Heidfeld scores 200th Championship point

BMW Sauber F1 Team driver Nick Heidfeld celebrated a very special milestone in the Chinese Grand Prix. By finishing firth, at Shanghai, the German scored the 200th Formula One World Championship point of his career.

Prior to the race in China, things looked anything but promising for Nick. He had qualified sixth, but after the qualifying session he received a three-position grid penalty. "I set myself the goal of passing three cars right at the start," reveals the German. "It was clear that the start would be the crucial phase of the race. Nonetheless, you often fail when it comes to realising what you have planned. This time, however, it worked perfectly." Indeed, by passing the Toro-Rosso duo of Sebastian Vettel and Sébastien Bourdais as well as Toyota's Jarno Trulli, Nick gained exactly the three positions he had lost due to the stewards' decision.

"Later, I almost felt kind of lonesome. I had no chance of closing in on Fernando Alonso while my team-mate was several seconds behind me. Consequently, I opted to switch to an engine mapping featuring lower revs in order to to go easy on my car and engine," Nick Heidfeld explains. In the end, the 31-year old finished fifth, thus adding another four World Championship points to his tally.

Following the result secured at Shanghai, Nick has now scored a total of 200 points in his Formula One career to date - and is the only 37th driver in the history of the sport to have broken this barrier. Nick scored his maiden Formula One points back in the 2001 Australian GP for Team Sauber. As BMW Sauber F1 Team driver, the German has celebrated a total of seven podium finishes, so far.