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Race Review: Frightening moments in the Spanish GP
By BMW Sauber F1 Team
December 2 2008
At the first European race of the year the BMW Sauber F1 Team narrowly missed making a return to the podium. Heikki Kovalainen escaped from a heavy accident without injury, but Nick Heidfeld's Spanish GP was severely jeopardised by the consequences. Part four of our race-by-race season review...
After three "Fly-Away" Races, the BMW Sauber F1 Team crew was looking forward to the grand prix in Barcelona, not only due to the venue permitting a return to their usual environment of working out of trucks, but also because the race would enable them to collect their thoughts and concentration by seeking refuge in the comfort of the team's motorhome. Full concentration was also required after a thrilling qualifying session, which boded well for an equally exciting grand prix.

After capturing Pole Position in Bahrain, Robert qualified fourth at the "Circuit de Catalunya". In the final session Nick managed to post the ninth fastest time. Despite this far from ideal starting position, the German still managed to lead the race briefly for the BMW Sauber F1 Team. At the start Robert lost fourth place to Lewis Hamilton (McLaren). By contrast, Nick reacted perfectly when the red lights went out, and pushed through from ninth to seventh. The BMW Sauber F1 Team's drivers then held these positions through a brief Safety Car phase which lasted to lap 3.

Robert had just completed his stop on lap 22 when the spectators held their collective breath: In turn 9 Kovalainen had crashed into the tyre barriers at high speed; confirmation that the Finn suffered only relatively light injuries was received after the flag fell. The race was interrupted for six laps, at which point it was lead by Nick - the only top driver not to have pitted. The implications, though, were massive: At the start of a Safety Car phase the pit lane is closed. However, Nick had no choice but to pit at the BMW Sauber F1 Team garages, so low were the fuel levels on his BMW Sauber F1.08. This rule's breach resulted in a 10-second Stop-and-Go penalty, which Nick suffered on lap 34, dropping him from fifth to 16th.

After his second stop Robert continued in fourth, running in close proximity to Hamilton through to the end, having been unable to mount an attack. Nick created excitement as he moved up to tenth before passing Giancarlo Fisichella (Force India) to claim another position. A "Happy End", though, evaded
the 31-year-old driver despite just 3.6 seconds separating him from eighth, the last points' paying place.

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