Schumacher's Party at Shanghai

We all know Schumacher was extremely delighted with the win at Shanghai. This track was supposed to be the most difficult of the last 3 flyaway races, and with all the weather and tyre trouble Ferrari had, to get a win was quite obviously more than what they bargained for.
So, Schumi threw a huge party at Shanghai apparently. The news comes from German news paper "Bild Zeitung", which specialises in useless gossip (like the English tabloids).

The popular German newspaper said Ferrari's 37-year-old star - albeit sticking to coca-cola - partied until 6 in the morning in the city's Marriott hotel.

The party was reportedly also attended by 2007 Ferrari driver Kimi Raikkonen, Schumacher's current teammate Felipe Massa, Renault rival Giancarlo Fisichella and personal press officer Sabine Kehm.

Predictably, championship rival Fernando Alonso was not spotted.

Is that why Alonso launched a tirade against Fisi yesterday ?!

The rise of BMW

At the start of the season, this would have seemed rather silly. After all, Sauber were nowhere at the end of last season. Having been taken over by a manufacturer has its benefits though. BMW left Williams and took over Sauber. It is a matter of irony now that BMW are where Williams used to be (3rd/4th best team), and Williams are now where Sauber used to be (6th/7th best team).
BMW have developed into a force to be reckoned with over this season. Earlier this season, their cars were difficult to handle (and JV had to suffer!); then they had that oh-so-brilliant idea of putting horns on the car (aerodynamic devices !). But into the last quarter, they have had consistently good cars, good drivers and good results.
At midseason, Mclaren were thought to be the team that could influence the outcome of the championships, as they were the only team that seemed to be on pace. With two races to go, you have to say that its BMW now who can influence the WCC. (Not the WDC, I think no matter what, barring strange things happening, Michael and Alonso will finish 1-2 or 2-1). BMW cars though, can get ahead of Massa or Fisi, and that can be very crucial to the WCC.
And slightly OT, it is so hard to spot a McLaren on track these days ! The only time you see it, is when you see Kimi getting out of it with the car either lacking various body parts or with smoke coming out of it !!
BMW look to have a great future next season, what with Kubica showing what a talent he is, and Heidfeld consistently finishing in points.

Shanghai !

Shanghai proved much more exciting than expected, thanks mainly to the varying track conditions and varying tyre performance.

The debate post-Shanghai seems largely to center on what Michael's win was down to. People argue it was the much-touted wet skills of Schumi, and some others say it was Renault's mistake.

Well, as always, I think the answer lies midway between all of them, a combination of all. Schumacher did well to master the conditions, when most other drivers were spinning like a Muralitharan offspinner [:D]. He did not make a single mistake, unlike Alonso (who it may be remembered, went off track while in lead of over 15 seconds over Kimi and over 22 seconds over Michael). Renault made a mistake with their tyre choice at the first pitstop, made a more critical error at the second, which gave Alonso no chance to even catch up to the leader.

It was disappointing to see Fisi finish nearly 40 seconds behind, after leading the race until the second pitstops. And he claims to be happy because Renault are in the constructors championship lead, and he is third in WDC. I just think he throws away race wins like they were growing in his garden. He doesnt seem to value winning as much as Michael or Alonso or Kimi.

But, the most impressive driver for me, for a second race in a row, had to be Kubica. He was unfortunate to be bumped out on lap 1 by Doornbos, but had climbed up to 13th again in a matter of 5 laps (contrast that with Massa, who was 16th starting 20th at the same time). He was simply outstanding in those initial wet conditions, and considering Heidfeld's strong running, he was surely in contention for 4th or 5th spot, until he made that risky choice of dry tyres.

And finally, that last lap mayhem. Sato and Albers must be punished for causing that. Heidfeld was understandably disappointed, losing his 4th place, and calling it "the worst race of my life, not just F1, my entire life" !!