This article documents a current sporting event. Information may change rapidly as the event progresses. Initial news reports, scores, or statistics may be unreliable. The last updates to this article may not reflect the most current information. |
Template:F1 race report infobox The 2007 United States Grand Prix is the seventh race of the 2007 Formula One season. It is to be held on 15 June–17 June at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.[1]
Report
Pre-race
Following Robert Kubica's large crash at the Canadian Grand Prix, the first driver change of the season will happen at the United States Grand Prix. Although Kubica passed the medical examination, and did not seem to show any ill effects, the FIA medical delegate decided it would be best to rest him for the weekend, and not risk a second impact at the circuit - so famous for it's high speed crashes. The reasoning behind this is just a precautionary measure - another concussion so close to the previous one could be dangerous. He will be replaced by 19-year-old German Sebastian Vettel making his debut at the Indianapolis circuit.[2]
Friday's morning practice was dominated by McLaren and BMW Sauber, with Fernando Alonso putting in the fastest time.[3] Sebastian Vettel started his first race weekend with a fourth fastest time. Ferrari, who expected that their pace would return at Indianapolis,[4] found themselves each side of Williams driver Nico Rosberg with the fifth and seventh fastest times.
First Session of Qualifying
David Coulthard and his Red Bull-Renault were the first to leave the pit lane. His partner, Mark Webber, was close behind with the Spyker Ferraris and Williams cars closely behind. Later in the session, with about 6 minutes left, Coulthard spun out on turn 8. Fernando Alonso ran first, Nick Heidfeld second, and Lewis Hamilton closely behind in third. Although they struggled, both Ferraris made it, as well Fettel, the 19-year-old temperary replacement of Robert Kubica. Scott Speed failed to make it out of Q1 in his native country, along with teammate Vitantonio Liuzzi. Adrian Sutil, Takuma Sato, Alexander Wurz, and Christijan Albers also missed the cut.
Second Session
McLaren and Ferrari began Round 2 of their fierce battle with Hamilton taking the top spot early. However, his teammate, Fernando Alonso took top spot midway through. Felipe Massa, Kimi Raikkonen, and Heidfeld along with the two McLaren's made the Top 5 again. Webber made it to the next session, although his teammate Coulthard was relegated along with 2002 United States Grand Prix Champion Rubens Barrichello (where, ironically, Coulthard finished third), who will make his 240th Grand Prix start tomorrow, which puts him in third in all-time Grand Prix starts behind former teammate Michael Schumacher and Riccardo Patrese. Barrichello's partner Jenson Button was also relegated, along with Nico Rosberg, Anthony Davidson, and Ralf Schumacher.
Third Session
In the final session, Raikonnen, Alonso, Hamilton, Massa, and Heidfeld all had their eye on the prize. Hamilton was first out and had the quickest time with a 1:13:089. Alonso was about four tenths behind, followed by Heidfeld and the Ferraris. Giancarlo Fisichella and Heikki Kovalainen, both Renault drivers, also were near the top, but Jarno Trulli and Webber knocked Fisichella down. With about 5 minutes left, Massa took first spot and Raikonnen took second. Hamilton was bumped to third, Alonso fourth, and Heidfeld remained fifth. But about one minute later, Hamilton took the top spot, and Alonso second. Alonso had one lap left, but could only get within about 2 tenths of a second of rookie teammate Lewis Hamilton. Massa and Raikonnen were dropped to third and fourth, respectively. Heidfeld held on to finish in the middle of the pack in fifth, Kovalainen in sixth, bouncing back from his horrific 22nd position in Canada. Vettel finished seventh, just two spots behind his temporary partner, Heidfeld. Trulli rounded off the points positions in eighth, keeping Toyota's chance for points alive. Red Bull Renault driver Mark Webber finished ninth, ahead of his teammate David Coulthard, and Fisichella finished tenth.
Classification
Qualifying
| Pos | Name | Team/Engine | Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Lewis Hamilton
|
McLaren-Mercedes | 1:12.563 | 1:12.065 | 1:12.331 |
| 2 |  Fernando Alonso
|
McLaren-Mercedes | 1:12.416 | 1:11.926 | 1:12.500 |
| 3 |  Felipe Massa
|
Ferrari | 1:12.731 | 1:12.180 | 1:12.703 |
| 4 |  Kimi Räikkönen
|
Ferrari | 1:12.732 | 1:12.111 | 1:12.839 |
| 5 |  Nick Heidfeld
|
BMW Sauber | 1:12.543 | 1:12.188 | 1:12.847 |
| 6 | Heikki Kovalainen
|
Renault | 1:12.998 | 1:12.599 | 1:13.308 |
| 7 | Sebastian Vettel
|
BMW Sauber | 1:12.711 | 1:12.644 | 1:13.513 |
| 8 |  Jarno Trulli
|
Toyota | 1:13.186 | 1:12.828 | 1:13.789 |
| 9 |  Mark Webber
|
Red Bull-Renault | 1:13.425 | 1:12.788 | 1:13.871 |
| 10 | Giancarlo Fisichella
|
Renault | 1:13.168 | 1:12.603 | 1:13.953 |
| 11 | David Coulthard
|
Red Bull-Renault | 1:13.424 | 1:12.873 | |
| 12 | Ralf Schumacher
|
Toyota | 1:12.851 | 1:12.920 | |
| 13 | Jenson Button
|
Honda | 1:13.306 | 1:12.998 | |
| 14 | Nico Rosberg
|
Williams-Toyota | 1:13.128 | 1:13.060 | |
| 15 | Rubens Barrichello
|
Honda | 1:13.203 | 1:13.201 | |
| 16 | Anthony Davidson
|
Super Aguri-Honda | 1:13.164 | 1:13.259 | |
| 17 |  Alexander Wurz
|
Williams-Toyota | 1:13.441 | ||
| 18 |  Takuma Sato
|
Super Aguri-Honda | 1:13.477 | ||
| 19 | Vitantonio Liuzzi
|
Toro Rosso-Ferrari | 1:13.484 | ||
| 20 |  Scott Speed
|
Toro Rosso-Ferrari | 1:13.712 | ||
| 21 | Adrian Sutil
|
Spyker-Ferrari | 1:14.122 | ||
| 22 |  Christijan Albers
|
Spyker-Ferrari | 1:14.597 |
References
- ^ "Race page on Formula1.com". Formula1.com. Retrieved 2007-06-05.
- ^ "Vettel to sub for Kubica at Indy". ITV. 2007-06-14. Retrieved 2007-06-14.
- ^ "Friday Practice 1 Results". Formula1.com. 2007-06-15. Retrieved 2007-06-15.
- ^ "Massa: Ferrari poised to strike back". ITV. 2007-06-14. Retrieved 2007-06-15.
External links
 | This article about a sporting event is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |