Lewis Hamilton, F1 World Champion.
So for those of you who follow Formula 1, you'll certainly have followed the final race to a dramatic, chaotic, and very controvercial season of Formula 1.
For those of you not really into the loop, just know that the winner of the Formula 1 world championship turned out to be a fight to the last race, the last lap, and the very last corner. It was an extremely thrilling finish to a crazy season, with two drivers Filipe Massa and Lewis Hamilton, vying for the crown.
It started out as any other Grand Prix, cars lining the grid, ready to race. But just as the lights were about to go out, the heavens opened and smothered everything that she could offer. This lasted just a few minutes, but it threw the teams into confusion as to what tires to slap on their cars. Should they gamble and stay with the dry tires, or be safe and go with the wet tires?
Most teams opted for the wet tires, while the one team who didn't quickly found out what a bad decision it was and opted for a switch to wet tires in the pitlane. As the race unfolded, the hometown Brazillian, Filipe Massa pulled out an impressive lead at the front while his team mate backed up the rest of the pack. Keep in mind that if Massa had any hope of getting the crown, he had to win and Hamilton had to falter spectacularly which given history, was a real possibility.
The drivers mixing up the order were Timo Glock and Sebastian Vettel, both in surprisingly quick cars at the ol' Interlagos racetrack in Sao Paolo, Brazil. By keeping up with the pack and dicing for position, they made life extremely difficult for Lewis Hamilton, who only needed to finish 5th to take the crown.
Just 8 laps from the end, it started to drizzle, no one knew if it would pour down by the end of the race. You could be cautious and switch to dry tires, losing time by pitting, and being inherently slower on wet tires on a dry road. If on the other hand, you were feeling lucky, you could wait it out and stay on dry tires hoping the rain didn't pour down as hard and make up time while not needing to pit.
The first to dive into the pits was Nick Heidfeld from BMW. Being in 10th place, he had nothing to lose and a good possibility to gain a lot. Back in the pack where it all counted, Hamilton pitted, along with Vettel, but crucially Glock stayed out. As the positions unfolded on the track, It was Massa, Alonso, Raikkonnen, Glock, Hamilton.
On the second to last lap, Hamilton made a mistake and went wide in a corner, allowing Vettel to slip inside and steal the one position on track that he needed. It looked like it was all over for Hamilton, the crown slipping out of his hands. The guys in the Ferrari Garage were ecstatic as Massa cruised over the line for a faultles win, but they celebrated a bit too early.
The flood gates opened once again, dousing the track and making it un-driveable for those still on wet tires, namely Glock. On the last corner of the last lap, Hamilton sailed by a struggling Glock for 5th place, and snatched the crown. Lewis Hamilton, 2008 F1 World Champion. Seems fitting I think.
For some more links and info about the race, check out these sites:
Tags: F1, Formula 1, Lewis Hamilton, Mclaren