MOTOR SPORT/Formula One/European Grand Prix:You can count the classic Formula One seasons of the last 20 years almost on the fingers of one hand - the Senna-versus-Prost years of the late 1980s, Schumacher versus Hill in the mid-1990s, and the German rise and fall that bookended five often painfully dull years in between. This year looks like it might force us to start the count again.
The phenomenal arrival of Lewis Hamilton, the tantrums of his disgruntled team-mate and defending champion Fernando Alonso, the biggest scandal to rock the sport in decades, and a nascent Ferrari revival to challenge McLaren's domination of the championship. All the season lacked was a truly classic race to burst the title battle wide open. At yesterday's European Grand Prix that race arrived.
A monster crash for the title leader in qualifying, Ferrari stealing pole again, the rumbling drama of the spy scandal, which will go to a court of the organising body next week. And that all before the rain arrived almost as soon as the red lights went out to signal the start of the race.
On Saturday though the headlines were all made by Hamilton, the young Englishman smashing heavily into tyre walls during final qualifying. A faulty wheel gun had failed to secure the nut and the vibration blew the front right tyre at 140mph.
As paramedics bundled Hamilton into a hospital-bound helicopter it seemed doubtful he would race, but he walked back into the paddock a few hours later with only bruises to show. He would, however, start 10th, his big rivals Kimi Raikkonen, Fernando Alonso and Felipe Massa lining up first to third ahead.
As the pack peeled away from the lights the rain turned to deluge and Hamilton, who has stood on the podium at every one of his big-league races so far, at last got a taste of the sour side of F1. He aquaplaned off at turn one, coming to rest beside the abandoned cars of Jenson Button, Nico Rosberg, Scott Speed Adrian Sutil. Toro Ross's Vitantonio Liuzzi shortly joined them before the restart was ordered.
That left the unlikely figure of Spyker's Markus Winkelhock, replacing the sacked Christijan Albers, at the front of the pack, on his debut. He was followed by Massa and Alonso, with Raikkonen, who had skidded past the pitlane as he attempted to come in for new tyres in seventh.
Hamilton, meanwhile, still had an ace up his sleeve. He had kept his car running while beached and, craned back onto the track, he rejoined, allowed to do so because when a car is deemed to be in a dangerous position on circuit aid in rejoining is allowed. He would start 17th, however.
When they restarted, Winkelhock was quickly passed by Massa and Alonso as Raikkonen scythed through to third.
The Finn's charge ended on lap 34, however, as he crawled to the pits with mechanical problems.
That left the front to be battled for by Massa and Alonso.
Their duel would last right through a relatively quiet middle period, both making planned stops for tyres and fuel, but with Alonso drifting out to seven seconds behind Massa. The Brazilian Ferrari driver looked secure.
But with less than 10 laps to go the rain suddenly returned to put the result in doubt.
Alonso closed rapidly. Massa looked untroubled initially as he attempted to respond, but the gap tumbled and with half a dozen laps left Alonso was right behind.
And then he made his move, powering down the inside of Massa's Ferrari. The pair slid and banged wheels and then Alonso was through to claim victory ahead of the Brazilian and Red Bull Racing's Mark Webber, who drove a superbly controlled race to claim only his second podium.
As the pair pulled into Parc Fermé, Alonso angrily pointed to side of his car and in the weigh-room remonstrated with Massa, leading to a bout of finger-pointing as the pair argued.
"I couldn't find the pace (at the end) and Fernando came closer and closer and I couldn't keep him off," said Massa of the crucial moment of the race finale.
"I was surprised that Alonso told me I did it (hit his tyre on Alonso's sidepod) on purpose so I got angry with him. If he is not happy . . . it is not my problem."
Alonso was a calmer figure in the press conference, apologising to the Brazilian for his words.
"The rain in the end helped us a lot - our car in the end seemed to perform better in wet conditions," said Alonso. "The racing was very close, the dry line, the racing line, was getting dry. We touched two times and I apologise to him (Massa) because we nearly didn't finish the race. Now I try to enjoy the victory and forget everything."
Williams's Alex Wurz finished fourth, the second Red Bull of David Coulthard fifth, an excellent drive considering the Scot had started 20th on the grid.
Hamilton finished ninth.
"It's a new experience for me, not having to find my way to the podium," he said before reflecting on the fact Alonso is now only two points behind him in the title race.
"Obviously Fernando drove a fantastic race, so congratulations to him. But the fight's still on."
EUROPEAN GRAND PRIX
1 Fernando Alonso (Spa) McLaren 2hrs 06mins 26.358secs
2 Felipe Massa (Bra) Ferrari 2:06:34.458
3 Mark Webber (Aus) Red Bull 2:07:31.958
4 Alexander Wurz (Aut) Williams 2:07:32.258
5 David Coulthard (Gbr) Red Bull 2:07:39.958
6 Nick Heidfeld (Ger) BMW Sauber 2:07:46.558
7 Robert Kubica (Pol) BMW Sauber 2:07:48.758
DRIVERS' CHAMPIONSHIP
1 Lewis Hamilton (Gbr) McLaren 70
2 Fernando Alonso (Spa) McLaren 68
3 Felipe Massa (Bra) Ferrari 59
4 Kimi Raikkonen (Fin) Ferrari 52
MANUFACTURERS CHAMPIONSHIP
1 McLaren 138
2 Ferrari 111
3 BMW Sauber 61
4 Renault 32
