Alonso and Hamilton were McLaren teammates that year – the latter was the first in Formula 1 – who had a close title fight with Ferrari drivers Raikkonen and Felipe Massa, as well as the Spygate saga controversy and Alonso’s punishment for blocking Hamilton in the box at the Hungarian Grand Prix.
The 2007 Brazilian GP was the season finale, with Hamilton arriving four points ahead of Alonso, Raikkonen seven behind the top spot and Massa fourth out of the race.
But a lap on the first lap and a subsequent gearbox problem at the start of the race dropped Hamilton in the ranking, and with Alonso finishing third and Ferrari making sure Raikkonen won the race, Massa had led from pole to second stops, the Finn secured his only F1 world title by one point ahead of Hamilton – in the days when a win earned 10 points that were only awarded up to eighth place.
Alonso and Hamilton were asked about their memories of this year’s title fight, where they appeared side by side, in the press conference ahead of the Interlagos 2021 event.
When asked how they felt changed since their only year as a teammate, Alonso replied: “In any case, everyone has changed since this year.
“I can only speak for myself, but I’m sure that when you’re 13 you are different than back then.
“And more mature and you might see things definitely.
“As I’ve said many times, I don’t think we’ve been run very well this year.
“We had a very competitive package but we managed to lose to the Ferraris. They were fast, yes, but I don’t think as fast as we are. But yes, as I said, we were not well managed.
“But I still have fond memories of this year. And hopefully we can return to these days and fight for the championship together. “
Lewis Hamilton, McLaren MP4-22 and father Anthony
Photo by: Steve Etherington / Motorsport Images
Hamilton said: “The fight we had when we were both younger was tough against the Ferraris, which were very strong then.
“Well, it’s still similar [to his 2021 title fight against Red Bull’s Max Verstappen]. I haven’t really rated anyone [title fight] heavier than the other. They were all tough in their own way. “
With Hamilton and Alonso embarking on the new era of Formula 1 in 2022, Alfa Romeo racing driver Raikkonen will retire at the end of the season.
When asked if it felt special to be back in Brazil for the last time as an F1 driver and at the scene of his title race, Raikkonen replied: “I mean, it’s still the same place.
“Obviously some things have improved a lot since my first visit here. But no, the route is pretty much the same.
“You are very passionate about it [here] and usually a lot of viewers, so yes, of course I have fond memories of here.
“But I don’t know, unfortunately it won’t change on the weekend [with Alfa]but yes it’s nice to have memories here.
“And it was often the last race in the past, then at some point it was a very early race of the year, but now we still have it [three] walk.”
Raikkonen also said he had “no plans yet” for his Formula 1 life, “other than spending time with the family and living a life without the schedule that dictates the life of the whole family”.
He added, “So that’s the plan.”
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