Today, at the Shanghai circuit in China, in the span of one lap — lap number 31 — Team McLaren driver Lewis Hamilton’s snatched defeat from the jaws of victory in his quest for the 2007 Formula 1 Word Championship. On the fateful lap, Lewis, who had been passed by Team Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen, inexplicably pitched his silver arrow Mercedes McLaren into a gravel trap. The Finn would charge on to win the race — his fifth of the 2007 season — while Fernando Alonso benefited from his teammates huge gaffe to place second and closed the points gap to a total of four with just race remaining, Interlagos in Brazil in a fortnight’s time.

While not nearly as bad as the monsoon-like Japanese Grand Prix last Sunday, the clouds above China were oversaturated with moisture, could not hold it, and rain began to fall on the ground of China, thus initiating another wet weather start. All on rain tires, when the lights went out, it was Hamilton getting the best jump out of the hole, leading Raikkonen, Alonso and Massa out of the first turn. Interestingly, back at the dull end of the field, Sebastian Sebastien Vettel, who had started 17th, began an enthralling charge to the front. In fact by lap number 12, he was about to zap Renault’s Heikki Kovalainen’s Renault 10th place. While leading handsomely over Raikkonen, on lap number 15, Hamilton entered the pits to take on fuel (the team chose not to change tires). A flurry of pit stops made, on lap number 29, Raikkonen mounted attack on the sensational rookie Hamilton. Raikkonen would execute a clean pass. Hamilton, who would pay a heavy price for not changing to slick tires earlier in the race, was forced to stop for new meats on lap number 31. It was then, as he exited pit road, hit moisture and slow span into a gravel trap.

"When I was out of the car I was just gutted because it was my first mistake all year and to do it on the way into the pits was not something I usually do," lamented a dejected Hamilton said. "You cannot go through life without making mistakes. But I am over it and we look forward to Brazil."

On lap 33 both Raikkonen and Alonso dove into the pit for new tires, thus allowing BMW’s Robert Kubica into the lead. The Pole very well may have won the race had his car not faltered with mechanical woes on lap number 34. And so it was…. Raikkonen won the Chinese Grand Prix by 9.80 seconds with Alonso second and Felipe Massa third. Vettel placed an amazing fourth overall while Jenson Button was fifth, far and away Honda’s best result of the 2007 world tour.

And now the Formula 1 circus will fly from Europe to Brazil for the curtain dropping Brazilian Grand Prix. With Hamilton now only four points ahead of Alonso and only seven points ahead of Raikkonen, it should make for one hell of a race.