It seemed as though it was Felipe Massa’s race to win this weekend, until he suffered a gearbox failure. This paved the way for Kimi Raikkonen to take pole position. From here, Raikkonen blasted away, opening up a massive gap.
Kimi went on to lead almost every lap, never under challenge from anyone else in the race. The only time the Finn lost the lead was during pit stops. This was to the very impressive Lewis Hamilton, who was on his Grand Prix debut. Raikkonen’s debut for Ferrari proved to be very positive as he went on to take victory.
On the podium, Raikkonen even cracked a smile. This was uncharacteristic of the Finn and his mood continued when he talked to reporters after the race. “A fantastic victory! It is great to be winning again with my new team whom I want to thank for giving me a great car.
The race was not as easy as it might have looked from the outside, partly because shortly after the start, the radio failed so it was almost impossible to talk to the pit wall. Fortunately we had prepared well for the race and I knew what I had to do, but there were a few difficult moments.
I was not flat out all the time, adapting my pace to the way the race was going. It was nice to hear my national anthem again on the podium as it had been a while. I have to say that last year it seemed to be the Italian one I was hearing usually. This is a great way to start the championship. We know we have a very competitive package but we still have to work to make it even better and above all, reliable.”
This was a fantastic victory for Raikkonen and the Ferrari team. Hopefully the Scuderia will continue to dominate and if today’s race was any indication of the rest of the 2007 season, they certainly will.