The war is now total. The bond between Bernie Ecclestone, Formula 1's economic overlord, and Max Mosley, the controversial FIA president, saved on Tuesday 3 June 2008 in Paris by the General Assembly thanks to 103 votes in favour but with 55 against, seems to have ceased to exist. Once a solid friendship, now not a day goes by when Ecclestone does not send genuine torpedoes to the number one of the Federation. His opinion on whether Mosley should remain at the top has been clear from the outset:
"He has to go. He can no longer represent the FIA".
The position remained unchanged after the vote of confidence a fortnight ago.
"I'm not changing my mind, with all the enemies he has, he can't make it to the end of 2009".
Monday 16 June 2008 Bernie Ecclestone goes even further.
"The fact that Mosley seeks the solidarity of the Fia does enormous damage to the image of Formula One. What worries me most is that the Jewish community controls a large part of the funds that finance our sport. And these investors argue that the Fia should not allow itself to be represented by the likes of Max".
A total disagreement, which, beyond ethical issues, however, draws inspiration from an economic problem. In fact, many teams have not yet renewed the Pact of Concord, which expired at the end of 2007. Ecclestone had reached an agreement until 2012 with Ferrari, Williams, Force India, Red Bull Racing and Scuderia Toro Rosso, but he has not yet found an agreement with the other teams, who are resisting, demanding more authority from Fia, even to the point of threatening an alternative world championship. Ecclestone, in words, has always distanced himself from a possible split, but now says:
"What the FIA lacks at the moment is a contract with the teams, the teams can do what they want. All this makes the situation uncontrollable and could prelude a resounding divorce."
Messages that are intended to hit Mosley above all, guilty in recent weeks of having demanded more money for the Federation, to the detriment of course of Bernie Ecclestone. The FIA president, however, has a weapon in his favour: Ferrari is with him. He has signed a pact with Ecclestone, but he does not want a World Championship on his own, without a referee. The constructors, for Maranello, must only think about racing. And the super partes referee can only be the FIA. Namely Max Mosley. On the eve of the French Grand Prix, at Magny Cours, the arguments are many and varied. The race, with Ferrari the favourite (seven victories out of eleven Grand Prix disputed on this circuit. the last one with a 1-2 by Kimi Raikkonen and Felipe Massa last year, the others all by Michael Schumacher). The issue of the super-licence, but there will only be a claim against the FIA, the drivers' strike is not feasible: they are only asking for a fairer distribution of the cost, without going as far as the 230.000 euros paid by the World Champion. The drivers' earnings are, all things considered, less than those of the stars of other sports (although Raikkonen still says he is smiling more than happy with his 35,000,000 euros per year, but he is also risking his life) and Euro 2008 football, with Fernando Alonso's ruthless and interested prediction:
"Spain wins 2-0, two goals from Villa".
These are the most popular topics on the eve of the French Grand Prix free practice. But also at the centre of the discourse is Lewis Hamilton, who will start with a ten-position penalty for the pit stop collision on Kimi's Ferrari in Montréal. The Englishman, with great nerve, has made it known that he is unrepentant.
"It was a small accident. It would have been worse if I had crashed into a little wall on the track while leading the race. Obviously I feel very sorry for Raikkonen. But it's already forgotten, I feel very combative and ready to bring home a big pile-up of points."
Hamilton, who goes on to explain to the Finnish driver at the end of the interview, is not a member of the drivers' association, but is ready to support any protest initiatives by his colleagues.
"For the rest I am only focused on the idea of having a great race. The episode at the Canadian Grand Prix was a shame, also because it didn't teach me anything, it just made me lose something. I feel a lot of pressure on my shoulders, but it's not because of what happened a fortnight ago. When you get to the top of Formula 1 everyone wants something from you: the team looks for results, the sponsors look for availability. You have to attend too many events, then there are the tests, the races, the meetings. It's tough. Not forgetting the media. I heard recently that it was written that I would buy the LEW1S plate for my car and spend £200,000, about 280,000 euros. I am not stupid. It's barely an abbreviation. I am interested in other things, first of all in winning.”
When the Red Bull Racing men first arrived at Nevers Magny-Cours, their comment was:
"It would be better to call it Never Again.”
Wounded in their chauvinist pride, the transalpine people rose up.
"Think about that crap drink they produce and advertise, the sale of which is banned in France".
Beyond the critique of the drink by the French media, the verdict on the area reflects a widespread opinion among those in the industry. The circuit that has hosted the French Grand Prix since 1991 is located in the centre of France, in the middle of nowhere in a pleasant and sparsely populated countryside: difficult to get there (the nearest motorway is 200 kilometres away, the airport 300 kilometres), problematic to stay there for lack of hotels. But when it comes to pushing on the accelerator, Ferrari enjoys it here: seven victories in the last eleven years, the famous (even derisory) one of the four pit stops in 2004. The last one was last year and has special significance because it came at the most difficult time of the season: Kimi Raikkonen began the comeback over Lewis Hamilton that culminated four months later in the triumph in Brazil. This year the gap is minimal: between Robert Kubica, who is first, and Kimi Raikkonen, who is fourth, seven points pass, with Lewis Hamilton and Felipe Massa tied in the middle. The impression is that Sunday afternoon the two Ferrari drivers will be in the lead. Magny-Cours is a red fiefdom. Asphalt as smooth as a billiard table, a very technical track. And curves of all kinds. The designers have named them after the circuits they are inspired by: Adelaide, Nurburgring, Estoril. On the calendar in mid-season, for Ferrari in recent times Magny-Cours has alternatively represented a turning point, as in 2007, or the knockout blow. It was back in 2002 when Michael Schumacher overtook Kimi Raikkonen on the last lap and sealed the deal with six races to spare. To prevent it happening again, the following year the regulations were even changed: 10 points to the first and 8 (instead of 6) to the second. Since 2009 Ferrari has been in danger of losing a safe harbour. Bernie Ecclestone insists:
"If you want a Grand Prix in France, organise it in Paris".
For him (and the sponsors who feed the circus) the Ville Lumière is glamour, while Magny-Cours is just an annoying transfer. However, the idea of racing in the Palace of Versailles area was rejected. The next proposal, a Grand Prix at Disneyland, is still under discussion. One thing is certain: there is no talk of it before 2010. According to Nicolas Deschaux, the President of the French Automobile Federation:
"For the next championship there is no alternative. If there will be a French Grand Prix, it will be at Magny-Cours."
Backing the project in 1991 was François Mitterrand. From Le Castellet, in southern Provence, the race was moved to Burgundy, department of Nièvre. Backed by presidential support, the organisers promised a Paris Magny-Cours motorway to break the isolation. And with the motorway would come hotels and spectators. Nothing happened. Bernie Ecclestone never wants to hear about it again:
"Never again”.
He was also drastic a year ago. According to paddock radio, the parties are negotiating. In the meantime, Rouen has put forward its candidature. During free practice, a banner appears in the grandstands:
"French F1 fans are for Magny-Cours, not Paris”.
Alain Prost, four world titles on his CV, takes to the track like this:
"Formula 1 was born in Europe and France must continue to host it. We defend the historic Grand Prix".
The options besides Paris? The French Federation is not aware of the Rouen proposal, Le Mans does not have the minimum capacity (and lives well off the legendary 24 Hours), Le Castellet is owned by Bernie Ecclestone, who has turned it into a test facility. That leaves Magny-Cours. Take it or leave it. Friday, June 20, 2008, in the first practice session, which was held in dry conditions, Ferrari's Felipe Massa was quickest, ahead of the McLarens of Hamilton and Kovalainen in second and third. Massa's teammate, Räikkönen, was fourth quickest. The afternoon session, which was held in very hot conditions, saw Renault's Fernando Alonso record the fastest lap, ahead of the two Ferrari drivers. The hot weather conditions posed several problems for the drivers, as many of the cars ran off the road, sliding through the gravel or across the asphalt. At the end of the session, a new system - designed to limit the cars' speeds in potentially hazardous situations - was tested. Joy and anger. Anger, with a protest banner in the grandstands, for the fear of no longer being able to see F1 on the Magny Cours track, preferred by the French to Bernie Ecclestone's Parisian dream, suddenly turns into joy for Fernando Alonso's exploit, a Spaniard who continues to massacre Italian football, but who has a French car in his hands, the much-loved in these parts Renault, a car so far disappointing, but capable right at home of transforming itself, to the point of conquering the best time in the second free practice session, 0.076 seconds better than the Ferrari of Felipe Massa, 0.221 seconds quicker than the other Maranello car, that of Kimi Raikkonen. Perhaps it is an impromptu feat, due to the low petrol load, but it is enough to send the local fans into raptures, shaken by the idea of being able to experience their last Grand Prix, a threat reiterated again by Bernie Ecclestone with an eloquent:
"No more racing at Magny-Cours, a place that is difficult to reach and with inadequate hotel facilities”.
If it will be the end of the line, we will know in mid-summer, when the FIA will begin to make known the 2009 calendar, the entry of Abu Dhabi, the illustrious exclusions, with Rouen, Upper Normandy, already a candidate to save France's place, provided that indeed, as Ecclestone insists, we do not end up in Disneyland, the Ferraris whizzing past Mickey Mouse. If it will be the last time, the worried French will learn in a few weeks. On the other hand, they will not have to wait so long to find out if Fernando Alonso's is real glory or is destined to be buried by the Ferrari force, which has always been implacable on this circuit and also had an excellent pace on Friday, Felipe Massa very fast in the morning, despite a nagging stiff neck, and second in the afternoon only because of an off-track excursion with a grazed wall:
"I was lucky, because there was asphalt, otherwise I would have crashed".
Kimi Raikkonen a little slower, fourth in the first session and third in the second, but still happy with his car, to the point of promising pole position:
"Because the speed is there, the tyres satisfy me, the balance is very good and I can't make any more mistakes".
Ferrari is not hiding, in 2007 it dominated with a one-two, Raikkonen began his run-up to the World Championship on these corners, and does not hesitate to express its optimism. Good omens that cannot belong to Hamilton, stuttering yesterday, off track in the afternoon with an obvious mistake at Turn 3, and above all distressed by the ten fewer positions he will be given on the grid, on a circuit where overtaking is difficult. Years ago at Magny-Cours Ferrari invented the victory with four pit stops, the Englishman does not know which strategy to devote himself to, whether to look for pole with little petrol to start eleventh, or to weigh himself down, maybe start from last, but then devour the group with one stop less.
"It is the big doubt, we will decide in extremis".
Risking, however, to be beaten by the Ferraris and also by Robert Kubica, the World Championship leader in BMW, in slight difficulty, but ready to aim for the podium. Something that Fernando Alonso also dreams of for once:
"Because Renault is strong here. Another car compared to the last races."
Saturday, June 21, 2008, in the third practice session, again held in dry conditions, Renault continued their strong practice performance with Piquet leading the final practice session. Red Bull's Mark Webber was next quickest while Sebastian Vettel of Toro Rosso was third. As was the pattern for the season, the McLaren and Ferrari drivers ran heavier fuel loads in this session in preparation for the final section of qualifying. A few hours later, Kimi Räikkönen clinched Ferrari's 200th pole position and his last until the 2017 Monaco Grand Prix 129 races later, with a time of 1'16"449. He was joined on the front row of the grid by teammate Massa.[29] This would later prove to be Ferrari's last front- row lockout until the 2017 Russian Grand Prix. Alonso qualified third after Hamilton's penalty moved the quicker McLaren driver to 13th; Toyota's Jarno Trulli qualified fourth. Kovalainen would have started from fifth, but was given a five-place grid penalty for blocking Webber during qualifying and would start from 10th on the grid. Kubica, Webber, David Coulthard, Timo Glock and Piquet rounded off the top ten. Heidfeld qualified 11th, with Vettel ahead of Hamilton in 12th, and Bourdais behind in 14th. Rosberg was next quickest, but after his penalty demoted him to the back of the grid his teammate Kazuki Nakajima took his place. The final four places went to the Honda and Force India teams, with Button qualifying ahead of Barrichello, Fisichella and Sutil. Barrichello, however, was given a penalty for changing his gearbox, meaning that he started 20th on the grid, one place behind Rosberg.
There is no two without three. In the friendly Magny-Cours comes the third all red front row of the season, with Kimi Raikkonen in pole position and Felipe Massa second, 0.041 seconds behind, but the rule must also apply on Sunday, with Ferrari aiming to conquer the third one-two of 2008. It matters little if so far the monopoly on the grid (Malaysia and Monaco) has never coincided with that in the race (Bahrain and Spain), this time it must happen, otherwise the scream of joy for pole position number 200 in the history of Maranello risks turning into a cry of despair. The Reds are the favourites, to waste such an opportunity would be a mortal sin. Hamilton, the most dangerous rival, is in clear difficulty. Yesterday, during his assault on pole, he made two mistakes, always at the same point, turn 7. The penalty, involving the loss of ten positions on the grid, has affected him enormously, he has never been able to free himself from this psychological boulder weighing on his head, he set the third fastest time, more or less with the same petrol as the Ferrari drivers in the tank, but he will start on the seventh row, and his race risks resembling an ordeal. Robert Kubica, the unexpected World Championship leader, cannot smile either. He forcefully gained admission to Q3, the one that divides the first ten places on the grid, and finds himself fifth at the start, but only because the other McLaren, that of Heikki Kovalainen, also had to suffer the wrath of the judges, with a five-position setback for obstructing Mark Webber's Red Bull Racing and an uninspiring tenth place to digest at the start. The Bmw Pole is disappointed and does not hide his pessimism:
"The others have improved, we have stood still. I expected these difficulties, it will be a very tough race."
Nor can the unbridled Ferrari scare Alonso, although the Spaniard with the Renault playing at home yesterday managed to continue Friday's exploit.
"On this circuit we are going strong, for the first time I can really dream of the podium."
Starting third, the jubilation is more than legitimate, but not such as to intimidate Kimi Raikkonen and Felipe Massa, whom he described as uncatchable.
"They are not my rivals, I can keep Bmw and McLaren behind."
If anything, it will be Lewis Hamilton who will have to worry, because the desire to make a comeback is in danger of dissolving in front of his former team-mate, who, we can swear, will do everything possible not to let him pass. The others are trudging along, Ferrari on the other hand is calm and dreaming of an exciting family fight. In qualifying Felipe Massa was mocked by a trifle:
"I wanted to overdo it and I was wrong. But success remains possible".
Kimi Raikkonen is adamant:
"I have a huge chance, don't waste it. I have to win, my car is perfect."
So fast, it allowed him to slow down.
"I was pushing hard, but they warned me that the best time was already saved. So I saved fuel. I could have lowered it by another 0.3 seconds".
So he cannot get angry about the 5.000 euro fine he has to pay for being late for the drivers' meeting. Better to conserve his energy: he will need it in the race, in the duel with Massa. Which shows where everything can be decided.
“At the first corner. Whoever starts better, wins. Let's be clear, without getting hurt.”
On Sunday 22 June 2008, at the start of the French Grand Prix the Ferraris hold the first two positions; Fernando Alonso, passed by Jarno Trulli and Robert Kubica, recovers a position at the expense of the Pole on the exit of the Adelaide hairpin bend. Lewis Hamilton gets off to an aggressive start and climbs to tenth place after a borderline overtaking move on Sebastian Vettel in which he cuts across the Nürburgring chicane and immediately attacks Heikki Kovalainen. The Finn, who has more petrol after a few laps, lets his team-mate pass. Lewis Hamilton tried to attack Nelson Piquet Jr., who had made an excellent start and managed to climb to eighth place; the Brazilian's resistance was strenuous, however, and the Englishman did not pass. On lap 16 Jenson Button pitted to replace his damaged front wing, but was forced to retire. After a few laps, Lewis Hamilton is penalised with a drive-through for cutting the chicane on lap 1 and failing to give back his position to Sebastian Vettel at the start of the race: the British driver rejoins the track in P13. The first to refuel is Fernando Alonso, on lap 15, who puts on Hard tyres and re-enters ahead of Lewis Hamilton. The Englishman attacks him and passes him on the inside of the Estoril corner; shortly afterwards, however, Lewis Hamilton stops to refuel and returns to the back of the field. Then Jarno Trulli, Robert Kubica, Timo Glock and Kimi Räikkönen pitted in order. Nelson Piquet Jr., who had refuelled together with Heikki Kovalainen, switches to neutral instead of the speed limiter and is overtaken at the exit of the pit lane by the Finn, now seventh. The pace of the Ferraris is unbearable for the rivals: Felipe Massa is six seconds behind Kimi Räikkönen, Jarno Trulli at around thirty seconds, while Robert Kubica is fourth, now ahead of Fernando Alonso. From lap 33 onwards Kimi Räikkönen's pace suddenly picks up by more than a second a lap; the Finn's car suffers a problem with the right exhaust: one of the pipes detaches and starts to hang dangerously from the rear end, also burning part of the bodywork. On lap 39 the World Champion is forced to give way to his team-mate, who thus takes the lead.
Kimi Räikkönen also initially loses ground on Jarno Trulli, followed in turn by Robert Kubica, but the Finn manages to keep up a sufficient pace to stabilise the gap. On lap 42 Heikki Kovalainen passes Mark Webber at the Adelaide hairpin and gains another position at the end of the lap, when Fernando Alonso opens the second round of stops. The Finn is spinning hard and, when he stops ten laps later, has climbed to fourth place, close to Jarno Trulli. Losing out again is Fernando Alonso, who drops to seventh, behind Mark Webber and just ahead of a good Nelson Piquet Jr. When there are now 14 laps to go, and all the pit stops have been made, the rain begins to fall on the French track and the times begin to rise, without any drivers coming into the pits to change tyres. At the end the attention is all on the heated fight between Jarno Trulli and Heikki Kovalainen, with the Italian driver keeping third place, to be dedicated to the memory of Ove Andersson, Toyota's former team manager, who raced in mourning. Felipe Massa wins, the first driver this year to win three Grands Prix, followed by the unfortunate Kimi Räikkönen and the gritty Jarno Trulli, who brings Toyota back to the podium for the first time since the 2006 Australian Grand Prix. Fourth was a positive Heikki Kovalainen, fifth Robert Kubica, sixth an excellent Mark Webber, seventh Nelson Piquet Jr., who in the last minutes overtook his team mate, Fernando Alonso, taking advantage of an indecision by the Spaniard during the lapping. A Brazilian leads the World Championship. This has not happened since 1993, the era of Ayrton Senna. For years the torcida has been desperately searching for an heir, now, at least in terms of numbers, it has found him. Felipe Massa, has he had better times in his life?
"Some maybe, but not many. I am proud of myself and happy for my Brazil. It's good to be in the lead, but let's not exaggerate. We are only halfway through the season."
However, it is true that to be a champion you also need luck.
"It helped me here, no doubt about it. Raikkonen was faster than me, I would never have beaten him if he hadn't had problems. But it's also a reward for my character."
All this in spite of a stiff neck.
"Let's put it this way: better to have a stiff neck than a broken exhaust pipe. I suffered all weekend but now it's as if it's all gone. I won, in the first few laps I really didn't hope for it."
Honestly, how much could the failure have penalised Kimi Raikkonen?
"A lot. Without an exhaust pipe, you lose a lot of power, especially in slow corners. You could say that he was lucky too: he still managed to get to the finish line."
When did Felipe Massa realise this?
"When I saw that suddenly instead of losing tenths, I was gaining seconds. So I asked the radio what was going on and they explained about Kimi's problem."
Do you have a special dedication for this top ranking?
"To my family. And then to my friend Roberto Carlos, yes, the footballer. He always follows me."
Here, however, he hosted Ronaldo.
"He is often in Paris and wanted to see the Grand Prix. He brought me luck."
Any other particular messages?
"To my manager. He is French (ed. Nicolas Todt, Jean's son), he will be happy that I triumphed at his home".
Now there is Silverstone.
"Another match similar to this one. Where we are favourites and where we cannot make mistakes."
Too bad Magny Cours is disappearing. What do you think of the French Grand Prix in Paris?
"On the city level we gain, as a track I don't think so."
Now that he is ahead, does he expect preferential treatment?
"It would make no sense to ask that. We both have a great chance to win this World Championship. We will continue to race as equals."
But the conquest of the role of first driver has to be earned. Commented Stefano Domenicali:
"I'm very sorry for Kimi, even though he still did a great performance by setting a time very close to Massa's, and I'm also very happy for him that he didn't do anything wrong. We will do some analysis, but there is no hurry for what should be the only variable at stake, which is the engine change when we go to Silverstone."
And Raikkonen? As is his character he doesn't leave much room for words.
"The championship is still very long and I am in a better position than I was last year, let's see what I can do in the rest of the season."
A fierce defence of the podium. The driver who takes his car, slower than the others, on his shoulders and exalts it to an unhoped-for result. Perhaps that is why Jarno Trulli, during the award ceremony, shows his left forearm.
"Where I come from, in the Abruzzi, it's like this: you need a handle. It's a gesture in slang."
A little higher up is a black sash. Jarno Trulli proudly displays that too:
"We were running in mourning, Owe Andersson just died, someone who did a lot for Toyota. We wanted to dedicate a feat to him, we succeeded."
Yes, because enterprise is the right word. And it justifies any exultation. Even that hand rotating near the helmet, at the height of the right ear. Trulli copies Luca Toni, the football bomber.
"Actually, Alonso and I invented that gesture when we were teammates in Renault. He will be the one to have imitated us."
It matters little who finished first, it matters that the Italian driver after an eternity was able to return to the podium. His duel in the finale with Heikki Kovalainen drew applause.
"Did you see those sparks? I had the time of my life. This is the Formula 1 I like, it was like being on go-karts. We spun, we touched, it was amazing. I am a fighter and certain battles excite me. I never back down, I would never let him pass."
On the triumphant Sunday, there is only one regret.
"I would have gladly waved the tricolour on the podium, I've been carrying a flag in my suitcase for years, but in the confusion in the pits my mechanics couldn't find it: it had been ages since we had used it. It was meant as a good omen for Italy's race against Spain."
Jarno Trulli also felt this challenge very strongly and did not leave Magny-Cours until the end of the day, as he involved the mechanics (Japanese and German) in front of a big screen in a restaurant near the circuit.
Not masking his disappointment, however, was Spaniard Fernando Alonso, who only managed an eighth place at the wheel of his Renault.
"If you go one second slower than your direct rivals, that's too much. The start was not good, I lost a few positions straight away and then in the race we were never quick enough. The car didn't go as well as in practice, maybe because of the lower temperature that affected the tyres. The podium was up to us, if we did things right, we could have got it."
It costs nothing to dream. But when you realise that wishes are not utopias, the moment can only be exciting. Felipe Massa had two big plans for 2008.
"Becoming a father."
And that is entirely up to him, having led Raffaela to the altar at the end of last year. But also:
"To become World Champion, to give Brazil back a title that has been missing since Senna's time."
For this goal the others also come into play, the dangerous Kimi Raikkonen, only five points down in the standings after the broken exhaust and the huge misfortune suffered at Magny-Cours, the outsider Robert Kubica, who remains only two points behind, and the discontinuous Lewis Hamilton, who at the moment is ten points behind, but swears he does not want to give up, Felipe Massa however after his triumph in France can really believe it, given that for the first time in his life he finds himself at the top of the standings, with three Grands Prix won (a feat that allows him to equal Kimi Raikkonen in Ferrari history, eight successes apiece, albeit a year older than the Finn), but above all after an exhilarating comeback, given that the Brazilian was on zero points after two races and many were already talking about his possible successor at Maranello, Fernando Alonso, Robert Kubica and even the young Sebastian Vettel. Massa was watched carefully:
"But I never lost my head, because I know I give my best when I am under pressure and once again I reacted great".
So well that I can support now:
"This year it's my turn."
Without fear of being laughed at. Felipe Massa acknowledged that he had been lucky:
"Under normal conditions I could never have beaten Raikkonen, he was giving me 0.3 seconds a lap."
And then, in the moment of proclamations, he does not forget another weapon in his possession, the one that calls for gratitude. It was explicit in Australia, on the eve of the first Grand Prix:
“In Brazil I gave up the victory, I helped Raikkonen, the team appreciated my gesture and will remember it when the time comes.”
An elegant way of saying that in the event of a photo finish between the two drivers in red, Massa himself could be the favourite. In the meantime, however, Raikkonen is not giving up either. And while McLaren feels in the crosshairs of the FIA:
"Hamilton is being penalised all the time, that's enough."
Ferrari makes it clear that they will use the joker and change the engine in the Finnish driver's car at Silverstone, without the driver incurring penalties, as the rules state on the first change.
"Risk does not make sense…"
Ferrari team principal Stefano Domenicali acknowledges. Although the problem of the broken pipe cannot be underestimated.
"The piece flew away, we cannot analyse it."