Preview - Turkish Grand Prix

The Turkish Grand Prix returns to Formula One for the fourth time. In the first MOF1 race preview I'm gonna give you a glimpse into last years race and all the facts and figures for the weekend plus an idea of what's happening and what to expect from Istanbul Park.

Last Years Race

Qualifying saw Felipe Massa Grab Pole position in a much later stage of the season in August. Lewis Hamilton lined up behind him with Kimi Räikkönen heading row 2 in front of Fernando Alonso. The BMW's lined up on Row 3 with Renault's Heikki Kovalainen behind in 7th. Massa made a brilliant start on the Sunday pulling away from Hamilton immediately and Kimi got the better of the Brit on the line pushing Lewis down to third. Alonso had an even worse start, however, pushed from Fourth down to sixth by the BMW's. Fisichella's Renault went out of control in turn one, touching the back of Janro Trulli in the Toyota. Four to five cars swerved of the track to avoid the drama, leaving Jarno at the back of the field. The Ferrari's wasted no time in pulling away and only Hamilton was in sight in third with Nick Heidfeld in fourth being threatened by Alonso who had managed to pass Kubica in the sister BMW. Alonso got the better of the German BMW driver in the pits and regained 4th. The Ferrari's continued to pull away and as Hamilton tried to catch them up he got a puncture. He left the pits in fifth behind Heidfeld and Alonso. Heikki Kovalainen managed to catch up to Hamilton's McLaren but failed to pass him before the end of the race. Felipe comfortably won the race with Kimi behind him completing the Ferrari one-two. Alonso joined them on the podium. Heikki finished 1 second behind Lewis and Rosberg completed the race in 7th, nine seconds behind the Renault. Robert Kubica couldn't match his teammates performance and finished 8th.

Information

• Official Name: 2008 Formula 1 Petrol Ofisi Turkish Grand Prix
• Date: 9-11 May 2008
• Round: 5
• Circuit: Istanbul Park
• Location: Istanbul
• First race: 2005
• Laps: 58
• Lap Distance: 3.32 Miles (5.34km)
• Lap Record: 1:24.770, J.Montoya
• BST Race Start: 1:00

Preparation and Predictions
The First Turkish Grand Prix was in 2005 and since then every driver that grabbed pole on the Saturday has gone on to win the race. I say every, Kimi grabbed pole and won the first race and since then the honours have all gone to Felipe Massa, winning his first race in Turkey, he has gone on to dominate the Grand Prix, saying on Thursday that he owns the track. With most of the predictions pointing to another wipe out by Ferrari, can Massa continue his run or will he be beaten by the sister Ferrari, McLaren, BMW or even the Renault, looking back to Spain. Unlike Spain, however, pole certainly doesn't guarantee a win. The circuit is widely considered as Hermann Tilke's best and overtaking opportunity's shouldn't be rare. It won't be easy for the pole-sitter to stay leading the pack.

News
Rubens Barrichello makes Formula One history this weekend as the 2008 Turkish Grand Prix marks his 257th Grand Prix start surpassing Ricardo Patrese's record of 256 making him the most experienced Formula One driver ever. He began his F1 Career in 1993 and is the only driver still in the sport to have raced with Ayrton Senna. Out of the current drivers, only David Coulthard is anywhere near his experience level with 30 less Grand Prix starts. In other news Heikki Kovalienen has been declared fit for the Grand Prix after his heavy crash in Spain saying "I am obviously very pleased with the decision by the FIA Medical Team, I arrived here today feeling confident that I would pass the FIA test as I feel 100 percent." and finally Giancarlo Fisichella will be penalised three grid positions for the race after exiting the pit lane under a red light during Free Practice 1 on Friday.