2007 Belgian Grand Prix

The LXIII ING Grand Prix de Belgique, otherwise known as the 2007 Belgian Grand Prix, was the fourteenth round of the FIA Formula One World Championship, staged at the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps near Spa, Belgium, on 16 September 2007.Ollie Barstow, 'Belgium 2007: Kimi cruises at Spa.', crash.net, (Crash Media Group, 16/09/2007), https://www.crash.net/f1/race-report/59962/1/belgium-2007-kimi-cruises-at-spa, (Accessed 18/02/2020) The race, which marked the return of Spa and the Belgian Grand Prix to the F1 calendar, would see Kimi Räikkönen claim a dominant victory, as events off circuit overshadowed the weekend.
In the build-up to the Grand Prix the FIA had held a hearing on 13 September, which investigated new evidence in the "Spygate Scandal" between and .'McLaren hit by constructors' ban', bbc.co.uk/sport, (British Broadcasting Company, 13/09/2007), http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/motorsport/formula_one/6991147.stm, (Accessed 18/02/2020) The investigation concluded that Ferrari technical secrets had been in McLaren's possession and that discussions about its use had been held between team personnel.
McLaren were slapped with a record $100 million fine, excluded from the 2007 Championship, and would have to submit all of their technical documents to the FIA when they homologated their car. However, having given information to the FIA tribunal in return for immunity from punishment, McLaren's drivers Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso, first and second in the Championship, would be allowed to keep their points, and could continue to compete for the Drivers' Championship.
With McLaren excluded from the Constructors' Championship Ferrari could wrap-up the title in Spa, and duly claimed a front-row lock out in qualifying as Räikkönen claimed pole ahead of Felipe Massa. Alonso and Hamilton would share the second row in the two McLarens, while the s of Robert Kubica and Nick Heidfeld were split by Nico Rosberg, before Kubica was slapped with a grid penalty.
During qualifying news emerged of the death of World Rally Champion Colin McRae in a helicopter crash, a man known to many in the paddock, and a personal friend of David Coulthard.'Rally ace Colin McRae dies in helicopter crash', scotsman.com, (The Scotsman, 15/09/2007), https://www.scotsman.com/news-2-15012/rally-ace-colin-mcrae-dies-in-helicopter-crash-1-1423322, (Accessed 18/02/2020)
The start of the race saw the two Ferraris pull away cleanly, formation flying into La Source with Räikkönen ahead of Massa. Behind, Hamilton challenged Alonso for third but was shoved wide, with the rest of the field squeezing into the hairpin with a fair amount of rubbing.
With that the Ferraris were away, with the McLarens simply unable to match the pace of the scarlet cars during the first stint of the race. Elsewhere, Giancarlo Fisichella became the race's first retirement with a suspension failure on lap two, while Sebastian Vettel was forced to stop early with a handling issue which stemmed from a collision early on.
The first round of stops saw little change to the order, with Massa briefly inheriting the lead when Räikkönen stopped on lap fifteen. However, a battle for the lead would never emerge, with Räikkönen having enough in hand to keep Massa at bay as they exchanged a series of fastest laps.
The order stabilised once again, with the only changes coming as retirements removed Coulthard and Jenson Button from contention. The second round of stops played out much as the first, with Massa getting one lap in the lead before pitting, while Alonso and Hamilton could make no progress against the Ferraris.
With that the race was run, with Räikkönen cruising through ahead of Massa to secure a dominant one-two and the Constructors Championship for Ferrari. Alonso finished third to complete the podium and move just two points behind teammate Hamilton in the Drivers' Championship, with the Brit himself having finished a lonely fourth. Heidfeld, Rosberg, Mark Webber and Heikki Kovalainen claimed the remaining points.
==Background==
Fernando Alonso would inch closer to Lewis Hamilton at the top of the Championship hunt with victory in Italy, the Spanish racer closing the gap to just three points with four rounds to go. They had both increased their advantage over third placed Kimi Räikkönen, who had slipped fifteen behind Alonso, while Felipe Massa was on the verge of dropping out of the hunt altogether in fourth, having fallen 23 behind. Elsewhere, Nick Heidfeld was still mathematically in the hunt in fifth, but effectively needed to win all four of the remaining races, and see Hamilton fail to score.
In the Constructors Championship it was who continued to lead the way, and had extended their advantage to 23 points over . Furthermore, with third placed falling 80 points behind and out of mathematical range, there was a real threat that the FIA Hearing scheduled for 13 September could decide the Constructors Championship if McLaren were thrown out of the Championship. The Swiss-German alliance would therefore remain in the hunt, but would still have to overcome a 57 point deficit.
===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 	Sebastian Vettel 	Scuderia Toro Rosso 	 	STR2 	 	056 2006 2.4 V8 	
20 	Adrian Sutil 	Etihad Alder Spyker F1 Team 	 	F8-VII-B 	 	056 2006 2.4 V8 	
21 	Sakon Yamamoto 	Etihad Alder Spyker F1 Team 	 	F8-VII-B 	 	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:'Belgium 2007: Entrants', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2014), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/belgique/engages.aspx, (Accessed 19/02/2020)	Source:'Belgium 2007: Entrants', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2014), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/belgique/engages.aspx, (Accessed 19/02/2020)	Source:'Belgium 2007: Entrants', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2014), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/belgique/engages.aspx, (Accessed 19/02/2020)	Source:'Belgium 2007: Entrants', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2014), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/belgique/engages.aspx, (Accessed 19/02/2020)	Source:'Belgium 2007: Entrants', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2014), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/belgique/engages.aspx, (Accessed 19/02/2020)	Source:'Belgium 2007: Entrants', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2014), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/belgique/engages.aspx, (Accessed 19/02/2020)	Source:'Belgium 2007: Entrants', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2014), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/belgique/engages.aspx, (Accessed 19/02/2020)	Source:'Belgium 2007: Entrants', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2014), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/belgique/engages.aspx, (Accessed 19/02/2020)
==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 	6 	Kimi Räikkönen 	 	 	3 	1:46.242 	 	1 	1:45.070 	 	1 	1:45.994 	1
2 	5 	Felipe Massa 	 	 	2 	1:46.060 	 	3 	1:45.173 	 	2 	1:46.011 	2
3 	1 	Fernando Alonso 	 	 	1 	1:46.058 	 	4 	1:45.442 	 	3 	1:46.091 	3
4 	2 	Lewis Hamilton 	 	 	4 	1:46.437 	 	2 	1:45.132 	 	4 	1:46.406 	4
5* 	10 	Robert Kubica 	 	 	5 	1:46.707 	 	5 	1:45.885 	 	5 	1:46.996 	14
6 	16 	Nico Rosberg 	 	 	7 	1:46.950 	 	9 	1:46.469 	 	6 	1:47.334 	5
7 	9 	Nick Heidfeld 	 	 	6 	1:46.923 	 	6 	1:45.994 	 	7 	1:47.409 	6
8 	15 	Mark Webber 	 	 	9 	1:47.084 	 	8 	1:46.426 	 	8 	1:47.524 	7
9 	12 	Jarno Trulli 	 	 	10 	1:47.143 	 	10 	1:46.480 	 	9 	1:47.798 	8
10 	4 	Heikki Kovalainen 	 	 	8 	1:46.971 	 	7 	1:46.240 	 	10 	1:48.505 	9
11† 	3 	Giancarlo Fisichella 	 	 	11 	1:47.143 	 	11 	1:46.603 	 	 	 	22
12 	11 	Ralf Schumacher 	 	 	12 	1:47.300 	 	12 	1:46.618 	 	 	 	10
13 	14 	David Coulthard 	 	 	13 	1:47.340 	 	13 	1:46.800 	 	 	 	11
14 	7 	Jenson Button 	 	 	14 	1:47.474 	 	14 	1:46.955 	 	 	 	12
15 	18 	Vitantonio Liuzzi 	 	 	16 	1:47.576 	 	15 	1:47.115 	 	 	 	13
16 	17 	Alexander Wurz 	 	 	15 	1:47.522 	 	16 	1:47.394 	 	 	 	15
17 	19 	Sebastian Vettel 	 	 	17 	1:47.581 	 	 	 	 	 	 	16
18 	8 	Rubens Barrichello 	 	 	18 	1:47.954 	 	 	 	 	 	 	17
19 	22 	Takuma Sato 	 	 	19 	1:47.980 	 	 	 	 	 	 	18
20 	20 	Adrian Sutil 	 	 	20 	1:48.044 	 	 	 	 	 	 	19
21 	23 	Anthony Davidson 	 	 	21 	1:48.199 	 	 	 	 	 	 	20
22 	21 	Sakon Yamamoto 	 	 	22 	1:49.557 	 	 	 	 	 	 	21
Source:'2007 FORMULA 1™ ING Belgian Grand Prix - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2006), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2007/races/821/belgium/qualifying.html, (Accessed 19/02/2020)	Source:'2007 FORMULA 1™ ING Belgian Grand Prix - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2006), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2007/races/821/belgium/qualifying.html, (Accessed 19/02/2020)	Source:'2007 FORMULA 1™ ING Belgian Grand Prix - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2006), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2007/races/821/belgium/qualifying.html, (Accessed 19/02/2020)	Source:'2007 FORMULA 1™ ING Belgian Grand Prix - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2006), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2007/races/821/belgium/qualifying.html, (Accessed 19/02/2020)	Source:'2007 FORMULA 1™ ING Belgian Grand Prix - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2006), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2007/races/821/belgium/qualifying.html, (Accessed 19/02/2020)	Source:'2007 FORMULA 1™ ING Belgian Grand Prix - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2006), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2007/races/821/belgium/qualifying.html, (Accessed 19/02/2020)	Source:'2007 FORMULA 1™ ING Belgian Grand Prix - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2006), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2007/races/821/belgium/qualifying.html, (Accessed 19/02/2020)	Source:'2007 FORMULA 1™ ING Belgian Grand Prix - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2006), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2007/races/821/belgium/qualifying.html, (Accessed 19/02/2020)	Source:'2007 FORMULA 1™ ING Belgian Grand Prix - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2006), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2007/races/821/belgium/qualifying.html, (Accessed 19/02/2020)	Source:'2007 FORMULA 1™ ING Belgian Grand Prix - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2006), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2007/races/821/belgium/qualifying.html, (Accessed 19/02/2020)	Source:'2007 FORMULA 1™ ING Belgian Grand Prix - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2006), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2007/races/821/belgium/qualifying.html, (Accessed 19/02/2020)	Source:'2007 FORMULA 1™ ING Belgian Grand Prix - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2006), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2007/races/821/belgium/qualifying.html, (Accessed 19/02/2020)	Source:'2007 FORMULA 1™ ING Belgian Grand Prix - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2006), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2007/races/821/belgium/qualifying.html, (Accessed 19/02/2020)	Source:'2007 FORMULA 1™ ING Belgian Grand Prix - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2006), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2007/races/821/belgium/qualifying.html, (Accessed 19/02/2020)
*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.
** Kubica was awarded a ten place grid penalty for changing his engine.
*† Fisichella was sent to the back of the grid for changing his engine after qualifying.
===Grid===
** Davidson and Fisichella 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 	 	44 	1:20:39.066 	1 	10
2 	5 	Felipe Massa 	 	44 	+4.695s 	2 	8
3 	1 	Fernando Alonso 	 	44 	+14.343s 	3 	6
4 	2 	Lewis Hamilton 	 	44 	+23.615s 	4 	5
5 	9 	Nick Heidfeld 	 	44 	+51.879s 	6 	4
6 	16 	Nico Rosberg 	 	44 	+1:16.876 	5 	3
7 	15 	Mark Webber 	 	44 	+1:20.639 	7 	2
8 	4 	Heikki Kovalainen 	 	44 	+1:25.106 	9 	1
9 	10 	Robert Kubica 	 	44 	+1:25.661 	14 	
10 	11 	Ralf Schumacher 	 	44 	+1:28.574 	10 	
11 	12 	Jarno Trulli 	 	44 	+1:43.653 	8 	
12 	18 	Vitantonio Liuzzi 	 	43 	+1 Lap 	13 	
13 	8 	Rubens Barrichello 	 	43 	+1 Lap 	17 	
14 	20 	Adrian Sutil 	 	43 	+1 Lap 	19 	
15 	22 	Takuma Sato 	 	43 	+1 Lap 	18 	
16 	23 	Anthony Davidson 	 	43 	+1 Lap 	PL 	
17 	21 	Sakon Yamamoto 	 	43 	+1 Lap 	21 	
Ret 	7 	Jenson Button 	 	36 	Hydraulics 	12 	
Ret 	17 	Alexander Wurz 	 	34 	Fuel pressure 	15 	
Ret 	14 	David Coulthard 	 	29 	Hydraulics 	11 	
Ret 	19 	Sebastian Vettel 	 	8 	Steering 	16 	
Ret 	3 	Giancarlo Fisichella 	 	1 	Suspension 	PL 	
Source:'Belgium 2007: Result', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2016), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/belgique/classement.aspx, (Accessed 18/02/2020)	Source:'Belgium 2007: Result', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2016), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/belgique/classement.aspx, (Accessed 18/02/2020)	Source:'Belgium 2007: Result', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2016), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/belgique/classement.aspx, (Accessed 18/02/2020)	Source:'Belgium 2007: Result', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2016), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/belgique/classement.aspx, (Accessed 18/02/2020)	Source:'Belgium 2007: Result', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2016), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/belgique/classement.aspx, (Accessed 18/02/2020)	Source:'Belgium 2007: Result', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2016), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/belgique/classement.aspx, (Accessed 18/02/2020)	Source:'Belgium 2007: Result', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2016), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/belgique/classement.aspx, (Accessed 18/02/2020)	Source:'Belgium 2007: Result', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2016), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/belgique/classement.aspx, (Accessed 18/02/2020)
*T Indicates a driver used their test/spare car.
==Milestones==
* declared as the FIA Formula One World Championship for Constructors Champions.
** This was Ferrari's fifteenth Constructors Championship.'14. Belgium 2007', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2014), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/belgique.aspx, (Accessed 18/02/2020)
* 250th Grand Prix entry for Rubens Barrichello.[Archived] '2007 Belgian GP', chicanef1.com, (Chicane F1, 2014), https://web.archive.org/web/20190410172810/http://chicanef1.com/racetit.pl?year=2007&gp=Belgian%20GP&r=1, (Accessed 18/02/2020) - Original
* Mark Webber made his 100th Grand Prix start.
* 50th race for as a constructor.
* Thirteenth career victory for Kimi Räikkönen.
* Ferrari scored their 199th win as a constructor and engine supplier.
==Standings==
Victory for Kimi Räikkönen moved the Finn back into title contention leaving Belgium, although Räikkönen still faced a thirteen point deficit with three races to go. That made him the "dark horse" for the title, as Lewis Hamilton continued to lead the charge ahead of his teammate Fernando Alonso. The Spaniard had, however, managed to close the Brit's advantage to just two points as the European season came to an end, with fourth placed Felipe Massa set to fall out of the fight if he failed to outscore Hamilton in Fuji.
With having been excluded had a clean shot at claiming the Constructors Championship in Spa, and they duly took it, a one-two leaving them on 161 points. hence had to settle for second in the Championship with three rounds to go, leaving most of the intrigue in the fight for third. That was to be contest by and , with and realistically too far back to challenge.
World Championship for Drivers	World Championship for Drivers	World Championship for Drivers	World Championship for Drivers
Pos. 	Driver 	Pts. 	+/-
1 	Lewis Hamilton 	97 	
2 	Fernando Alonso 	95 	
3 	Kimi Räikkönen 	84 	
4 	Felipe Massa 	77 	
5 	Nick Heidfeld 	56 	
6 	Robert Kubica 	33 	
7 	Heikki Kovalainen 	22 	
8 	Giancarlo Fisichella 	17 	
9 	Nico Rosberg 	15 	1
10 	Alexander Wurz 	13 	1
11 	Mark Webber 	10 	
12 	David Coulthard 	8 	
13 	Jarno Trulli 	7 	
14 	Ralf Schumacher 	5 	
15 	Takuma Sato 	4 	
16 	Jenson Button 	2 	
17 	Sebastian Vettel 	1 	
World Championship for Constructors*	World Championship for Constructors*	World Championship for Constructors*	World Championship for Constructors*
Pos. 	Team 	Pts. 	+/-
1 	 	161 	1
2 	 	90 	1
3 	 	39 	1
4 	 	28 	1
5 	 	18 	1
6 	 	12 	1
7 	 	4 	1
8 	 	2 	1
EXC 	 	166 	10
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:Belgian Grand Prix
Category:Formula One races in Belgium