing public, for whom the rule is written so that they are not denied a sporting spectacle and a contest that at least contains a semblance of fairness. We tune in for races, not manipulation.

A wider perspective on this weekend's ugly matter is that team orders are the fine line between F1 being a team sport and being in the business of entertainment. Ferrari dived, two-footed across the line because whatever benefit they achieved from appearing to manipulate the result was miniscule compared to the loss endured by the viewing public expecting a race to the finish. Ferrari didn't just break the rules, they cheated us.

4) Because It Was Appallingly Hypocritical

It was only two races ago that Alonso jumped upon his high horse and castigated the Valencia race stewards for "manipulating" the result. Oh the irony of hindsight.

5) Because The Reason Given To Massa Was Invalid

The red herring of the follow-ups to come will be the data proving or disproving that Alonso was indeed faster than Massa. It matters not. Felipe's response to being told that "Fernando is faster" should have been "so what?" There is no right of way in F1 given to a faster car stuck behind a slower vehicle. If Fernando was faster, then overtake. That's his job. Overtaking is a skill to be performed, not a charity to be handed out.

6) Because Fernando Shouldn't Need Help

As the highest-paid driver in the sport, there are reputedly 30 millions reasons of pounds sterling why Alonso shouldn't need assistance from the pitwall. By not staying neutral in the official view of the stewards, and by denying Alonso the chance to claim victory without interference, Ferrari have tainted both his win and reputation. Will he care about that or about the additional points garnered? It is a question that ought not need asking.

7) Because It Was Too Early In The Season For Team Orders To Be Issued In Any Circumstances

The morals of team orders are ambiguous and permanently shaded in grey. Even the sanctimonious among us will admit that in some circumstances and some times, team orders are an acceptable mechanism for operation. In 2008, for instance, Kimi Raikkonen slowed down to enable Massa to win in China. In 2007 at Brazil, Massa slowed down to let Raikkonen past to claim victory and title. But that was different. It was at the clutch end of the season and there was only one Ferrari driver in contention for the title. A blind-eye was turned because everyone understood the circumstances.

Though it is impossible to state where the dividing line exists, and at which point of the season team orders do become acceptable if not palatable, the answer is not to be found at the halfway stage of a year's campaign. Ferrari's scarcely-coded instruction to Massa was wrong because it was so blatant, so shameless, and so insulting. It was also wrong because it could not be justified as a necessary evil at this stage of the season.

With eight races still to be run, 200 points remain up for grabs. Ferrari's manoeuvring brought Alonso an additional seven. The numbers, compared to the inevitable fuss generated, simply don't add up.

Nor do they justify Massa's second billing. Were he to have prevailed in Sunday's race, he would have arrived in Hungary just 24 points - the equivalent of less than a single race win - behind his team-mate. Ferrari didn't just manipulate the result of a solitary race. In effect, they announced that only one of their drivers is contending in the World Championship.

8) Because Of The Effect It Will Have On Massa

When the dust settles, so will the rankle. Though the outcry will simmer and the next controversy will soon arrive to refocus attention, one half of the Ferrari garage will still know it is second class.

A clairvoyant is hardly required to predict that this episode will damage team harmony, attract discord and impinge on Massa's future performance and results. His morale will be at rock bottom after - apparently - learning that he is not allowed to beat Alonso in a straight fight.

9) Because Ferrari Brought Rob Smedley Into It

The relationship between Massa and Smedley is too strong for it to be seriously damaged by his role of messenger in this sorry episode. But that's no excuse for Ferrari requiring him to do their dirty work. The potential risk of Smedley's involvement harming driver-engineer relations was reason enough to expect somebody else on the pitwall to front up.

10) Because Ferrari Have Turned A Great Story Into A Great Shame

It's not merely that the team have committed a gross act of sporting indecency, insulted and cheated the public, harmed team relations, and affected a PR disaster. They've also missed a PR open goal.

For what better story could there have been on the anniversary of Massa's brush with mortality than his first victory since nearly being blinded in Hungary? Ferrari have turned a great story into a PR disaster. Winners of their first 1-2 since the opening race of the season, the team have contrived to make themselves into the weekend's big losers. What a terrible error of judgement.

[Bartolomeo]

Forza Ferrai!!!!

We havent seen Team Orders this public in a while to be honest, glad Ferrari won but kind of crappy how it went about, Oh well, we will take the wins where we can get them

Vettel had another crappy start trying to squeeze Alonso off the track while not protecting his backside, he is an awesome driver in arguably the best overall car out there, he just needs to finish the deal and back his qualifying efforts up with wins

Bart

[strayvector]

I haven't been too impressed with Vettel this season. He has had the fastest car this season and should be leading the championship, but instead, is in third. His mistakes at the start of the last two races have cost him both races. He has lost way too many races from the pole this season.