Alonso dominates Monza qualifying

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By Matt Beer Saturday, September 8th 2007, 13:05 GMT


Fernando Alonso dominated qualifying for the Italian Grand Prix, setting the fastest time in all three segments and beating his McLaren teammate Lewis Hamilton to pole by 0.037 seconds.

The Ferraris had to settle for third and fifth on home ground, with third-placed Felipe Massa 0.6 seconds slower than Alonso, and BMW's Nick Heidfeld beating Kimi Raikkonen to fourth.

The world champion had a comfortable margin over the competition in both Q1 and Q2, then set a 1:21.997 on his first Q3 flying lap - nearly 0.4 seconds quicker than Hamilton's initial effort.

Hamilton could only improve to 1:22.034 on his final run and although Alonso was on an even faster lap, he backed off once he knew his second pole of the year was secure.

The Ferraris looked set to share row tow until Heidfeld split them with his final lap. Raikkonen, using the spare Ferrari fitted with his race engine following his massive practice accident, was six tenths of a second slower than teammate Massa.

Robert Kubica put the second BMW into sixth, ahead of Renault's Heikki Kovalainen and Williams' Nico Rosberg.

Jarno Trulli took ninth for Toyota, while his teammate Ralf Schumacher was eliminated in Q1 for the fifth time this season. They had been split by just 0.063 seconds in the very tight midfield in Q1, but that was enough to consign Schumacher to 18th and to keep Trulli in contention.

Jenson Button completed the top ten for Honda, having reached Q3 for only the second time in 2007.

Button's teammate Rubens Barrichello had held eighth in the closing moments of Q2, but was shuffled outside the top ten as others improved and then ran wide into the gravel at the first Lesmo while trying to regain his Q3 position. This left him 12th, and also contributed to the closely-following Giancarlo Fisichella ending up 15th on the grid for his home race.

Mark Webber took 11th for Red Bull - nine places ahead of teammate David Coulthard after a suspected gearbox problem sent the Scot into a spin at the Rettifilio during Q1.

Williams' Alex Wurz and Super Aguri's Anthony Davidson will share row seven, with Sebastian Vettel making it through to Q2 for the first time since joining Toro Rosso and taking 16th. His teammate Vitantonio Liuzzi could only manage 19th.

Davidson's teammate Takuma Sato spun at the Roggia on his first run, then missed the Q2 cut by 0.01 seconds on his second flying lap, leaving him 17th.

Spyker's B-specification car did not bring an immediate improvement. Adrian Sutil took his habitual 21st place, while final qualifier Sakon Yamamoto removed his front wing on the barriers after spinning at the first chicane.

Italy qualifying breakdown Session 1 Session 2 Session 3
Pos Driver Team Pos Time Lap Pos Time Lap Pos Time Lap
1. Alonso McLaren 1. 1:21.718 3 1. 1:21.356 3 1. 1:21.997 11
2. Hamilton McLaren 2. 1:21.956 3 2. 1:21.746 3 2. 1:22.034 11
3. Massa Ferrari 3. 1:22.309 3 3. 1:21.993 3 3. 1:22.549 11
4. Heidfeld BMW Sauber 6. 1:23.107 4 6. 1:22.466 3 4. 1:23.174 11
5. Raikkonen Ferrari 4. 1:22.673 7 4. 1:22.369 3 5. 1:23.183 11
6. Kubica BMW Sauber 5. 1:23.088 4 5. 1:22.400 3 6. 1:23.446 11
7. Kovalainen Renault 9. 1:23.505 7 10. 1:23.134 6 7. 1:24.102 11
8. Rosberg Williams 7. 1:23.333 7 7. 1:22.748 6 8. 1:24.382 11
9. Trulli Toyota 15. 1:23.724 7 9. 1:23.107 6 9. 1:24.555 11
10. Button Honda 13. 1:23.639 6 8. 1:23.021 6 10. 1:25.165 11
11. Webber Red Bull 11. 1:23.575 7 11. 1:23.166 6   
12. Barrichello Honda 8. 1:23.474 7 12. 1:23.176 6   
13. Wurz Williams 16. 1:23.739 5 13. 1:23.209 6   
14. Davidson Super Aguri 14. 1:23.646 6 14. 1:23.274 6   
15. Fisichella Renault 10. 1:23.559 7 15. 1:23.325 6   
16. Vettel Toro Rosso 12. 1:23.578 8 16. 1:23.351 7   
17. Sato Super Aguri 17. 1:23.749 5       
18. R.Schumacher Toyota 18. 1:23.787 7       
19. Liuzzi Toro Rosso 19. 1:23.886 6       
20. Coulthard Red Bull 20. 1:24.019 6       
21. Sutil Spyker 21. 1:24.699 10       
22. Yamamoto Spyker 22. 1:25.084 8 

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Raikkonen escapes large accident

By Mark Glendenning Saturday, September 8th 2007, 09:47 GMT


Kimi Raikkonen has walked away from a heavy crash during Saturday morning's practice session at Monza.

The Finn was approaching Ascari when his Ferrari appeared to suffer a mechanical failure and jerked violently to the right. It hit the concrete barrier and slid at high speed along a strip of grass that lay between the gravel trap and the barrier before crashing heavily into the tyre wall.

Raikkonen was able to exit the car immediately, however the session was red-flagged while the remains of the car were retrieved and the tyrewall repaired.

Changes had been made to the circuit in an effort to improve safety in preparation for this year's race, with the gravel run-off at the second chicane having been replaced by asphalt. However some drivers had highlighted other sections of the track as needing attention in the future, including the spot where Raikkonen crashed.

"Parabolica and Ascari are still on the edge," Mark Webber told journalists on Friday. "You're still going to go in hard if you have a failure."

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Alonso: title would mean more than in '06

By Pablo Elizalde Saturday, September 8th 2007, 13:50 GMT


Fernando Alonso says winning this year's title would mean more to him than when he beat Michael Schumacher to the crown last year.

The McLaren driver, who last year beat now retired seven-time champion Schumacher to his second title, has endured a difficult season full of controversy.

Alonso is five points behind teammate Lewis Hamilton with fives races remaining, including tomorrow's Italian Grand Prix, where the Spaniard will start from pole position.

"Every race is important," said Alonso after qualifying when asked if winning the Monza race would mean more to him following the controversies.

"I'd like to win here because I have never won in Monza, and this track is very special.

"Above all I'd like to win this championship, which is being so controversial. Winning this championship would mean even more than last year's, when I was fighting against Michael (Schumacher), and that's what I'm going to try.

"It's harder than ever, but a bit closer than three or four races ago when we were 14 points behind.

"Now we are five behind, we have pole position. It's five finals and there won't be a gram of me that won't try it."

He added: "We didn't think we could fight for the title at the start of the year, seeing what McLaren had done in 2006.

"I had doubts about how the car would be, but we found a very good car that allowed us to fight for the title, although it's not being easy at all."

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Alonso hails McLaren's step forward

By Jonathan Noble Saturday, September 8th 2007, 14:57 GMT


Italian Grand Prix pole position man Fernando Alonso thinks that McLaren's lock-out of the front row at Monza is firm evidence that the team have made a step forward with their speed.

Alonso will start from the front of the field for the first time since the Monaco Grand Prix and was delighted at finally getting things spot-on on a Saturday afternoon.

"It is great to get pole position," he said. "I have been doing some good qualifying laps at the last races but they have not always come together in the final session like it did today.

"The car has been working really well all weekend and we already had a good idea that we would be fast from the test. The team has really taken the opportunity between now and Turkey to focus and from their efforts there has been a definite step forward in our pace.

"I am looking forward to the race tomorrow where hopefully we should have the same result."

Teammate Lewis Hamilton missed out on the top spot by just three hundredths of a second and praised the team's efforts after a difficult week for the outfit.

"It was a good battle with Fernando throughout qualifying," he said. "My first timed lap wasn't the best, but I was able to improve on it for my final attempt. The result today shows just how hard everyone at McLaren and Mercedes-Benz has been working.

"We have all put our heads together and this has resulted in us locking out the front row. For the team I hope we can maintain these positions throughout the race tomorrow."

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Dennis vows to stay at McLaren helm

By Alan Baldwin Saturday, September 8th 2007, 16:55 GMT


McLaren boss Ron Dennis has ruled out quitting Formula One despite rating a spy controversy gripping his team as the 'most extreme' test of his many years in the sport.

"I think there's a few people around who would like me to (go)," the 60-year-old told reporters at the Italian Grand Prix on Saturday after the team swept the front row in qualifying with champion Fernando Alonso and rookie front-runner Lewis Hamilton.

"If it's something that I thought would further the interests of the company, if I thought it was the right thing to do, then I wouldn't hesitate to do it.

"But I don't think it is the right thing to do."

Leaders McLaren, accused of benefiting from leaked Ferrari information, face a hearing in Paris on Thursday that could wreck their title hopes. In a worst case scenario, they could be kicked out of the championship this year and next.

They also have another appeal hearing coming up to reconsider a sanction imposed at last month's Hungarian Grand Prix that stripped them of 15 points in the constructors' championship.

This week the Mercedes-powered team were also fined $50,000 for using a gearbox that had not been crash tested in that same Hungarian race.

Dennis also faced questions on Saturday about the possibility of legal action against him by Italian police investigating the leak of a 780-page technical dossier from Ferrari.

Italian media said Dennis was due to receive an "avviso di garanzia" from the prosecutor in Modena, a legal notification that he is suspected of a crime and is being investigated. However, it may not necessarily lead to a charge.

The notification refers to sporting fraud, embezzlement and the revealing of industrial secrets.

Former Ferrari engineer Nigel Stepney and McLaren chief designer Mike Coughlan, now suspended, have also been issued with such a notification along with another unnamed McLaren employee, media reports said.

However Dennis, who is adamant that McLaren have not incorporated into their cars any of the Ferrari information found at Coughlan's home, told reporters he was unaware of any documents being served.

"Maybe it's going to happen, but it hasn't yet," he said.