Race Day - 11 May 2008. Istanbul, Turkey

Racing Skills vs. Pit Stop Strategies

The race from start to finish was a great competition between some great racing skills and pit stop strategies. From the pole and into the first turn we saw Kimi loosing precious positions and the lead being taken by team mate Massa, who incidentally was leading from pole to finish in this race.

Turn one fiasco

Into turn one and we saw Fisichella running his car onto the back pack and stalling. Kovalinen who was in position 2 in the pole was moved to the back of the pack after an early pit stop and could make it only to position 12 at the end of the race though he had overtaken 8 other cars in the race.

Ferrari vs. Mclaren

The rest of the race was Ferrai vs. Mclaren all the way. Hamilton was running on a 3 stop strategy to Massa and Kimi's 2 stop strategy. With making a splash and dash 3rd stop, Hamilton was able to join back ahead of Kimi and secure his position 2. Kimi gave a good chase for about 13 laps in the end, but had to be satisfied with position 3.

Hatrick for Massa

It was a dream run for Massa winning his third consecutive podium finish this season. The race concluded with a Ferrai-Mclaren-Ferrai for Massa to Hamilton to Kimi. With this win Massa is second to team mate Kimi by 8 points with a total of 28.

Race Results

Felipe Massa (Ferrai), Lewis Hamilton (Mclaren), Kimi Raikkonen (Ferrari), Robert Kubica (BMW Sauber), Nick Heidfeld (BMW Sauber)

Drivers standing

Kimi Raikkonen (35), Felipe Massa (28), Lewis Hamilton (28), Robert Kubica (24), Nick Heidfeld (20)

Constructors Standing

Ferrai (63), BMW Sauber (44), Mclaren-Mercedes (42), Williams-Toyota (13), Red Bull - Renault (10)

Istanbul - Practice Sessions update

Massa keeps Ferrari on top in Turkish GP practice

Ferrari's Felipe Massa led first free practice for the Turkish Grand Prix on Friday while a gearbox problem left championship-leading team mate Kimi Raikkonen at the other end of the timesheets.

F1 2008 Season - Pre Race Update 9 May

Season Calendar

Melbourne	14-16 March
Kuala Lumpur	21 - 23 Mar
Bahrain	04 - 06 Apr
Catalunya - Next Race, Details Below	25 - 27 Apr
Istanbul	09 - 11 May
Monte Carlo	22 - 25 May
Montreal	06 - 08 Jun
Magny-Cours	20 - 22 Jun
Silverstone	04 - 06 Jul
Hockenheim	18 - 20 Jul
Budapest	01 - 03 Aug
Valencia	22 - 24 Aug
Spa-Francorchamps	05 - 07 Sep
Monza	12 - 14 Sep
Singapore	26 - 28 Sep
Fuji Speedway	10 - 12 Oct
Shanghai	17 - 19 Oct
Sao Paulo	31 Oct - 02 Nov

Drivers Championship Standing - As on 09 May 2008

Pos	Driver	Team	Points
1	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	29
2	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren-Mercedes	20
3	Robert Kubica	BMW Sauber	19
4	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	18
5	Nick Heidfeld	BMW Sauber	16
6	Heikki Kovalainen	McLaren-Mercedes	14
7	Jarno Trulli	Toyota	9
8	Mark Weber	Red Bull-Renault	8
9	Nico Rosberg	Williams-Toyota	7
10	Alonso	Renault	6
11	Kazuki Nakajima	Williams-Toyota	5
12	Jenson Button	Honda	3
13	Sebastien Bourdais	STR-Ferrari	2

Constructors Championship – F1 2008, as on 09 May 2008

Pos	Team	Points
1	Ferrari	37
2	BMW Sauber	35
3	McLaren-Mercedes	34
4	Williams-Toyota	12
5	Toyota	9
6	Red Bull - Renault	8
7	Renault	6
8	Honda	3
9	STR - Ferrari	2

 

Next Race

Location:-  Istanbul – Turkey

Race Schedules– IST

Fri 09 May 2008
Friday Practice 1	12:30 - 14:00
Friday Practice 2	16:30 - 18:00
Sat 10 May 2008
Saturday Practice	13:30 - 14:30
Qualifying	16:30
Sun 11 May 2008
Race	17:30

 

Circuit Details

No. Of laps: 58

Circuit length: 5.338 km

Race distance: 309.396 km

Total Turns: 14

Lap Record Holder: Montoya (1:24:770 in 2005)

Last year results (2007)

Massa, Kimi , Alonso for a Ferrari 1-2 , Mclaren finish.

About the Circuit

Turkey made its debut on the Formula One calendar in 2005 with an all-new purpose-built circuit in Istanbul. The spectacular 5.378 kilometre track was designed by famed German architect Hermann Tilke, the man behind Sepang, Bahrain and Shanghai, and features 14 turns - eight lefts and six rights - with the cars reaching speeds of up to 330 km/h.
An unusual feature of the venue is that the lap runs anti-clockwise, making the Turkish Grand Prix one of only two races on the calendar to do so ( Brazil being the other). It possesses a wide variety of corners - including the notorious multi-apex Turn Eight - and while perhaps not as technical as, say, Shanghai, it definitely provides the drivers with real challenge.
The character of the circuit is further enhanced by plenty of gradients - the track is built on four different ground levels. There may be fewer obvious overtaking opportunities than at some other Tilke circuits - it doesn't feature the long straights followed by tight hairpins that characterise the likes of Sepang and Shanghai - but the potential for a driver under pressure to make a mistake here means no shortage of passing.
As you'd expect from a new venue, spectator facilities are impressive - organisers knew they had to rival the very high standards set by Bahrain and China. Seating capacity is around 130,000, with 25,000 of those in the main grandstand, and parking is available for 12,000 cars. Dominating the circuit's skyline are two seven-floor VIP towers at either end of the paddock.

Ferrari News!!!

Ferrari reverts to old nose for Turkey

Ferrari will not run its innovative vented nosecone in this weekend’s Turkish Grand Prix, reverting instead to a conventional nose.

Coming up!!!

The next race is scheduled for the 11thof May, 2008. More details on the track, previous winners... coming up shortly!!!!! Keep watching this space.