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On his debut-run in the Renault, a car which he contributed to its development little over a year ago, Fernando Alonso has topped the timing sheets, even out-pacing Pedro De La Rosa in the McLaren. In what can only really be described as a wipe the grin off Ron’s face moment, Alonso popped in two quick runs, the fastest being a 1m19.503s, almost 0.15s faster than his fellow countryman. Ferrari weren’t too far behind either, with Kimi Raikkonen going third and Felipe Massa going fifth, both in the new F2008. Continue Reading

With Fernando Alonso’s future still not set in stone, potential Formula One refugees are looking elsewhere for drives for the 2008 season. Flavio Briatore, Renault’s boss, has stated that his team would have “new drivers” for next year, intimating that both Heikki Kovalainen and Giancarlo Fisichella will either be demoted to a testing role or will leave altogether. Kovalainen looks good for the McLaren seat, but he faces competition from Nico Rosberg and Adrian Sutil. Interestingly though, both went on record earlier in the week stating that there futures lie with their current teams, Williams and Force India respectively. Continue Reading

Rumours have kicked into overdrive today following the revelation that Flavio Briatore suggested on Italian radio that the team will have a new driver line up for next season. Briatore said there would be “different drivers” and also that Fernando Alonso could be confirmed within the next 48 hours. Saying that there was a 60% chance the Spaniard would be with the Anglo-French squad, and with the suggestion of new drivers means that Nelson Piquet Jr looks set for the second seat. Continue Reading

The Formula One driver market has been blown wide open since McLaren and Fernando Alonso decided to part company. And as you can imagine, it seems as though every person has an opinion as to what they think might happen. Some believe he is returning to Renault, others think that the double champion is off to pastures new. But while plenty of people can speculate as to what may happen, I thought I would ask what you would like to happen. What car would you like to see Fernando Alonso driving next season? Continue Reading

Fernando Alonso will no longer drive for the McLaren team, it was confirmed earlier today by manager Luis Garcia. After months of speculation surrounding the double world champion, Alonso’s relationship has finally ended with team boss Ron Dennis. Fernando had a three year contract, but both sides have agreed to part ways and no money will be exchanged for closing the contract early. It has not been confirmed which team will receive Alonso, although it is now likely to be Renault. Continue Reading

An astounding result in Brazil means Kimi Raikkonen has come from third in the standings to first and wins his first championship in style, ending the chances of Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso stealing the trophy away to Woking. For Kimi, this title has come after much hard work and toiling away in unreliable cars. In fact, although previous boss Ron Dennis has congratulated his former driver, it must be a bitter pill to swallow for the man, especially after everything that has happened this year. However, championships are for celebrating, and what better memento to mark Kimi’s first title that a 1:18 replica model of his Ferrari F2007. Continue Reading

This is it - the big one. With rain forecast in Brazil this upcoming weekend, fans around the world will be glued to their TV sets to witness either Fernando Alonso taking the hat-trick, Lewis Hamilton becoming the first rookie champion, or Kimi Raikkonen finally getting what he’s worked so hard for so long for. Of course, I’m talking about the finale to the 2007 Formula One season. The drama doesn’t end there though, as many stories have hit the headlines this week. Here’s a quick run down of some of the most important items. Continue Reading

Just a quick heads-up for regular readers here. Keith from F1Fanatic asked me to write a guest post for his site last week, and today it went up. Keith is running a three-part series where a trio of F1 bloggers were asked to argue why a one of the three championship contenders should win. I got lumbered with Alonso, but all the comments so far suggest there are still a fair few fans of the Spaniard. Yesterday I read with delight Clive Allen’s post arguing for Lewis Hamilton, and tomorrow will see the conclusion with the case for Kimi Raikkonen. Head on over and take a look. Comments are open on F1Fanatic so be sure to leave your thoughts. Continue Reading

As Kimi Raikkonen stormed over the line to win the Chinese Grand Prix, Lewis Hamilton’s McLaren was recovered from the pit entry and the 2007 drivers championship was forced down to the wire at the finale showdown in Brazil in a fortnight. In changeable conditions the championship looked over from the moment the red lights faded as Lewis Hamilton tore away from the line to lead the Ferraris for much of the race. However, by the time the chequered was being prepared Kimi had seen the stranded Number-Two McLaren and was defending his position to a resurgent Fernando Alonso. Continue Reading

As this season has progressed, I’ve been pleasantly surprised by the capabilities of young McLaren rookie Lewis Hamilton. He has shown a lot of skill behind the wheel of a Formula One car, and his presence on the circuit has done a lot of good for the sport. For sure, the young man has slipped on occasion, mainly relating to the PR side of things, but on the track his performances have been spectacular for someone with so little experience. So I was surprised when I read of his comments this morning concerning the team and his team mate. Is it time for Lewis to put his head down and concentrate? Continue Reading