This Spy Business Just Will Not Die. And That's a Good Thing BTW.

After last weeks horrendous miscarriage of justice court decision, Ferrari were told that they would not have a right to appeal. Thankfully though, they appear to have found a loophole.

Because only the McLaren team were allowed to present their case, Ferrari have claimed that they have not had a chance to present all of their own evidence. Which is fair enough really, I mean, nobody likes to be kicked out of a room where others are talking about them do they? As a result the court of appeals has now agreed to review the case along with Ferrari and any other teams input.

This is potentially catastrophic for McLaren as the previous court statement said (in plain English) 'If McLaren are found to have gained any advantage from this spying in the future, then they will be banned from the World Championship'. That statement was carefully constructed to not sound like McLaren were being let off scott-free for spying on their main rivals, but the FIA were not planning on the case reaching appeal.

Now the precedent has been set and if Ferrari can prove that McLaren did indeed, gain an advantage from having 780 pages of secret technical data (can we say: 'No Brainer'?) then the court will be forced to ban the McLaren team (which includes rookie Lewis Hamilton) from this years World Title race.

[BBC Sport]

EC reminder

A quick reminder about the rolling bohemuth that is Epic Carnival. We're two weeks in  now and it's going swell, so if you've got some time to kill (and you know you do) then head on over and take a look.

The Lendl Legacy Continues (But Not In Tennis)

Come on now, you remember Ivan Lendl don't you? The Tennis star whose own country tried to stop him from playing?

Well it turns out that instead of becoming star tennis players, Lendls seeds have turned to a different (and far duller) sport. Three of his five daughters have become excellent junior golfers.

Marika, Isabelle and Daniela Lendel, 17, 15 and 14 respectively, regularly take on and beat their Pa over the greens and both Marika and Isabelle have competed on the Us Junior Championship circuit. Marika, the eldest of the three, has even made the Junior American Ryder Cup Team, which probably
sounds more impressive then it actually is.

Whilst Ivan tours the celebrity circuit, where he plays a 2 - handicap, his daughters all have an eye on turning pro. And with a handicap of 1 in their teenage years, it looks like they have every chance.

Ferrari Are Not Thrilled About Being Spied On.

Understandably, Ferrari are feeling a tiny bit outraged at the complete lack of punishment the McLaren team received for spying on them.

"We are reflecting on what to do after the incomprehensible and grave decision made in Paris," 

...was the head of Ferrari, Jean Todt's comment after McLaren were let off scott-free. And he's right too; It's a bit like a kid who steals exam results and then claims that his grade is valid because he didn't 'use the information to his advantage'.  Just to clarify, McLaren were found guilty of spying but were not given any punishment because 'There was no evidence that the stolen information was used to gain an advantage'.

"It's difficult to understand that one who is deemed to be guilty goes unpunished," 

And this isn't some small over-blown incident either, McLaren's chief designer was caught with a 780 page dossier of Ferrari's technical information. I am a little less stunned then Ferrari about the lack of punishment here, as Formula-1 has regularly shown a bias against the Ferrari team. The biggest issue here though, is that it sets a dangerous precedent for other sports.  What the court has essentially said is that the act of espionage itself, is not a crime in the sporting world.

It would be fair to say that this is one of the worst judgements in sporting history and it is not going to go away quickly.

[BBC Sport]

Blogroll Driveby...

Some of the best from around the Blogzone...

Just like every othe non-Cleveland dwelling football fan, I just love to laugh at the Browns [Epic Carnival]

After making one wild eyed predicition about the Yankees, twins takes a more rational angle toward the NL West in the Thursday Debate. [Complete Sports]

Hey, a water bottle can be a dangerous weapon in the arms of a... well anyone really. [Signal To Noise]

If you can say this guys name three times fast without screwing up I applaud you. [The Extrapolater]

There is help in time of need and [Babes Love Baseball] can show you where.

You know what the scary thing about this is? It's that it's all true. All of it. [Our Book of Scrap]

And finally...

Because these days, everything is a sport... [One More Dying Quail]

Ranking the Formula-1 Drivers

Ranking Formula-1 drivers is not an easy thing to do whether it be pre, mid or close season. The fact is that the cars play a major role in how good a driver looks and in order to rank them, you have to look at how they compare to others in their particular bracket of car strength.

And then you have to bite the bullet and admit that those two assbags that you hate (including that robot who drives for your team, ragnamit) are actually competing for top five spots in your list.

So that's what I did and, for good or for ill, here's my rankings:

#1 - Kimi Raikkonen (Robotkonen) - Yes he's a humourless, personalityless drone but the truth is that when Kimi drives at 100% (and he rarely does) he is the best driver in Formula-1 today.

#2 Lewis Hamilton - Lewis is without a doubt the most difficult man to place. Since F1 has returned to Europe, Hamilton's lack of experience has shown, but but but... this kid is a rookie who made the podium in all of his first nine races and that just doesn't happen in Formula-1. He has constantly bitch-slapped his team-mate, who just happens to be the reigning World Champion and, although it's unlikely, he may just win the whole damn thing this year. Where the heck else can you place him?

Read more »

Oh For Petesake, Aren't Any of Them Clean?

Reports are coming in that the Tour de France pre-race favorite Alexandre Vinokourov has failed a drugs test. The Kazakh rider has asked for a second sample to be tested but well, this is cycling... I think we know what's going on by now.

So not only do we have the leader of the race missing a test but we also have two other riders with failures to their names. This year was supposed to herald the 'New Cycling' but so far it's looking to be worse then the 'old cycling'.

So because of this one schmuck, the whole of the Astana team has been pulled out of the race by their sponsors. What with this and the German news team pulling out last week, you have to ask yourself how long cycling can last as a legitimate sport. Oh wait, that boat already sailed...

[BBC Sport]

Future Franchise

Admit it football fans, you're kind of intrigued by John Beck aren't ya?

Here's a kid who went on a mission yadayada came back and threw 69% completions for BYU and ended up as a 26 year old rookie for a team that despoerately needs a future franchise QB.

We're so used to seeing these guys like Reggie Bush come straight out of college and into starting roles in the NFL that sometimes we forget how important developmental players can be. Guys like Beck aren't going to come into a team and set the world alight in their rookie season or have everyone proclaiming what a great pick they were. But what they will do is watch, learn and develop over a year or two and then become the player that can do great things for the franchise.

I've had to put up with umpteen million idiots telling me how wrong I am about the Dolphins having a good draft this year and I know that my redemption probably won't come for one or two seasons yet. But know this naysayers; I know where all of you live and in a of couple years, when it's 'Beck to Ginn' 30 times a game, I'm coming round to a deliver a big old bag of 'I Told ya so!' right to your front door.

Assholes.

[Miami Herald]

Hey, Maybe Alonso Doesn't Hate Hamilton's Guts. (yeah sure...)

So, Alonso wins the European Grand Prix in style whilst Hamilton is relegated back to 9th place and zero points. You can read my full report here, but before you do, check out this new Mercedes ad below. It plays on the media frenzy around Alonso and Hamiltons' supposedly strained relationship. And it's brilliant.

[youtube="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5C0I7Ef4gQI"]

For those of you not in the know, the guy at the end is former McLaren Formula-1 World Champion, Mika Hakkinen.

'The Legend That Was Almost Marcus Winkelhock' - EC

Hamilton Hits Barrier at 150mph During Qualifying Session

Lewis Hamilton is shaken but not stirred after a wheel failure saw him hit the barrier at 150mph. After the crash Hamilton had trouble getting out of the car and was eventually taken to the medical centre by ambulance.

The reports are good, no obvious physical injury or loss of conciousness but it is still undecided whether he can race tomorrow or not. On Thursday over on Epic Carnival that Lewios would not win any of the five remaining European based Grand Prix's but I didn't think this would be the reason. The wheel failure was caused by a 'Right wheel gun' malfunction which meant that the wheel was never properly attached in the pit lane. It was fortunate for Alonso that Hamilton went out on track first, as his wheel was also fitted with the same and gun and on checking, the McLaren mechanics found that his wheel was loose as well.

At the end of the session Kimi Robotknen had won pole, Alonso second and Massa third.

[BBC Sport]

Blogroll Driveby...

Some of the best from around the Blogzone...

Surely you're aware by now, but just in case you don't have your finger on the pulse of the ever undulating world of sports blogging, [Epic Carnival] launched this week and it has all your favortie bloggers and more (including me!)

I probably shouldn't laugh so hard when the Marlins suck, but it's kinda one of those situations you know? You either laugh or you'll cry... [Babes Love Baseball]

Who's the best General Manager in the MLB? Well it ain't Larry Beinfest, that's for damn sure. [Complete Sports]

This Gary Player shit is just plain ridiculous isn't it? [Signal To Noise]

Yes, we are calling ourselves media moguls now, (well, no one's calling me one to date but...) deal with it. [A Price Above Bip Roberts]

One of these days cyclists are going to realise that they are only killing their own income. [Deadspin]

And finally...

It's a good thing the NFL is looking for growth in Europe, otherwise this stuff is just going to get crazier and crazier... [Shakedown Sports]

This is Kinda Like That Snow-Boarding Dude with the Juju.

71 year old golf er... 'legend' Gary Player is insisting that golfers be tested for performance enhancing drugs.

"I would say there are 10 guys taking something. I might be way out. It's definitely not going to be lower, it might be a hell of a lot more."

I mean... come on; How would taking drugs improve your golf game. Ok so maybe roids might make you better at the Par 5's but I'm pretty sure there's nothing out there that can improve your accuracy.

And look at some of these guys for petessake, they aren't exactly finely honed advertisements for fitness are they?

Perhaps Player is having trouble with the idea that he's losing a lot these days because of his age, rather then because the other guys are all doped up to their eyeballs.

[BBC Sport]

Which One's the Clown?

If you haven't had a chance yet, go check out Epic Carnival, it's really coming together nicely and I'm honored to be part of it.

You can find all of my posts so far right here. Thanks!

What are you talking about? This IS My Number One Fantasy!

With the NFl season only (only - look at me trying to kid myself) a couple of months away my mind turns towards fantasy football. Once again I promise myself that I will only play in one damned league this year and yet am already signed up for three. This is how it starts.

Questions like 'Can you not take L.T. if you have first pick?' and 'Will I be blowing eveything if I take a DST in the fourth round?' occur to me... and I puzzle over them for days without coming up with an answer I'm happy with (for the questions above see: no and yes).

But whatever happens I love FF and I thought I'd wheel this old beauty out for one more ride. It's been around for a while but it still says it all. Enjoy.

[youtube="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-1ZCPv94ATo"]

This ain't no Circus...

Announcement:

Recently I was proud and grateful to be asked to contribute to a brand new Sports Blog that will be kind of a Voltron of Sports Blogs, if you will. Epic Carnival has some of the best sports bloggers in the meta-verse all under one roof (...and me) and certainly has 'something for everybody'.

Don't worry (and you know you were...) I'll still be running Shot To Nothing, but you should definately head on over to Epic Carnival ASAP to check out the next big thing in Sports Blogging. We hope.

Thank you, as always, for your continued support it is very much appreciated. Now click the link already:

Tour de France Stage 8: Mental

Stage 8 of the Tour de France yesterday (which I'm sure you watched) was pretty insane by cycling standards.

First of all it was the second day in a row which took place in the Alps with this second stage being approximately 90% uphill. And this is the Alps we're talking about here, not that little slope you've got to haul your fat ass up on your way to work.

Then there was the umpteen crashes, one of which threw Spanish rider David Arroyo, not just over his handle-bars, but over the side of the mountain as well. If it hadn't been for the large amount of foliage to catch him it may well have been the last we would have seen of Mr. Arroyo. As it happens though, he scuttled back up the side, jumped back on his bike and carried on riding. Albeit more slowly around the faster corners.

To top it all off were the fans and crap there were alot of them considering how high up in the damn mountains they were. This stage saw a lime green lycra swimsuited Borat running along side the Kazakstan team as they passed by, a couple of blond clowns (?) and the return of the Elvis dude sporting a sparkling black number.

Seriously, you don't know what you're missing.

[Official Tour de France 2007 Site]
[BBC SPORT]

Chris Chambers Arrested for DWI. Great, just great...

Boy, I gotta tell ya, it's a whole heap of fun being a Dolphins fan right now.

NFL.com is reporting that Phins WR Chris Chambers was arrested at 2.30am last night for "driving while impaired and speeding". I sincerely hope this isn't part of some downward spiral for Chambers which started with him being outplayed in 2007 by a 5'9 slot receiver, who then went on to sign a great contract with the Patriots.

I've always been happy with the Ted Ginn pick as you know, and I'll be damned if it isn't looking better with each passing day.

[NFL.com]

Javelin Accidents are not as Funny As They May Appear

So there I am watching the Rome Golden League Athletics event yesterday, when suddenly the camera pans across and there's an ambulance on the side of the track. Cut to World Class Finnish Javelin thrower Tero Pitkamaki holding his head in horror... and it all comes together.

It looks like a gust of wind sent Pitkamaki's wayward strike straight into the Long Jump area. French athlete Salim Sdiria was unfortunate enough to be standing in the javelins path. It didn't really need showing but for some reason the producers decided to show a replay, followed by a slow-mo, of the accident. Although it looked pretty horrific, Sdiria's wounds were reported to be 'not serious'.

Here's the clip if you're twisted enough to want to see it: (and you know you are...)

[youtube="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QT2l100KJe0"]

This accident looks to have understandably hampered Pitkamaki psychologically. He failed to win the event (though he had won the previous two) and lost his chance at the $1 million jackpot. I'm sure that will be the last thing on his mind today though. Pitkamaki is extremely well liked in the Track and Field scene and has the reputation of being a very nice guy, which is probably why he will take this so badly. But you have to ask, with this being the second time a javelin accident has occurred this year, perhaps new safety measures need to be brought in; Something like, oh I don't know, not running a Long Jump competition at the same time as a Javelin meet in order to satisfy T.V. scheduling...

Yeah, something like that.

U.S. Loses Formula-1 Grand Prix So That Rich Old Man Can Get Richer

I don't blame you if you don't recognise the 77 year old clown in the picture. Despite his craving for admiration, the majority of people involved in Formula-1 can't stand Bernie Ecclestone. Why? Because of decisions like this one.

This five foot fuckhead rules Formula 1 with an iron fist through his control of the circuits and the TV rights and year after year good races in great venues are pushed asside for international tracks that offer 'Big Daddy Bernie' a bigger piece of the pie.

Ruthless control of Formula-1 has made him one of the richest people in the world, but it's not enough for this megalomaniac. The Indianapolis Grand Prix brought in 125,000-200,000 dedicated F1 fans, more then most other circuits and yet it has been dropped in favour of a Singaporean street race which is guran-damn-teed to be knowhere near as entertaining for the fans. And all so this old has been can line his filthy pockets. What a disgusting decision.

In other news, Lewis Hamilton's challenge for the World title in his rookie year may be under threat after Mclaren were found guilty of spying on Ferrari. Although Mclaren claim it was an isolated incident by one suspended member of the team and they have not received any benefit from this, they may still have points deducted from both of their drivers.

So I guess this is just a bad bad week for Formula-1. Sheesh.

[BBC Sport]
[Ecclestone Wiki]

Missing: One Personality Belonging to Kimi Raikonen

...if you ever wondered why I call him Robotkonen:

[youtube="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7c5-DtreTTc"]

Blogroll Driveby...

Some of the best from around the Blogzone...

At last, the Sporting Event we all want to see. [Our Book Of Scrap]

This is an interesting move for the Mets, but does it mean Jose Reyes will be stealing less bases. (The answer is no.) [Babes Love Baseball]

Willie Mays, Ty Cobb or Mickey Mantle; Who would be your choice for best CF ever? [Complete Sports]

Are you ready to (once again) wish you had worked harder at sports whilst you were in school? [Signal To Noise]

And while we're focusing on the big bucks, here's a nice little Agent Spotlight from [I Want to be a Sports Agent]

Why they just join in with the rest of us and call him 'Donnie' in these press announcements? [NCAA Basketball Scores]

When Tarps go Bad. [One More Dying Quail]

And finally...

Well, I guess we could all use a little help. Ok, a lot. Me especially ragnamit. [Awful Announcing]

'Athlete of the Year' Fails to Make The World Championships

Not sure how I missed this one... hmm, might have something to do with Track and Field being buried daily in the Sports press... yeah, that might be it!

Sanya Richards was the 2006 International Association of Athletics Federation's Athlete of the Year and is the reigning 400m World Champion. But she WILL NOT be going to the World Champs this year because she got her ass beaten by three lesser runners in the U.S. Finals. Apparently Richards was "dogged by a flulike illness" (for flulike illness read: She had a Cold) which is why she failed to qualify for the Worlds.

There are two big issues here. One, this now leaves the title wide open for the up and coming star of Athletics, Great Britain's Nicola Sanders. Sanders has been out for a couple of weeks with a strain of some sort and returned slowly last night in Lausanne Switzerland, but she is a class-act of an Athlete; Strong, gritty, hardworking and determined (and also hot by the way...), and this title is now well within her reach.

And two, it highlights the stupidity of the U.S. selection system for Track and Field. Time after time a dominating World Athlete will not make the team because they have an injury or illness that prevents them from finishing in the top three at the U.S. champs. Back in 2004 before the Sydney olympics Michael Johnson pulled up with a calf strain in the 200m final at the Nationals. As a result the World Record Holder and general unbeatable machine that Johnson was, would not be allowed to compete in the 200m and had to settle for the 400m sprint alone. How ridiculous is that?

A better system for the U.S. to adopt is the European model where the first two past the line in the nationals automatically make the team but the third spot is left open to the discretion of the coaches in case a world class athlete is sick or injured. This would make far better sense no?

[SI.com]

They Sure Don't Make Them Rules Like They Used To...

So, a season on does anyone actually like the NFL's 'No Celebration' rule? Didn't think so.

I managed to get myself tossed from two games in my school career; Once for the comments I made to an umpire after he flagged me for a ridiculously late hit on the oppositions star player (I can't remember exactly what I said but it was almost certainly something about his mother), and once when I ran the entire length of the field to join in re-start a small scuffle that was over by the time I got there. Again, comments about mothers may have been made.

"Aggression," my coach would later say to me after hauling me into his office "is a good thing... but only when coupled with control"

Unfortunately, despite listening to that same damned speech several times, it never really sunk in, which I guess is why I never made it as a pro. That and a total lack of a little thing called talent.

But my point (and yes, there is one) is that there are far worse things that a player can do other then 'use the ball as a prop' or 'celebrate in a group' after a touchdown. A far better move for the NFL would have been to say that celebrations were fine unless they were directly aimed at the opposing fans. For example; T.O.'s Star celebration is pretty unsportsmanlike so it would be penalised, whereas the jump shot or my personal favorite, the grenade, would be well within the rules.

One of the reasons the NFL works so well is that the rules are regularly tweaked to hone their effectiveness. A little more flexibility to the celebration rules would bring back a lot more fun for everybody.

Hamilton's lack of experience shows. Robot and Moon-Face take advantage.

Sorry about the sporadic posting of late, for some unknown reason (bigger premises actually...) my place of work is hauling ass to the other side of town, regular service will be resumed just as soon as this is all done with. Thanks for sticking with me in the mean time.

And well... I'm not even going to say 'I hate to say' I'm just going to say (boy this post is sure turning out well isn't it?) "I told ya' so!"

Experience is important in every sport but when it comes to 200mph motor vehicles it's doubly so. After several practice sessions and two qualifying rounds, Lewis Hamilton was fourth fastest out of the elite four cars. In the third and crucial qualifying round however, Hamilton found something somewhere and put in a blistering last lap to squeeze himself onto Pole Position for the British Grand Prix. The record number of home fans went crazy for their new star and it looked like it would be Lewis's weekend afterall.

But that was not to be and experience, or lack of it, was the reason. Alonso, Robotkonen and Massa all ran faster cars on game day and while Hamilton still managed an exceptional third place, the more experienced drivers had the best of him. Robotkonen drove an incredible race to take the victory and Alonso, who lead at one horrible, horrible point, came in second. I've got to believe that if Felipe Massa hadn't stalled on the grid and therefore ended up having to start at the back, he too would have passed Hamilton and that would have meant an end to his incredible all-podium finishes in this, his rookie season.

As I said in a previous post, these European circuits are where the real racing skills are tested and without the years of practice behind him, Lewis may struggle to hang on to his lead in the World Championship.

[BBC Sport]

Alinghi win the America's Cup final by one second. And three matches.

It looks like the passing of a whole year has not taken anything away from the insane skills of the Swiss. Once again the landlocked country is the champion of the high seas.

Going into the last race the Swiss Alinghi were two wins ahead of their rivals Emirates Team New Zealand and needed just one more to retain the cup. They got the necessary 'W' but the Kiwis didn't make it easy on them.

"an enormous windshift saw Emirates Team New Zealand able to lay finishing line which was now upwind. As Alinghi struggled to drop its spinnaker, the Kiwis turned into tack to fulfil its penalty obligation. Now downspeed, the Kiwis could only watch in horror as Alinghi slid across the line, just one second ahead."

So a close finish, but not really a close final. On presentation of the America's Cup the Swiss crew were clinical in their analysis as always, stating "This whole crowd looks suspicious, it's all dudes out here, except for these bitches..."

That last bit may not actually be factual.

I have to admit, before this years' America's Cup, I had absolutely no interest in sailing whatsoever. That hasn't changed much, but after following this tournament I do have a clearer understanding of why so many people love the drama that the wind and waves can bring to a sport. Roll on the 33rd America's Cup.

[32nd America's Cup Official Website]

Don't Bother Turning Up Early...

According to the stats over on MLB.com, 14,311 people turned up to see the Marlins sneak one over the Braves on Sunday. Well I don't know where the other 13,000 fans were at but I find it a stretch to say there were even 1,000 seats filled. And this was a Sunday game. Maybe the Marlins have a really, really great secret hot-dog stand out back.

Now, I once had an 'exceptional experience' with an 'exceptional young lady' in the empty upper decks during a Marlins game, but that doesn't change the situation one little bit.

I know there's been countless speculation about a move North (or any other freakin' compass point would do) but, putting that asside, there has to come a point where it's just not worth screwing up the damned field to create a baseball park. I find it hard to believe that it's still financially viable for Dolphin Stadium to host baseball games anymore.

Ok, I've never really been for baseball being played in the Dolphin's backyard, but I figured if it helped bring in the dough and therefore keep the Stadium in good order. But is that what's happening here?

A big part of going to any sporting event is the atmosphere. If you're sitting in an empty stadium then it can really kill your excitement and if that happens a couple of times you're not likely to want to go again. Unless, you know, you have an experience like I had. But if you're an ugly bastard or a Marlin's fan then that's not likely to happen to you.

I think the Marlins are a bit of an embarrassment to the MLB. It's time for somebody to accept that the experiment didn't work and it's time to stop flogging the dead horse.

Experience Shows as Ferrari go One-Two

The French Grand Prix was nowhere near as good a race as I thought it would be but the result was a little surprising, with Kimi 'Robotkonen' taking the win a couple of seconds ahead of his Ferrari team-mate Felipe Massa.

The most shocking moment came when Kimi almost broke a smile in the press conference after winning the race. Almost. Don't get me wrong, I'm thrilled with the whipping Ferrari laid down on Mclaren this week, but do we have to be put through five innane minutes of monotone analysis form Robotkonen for every question he's asked afetr the race? Can't somebaody just turn his batteries off half way through or something?

Lewis Hamilton was simply outclassed on this circuit. I have to think that if Alonso had not started tenth on the grid then Hamilton would have ended up fourth rather than third. It's not criticism, Hamilton just lacked the essential Formula 1 experience for this circuit. He's still in pretty good shape in the World Championship so we'll see how it pans out in the British Grand Prix soon.

[F1 Fanatic]

French Formula 1 Ferrari Fucked-Fernando Fantacular

It's a strange feeling really; There haven't been any good real races in the Formula 1 season so far and yet I'm actually strating to feel excited by the sport again after a two-three year hiatus.

Maybe that's the Lewis Hamilton factor, despite him driving for a rival team, it's hard not to support a guy who is leading the Formula 1 World Championship in his rookie year and has been consistently beating his team-mate, who just happens to be the reigning World Champ, week after week.

It could be, I don't know. His performances have certainly formed a resurgance in the sport and he seems to be filling the enormous hole left by the retirement of Formula 1's greatest star, Michael Schumacher.

One thing is for sure though, the French Grand Prix looks to be a hum-dinger of a race. I mentioned that coming back to Europe would be the real test to Hamilton's Championship challenge, and after yesterdays qualifying, it appears I was half right. Hamilton was knocked back to second on the grid but not by Alonso, as I had thought. It looks like Ferrari have finally stepped up a gear and look to mount a fierce challenge for the win with Massa on Pole position and 'Robotkonen' on third. Alonso was relegated down the grid with engine issues.

Now we will really get to see what young Hamilton is made of. Will he stun the Formula 1 world yet again by beating the Ferrari's or will he find their greater experience to hard to topple this time around? Well, we'll find out in about an hours time.

And I for one can't wait.

...and The Winner is...

The winner of the Shot To Nothing competition and $30 worth of Amazon.com goodness is JessiJugs who emailed in this little beauty:

Favortie sport: Rugby

Reason: "Muscular Thighs"

'nough said. Thanks to everyone who took part, I'll be running another comp soon, so keep your eyes peeled!