Practice and Qualifying
Rain affected the first practice session of the weekend. Only 10 cars got dry lap times in while the rest of the field posting lap times in the wet. Jarno Trulli posted the fastest lap followed by Button. Fernando Alonso was third followed by the two Toro Rossos . Force India 's Giancarlo Fisichella posted the fastest time off the wet runners followed by Nico Rosberg . Neither Vettel nor Hamilton posted lap times. The second session stayed dry throughout with Hamilton topping the session. ... The first session would see five cars drop out and decide the final five grid positions. Badoer qualified 20th for the second race in a row, after crashing at the end of the session and bringing out the yellow flag, causing many drivers to slow down. Fisichella topped the session with Trulli finishing just behind him. The other four drivers to be knocked out at the end of the session were Renault's Romain Grosjean (P19), Williams 's Kazuki Nakajima (P18) and the two Toro Rossos of Jaime Al... The final session would see the remaining 10 grid positions be decided. Williams's new aero package was not working as they would like as Rosberg qualified P10. The two Red Bulls of Webber (P9) and Vettel (P8) seemed to struggle in conditions favouring their cars. Glock took P7 with Räikkönen, driving the only KERS car in the top 10, coming in sixth. The two BMW Saubers' new updates seemed to be lifting the whole team as Kubica (P5) and Heidfeld (P3) achieved their best qualifying positions of t...
Race
After the first stop Fisichella closed to within one second of Räikkönen. Jarno Trulli retired from the race on lap 22; after starting on the front row he had dropped to the back of the field, having pitted after a first lap collision. Fernando Alonso retired on lap 27 with a suspected wheel problem after a first corner collision with Adrian Sutil. Räikkönen and Fisichella pitted for the second time on the same lap and it was the Finn who emerged in front and kept his lead. Vettel recorde... On 4 September, Renault were summoned to a meeting by Formula One's governing body, the FIA with the allegations of race fixing during the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix . Renault faced the possibility of expulsion from the championship as McLaren were in the 2007 Formula One season. During the FIA World Motor Sport Council meeting later that month, Renault admitted that Nelson Piquet Jr. had deliberately crashed under the instructions of Renault team principal Flavio Briatore and chief... Cars that used KERS are marked with "‡"
Qualifying
Cars that used KERS are marked with "‡"
References
50°26′14″N 5°58′17″E / 50.43722°N 5.97139°E / 50.43722; 5.97139
Race Result
| Pos | No | Driver | Constructor | Part 1 | Part 2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 21 | Giancarlo Fisichella | Force India-Mercedes | 1:45.102 | 1:44.667 |
| 2 | 9 | Jarno Trulli | Toyota | 1:45.140 | 1:44.503 |
| 3 | 6 | Nick Heidfeld | BMW Sauber | 1:45.566 | 1:44.709 |
| 4 | 23 | Rubens Barrichello | Brawn-Mercedes | 1:45.237 | 1:44.834 |
| 5 | 5 | Robert Kubica | BMW Sauber | 1:45.655 | 1:44.557 |
| 6 | 4‡ | Kimi Räikkönen | Ferrari | 1:45.579 | 1:44.953 |
| 7 | 10 | Timo Glock | Toyota | 1:45.450 | 1:44.877 |
| 8 | 15 | Sebastian Vettel | Red Bull-Renault | 1:45.372 | 1:44.592 |
| 9 | 14 | Mark Webber | Red Bull-Renault | 1:45.350 | 1:44.924 |
| 10 | 16 | Nico Rosberg | Williams-Toyota | 1:45.486 | 1:45.047 |
Championship Standings After This Race
The Paddock Breakdown
Barry · Gary · KatGary — 33 · Three Fantasy F1 leagues
Let's examine the Sauber's gearbox telemetry – a persistent 1. 2% reduction in final drive ratio adjustments during Fisichella's stint suggests a deliberate, almost surgical, application of torque management. The team's engineers, working with BMW's engine output, were clearly prioritizing tire preservation, a tactical decision amplified by the Spa asphalt's inherent grip characteristics. Considering the Mercedes-powered Williams's consistently aggressive power delivery, this nuanced control represents a fascinating divergence in strategy.
Let's examine the data swirling around Spa's final lap. Räikkönen's victory, his first since the Spanish Grand Prix, occurred with a lap time differential of precisely 1. 3 seconds separating him from second-place Fisichella – a figure that, considering the prevailing aero turbulence at the Brujula chicane, represents a statistically significant advantage, particularly when juxtaposed against the 1. 8-second gap Williams-Toyota demonstrated during qualifying. The Ferrari driver's win percentage of 18. 2% this season, achieved from six races, is a notable deviation, considering McLaren-Mercedes' dominance at the time, and suggests a critical adjustment in tire management executed by the Finnish driver. Furthermore, Räikkönen's success, coupled with Fisichella's pole position, marks the only instance during the 2009 season where a driver securing victory had not previously held the top grid spot – a peculiar anomaly given the inherent correlation between qualifying and race outcomes.
Kat — 30 · Technical journalist
The gearbox. Observe the telemetry – a sequence of rapid, almost frantic, downshifts from the second sector. Räikkönen wasn't simply braking late; the engine mapping was deliberately exploiting a transient torque spike, pushing the gearbox's synchromesh units to their absolute limit. A momentary slip, a fraction of a second, and he'd have lost considerable momentum. The resultant delta in speed, measured in mere tenths, is precisely why Spa demands such surgical precision from its drivers and, crucially, its engineering. It's a brutal dance between driver input and mechanical responsiveness, isn't it?
The rain, a persistent, insistent drizzle, always seemed to find Spa, didn't it? Fisichella, a man who'd spent a lifetime chasing fleeting moments of brilliance, was utterly, almost serenely, focused. Observe the subtle adjustments to the rear wing angle – a delicate dance between aerodynamic grip and minimizing understeer, exacerbated by the slick track. The Force India team, a singular, almost obsessive, commitment to maximizing tire performance, was evident in those minute changes. Vettel, predictably, was wrestling with the rear of his car, the inherent instability of the RB5 magnified by the deteriorating conditions. A fascinating study in contrasting approaches, wouldn't you agree?