17/06/2007
NEWS STORY
Vodafone McLaren Mercedes drivers Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso claimed the team's third one-two finish of the season at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and the third consecutive win for the team. After 73 laps, Fernando finished second 1.5 seconds behind Lewis. Both drivers were on two-stop strategies. Lewis came in on laps 21 (8.8 seconds) and 51 (7.1 seconds) whilst Fernando made his stops on laps 22 (7.6 seconds) and 50 (6.5 seconds). In the Drivers' Championship, Lewis extended his lead to 58 points ahead of Fernando with 48 points. After four wins in seven out of the season's 17 races, Vodafone McLaren Mercedes heads the Constructors' table with 106 points ahead of Ferrari on 71.
Lewis Hamilton: "It just keeps getting better and better - what an amazing week this has been. I can't believe that I have won and am so incredibly grateful to the team who have worked to hard to continue the development which has seen us taking one-two here today. Everything went right; start, pitstops, strategy and I'm really happy. I was under pressure all the way from Fernando and we were both pushing as hard as possible. I made a good start to maintain the advantage but Fernando was right there. In the second stint Fernando managed to get really close when my tyres were graining, and he had a go at the end of the straight, but I was able to keep him behind. It's been a long and hot day, but I have really enjoyed myself and the support from the fans."
Fernando Alonso: "I didn't win but I finally managed to leave Indianapolis with a trophy. I think the race was decided after the first corner, and I didn't manage to get past. All I could do was to stay as close to Lewis as possible. We were side-by-side on one occasion, but it was all fair and square and it was good racing. I was constantly in his slipstream and was getting all kind of dirt from the brakes on my overalls, the car and the helmet which was why I sometimes went slightly off line to try and get some clean air. The car was working well, and I'm looking forward to the rest of the season. At the end of the day the team can leave Indianapolis having extended the gap to Ferrari in the Constructors' battle and having eight points is better than none. I'm looking forward to going back to Europe and the rest of the season."
Ron Dennis: "Lewis and Fernando raced from beginning to end. During the middle stint Fernando pushed hard and caught Lewis and this of course created some positive but tense moments on the pitwall. We were obviously happy to let them race but had to be mindful of the fact that our competition was not threatening our one-two finish. 15 laps from the end both drivers reduced their revs to save the engines for the French Grand Prix but still continued to race. Their sporting behaviour both on track and especially during the podium celebrations made the team proud to have two such great drivers. We will continue to push hard in our development programme which will allow us to bring more performance to the French Grand Prix in two weeks time."
Norbert Haug: "A thrilling race between Lewis and Fernando. I guess we need some good nerves this year. Congratulations to both drivers on a fantastic result. The fourth win of the season with three one-two victories is a great reward for the hard work so far from everybody in Woking, Brixworth and Stuttgart. The important thing is to continue, the competition was clearly stronger than in the last race. This was certainly a great race for all the American Formula 1 fans."
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