Great result for Ferrari, less so for Massa
Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro got both its drivers onto the podium of the Chinese Grand Prix, collecting a total of fourteen points: Felipe Massa finished second, with Kimi Raikkonen third. After this result, the Scuderia has consolidated its lead in the Constructors' classification, now heading its closest competitor by eleven points, while Felipe has dropped back a further two points in the Drivers' and is now seven off the leader.
For the eleventh time in the last twelve seasons, Ferrari goes into the final round of the Championship in the running for both titles or having already taken one or both of them.
Stefano Domenicali: "Today, we did the best we could at the end of a weekend when our main rival proved to be superior to us in terms of performance, both over a single lap and in terms of race pace. These fourteen points are very important for the Constructors' championship, in which we have increased our lead. Felipe has lost a bit of ground but now has nothing to lose, and he will give it his best shot in his home race, where he can count on the warm support of his fans. We will try and give our drivers a car with more performance than we had today. To do that, we need to analyse what did not work on this track, also taking into account that things can change very quickly: at Fuji and in Singapore we were better than our competitors in terms of performance, while here it was the opposite. Felipe passing Kimi? Our drivers are well aware what is in the best interests of the team and they acted accordingly. Indeed, events like this have already happened this season in other teams, which is a normal state of affairs in a sport like Formula 1."
Felipe Massa: "This is a great result for the team, less so for me. Today's race was a difficult one: we were not quick enough to fight against Hamilton. Losing two points does not mean that I have lost hope. I will continue to fight right to the very end and I can't wait to race in Interlagos in front of my home crowd: I will try my luck there - it will be the first time for a Brazilian - which will be a further incentive. There was no specific element that wasn't working on my car. It's just that today it was impossible for me to win. I feel a bit as though I'm in a penalty shoot-out in the football World Cup finals: we have missed the first two shots, while the other team has scored and therefore we cannot make any more mistakes and hope that they make three. It will be very difficult, but not impossible as we saw last year. The team is united and has faith: that is very important and nice too."
Kimi Raikkonen: "Today I had a good car, but it was not quick enough to beat our main competitor. At the start and after every tyre change, Hamilton managed to pull away, while when it got near to the pit stops I was able to go a bit quicker, but it was always too late. On top of that, three times, I came up behind backmarkers who cost me valuable time. We secured a very good result for the Constructors' classification. Now we go to Brazil where we must try and get a one-two finish and then we can see where we stand in both Championships. Felipe passing me? I am part of a team and I am well aware what they expect of me. I am out of the title fight and have to do the maximum because Ferrari can achieve both its objectives. It's a simple as that."
Luca Baldisserri: "Our opponents were better than us today which we must do something about. We suffered from a chronic lack of traction, on both types of tyre. We worked on the car all weekend to try and improve the situation, but evidently our efforts were not enough to fight at the highest level. Therefore, second and third places represent the maximum we could do in these conditions, although it does allow us to make a step forward towards the Constructors' title, which is very important for us. Now we must concentrate on analyzing our performance at this track and on preparing for the Brazilian Grand Prix, where we will do our utmost to pick up maximum points, as in fact we do at every race."
