Alonso playing dominant role as the killjoy of Formula One


THE trouble with watching a genius at work is that it can become tedious. Seeing Fernando Alonso destroy the Formula One field yesterday to canter to victory in the British Grand Prix could probably be rated as the motor racing equivalent of watching Albert Einstein chewing the end of his pencil as he dreamt up the theory of relativity. Plenty of brain power, but not much action.


And so, while the boffins in the pitlane checked their laptops and plotted their complicated telemetry, the Silverstone crowd who had braved the searing sunshine and decided to ignore the World Cup for a while lolled back in their plastic seats and wondered what else they could have spent their money on instead of watching the procession behind Alonso’s dominant Renault.


As the Spaniard sped past 60 times in a 180mph blur, they were probably totting up that the ?99 minimum price of a ticket would easily have paid for a day at Southend for a family of four, with fish and chips and an ice-cream all thrown in.


They had gone to watch Jenson Button register his maiden victory ? which would have been worth the price of the ticket, given the youngster’s travails ? but saw him disappear in a cloud of smoke and a plume of flame as oil poured out of his Honda ten laps into the race. He tried to stay cheerful in the face of increasing adversity, but the tears were welling up during his long march back to the garage.


Button is probably nearing the end of his tether, particularly as he watches Alonso’s serene progress towards a second world title. After all, Formula One seems merely to have swapped one genius for another. For Michael Schumacher boring everyone into submission in 2004, swap to Alonso, the thinking man’s Schumacher, who is in danger of boring everyone in 2006.


Lovely guy, fabulous driver, but not much cop in the entertainment department because so much of his racing is going on in his head.


Despite his impersonation of Robin Hood during his victory celebration on the podium, there was no swashbuckling going on in a dull race. It had all started so well, too, with the top three of Alonso, Kimi R?ikk?nen and Schumacher running close together for the first few laps, Schumacher and R?ikk?nen once almost coming disastrously together as they jostled for second place.

Follow up:

Down at the wrong end of the grid, Mark Webber was the victim when Scott Speed shoved Ralf Schumacher’s Toyota, which careered out of control and into the Australian’s Williams. Apart from that and Button’s blow-up, the action was limited to watching spectators fanning themselves with programmes and squinting at the sky to see if they could spot David Coulthard’s face in one of the fluffy clouds over the Silverstone circuit.


Michael Schumacher said that it was not his fault that it was boring.

“It’s part of the game,” he said. “It’s the way it is and the way it has been for so many years.”

So before you flash the credit card next year, think twice.


Not that Alonso should care. This was bliss, winning at a circuit he almost calls home. He lives in Oxford and has been driving to and from his house daily. Before he loaded up his Renault Mégane hatchback for the short drive back to his English suburban idyll last night, he said:

“To win a race just 20 minutes from my home is really good and this has given me a fantastic day.”

Which must mean that he had not only thought out perfect qualifying for his fourth consecutive pole position, perfect strategy for a fifth victory in eight races and perfect consistency for a fourteenth straight podium finish, he had also calculated that by keeping his throttle-foot down for 60 laps, he could be home for tea on the patio with the football to come while everyone else was pounding to the airport.


Now that really is thinking ahead and the way to win the Formula One world championship. Just think it all out in your head, carry out the plan and there you are: you win the British Grand Prix and still have time for tea. Job done.


Results from Silverstone


1, F Alonso (Sp, Renault) 1hr 25min 51.927sec;

2, M Schumacher (Ger, Ferrari) at 13.951sec;
3, K R?ikk?nen (Fin, McLaren-Mercedes) 18.672;

4, G Fisichella (It, Renault) 19.976;
5, F Massa (Br, Ferrari) 31.559;

6, J P Montoya (Col, McLaren-Mercedes) 1:04.769;
7, N Heidfeld (Ger, Sauber-BMW) 1:11.594;

8, J Villeneuve (Can, Sauber-BMW) 1:18.299;
9, N Rosberg (Ger, Williams-Cosworth) 1:19.008;

10, R Barrichello (Br, Honda),
11, J Trulli (It, Toyota);

12, D Coulthard (GB, RedBull-Ferrari),
13, V Liuzzi (It, Toro Rosso-Cosworth),

14, C Klien (Austria, RedBull-Ferrari),
15, C Albers (Neth, Midland-Toyota)

All 1 lap behind;
16, T Monteiro (Por, Midland-Toyota 2 laps;

17, T Sato (Japan, Super Aguri-Honda),
18, F Montagny (Fr, Super Aguri-Honda) both 3 laps.


Retired:

J Button (GB, Honda) 10 laps completed;
S Speed (US, Toro Rosso-Cosworth) 2 laps;

R Schumacher (Ger, Toyota),
M Webber (Aus, Williams-Cosworth) both no lap.


QUALIFYING POSITIONS:

1, Alonso 1:20.253;
2, R?ikk?nen 1:20.397;

3, M Schumacher 1:20.574;
4, Massa 1:20.764;

5, Fisichella 1:20.919;
6, Barrichello 1:20.943;

7, R Schumacher 1:21.073;
8, Montoya 1:21.107;

9, Heidfeld 1:21.329;
10, Villeneuve 1:21.599;

11, Coulthard 1:21.442;
12, Rosberg 1:21.567;

13, Liuzzi 1:21.699;
14, Klien 1:21.990;

15, Speed 1:22.076;
16, Monteiro 1:22.207;

17, Webber 1:23.129;
18, Albers 1:23.210;

19, Button 1:23.247;
20, Sato 1:26.158;

21, Montagny 1:26.316;
22, Trulli no time.



Source: By Kevin Eason in The Times Online