Formula One news
Damage limitation day at McLaren
01 July 2007 / Results / PhotosMcLaren Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton finished third in the French Grand Prix at Magny-Cours and took his eighth podium finish in the eighth race of the season. After 70 laps, Lewis came home 32.1 seconds behind winner Kimi Raikkonen. Fernando who had started 10th on the grid following a gearbox problem in qualifying, ended up seventh.
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"I'm pleased to have finished third today and have continued my run of podium finishes in Formula 1," Hamilton said. "I didn't have the best start and I don't know exactly what the reason was. My car was very good in the opening stage of the race, and I pushed hard to get past Kimi, but unfortunately it didn't work out. We opted for a three-stop strategy. I am happy for my team as we are still heading both the drivers' and constructors' rankings. We will now focus on the British Grand Prix next week where I think we will be competitive again. I am confident for a better weekend at my home Grand Prix as everybody in the team has worked very hard for this, as we do for every race."
Alonso commented, "I did the maximum I could today, but we knew it would be difficult starting 10th with a fuel strategy that was originally aiming for a top three grid position. This meant that at the pit stops I was always changing positions and ending up behind those I had already passed. The fight with Nick Heidfeld was fun, but it was a lot of hard work. I also made a good move on Giancarlo. I am contesting the World Championship, so I had to do whatever I could today and was not worried about the risks. It is a disappointing result, but we will have to look to improve next week, where we should be strong."
Team boss Ron Dennis added, "A difficult race. Both drivers put in solid performances, and particularly Fernando, who for me was the man of the race with his various battles against Heidfeld and Fisichella. We had the option of switching between a two or three-stop strategy for Lewis, and we opted for the latter to ensure that he had minimal traffic and maintained his strong and safe third position. Fernando's race was always going to be challenging starting from 10th, but our aim was to score points, which he did. However it is clear that we were not as competitive as we hoped, but coming to our home Grand Prix in Silverstone next weekend, we are still leading both World Championships and we will be strong there."
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