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| F1 COLUMNS That's Six For Alonso Kimi Raikkonen has got to be the unluckiest man in Formula 1. He is blessed with bucket loads of raw talent, is one of the quickest drivers, has the best car yet he isn't winning races and it's not his fault. He isn't crashing into walls; he isn't injuring himself playing 'tennis'; he knows the difference between a red and green light. He should be leading the driver’s championship but instead he's competing with Michael Schumacher for second spot. Hockenheim should have been a feather in his cap - a fast weekend topped off with a convincing win but instead he ended up sneaking out of his motor home to avoid the media after what appeared to be a hydraulic failure saw his race ending very early. Not even a gorgeous blonde is going to help ease his pain. Montoya's embarrassing mistake in qualifying when he came to a grinding halt against the wall when negotiating the final corner probably cost him pole and possibly the race. Starting from the back of the grid he clawed back 9 places in the first lap and ended the race in second. And he did apologise to his mechanics for making a hash of his qualifying - his mom will be very proud! If Raikkonen is the unluckiest man in F1 then Alonso is the luckiest! The dishy Spaniard now has to use both hands to figure out how many times he has won this year. At the rate he's going he'll soon be needing his toes too! Alonso qualified in third, slipped past Button on the first lap and was promoted to 1st place after Kimi's demise. Fernando seems to be getting a little lonely out front so now would be a good time for someone to step up and give him some competition. Good on Renault for giving Alonso a reliable, solid car which performs race after race. Fisichella is starting to bounce back after a very mediocre mid-season. He was given a gargantuan shove up the behind by Sato on the first corner but survived not only to tell his tale but to finish in 4th place. Just to make Fisi's story more impressive is the fact that he didn't stall the car during the pit stops - well done Giancarlo! Michael Schumacher showed his brilliance during qualifying although not many recognised it as such assuming that he was light on fuel and hence qualified in 5th but his first stint saw him pitting rather late. And that's as good as it got. Michael gambled on the softer compound Bridgestones praying for rain but it didn't quite pan out. His rear right tyre was completely smooth come the end of the race and he had some serious problems slowing the car down (even though it wasn't that quick to begin with). The German managed 5th in front of a partisan crowd. Rubens had a horrible afternoon. If he wants to be at Ferrari in the near future then he's going about it in completely the wrong fashion. You're meant to show the team what an asset you are, how good you are, how you can help the team to victory. Finishing in 10th place, out of the points is more likely to see you being rewarded with an early retirement package. BAR must be on their knees begging Jenson Button to stick around next year because without him it is likely that the team will be competing with the likes of Jordan and Minardi for the last few spots. Button had a great qualifying run and a strategy which worked. The popular Briton will probably have his pick of teams for next season but right now he must be jolly chuffed to have finished on the podium. Sato seems to be living on a different planet - one where Formula 1 isn't very important because he really hasn't been on it the last few races. A nasty first lap saw the Japanese driver pitting for a new nose and all the lost time resulted in him finishing only in 12th. Toyota's factory is based in Cologne so Germany is effectively a home race for them too so obviously they wanted to perform well. Let's see, Ralf qualified in 12th and Trulli in 9th - great start! Jarno pitted 6 times including a drive-through penalty for ignoring blue flags. He eventually retired the car on the last lap but was still classified as 14th. Ralfie-baby had another quiet afternoon and scored the team some points in 6th. Hardly a newsworthy performance by either driver. Better luck next time, boys. The Red Bulls are still fighting for points. This is a team that was not expected to do much this season but they are still stripping some of the bigger teams of points. Chris Horner's management style is paying dividends; both drivers look happy and are delivering points on a regular basis. Jean Todt should take some pointers - hmm, maybe that's why Ferrari have agreed to be Red Bull's engine supplier next season? The plot thickens! Williams are not a 'jumping up for joy and ululating in blissful euphoria' kind of team at the moment. The affiliation with BMW is over, Button may not be an option for next season, the car is snail-like in it's speed and the drivers aren't really doing too much either. The pharmaceuticals that manufacture headache pills must have seen their shares increase steeply in value with the volume of tablets that the Williams boys are probably consuming. It's a shame really because this is an awesome team when things are going right. But then again, the same can be said of most teams! Webber had a rear suspension problem which the mechanics managed to superglue back together and he resumed the race albeit 10 laps behind. He 'finished' the race as unclassified. Heidfeld finished behind the Ferrari of Rubens Barrichello in 11th. Peter Sauber is an odd kind of chap. He can smile and shake his head in derision all at the same time - how's that for multi-tasking! Massa finished in 8th and got a smile. Jackie Villeneuve finished in 15th and got a scowl from his boss. Jackie, Jackie, Jackie…when trying to get into the good books of your boss make sure you buy him authentic Cuban cigars not the stuff you get from the corner shop. Have a little respect. Dutchman Doornbos replaced Friesacher at Minardi for the rest of the season. Poor Patrick just didn't have enough money to stay in the team. Remember that old saying that money can't buy you everything? Well in F1 it's only money that will buy you a seat in a Minardi! Doornbos had a busy afternoon including a penalty for having his tyre changed and refuelling at the same time. Did the team honestly think that the stewards weren't going to notice? Or perhaps they would take pity on poor, cash-strapped Minardi and let them just carry on. On the other hand, it does guarantee you more TV time. Clever tactic, Mr Stoddard. Doornbos finished in 18th whilst fellow Dutchman Albers finished in 13th. The two Jordans had many an excursion onto the grass and gravel - they seem to feel more comfortable there than on the track. Karthikeyan is getting more ragged as the season progresses and Monteiro isn't doing much better. The boys in the canary-yellow Abba-inspired jumpsuits finished in 16th and 17th. Tweet, tweet!
So there you have it - another race gone. Alonso is skipping towards the finish line with poor Kimi hobbling behind him. Next stop Hungary. It is bound to be an exciting race. McLaren need to sort out their reliability issues at the speed of light if they want to get Kimi back in the title hunt otherwise it will be Montoya stealing all the glory. This is proving to be a great season - now how do you say that in French?
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