Ferrari Win British Grand Prix

Ferrari Win British Grand Prix
by Roger Munns
Formula One rookie Lewis Hamilton took third in the British Grand Prix at Silverstone, while Finnish driver Kimi Raikkonen took first for the second time in a row since the previous week's fortuitous win at Magny-Cours in France. Up until then, hotshot Hamilton gave both teammates and competitors more than a run for their money ever since he shot out to the lead since the start of the 2007 F1 racing circuit.
While Hamilton has continued to inspire not only his teammates for the Mercedes-McLaren team, he lost a bit of momentum with Raikkonen's lead last week, and then again this past weekend. The Silverstone track, just over three miles in length, and one that offers sixty not particularly difficult laps, offered Raikkonen the chance to once again take the lead position as Hamilton fell behind during the first round of pit stops. Still, while Ferrari has gained some points with their last two wins, Hamilton still leads the pack with 12 points over his Mercedes-McLaren teammate, Fernando Alonso, who stands in second place.
The British Grand Prix, raced at Silverstone in Northhamptonshire, is one of the oldest traditions in the racing world, seconded only by the Spanish Grand Prix that began in the 1920's. Though the British Grand Prix was raced for years on the Donnington Park circuit, Silverstone has been wowing crowds since 1950. The track, renovated in 1991, is somewhat tamer than it used to be, and current contracts will offer the F1 racing world Grand Prix events through to 2009.
The last half dozen Grand Prix races have seen fierce competition between the leaders of 2007's Grand Prix drivers, including Hamilton and Alonso, driving for Mercedes, and Raikkonen and Massa, driving for Ferrari. The teams have battled for the lead since the Australian race at Melbourne and the Monaco Grand Prix, as well as more recent battles in the United States, France and now Hamilton's native Britain. Germany is next on the list and fans are waiting to see how long it will take Hamilton to regain his first or second place wins that they have grown accustomed to.
Raikkonen's most recent win now puts him one point ahead of his teammate, Felipe Massa, but he's still almost 20 points behind Hamilton for the lead. Raikkonen was quoted after the race as saying, "Once we knew we had enough fuel, I was able to close on Lewis and try to overtake him. But we knew he was coming in, so didn't take too much of a risk hopefully, the championship is not over. It's still going to be a long season."
Raikkonen may be right, with upcoming races still scheduled in Turkey, Italy, Belgium and China, to finish the 2007 Formula One circuit in Brazil in October. Plenty of time to continue to thrill crowds and fans carefully watching the awesome rise of Hamilton as he continues in his efforts to beat records and encourage both teammates and competitors to give their best in a truly inspiring F1 season to date.