The tops and flops of Spa

The tops

Giancarlo Fisichella
Although he did not win the Belgian Grand Prix, Giancarlo Fisichella was the most surprising driver this weekend. Already in the game during the free practice sessions, the Italian completely amazed observers during the qualifying session by setting the best times in Q1 and Q3, taking pole position. Although he had to quickly fall behind Kimi Räikkönen in fourth place in the race, the Force India driver never let go of the Finn, finishing one second behind the winner. Fisichella, with eight points for second place, is ahead of the big names in the paddock and offers his first points to Force India. An exceptional weekend for Vijay Mallya's team.

Kimi Räikkönen
By winning the Belgian Grand Prix, the Finn provides a clear response to those who accuse him of demotivation or nonchalance. The Finn gleans his first success of the season, the first for Ferrari, although he had not tasted success since the Spanish Grand Prix in 2008. With three consecutive podiums, Kimi Räikkönen is back in fifth position in the drivers' standings, behind the drivers Brawn GP and Red Bull. Better, on his own, he managed to consolidate Ferrari's third place in the constructors' championship. And, with a fourth victory at Spa-Francorchamps, Iceman establishes itself as the specialist of the Ardennes circuit.

bmw-sauber
If Mario Theissen had declared that his team continued its efforts tirelessly, no one saw BMW-Sauber returning to the game in such a way. Qualified in 3rd and 5th positions on the starting grid, Nick Heidfeld and Robert Kubica finished at the foot of the podium, in 4th and 5th places, scoring as many points (9) in one race as during the first eleven. BMW withdraws from F1 at the end of the season but the stable?Hinwil wants to prove his skills and could well be the nice surprise of this end of year.

The flops

Jenson Button
If he is not responsible for the accident which took him out of the race on the first lap, Jenson Button nevertheless has a poor record. Qualified in a modest 14th place on the starting grid for the Belgian GP, ​​the Briton was able to see that it is never ideal to start from the second half of the peloton. After having gleaned six victories and 61 points in the first seven races of the season, the Brawn GP driver stalled and only posted eleven points collected in the last five races. In this interval, Barrichello took back ten points, Hag and Webber fourteen units. If he wants to secure the title of world champion, the Briton must recover quickly.

Jarno Trulli – Toyota
It seems that fate is besetting the Japanese firm's stable. The Toyota drivers were fast all weekend, with the reward of a second place on the grid for Jarno Trulli. The Italian driver was even named favorite for victory, being theoretically faster than the pole sitter, Giancarlo Fisichella. But the race then did not confirm Toyota's good start to the weekend. Author of a mediocre start, Jarno Trulli then damaged his front wing on Nick Heidfeld, being forced to return to his pit box. Stuck at the end of the peloton, the Italian had to abandon before halfway through the race due to a brake wear problem. For Toyota, this 2009 season looks like a series of frustrations.

Renault
The Franco-British team experienced a nightmare weekend at Spa-Francorchamps. Renault had already experienced a big disappointment seeing its drivers qualify in places in the second half of the grid (Alonso, 13th; Grosjean, 19th). Race, Romain Grosjean did not make it past the first lap, being involved in a fatal collision with Jenson Button. As for Fernando Alonso, his collision at the first corner did not cause him any immediate problems. But, after his visit to the pits, the team preferred to stop the double world champion, unable to guarantee the correct fixation of his wheel, a consequence of the initial collision. Eighth team in the constructors' standings, Renault is not in great shape, while Fernando Alonso wants to join Ferrari as soon as possible.