If ever McLaren had a chance of fighting back against Ferrari, the Monaco GP was going to be it. Ferrari has not won the tight street circuit since 2001 - Michael Schumacher's fifth and final Monaco GP victory of his career.
Ferrari however seemed to have broken the curse that has plagued them in the world's most glamorous principality by securing the front row of the grid: it looked to be like another Ferrari routine that we have become accustomed to this season. McLaren's chance seemed to be slipping away.
But then again, the Monaco GP was anything but routine. Light showers poured over the track making the roads very greasy and unpredictable. It was surely a recipe for disaster for some drivers.
Lewis Hamilton seemed to be one of the drivers to be caught off guard by the treacherous conditions. The McLaren driver, running in second, grazed the barrier and damaged his rear right tire forcing an early visit to the pits in lap seven.
Hamilton's error, as demoralizing as it was when it happened, turned out to be the best luck of the race. Hamilton was refueled heavily for a long drive. He then came out surprisingly in fourth place, carrying more fuel compared to his rivals. In addition, the safety car would be deployed allowing Hamilton to cut the deficit from the front runners.
In a sense, Hamilton actually gained so much time by pitting when he did compared to Massa and Kubica who was slugging it out for first and second position.
By the time Massa and Kubica made a pit stop, Hamilton was able to grab the lead in a relatively traffic free run. Massa and Kubica, on the other hand, came out behind a train of backmarkers. It allowed Hamilton to build a lead large enough to enter in and out of the pits for his second stop without relinquishing first place. At Hamilton's second stint, victory was practically secured.
Kubica was able to sieze second place from Massa after the second round of pit stops. The podium finishers ended Hamilton from Kubica from Massa.
What happened to Kimi?
Disaster! He had a poor start that dropped him from second to third as soon as the red lights went off. He was also given a drive through penalty because of a tire infringement made by his team. And then came two costly errors that resulted in two unscheduled pit stops. In the end Raikkonen could do no better than ninth place over all and zero championship points for the day.
Kimi Raikkonen relinquished the championship lead to Hamilton who now has 38 points. Raikkonen remains at 35 points, just one point clear from Massa with 34. BMW-Sauber's Robert Kubica is also in the mix with 32 points.
The 2008 season just got interesting. It looked as though it was going to be a Ferrari dominated season. But after just one race, a four way battle for the title is suddenly brewing.
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