Magny-Cours beckons and before he even so much as climbs in to his car Lewis Hamilton will all ready be going backwards. Due to his moment of madness in Montreal the stewards saw fit to penalise the British title contender and he will be heading ten places down the grid, regardless of where he qualifies in France. The best he can hope for is to qualify in pole so he will start in tenth, which isn’t going to be easy. Lewis is fantastic at pulling it out of the bag in the dying minutes of the final qualifying sessions, but with both Ferrari’s and the BMW of Kubica to contend with he’s got a massive job on his hands.

From wherever he ends up on the grid at the start of the race, over taking round Magny-Cours has never been easy for any driver. Strategically he has problems here too. New tyres are often more valuable than a light fuel load on this track, which is super smooth so running an extra-long first stint wouldn’t be quite so beneficial if the front runners are all charging off on light three stop strategies.

Then there’s the competition to think about. Kubica is clearly on form this season and will be looking to continue his winning streak this weekend. If nothing else, he will be hungry for the win that does not come at the misfortunes of his main rivals, Hamilton and Raikkonen.

But if I am being honest, and realistic, can anyone stop the Ferrari’s in France? This full on race circuit suits them down to the ground. They have won an incredible five times out of the last seven here. When Kimi isn’t crashing in to the back of a Force India or being crashed in to by a McLaren (the shame! It still makes me cringe just thinking about it) then his pace and performance is blistering. He’s walked away from the last two races without a point to his name, a situation I’m sure he will want to rectify this Sunday.

But what of Heikki Kovalainen? One shouldn’t forget that there is another driver in this McLaren team. He’s had some fighting to do over the last few races, predominantly from nearer the back end of the grid, and he’s done a good job. If he can secure a good qualifying performance (which he can) then he could very well be the boy to spare McLaren’s blushes at the next Grand Prix.

My final word goes to Lewis though. Do us a favour? Keep your eyes on the road and your mind on the bigger picture. You need the points so don’t go hell for leather looking for a win, or even a podium finish that is, in all probability beyond you. Stay in the race and earn yourself some points. We don’t want you heading for Silverstone with a double figures deficit in the drivers title championship. 

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