Few would have put money on a McLaren setting the fastest lap of the race in Hungary but Fernando Alonso did just that as he made the most of one of the few tracks at which his Honda-powered car is not shown up for its lack of horses. He has not looked so relaxed since opting to miss Monaco in favour of the Indy 500 in May. That the weekend went according to plan only pleased him more. The Honda engine proved Chris Carpenter Authentic Jersey reliable for once and the Spaniard put it to great use. Knowing he had to nail his compatriot Carlos Sainz soon after their joint pit stops, Alonso made the move of the race going round the outside at turn two. He and his team-mate Stoffel Vandoorne then concluded McLaren’s first double points-scoring finish of the season, though Alonso’s sixth place is likely to be as high as he can expect to achieve on merit this season. “Let’s go into the summer break with smiles on our faces,” he said. McLaren have said they will make a decision on their http://www... engine supplier in the next five weeks and how that pans out will be crucial in whether they can keep Alonso on board.
Being parachuted into the Williams at the 11th hour was a hugely daunting prospect for Paul di Resta, as he freely admitted. He has not driven the new generation of F1 cars, bar one short run in the 2014 Williams some time ago, and his last race was at the end of his three-year stint with Force India in Brazil in 2013. The Briton has kept busy since then, returning to the German DTM series for Mercedes that he had won in 2010, but powerful as the tin-topped touring cars of the Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters are, they remain a world away from F1. At the weekend he rose to the challenge with great skill.
Confirmed to take over from the unwell Felipe Massa only after final practice, he was clean in qualifying [img]http://www.texansonlineofficialstore.com/images/products/nike_nfl_jerseys/n... and only seven-tenths of a second off his team-mate, Lance Stroll.
His race was equally assured. The Williams was off the pace but Di Resta had it in hand until an oil leak forced his retirement on lap 60. Last week there was a realignment of priorities in motorsport, with Porsche pulling out of the World Endurance Championship to enter Formula E and Mercedes announcing they were to leave DTM to switch likewise to the electric championship. Di Resta made a strong case that [url=http://www.officialavalancheauthentic.com/Ben_Smith_Jersey]Ben Smith Authentic Jersey he should not be left without a drive when they do.
Lewis Hamilton knows giving third place back to Valtteri Bottas at the Hungaroring on Sunday might cost him in the Formula One title battle but insisted it was the right thing to do. He has been applauded for doing so and rightly. In the cut-throat business of a championship fight, few drivers would have felt it necessary. Indeed Sebastian Vettel showed his ruthless streak in doing the opposite by overtaking Mark Webber at Malaysia in 2013 during the “multi-21 incident”. Hamilton may regret it come the end of the season and Mercedes may equally regret not throwing their [url=http://www.officialavalancheauthentic.com/Adam_Foote_Jersey]http://www.offi... weight behind one driver as Ferrari have so clearly done but they insist it is not how they go racing. One further outcome seems likely, however. With his gesture Hamilton is assured that, should it come to the time when Mercedes chose to back him fully, he has established a good enough relationship to ensure co-operation from his team-mate – which might pay off handsomely when it really matters.