australian grand prix 2008

I had been eagerly anticipating the start of this year's Formula 1 season. The 2007 season ended superbly for me, with Ferrari taking both the Constructors' and the Drivers' championship titles. Kimi Raikkonen eased the pain of Michael Schumacher's retirement, and the way he won his first championship title is one for the books. Kimi was in third place coming into the season's final grand prix, and, although it was mathematically possible, what Kimi needed to win last year was something short of a miracle. He did not only had to win the race, he also had to have a bit of luck in hoping his rivals finish several places behind him.

He got just that. A bit of "dumb" luck, to borrow Marc & Rovilson's term for stupidly good luck. So the season ended magically; it was like movie magic.

And then it takes one race to jolt me back to reality. This year's Australian Grand Prix, the first race of the season, was a bitter pill to swallow. It was probably Ferrari's worst ever season opener.

Ferrari came in with all the advantages: the best pit place, the reigning world champion in their paddock and the best pit crew. Good on paper, but apparently not on the racetrack. Magical it was not.

The qualifying yesterday was an omen. The number one car had fuel pressure problems, placing Kimi 15th on the grid. 15th among 22 cars. Felipe Massa's best was only good for 4th place, with the 2 drivers from archenemy McLaren ahead of him. Robert Kubica's BMW even managed to squeak past him. And BMW was supposed to be a middle-of-the-pack team.

The red lights went off...and the nightmare began. Felipe self-destructed early on, making a mistake amidst the mellee and ramming his car onto the barriers. He had to limp an entire lap before having his front wing changed. Kimi gave me some hope, jumping from 15 to 8. And his car seemed to be fueled to the brim.

Kimi drove wonderfully, making it to 3rd place before self-destructing. He went one step too far and almost drove himself out of the race. He managed to avoid the barrier, but he dropped back to the end of the pack. The race went downhill from there, with Kimi's car sputtering to a stop with 5 laps to go.

The race was a cruel reminder that in this world, everything can change in a blink of an eye. From the top of the totem pole, Ferrari became bottom dwellers. Forever an optimist, I hope this would last for 1 week only. Now, I'm looking forward to the Malaysian Grand Prix and hope that Ferrari will redeem themselves. Dumb luck, stupid luck or even just a bit of good luck will be greatly appreciated. Magical this race certainly is not.