The best moments of 2008

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The spellbinding championship climax was the defining moment of 2008

After that intense season finale it seems silly to ask what the best moment of the year was.

But there were other high points besides that in 2008. Here’s some of the most popular suggestions from F1 Fanatic readers and a few of my favourites too.

The last three laps at Interlagos

The unbelievable drama of the final laps at Interlagos will be remembered as one of the great moments in any sport – never mind just Formula 1. The tension ratcheted up as the rain started to fall and drivers dashed for the pits. Suddenly Vettel scrambled past Hamilton and the title was in Massa’s hands – but it all changed in the dying seconds as Glock’s tyre gamble failed and Hamilton grabbed the vital fifth place back.

Heart-breaking for Massa’s fans, heart-stopping for Hamilton’s. Don’t count on seeing the world championship decided at the final corner of the season again any time soon.

Muckymuck added of praise for Massa’s win at home:

Under all that pressure, he did what he needed to do and decimated the competition from qualifying to finish line. Total composure.

Re-live the last laps at Interlagos: " Achtung Glock!" "Na ?â??ltima curva!" – How the world saw F1 title shock (Video)

Sebastian Vettel becomes F1’s youngest winner

Loki nominated this (as did Scott Joslin):

Vettel at Monza (and over the course of the second part of the season).

At the beginning of 2008 there were doubts over whether Sebastian Vettel had the substance to back up the hype. Monza surely answered those questions and set Vettel on the path to future stardom.

Hamilton’s home win

Sam and David Watkins picked Lewis Hamilton’s crushing win in the pouring rain at Silverstone as favourite moments of the season. So did Scott Joslin – who was there:

Being in the crowd at Silverstone on race day – great atmosphere and great race.

There’s nothing like seeing a driver win their home race – Lady Snowcat, who was at Interlagos, would surely agree. But the manner of Hamilton’s win at Silverstone was something else – it was the most emphatic victory we saw all year and the most dominant performance for many seasons.

More of my favourite moments

More of my highlights:

Timo Glock at Hungary – Excellent drive to second place.
Rubens Barrichello at Silverstone – F1’s most experienced driver ever proved it’s not time for him to call it a day just yet.
Felipe Massa’s pass on Lewis Hamilton at Hungary – Where did that come from? Awesome stuff.
Qualifying at Monza – From the strangeness of seeing the cars lapping a drenched Monza, to the drama as three of the title contenders failed to make it into Q3, this was one of the best qualifying sessions of the year.

What were your favourite moments of 2008? Share the below and read more here: 2008 – best and worst moments (forum)

Author information

Keith Collantine
Lifelong motor sport fan Keith set up RaceFans in 2005 - when it was originally called F1 Fanatic. Having previously worked as a motoring...

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14 comments on “The best moments of 2008”

  1. No mention of Spa anywhere; Keith?

    I would put Hungary start as one of the many.. Felipe’s start came as a bolt from the blue.. Before that; I never thought Felipe could win the championship..
    Even Massa’s engine failure there was a bolt from the blue; and probably the most cruel end to any driver’s race in 2008.

    Ofcurse; Brazil 2008 last 5 laps. Heart-breaking for Massa fans; Heart-stopping for Lewis fans; and I am sure it gave a heart-attack to the rest

  2. where is monaco ? surely that deserves to be there ?

  3. The sense of utter disbelief when Hamilton ran into Raikkonen (at that point his main title rival) in Canada? Kubica’s win? Alonso’s win in Singapore? Hamilton reeling in Massa at Turkey? Sutil running in fourth at Monaco? Alonso almost stealing pole at Barcelona? What a season…

  4. The best moment was the two first laps of Fuji GP. xD

  5. I am not sure if it was the colder rain at Silverstone but I assure you that having been at Silversone and Interlagos this year….. Britain has a long way to catch up for atmosphere and enthusiasm…

    Probably the nature of the small track on the side of a hill makes it a more intimate and fun experience as you can see more from any stand than you can on an airfield site…

    In any circumstances I recommend Interlagos and just wish I’d been there for 2007….

  6. The last laps of Belgium were stupendous.

    Especially Heidfeld and Alonso flying around on the last lap while everyone else crept about on the wrong rubber.

  7. @sumedh
    I’ll enforce your request for a mention for Spa! Not even the stewards’ decision was capable to taint that final laps, when Raikkonen and Hamilton traded passes and spins!

    As for the rest, I think Keith made great choices…

  8. Other than the obvious thriller in Brazil, I thought the last laps at Spa were the most exciting racing in a decade. It was fantastic.

  9. Aside from the obvious…

    My favorite moment and least favorite moment are bundled into one: Lewis Hamilton reeling in Kimi Raikkonen and setting up that great and terrible sequence from Blanchimont to La Source. It was truly exciting to see the big boys actually racing one another at Spa.

    Not only was it great racing, it was good to see Kimi in dominant form for most of the race.

    It would have been absolutely perfect if it weren’t for the FIA’s meddling… but we’ve addressed that subject enough already.

    I also enjoyed Lewis tearing through a rain drenched Beckett’s on the first lap of the British Grand Prix.

    And who can against Seb V and Bobby K’s first wins?

  10. Vettels First Win at Monza – Though Bourdais prove unlucky, but both the Sebs used Friday free practice to get their setup prefected. They knew where the puddles of waters were on the track and by driving the cars in the rain, all this thoroughness helped STR to beat the bigger team who relied too much on Data.
    Whatever happened on Saturday and Sunday for STR and Vettel was not fluke

  11. Also; the entire Singapore GP weekend. Night racing definitely lived up to its hype.
    Just the images of cars streaking around in the dark; with light reflecting off the livery; was pure wallpaper stuff ;)

    A success for Formula1 as a whole.

  12. The best moments of the season for me have all been when we had rain. Monaco, Silverstone, Monza and Interlagos.

    Because of the Championship situation the last few last laps in Brazil will probably go down as one the most dramatic moments in sport let alone F1.

  13. 2008 is a fantastic year for motorsport,most championship have a thrilling finale

    my top 3(4) stirrings moments in random order:

    F1 Belgium and Brazil last laps

    Irl finale at Chicagoland

    last stages of the Petit Le Mans

  14. My BMW team showing thier reliability and watching Vettel was incredible,he has heart and soul.

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