Alonso wins 2nd in a Row
By David Mirsky

Grand Prix action: Nothing like it

HOLLYWOOD, CA (Hollywood Today) 10/12/0 — Mt. Fuji was the background for this year’s Formula 1 Grand Prix from Japan. For the second time in as many races, two time World Champion, Fernando Alonso took his ING Renault across the finish line first for his second win of the 2008 season.
The first lap of the race saw points leaders Lewis Hamilton and Felipe Massa get off to one of their worse starts ever, racing for the first turn, they forgot to slow down and turn right. Instead, they, along with their team mates, had to go wide and give way to BMW’s Robert Kubica and Fernando Alonso. Kubica and Alonso maintained their lead over the rest of the field for most of the race.
Trying to get in front of Hamilton, Massa’s Ferrari ended up running into the back of Hamilton, causing him to spin out and lose at least a half dozen positions.
Massa was later penalized for the incident by having to perform a “drive through” penalty, sending him back in the pack. Hamilton was also given a drive through penalty, sending him back to 15th position. Lap one also saw David Coulthard crashing his Red Bull sponsored car when the right rear suspension failed, sending him into the tire barrier
For just about the entire race, it was Kubica and Alonso leading the way. Eventually, Alonso took the lead away from Kubica after making his first pit stop before Kubica. From then on, Alonso pulled away from Kubica by at least a half second per lap.
Clearly, Alonso and his Renault have finally come to terms with each other. His Renault was running smoothly all race long. The car handled, and his pit stops were flawless. He looked like a World Champion, fending off anyone who would get close to him. In the meantime, Kimi Raikkonen was sneaking up on Kubica’s BMW…getting closer and closer as the race went on. Unfortunately, the laps were running down, and Kubica was able to stay in front of Kimi for a solid second place finish, with Kimi taking 3rd place. With that 3rd place, Kimi is eliminated from the Championship race, as well as Nick Heidfeld.
Only Lewis Hamilton, Felipe Massa and Robert Kubica are still mathematically in contention for the championship.
And, with only two races left in the season, Kubica and Massa will have to go for the win since Hamilton is still 6 points ahead of second place. Remember, last year’s championship was decided by one point, the one point Hamilton needed to win. Hamilton finished a dismal 12th and collected no points. Massa, on the other hand, drove his ass off after serving a penalty and getting punted off the track by Sebastian Bourdais and finished in 7th place, getting him 2 valued points closer to Hamilton. By the way, it was Massa’s aggressive driving that caused that incident.
There are only two races left in the Formula 1 season: next week’s Chinese Grand Prix from Shanghai on October 12, with the final race of the year in Sao Paulo Brazil two weeks later.
Lowes Motor Speedway hosted the Bank of America 500 for NASCAR’S Sprint Cup Series, and “The Race for the Chase”. With only 5 races left in the season, and the Chase, the point spread has tightened up. Jeff Burton, the winner of today’s B of A 500, jumped up two positions in the Chase to second, behind defending Cup Champion Jimmie Johnson who managed to finish in 6th place. Kasey Kahne finished right behind Burton for second, and Kurt Busch took 3rd.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. blew out a tire on lap 103 and finished way back in 35th place after his car had been performing well, which didn’t give him any help in getting much needed points for the Chase. Greg Biffle had a great run, and was leading the race up until lap 278, when Burton made his move on to take the lead. Jeff Gordon drove to an 8th place finish, while Kyle Busch was able to finish in 4th place which also jumped him up two positions in the point’s race to 9th overall.
The next NASCAR Sprint Cup race will come from Martinsville Speedway, where the Tums Quick Pak 500 will run on October 19th.