The final points’ position went to
Mark Webber and it was good to see him and
Williams score. It is the first time that they have managed it since the race at the Nurburgring back at the start of May, a fact that certainly won’t please those at the Grove-based outfit. Nico Rosberg’s eleventh place wasn’t bad either so, hopefully, they can end the year with a bit of a flourish. All too often, good results have been possible for them this season, only for mechanical problems to let them down.
Further down the order,
Red Bull Racing got both cars home, with
David Coulthard ninth and Robert Doornbos twelfth, the latter not doing anything especially spectacular though, having been drafted in to replace Christian Klien.
The two Toro Rosso cars finished as well, tenth and 14th, which, all things considered, wasn’t bad for them. In fact, a top ten finish is pretty positive for them.
I think the team that disappointed me most were
Toyota, as a double DNF just isn’t what we expect of them. The fact they qualified so badly and didn’t do much in the race before going out just adds salt to the wound.
Of course, the Japanese GP will be an important one for them, as it will for
Honda and
Super Aguri. Going on what we saw in Shanghai, Honda at least has a chance to give the home crowd something to cheer about, whereas home heroes,
Takuma Sato and Sakon Yamamoto, will do well to finish and bring their cars home in the top twelve.
Taku didn’t do too badly, of course, in his SA06 in China, and the fact he was disqualified was perhaps a tad harsh. But, on the other hand, the stewards have a lot more information at hand than I do, so it is just something he will have to put down to experience.
So, to sum up, only two people will really be in line to win this Sunday,
Fernando Alonso and
Michael Schumacher – and recent events suggest that Schumacher will win.
Let’s wait and see what happens on Sunday though...
Enjoy the race,
MB
