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The mosaic of the 2015 Formula 1 World Championship is taking shape more and more, with various pieces coming together. Waiting for Ferrari to make the team’s line up official for next season, confirming what everyone in the environment knows by now, namely the arrival of Sebastian Vettel on the seat left vacant by Fernando Alonso (if anything, there are less certainties about the future of the Spaniard, even if the McLaren hypothesis remains hot), it is Sauber to drop the veils on the names of its drivers for 2015. Sure enough, on the eve of the Brazilian Grand Prix, the Swiss team announces the second driver: it will be Felipe Nasr to join the Swedish Marcus Ericsson in the next Formula 1 World Championship thanks also to the agreement with Banco do Brasil, partner of the 22-year-old Brazilian driver, this year tester and reserve driver for Williams. Sauber Team Principal Monisha Kaltenborn says:
"We have been following Felipe’s career for a while and we are convinced that he has earned his place in Formula 1".
And Felipe Nasr adds:
"Signing for Sauber and racing in the 2015 Formula 1 World Championship is a big step forward for my career, a very important moment for me that I want to share with my fans, my family, my friends, my sponsors and my compatriots. I realize a dream thanks to a team that has already launched great drivers like Felipe Massa, Kimi Raikkonen, Robert Kubica and Sebastian Vettel. I am proud to be part of this family".
The current Sauber drivers are Germany's Adrian Sutil and Mexican Esteban Guttierez, who have not scored any points this season and will therefore both be replaced. The choice of the Swiss team is mainly linked to the financial problems of the team. If Felipe Nasr is backed by Banco do Brasil, Marcus Ericsson brings in a dowry of 20.000.000 euros guaranteed by his sponsors. And this is to the detriment of Dutchman Giedo van der Garde (ex-Caterham), current Sauber reserve driver, who thought of being promoted to the starting position next season promising to bring a suitcase worth 10.000.000 euros. But that wasn't enough and van der Garde will have to look around to find another driver if he wants to stay in the Formula 1 circus. Both Adrian Sutil and Esteban Gutierrez lost their place, although the German's situation is far from definite since the agreement with the team is also valid for next year. Sutil himself is surprised by Sauber's announcement:
"Surely there are some things to talk about. Yes, they confirmed two drivers but it doesn't mean they're racing and it doesn't mean the team will be racing either. So there is no real change from last weekend. It's just an announcement, but as far as I'm concerned, I need to talk to the team to sort out some issues".
Meanwhile, the McLaren team gave an ultimatum to Spanish driver Fernando Alonso, asking him to make a decision before the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. McLaren team principal Eric Boullier says:
"Between Brazil and Abu Dhabi we want to have a decision by Fernando. If not, we have to think of an alternative".
Alonso, two-time World Champion and currently at Ferrari, has not made a decision about his future, which seems to be far away from the Italian team despite having signed a contract until 2016. The Spaniard says there's nothing new about a possible move to McLaren. The Ferrari driver will compete in the Brazilian Grand Prix and then, after a week of rest, will take to the track in Abu Dhabi, where the last race of the season will be held on 23 November 2014. The question, of course, is turned to the Spaniard, which takes time:
"I don't think there's any time limit to decide. This week McLaren is saying some things, last time (Gerard) Lopez from Lotus said we were talking, which is true, but of a project that is not about Formula 1. Every day there are rumors and today I even read that I would buy the Marussia for a dollar, which is absolutely not true. It's been a tough and challenging season, but probably my best as well: I had to face tough challenges, including living with a world champion on the other side of the garage, and I did my best. In Hungary I had the best moment, when I led the race until two laps to go and finished second. The worst in Japan, with the terrible feelings experienced after the accident of Jules (Bianchi) and the disappointment of having only completed three corners before being forced to retire".
Alonso doesn't expect much from the Brazilian Grand Prix either:
"Even with the rain we have no chance of success. With just two podium finishes in this championship, we can't expect a few drops of water to put us in a position to win. Unfortunately, we do not have a sufficient level of competitiveness, although it is certainly true that with the rain there are more opportunities, but also more risks. You can gain positions more easily, but you can also lose everything".
Although Alonso is not fighting for this year's title, he is asked for his opinion on the disputed double score that will be up for grabs in the final race, two weeks from now.
"That's the way it is and we can't do anything. If you win the title thanks to this rule, everything is fine, but losing it would be a shame. But it can happen to win also because of a mechanical problem of others or a penalty and even this is not the best. Let's see it this way: there are several variables that can affect the allocation of a championship, double points can only be considered one more variable".
Had it not been for 2009, the year of the Brawn GP, the dual speaker and the dominance of Jenson Button, the bad accident of Felipe Massa in Budapest and the ordeal with Kimi Raikkonen, Luca Badoer and Giancarlo Fisichella, to find a Ferrari worse than the current one, fourth in the Constructors’ World Championship, we had to go back to 1993: the Ferrari of Jean Alesi and Gerhard Berger. A fact that captures how horrible it was for the Maranello team this World Championship has now reached its epilogue and to be bad, Fernando Alonso with stinging punctuality recalled, 2014 went even worse than 1993, because if the two drivers didnot conquer at least one podium, this season Ferrari collected only two (as in 1992) against the three of that disastrous year. The problem is that the top driver doesn't allow any hope.
"Even with the rain here in Brazil we don’t have a chance to win, and even for the podium I see it hard, if I think I only climbed it in Hungary, the highest moment of the season, and in China, the Grand Prix that let us down".
Better to resign, the year will go on record as one of the most depressing ever. The problem is that there are no encouraging signs on the horizon. On the contrary, in the team, at least apparently, there seems to be confusion, after the top leadership has been replaced (Montezemolo left the presidency after twenty-three years, Sergio Marchionne has taken his place, but he has to deal with many other things), the operative arm, Marco Mattiacci, who since April has taken the place of Stefano Domenicali, is under discussion like all the other heads of the sector, with Lapo Elkann appearing unexpectedly in Brazil, but vowing to be present only to say hello and have no intention of moving to the track in the future. In the Ferrari box reigns silence and this authorizes any illusion, with the only certainty that James Allison should have more power to the detriment of the downsized Pat Fry, and with the conviction that many skirmishes to carve important space are underway. There is no clear picture, and the rumors are wasted, the latest leads to Gerhard Berger, 55 years old, possible new purchase, since he is about to finish his job as head of the various single-seat and uncovered wheel categories (with the exception of Formula 1) within the FIA. The Austrian was a Ferrari driver and knows Maranello well.
He's got a lot of F1 experience and he's not going to crash in Mc According to some rumors, Marco Mattiacci could be in charge of the team. He would come in a hurry, but nothing leaks out from Maranello. For the Ferrari that will come, it remains then to do the count of certain figures, the two drivers, Kimi Raikkonen and Sebastian Vettel, hoping that they can work the miracle and bring the red team back to fight at least for the podium. While Fernando Alonso, outgoing character, also enjoys basking in the mystery. From McLaren, to whom he is betrothed (two years contract plus option for the third), comes an ultimatum:
"Decide now, otherwise we will go elsewhere".
The Spaniard, who went from Mexico (to try the circuit that will debut in 2015) to Brazil, shrugs his shoulders:
"There is no hurry".
Making it clear that he still hopes for the Mercedes miracle (Hamilton is ready to extend his contract) and that only at the last he will agree to fall back on the McLaren. Saying goodbye to Ferrari:
"It’s been an exciting five years. But tiring".
It seems almost intentional, but it's not. After saying these words, Friday, November 7, 2014 Fernando Alonso stops in the second free practice of the Brazilian Grand Prix for a fire principle.The Spanish driver, just over 22 minutes from the end of the session, parked on the track while the flames were released from the rear of the F14T. Alonso takes a fire extinguisher and intervenes himself. Before, however, he managed to score the seventh fastest time. It was Nico Rosberg, already first at the end of the first practice session, who confirmed his fastest lap time of 1'12"123 and ahead of his team-mate, Lewis Hamilton. The Briton laps in 1'12"336, leaving behind Finland’s Kimi Raikkonen’s Ferrari. Fourth place for Red Bull was Australian Daniel Ricciardo, followed by the Williams of Finland's Valtteri Bottas and Brazil's Felipe Massa.
"Today we knew that using a power unit at the end of its cycle we would risk not completing both sessions, but that was part of a programme adopted by some races. It's always a shame not to be able to use all the minutes of rehearsal available, although I don't think this has affected our work too much".
Explains Fernando Alonso referring to the engine that caught fire.
"With the new asphalt the track had a lot of grip and it was extremely difficult to put together a good lap because the behaviour of the tyres varied at every corner. When the asphalt is new the rain is always a big unknown and it is impossible to make predictions: it should have been like this in Sochi but then it didn't rain and that means we have to prepare for everything".
There is no enthusiasm to extinguish, this year Ferrari has never given away any, to contain the flames that have taken possession of the power unit and are roasting Alonso’s Ferrari. The firefighter dressed in red, who by trade would make the F1 driver, does not throw water on the fire of the euphoria, with the fire extinguisher in hand tries to save his car, parked on the sides of the track, with the necessary tool picked up on the escape route, after getting out of the car and before the arrival of the stewards. Alonso, fearless (he swears he didn’t have any), because he is used to certain inconveniences, tamed the fire, perhaps even going beyond his duties, since the service staff is a few meters away and would have no problem intervening.
But the Spaniard is hungry and perhaps his is a nervous reaction, a way to rebel against the adverse fate, put out the fire after putting out the car, take away the steering wheel and console himself with the fact that that power unit (once the simple engine) is at the end of its life, not the one designated for qualifying and race, and that therefore the Spaniard will not have to fight with penalties, but only with the stopwatch and with cars faster than his Ferrari, Mercedes, Williams and Red Bull. He will not be penalized by the FIA, but the Spaniard is penalized by fate, in this funnel into which he has slipped, where nothing happens as he would like: the Mercedes who dreamed of it does not want it (reiterated Hamilton and Rosberg do not touch each other), the McLaren he will ride but without jumps of joy, the Ferrari to whom he wanted to give a worthy farewell and to which instead he will be forced to give a melancholy farewell. In those flames, beyond the easy irony, are her dreams gone up in smoke, her sweet thoughts with red evaporated. Alonso did not lose the will to fight, but the hopes of making a good impression did.
"I don’t think the mess mess messed up our plans".
In the sense that, he adds, they would not have led to the podium even in case of rain, announced water and not yet arrived. The present is trouble, the future an enigma, although perhaps less mysterious than it seems. To the Spaniards he says:
"I could stay in Ferrari, we’re talking about it".
In fact, it is dealing with the release, without having reached a final agreement yet. McLaren puts him with his back to the wall, is ready to welcome him with a two-year contract and the option for a third, but he would like to linger hoping for a miracle: Hamilton and Rosberg fighting and he lands in Mercedes, as it seemed in July, when the exchange with Hamilton in Ferrari was at a close. There he lost the bus and everything fell, even to the flames. And that deal we're signing now with McLaren. Hoping the Honda engine will blow his fears away. On Saturday 8 November 2014 Mercedes dominance continues: Nico Rosberg is the fastest in qualifying for the Brazilian Grand Prix on the Interlagos circuit, penultimate round of the season. But let's go in order. In Q1, Nico Rosberg confirmed to be the fastest on the track, followed by team-mate Lewis Hamilton. Sebastian Vettel, with a wet set up, manages to have the certainty of entering Q2 only in the last moments of the session. Fernando Alonso, for his part, complains that he was sent to the track without the batteries of the power unit being fully charged. The two Lotus drivers, Jean-Éric Vergne and Sergio Pérez, are excluded. In Q2 Nico Rosberg is still the driver with the fastest time. Daniil Kvjat decides not to face the session to save a train of tires, also having to suffer the penalty on the starting grid. In addition to the Russian, Nico Hülkenberg and the two Sauber drivers are eliminated. In Q3, Lewis Hamilton was the first to score a time, but that was improved by Nico Rosberg. Valtteri Bottas set the best time, but soon after Felipe Massa managed to take third place away from him. The two Scuderia Ferrari drivers decided instead to focus on one attempt. In the final part of Q3, Hamilton returned to the lead of the time standings, before being definitively beaten again by Rosberg. For the German it is the 14th pole position in the World Mourning, the tenth of the year. With this result Rosberg wins the FIA trophy for the driver who gets the most starts in pole position during the season. Behind the Mercedes, the Williams of Felipe Massa and the Finnish Valtteri Bottas will line up in the second row. England’s Jenson Button, behind the wheel of McLaren, set the fifth fastest time and opened the third row, completed by Sebastian Vettel’s Red Bull. Kevin Magnussen, with the other McLaren, is seventh, ahead of Fernando Alonso's Ferrari, which will start from eighth position. The tenth, however, is the Ferrari of Kimi Raikkonen: the Finn will share the fifth row with the Red Bull of Australian Daniel Ricciardo.
"Maybe it's asking too much trying to be competitive. Those who love Ferrari want to be competitive".
Fernando Alonso does not hide a pinch of bitterness after qualifying for the Brazilian Grand Prix.
The Spanish driver took eighth place in a session that started with an inconvenience.
"Ahi... ahi... ahi... How can you start qualifying with a dead battery?"
Said Alonso at the beginning of Q1 in a radio conversation with his engineers.
"You can say what you want, there is no problem with the team".
But says Fernando Alonso, answering with a smile the questions about his alleged nervousness.
"If we're not ready for Q1 and we can't make the lap... maybe it's asking too much to try to be competitive. Those who love Ferrari want to be competitive".
Third row and sixth time for Sebastian Vettel, who this time outperformed his team-mate Daniel Ricciardo, only ninth at Interlagos.
"After the practice where we didn't do very well, qualifying was growing. In Q1 we qualified for a breath, but then we always improved. We lost that annoying oversteer without losing the good stuff we had behind us".
Says the four-time World Champion who, comparing his current season to his last with the Austrian team of former roadmate Mark Webber, replies:
"I'm living a year worse than Mark's. There are years when nothing happens, years when something happens and years like this where everything happens. This is sport, it's nobody's fault, but I think it's hard to repeat a year like this in the future".
And meanwhile Fernando Alonso keeps vowing not to be nervous. Not having any unfinished business with the team.
"There is no problem with Ferrari, believe me. If not, say and write what you will".
So he too, although close to farewell, driver who can’t stand any more depressing qualifying.
"We are eighth and tenth, unfortunately that is the reality. It is true that in a tenth you can go from the fifth to the third row, but we are still behind, with little chance of recovery. The deterioration of the tyres will be decisive, the rain could shuffle the cards and help us, both Raikkonen and I will try to do our best to beat McLaren and Red Bull, but I think the Williams, rivals in the Constructors, are unattainable. There is little to dream about".
Better hope this season goes into the archives soon. Fernando Alonso will wear McLaren and the Ferrari jersey will be Sebastian Vettel, who is beginning to please the Italian fans. Who spends on Maranello's team indicates him as an ideal partner for Kimi Raikkonen.
"I can’t make any announcements about my future, but I say the Italians are very smart. People who know about F1".
Go and make a break in your heart, hoping to soon experience an iridescent duel like the one that will be staged between Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton. The first went in double figures with the pole positions of the season, 10 out of 18, in career there are 14 like Alberto Ascari, on the single lap he was often unbeatable, but it might not be enough, because the points to recover on Hamilton are 24 and in Brazil he is forced to win. He was also ahead of Austin:
"In the race, without rhythm, I ruined everything, but I learned my lesson. I'm not afraid of the start, the first corner, the long race. I am optimistic and convinced that I can take home the race".
Even his team-mate and rival to the heirloom title shows confidence, daughter of the wide margin. With two second places he is sure of the title, but swears he does not know the word prudence:
"I want to win. I’m conservative, I’ll go on the attack".
And even Felipe Massa, third on the grid, promises battle. The Brazilian driver at Interlagos turns. And the fans, already crazy with joy, know it. On Sunday, 9 November 2014, the Brazilian Grand Prix began at 2:00 p.m.. The weather at the start was dry and sunny with an air temperature between 23 °C and 24 °C and a track temperature ranging from 46 °C to 50 °C forecasts of rain for Sunday did not materialise. Sutil started from the pit lane after his mechanics reconfigured his car's cooling system. The first ten starters began on the soft compound tyres with four on the medium tyres. When the race began, Rosberg maintained the lead at the Senna S chicane as Bottas was slow but returned to fourth place. Heading into the Curva do Sol turn, Vettel over-committed in the braking zone and ran wide while defending from Magnussen. By doing so, Magnussen and Alonso demoted Vettel to eighth behind teammate Ricciardo. Kvyat moved from 17th to 13th by the end of the first lap, while Sutil lost five positions over the same distance. At the end of the first lap, Rosberg led Hamilton by 0.8 seconds, who was followed in turn by, Massa, Bottas, Button, Magnussen, Alonso, Ricciardo and Gutiérrez. Rosberg began to pull away from Hamilton, opening up a 1.2-second lead over his teammate while Massa was a further one second behind Hamilton. Ricciardo attempted to pass Vettel into the Senna S chicane on the start of the third lap but was not close enough to overtake. Massa was the first driver to have severe blistering on the soft compound tyres and was the first of the leading drivers to make a pit stop at the end of lap five for the change to the medium compound tyres, with Vettel, Bottas and Button making similar stops on the following lap. Rosberg held a one-second lead over Hamilton and made his first pit stop from the lead at the end of lap seven.
Hamilton was more conservative on his tyres and went half a second faster in clear air. Massa was imposed a five- second penalty for speeding in the pit lane, and Hamilton made his pit stop from the lead at the conclusion of lap eight and came out narrowly behind teammate Rosberg. With Hamilton's and Rosberg's pit stopscompleted, Hülkenberg and Kvyat were first and second, followed by Grosjean. Traffic slowed Rosberg, allowing Hamilton to potentially attack his teammate. Rosberg was protected from Hamilton overtaking on the main straight because he used Drs to defend himself since he was close behind Grosjean. He drew nearer to Kvyat and passed him for second on lap 12. On the same lap, Button overtook Sutil for eighth place. Mercedes instructed Hamilton to manage his right-rear tyre temperatures and lost more time to Rosberg by following Kvyat, who allowed Hamilton past before the Senna S chicane just as Hülkenberg had Rosberg close behind. Hülkenberg reported a blistered front-right tyre to Force India and Rosberg overtook him for the lead into the Senna S chicane at the start of lap 14. Massa passed Grosjean and Bottas overtook Grosjean at the Senna S chicane for sixth place on lap 15. With his front tyres blistered, Hamilton used Drs to pass Hülkenberg into the Senna S chicane on the following lap. Massa drew closer to Kvyat and passed him into the Senna chicane for fourth place on lap 17 as Alonso overtook Sutil at the same turn for tenth on that lap. At the same time, Hülkenberg made his pit stop and rejoined the track in 15th.
Hamilton's right-front tyre was blistered but was not significantly hindered and set a new fastest lap to be 2.1 seconds behind Rosberg at the start of lap 20, after Rosberg became aware of not over stressing his tyres and Hamilton being faster. The two drivers pulled away from Massa. Button drove close behind Bottas and used his Drs to pull away from Magnussen, Vettel, Alonso and Ricciardo. Magnussen steered left to pass Grosjean for sixth on lap 23. Alonso attempted to pass Grosjean on the outside into the Senna chicane on the next lap but Grosjean blocked him. Alonso tried again on the main straight and overtook Grosjean before the Descida do Lago turn for seventh. Vettel also passed Grojean at the same turn. Massa served his penalty on the 26th lap, and after taking it, had new tyres installed on his car. Rosberg made his second pit stop on the same lap, returning the lead to Hamilton. Bottas also made a pit stop but a delay in fitting his unbuckled seat belt and adjusting it, allowed Button into fourth as Bottas fell to 12th. Hamilton drove faster than any driver to try and take the lead after his pit stop. Mercedes asked Hamilton on lap 28 to make an energy recovery switch to raise the harvesting rate but not a forward brake bias adjustment. When Hamilton braked for the Descida do Lado turn, his rear tyre locked, oversteered and spun onto the run-off area. Hamilton rejoined the track seven seconds later. Hamilton made his pit stop on that lap and emerged in second, 7.4 seconds behind teammate Rosberg. Button closed up to Kvyat and waited until the main straight to pass with DRS into the Senna chicane on lap 30. Hamilton moved to within five seconds of his teammate Rosberg on blistered rear tyres by lap 35. Räikkönen made a pit stop from third on the same lap but lost time after the front jack was lowered before his right-front tyre was installed. He rejoined the track in 13th, behind Grosjean. Vettel overtook Kvyat at the Senna chicane for fifth on lap 37. Ricciardo's front-left suspension began to move unsteadily on the main straight on lap 39, and veered right into the Senna chicane. Ricciardo entered the pit lane to retire, ending a 15-race finishing streak extending back to the Malaysian Grand Prix. Hülkenberg passed Bottas for eighth by putting him onto the run-off area at the Senna chicane on lap 42. Bottas defended from Räikkönen on the outside at Descida do Lago turn before going wide on the exit.
Bottas had a problematic pit stop on lap 44: one of his mechanics struggled to adjust the front wing and Bottas fell to 16th. Magnussen had worse tyre degradation than his teammate Button and Alonso could not pass Button on the outside into the Senna S chicane on lap 45. The battle continued through the following corners but Button's defence into Descida do Lago turn compromised his exit andAlonso overtook him on the inside of turn five. Hamilton closed up to Rosberg by 1.9 seconds by the start of lap 50. Rosberg made his final pit stop from the lead that same lap. Slower traffic delayed Hamilton, who rejoined just behind his teammate after his own pit stop. Massa and Button made pit stops on that lap and they exited the pit lane in fifth and sixth, respectively. Button had closed up to Massa after the latter drove onto the incorrect pit box. Hülkenberg moved to third but Massa passed him into the Senna chicane on lap 54. Hamilton attacked Rosberg, who responded by going faster than his teammate but Hamilton stayed close by with Drs on the straights. The duo pulled away from Massa and Räikkönen. Slower traffic did not affect Rosberg and Hamilton enough to be slowed. On lap 61, Räikkönen - on 25-lap worn tyres - blocked a pass by Button for fourth into the Senna chicane. Button held the racing line and drew alongside Räikkönen on the back straight before passing on the outside at the Descida do Lago turn. Räikkönen lost momentum at the corner and Vettel passed him. Alonso began to battle teammate Räikkönen who defended over the next few laps. Grosjean stopped on track near a fire marshal with smoke billowing from his engine on lap 65 and retired from the race. Hülkenberg passed Magnussen for eighth on lap 68, while Räikkönen lost traction in his tyres at the bottom of the hill at the Senna S chicane, allowing teammate Alonso into sixth on the same lap. Hamilton moved to within 0.8 seconds of his teammate Rosberg at the start of the final lap, but Hamilton could not get close enough to pass Rosberg, who took his fifth victory of the season and the eighth of his career. Massa finished third, with Button fourth, Vettel fifth, Alonso sixth from teammate Räikkönen, Hülkenberg eighth, and Magnussen ninth. Bottas held off Kvyat in the final laps to claim tenth. Maldonado, Vergne, Gutiérrez, Pérez and Sutil were the final finishers. On the fly, just like the fans love. At the last metre, as the most exciting duels demand.
With the extra variable of double points, novelty this year, which goes to the advantage of Nico Rosberg who otherwise would have gone to Abu Dhabi as a tourist, with that heavy ballast of 17 points less, and threatens Lewis Hamilton, who could already pull out the champagne from the fridge and instead risks, should slip between the two a lethal third inconvenient. In the sprint, as it should be, after a year crushed by the two Mercedes drivers. Fifteen triumphs in two, ten Hamilton (who would win if he reached a tie in the standings) and five Rosberg, who returned to victory after a wait that lasted from 20 July, at the German Grand Prix, too much considering the car available. The German, who at Spa had mortified Lewis Hamilton and broken an old friendship, had not shone any more, leaving room for his teammate and five consecutive wins that will probably decide the World Championship. In São Paulo, however, he suddenly resurrected, ended a dominated weekend in a great way, climbed the top step of the podium and was able to cling to the Arab hope, an epilogue that may live the confusion of which Fernando Alonso was the victim in 2010, who never managed to surpass Vitalij Petrov and allowed Sebastian Vettel to mortify his ambitions and those of his team-mate, Mark Webber. The last effort can be fatal, unpredictable. Feelings, emotions, tensions come into play. They get tangled up and risk giving birth to a deadly cocktail of surprises. Rosberg knows that, so he doesn't think about giving up. On the contrary, he raised, on the podium, between Hamilton and Massa, a bit out of play and very seriously. He sees Felipe and says:
"I bet a lot on this guy, in Abu Dhabi he could slip his Williams between us".
Massa nods and immediately does not seem to be in the game:
"Yes, but I want to win".
Tell to Rosberg. The German, starting a subtle psychological war that lasted two weeks, understands, but specifies:
"No, you don’t have to be so fast. All you have to do is beat Hamilton and finish second".
End of the curtain, all with the English in silence, immersed in his thoughts. Because Hamilton on this lap, after losing a World Championship in 2007 and winning an equally dramatic one the following season, seems very calm, serene and focused. In Brazil he could have come close to the final triumph:
"I ended up on the escape route and lost seven seconds which made my comeback against Rosberg impossible. I had a better pace, I was faster, the mistake ruined everything. The tires were gone (the teams wanted the soft ones, maybe Pirelli was right to prefer hard and medium ndr) and probably the team would have done better to call me back a lap earlier. However, I’m still in the lead, I pushed to the max, I had fun and I hope to settle the score in Abu Dhabi".
With a cautious and non-aggressive race? A logical question, given that the Englishman only needs a second place (with a Mercedes to be third is almost impossible given the gap with the rivals). But Hamilton doesn't fit in.
"Here I wanted to win, I tried, good Rosberg didn’t even give me a chance. It could be different in two weeks. Being the last race, thinking about the standings is inevitable".
So it’s easy to be super aggressive, especially the pursuer. For the moment Nico Rosberg compliments himself:
"I learned my lesson from Austin, this time I closed the door at every corner".
Then autogenous training:
"By nature I am optimistic and I will leave for Abu Dhabi".
Finally he's ready to smoke the calumet of peace with Hamilton.
"Whatever happens, we’ll clear it up".
It is on the other side that silence reigns. Abundant slag. They'll give up for the title and then stay in the same box. But nothing will ever be the same again.
"The last race in Abu Dhabi will be a spectacle. Both are very competitive, the last race in Abu Dhabi will be a spectacle for Formula 1".
These are the impressions expressed by Mercedes' principal team, Toto Wolff, who adds:
"Lewis' mistake cost him six seconds, he went very fast in the second stint. Rosberg? It's a very important moment for him, psychologically he won an important battle".
Felipe Massa is very happy after his third place in the Brazilian Grand Prix.
"Thank you all for the energy you have given me, you are a fantastic fan base. It's great for me to be back here in Brazil, I gave all my heart to this race. I'm happy for the race. I also made a lot of mistakes, I had a drive through, then I stopped at the McLaren pit, the colour was similar, but the car was fantastic, I was able to give a nice pace".
Sadness please go away. Seeing Ferrari these days and being in Brazil, it's the best place to remember those notes. Alonso wakes up in the final and overtakes Raikkonen, but he is the team-mate, before he was only passive. Kimi keeps the tires well, assists the team and with strategy comes back, but in the end he is only seventh. Not only that: in the second stop there was a failure of the cart (already happened to Alonso in Austin) and the lost seconds probably made him lose the comparison with the Spaniard. A depressing picture, yet Marco Mattiacci refuses to speak of relief in front of Abu Dhabi, the last stage of a season to be forgotten.
"We had to learn, lay the foundations for the future and we did. It is from these Grand Prix that we start again for a rebirth".
From these races, from Kimi Raikkonen, whom Marco Mattiacci calls phenomenal talent, but not from Fernando Alonso, who now lives in a world of his own.
"We tried to make the best race possible. We finally managed to keep this one alive this weekend. One race is missing at the end and we hope to score more good points".
He is happy to have kept McLaren behind, saving fourth place in the Constructors’ World Championship, but the aim was to overtake Williams in third place. Finally, speaking of the Drivers' World Championship, where he struggles with Sebastian Vettel and Valtteri Bottas for fourth place, the Spaniard says:
"I’m only interested in the team".
Meanwhile, Sergio Marchionne is taking his time: Ferrari's president does not intend to make official announcements on the eve of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, which will close a Formula 1 World Championship that has been very difficult for the Maranello team and complicated by the imminent separation from Fernando Alonso.
"For the announcements we are waiting for the end of the season, it has been a difficult year and it will be important to finish the last race well. Sunday was not a good day".
As for the replacement of the Spaniard, Sebastian Vettel, Sergio Marchionne prefers to slip.
"I didn't bet on anyone and I never said anything at all. I never talked about drivers and I don’t even know if I’m going to Abu Dhabi to follow the Grand Prix”.