Who to back for the Belgian Grand Prix? Felipe Massa’s the form man at the moment but Kimi Raikkonen is superb around Spa.
Ferrari reckon the harder tyres being used at Spa this year could hand an advantage to McLaren’s Lewis Hamilton and Heikki Kovalainen. The BMW pair will be poised to capitalise on any mistake by the top four – especially if it rains…
Predicting the top three for this race may be harder than usual. Two readers managed to get the prediction right for the top three at Valencia – find out who below.
Kimi Raikkonen’s record at Spa is formidable – three wins in the last three races at the circuit. It’s tempting to say if he can’t win here, he will not be able to defend his championship. Raikkonen has been struggling in qualifying recently and that has in turn compromised his race pace.
He will start the Belgian Grand Prix with a fresh Ferrari V8 engine following his failure at Valencia. But what about Massa? He will be on his second race with the unit – and Ferrari have had a con rod-related engine failure in the last two races.
Massa can change his engine without penalty (under the new-for-2008 ‘one free change’ rule) but it’s not an easy decision for Ferrari: the next two races are the toughest for the engines with the highest percentage of flat-out running. And Ferrari simply cannot afford another failure, especially with McLaren closing in on them in the constructors’ championship.
Engine concerns aside Massa, who is shrugging off almost every concern about different aspects of his performance this year, must be favourite for victory. I say ‘almost’ because I’m still not convinced of his wet-weather credentials after his awful drive at Silverstone. And Spa-Francorchamps, deep in the Belgian Ardennes, often sees mixed weather conditions.
In wet weather, my first choice for victory would be Hamilton, closely followed by Robert Kubica. In dry conditions Hamilton will likely run Massa very close but, even given Ferrari’s suspicion that the harder tyres will favour McLaren, I think Ferrari’s apparent power advantage should tip the balance in their favour.
So, based on the assumption that the weather will stay dry and the Ferraris will finish, my prediction is:
1. Felipe Massa
2. Lewis Hamilton
3. Kimi Raikkonen
Two readers correctly predicted the Valencia podium of Felipe Massa, Lewis Hamilton and Robert Kubica. Toncho and Becken, stand up and take a bow!
Can they get it right two weeks in a row? Post your podium predictions below. And if you can’t decide who to go for, copy Toncho and Becken…
Paige
4th September 2008, 18:12
I’ll go with Raikkonen, Massa, Hamilton.
Spa was designed for Kimi Raikkonen.
Becken
4th September 2008, 18:16
Hey, I´m famous now!
…So I will use my crystal ball again to predict the next race:
1º – Lewis
2º – Kimi
3º – Bob Kubitza
Nick
4th September 2008, 18:30
1. Kimi Raikkonen
2. Sebastian Vettal
3. Fernando Alonso
chaostheory
4th September 2008, 18:34
Considering it will be shower race: 1.Kubica; 2. Raikkonen; 3. Massa.
Remember me! :D
Rui
4th September 2008, 18:50
I almost agree with you chaostheory.Although i don’t believe Massa will be 3rd.Just a feeling :)
diseased rat
4th September 2008, 18:54
1. Kimi Raikkonen
2. Lewis Hamilton
3. Felipe Massa
chaostheory
4th September 2008, 19:09
@ Rui: yeah i know – Silverstone; but i hope he got better by now… BTW. if he will do one spin at Spa – then i’ll stop considering him a ’08 World Champ candidate.
James B
4th September 2008, 19:11
A rainy race looks like a probability, rather than a possibility, but as always, I’ll do two predictions. (Wet and dry)
Dry Race
1. Raikkonen
2. Massa
3. Hamilton
Wet Race
1. Form book (Kubica)
2. Thrown out (Hamilton)
3. The Window (Heidfeld)
Gman
4th September 2008, 19:21
If it’s dry….
1. Massa
2. Hamilton
3. Raikkonen
If it’s wet….
1. Hamilton
2. Alonso
3. Raikkonen
Paige
4th September 2008, 19:21
Raikkonen
Massa
Hamilton
Is to be considered by dry prediction. My wet prediction is
Raikkonen
Hamilton
Kubica
People forget just how bloody good Raikkonen is in the wet, particularly in mixed weather conditions. He’s already owned Spa twice in these conditions, and I see no reason why he wouldn’t do it again.
This is Raikkonen’s weekend.
Lejos
4th September 2008, 20:24
1.Hamilton
2.Kimi
3.Kovalainen
Nirupam
4th September 2008, 20:44
Kimi
Massa
Alonso
Spa & Kimi..made for each other! Massa in the list because of apparent advantage of Ferrari engines(of course if it lasts!) and Alonso needs to be there simply because he is the best driver in the grid and he should be on podium even with a less competitive car!
Tengil
4th September 2008, 21:14
1. Hamilton
2. Heidfeld
3. Kovalainen
Stubie
4th September 2008, 21:41
Dry
Raikkonen
Hamilton
Massa
Wet
Hamilton
Kubica
Heidfeld
Denis
4th September 2008, 22:04
Dry
Hamilton
Kimi
Kovalainen
Wet
Hamilton
Barrichello
Heidfeld
santori
4th September 2008, 22:26
Alonso
Heidfeld
Piquet
(Massa
Bourdais
Kubica
Webber
Vettel)
Spencer
4th September 2008, 22:31
Lewis
Kubica
Heikki
Wesley
4th September 2008, 22:37
Dry:
1-Raikkonen
2-Massa
3-Hamilton
Wet:
1-Hamilton
2-Heidfeld
3-Kubica
esse
4th September 2008, 23:01
Dry:
Kimi
Massa
Lewis
Wet:
Hamy
Kub
Kimi
Terry Fabulous
4th September 2008, 23:07
Webber
Hamilton
Vettel
(Ah, what should have been at Fuji last year :))
Terry Fabulous
4th September 2008, 23:10
OK Serious
Hamilton
Raikkonen
Kovaleinen (Love isn’t always on time!)
Benny
4th September 2008, 23:25
1. Hamilton
2. Kovalainen
3. Räikkönen
DArcy
5th September 2008, 0:50
1 Kubica
2 Hamilton
3 Kimi
GDalcin
5th September 2008, 0:51
1.Kimi
2.Massa
3.Lewis
Polak
5th September 2008, 1:16
Robert
Kimi
Felipe
Paul
5th September 2008, 1:20
01. HAM
02. MAS
03. KOV
shery
5th September 2008, 1:21
kimi
heiki
kubica
qazuhb
5th September 2008, 1:45
I can’t ever force myself to do the predictions. I will only say this time that if Santori’s guess comes true, I’ll pay the beer for the entire forum!
Pink Peril
5th September 2008, 1:49
Standard race:
1. Hamilton
2. Massa
3. Raikkonen
Wet or safety car:
1. Hamilton
2. Kubica
3. Alonso
nicho
5th September 2008, 2:20
1. Robert Kubica
2. Felipe Massa
3. Lewis Hamilton
matthew
5th September 2008, 2:41
Dry:
1 Kimi
2 Lewis
3 Massa
Wet:
1 Lewis
2 Kimi
3 Bobby K
I reluctantly put Massa to finish third simply because of the prancing horse sitting behind him. And that is a generous prediction based entirely on his car. I am not in any way convinced that Mr. Massa has what it takes to conquer a beast like Spa-Francorchamps. Especially in the rain.
verasaki
5th September 2008, 2:41
extreme wet
glock-just because i like his name
alonso
button
1998-think about it.
Owen
5th September 2008, 2:46
1. Ham
2. Kov
3. Rai
Rui
5th September 2008, 5:27
@verasaki
glock has been a really nice surprise at least for me (i didn’t follow gp2).I do hope he makes a nice race.
Button on 3rd that’s a big stretch no?I’d bet more on Barrichelo.On Sylverstone he brought the Honda to the podium, even with those refueling problems.I’d love to see him winning again.
extreme wet
1 – Barrichelo
2 – Glock
3 – Heildfeld
wet
1 – Kubica
2 – Raikkonen
3 – Heiki
sun
1 – Hamilton
2/3 – Raikkonnen/ Kubica
I didn’t put Massa or Hamilton on the top if it rains..because i have a feeling if that happens they will both go out.
Bog
5th September 2008, 6:05
Kimi
Massa
Kovalainen
kavana
5th September 2008, 6:17
Qualifying
1. Mas
2. Ham
3. Rai
Race
1. Mas
2. Rai
3. Ham
Rob R.
5th September 2008, 6:49
Number of spins for Massa: 11
Juhhi
5th September 2008, 7:04
Q:
1. Hamilton
2. Räikkonen
3. Massa
GP:
1. Räikkönen
2. Hamilton
3. Heidfeld
Juhhi
5th September 2008, 7:06
Benny must be from Finland cause Räikkönen is written like it should be=)
Harkirat
5th September 2008, 7:08
Dry
Kimi
Felipe
Lewis/Robert
Wet
Kimi
Lewis
Nick/Robert/Timo/……………………………Felipe
Distant chance for Felipe…
RaceStevil
5th September 2008, 7:29
Dry weather:
1 Ham
2 Kov
3 Rai
Not an easy choice as I am a Kimi fan, but the change of tyres could be decisive.
But I expect that Kimi will win in Monza. What they couldn’t do last year.
Wet weather:
1 Rai
2 Kub
3 Sut (wild card, liked his driving last year)
In case of another monster crash as a few years ago, I’d go for
Dry or Wet:
1 Rai (he escapes because of his bad qualifying)
2 Alo
3 Vet
Mick
5th September 2008, 8:03
1. Massa
2. Great Lewis/Kimmi fight… especially off the line.
4. Alonso vs Piquet – yep I said it!
maria
5th September 2008, 9:18
1. kimi
2. massa
3. kubica
Kester
5th September 2008, 10:51
1. Kimi
2. Massa
3. Alonso
DNF. Lewis
Dorian
5th September 2008, 11:12
This is perhaps a little more heart than head but….
1. Raikkonen
2. Massa
3. Kubica
Chalky
5th September 2008, 11:20
I reckon it’ll be slightly wet.
I hope santori is also correct, but only for the beer from qazuhb :)
So I’ll go for:
1. Hamilton
2. Raikkonen
3. Vettel
Massas engine will “pop it’s clogs” as it’s his 2nd race with it. Seems to be a Ferrari pattern at the moment.
Kazim
5th September 2008, 11:39
My predictions
Lewis
Massa
Kimi
todd
5th September 2008, 11:46
listening to kubica in practice, he really hates the feel of the car, handling like a pig, so i’m not putting anything on him… except that he wont make it into q3…
1. massa
2. kimi
3. ham
graham228221
5th September 2008, 11:47
Dry/damp:
1) Massa
2) Kimi
3) Lewis
Wet:
1) Lewis
2) Massa
3) Vettel*
* just because it would be nice to get almost every team on the podium this season, come on force india get in there!!!
I kinda hope it rains just so massa can show that silverstone was just a really bad day for him.
supillai
5th September 2008, 12:26
my bet kimi , glock , trully
Salty
5th September 2008, 12:33
Gambling on an, at least patially, wet race, so….
1.HAM
2.RAI
3.KOV
Massa is good, but very concerned he loses confidence and focus when he loses grip.
F1Punter
5th September 2008, 12:41
1. Raikkonen (not from Pole)
2. Hamilton (consistent)
3. Vettel (star of the show)
Pradeep
5th September 2008, 13:09
I think it will be:
1) HAM
2) MAS
3) RAI
4) KOV
Fernando
5th September 2008, 14:44
1) Massa
2) Alonso
3) Kubica
DG
5th September 2008, 16:03
Wet:
Hamilton
Kubica
Kovaleinnen
Dry:
Massa
Hamilton
Kubica
ninguen
5th September 2008, 16:28
I´m going to raise a lot of eyebrows with my wet
wet
Massa
Alonso
Raikko
Dry
Hamilton
Raikkonen
Massa
Pimen
5th September 2008, 16:36
1. Kubica
2. Barrichello
3. Hamilton
MW
5th September 2008, 16:54
1. Massa
2. Hamilton
3. Alonso
_Ben_
5th September 2008, 17:04
DRY
Massa
Hamilton
Kovalinen
WET
Hamilton
Kovalinen
Alonso
adiai
5th September 2008, 17:30
I will go with Raikonen, Massa and Alonso
Sumedh
5th September 2008, 17:31
dry:
1.massa
2.Raikonen
3.Heikki
wet:
1.Hamilton
2.Massa
3.Heikki
I think, Felipe has turned a corner.. he will do good even if spa is wet..
Alex-Ctba
5th September 2008, 17:38
Dry:
1.Massa
2.Raikkonen
3.Hamilton
Wet:
1.Massa
2.Raikkonen
3.Alonso
Go Felipe!!!!
Polak
5th September 2008, 18:33
Can someone elaborate on Kubica, and why his practice was so poor. I noticed he never shines in practice, but today was especially bad. Heidfeld got a descent lead on Kubica.
CopyAndPaste
5th September 2008, 18:44
Hi Polak
“The conditions today were variable, especially in the afternoon session,” said Kubica. “Therefore today it was not only the testing that was difficult, but also evaluating the results of our programme. At the end of the day the conditions were the same for everybody. We shall now analyse the data and prepare for Saturday. When I was doing a practice start at the end of the session the engine stalled.”
M Smith
5th September 2008, 18:45
Dry:
1. Massa
2. Hamilton
3. Raikkonen
Wet:
1. Raikkonen
2. Hamilton
3. Trulli
HOSHIYAR
5th September 2008, 21:28
MY CHOICE IS
HAMILTON
MASSA
ALONSO..
FIRST PODIUM FOR ALONSO…HOPEFULLY…THIS YEAR
Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
5th September 2008, 22:16
OK I’ve done a quick tally of who everyone’s picked to win (where people have given more than one prediction I’ve used whichever one they put down first). Here’s the voting so far:
Kimi Raikkonen 21
Lewis Hamilton 16
Felipe Massa 13
Robert Kubica 6
Fernando Alonso 1
Timo Glock 1
Rubens Barrichello 1
bernification
5th September 2008, 23:22
1- Hammy
2- Kubica
3- Heikki
Massa’s engine will pop, Kimi just seems to be on a bad run of luck that carried on today.
Anyone heard anything about the mechanic Kimi ran over?
Becken
5th September 2008, 23:26
Berny,
I Heard that he is fine.
Another issue: did anyone heard the “hard talk between Kubica and his mechanics via radio?
Wesley
5th September 2008, 23:32
This has to be one of the biggest prediction threads so far.
Wesley
5th September 2008, 23:56
Another issue: did anyone heard the “hard talk between Kubica and his mechanics via radio?
Whats that about Becken?
Becken
6th September 2008, 0:03
Some friends from a spanish blog has told me that were a hard pit-radio exchange between Kubica and his engineer but cant find it in web.
I only found this on internet:
“The car is nowhere – it is not working”
Sush
6th September 2008, 1:24
my heart wants Kimi to win this round
but my head says shut your ventricle. Massa.
i expect Sutil to fair well this weekend, like he did last year here, fighting ralf’s toyota in his evil handling spyker (but rather good looking may i add).
massa
kimi
hamilton
Jack
6th September 2008, 8:45
1. Raikkonen
2. Alonso
3. Hamilton
guille2306
6th September 2008, 14:33
After qualy:
Massa (he’ll be first at Eau Rouge)
Hamilton
Raikonen (passing Kovalainen in the long straight after Eau Rouge)
Dan Wells
6th September 2008, 16:25
1. Heidfeld
2. Raikonnen
3. Kovy
ScuderiaToroFerrari4Eva
7th September 2008, 1:21
i think it will be 1 Raikkonen 2 Vettel 3 Massa or Bourdais :D