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[McLaren Fan]

From F1 Live:

Lewis Hamilton has hit back at claims he claimed the 2008 championship courtesy of the Singapore 'crash-gate' revelations. Felipe Massa was almost level-pegging on points with the Briton for the crown until inaugural night race, when the safety car triggered by Nelson Piquet's crash - and then Ferrari's famously botched pitstop - ruined the Ferrari driver's race.

Massa, who had dominantly won pole for the night race and was pulling away from Hamilton in the opening stint until the Piquet crash, ultimately lost the drivers' crown by a single point.

It has therefore been claimed that, had Renault not cheated, Massa would now be world champion. But Hamilton told Britain's News of the World newspaper: "I am a worthy world champion. I have got the number one on my car and I deserved it."

He had a one point lead over Massa going into the Singapore round, but after Massa's problems he pulled clear by seven points with just three races to go.

Hamilton insists he was not trying to win in the Asian city-state.

"When you are leading the championship it is a different mind-set to when you are chasing.
I was just thinking about the championship in the remaining races and getting the points I needed to win the title.

"If I had needed wins I would have gone for them," he said.

"I was driving with one eye on the world championship and wasn't going to take too many risks. I was happy to finish on the podium.

"There are things that happened last year with penalties that affected my points. And I still think I won in Belgium. I think that was my race," Hamilton added, referring to the earlier race at Spa-Francorchamps that was won by the McLaren driver but retrospectively handed to Kimi Raikkonen due to a chicane-cutting incident.

Source: GMM
© CAPSIS International

[Gaz]

F1 Live need to get better writers

Spa-Francorchamps that was won by the McLaren driver but retrospectively handed to Kimi Raikkonen due to a chicane-cutting incident.

Since when can the FIA give wins to cars that DNF

Clearly rubbish though, Massa's pitstop could of happened anyway.

And Lewis could of pushed harder in Brazil you don't know butterfly effect and all that.

Oh and he deserved to win in spa

- rant over.

[Gilles 27]

Hamilton drove better than Massa in 2008, therefore deserving the championship imo

[Frosty]

1. Lewis was affected by the SC as well he just didn't drive off with his fuel pipe still attached.
2. As Longbow said the butterfly effect would of happened.
3. Lewis won at Spa!

[cap-dude]

I don't think anyone is questioning how Lewis won the championship.

I mean, Massa's engine could have not blown at Hungary and he'd probably now be WDC. However, if Massa was WDC, you could claim what if Hamiliton had never hit the back of Raikkonen in Canada. There's endless possibilities here.

The fact is, both men deserved the championship and either would have been deserving champions.

I remember Brundle saying that the race was in the lap of the gods now. But really, it was the championship. The championship was decided by the fact that it rained heavier on that very last lap and Glock couldn't keep the pace. If the rain held for literally 60 seconds more, Massa would be WDC.


When you think back, 2008 and was just an insane year. We were really spoilt last year.

[billindenver]

That is why the run the races rather than just put the cars on a dyno and declare the winner based on numbers. The reason racing is exciting is because of the things that can, and very often do, happen which are not predicted. Hamilton won the championship. While I find it funny seeing him defending his right to have it in the press, it is a pretty silly thing to have to defend. Luck plays into racing. It always has and it always will. Hamilton had lady luck that season...maybe at some point in the future she will grace his shoulder again. While I feel for Massa, his team screwed him worse than crashgate possibly could have.

[Juliet P]

While I find it funny seeing him defending his right to have it in the press, it is a pretty silly thing to have to defend.

Every close championship will have its what-ifs. In the case of 2008, there are even more than usual - what if Massa had not had the fuel hose incident in Singapore? What-if Hamilton had not been penalised in Spa? What-if the Ferrari had been more reliable? What-if Hamilton had not crashed in Canada? What-if it had rained earlier/later/harder in Brazil? It's these twists and turns that make F1 fascinating.

Hamilton won the Championship last year. Fact. All this does is add one more what-if to the list - what-if Piquet had not deliberately crashed in Singapore? It does nothing at all to affect the result.

[JamesD89]

For a start, Massa won at Spa, not Raikkonen. Secondly, Massa's team messed up his race, not Piquet. Thirdly, Longbow and Frosty are spot on - everything would have changed if Piquet didn't crash.

As if there isn't enough to talk about, why do people have to jump on such a pointless bandwagon?

[darwin dali]

Another pointless LH thread

[JamesD89]

Another pointless LH thread

For once, a pointless Lewis Hamilton thread

[McLaren Fan]

I created the thread because it relates to an important issue: the legitimacy of the result of the 2008 world drivers' championship. Hardly a frivolous topic, one should imagine.

[headless]

Ooo hHamilton getting defensive!!

[texasmr2]

[Susaluda]

There are so many "what-ifs" that could have affected the championship that it's really impossible to say what would've happened.

[fatal]

It really does not matter what has happened now. Hamilton is the champ and he, in my view quite rightly deserves it. END OF