McLaren Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton, of Great Britain, sprays champagne after winning the Chinese Formula One Grand Prix at the Shanghai Circuit, in Shanghai, China, yesterday. - AP
SHANGHAI, China (AP):
Lewis Hamilton's win in the Chinese Grand Prix yesterday proved to be an anticlimax, leaving the McLaren driver still just short of clinching the 2008 Formula One title.
Hamilton led from start to finish in a tepid race of almost no incident, finishing 14.9 seconds ahead of his title rival Felipe Massa, who took second, thanks to his obliging Ferrari teammate Kimi Raikkonen, letting him through late in the race.
The result extended Hamilton's lead in the drivers' championship to seven points, with only the Brazilian Grand Prix remaining in a fortnight.
"It might be another step towards my dream but we've still got to keep calm and keep our heads," Hamilton said. "I just hope we can pull through."
The Briton led Raikkonen by precisely the same margin heading into the Brazilian GP last season, only for a botched overtaking manoeuvre and gearbox trouble relegating him to seventh place, handing the title to the Finn.
Prime position
The points coincidence aside, Hamilton is in prime position to become F1's youngest-ever champion. The only way Massa can beat him to the title is if the Brazilian wins his home race and the McLaren driver finishes no higher than seventh, or Massa finishes second and Hamilton out of the points.
"We are in a tough position, but we know anything can happen," Massa said. "We need to keep our heads up, it's not finished yet. We can have a much better car in Brazil than we had here.
The tension
"I feel a bit as though I'm in a penalty shoot-out in the football World Cup finals - we have missed the first two shots while the other team has scored and, therefore, we cannot make any more mistakes and hope that they make three."
Ferrari can take some succour from moving 11 points above McLaren in the constructors' championship, thanks to the retirement of McLaren's Heikki Kovalainen.
