Autoblog

Click above for hi-res gallery of the McLaren F1 LM

Now that Lewis Hamilton has secured the Formula One championship, supercar fans around the world are asking when he'll get his hands on that rare McLaren F1 LM. The incredibly valuable supercar – initially reported at $4 million but now apparently worth closer to 8 – was promised to the budding young driver if he won the title. However, the condition was that he win both the drivers title and, together with team-mate Heikki Kovalainen, lock up the constructors' title for the team, as well. Although he won the drivers' championship, the constructors' crown went to arch-rivals Ferrari, but since McLaren chief Ron Dennis is such a good sport, he's renegotiated the terms.

If Hamilton manages to repeat his title victory with a hat-trick – that is, take another two championships – he'll get his hands on the bright orange supercar. That's quite a challenge, but Dennis called it a "small price to pay for three world championships." Indeed, but by then McLaren will have a whole slew of supercars on the market for Lewis to choose from. In the meantime, he'd better keep his head down and focus on the prize.

[Source: F1-Live]

Click above for high-res gallery of the 2008 Brazilian Grand Prix

It doesn't get any closer than this. A photo-finish has nothing on the last-minute – make that last-second – end to yesterday's Brazilian Grand Prix, the ultimate decider of the 2008 FIA Formula One World Championship. Even if you were watching it, chances are you might have missed it. It was that close.

Heading into this final round, the rival pair of young guns Felipe Massa (Ferrari) and Lewis Hamilton (McLaren) were the only two in contention for the drivers' title. But Hamilton's lead in points would mean that Massa would have to win the race with Hamilton coming in no better than sixth place. The win would put the two tied in points, but give Massa the crucial extra grand prix victory to just edge out Hamilton and claim the title. Any less and they'd have to start counting podiums. Saturday's qualifying set the stage: Massa on pole, wildcard Trulli beside and team-mate Raikkonen behind him, with Hamilton stuck in fourth place on the grid. Les jeux sont faites; all bets were placed and the dealer spun the ball. And we wouldn't know who had taken home the prize until the very end. Follow the jump to read how it turned out.

Lewis Hamilton does not have good luck in France. Of all the races he's won in these past two seasons, he's yet to take the checkered flag at the French Grand Prix, has had his license revoked by the French gendarmes, and has now had his appeal thrown out of court in Paris.

Following the Belgian Grand Prix earlier this month, Hamilton was penalized by the race stewards with a 25-second penalty (in lieu of a pit-lane drive-through penalty) that bumped him down from first place to third, and allowed Ferrari's Felipe Massa to close the lead down to one single point. The penalty was given to Hamilton for having cut through a chicane on the Spa-Francorchamps track called the "bus stop", which race officials ruled gave him an illegal advantage. Hamilton's team McLaren decided to appeal the penalty in the FIA's court in Paris, however the court threw out the case as inadmissible, quoting sporting regulations that stipulate that drive-through penalties cannot be appealed. McLaren presented precedent from a repealed penalty handed to Toro Rosso in Japan last year, however the court of appeal was adamant in their refusal to hear the case.

A brief statement from the FIA can be found after the jump, and those interested can read the full 8-page ruling by clicking here.

[Source: Autosport | Photo: Oliver Laban-Mattei/Getty]

SPOILER ALERT

Click for a hi-res gallery from the 2008 British GP

Storms swept through Silverstone this year for the British Grand Prix. First came the announcement of David Coulthard's retirement from Formula 1, which was followed by the announcement that, starting in 2010, the race would leave its historic home at Silverstone and move to Donington Park.

The decision by Formula One Management and the FIA followed years of calls for the ageing Silverstone track -- owned and operated by the British Drivers Racing Club -- to renovate and get itself up to the modern standards set by F1's newer tracks. However, after failing to secure government funding or sufficient private investment, the decision was made to move the event to Donington. So as the storms set in to close two major chapters of British motor racing history, the rain poured down on the penultimate running of the British Grand Prix at Silverstone. Follow the jump to read how it turned out.

[Images: Getty/AFP]

"Dad, I've totalled the (insert name of first car here)." Chances are that even if you haven't had to use that phrase, you know someone who has. But in an unusual twist, Anthony Hamilton may be making the sheepish call to his son this morning.

Lewis Hamilton's dad has put someone's Carrera GT through a hedge just a couple of hundred meters from the family home in the village of Tewin, just north of London. He's not saying who the Porsche belongs to, but it appears to have German license plates, which unfortunately makes it unlikely that the car belongs to new Swiss immigrant Lewis. That would have made the story so much sweeter.

Follow the jump to The Daily Mail's version of events, but we take the tabloid's assertation that Mr. Hamilton "somehow lost control on a straight road," with a pinch of salt. The road is a sweeping right hander and was greasy at the time of the accident. Given the proximity to the Hamilton home and the GT's reputation for snap over steer, it's pretty easy to imagine what happened. Thanks for the tip Robert!

[Source: The Daily Mail]

Lewis Hamilton caught a plane headed west after dominating in Monaco, and when you're a rising F1 star in Los Angeles, you're certainly not going to hit up Avis to rent a Ford Focus – you want your vents to be functional. So Claus Ettensberger, owner of the So. Cal. tuning shop CEC, was kind enough to provide Hamilton with a fully-kitted Techart Porsche 997 911 during his stay in L.A. Granted, anything is kind of a demotion from his McLaren Formula One car, but we could think of worse ways for Hamilton to get around while mixing it up with L.A's elite.

Thanks for the tip Steve.

[Source: Autofiends]

There are a lot of automotive wristwatches out there. In fact, we had a really tough time picking only our ten favorites back in December '06. But once in a while, a new one comes along that makes us stop and take notice. This is one such timepiece.

The Hamilton U.S. 66 Power Reserve has a striking and unusual design clearly aimed at automotive enthusiasts. Take the case, which almost seems to be shaped like a speedway. The dial looks like a tachometer (if not so overtly as the special Alfa Romeo watch we showed you previously) with a center that looks like a mesh grille giving a peek at the ETA caliber 2897 automatic movement inside. Meanwhile, the strap reminds us of a grooved racing tire, with carbon fiber running down the center. Connoisseurs will also notice unique touches like the five-minute markers instead of the conventional hours and both the crown and the date window placed at 12 o'clock instead of at 3.

Although Hamilton was founded – and is still known – as an American watchmaker, its products are actually made in Switzerland. The U.S. 66 Power Reserve is ostensibly named for the famous desert highway as well, and features a power reserve window and sapphire crystal front and back. Only 2008 pieces will be made at an undisclosed price, and we want one. Bad.

[Source: TimeZone via acquire]

Reports are coming in that Lewis Hamilton, the phenom F1 driver that nearly won the drivers' championship last season, has resigned with team McLaren for a reported $138 million USD over the next five years. The deal keeps the now 23-year-old at McLaren through 2012, though he's said he would stay put for his entire career if they wanted him to (and paid him to). On average, Hamilton will earn $27 million per year through 2012, which is a big raise compared to the $700,000 base pay plus bonuses he earned last year, his rookie season. Looks like all that money used to pay F1 star Fernando Alonso last season will be going to Hamilton now, despite the fact he couldn't beat the Stig around the Top Gear test track.

[Source: Motor Authority]

With the 2007 season of Formula One racing now neatly tied up, the last few remaining seats for next year are filling up fast.

Following Mercedes' release of Fernando Alonso from his contract with McLaren and his earlier reported letter of intent with Renault where he won his two world titles, Alonso looks all but completely assured to be leaving McLaren a season early. That leaves McLaren with an open seat, and few available drivers to fill it.

The question no one seems to be asking is who will fill Alonso's seat at the British team next year. Never shying away from the difficult questions, Autoblog looks at the different options available for McLaren for 2008. Follow the jump to read more.

[Photo: Mark Thompson/Getty]

Okay, this is just getting ridiculous. Remember the story we brought you a couple days ago about the Mercedes employee in Spain who trashed Lewis Hamilton on Wikipedia? Yeah, pretty ridiculous, we know. But the British media, if you can believe it, is actually taking it seriously.

The Daily Telegraph referred to the incident as a "cheap shot" fuelled by "Spanish paranoia", while the Daily Mirror claimed that "Spain's Fernando Alonso has inflamed home fans".

Daimler said they're investigating the matter, the IP address of the *ahem* perpetrator having been traced back to its office in Spain. Wikipedia removed the edits and temporarily locked the entry. That any newspaper worth its ink is even acknowledging what amounts to no more than one person's fanaticism is just ridiculous. Stay tuned to see what the Spanish papers have to say...

[Source: F1i.com]