In Shanghai, the circus known as Formula 1 once again proved that nothing is impossible. With a growing lead in the drivers Championship, Lewis Hamilton headed into the race that had previously derailed his quest to be World Champion.
Lewis Hamilton won the pole giving himself the best shot at the championship he could have asked for. More importantly, he won last nights Chinese Grand Prix. Yet he isn’t champion. Here’s why.
As I mentioned in my pre-race report last night, Felipe Massa was trailing him by 5 points in the championship. The running order showed Lewis in 1st, Kimi Raikkonen in 2nd, and Felipe in 3rd. If the race had ended this way, Lewis would be World Champion. Yet the two Ferrari driver’s were given “team orders” to switch places and Raikkonen let Massa slip past. With Massa in 2nd place, and not having the horses to catch the McLaren driven by Hamilton, he had assured himself of keeping the hopes of a world championship alive.
Lewis Hamilton needs just a 5th place finish in Brazil to win the Championship. This has to give him a bit of confidence going into the final GP of the season. Massa, even with a win, would be unable to surpass the point lead Lewis currently holds over the Ferrari driver.
