Alonso takes first Canadian victory

Fernando Alonso, the World Champion, has won yesterday’s Canadian Grand Prix after a masterful drive, to beat Michael Schumacher and Kimi Raikkonen. Alonso started on pole position with his team mate Fisico next to him.

Fernando started the race from pole position, and as the lights went out made a perfect getaway. His team-mate Giancarlo, starting alongside him on the front row, appeared to jump the start, and as he brought his car back to a halt and got going again he was left behind a fast-starting Kimi Raikkonen who leapt up to second. Jarno Trulli held his grid slot of fourth, with Nico Rosberg on his tail after a great start from the German. At the end of the first lap, Rosberg was coming under pressure from the McLaren of Montoya and straight-lined the final chicane. The two went head-to head into the first corner but Rosberg held position. Into the first chicane however, Montoya made a rash move, smashing into the side of the Williams driver and spinning him into the wall and out of the race. As the Colombian recovered, Michael Schumacher blew past and into fifth behind Trulli, while Montoya came into the pits to change a front wing damaged in his moment with Rosberg.

With the German’s car in a dangerous position, the Safety Car was deployed and stayed out until the end of lap 3. Lap 4 saw the race get back underway, with Montoya immediately passing Coulthard for 17th place as he desperately tried to regain the positions lost through his wing change. His race would come to an end soon after however as he pushed just a touch too hard, clobbered the wall at the final chicane and parked up on the pitlane exit.
Two laps later, and Giancarlo got the news he had feared as the Stewards decided he had indeed jumped the start. He pulled in at the end of the lap to take his drive through penalty.

Fernando meanwhile was leading Raikkonen by a second, but as the pair traded fastest laps, it was Raikkonen who appeared the faster. At the end of lap 12 the Finn took his chance, pulling alongside the outside of the Spaniard down the long back straight. But Fernando held his line and held his cool, keeping first place into the chicane, before eeking out a comfortable lead.

The pair’s battle had pulled them well clear of now third-placed Trulli, who was having to deal with a speedy Schumacher behind him.

Lap 23 saw Fernando’s first pit stop, and he emerged ahead of the battle for third. Next lap around, Schumacher passed Trulli for third, but Fernando was already pulling away from that battle as Raikkonen set about trying to set the quick laps that would put him and his rival Alonso on an equal footing at the end of the stops. But all the Finn’s work came to naught when a stuck right rear tyre saw his stop extended by around seven seconds. He was able to emerge in second, but the problem saw him dropping way back from the lead.

The top two drivers were clearly pushing for all they were worth, with both making off track excursions as they set about setting an untouchable pace. They continued apace until the final stops. Fernando again had a perfect change, but Raikkonen’s day turned to intense frustration when he stalled exiting his pit. When Jacques Villeneuve ended his race in the wall after taking a dirty line to get around the trundling Ralf Schumacher with just ten laps of the race remaining, Raikkonen got his salvation though. The safety car was deployed for the second time and the field bunched up behind it. By this point though, there were lapped cars between Fernando in the lead and Raikkonen in second.

The Spaniard controlled the re-start masterfully, taking a huge lead over the line as the race resumed. Raikkonen, unable to pass the lapped cars until the green flag, was clearly frustrated and set off after Fernando with renewed vigour. But he pushed just too hard, running wide at the hairpin on the penultimate lap and handing second position to Michael Schumacher who had been running a strong race in third up to that point, just waiting to pounce.

Despite his penalty, Giancarlo had driven an incredible race and finished in fourth, narrowly behind Raikkonen, as Felipe Massa crossed the line fifth for Ferrari. Jarno Trulli came home sixth, with Nick Heidfeld seventh and David Coulthard a brilliant eighth after passing compatriot Jenson Button in the dying laps. But the day, once again, belonged to the imperious Fernando. In wrapping up his sixth win of the season, he sealed a 15th podium in a row, and gave Michelin its 100th Grand Prix win.