MOTORSPORT: Hamilton wins US GP, Audi's Le Mans

Monday motorsport reportJune 18, 2007

Beyond that, who knows?

Hamilton has notched his second grand prix win today, at Indianapolis in the US.

The 22-year-old rookie had to work a lot harder this time, with dual world champion teammate Fernando Alonso hot on his heels (both pictured on podium).

While Hamilton again drove faultlessly, as he did in winning in Montreal just a week ago, it was Alonso who made a mistake, locking up his brakes as he tried a move on Hamilton and taking an excursion over the grass run-off.

Hamilton just keeps rewriting the record books.

He is not only the first rookie to finish in the points at each of his first seven GP starts, he's been on the podium at every race.

For the record, his finishing record is: 3, 2, 2, 2, 2, 1, 1.

"This is just insane," he says.

Yes, indeed.

Hamilton now has a 10-point lead over Alonso as F1 heads back to Europe for the French GP in two weeks -- the last time the circus will go to Magny Cours.

Oh, and Mark Webber picked up his first points of the season at Indianapolis -- two for seventh place, his Red Bull sandwiched between Jarno Trulli's Toyota and the BMW-Sauber of debutant Sebastien Vettel, who -- just a couple of weeks short of his 20th birthday -- became the youngest driver to score a point.

The previous youngest point-scorer was Jenson Button, aged 20 years and two months, when he finished sixth for Williams in the 2000 Brazilian GP.

The top eight finishers in GPs -- rather than the previous six -- have been awarded points since 2003.

Webber is relieved to have got on the scoreboard with Red Bull Racing after the continuation this year of the horror run of mechanical woes he had with Williams.

"Of course, you always want more -- more downforce, more reliability, more speed," Webber says.

"But hopefully those things will continue to come and we can look forward to more points finishes like this in the future."

McLaren's 1-2 finish at Indy was its third of the season, but with the order reversed from Malaysia and Monaco.

It is right back in business as the sport's No. 1 team, leading Ferrari by 35 points now.

Felipe Massa and Kimi Raikkonen finished third and fourth in the red cars at The Brickyard, but the gaps between them and the McLarens were flattering as Hamilton eased up approaching the chequered flag.

Hamilton started from pole position for the second straight race and Alonso tried valiantly to pass him early on.

Alonso almost took the lead as they began lap 39.

Then Alonso locked up his brakes on lap 47, drove across the grass, and let Hamilton pull out a 2.5-second lead.

"I could get close to him but not overtake -- he made no mistakes," Alonso says.

Hamilton admits he got a little nervous about Alonso's pressure.

"I saw him coming, but I made sure I made one move (to block), which is all you're allowed, and made it stick," Hamilton says.

"It was very, very tough, but he fought very well, very professional.

"We're very, very close on the track and I think we are getting closer and closer off track.

"Our respect for each other, I think, is growing -- and it's great.

"I'm just proud and honored to be sitting next to him (at the post-race press conference) as I've always looked up to him for the last few years."

F1 world drivers' championship leaders -- Lewis Hamilton 58, Fernando Alonso 48, Felipe Massa 39, Kimi Raikkonen 32, Nick Heidfeld 26.

Constructors' championship leaders -- McLaren-Mercedes 106, Ferrari 71, BMW-Sauber 39, Renault 25, Williams-Toyota 13.

More on F1 later, but firstly …

Germans Frank Biela and Marco Werner and Italian Emanuele Pirro were the winning drivers again, steering their Audi R10 to a comfortable victory.

Peugeot, returning to the 24-hour race for the first time since its one-two-three finish in 1993 and following Audi by using diesel technology, took second place with one of its 908 prototypes.

A Pescarolo-Judd prototype was the surprise third placegetter -- 12 laps behind the Audi, which completed 369 laps of the famed 13.52km circuit.

An Aston Martin driven by David Brabham, Rickard Rydell and Darren Turner completed 342 laps to finish fifth overall and first in the GT1 class -- six minutes ahead of a Corvette.

Allan Simonsen, the Dane well-known for his regular Australian racing, was driving a Porsche in the French classic but ploughed it into a wall of tyres in the wet final stages of the race.

The Peugeot that was second outright was driven by Frenchmen Sebastien Bourdais and Stephane Sarrazin and Portugal's Pedro Lamy.

"We had nine stressful hours with the Peugeot right behind us, but the more you suffer the greater the pleasure," Audi driver Pirro says.

On the last lap Champ Car ace Bourdais, a native of Le Mans, slowed the Peugeot to wait for the Audi to cross the finish line together.

"Finishing second is like a victory for Peugeot," Bourdais says.

And of the wet conditions late in the race, he says "a boat would have been more suitable than a car".

The 908 had dropped to eighth after twice losing time because of mechanical problems but it rallied through the night.

Another Peugeot driven by Jacques Villeneuve, Marc Gene and Nicolas Minassian held second for a lot of the race but its engine failed 77 minutes from the finish because of a loss of oil pressure.

It was always going to be an "apprenticeship" year for Peugeot, but it makes no secret it expects to be back in the winner's circle next year.

Another Audi driven by Denmark's record seven-time Le Mans victor Tom Kristensen, Scotland's Allan McNish and Italian Dindo Capello led the early hours of this year's race, McNish set the fastest lap (3 minutes, 27.176 seconds), but Capello crashed it.

Twenty five of the 54 cars that started didn't make it to the finish.

That seems to us to mean two Queensland teams are on the market.

Schumacher's replacement at Ferrari, Kimi Raikkonen, is there too for some reason -- in 41st.

Expect him to drop out, or at least a long way down, by next year, while Lewis Hamilton is sure to make it -- and perhaps higher than Schumacher!

The Indianapolis Star newspaper ran a scathing column by one of its journalists, Bob Kravitz, headed "Arrogant F1 should hit road out of Indy".

Kravitz says F1 "has treated the most storied track in the world and the people of Indianapolis like a giant doormat".

"They are the guests from hell," Kravitz says.

"And it's time for them to leave.

"In 2002 they came in here and contrived that bogus finish, where Michael Schumacher, the clear leader, slowed down and let his teammate, Rubens Barrichello, pass him for the victory. It was as scripted as pro wrestling.

"In 2005 F1 pulled off a stunt that should have earned them eternal banishment from IMS.

"That was the year of the Great Michelin Exodus (only six cars raced), and while F1 tried to make good with the people who got stood up there, they still ripped off thousands of visitors who had spent their hard-earned dollars to come in from other states and countries.

"It's a pattern of abuse and arrogance, and Indianapolis should no longer let itself be bought off by these clowns.

"They are guests, our guests, and yet we are made to feel like interlopers.

They are rude, inconsiderate guests who don't care about you or me or anybody but themselves.

"Nobody (in the US) outside of Indy cares about this race. And the truth is, very few inside of Indy care about this race."

A Mercedes-Benz F1 safety car was driven at speed through the first four corners of the circuit with lights on and television cameras filming it.

Water was put on the track to test for reflection and to see how much visibility the floodlights provided if the car went off the track.

Amid the talk of F1 night racing next year, it seems to be finally dawning on the Australian press that the Australian GP won't be a night race next year.

We told you that on April 20 -- almost two months ago.

Indeed, the dual Australian V8 Supercar champion is now eighth.

Ambrose qualified sixth at Kentucky, his fifth top-five start in 16 races this season.

He ran in the lead group for much of the first 100 laps but then his Ford Fusion developed a problem with an exhaust header pipe, reducing his engine's power.

Fellow Ford driver Stephen Leicht won the race but Carl Edwards continues to lead the Busch standings.

Edwards won NASCAR's premier Nextel Cup round at Michigan at the weekend in a Ford, ahead of six Chevrolets.

This week the Busch series goes to the Milwaukee Mile in Wisconsin.

Ambrose will also be trying to qualify for the Nextel Cup road race at California's Infineon Raceway or Sonoma next weekend.

Busch series leaders -- Carl Edwards 2534 points, Dave Blaney 1833, Kevin Harvick 1798, David Reutimann 1764, Regan Smith 1744, David Ragan 1713, Greg Biffle 1647, Marcos Ambrose 1638.

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