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Row as Alonso leads Ferrari 1-2
Source: Agencies |
July 26, 2010, Monday
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FERNANDO Alonso won the Formula One German Grand Prix yesterday after Ferrari teammate Felipe Massa appeared to let him take the lead.
Massa's second place came on the first anniversary of an accident that nearly killed him.
Massa led yesterday's race for 49 of 67 laps at Hockenheim before letting Alonso go past in response to team instructions, presumably because Alonso is higher in the overall standings and has a shot at winning the title.
"I don't think I have to say anything to that," Massa said when asked after the race about the instructions. "We work for the team."
However, Ferrari was fined US$100,000 by stewards for the use of illegal "team orders". The governing International Automobile Federation also said in a statement that the case would be referred to its world motorsport council for further consideration.
Alonso won his second race of the season and Ferrari finished one-two for the second time this year.
German Sebastian Vettel was third in his Red Bull. Championship leader Lewis Hamilton of McLaren was fourth.
Hamilton leads the overall standings with 157 points ahead of McLaren teammate Jenson Button with 143. Vettel has 136 points, tied for third with Red Bull teammate Mark Webber. Alonso is fifth with 123. Massa seventh with 85 points.
"This is a very strong result for the team, we just have to continue like this," said Alonso, a two-time champion.
"In some parts of the race we were fighting very hard for first place, maybe it was a bit dangerous. It's a difficult race to overtake. I saw him go a bit slower and I pushed," the Spaniard said after his 23rd career victory.
The race had two decisive moments.
At the start, pole sitter Vettel moved wide to try to block Alonso. Massa, starting from third, used the gap to pass from the outside going into the first corner. Alonso also slipped past Vettel and the two Ferraris stayed in front for good.
But on lap 49, Massa appeared to go slightly wide in a corner and Alonso easily shot past the Brazilian.
Alonso had been pushing Massa hard for several laps, and was heard telling the team, "This is ridiculous."
Ferrari then told Massa to let Alonso pass.
"Fernando is faster than you, did you understand that message?" Massa was told on team radio shortly before being overtaken. "OK good lad. Just stick with him now," Massa was told after he had been passed by Alonso.
Massa confirmed the radio conversation, but later also said he had been struggling after switching to harder tires.
"Everyone saw that I can win races, that I can be competitive. But I was struggling on hard tires," the Brazilian said.
Alonso finished 4.1 seconds ahead of Massa and 5.1 seconds ahead of Vettel.
Vettel had hoped to win his home race but lost it at the start. "The first five, 10 meters I couldn't get off, I was lucky I didn't stall the engine," the German said.
Alonso won the opening race of the season in Bahrain, where Massa took second.
Massa required surgery for a fractured skull sustained one year ago when he was struck on the helmet by a heavy metal spring that had come off another car during qualifying for the Hungarian Grand Prix. The Brazilian spent nine days in recovery in a Budapest hospital and was also placed in induced coma.
Massa returns to Hungary next week for the race there.
Australian Webber was sixth, Poland's Robert Kubica seventh in a Renault and followed by the Mercedes of Germans Nico Rosberg and Michael Schumacher. Russian Vitaly Petrov, his future with the team subject to considerable speculation, collected the final point for Renault in his first top-10 finish since April.
Massa's second place came on the first anniversary of an accident that nearly killed him.
Massa led yesterday's race for 49 of 67 laps at Hockenheim before letting Alonso go past in response to team instructions, presumably because Alonso is higher in the overall standings and has a shot at winning the title.
"I don't think I have to say anything to that," Massa said when asked after the race about the instructions. "We work for the team."
However, Ferrari was fined US$100,000 by stewards for the use of illegal "team orders". The governing International Automobile Federation also said in a statement that the case would be referred to its world motorsport council for further consideration.
Alonso won his second race of the season and Ferrari finished one-two for the second time this year.
German Sebastian Vettel was third in his Red Bull. Championship leader Lewis Hamilton of McLaren was fourth.
Hamilton leads the overall standings with 157 points ahead of McLaren teammate Jenson Button with 143. Vettel has 136 points, tied for third with Red Bull teammate Mark Webber. Alonso is fifth with 123. Massa seventh with 85 points.
"This is a very strong result for the team, we just have to continue like this," said Alonso, a two-time champion.
"In some parts of the race we were fighting very hard for first place, maybe it was a bit dangerous. It's a difficult race to overtake. I saw him go a bit slower and I pushed," the Spaniard said after his 23rd career victory.
The race had two decisive moments.
At the start, pole sitter Vettel moved wide to try to block Alonso. Massa, starting from third, used the gap to pass from the outside going into the first corner. Alonso also slipped past Vettel and the two Ferraris stayed in front for good.
But on lap 49, Massa appeared to go slightly wide in a corner and Alonso easily shot past the Brazilian.
Alonso had been pushing Massa hard for several laps, and was heard telling the team, "This is ridiculous."
Ferrari then told Massa to let Alonso pass.
"Fernando is faster than you, did you understand that message?" Massa was told on team radio shortly before being overtaken. "OK good lad. Just stick with him now," Massa was told after he had been passed by Alonso.
Massa confirmed the radio conversation, but later also said he had been struggling after switching to harder tires.
"Everyone saw that I can win races, that I can be competitive. But I was struggling on hard tires," the Brazilian said.
Alonso finished 4.1 seconds ahead of Massa and 5.1 seconds ahead of Vettel.
Vettel had hoped to win his home race but lost it at the start. "The first five, 10 meters I couldn't get off, I was lucky I didn't stall the engine," the German said.
Alonso won the opening race of the season in Bahrain, where Massa took second.
Massa required surgery for a fractured skull sustained one year ago when he was struck on the helmet by a heavy metal spring that had come off another car during qualifying for the Hungarian Grand Prix. The Brazilian spent nine days in recovery in a Budapest hospital and was also placed in induced coma.
Massa returns to Hungary next week for the race there.
Australian Webber was sixth, Poland's Robert Kubica seventh in a Renault and followed by the Mercedes of Germans Nico Rosberg and Michael Schumacher. Russian Vitaly Petrov, his future with the team subject to considerable speculation, collected the final point for Renault in his first top-10 finish since April.
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