My most favorite racing sport is nearing season finale. Too bad the season has to end. But on a positive note, I’m thrilled to know who among the drivers shall grab this year’s title. Will Fernando retain his F1 Champ title? Will Lewis snatch the crown? Or will Kimi finally grab the most coveted title?
Will there be a new winner? A Spaniard, a Briton and a Finn – who among them is worthy of this year’s F1 Champ title? Actually, there are so many questions hanging at the back of my head. But these queries will be answered this weekend.
I know F1 drivers especially the first 3 in the drivers’ championship standing are feeling the jitters, much much more than I do. Though I have a personal favorite, I do hope the most deserving driver will win the title.
Brazilian GP Preview Quotes:
Lewis Hamilton, McLaren (107 points)
“China was another valuable lesson for me this season, and an incident I will take from and try to develop as a driver. I moved on from the disappointment pretty quickly and since leaving Shanghai, my sole focus has been on Brazil. Interlagos is one of those circuits that everybody talks about. I understand it has a fantastic atmosphere, the fans are crazy for the sport, and the track lends itself to great racing. It is another new circuit for me, and there has been a lot of talk by other people about how it is tricky to drive. That’s why I see it as a special challenge and when I arrive at the track on Wednesday I will study it hard with my engineers and start to get an understanding of it. I’ve had some great races with the team this year, and I hope to have another one in Interlagos. Whilst I might be ahead by four points, this championship is still very open. I will do what I can to score the points I need, and the rest is out of our hands.”
Fernando Alonso, McLaren (103 points)
“Interlagos has a lot of great memories for me, having won both of my two world championships at the circuit. They were both quite different races, but that is a characteristic of the track. It is very bumpy, you have to have suspension that allows you to drive hard whilst not being too uncomfortable. There are some great corners that you really get to attack, and all the elevation changes make it interesting for the drivers. I am sure we are going to Brazil with full equality across the team and two cars capable of fighting for victory in the race and the championship. Although I am now only four points away from Lewis (Hamilton), I still need for there to be a lot of circumstances in my favor for me to win the drivers’ title that are out of my control, but for sure I will be doing everything that is under my control to make it happen. I have to do my bit and then hope everything else falls into place.”
Kimi Raikkonen, Ferrari (100 points)
"My aim is to win and the rest is not up to me. For me it is a similar position to 2003. Then I lost the title to Michael (Schumacher), but looking back it was a close call and at one point during the race it looked possible. Hamilton has seven points more than us. It is not easy to go to the last race just to get a couple of points more. We cannot calculate. We have to win. For us it is a straightforward race.”
“There is a lot of pressure on both sides. They [Alonso and Hamilton] are the favorites and they fight against each other, too. Hopefully we benefit from that."
[credits: F1 website, Kimi’s website]