F1 Brazil GP - Race - 21/10/2007 Interlagos

It has been a real roller coaster of a season and the finale in Brazil was a fitting climax to a year that has enthralled fans both on and off the circuit. Kimi Raikkonen has achieved what seemed all but impossible and he overcame a seven point deficit by winning the this afternoon at Interlagos while Lewis Hamilton suffered his own problems.

The start of the 71 lap Grand Prix saw pole-sitter Felipe Massa sprint in the lead with Kimi Raikkonen making a good getaway and slotting into second. One man not making a good start was Lewis Hamilton who dropped from second to fourth and then compounded his problems by running off track and losing another four positions.

At that point Hamilton will have been frustrated but he was still in the race and the championship race was very much still on. Lap seven however saw the McLaren Mercedes slow dramatically with a gearshift issue. Hamilton dropped from sixth position to 18th and while he was able to reset the electronic systems and get back under power, his title hope were in tatters.

Out front Raikkonen shadowed Massa and seemed content to bide his time behind his Ferrari team-mate. The turning points for Raikkonen came in his second round of stops as he was able to stay out a few more laps and once he had made his final pit stop, emerged in the lead of the race. Fernando Alonso at this point ran in a lonely third and was not able to mount a serious challenge.

It has been a real roller coaster of a season and the finale in Brazil was a fitting climax to a year that has enthralled fans both on and off the circuit. Kimi Raikkonen has achieved what seemed all but impossible and he overcame a seven point deficit by winning the this afternoon at Interlagos while Lewis Hamilton suffered his own problems.

The start of the 71 lap Grand Prix saw pole-sitter Felipe Massa sprint in the lead with Kimi Raikkonen making a good getaway and slotting into second. One man not making a good start was Lewis Hamilton who dropped from second to fourth and then compounded his problems by running off track and losing another four positions.

At that point Hamilton will have been frustrated but he was still in the race and the championship race was very much still on. Lap seven however saw the McLaren Mercedes slow dramatically with a gearshift issue. Hamilton dropped from sixth position to 18th and while he was able to reset the electronic systems and get back under power, his title hope were in tatters.

Out front Raikkonen shadowed Massa and seemed content to bide his time behind his Ferrari team-mate. The turning points for Raikkonen came in his second round of stops as he was able to stay out a few more laps and once he had made his final pit stop, emerged in the lead of the race. Fernando Alonso at this point ran in a lonely third and was not able to mount a serious challenge.

Raikkonen took the chequered flag by just over a second from 2006 race winner Massa and with 110 championship points on the board, takes the title by one point from Hamilton who battled back to seventh position on track and Alonso who finished third.

"I always believed we could recover from our poor results and do a better job than our rivals," Raikkonen said. "So I never gave up and it was a great result for me and the team.

"I wasn't really 100 per cent sure of what was happening at the end as we were still waiting for still to finish - I had to wait a long time to hear that I had finally won it. I waited and waited. It was amazing for me that after all the last races we have had such a good finish to the season and I am very happy now."

Nico Rosberg put in a great drive in his Williams Toyota and finished in fourth position after a rather hectic battle with the BMW Sauber’s of Robert Kubica and Nick Heidfeld who finished fifth and sixth. With Hamilton seventh, the final point went to Jarno Trulli who put in a strong performance for Toyota to claim a much needed championship point.

David Coulthard found himself spinning late in the race after contact with Kazuki Nakajima. The Red Bull racer would finish in ninth position while Mark Webber ran fifth early in the race only to retire with a drive train issue. Nakajima had an eventful debut in his Williams, arriving too fast into his pit box and knocking down several members of his team. Still, the Japanese rookie finished the event in tenth position.

Ralf Schumacher was 11th in the second Toyota in what is his final drive with the team while Takuma Sato finished 12th for Super Aguri Honda ahead of Tonio Liuzzi and Anthony Davidson.

There was plenty of incident and accident with eight drivers failing to go the distance. Giancarlo Fisichella cut across the grass at turn one and rejoined the circuit right in front of Sakon Yamamoto. The Spyker racer had no where to go, making heavy contact and eliminating both cars from the race.

Heikki Kovalainen suffered a failure on his Renault and crashed heavily at turn three, ending a nightmare weekend for himself and the team. Jenson Button’s Honda failed early in the race while Rubens Barrichello’s car lasted a little longer before suffering a massive engine failure. Adrian Sutil was up to his old tricks again in his Spyker as he hit Anthony Davidson’s Super Aguri Honda while battling for position and would retire a few laps later as a result.

A fitting end to a dramatic season as Kimi Raikkonen has won the championship with his sixth win of the season. Lewis Hamilton will be most disappointed having been the firm favourite heading into the race while Fernando Alonso will be looking to the 2008 season. There can only be one winner, so congratulations to Raikkonen and his team, commiserations to Hamilton, Alonso and their respective crew members and team.

Earl ALEXANDER
© CAPSIS International

1. K.Raikkonen
2. F.Massa
3. F.Alonso

MotoGP - Malaysia - Sepang - 21/10/2007

The Polini Malaysian Motorcycle Grand Prix concluded with Casey Stoner (Ducati Marlboro) winning for the tenth time in a fantastic World Championship season, the 22 year-old Australian securing a 1.701s win ahead of Honda Gresini's Marco Melandri, after starting second on the grid.

Stoner now has a remarkable 106 point lead at the head of the premier class standings after dominating yet another MotoGP race, whilst Melandri moves up to fourth in the championship.

Following Stoner's 125cc victory in Malaysia in 2004 and his 250cc success in 2005, he becomes the first rider to win in all three classes at the Sepang circuit.

Behind the leading pair today Repsol Honda's Dani Pedrosa earned his seventh podium of the year, though he may be forced to settle for third in the World Championship with 24 points separating him from the man currently in second position, Valentino Rossi (Fiat Yamaha), with one round remaining. The Doctor finished the Sepang race fifth, behind Kawasaki's Randy de Puniet in fourth.

A solid performance from Honda Gresini's Toni Elias saw him take sixth, while Rizla Suzuki's Chris Vermeulen got the better of team-mate John Hopkins in the battle for seventh.

Nicky Hayden did well to come home ninth in the end after an off track excursion mid-race, while his compatriot Colin Edwards (Fiat Yamaha) completed the top ten.

DORNA / CAPSIS International

1. C.STONER
2. M.MELANDRI
3. D.PEDROSA

MotoGP - Australia - Phillip Island - 14/10/2007

Ducati Marlboro's newly crowned World Champion Casey Stoner delighted the home crowd at Phillip Island today with a superb ride to victory by seven seconds at the GMC Australian Grand Prix.

Stoner joined MotoGP Legends Mick Doohan and Wayne Gardner on an exclusive list of World Champions to have won on home soil in Australia as he came from third on the grid to take the hole shot and control the race from start to finish.

As Ducati confirmed the constructors' World Championship, and Ducati Marlboro the teams' title, Loris Capirossi made it a great day for his team as he in the runners-up spot, for a second podium in successive races following his Japanese hat-trick win.

Apparent tyre deterioration meant Valentino Rossi (Fiat Yamaha) could only finish third, when he had wanted to fight for victory from second on the grid, while Repsol Honda's Dani Pedrosa looked similarly disappointed to finish fourth having started on pole.

The top five was rounded off by Pramac d'Antin's Alex Barros, who finished just ahead of Kawasaki's Randy de Puniet and Rizla Suzuki's John Hopkins.

The second Australian across the line was Hopkins' Suzuki colleague Chris Vermeulen in eighth, while Yamaha's Colin Edwards and Honda Gresini's Marco Melandri completed the top ten.

It is fair to say that 2007 has not been Nicky Hayden's year and last season's champion was unfortunately forced to retire in third place on lap 13, having made a great start from fourth on the grid to run with Stoner in the early stages.

DORNA / CAPSIS International


1. C.STONER
2. L.CAPIROSSI
3. V.ROSSI

F1 China GP - Race - 07/10/2007 Shanghai

Kimi Raikkonen and Fernando Alonso ensured the world championship battle will go down to the wire in Brazil after they took full advantage of Lewis Hamilton's dramatic retirement to finish first and second in the Chinese Grand Prix.

Title leader Hamilton had looked set to clinch his place in history as Formula 1's first rookie world champion after commandingly leading the first half of the wet-dry race, but agonisingly slid off into the gravel on the pit lane entry while grappling with clapped-out tyres.

The Briton's first major mistake of the year means he will now have to go through the wringer of what is set to be a nail-biting finale in Interlagos and the sport's first three-way title decider since 1986.

He heads there with just a four-point cushion over team-mate Alonso, and a further three in hand over Raikkonen, who took his fifth win of the season and Ferrari's 200th overall after an action-packed 98 minutes in Shanghai.

Morning rain showers meant the drivers faced damp and greasy conditions at the start, with further showers predicted to arrive just minutes into the event.

Yet none of this uncertainty seemed to affect Hamilton, who knew a win would wrap up the world crown with a round to spare.

The 22-year-old made the perfect getaway from pole, comfortably leading Raikkonen into turn one.

Alonso, meanwhile, knowing he had to make an impact from the second row early on if he was to put pressure on his team-mate, set about trying to pass the Ferraris around the outside of the first turn.

He got the first – Felipe Massa – despite a joust into the left-handed turn three, and had a look up the inside of Raikkonen on the exit.

But he soon slipped down back to fourth, as Massa dived down the inside of him under braking for turn six.

And that appeared to be that for the Spaniard’s title chances.

The forecast rain shower materialised on lap two, but this made little difference to Hamilton who, finding more grip and traction from his MP4-22, serenely pulled away at the front.

Indeed he continued to pull away from Raikkonen comfortably with his margin of superiority per lap varying from 0.5s to 0.8s.

By the time he initiated the first round of pit stops at the end of lap 15, his advantage stood at 8.6s.

While he took on more fuel, he decided not to change his intermediate tyres despite the track now drying and the right-front beginning to look particularly bald.

Massa and Alonso made their respective stops over the next two laps, with Raikkonen the last of the top four to dive in at the end of lap 19.

The Finn, who had been sure that Hamilton had been lighter on fuel after qualifying, made the most of his extra laps on track to halve the title leader’s advantage when he exited the pits.

Nevertheless, Hamilton still seemed to have the race under control, as he immediately responded to the increased threat with a new fastest lap.

However the complexion of the race, and indeed the world championship battle, was turned on its head at the half-distance mark.

Although another rain shower was forecast imminently, the track had moved into a dry tyre zone and Williams’ Alex Wurz was the first to take the calculated gamble.

Others, including fifth-placed David Coulthard and Red Bull team-mate Mark Webber, followed suit.

Massa switched to 'slicks' on lap 27, but only after Alonso had passed him at the end of the back straight to move up to third.

Little did the Spaniard know that this would be the start of his championship recovery, as up ahead his race-leading team-mate began to struggle badly with his increasingly worn inters.

From a position of relative comfort, Hamilton fell into the clutches of Raikkonen and the Finn was soon all over his MP4-22’s gearbox.

As when Michael Schumacher hounded of a similarly grip-less Alonso last year, there was only one likely outcome and, after Lewis went in too deep at turn eight, his Ferrari rival swept past into nine to steal the lead.

This was still far from a disaster for Hamilton, but what unfolded in the next three laps most certainly was, as his weekend's destiny took a different course.

Despite his struggles only getting worse by the corner, and with his right-rear Bridgestone now down to the canvas, McLaren failed to call him in for fresh rubber and ultimately paid a heavy price.

With Alonso now bearing down on him, and a dry-tyred Jarno Trulli managing to unlap himself, Hamilton finally peeled into the pit lane at the end of lap 31 – but that is where his race would finish.

As he rounded the 90-degree left-hand corner in the entry lane, the Briton unbelievably slid off the road and came to a heartbreaking stop in the gravel.

Although he kept the engine running, his rear wheels dug into the gravel and – unlike at the Nurburgring in July – there was no push from the marshals or helpful crane to lift him out of trouble.

The first retirement of his astounding debut season gave both Raikkonen and a charging Alonso the stroke of luck they needed to keep their title hopes alive.

And there were no mistakes from either, as they both soon switched to the dry tyres and duly went on to finish in first and second respectively.

Raikkonen eventually crossed the line 9.8s ahead of Alonso, with Massa three seconds further back in third after setting the race’s fastest lap on his final tour.

Behind the top three, the race’s inclement weather had produced a fierce battle between a string of drivers and teams.

The big winner was Sebastian Vettel, who wiped out memories of his Fuji nightmare to claim a miraculous fourth place for Toro Rosso.

The young German used a one-stop strategy to perfection to move up from 17th on the grid and hand STR by far its best-ever F1 finish, paying the team back for the support it showed him following his mistake behind the safety car last weekend.

Team-mate Tonio Liuzzi ran strongly in sixth place for most of the race and kept his composure throughout to hand the little Italian outfit a further three points to complete a result that exceeded its wildest expectations.

Jenson Button sandwiched the two STR drivers in a season-high fifth place, banishing his own memories of his disappointing Japanese race.

After a poor start, the Briton made his big move in the race’s unpredictable second phase, not for the first time in his career making light work of the tricky conditions.

Nick Heidfeld salvaged seventh from a difficult weekend for BMW, after it had already seen Robert Kubica retire from the race lead before his second pit stop.

Coulthard took the final point to cap his strong weekend, although it had promised much more than that if the rain hadn't returned just after he had switched to dry tyres at his second pit stop.

Nevertheless, the Scot did well to fend off the marauding Renault of Heikki Kovalainen for eighth.

1. K.Raikkonen
2. F.Alonso
3. F.Massa

F1 Japan GP - Race - 30/09/2007 Fuji speedway

The Japanese Grand Prix proved to be a real thriller with Lewis Hamilton coming though to take the victory after a flawless drive from pole position. The 67-lap race had a bit of everything, but the most significant result was Hamilton’s fourth win of the season on a day when team-mate and championship rival Fernando Alonso crashed out of the event.

Hamilton extends his championship lead to 12 points over Alonso with two races remaining, while Kimi Raikkonen closes to within five points of the defending champion with his third position behind Heikki Kovalainen.

In treacherous conditions, the first 19 laps were completed behind the safety car and even at that point there had been plenty of drama. For many at Fuji Speedway it certainly was a case of ‘what if’ with a number of drivers rightly claiming that a podium position was a possibility before it all slipped away.

The start saw Hamilton pull a three second advantage over Alonso. Heading to the pits for the one and only stop for fuel and fresh tyres, this would prove vital as Hamilton was able to exit third on track with Alonso eighth. Hamilton would soon regain the lead, despite being tipped into a spin by Robert Kubica, while Alonso crashed heavily exiting turn five as he tried to make up ground.

Hamilton went on to pull out a comfortable advantage to take the win from Kovalainen by just over eight seconds. For the Renault rookie, it was a tremendous result as like Hamilton, it was an error free run in awful conditions - and his first Formula One podium.

For Ferrari, third position was perhaps a little fortunate as they made an incredible decision to start the race on intermediate tyres rather than the full wets as instructed by race control. Behind the safety car Raikkonen and Felipe Massa were soon pulled in for the correct tyres having both run off track. From the back of the field Raikkonen charged through the field and picked up the final podium position as Massa pitted in the final minutes of the race.

Massa would finish in sixth position after a great battle with Kubica on the final lap, but is now out of championship contention.

David Coulthard finished fourth but there will be few smiles in the Red Bull Renault pit. Mark Webber ran second just two seconds behind Hamilton when Alonso went off and brought out the safety car on lap 41. With Sebastian Vettel running a stunning third in his Toro Rosso, it looked to be a dream result for the Red Bull organisation. The dream soon turned into a nightmare as Vettel made solid contact with the back of Webber while still behind the safety car and both were out of the race. It was an unfortunate situation and while Webber will be furious, Vettel will be simply mortified about his costly rookie error.

Giancarlo Fisichella finished in fifth position in the second Renault, while Massa and Kubica traded positions on the final lap in a stunning bit of all-out racing rarely seen in modern day Formula One. Kubica, who served a drive through penalty for his contact with Hamilton earlier in the race, took the chequered flag 0.2 seconds behind Massa who had an eventful race himself, including a drive through penalty for overtaking behind the safety car.

onio Liuzzi started the race from the pit lane in his Toro Rosso and put in a great drive to secure the final point with eighth position* ahead of Adrian Sutil who also put in a solid performance in his Spyker Ferrari.

Honda certainly could have had a handful of points today with Jenson Button running fifth before an incident with Nick Heidfeld early in the race saw him pit for a new front wing. Rubens Barrichello ran seventh in the closing stages but had to pit for fuel and dropped to tenth, just ahead of the recovering Button.

Sakon Yamamoto finished 12th in the second Spyker ahead of Jarno Trulli who was off the pace in his Toyota. It was a poor weekend again from the Japanese-owned team with Ralf Schumacher also running towards the tail of the pack before mechanical problems intervened.

Nick Heidfeld looked solid all afternoon and was on for a sixth place finish until his engine started to misfire on the penultimate lap. The German pulled the BMW Sauber to a halt and he was classified 14th ahead of Takuma Sato. Anthony Davidson retired his SA07 late in the race making it a dismal weekend for the Super Aguri Honda squad.

Nico Rosberg ran outside of the top ten after his engine change penalty and retired with an electrical problem while Alex Wurz spun his Williams Toyota following contact from behind - possibly from Takuma Sato - at the start of the race, making contact with Massa and retiring on the spot.

A race with a bit of everything, but for Hamilton, it was a dream result as the F1 circus packs up and head to Shanghai for next weekend’s Chinese Grand Prix.

* Stewards decided after that race that Tonio Liuzzi was guilty of passing Adrian Sutil under caution. The Toro Rosso racer was handed a 25 second penalty dropping him from eighth to ninth and promoting Sutil and Spyker Ferrari into the points.

Earl ALEXANDER
© CAPSIS International

1. L.Hamilton
2. H.Kovalainen
3. K.Raikkonen

MotoGP - Japan - Motegi - 23/09/2007

The Ducati Marlboro Team enjoyed its greatest day in Japan today, Casey Stoner securing Ducati's first MotoGP World Championship and Loris Capirossi winning the race, run in tricky conditions on a drying track.

The result triggered scenes of unbridled joy in the Ducati Marlboro Team pit, in the more than one thousand fans who watched the race in the Borgo Panigale Factory with the CEO Gabriele Del Torchio among them and in all the Ducatistis around the world.

Australian genius Stoner had to finish today's race ahead of Valentino Rossi to wrap up the title with three GPs remaining, and he did that, no problem, finishing sixth after leading the early stages. The race couldn't have been more nerve-wracking: it started on a slightly damp track, most riders choosing rain tyres, then the circuit dried out enough for riders to swap to slick-equipped bikes.

Capirossi was one of the first riders to switch, at the end of lap nine, and his strategy paid rich dividends, the 2005 and 2006 Japanese GP winner going on to score a Motegi hat-trick, 10.853 seconds ahead of his closest rival.

Stoner swapped bikes at the end of lap 14 and maintained his renowned cool to become the second youngest premier-class World Champion, after American legend Freddie Spencer. So far this year Stoner has won eight races, taken three further podium finished and scored five pole positions.

CASEY STONER, 6th, 2007 MotoGP World Champion on 297 points
"At the moment it all feels a little bit unrealistic! I'm struggling for words, I don't think there's any feeling that can compare to this, but I think it's really going to sink in as the day goes on and heads into tomorrow. The race started out quite well, we were able to get up front quite early and I had a reasonably good feeling with the bike, I was in a happy position. But then my rain tyres started wearing out as the track dried, and Valentino and Dani (Pedrosa) came past.
I didn't really know whether to come in or not, then my team put 'box' on my pitboard, so I had a bit more confidence to come in. After I changed bikes there was something up with the steering damper, the bike wasn't allowing me to tip into corners, so I had to slow down to unwind it. Then I started to find more of a rhythm, Valentino had a problem and we managed to finish ahead of him. I guess that was the aim of the game today. Towards the end everything was creeping into my head, so I just tried to stay focused on the job in hand, I wanted to bring it home for my team. The whole thing is a bit overwhelming, because we didn't really expect to get the championship today, it's come on me quite quickly. There's a lot of people I have to thank: my parents, who have always been there for me, they've supported me throughout my career, my wife Adriana's who's been there this season and the past few and everyone else who's helped me along the way - Ducati, my whole team, Bridgestone tyres, a big thanks to everyone who's had anything to with my career - we finally did it!"

LORIS CAPIROSSI, winner, 7th in World Championship on 130 points
"We st-ruggled a lot this weekend and only yesterday did we find a better set-up solution. When I woke this morning and saw the rain I said 'wow, for sure this is going to be a difficult day'. We didn't know which would be the best tyres to use, so we started with medium rain tyres. At first it was really difficult, so I decided to pit early, and for sure my tactic was the best because I won my third consecutive race here, it's a great moment for me. It's also a great day for Casey, for Ducati and for the team. I congratulate Casey, he's a really strong rider, I'm very happy for him."

GABRIELE DEL TORCHIO CEO Ducati Motor Holding
"This success, besides its great strategic value, is the best demonstration of Ducati excellence, is a triumph of Italian intelligence, talent, competences and the warmth that is one of our country's most vital assets. It's an important and remarkable achievement, 34 years after the premier-class World Championship was last won by an Italian factory. It is a dream come true. We are speaking of a great feat realised thanks to Casey's commitment, bravery and team work, united with the work of our draughtsmen, technicians, engineers, team members, sponsors and everyone at the factory. They have all worked with great passion and great skill to obtain this championship win, a success emphasized by today's win by Loris, to whom we say a hearty thank you for the great job he's done these past five years. The joy and the pride of experiencing this historic championship result pay back all our efforts and can only encourage us towards even more important and remarkable goals, both in the sporting and commercial arenas."

CLAUDIO DOMENICALI, Ducati Corse CEO/Ducati Motor Holding product director
"It is a dream come true - a fantastic feeling, really fantastic. I don't have enough words to thank all the guys who have contributed to this incredible achievement, which shows that Italy is a nation whose passion and talent can succeed in a hugely technically advanced field. It's certainly a good reason for Italians to be proud - proud about the talent of our engineers and about the quality of our universities. It is also a sign that allows Italy to look to the future and into globalization with a pinch more optimism."

Ducati Corse

1. L.CAPIROSSI
2. R.DEPUNIET
3. T.ELIAS

MotoGP - Portugal - Estoril - 16/09/2007

Fiat Yamaha's Valentino Rossi took a wonderful win at Estoril this afternoon following a brilliant battle at the front with Repsol Honda's Dani Pedrosa - to temporarily put Casey Stoner's title celebrations on hold.

The bwin.com Grande Premio de Portugal saw Rossi duelling with Pedrosa throughout the final stages of the race, eventually crossing the line just 0.175s in front of the Spanish rider to claim his fourth victory of the season and his first win since Assen in June.

he result was great news for Yamaha with Rossi making the most of his recently updated M1 800cc prototype machinery - with its new pneumatic engine - answering the critics in style after his Misano setback.

Third placed Stoner will have to put the champagne on ice for now as he saw his advantage at the head of the general standings drop to 76 points, but the young Aussie nonetheless rode with great maturity to secure the final podium spot and he will still be confident of clinching the title over the next two rounds.

With pole man Nicky Hayden finishing fourth at the scene of his 2006 heartbreak, Michelin demonstrated improved competitiveness with three riders in the top four.

Another solid run from Honda Gresini's Marco Melandri resulted in a top five finish, whilst John Hopkins came home sixth having started in his lowest grid position of 2007 in tenth.

Spanish pair Carlos Checa (Honda LCR) and Toni Elias (Honda Gresini) were seventh and eighth respectively, with Ducati Marlboro's Loris Capirossi and Fiat Yamaha's Colin Edwards completing the top ten.

DORNA / CAPSIS International

1. V.ROSSI
2. D.PEDROSA
3. C.STONER

F1 Belgium GP - Race - 16/09/2007 Spa-Franc.

Kimi Raikkonen dominated the 44-lap Belgian Grand Prix to record his third straight win at the classic Belgian venue. With Felipe Massa following home five seconds back to record a Ferrari one-two, the Italian team have wrapped up the 2007 constructors’ championship.

Starting from the pole position, Raikkonen was never seriously challenged but Massa at least kept the pressure on to the chequered flag. The result closes Raikkonen to within 13 points of championship leader Lewis Hamilton.

This weekend the McLaren Mercedes duo had no answer to the pace of Ferrari. Fernando Alonso finished a distant third with Hamilton ten seconds back in fourth position. The start of the Grand Prix saw Alonso and Hamilton run wheel to wheel exiting La Source and for a few seconds it seemed that Hamilton would try and go side-by-side through Eau Rouge.

Hamilton made the sensible decision and backed off and the order was set. Alonso’s third position moves him within two points of Hamilton with three races remaining.

Starting sixth, Nick Heidfeld got the jump on Nico Rosberg in the first round of pit stops and was able to finish in a lonely fifth position, half a minute behind Hamilton and 25 seconds ahead of Rosberg who again drove a fine race for the Williams Toyota team.

Mark Webber started and finished in seventh position, showing good race pace in the Red Bull Renault.

Team-mate David Coulthard’s RB3 suffered another hydraulics failure whilst running 12th.

he final point went to Heikki Kovalainen and Renault. The Finn, as expected, opted for a one stop strategy and despite massive pressure from Robert Kubica in the closing stages, held on to continue his run of top eight results. Giancarlo Fisichella did not have such a good day and retired at the end of the first lap after going off track and damaging his suspension. The Italian veteran had started the race from the pit lane in the spare Renault.

Kubica fought hard race-long and will be disappointed not to score a point. Starting 14th he made progress early on but could not find a way to get ahead of Kovalainen in the closing stages.

Toyota had hoped to score some much-needed points in Belgium with Jarno Trulli and Ralf Schumacher starting eighth and tenth. As is often the case, Trulli slipped back on the first lap and was unable to regain the ground. Schumacher finished tenth, 15 seconds clear of Trulli.

Tonio Liuzzi finished 12th for Toro Rosso Ferrari while team-mate Sebastian Vettel was an early retirement with a mechanical issue. Rubens Barrichello took the flag 13th for Honda while a hydraulics issue eliminated team-mate Button. Adrian Sutil ran 12th early on in the race in his Spyker Ferrari and put in a fine drive on a two-stop strategy to finish 14th in what has been his strongest race for some time.

Super Aguri Honda expected a tough race and they got it with Takuma Sato and Anthony Davidson finishing 15th and 16th ahead of Sakon Yamamoto in the second Spyker.

Alex Wurz was one of five retirements in his Williams Toyota and at a time when he needed a strong showing, his race was a disaster. Starting 15th the Austrian veteran spun to the back of the field and then later on had another off track moment before retiring from the event. With Rosberg showing so well, Wurz will be leaving Spa Francorchamps feeling the pressure.

So a red-wash in a less than thrilling Grand Prix. The title battle is closing up nicely however as the teams get ready for a trip to Fuji Speedway in two weeks…

Earl ALEXANDER
© CAPSIS International

1. K.Raikkonen
2. F.Massa
3. F.Alonso

F1 Italy GP - Race - 09/09/2007 Monza

Fernando Alonso dominated the 53-lap Italian Grand Prix to take his first win at the classic Monza circuit. Starting from the pole position, Alonso made a great getaway and was never seriously threatened by team-mate Lewis Hamilton who would take the chequered flag six seconds behind. Alonso’s fine victory closes the championship gap to just three points…

While Alonso did not put a foot wrong, Hamilton made life harder for himself than it had to be on his second stint as he dropped back from Alonso and found himself behind Kimi Raikkonen after his second and final stop. An audacious pass for position ten laps from home into the first chicane regained Hamilton the runner-up position.

Kimi Raikkonen started fifth in his Ferrari and immediately got the jump on fourth placed Nick Heidfeld on the run down to the first turn at the start and tucked in behind team-mate Massa. Running a one stop strategy, Raikkonen was unable to keep pace with the front runners, but his fourth place on track became third when Massa peeled off into the pits on lap ten.

It was the end of the road for Massa who went back out only to return to the pit and retire the F2007 with a suspension issue. Raikkonen kept the pressure on and almost snatched second position from the two-stopping Hamilton were it now for a very late lunge from the rookie to regain second position.

t was a pretty typical race for Nick Heidfeld as he had the pace to pull away from those behind him in his BMW Sauber, but did not have the pace to do anything about those in front. Heidfeld finished in fourth position, half a minute behind Raikkonen.

Robert Kubica had to work harder for his position and took fifth over all just four second behind Heidfeld. A problem with the front jack in his first pit stop cost him ten seconds resulting in Kubica falling behind Nico Rosberg and Heikki Kovalainen. The BMW racer would battle back and close down a 20 second deficit to Heidfeld in the closing stages.

Nico Rosberg drove a good race again for Williams Toyota. The German racer lost out to Jenson Button early on and lost time behind the leading Honda. Once clear, Rosberg was able to pull clear to finish sixth, five seconds behind Kubica.

Heikki Kovalainen started seventh and finished in the same position in the leading Renault, losing one position in the race to Rosberg, while Jenson Button ran a very long first stint and brought the Honda home in eighth position for his second point of the season.

Mark Webber finished ninth in his Red Bull Renault. Team-mate David Coulthard had a short race as he suffered a heavy shunt on lap two that brought out the safety car for seven laps. Coulthard clipped the back of Giancarlo Fisichella’s Renault at the first chicane and heading into the next turn – Curve Grande – the RB3 speared off the track as the front wing failed. Coulthard was unhurt.

It was another disappointing race for Jarno Trulli. Starting ninth the Italian veteran lost four positions on the opening lap and was never able to regain all of that ground. Trulli finished 11th, less than a second behind Barrichello.

Rubens Barrichello finished in 12th position, losing one position in the race to Mark Webber. Giancarlo Fisichella finished a lap down in 12th position in the second Renault. Alex Wurz was next up in the second Williams ahead of Anthony Davidson who battled hard early on with Fisichella.

Ralf Schumacher finished 15th in the second Toyota ahead of Takuma Sato in his Super Aguri Honda. The Toro Rosso duo of Tonio Liuzzi and Sebastian Vettel took 17th and 18th ahead of the Spyker pair of Adrian Sutil and Sakon Yamamoto.

The teams now pack up and head to the Ardennes to prepare for the Belgian Grand Prix next weekend. In between, we have the crucial World Motor Sport Council hearing on Thursday in Paris. There is plenty to play for…

Earl ALEXANDER
© CAPSIS International

1. F.Alonso
2. L.Hamilton
3. K.Raikkonen

MotoGP - San Marino - Misano - 02/09/2007

The Misano MotoGP visit ended with Ducati Marlboro's Casey Stoner extending his World Championship advantage to 85 points with a plus four second victory at the Gran Premio Cinzano di San Marino e della Riviera di Rimini.

The return of racing to Italy's Adriatic coast saw the unstoppable Aussie secure maximum points for the eighth time this year, controlling the race from pole, while his closest title rival Valentino Rossi disappointingly retired early on with engine problems after starting second on the grid.

It was also another fantastic day for the ever improving Rizla Suzuki team as they filled the other two podium spots – Chris Vermeulen in second place after starting on the third row, finishing 4.851s behind compatriot Stoner and 11 seconds ahead of team-mate John Hopkins.

There was frustration for Repsol Honda's Dani Pedrosa and Nicky Hayden on the very first lap, with Pedrosa's race ended by Kawasaki's Randy de Puniet as the pair collided and crashed out. Hayden had to steer round them onto the gravel run-off area and never recovered as he came home an unlucky 13th having started on the front row of the grid.



A brave ride from returning Honda Gresini rider Marco Melandri after a series of recent crashes, including a major accident on Saturday, saw him take fourth – while his fellow Italian Loris Capirossi (Ducati Marlboro) crossed the line fifth.

Another MotoGP veteran Carlos Checa (Honda LCR) finished ten seconds behind Capirossi in sixth, in front of compatriot Toni Elias (Honda Gresini) who continues his remarkable recovery from a broken femur.

The top ten was completed by Anthony West (Kawasaki), Colin Edwards (Fiat Yamaha) and Shinya Nakano (Konica Minolta Honda).

DORNA / CAPSIS International

F1 Turkey GP - Race - 26/08/2007 Istanbul

Felipe Massa declared himself 'proud' to score a second consecutive Turkish Grand Prix as the Brazilian closed the gap between himself and world championship leader Lewis Hamilton to just 15 points.

Massa's third win of the season also allowed the Ferrari star to re-establish himself ahead of his team-mate Kimi Raikkonen in the championship order, having played second fiddle to the Finn for much of the summer.

Massa described his fifth career victory as "amazing".

"This is second the race in a row here starting from pole and winning, it is really fantastic," he said.

"I love the track and I love the place. Here is when my career just made a switch and I started winning races and fighting with the front-runners.

"It is a very special place for me. It is difficult to find the right words."

Massa led from start-to-finish and remained in control despite coming under significant pressure from Raikkonen in the middle stint and suffering an unusual problem with his crash helmet.

"I had a crack on the cooling system on the helmet and I had a big turbulence," he said.

"On the straights my head was being pulled up and then pushed down under braking. I was losing a lot of concentration.

"So I used some strength, took it away, and made some strange behaviour on the straight! It cracked completely and then it was better."

To the surprise of many, Ferrari opted to start the race with the softer 'option' Bridgestone tyre, and the tactic paid off as Raikkonen swept by Hamilton's McLaren at the start.

Massa and Raikkonen quickly asserted themselves with the tyre advantage while McLaren proved unable to match the Ferraris through the race.

"On Friday we made a long run on both tyre types," explained Massa.

"It was pretty similar, there was maybe one or two tenths difference between the tyres on the long run and we knew Friday to Sunday the track improves a lot. So the softs would improve even more.

"We took a gamble a little bit but at least it was a safe risk.

"Especially for the start we knew that the soft tyres are always better."



1. F.Massa
2. K.Raikkonen
3. F.Alonso

MotoGP - Czech Rep. - Brno - 19/08/2007

World Championship leader Casey Stoner was in dominant form at Brno on Sunday afternoon as he earned his seventh win of 2007, riding to victory by a 7.9 second margin to extend his standings lead to 60 points with just six races to go.

The 21-year old Ducati Marlboro rider repeated his Laguna Seca trick at the historic Czech circuit of Brno, controlling the Cardion ab Grand Prix Ceske republiky race from start to finish - having started on pole for the third round in succession - adding to his championship advantage as Fiat Yamaha's Valentino Rossi could only finish seventh.

There was another great performance from Rizla Suzuki's John Hopkins who crossed the line second to secure his best ever MotoGP result, while third placed World Champion Nicky Hayden continued his recent improvement in form with his third podium in four races.

Hayden's Repsol Honda colleague Dani Pedrosa missed out on a podium finish himself by just under three seconds, while Rizla Suzuki's Chris Vermeulen was fifth and Stoner's Suzuki-bound Ducati colleague Loris Capirossi was sixth.


Behind Rossi, Kawasaki's Randy de Puniet (eighth), Pramac d'Antin's Alex Barros (ninth) and Carlos Checa completed the top ten, while a special mention must go to Toni Elias (Honda Gresini) who bravely finished 11th as he continues his recovery from his femur brake at Assen.

There was disappointment on both sides of the Fiat Yamaha pit box as Colin Edwards retired early in the race due to engine failure.

DORNA / CAPSIS International

1. C.STONER
2. J.HOPKINS
3. N.HAYDEN

F1 Hungary GP - Race - 05/08/2007 Hungaroring

Lewis Hamilton put aside all the trials and tribulations of the dramatic qualifying session yesterday to take victory this afternoon in Hungary. Starting from pole position the championship leader was under pressure throughout the 70-lap race, but took the chequered flag just under a second ahead of Kimi Raikkonen.

It was a tough race for Hamilton as he was not able to pull out any significant advantage from his Ferrari rival, but with team-mate Fernando Alonso finishing in fourth position, does extend his championship advantage from two points to seven.

Raikkonen made the best of a slow start from Nick Heidfeld to grab second position into the first turn. The Ferrari driver was able to hound Hamilton race long, but such is the nature of the circuit, was never able to make a serious attempt at a pass.

Nick Heidfeld took the final podium position for BMW Sauber. It was a solid run from the German racer as he came under intense pressure in the closing stages from Fernando Alonso. Opting to run a three stop strategy, Heidfeld found himself only just ahead of Alonso in the final laps of the race, taking the chequered flag 1.7s clear of the McLaren driver. For Alonso, his race was compromised by a cautious opening lap that saw him initially lose ground to Mark Webber and Robert Kubica. Alonso soon regained the ground but would then spend much of the race stuck behind the Toyota of Ralf Schumacher. It was not until the final stint that he was clear of Schumacher and able to pressure Heidfeld.

Robert Kubica was fifth in the second BMW Sauber and like his team-mate used a three stop strategy. Ralf Schumacher had a solid run in his Toyota to finish in sixth position ahead of Nico Rosberg who will be disappointed with seventh position in his Williams Toyota. Rosberg ran fourth in the opening stages, but the team had opted for a very short first stint meaning a three stop strategy. This would lose him ground late in the race.

Heikki Kovalainen salvaged a point for the Renault team in eighth position ahead of Mark Webber in his Red Bull Renault. Jarno Trulli was never able to recover from a poor start and finished in tenth position in the second Toyota.

David Coulthard finished in 11th position in his Red Bull Renault ahead of Giancarlo Fisichella who was unable to make up the ground he lost with his qualifying penalty. It was a similar situation for Felipe Massa in the second Ferrari as he took the chequered flag in 13th position, underlining just how hard it is to pass at this circuit.

Alex Wurz had a low-key race in the second Williams as he took 14th ahead of Takuma Sato in his Super Aguri Honda and Sebastian Vettel in his Toro Rosso. Adrian Sutil was 17th in his Spyker Ferrari finishing ahead of Rubens Barrichello who had the most difficult race of his long career in the awful Honda RA107.

Sakon Yamamoto crashed out of his first race with Spyker early in the race, while an engine failure ended Jenson Button’s miserable day. Anthony Davidson and Giancarlo Fisichella battled hard on track and slight contact sent the Super Aguri Honda driver spinning out of the race.

Earl ALEXANDER
© CAPSIS International

1. L.Hamilton
2. K.Raikkonen
3. N.Heidfeld

MotoGP - USA - Laguna Seca - 22/07/2007

Ducati's Casey Stoner dominated the Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix race at Laguna Seca from start to finish on Sunday to take his sixth win of the year - and extend his World Championship lead to 44 points ahead of the summer break.

In the Californian sunshine the Australian produced the goods yet again, eventually crossing the line just under ten seconds ahead of his compatriot Chris Vermeulen (Rizla Suzuki) to break the MotoGP pole jinx. Meanwhile the brave Marco Melandri (Honda Gresini) rode brilliantly from tenth on the grid to take third despite his injuries sustained in qualifying.

A dramatic incident on the first corner ruined the day for American pair John Hopkins (Rizla Suzuki) and Nicky Hayden (Repsol Honda) when they collided and were immediately taken out of contention. World Champion Hayden's dreams of completing a hat-trick of home wins were dashed as he continued at the back of the pack before retiring with ten laps to go, while Hopkins eventually crossed the line 15th.

Fiat Yamaha's Valentino Rossi finished fourth, five seconds behind Melandri and a significant 30 seconds behind race winner Stoner - who appears to be running away with the title, just as he ran away from his rivals to take victory here. A further five seconds off Rossi was fifth placed Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda), while Kawasaki pair Randy de Puniet and Anthony West were sixth and seventh.


Dunlop Yamaha Tech 3's Makoto Tamada took his best result of the season in eighth place, Pramac d'Antin's Alex Barros was ninth and Kawasaki wildcard Roger Lee Hayden was remarkably the highest placed American as he completed the top ten.

Finishing 11th was Colin Edwards (Fiat Yamaha) who appeared to fade in the second half of the race, whilst Kurtis Roberts' (Team Roberts) retirement after just five laps meant the American fans did not have much to cheer if they were supporting the home riders only.

DORNA / CAPSIS International


1. C.STONER
2. C.VERMEULEN
3. M.MELANDRI

F1 Germany GP - Race - 22/07/2007 Nurburgring

Heavy rain at the start of the 60-lap European Grand Prix combined with a late shower combined to make a thrilling race for all those who survived the early carnage. Through it all came Fernando Alonso to record his first win since the Monaco Grand Prix in what was a tense end to the race as he caught and then passed Felipe Massa with five laps remaining.

Mark Webber secured his second career podium finish - his first for Red Bull Racing - with a fine run to third position, meaning that for the first time this year, Lewis Hamilton was not on the podium and in fact did not finish the race in the points. Along with Alonso, it was an eventful day for the championship leader.

Kimi Raikkonen started the race from pole position, but even at that early stage there had been a few spots of rain. As the race got underway the heavens opened and the race strategies could be thrown out of the proverbial window.

With heavy rain falling they all dived to the pits, but race leader Raikkonen slithered back out of the slip road and back onto the circuit. Next time around he made the pit entry move work and he dropped back to seventh position. It would all prove academic anyway as down at turn one, Jenson Button was the first of many to skate off the circuit and into retirement.

Tonio Liuzzi soon joined Button in retirement at the turn followed by Hamilton, Scott Speed, Nico Rosberg and Adrian Sutil.
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With the intermediate tyres not coping with the conditions and cars piling up at turn one, the race director put out the red flags and halted the race.

Hamilton had managed to keep his engine running and after being picked up by the crane and placed back on the circuit, he was back underway. The rain shower soon passed over and the circuit steamed in the summer sun. Marcus Winkelhock, making his race debut with the Spyker Ferrari team, had opted to start the race from the pit lane on intermediate tyres. The gamble paid off as he took over the lead as Raikkonen peeled into the pits and the red flags flew.

The moment would not last long for Winkelhock, but to lead your second lap in a Grand Prix is something pretty special. The German found himself shuffled back down the order as the race resumed and he would later retire with a hydraulics issue. Quite a debut for a small team it must be said.

Felipe Massa led from the restart while Hamilton opted to take dry tyres. It was a bad move and he slipped even further back from which he would spend the rest of the day in recovery mode... Out front Massa set the pace and kept Alonso firmly under control while Raikkonen quickly worked his way back up to third position.

Raikkonen’s Nurburgring curse would intervene mid-race as he coasted to retirement on entry into the pit lane. For Ferrari, Massa seemed firmly in control, pulling out 11 seconds before the second round of stops.

Alonso kept the pressure on and reduced the gap to six seconds just before rain started to fall for a second time with 11 laps remaining. Everyone pitted and took intermediate tyres once again but Alonso pushed hard, caught and then made a sensational pass around the outside of Massa to take the lead and then the win five laps from home.

The calm before the storm….
Mark Webber was not a factor for the win, but he drove a great race to finish third and hold off a late charge from Alex Wurz in his Williams Toyota. David Coulthard made Red Bull’s day even better as he took the chequered flag in fifth position.

Nick Heidfeld had a poor race in his BMW Sauber. The start of the race saw him run into the side of team-mate Robert Kubica on the first lap and later on would repeat the move with Ralf Schumacher. Still, Heidfeld took sixth position ahead of Kubica in what is his home event.

The battle for the final points was a close affair. It shouldn’t have been really as Heikki Kovalainen ran a safe fifth until pitting three laps before the second rain show arrived. It was a gamble for glory, but it did not work as he finished eighth, holding off Lewis Hamilton for the final point on the final lap.

For Hamilton, ninth position was not a great result, but he put in a storming drive despite the odd error on track and with strategy. Giancarlo Fisichella finished tenth in the second Renault ahead of Rubens Barrichello, Anthony Davidson and Jarno Trulli.

A dramatic race, with a result that closes the championship battle right up ahead of the next race in Hungary.

Earl ALEXANDER
© CAPSIS International

1. F.Alonso
2. F.Massa
3. M.Webber

MotoGP - Germany - Sachsenring - 15/07/2007

It was a Repsol Honda success story at the Sachsenring in Germany this afternoon, with Dani Pedrosa taking his first victory in more than a year and Nicky Hayden recording another podium finish at the Alice Motorrad Grand Prix Deutschland.

The Honda pair sandwiched Ducati Marlboro's Loris Capirossi on the podium as the Italian came home second, while Fiat Yamaha's Colin Edwards was fourth and Casey Stoner picked up more valuable championship points in fifth.

A fifth lap crash for Valentino Rossi ended his participation due to a damaged handlebar, the Italian attempting to remount after losing control when trying to overtake Kawasaki's Randy de Puniet for sixth place.

Things would have been worse for Rossi had Stoner achieved another victory, but when the Australian crossed the line fifth he nonetheless extended his title advantage to 32 points - while Pedrosa's success this afternoon takes him to within 20 points of the Italian in the standings.

Former 250cc World Champion Pedrosa rode an excellent race to lead from the first lap and secure his first win since Donington last year, his winning margin of 13.166s being the biggest in the MotoGP class this season.

Meanwhile Hayden came third for the fourth consecutive season at Sachsenring to boost his confidence again, after his Assen success, ahead of his home race next weekend.


There were more championship points for Gresini Honda's Marco Melandri, Rizla Suzuki's John Hopkins and Kawasaki's impressive Anthony West who were sixth, seventh and eighth consecutively, while home rider Alex Hofmann came home ninth.

Hofmann's Pramac d'Antin colleague Alex Barros crashed out on lap ten when in seventh position, while Dunlop Yamaha Tech 3's Sylvain Guintoli's race was finished on lap four as he suffered an accident. There was further French disappointment for Guintoli's compatriot De Puniet, who appeared to be experiencing a problem with his Ninja ZX-RR towards the end of the 30 lap contest and frustratingly retired on the final lap.

DORNA / CAPSIS International

1. D.PEDROSA
2. L.CAPIROSSI
3. N.HAYDEN

F1 Great-Britain GP - Race - 08/07/2007 Silverstone

Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen denied the sell-out Silverstone crowd the result they were yearning for by upstaging Lewis Hamilton and the McLarens for a perfectly judged victory in the British Grand Prix.

The home hero led the race’s early phase but fell back with a botched first pit stop, a handling imbalance and flat-spotted tyres, finally coming home a disappointed third behind team-mate Fernando Alonso.

Raikkonen kept within striking distance of Hamilton throughout the first stint and used a later pit stop to move ahead of the McLaren.

Alonso stopped later than both of them, however, and helped by a short-fill leapfrogged both Raikkonen and Hamilton to seize the lead.

Ferrari turned the tables at the second stops, however, as Kimi was able to stay out much longer than Fernando and lap a second quicker than his rival on a light fuel load.

Sure enough, Raikkonen emerged with a comfortable lead and controlled the race to the chequered flag.

Behind the top three, BMW Sauber's Robert Kubica staved off a fired-up Felipe Massa, who drove an inspired race after stalling on the grid and starting from the pit lane.

Nick Heidfeld came home sixth in the second BMW with Renault team-mates Heikki Kovalainen and Giancarlo Fisichella the final points finishers.

1. K.Raikkonen
2. F.Alonso
3. L.Hamilton

F1 France GP - Race - 01/07/2007 Magny-Cours

Kimi Raikkonen recorded his second win of the season this afternoon as he made best use of his two-stop strategy to vault ahead of Ferrari team-mate Felipe Massa in the final round of pit stops.

Starting from third position, Raikkonen got the jump on Lewis Hamilton and trailed Massa until the Brazilian peeled off to the pits. Raikkonen, with three laps more fuel on board and Massa now on the softer tyre for the final stint, was able to turn his two second deficit into a two second advantage.

With Raikkonen taking the win, he, Massa, Hamilton and Alonso now all have two wins each. For Massa, his second position will be a disappointment after leading much of the race, but the eight points are most welcome.

Hamilton was unable to make any real challenge on the Ferrari team. After losing a position at the start of the race he dropped back a little in each stint but significantly opted for a three stop strategy which dropped him back from ten seconds to just over 30 at the chequered flag.

For the championship, it was a good race for Hamilton however as Fernando Alonso finished just seventh so he therefore extends his championship advantage from ten to 14 points heading to the British Grand Prix next weekend.

Robert Kubica ran a solid two stop race to finish in fourth position in his BMW Sauber.
Team-mate Nick Heidfeld had an altogether busier time of it as he held back Alonso in each of his stints in what was some of the closest racing during the 70 lap event. Heidfeld took the chequered flag in fifth position extending BMW Sauber’s advantage over rivals Renault.

Giancarlo Fisichella finished in sixth position but for Alonso, brave driving which at times bordered on the reckless, two points is not a good result.

One point for Jenson Button and Honda however is a great result after a traumatic first half of the season. Starting 12th, Button made good use of a very long first stint to vault ahead of Nico Rosberg and Ralf Schumacher to claim Honda’s first point of the season.

Nico Rosberg started ninth and finished in the same position in what was a frustrating race for the Williams Toyota team. Team-mate Alex Wurz was never a factor after his poor qualifying run yesterday as he trailed home 14th.

Ralf Schumacher battled hard with Rubens Barrichello for much of the race and finally got ahead in the final set of stops. Schumacher finished in tenth position ahead of the second Honda.

For Toyota however it was not a good day as Jarno Trulli threw away his race on lap one as he drilled into the back of the unfortunate Heikki Kovalainen ending his day on the spot. Kovalainen would drop half a minute behind the field as a result and went on to finish a distant 15th. It was a bit of a non-event for the Red Bull Renault team with Mark Webber and David Coulthard unable to make any real progress on the way to 12th and 13th positions.

Takuma Sato finished in 16th position in his Super Aguri Honda. Team-mate Anthony Davidson eliminated himself and Tonio Liuzzi on the first lap as he tipped the Toro Rosso Ferrari into a spin and then struck the car as he went by. Scott Speed retired with a gearbox failure in his Toro Rosso.

Adrian Sutil was the final finisher in 17th position while Spyker Ferrari team-mate Christijan Albers retired after inexplicably leaving the pit with his fuel hose still attached…

It is the end of the road for Magny Cours in terms of hosting the French Grand Prix. Hopefully next season, France – with its impressive motorsport heritage - will be represented in the Formula One World Championship.

Earl ALEXANDER
© CAPSIS International

1. K.Raikkonen
2. F.Massa
3. L.Hamilton

MotoGP - Netherlands - Assen - 30/06/2007

Fiat Yamaha's Valentino Rossi emerged on top after another great battle with World Championship rival Casey Stoner this afternoon in a superb MotoGP race at the A-Style TT Assen.

The ninth round of the World Championship saw The Doctor come from 11th on the Assen grid to take victory over Ducati Marlboro's Stoner by just under two seconds and reduce the deficit at the top of the standings.

However, Stoner also had a good race and would have settled for a 21 point World Championship lead at the half way stage of the season had it been offered to him before the first race of the year in Qatar.

World Champion Nicky Hayden demonstrated that he really has finally found a comfortable race set-up for his Honda 800cc RC212V with a superb performance to finish third and earn the first podium of his title defence season, despite starting in 13th on the grid.

Hayden held off his Repsol Honda team-mate Dani Pedrosa for that podium position, the Spaniard finishing fourth, just ahead of Rizla Suzuki's John Hopkins (fifth) and Colin Edwards (sixth).

It was a disastrous afternoon for Kawasaki Racing's Randy de Puniet who dropped from third to 11th on first lap and then took out Suzuki's pole man Chris Vermuelen as the pair collided on lap 12 to immediately end the Frenchman's race – Vermeulen remounting to finish last in 16th place and sadly miss out on the points.

Pramac d'Antin colleagues Alex Barros and Alex Hofmann were seventh and eighth respectively, while another solid effort from Kawasaki newcomer Anthony West brought him home ninth - with Marco Melandri (Gresini Honda) rounding off the top ten.

DORNA / CAPSIS International

1. V.ROSSI
2. C.STONER
3. N.HAYDEN

MotoGP - Great Britain - Donington - 24/06/2007

Returning to the scene of his first ever road race appearance, MotoGP World Championship leader Casey Stoner took win number five of the 2007 season and his premier class career at the Nickel & Dime British Grand Prix.

The Australian extends his lead at the top of the standings to 26 points courtesy of a great performance at a tricky circuit, prompting Ducati MotoGP project manager Livio Suppo to describe his 21 year-old protégé as ‘a genius'. Like all genii, Stoner did things very much his way at Donington Park, having to make up a number of positions after an atrocious start.

Back up to seventh by the end of lap one, Stoner needed just three more laps to put himself amongst the podium spots during the ‘wet weather' stage of the proceedings, finally passing leader Colin Edwards at the halfway point. From there he never looked back; knowing when to back off as a dry line was established on the track and saving his tyres to take his Desmosedici GP7 through to victory.

Once again, the rider on pole failed to win the race, but Colin Edwards at least had a better race than at Le Mans where he took his maiden top spot. Finishing second in his best result of the past two years, ‘The Texan Tornado' will have confidence at an all-time high when he returns to Assen next Saturday to avenge some of his personal demons from 2006.

Having crashed three times over the course of the weekend, Chris Vermeulen rewarded the mechanics that he had kept so busy over the weekend with the final podium position. A fantastic start from twelfth on the grid gave the wet weather expert the chance to show his stuff, and he didn't disappoint with a masterful display.
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Overtaking seven-time Donington victor Valentino Rossi at the death, the second Australian on the rostrum held off any attempt at an immediate comeback from the Italian to earn his second top three finish of the year.

Rossi's tyres were destroyed at the end of the race, as the Italian pushed his Yamaha M1 to the limit, and he had to be wary of any mistake allowing the second Suzuki of Anglo-American John Hopkins to close him down.

Randy de Puniet followed up his fifth place at Catalunya with another top six finish onboard the Kawasaki Ninja ZX-RR. The Frenchman has had little time to recover from an operation on his knee, making his gritty showing all the more impressive.

Alex Barros took seventh on the last lap, ahead of 2006 race winner Dani Pedrosa. After a good start, the factory Honda rider was –in true British schoolyard style- bullied out into eighth by some of MotoGP's ‘bigger boys', as first the Suzuki riders and then Barros imposed themselves on the 21 year-old Spaniard.

Alex Hofmann and Marco Melandri completed the top ten, with the latter only coming into form as the track dried to suggest that perhaps his tyre choice was not quite what was required.

Making his debut for Kawasaki in MotoGP, the Nickel & Dime British Grand Prix was Anthony West's first chance to show what the premier class has been missing over the past six years. The 25 year-old had been fastest in the warm-up, and was one of the outstanding riders of the day. Showing no respect for reputations, West passed the likes of World Champion Nicky Hayden, fellow Australian Vermeulen and five-time MotoGP title holder Rossi to ascend to fourth position in the early going, and almost impressed just as much after a crash soon after.

Dusting off his bike, West returned to the track and set about salvaging something from the race, eventually finishing a respectable eleventh.

1. C.STONER
2. C.EDWARDS
3. C.VERMEULEN