2007 French Grand Prix

The 2007 French Grand Prix, otherwise known as the XCIII Grand Prix de France, was the eighth round of the FIA Formula One World Championship, staged at the Circuit de Nevers Magny-Cours in Magny-Cours, France, on 1 July 2007.'France 2007: Raikkonen puts Ferrari back on-track.', crash.net, (Crash Media Group, 01/07/2007), https://www.crash.net/f1/race-report/59078/1/france-2007-raikkonen-puts-ferrari-back-on-track, (Accessed 15/02/2020) The race would see Kimi Räikkönen secure his second victory of the season for , having jumped teammate Felipe Massa late on.
After being trounced by the two in the two North American races, Ferrari put on a strong show in qualifying, with Massa claiming pole position while Räikkönen secured third. They were, however, split by Lewis Hamilton in the #2 McLaren, while Fernando Alonso had been unable to compete in Q3 after a gearbox failure.
Race morning would arrive with some tragic news, as a helicopter crash at the Magny-Cours circuit had seen three people die, including PR man Emmanuel Longobardi, pilot Pierre Bennehard and a New Zealander named Simon McGill.'Three dead after helicopter crash', autosport.com, (Haymarket Media, 01/07/2007), https://www.autosport.com/f1/news/60377/three-dead-after-helicopter-crash, (Accessed 15/02/2020) A Bridgestone worker and his niece escaped with injuries, although there were no plans to postpone or cancel the race.
After a minute's silence on the grid the field were released for the start, with Massa acing his getaway to claim an early lead. Behind, Räikkönen would get the jump on Hamilton to secure second, while Anthony Davidson hit a cautious Vitantonio Liuzzi, in a collision that saw the swing back into the side of the .
Further incidents on the opening lap saw Jarno Trulli take himself out by slamming into the back of Heikki Kovalainen at Adelaide, gifting Alonso two places. Out front, meanwhile, Massa would eek out a lead ahead of Räikkönen, while Hamilton quickly pulled clear of a returning Robert Kubica in the #10 .
Indeed, Kubica would form something of a bottle neck during the opening stages of the race, with the top three all escaping up the road. That hence allowed Alonso to pick his way past Nico Rosberg in Kubica's drawn out train, although the Spaniard would find Nick Heidfeld putting up a very stubborn defence.
Heidfeld's resistance would last through to the pit window, with Hamilton the first of the leaders to stop on lap sixteen. Worryingly for McLaren's hopes the two Ferraris would continue to circulate for several laps, with Massa coming in on lap nineteen, and Räikkönen lasting until lap 21.
That effectively ended Hamilton's bid for victory, for the two Ferraris were able to ease clear during the second stint, with Räikkönen also drawing in Massa. Their fight would, however, be decided in the pitlane, as Alonso provided most of the on-track action by passing Heidfeld and Giancarlo Fisichella, only to slip back behind them after making an early second stop.
Massa was the first of the leaders to pit on lap 43, joined in the pitlane by Hamilton, with Räikkönen inheriting the lead. Two quick laps later and the Finn was in, and would subsequently sprint out of the pits ahead of Massa to secure the race lead.
With the race was over, with Räikkönen eking out a two second lead during the closing stages to claim his second win of the season. Hamilton finished a distant third to complete the podium, while Kubica claimed a lonely fourth. Heidfeld and Fisichella were next ahead of Alonso, while Jenson Button claimed a rare point for the desperately poor squad in eighth.
==Background==
Lewis Hamilton had extended his Championship lead as a result of the US Grand Prix, with his second victory in succession taking him up to 58 points for the campaign. That meant he held a ten point advantage over teammate Fernando Alonso, while Felipe Massa in third had slipped nineteen points behind in third. Kimi Räikkönen also looked to have fallen too far back to challenge in fourth, as Mark Webber and Sebastian Vettel added their names to the scorer's list.
In the Constructors Championship it was, unsurprisingly, who once again left a Grand Prix in with an enhanced lead, their third one-two of the campaign putting them on 106 points. hence had continued their tumble away from the lead, slipping back by 35 points, while were an even more distant third on 39. had hence made a little ground on the German-Swiss alliance, while held station in fifth once again.
===Entry list===
The full entry list for the is outlined below:
No. 	Driver 	Entrant 	Constructor 	Chassis 	Engine 	Model 	Tyre
1 	Fernando Alonso 	Vodafone McLaren Mercedes 	 	MP4-22 	 	FO 108T 2.4 V8 	
2 	Lewis Hamilton 	Vodafone McLaren Mercedes 	 	MP4-22 	 	FO 108T 2.4 V8 	
3 	Giancarlo Fisichella 	ING Renault F1 Team 	 	R27 	 	RS27 2.4 V8 	
4 	Heikki Kovalainen 	ING Renault F1 Team 	 	R27 	 	RS27 2.4 V8 	
5 	Felipe Massa 	Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro 	 	F2007 	 	056 2007 2.4 V8 	
6 	Kimi Räikkönen 	Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro 	 	F2007 	 	056 2007 2.4 V8 	
7 	Jenson Button 	Honda Racing F1 Team 	 	RA107 	 	RA807E 2.4 V8 	
8 	Rubens Barrichello 	Honda Racing F1 Team 	 	RA107 	 	RA807E 2.4 V8 	
9 	Nick Heidfeld 	BMW Sauber F1 Team 	 	F1.07 	 	P86/7 2.4 V8 	
10 	Robert Kubica 	BMW Sauber F1 Team 	 	F1.07 	 	P86/7 2.4 V8 	
11 	Ralf Schumacher 	Panasonic Toyota Racing 	 	TF107 	 	RVX-07 2.4 V8 	
12 	Jarno Trulli 	Panasonic Toyota Racing 	 	TF107 	 	RVX-07 2.4 V8 	
14 	David Coulthard 	Red Bull Racing 	 	RB3 	 	RS27 2.4 V8 	
15 	Mark Webber 	Red Bull Racing 	 	RB3 	 	RS27 2.4 V8 	
16 	Nico Rosberg 	AT&T Williams 	 	FW29 	 	RVX-07 2.4 V8 	
17 	Alexander Wurz 	AT&T Williams 	 	FW29 	 	RVX-07 2.4 V8 	
18 	Vitantonio Liuzzi 	Scuderia Toro Rosso 	 	STR2 	 	056 2006 2.4 V8 	
19 	Scott Speed 	Scuderia Toro Rosso 	 	STR2 	 	056 2006 2.4 V8 	
20 	Adrian Sutil 	Etihad Alder Spyker F1 Team 	 	F8-VII 	 	056 2006 2.4 V8 	
21 	Christijan Albers 	Etihad Alder Spyker F1 Team 	 	F8-VII 	 	056 2006 2.4 V8 	
22 	Takuma Sato 	Super Aguri F1 Team 	 	SA07 	 	RA807E 2.4 V8 	
23 	Anthony Davidson 	Super Aguri F1 Team 	 	SA07 	 	RA807E 2.4 V8 	
Source:'France 2007: Entrants', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2014), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/france/engages.aspx, (Accessed 15/02/2020)	Source:'France 2007: Entrants', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2014), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/france/engages.aspx, (Accessed 15/02/2020)	Source:'France 2007: Entrants', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2014), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/france/engages.aspx, (Accessed 15/02/2020)	Source:'France 2007: Entrants', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2014), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/france/engages.aspx, (Accessed 15/02/2020)	Source:'France 2007: Entrants', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2014), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/france/engages.aspx, (Accessed 15/02/2020)	Source:'France 2007: Entrants', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2014), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/france/engages.aspx, (Accessed 15/02/2020)	Source:'France 2007: Entrants', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2014), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/france/engages.aspx, (Accessed 15/02/2020)	Source:'France 2007: Entrants', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2014), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/france/engages.aspx, (Accessed 15/02/2020)
==Practice Overview==
==Qualifying==
===Q1===
===Q2===
===Q3===
===Qualifying Results===
The full qualifying results for the are outlined below:
Pos. 	No. 	Driver 	Team 	 	Q1 	Q1 	 	Q2 	Q2 	 	Q3 	Q3 	Grid
Pos. 	No. 	Driver 	Team 	 	Pos. 	Time 	 	Pos. 	Time 	 	Pos. 	Time 	Grid
1 	5 	Felipe Massa 	 	 	3 	1:15.303 	 	2 	1:14.822 	 	1 	1:15.034 	1
2 	2 	Lewis Hamilton 	 	 	1 	1:14.805 	 	1 	1:14.795 	 	2 	1:15.104 	2
3 	6 	Kimi Räikkönen 	 	 	2 	1:14.872 	 	3 	1:14.828 	 	3 	1:15.257 	3
4 	10 	Robert Kubica 	 	 	8 	1:15.778 	 	4 	1:15.066 	 	4 	1:15.493 	4
5 	3 	Giancarlo Fisichella 	 	 	12 	1:16.047 	 	7 	1:15.227 	 	5 	1:15.674 	5
6 	4 	Heikki Kovalainen 	 	 	5 	1:15.524 	 	8 	1:15.272 	 	6 	1:15.826 	6
7 	9 	Nick Heidfeld 	 	 	9 	1:15.783 	 	6 	1:15.149 	 	7 	1:15.900 	7
8 	12 	Jarno Trulli 	 	 	15 	1:16.118 	 	10 	1:15.379 	 	8 	1:15.935 	8
9 	16 	Nico Rosberg 	 	 	13 	1:16.092 	 	9 	1:15.331 	 	9 	1:16.328 	9
10 	1 	Fernando Alonso 	 	 	4 	1:15.322 	 	5 	1:15.084 	 	NC 	— 	10
11 	11 	Ralf Schumacher 	 	 	7 	1:15.760 	 	11 	1:15.534 	 	 	 	11
12 	7 	Jenson Button 	 	 	14 	1:16.113 	 	12 	1:15.584 	 	 	 	12
13 	8 	Rubens Barrichello 	 	 	16 	1:16.140 	 	13 	1:15.761 	 	 	 	13
14 	15 	Mark Webber 	 	 	6 	1:15.746 	 	14 	1:15.806 	 	 	 	14
15 	19 	Scott Speed 	 	 	11 	1:15.980 	 	15 	1:16.049 	 	 	 	15
16 	14 	David Coulthard 	 	 	10 	1:15.915 	 	NC 	— 	 	 	 	16
17 	18 	Vitantonio Liuzzi 	 	 	17 	1:16.142 	 	 	 	 	 	 	17
18 	17 	Alexander Wurz 	 	 	18 	1:16.241 	 	 	 	 	 	 	18
19* 	22 	Takuma Sato 	 	 	19 	1:16.244 	 	 	 	 	 	 	22
20 	23 	Anthony Davidson 	 	 	20 	1:16.366 	 	 	 	 	 	 	19
21 	21 	Christijan Albers 	 	 	21 	1:17.826 	 	 	 	 	 	 	20
22 	20 	Adrian Sutil 	 	 	22 	1:17.915 	 	 	 	 	 	 	21
Source:'FORMULA 1™ Grand Prix de France 2007 - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2006), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2007/races/815/france/qualifying.html, (Accessed 15/02/2020)	Source:'FORMULA 1™ Grand Prix de France 2007 - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2006), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2007/races/815/france/qualifying.html, (Accessed 15/02/2020)	Source:'FORMULA 1™ Grand Prix de France 2007 - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2006), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2007/races/815/france/qualifying.html, (Accessed 15/02/2020)	Source:'FORMULA 1™ Grand Prix de France 2007 - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2006), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2007/races/815/france/qualifying.html, (Accessed 15/02/2020)	Source:'FORMULA 1™ Grand Prix de France 2007 - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2006), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2007/races/815/france/qualifying.html, (Accessed 15/02/2020)	Source:'FORMULA 1™ Grand Prix de France 2007 - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2006), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2007/races/815/france/qualifying.html, (Accessed 15/02/2020)	Source:'FORMULA 1™ Grand Prix de France 2007 - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2006), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2007/races/815/france/qualifying.html, (Accessed 15/02/2020)	Source:'FORMULA 1™ Grand Prix de France 2007 - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2006), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2007/races/815/france/qualifying.html, (Accessed 15/02/2020)	Source:'FORMULA 1™ Grand Prix de France 2007 - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2006), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2007/races/815/france/qualifying.html, (Accessed 15/02/2020)	Source:'FORMULA 1™ Grand Prix de France 2007 - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2006), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2007/races/815/france/qualifying.html, (Accessed 15/02/2020)	Source:'FORMULA 1™ Grand Prix de France 2007 - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2006), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2007/races/815/france/qualifying.html, (Accessed 15/02/2020)	Source:'FORMULA 1™ Grand Prix de France 2007 - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2006), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2007/races/815/france/qualifying.html, (Accessed 15/02/2020)	Source:'FORMULA 1™ Grand Prix de France 2007 - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2006), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2007/races/815/france/qualifying.html, (Accessed 15/02/2020)	Source:'FORMULA 1™ Grand Prix de France 2007 - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2006), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2007/races/815/france/qualifying.html, (Accessed 15/02/2020)
*T Indicates a driver used their test/spare car to set their best time in that session.
*Bold indicates the fastest driver's time in each session.
** Sato was handed a retroactive ten place grid penalty for causing a collision at the 2007 United States Grand Prix.
===Grid===
** Sutil started the race from the pitlane.
==Race==
===Report===
===Results===
The full results for the are outlined below:
Pos. 	No. 	Driver 	Constructor 	Laps 	Time/Retired 	Grid 	Points
1 	6 	Kimi Räikkönen 	 	70 	1:30:54.200 	3 	10
2 	5 	Felipe Massa 	 	70 	+2.414s 	1 	8
3 	2 	Lewis Hamilton 	 	70 	+32.153s 	2 	6
4 	10 	Robert Kubica 	 	70 	+41.727s 	4 	5
5 	9 	Nick Heidfeld 	 	70 	+48.801s 	7 	4
6 	3 	Giancarlo Fisichella 	 	70 	+51.940s 	5 	3
7 	1 	Fernando Alonso 	 	70 	+56.516s 	10 	2
8 	7 	Jenson Button 	 	70 	+58.885s 	12 	1
9 	16 	Nico Rosberg 	 	70 	+1:08.505 	9 	
10 	11 	Ralf Schumacher 	 	69 	+1 Lap 	11 	
11 	8 	Rubens Barrichello 	 	69 	+1 Lap 	13 	
12 	15 	Mark Webber 	 	69 	+1 Lap 	14 	
13 	14 	David Coulthard 	 	69 	+1 Lap 	16 	
14 	17 	Alexander Wurz 	 	69 	+1 Lap 	18 	
15 	4 	Heikki Kovalainen 	 	69 	+1 Lap 	6 	
16 	22 	Takuma Sato 	 	68 	+2 Laps 	22 	
17 	20 	Adrian Sutil 	 	68 	+2 Laps 	PL 	
Ret 	19 	Scott Speed 	 	55 	Gearbox 	15 	
Ret 	21 	Christijan Albers 	 	28 	Refuelling 	20 	
Ret 	23 	Anthony Davidson 	 	1 	Collision 	19 	
Ret 	12 	Jarno Trulli 	 	1 	Collision 	8 	
Ret 	18 	Vitantonio Liuzzi 	 	0 	Collision 	17 	
Source:'France 2007: Result', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2016), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/france/classement.aspx, (Accessed 15/02/2020)	Source:'France 2007: Result', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2016), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/france/classement.aspx, (Accessed 15/02/2020)	Source:'France 2007: Result', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2016), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/france/classement.aspx, (Accessed 15/02/2020)	Source:'France 2007: Result', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2016), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/france/classement.aspx, (Accessed 15/02/2020)	Source:'France 2007: Result', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2016), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/france/classement.aspx, (Accessed 15/02/2020)	Source:'France 2007: Result', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2016), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/france/classement.aspx, (Accessed 15/02/2020)	Source:'France 2007: Result', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2016), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/france/classement.aspx, (Accessed 15/02/2020)	Source:'France 2007: Result', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2016), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/france/classement.aspx, (Accessed 15/02/2020)
*T Indicates a driver used their test/spare car.
==Milestones==
* Kimi Räikkönen secured his eleventh career victory.'8. France 2007', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2014), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/france.aspx, (Accessed 15/02/2020)
** Also Räikkönen's 40th podium finish.
* secured their 196th win as a constructor and engine supplier.
* Lewis Hamilton registered the 170th podium finish for as an engine supplier.
==Standings==
Victory for Kimi Räikkönen moved the Finn closer to the fight for second, with both himself and teammate Felipe Massa closing in on Fernando Alonso. Out front, meanwhile, an eighth consecutive podium finish had allowed rookie racer Lewis Hamilton to extend his Championship lead, the Brit leaving France on 64 points, and with fourteen points in hand over his teammate. Elsewhere, Nick Heidfeld had consolidated fifth ahead of Robert Kubica, as Jenson Button added his name to the score sheet.
In the Constructors Championship it had finally been a strong afternoon for , with their one-two ending streak of race victories. However, the Scuderia remained 25 points behind the leaders leaving Magny-Cours, with the two manufacturers sharing four wins apiece after the opening eight races. Behind, were in a lonely third ahead of , while 's first points of the campaign meant it was just and who had yet to score in .
World Championship for Drivers	World Championship for Drivers	World Championship for Drivers	World Championship for Drivers
Pos. 	Driver 	Pts. 	+/-
1 	Lewis Hamilton 	64 	
2 	Fernando Alonso 	50 	
3 	Felipe Massa 	47 	
4 	Kimi Räikkönen 	42 	
5 	Nick Heidfeld 	30 	
6 	Robert Kubica 	17 	1
7 	Giancarlo Fisichella 	16 	1
8 	Heikki Kovalainen 	12 	
9 	Alexander Wurz 	8 	
10 	Jarno Trulli 	7 	
11 	Nico Rosberg 	5 	
12 	David Coulthard 	4 	
13 	Takuma Sato 	4 	
14 	Mark Webber 	2 	
15 	Ralf Schumacher 	2 	
16 	Jenson Button 	1 	3
17 	Sebastian Vettel 	1 	1
World Championship for Constructors*	World Championship for Constructors*	World Championship for Constructors*	World Championship for Constructors*
Pos. 	Team 	Pts. 	+/-
1 	 	114 	
2 	 	89 	
3 	 	48 	
4 	 	28 	
5 	 	13 	
6 	 	9 	
7 	 	6 	
8 	 	4 	
9 	 	1 	1
Only points scoring drivers and constructors are shown.
** Includes points scored by before their exclusion prior to the 2007 Belgian Grand Prix.
==References==
Images and Videos:
*
References:
Category:Grand Prix articles
Category:2007 Grands Prix
Category:French Grand Prix
Category:Formula One races in France