Sao Paulo, Brazil - 2/11/2008
Nico Rosberg and Kazuki Nakajima were caught up in a first-corner incident, eventually finishing 12th and 17th respectively. But it was events on the last lap of a dramatic Brazilian Grand Prix that everyone's talking about.
The race saw Lewis Hamilton become the youngest world champion in Formula One history – by the narrowest of margins. Ferrari's Felipe Massa won the race, but the Briton grabbed the fifth place he needed for the title at the very last corner.
A late shower of rain looked to have cost Hamilton his dream when he dropped to sixth after a stop for wet tyres. But he passed Toyota's Timo Glock as they entered the pit straight.
Renault's Fernando Alonso was second ahead of Massa's team-mate, Kimi Raikkonen, with Toro Rosso's Sebastian Vettel fourth.
As the champagne flowed in the McLaren camp, it was another day of disappointment for the RBS-supported AT&T Williams team. However, it could have been much worse as both cars were involved in a first-corner coming together. The incident ended David Coulthard's race, but the Williams duo were able to continue – Nico more successfully than Kazuki.
"The car took a lot of damage to the bodywork and to the suspension which compromised my pace a lot," said Kazuki. "It was pretty much over for me in the first corner."
Nico, who started down the grid, was pleased with his progress. "Starting 18th on the grid and finishing 12th in such difficult conditions is okay," he said. "I think I drove a good race."
Meanwhile, Technical Director Sam Michael delivered a 'must do better' end of season report for the Williams team.
"Although we have had some strong races this year and a couple of podium finishes, development of the FW30 was not enough to remain competitive," he said. "Reliability was again solid, with only one mechanical DNF in 36 starts."
Sam also revealed that the RBS-supported team was already well advanced in their plans for 2009. "Some time ago, we arranged our internal resource to concentrate on development for '09," he added. "Everyone at the factory is now fully focussed on next season in order to ensure we have a much more competitive car."
Williams co-owner Patrick Head made an 11th-hour decision not to travel to Sao Paulo, so technical director Sam Michael stepped into the breach. The only problem was that, as an Australian, Sam needed a visa – and the red tape normally takes five days to overcome. Team principal Sir Frank Williams pulled some strings with the Brazilian embassy, the matter was resolved in a matter of minutes and Sam was on his way.
Lewis Hamilton became the youngest Formula One world champion in history, claiming the crown at the age of 23 years and 9 months. The previous record holder was last year's arch rival Fernando Alonso, who was 124 days older when he claimed the first of his two titles for Renault in 2005. Alonso visited the McLaren pits to congratulate Hamilton.
