Zoom Victory snatched away from Lewis Hamilton

The final laps of the 44-lap Belgian Grand Prix saw a thrilling battle between Lewis Hamilton and Kimi Raikkonen. The Ferrari driver had got the drop on the championship leader at the start of the second lap but as rains fell in the closing stages, Hamilton took the lead and subsequently the chequered flag as Raikkonen crashed out in the tricky conditions.

Felipe Massa took the flag in second position in the sole surviving Ferrari but some hours after the conclusion of the race, it was determined that Hamilton had gained an advantage by cutting the final chicane and his pass on Raikkonen into La Source was effectively illegal. With the 25 second time penalty in place, Hamilton was classified in third position.

Team-mate Heikki Kovalainen had a poor race from third position on the grid. The start saw the Finn lose ground before running into Mark Webber a few laps later. Kovalainen would work his way back into the points but stopped on the final lap with a mechanical problem.

Hamilton retains the lead in the championship from Massa by two points heading to Monza, while Kovalainen drops to sixth position overall. McLaren Mercedes remain second in the constructors’ standings behind Ferrari.

Ron Dennis
“That was a sensational Grand Prix, which kept everyone on the edge of their seat, whomever they were supporting. On the second lap, Lewis made a rare mistake, dropping him to second place behind Kimi Raikkonen, whom he put under considerable pressure thereafter. But our car is slightly superior to that of our opposition in slippery conditions, so when the rain came we were reasonably confident that Lewis would be able to press home his advantage. He duly took the lead, finished first on the track, but then received a 25 second time penalty. After the race we registered our intention to appeal it."

“Heikki didn’t get away cleanly at the start, but then drove fast and well through the field until his charge was interrupted by the incident with Mark Webber. He was awarded a stop-go penalty, but continued to push hard until being forced to stop on the very last lap."

“All in all, it was a challenging race for all the drivers, all of whom handled the conditions responsibly, and both our guys showed pace and determination throughout.”

Norbert Haug
“After a thrilling race, Lewis took victory on the track which he lost following the stewards’ decision. In our opinion Lewis did not achieve this win because of an illegitimate advantage. However, we will keep our heads up. We are now looking forward to the next race in Monza on the coming weekend – we need to continue to be fully focused as nothing is decided in the World Championship yet.”