The Istanbul race has to be the best F1 race I have watched in recent years. Red Bulls and McLarens racing hard. Teammates actually going wheel-to-wheel, and in the case of Webber and Vettel, foolishly spoiling a Red Bull shot at one-two glory.
Seeing Schumacher up front, although not really anywhere near being a serious contender for a podium challenge, was nice. After the RBR clash, I thought that Schumacher would at least have a sniff at a the third step on the podium, however being 35 seconds back on the front runners was just too much of a gap to overcome. Given a stronger and faster Mercedes, Schumacher is showing he is not too old and washed up for a legitimate second crack at glory. Just not this year.
The Ferraris of Massa and Alonso never really played a factor, however Alonso did well to salvage some points, and it was entertaining watching Alonso do his work to charge up into the points.
McLarens short on fuel with only 8 or so laps to run and an on-going threat of rain with light sprinkles kept things dramatic until the last lap.
In the end a McLaren one-two for Hamilton and Button, while Webber salvaged a third place finish after Vettel’s punt. Schumacher’s fourth spot is the highest of his comeback, and the Ferraris of Massa and Alonso got as much as they could from their seventh and eighth spots.
Great kickoff of the racing weekend!
