SHANGHAI F1 2010 RACE

What a race! Again it has been proven that rain does make a good show even better. And what a confusion at the start as the rain started during the warm up lap. I was and still am confused who started on what tyres and the consequence of that.

Finally a McLaren 1-2. They deserved it after all the speed they displayed during practice and qualifying, even though Q3 sucked for them. The win was exceptional because of the 2 different strategies employed by Button and Lewis. Lewis as usual displayed his skill and determination by carving up the field from P6. He chased and overtook everybody on his way to P2.

I especially enjoyed his tussle with Schumacher. Schumacher displayed some skill in defending and re-overtaking his position from Lewis but finally it shows how tired he was and how low was his killer instinct when Lewis re-took the position and flew away. Also, worth mentioning was the fact that the Mercedes was no match for the McLaren, a fact demonstrated again when Lewis took Rosberg for P2. But then again, is it the car or the driver because even Petrov took Schumacher. And he's a rookie driving a Renault.

Red Bull was a disappointment again even though the car was reliable, it somehow didn't have the setup for rain I suspect. Vettel and Webber both got taken by Alonso at the start but we have to remember Alonso jumped the start (and paid for it with a drive through, although a black flag was warranted if you ask me). Then they were overtaken by the McLarens and even Petrov (one of them at least).

The win by Button just shows that sometimes a correct call would be better than banzai driving. Lewis is again undisputed as one of the best and thrilling drivers out there but Button made the right call again and took care of his tyres better. This was demonstrated by the fact that Button made 2 pitstops compared to Lewis' 4 and towards the end, Lewis was losing almost 2 seconds a lap to Button as his tyres were just gone.

But then again Lewis did catch up to Button in the final few laps partly due to Button slipping around and almost going off the track. It also demonstrates Lewis' killer instinct and skill.

Rosberg also showed his potential. If he was in the McLaren he would be very difficult to beat. I hope he continues his upward climb and beats Schumacher at every race until the end of the season.

The only worry about this race was the incident between Lewis and Vettel in the pitlane. It started when entering the pitlane where they were both still racing going into the pits. And after what looked like an unsafe release by McLaren, Lewis managed to get alongside Vettel, almost lost the car and they were both still at it fighting out of the pits. Crazy and exciting to watch but I can't imagine what the stewards are gonna do about it as they have announced an investigation after the race.

Knowing the stewards and almost everybody's hatred for Lewis, I have a bad feeling that either the stewards are gonna ruin this race by giving a post race penalty or a grid penalty at the next race. Whatever it is, one thing is sure, there will be a penalty.

Update : Well I guess pigs do fly then. It seems that the incident involving Vettel and Lewis in the pitlane has been adjudged as a racing incident and the stewards have given them both reprimands and no penalties. NO PENALTIES. Yes, you read right. What has happened to our beloved race-ruining stewards, we'll never know.