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Massa too hot to handle
Monday 25 August 2008
Sweltering conditions in Valencia saw Felipe Massa turn in a blistering performance to move into second place in the Drivers’ Championship behind Lewis Hamilton, who finished second.
Hamilton was relieved to keep his score ticking over after a neck spasm on Saturday had almost ruled him out of the race, but Massa was in imperious form and now has the same number of race wins (four) as his great rival.
In the Constructors' race it was McLaren who took the honours, with Massa's Ferrari team-mate, Kimi Räikkönen, let down by an exploding engine while Heikki Kovalainen scored a fourth-place finish for McLaren.
Räikkönen's woes must have the Ferrari mechanics seriously concerned, after a similar fault put paid to Massa's challenge last time out, in Hungary.
The Panasonic Toyota team was the only other outfit to score with both cars, with Jarno Trulli (5th) and Timo Glock (7th) both picking up points. Glock's performance was particularly impressive given that he was suffering from a heavy cold.
"That was one of my hardest races ever," he admitted afterwards, "but I had a good car and the right strategy and I think P7 was the best result we could have achieved today so I'm really happy. I made up some places at the start and then just tried to do my race. Considering our qualifying and my condition, I am happy."
Photo © BMW AG.
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