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Posted on March 27, 2008 by Anthony Fontanelle | Posted under Automotive
McLaren Penalized, Massa On Pole In Malaysia
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Massa claimed pole ahead of teammate and defending champion Kimi Raikkonen. The findings of the stewards' investigation regarding allegation that McLaren caused interference was favorable to Ferrari. The Woking team was found guilty. Kovalainen had qualified third and Hamilton fourth, but the penalty pushed them to eighth and ninth, respectively. The penalty for the Woking team arrived after BMW Sauber's Nick Heidfeld and Renault's Fernando Alonso were impeded in the closing seconds of qualifying as the McLarens cruised slowly on the racing line, having accomplished their sequence of quick laps. Heidfeld, who qualified seventh, said the interference cost him third spot. Alonso acknowledged he had little chance of qualifying higher than the ninth spot where he ended up, regardless of the interference, according to Jamaica Gleaner. As a direct consequence of the penalty imposed, Toyota's Jarno Trulli was elevated to third place on the grid, behind the two drivers from the scarlet Scuderia team, followed by BMW Sauber's Robert Kubica and Heidfeld. Additionally, Red Bull's Mark Webber was moved up to sixth and Alonso seventh. A spokesman from the team sponsored by the maker of Mercedes Benz OEM parts confirmed that the two drivers had been penalized and that Kovalainen and Hamilton will now start Sunday's race from eighth and ninth places on the grid respectively. Kubica, a witness to the incident, has this to say: "I saw clearly that Alonso's lap was screwed because of, I think, Kovalainen staying on the racing line. Nick (Heidfeld) was a bit more lucky because his incident was before braking, so he could rejoin the good line. But Alonso, he had to brake inside and he lost for sure there a lot of time. It was quite dangerous." "We accept the stewards' decisions, but would like to add that neither Lewis nor Heikki impeded any of their competitors deliberately. It was an unfortunate incident, nothing more, nothing less. We look forward to tomorrow's race," Martin Whitmarsh, McLaren operations boss, told AFP. "I gain two position - it is better than seventh. I felt that I was hampered on my fast lap and obviously the stewards felt the same way. I was impeded and I lost laptime, so did Fernando," Heidfeld noted. About The Author: For more information about your parts Mercedes Benz OEM parts visit your trusted online source. Anthony Fontanelle is a 35-year-old automotive buff who grew up in the Windy City. He does freelance work for an automotive magazine when he is not busy customizing cars in his shop. |
Tags: AUTO PARTS, MERCEDES BENZ OEM PARTS
