2007 Spanish Grand Prix May 13 resumes F1 season

It's been a month since the last F1 race that left us with three drivers tied atop the drivers championship race.

Kimi Raikkonen, Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton are all tied with 22 points each at the top of this year's race for the drivers' championship. This is the first F1 season in the post Michael Schumacher era and boy, it's really turning out to be a battle.

On May 13, the 2007 F1 season will resume in Spain with the 2007 Spanish Grand Prix just around the corner. Felipe Massa, Ferrari's No.2 Brazilian driver, likes his chances despite having two-time defending F1 World Champion Fernando Alonso probably lining up close to him on the grid in front of his adoring fans, in his home country.

The Brazilian is five points behind team-mate Kimi Raikkonen and the McLaren duo of Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso, but insists he can be crowned Drivers' Champion because he has the machinery to do so.

Felipe Massa said, ''The world title is my objective, and I think I have the car to win it.'' The 25-year-old won the Bahrain Grand Prix a few weeks ago to get his title bid back on track. He believes that any one of four drivers could be crowned champion.

''All three of them [Alonso, Hamilton and Raikkonen] by an equal amount,'' Felipe Massa said when asked who he feared the most. ''The reason they are a bit ahead now is down to technical problems we had in the first race in Melbourne and to a couple of mistakes in the second GP in Malaysia.''

''But I think I've sorted the situation fairly well with victory in Bahrain.''

Who will win the F1 drivers championship? Bodog has the odds.

Kimi Raikkonen 7/4

Fernando Alonso 7/4

Lewis Hamilton 9/2

Felipe Massa 5/2

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2007 F1 Season 2007 Spanish Grand Prix

Massa is ready to win F1 Season Opener in Melbourne

Felipe Massa, Brazil's amazing Ferrari driver, is ready for Melbourne and be a World Champion.

Remember the time when Brazilian Rubens Barrichello eased off the gas just a few meters away from the checkered flag to let Ferrari teammate Michael Schumacher win? Well, it seems Ferrari might see the same situation this season as they will have two drivers, each capable of winning the drivers championship, entering the opening race in Melbourne this Sunday.

Felipe Massa was just always a little faster than Ferrari's new feature driver, Kimi Raikkonen. Although that's not always a bad thing for Ferrari, keeping Kimi happy is the team's primary concern.

Well, to say that Felipe Massa was the star of preseason testing for Ferrari could very well be an understatement. A huge understatement at that too. The guy actually broke lap records during the very last day of testing in Bahrain.

As of press time, he is faster than Ferrari's new acquisition. So, is he out to compete with Kimi Raikkonen for the no.1 seat in Ferrari?

''Some people have been making something of the fact that, mostly, I have been fractionally quicker than Kimi, but I do not see it as anything significant,'' Felipe Massa said.

''I was very familiar with the car and I know the team personnel and how they all work and everything was going pretty well. Kimi on the other hand was still learning and getting to know the team.''

He adds, ''Now we will see what happens in Melbourne, as this is the moment that the answer comes.''

Sounds like Massa will be doing just that right? Just one of those things to look forward to as the brand new F1 season begins this Sunday at the 2007 Australian Grand Prix.

Can Felipe Massa win the 2007 Australian Grand Prix? Here are the odds:

Kimi Raikkonen 9/5

Felipe Massa 2/1

Fernando Alonso 3/1

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Formula One Felipe Massa

Fernando Alonso is happy and ready for new F1 season

A completely new man.

That's how Fernando Alonso describes himself heading to the brand new Formula One season. He claims that his move from Renault to McLaren rejuvenated his career, and now, he's ready for yet another F1 Drivers Championship title.

Alonso will finally roll out for a team he signed for back in December 2005 when he takes to the grid for the opening grand prix in Australia on March 18.

After witnessing McLaren effectively limp through 2006 and endure their first season without a victory for a decade, on the surface Alonso's decision to join the Woking marque appeared a poor one.

But on his first visit to the McLaren factory, Fernando Alonso sensed a drive and determination that fired his own ambitions. Of course, hating his former Renault boss plays a big part too.

''I've high expectations, with the target to be World Champion again, not just me, but the team,'' insisted Fernando Alonso, who won back-to-back F1 titles with Renault in 2005 and 2006.

''What I have felt at McLaren is good professionalism, a team that is very determined and focused on the championship. With the new sponsors and the expectations they have, there is a new atmosphere within the team.''

''I saw that when I went to the factory and met all the people. They are so excited. They really think that after a few years without success, this is the year to come back. No-one has doubts.''

Yes, Fernando Alonso is still the same egotistical F1 world champion.

Can Fernando Alonso lead McLaren towards an F1 title? Who will win the F1 drivers championship? Bodog has the odds.

Kimi Raikkonen 5/4

Fernando Alonso 9/5

Giancarlo Fisichella 18/1

Jenson Button 11/1

Want more odds? Visit OddsHQ for more F1 betting odds and the best odds on some of today's biggest sporting events.

Formula One Fernando Alonso

Can Pakistan win the 2007 Cricket World Cup?

The Pakistan national team is having a lot of problems lately heading for the 2007 Cricket World Cup.

First, they lose pace bowlers Shoaib Akhtar and Mohammad Asif. Both Pakistan players were ruled out of the World Cup because of injuries.

Shoaib Akhtar, who has played just one test and four one-dayers since last February due to fitness concerns, has been unable to recover from a knee injury that forced him to be sent back from South Africa last month.Mohammad Asif, on the other hand, has been carrying a niggling elbow problem since that tour and the pair were receiving treatment in London but neither will be fit enough to participate in the tournament in the Caribbean, which starts on March 13.

''Yasir Arafat and Mohammad Sami will be sent as their replacements,'' Pakistan Cricket Board chief selector Wasim Bari said.

The loss of Pakistan will definitely be a major problem for their Cricket national team. Pakistan was hoping to open up their tournament with a win over West Indies. Without Akhtar and Asif, doing that will be near to an impossibility.

''It is a big blow for us, but I am confident that Yasir Arafat and Mohammad Sami will live up to the expectations,'' Pakistan head coach Bob Woolmer said. ''They will join the team in a week's time and we hope to overcome our injury problems with a united team effort.''

And to make matters worse, it seems injured Mohammad Asif believes that the Pakistan cricket national team is being treated differently because of their Islamic faith. Asif believes that they are being treated unfairly because of their religion.

The Pakistan cricket national team sure has been under a lot of controversies lately and these developments certainly proves just that. Pakistan was also under the spotlight when they forfeited the last Test with England at The Oval when they refused to take the field after umpire Darrell Hair had penalized them for ball-tampering, a charge of which they were later acquitted.

Can Mohammad Asif still help Pakistan win the 2007 Cricket World Cup? Who will be the 2007 Cricket World Cup champions? Sports Interaction has the odds:

Australia 2.50

India 8.00

England 9.00

New Zealand 10.00

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Pakistan Cricket 2007 Cricket World Cup

Porsche to join Formula One Racing soon?

Rumors have been circulating that Porsche could join Ferrari and the rest of their counterparts in F1.

Yes, Porsche and Formula One racing find themselves in one single sentence the past few days, and it looks like seeing Porsche in the starting grid, side-by-side with McLaren and Ferrari is a possibility. Will it really happen? Will Porsche's beautiful machines try its luck in F1 racing?

There has been speculation in the German media that the prestigious Porsche marque is set to enter F1 Racing, but Porsche say that they are not going to enter the elite formula.

Why not? Will they just let Ferrari and Renault have their way in the F1 world? Renault snatched the F1 throne away from Ferrari the last two years, making it just about time for Porsche to make their F1 debut. Wouldn't it be nice to see Porsche matching up against Ferrari in the starting grid?

Instead, it seems Porsche is declining, FOR NOW.

Recent infrastructure developments in Stuttgart prompted rumors that Porsche were preparing a F1 program. However, the German sports car manufacturer's head of motorsport Hartmut Kristen said that they are not interested in joining F1.

He said, ''Motorsport for us does not have a purely self-interested purpose. Rather, we want to satisfy the demands of our customers.''

Will Porsche reconsider and join F1? Who will win the F1 drivers championship? Bodog has the odds.

Kimi Raikkonen 5/4

Fernando Alonso 9/5

Giancarlo Fisichella 18/1

Jenson Button 11/1

Want more odds? Visit OddsHQ for more F1 betting odds and the best odds on some of today’s biggest sporting events.

Formula One Porsche

Ferrari set for F1 season as Malaysian GP comes near

Ferrari, in preparation for the new F1 season, is changing their F1 machine yet again.

Believe it. After dominating the sport of Formula 1 for as long as I can remember, Ferrari failed miserably in the last two years. Well, second-best is really not that bad but by Ferrari's standards? You might as well call marriage a ''joyful'' experience.

But that's entirely a different story altogether. And going back to our topic, yeah, Ferrari has a new car. Add that to the team's new ace driver, Kimi Raikkonen, and we have one exciting F1 season Ferrari HAS to win.

Why? Well, if all these changes these guys made turns out to be all for nothing, then I guess we would never see the red Scuderia dominate the sport again... EVER.

But hey, at least the new Ferrari F2007 gives them new hope.

The F2007, which is the fifty third single-seater built by Ferrari specifically to compete in the Formula One World Championship, has been significantly modified when compared to their 2006 F1 car, the 248 F1.

The design was revised to accommodate a new front suspension that represents a major conceptual innovation, mainly in terms of aerodynamics.

The shape of the side-pods and their openings are also revised, based on modifications to the cooling system, which also implies exits for the radiators on the upper part of the bodywork, while the engine air intake is also substantially different.

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Jimmie Johnson Captures the Nextel Cup

Jimmie Johnson ended the NASCAR Racing season with the Nextel Cup championship. Barely.

Hard though he tried, Jimmie Johnson just couldn't give another Nextel Cup championship away this season. After a pit stop scare and an accident on the track that almost took his car out of the race along with his Nextel Cup championship hopes, Jimmie Johnson got through it.

Johnson completed his dream season Sunday by cruising over every speedbump in his path, finally winning the NASCAR championship that had taunted him the past two years.

The perpetual points leader for the past three regular seasons only to collapse once the Chase began, Johnson finally put an entire year together, wrapping it up with a 9th-place finish at Homestead-Miami Speedway.It handed him his first NASCAR title by an 51-point lead over Matt Kenseth.

"Yeah, it's incredible," said Johnson, in his typically low-key tone. "These guys are incredible. This team has really come into its own in the last year."Greg Biffle won the Ford 400 for the third straight season, beating rookies Martin Truex Jr. and Denny Hamlin to the finish line. Kasey Kahne was fourth and Kevin Harvick rounded out the top five. Kenseth was sixth.

Juan Pablo Montoya made his first Nextel Cup start since leaving F1 racing. He ran as high as 13th place but, just like what he was in F1, ended his race in a fiery wreck. Things never change huh?

Will Schumacher Resort to Dirty Tactics to Win F1 Title?

There are rumors that Michael Schumacher will play dirty this Sunday at the 2006 Brazilian Grand Prix.

After all, he is coming to the last and final race of his F1 career and he would definitely love going out with the F1 title in hand. However, Bernie Ecclestone thinks otherwise. He said any suggestions that Michael Schumacher and Ferrari could resort to dirty tactics to win this year's World title are untrue.

Schumacher needs the victory in Sunday's 2006 Brazilian Grand Prix and for Fernando Alonso to finish outside the points in order to claim his eighth Drivers' Championship trophy.

This has led some to suggest that Ferrari could have Fernando Alonso bumped off the track and into retirement in order to help their driver.

However, according to Ecclestone, that won't happen.

''In my opinion, Michael will drive in the most correct manner he has ever driven in Formula One,'' Ecclestone said.

''He's taken the attitude that if it's going to be, it's going to be.''

The F1 legend also expressed a desire to see Michael Schumacher remain a part of the sport. ''I'd like to see him not forget what Formula One's done for him and find a way to pay a little bit back.''

But whatever the Ferrari driver does opt to do in the future, Ecclestone is confident his name will forever remain in the record books.

''His record will not be eclipsed. Certainly with Ferrari he's the one that drives the team. I'm not sure the other drivers are strong enough, willing enough or put enough into it to do that.''

Can Michael Schumacher pull off a miracle and win the 2006 F1 championship? Here are the odds.

Fernando Alonso 1.03

Michael Schumacher 9.00