World champion Fernando Alonso won the season-ending Chinese Grand Prix yesterday to clinch his Renault team's first-ever Formula One constructors' title.
Starting from pole position, Alonso held off McLaren's Kimi Raikkonen to take his seventh title this season and eighth overall.
Raikkonen began closing in the final laps but could only settle for second place, four seconds behind the Spaniard. Toyota's Ralf Schumacher came third.
Alonso slowed on the final lap to allow Raikkonen to get within four seconds but it was not that close.
The drivers championship ended with Alonso amassing 133 points for the season and Raikkonen with 112.
A reground surface plus inadequate tires plus the decision to let race car drivers compete with both equaled one of NASCAR's least proud moments on Saturday night at Lowe's Motor Speedway.
Just ask Tony Stewart. Running off with the points lead and the UAW-Ford Quality 500 on Lap 216 of 334, he became the biggest name in a who's-blew list as a reworked racing surface and tires unable to handle its speed made a mockery of the fifth of 10 Chase for the Championship races.
But Jimmie Johnson did his best to return order, taking the lead from Ricky Rudd with 15 laps left, then holding off Kurt Busch by .309 seconds in a green-white-checker finish to win for the fourth straight time and fifth in six at Charlotte.
Amazed, Johnson chuckled over his radio to his crew, "Unbelievable man. Never quit."
World MotoGP champion Valentino Rossi won his fifth consecutive Australian Grand Prix on Sunday, easing ahead of pole winner Nicky Hayden of the US with nine laps to go to claim his 11th victory of the season.
It was Rossi's seventh win in eight years on the 4.448km Phillip Island circuit, having won two 250cc class races ahead of his move into 500cc and MotoGP.
Rossi needs just one more victory in the season's last two races to equal Australian Mick Doohan's record of 12 wins in one season, set in 1997.
Hayden stayed right on Rossi's tail for most of the 27-lap race to earn second, a second behind, with Carlos Checa of Spain in third.
Hayden moved into second place in the championship standings, level with Italy's Marco Melandri on 150 points each. American Colin Edwards is in fourth place overall with 162 points, followed by Italy's Max Biaggi with 159.
RSS