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GURSS: Formula One in the Rearview
Written by: Jade Gurss   
11/04/2008
Mooresville, North Carolina
 
Faster. Louder. The weekly column on SPEEDtv.com by Jade Gurss. (Harold Hinson Photo) ยป More Photos

The final laps at Brazil were the icing on a Formula One cake that had more drama and excitement than any season in recent memory.

The conclusion of the finale would give any race fan goose bumps as rain fell and Felipe Massa and Ferrari did what they had to do with a dominant victory. Sebastian Vettel passed Lewis Hamilton in the rain to seemingly hand the title to Massa, only to see Hamilton pass the sliding Toyota of Timo Glock in the final corner to earn a one-point World Championship margin of victory. (Ironically, the same margin by which Hamilton lost last year’s title.) Hamilton is the youngest F1 titlist in history at age 23.

Excitement for the Future: The last-lap drama only added to a consistently surprising Formula One season that ended with a first-time champion and three first-time race winners. Hamilton has had a wonderful first two seasons – and would seem to be in line for Schumacher or Senna-type domination if not for wunderkinds like rainmeister Sebastian Vettel, who could supplant Hamilton as youngest titlist if given the right race machine. Felipe Massa won more races than any other this year, while Robert Kubica became a first time winner for BMW-Sauber. Not to be forgotten, Fernando Alonso is still a very young man and a very tenacious driver. Heikki Kovalainen showed glimpses of speed but lacked consistency in the sister McLaren-Mercedes, but became a first-time victor at Hungary.

Past Tense: It was sad to see the F1 career of David Coulthard end in
heartbreak after he was taken-out on lap one. I first met Coulthard when he was the bull-necked teammate to eventual champion Mika Hakkinen at McLaren. At the time in the late 1990s, there were whispers in the Mercedes camp of a quiet young teenager Ron Dennis had signed to a development deal – a young chap named Lewis Hamilton. Among top racers around the world, Coulthard was unusually gracious and friendly in addition to being a 13-time race winner. We need more generous personalities such as the likeable Scot in years to come.

2008 Team Grade Cards: No single team or driver escaped the year without surprising crashes, failures or simple brain fade, so no one earns an “A” for the 2008 season. Here’s how I rate the teams, top to bottom:

McLaren: A- / Brilliant, consistent speed from the McLaren-Mercedes combination sent Hamilton to the driver’s title, but the team left a lot of points on the table this season. Kovalainen finished a disappointing seventh in the driver standings because of some heartbreaking equipment failures and often left Hamilton alone to fence with the Ferraris.

Ferrari: A- / Much the same as McLaren: consistent blazing speed but mistakes by the team and both drivers meant no driver’s title for the red Prancing Horses this year. Massa matured through the year to win more races than any other and the team won the constructors trophy while Kimi Raikkonen seemed to somnambulate through parts of the season.


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