German Grand Prix Review

The McLaren driver was as peerless at Hockenheim as Kimi Raikkonen had been in Spain, or Felipe Massa had been at his favoured tracks. His pole time was fuel assisted, as he had less than 0.2s gap on Massa despite two laps less fuel, but on race pace, from the way he stretched out his lead over the Ferrari in the early stages, the result was never in doubt. And, frankly, in hindsight neither was it really in doubt even after McLaren's supposed strategic error during the mid-race safety car period.

Yes, McLaren did miscalculate Hamilton's ability to pull out the requisite gap in the laps available before his second stop. Alternatively, a la Istanbul, McLaren could also have justified the decision to keep Lewis out during the safety car in order to shorten the final stint on the unloved soft tyres. And though it meant Lewis could not keep the lead after his last stop, his sheer speed plus the nature of the modern Tilke-butchered Hockenheim and his overtaking prowess, meant he was a good bet to catch and pass those ahead.

And although Hamilton was assisted by the meek defensive efforts of his rivals, what a welcome change it was to see a driver having to win on the track in the final stages, rather than to have the result decided after the final round of stops. From a position of disadvantage after France, the dramatic turnaround into championship ascendancy gives Lewis serious momentum at a time when McLaren also seem to have the developmental edge. It's been a topsy-turvy season so far but this could prove a decisive blow.

Mark Webber is the latest to label the safety car rules a joke on the basis of delivering an undeserved result for Piquet. On one hand, of course there's some sour grapes from the unlucky Aussie, and you can also say that the rules are the rules and pace cars have been delivering fluke results for years in America that keep results interesting. But perhaps Mark has a point, because safety cars aren't common enough in F1 to regularly deliver random results, such that Piquet's 2nd place does stick out like a sore thumb.

Ferrari should be most concerned right now. For most of the first half of the season, it was safe to stay that the F2008 had the edge over its rivals. Perhaps that left Maranello a little complacent in terms of development, or perhaps the car simply came closer to the end of its development envelope earlier, whereas the McLaren MP4/23 still has room for improvement. But there's no doubt that McLaren is now on par if not slightly ahead, with places like Hungary and Italy to come where the silver cars dominated last year.

Massa carried the Ferrari flag as best as he could, challenging for pole and trying to keep Hamilton honest for most of the race. But here was a gilt-edged opportunity with a dozen laps left to try to keep Lewis behind, take the championship lead, and give Hamilton something to think about psychologically. Instead, Felipe opened the door at the hairpin, came back with a flawed manoeuvre around the outside of the Mercedes complex, lost the initiative and thereafter couldn't even catch Piquet.

Raikkonen meanwhile lost his way in set-up and never recovered. Some have suggested that, in Ferrari's desperation they searched for gains where none were to be found. And once the cars reached parc ferme conditions, that was Kimi's chances done. The fact that he overtook each of Nico Rosberg, Fernando Alonso, Sebastian Vettel, Jarno Trulli and Robert Kubica late in the race was a brief flutter, but this was the sixth race in succession since his last win in Spain in which his title momentum has been stung.

One of the unsung heroes of the race itself was Nick Heidfeld, whose strategy mirrored Hamilton's but by going even longer until his final stop emerged in front of Heikki Kovalainen for 4th. But again, this owed itself to the safety car, as it gave Nick a clean track and longer time in which to sprint before his second stop whilst his rivals were hampered by a heavy fuel load. In reality, his qualifying effort (12th) was as bad as it has been all season, and without the safety car may have finished outside the top ten.

Where did all this leave Hamilton, Piquet and Heidfeld's team-mates? Kovalainen looked to be in a relatively safe 3rd, but courtesy of the safety car and Piquet and Heidfeld's strategies, found himself needing to pass Kubica on the track to take 5th. It's reflective of the kind of year he has been having - respectable but not maximising his potential in results. The way he deferred to Hamilton after Lewis' final stops may be indicative of the support he will have to lend his team-mate's title quest for the rest of the season.

REJECT OF THE RACE
Fernando Alonso
For excellence in overdriving, spinning and having a big mouth

But it was Alonso who ended up most embarrassed by his team-mate's result. Prior to the race he had made comments about Renault needing Piquet to score more points, and whilst the Brazilian did just that, Fernando did not keep up his end of the bargain. Three times he stuck his nose in to try to wangle a pass, only to lose positions. Having a go is a worthy thing, but only when accompanied with brains. A late spin on murdered tyres, plus his pre-race statements assured him of the 'Reject of the Race' award.

Vettel took the last point for Toro Rosso, in what was arguably his strongest race for the team to date in terms of sustaining race pace in dry conditions and getting points at the end of it. He qualified in the top ten, beat Webber off the line, and came out on top in his race-long duel with Trulli. STR is well and truly benefiting from having the same chassis as Red Bull, but a stronger engine in the Ferrari as opposed to big brother's Renault powerplant.

There is no reason why Vettel should not continue to harass Webber in the Red Bull for the remainder of the season, which could be a nice little foretaste of next season when they will be team-mates, Sebastian having been announced as David Coulthard's replacement. Vettel's departure does not mean Sebastien Bourdais' tenure at STR ought to be any safer; the Frenchman leapt to 12th at the start, and finished there after another anonymous race, as his team-mate starts leaving him behind.

Toyota came away from their home race - as far as their Cologne factory is concerned - with no points, but they need not be discouraged. Trulli's best hope of scoring 8th over Vettel was to maintain a gap, but that was undone by the safety car. Timo Glock's long first stint elevated him into genuine points contention, in yet another sign of Toyota's recent strategic sophistication, before his jolting accident on the front straight. The fact that Red Bull didn't score meant that they stay 4th in the constructors' points.

It was another underwhelming weekend for Williams, 13th and 16th on the grid for Rosberg and Kazuki Nakajima, and 10th and 14th in the race, reflective of where the team stand, which is at the end of the midfield and perhaps only definitely ahead of Honda and Force India. Having started the season with high hopes of battling for 3rd or 4th in the constructors' title, there is talk of re-diverting resources to this year's car, which would seem to be a case of too little, too late, and too pointless.

After the heroics of Silverstone, Honda returned to reality, Barrichello failing to make it past Q1 and going out after the collision with Coulthard. But, despite a troubled race and ending up finishing last as the only man lapped, Jenson Button did respectably to qualify 14th and showed a new aggression in battling with his team-mate, possibly in response to accusations - not unfounded - that the car's mediocrity has been reflected in his own, and he has been letting Rubens get the better of him.

Force India continue to be left behind at the back of the field, although the fact that they are only around 1.5s off the best show how tightly bunched the grid is, and how the relative stability in regulations for several seasons now has allowed virtually all the teams to refine their machines to a point of near parity. Fifteen years ago, a time within 1.5s of pole could have earned a front-row start; now it leaves you stranded on the tenth and last row.

Adrian Sutil had the edge on qualifying once more, as Giancarlo Fisichella yet again fails to recapture early-season form during the middle part of the year, although Fisi had a stronger race and was 14th on the road before a 25s penalty after the race for unlapping himself during the safety car period at an unprescribed moment, which dropped him back to 16th behind Sutil. But one suspects that the Italian's mid-year malaise is doing nothing to help drive Vijay Mallya's team forward.