Brazilian Grand Prix preview
The penultimate race of the 2010 Formula One season brings us to Interlagos, Sao Paulo, and one of the most historic tracks in the world.
The Brazilians love their grand prix racing, and they fill out the stands when it’s their time to host a race. One of the greatest drivers of all time Ayrton Senna delighted the home fans on two occasions, winning in 1991 and 1993. Senna won his third world championship in 1991 and is the last Brazilian to do so.
Felipe Massa lost out by a point on the title to Lewis Hamilton on the final corner at this track in 2008, while Rubens Barrichello gave it a go last season but couldn’t stop Jenson Button from being crowned world champion.
This year’s championship is Fernando Alonso’s to lose. The Ferrari driver has one hand on the trophy after going 11 points clear of Red Bull’s Mark Webber, 21 ahead of McLaren’s Hamilton and 25 of the other Red Bull of Sebastian Vettel. Events at the Korean Grand Prix saw Webber lose his points’ lead when he crashed out in the rain, and Vettel was on course to win the race, but his engine blew up nine laps from the end.
Alonso can win his third world title if he wins the race and Webber comes fifth or lower. If Alonso comes second and Webber comes eighth or lower, he will be world champion, while if Alonso comes third and Webber comes tenth or lower, he will be world champion. Basically it’s in Alonso’s hands, and with four wins in the last seven races, he could very well wrap up the title on a track where he clinched his titles in 2005 and 2006.
Webber won the race here last year, but for the three years before that, Ferrari have dominated this circuit, with Massa winning two out of the three. Due to the fractured skull he suffered at the Hungarian Grand Prix last year, Massa was unable to compete for the rest of the campaign, missing out on his home race, but he did have the honours of waving the chequered flag.
If anyone will want to see this season quickly end, it would be Massa. He has struggled to keep up with his teammate Alonso, and after the team orders scandal in Germany - where he was told to move over to let Alonso through and win the race - he will be eager to see the back of this season and be competitive for the next.
Red Bull must be scratching their heads at the moment with the way their season has gone. Clearly they have built the fastest car and have secured pole positions in 14 of the 17 races so far. Their conversion of poles to wins is not so great, with seven grand prix wins to show for their efforts.
All would have been different had Webber or Vettel not retired from Korea. Vettel would have been a whole lot closer than he is now, and if Webber didn’t crash he would have maintained his lead at the top of the drivers’ standings. Red Bull have also had an in-house battle between their drivers, which heated up at the Turkish and British Grands Prix.
McLaren have not been at their best all year, and despite leading both drivers’ and constructors’ championships in the early stages, it was going to be a matter of time before Red Bull and Ferrari would take command. Reigning world champion Button has won two races, and Hamilton three, but they haven’t been quicker than their rivals when it has mattered most.
Looking from the outside, Red Bull have made a mess of things. Both Webber and Vettel are fantastic drivers and have done extremely well this season, but ultimately they have not taken advantage of their superior speed, like Brawn GP (now Mercedes-Benz GP) did last year to deliver the title for Button.
Ferrari have the experience and the driver with the all-round package at the heart of their team, Alonso, and it looks to be another successful year for the Scuderia.
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