Raikkonen gets Mercedes apology

Mercedes boss Norbert Haug has offered a heart-felt apology to Kimi Raikkonen after the latest engine failure to hamper the McLaren star’s hopes of world championship glory.

For the second successive grand prix weekend, the Mercedes engine sustained a problem, forcing a change and subsequent 10-place demotion down the starting grid.

As in the French Grand Prix, Raikkonen again worked wonders to finish on the podium, following up his second place at Magny Cours with third at Silverstone, so limiting the damage that could have been inflicted by championship leader Fernando Alonso.

The Renault driver remains in control, though, as he has finished first and second in the last two races to open up a 26-point cushion over the Finn.

But for being severely let down by the engine, those positions would surely have been reversed and Raikkonen would be closing in on the Spaniard.

After the race, Haug said: “Kimi’s speed was impressive as he showed by setting the fastest lap of the race with his very last lap.

“But he lost another two points to Alonso in the championship, and without the engine change he could certainly have achieved a better result. I am sorry for that, and we will try even harder.”

Managing director Martin Whitmarsh is also promising the team will deliver for the remainder of the season, starting on Mercedes’ home turf of Hockenheim and the German Grand Prix in a fortnight’s time.

“We’ve clearly made some mistakes,” conceded Whitmarsh.

“Mistakes are in all areas of the operation, so it’s not as if we’ve had an area where we’ve consistently made errors. Each problem we’ve had has been in a slightly different area and we’ve got to make sure that we work harder at that.

“But a lot of credit must go to Renault. I think they have done a great job on their reliability.

“I think we’ve got more of a performance package than they have at the moment, although they’re leading the championship and we’re not, so they’ve obviously done a great job.”

Yet Whitmarsh believes McLaren have the beating of Renault, with neither championship done and dusted as the Woking-based team are just 15 points adrift in the constructors’ title race.

“I think we have the ability now for the rest of the season to turn it around,” added Whitmarsh.

“But to do that we’ve got to have reliability and we’ve got to beat them monotonously in every race now from here on in – and we can do that.

“We’ve got two drivers who can beat both the Renault drivers and that’s what we’ve got to do.”

Juan Pablo Montoya did just that, taking the chequered flag for the first time as a McLaren driver following his move from Williams in the off season, beating Alonso into second by just 2.7 seconds.

Montoya proved himself in a battle of wills with Alonso once the lights disappeared to signal the start of the race, immediately sweeping past home hope Jenson Button and then setting up a duel with Alonso in the opening few corners.

Heading into Becketts, the two drivers were neck and neck, before Alonso eventually opted to give way.

“That was where the race was won,” said a beaming Montoya. “I knew Fernando wasn’t willing to risk too much, and I was willing to risk more, so I knew he would back off. He baled out, not completely, but just enough for me to get him.

“Going side by side into Becketts, one of us was going to back off or we would go off, and the chance was he would back off before me because he’s fighting for the championship and I’m not. I just wanted to win the race.”

Alonso’s Renault team-mate Giancarlo Fisichella was fourth, with Button disappointingly fifth after promising so much in qualifying.

Reigning world champion Michael Schumacher claimed sixth in his Ferrari, his lowest-placed finish at Silverstone since breaking his leg at the circuit in 1999, with team-mate Rubens Barrichello and brother Ralf in his Toyota completing the top eight.