The Observer
Despite a down-to-the-wire battle for the titles, the 2006 F1 season wasn't as great as it seems. Damien Smith looks at how politics and controversy tainted the championship
After the first Grand Prix of 2006 I genuinely thought we had a four-way team battle for the world championship on our hands.
Yes, the race in Bahrain was all about an Alonso versus Schuey duel, a strategy game between Renault and Ferrari. But only qualifying fragility had thwarted Kimi Raikkonen's McLaren from making it a three-way fight, while Jenson Button's Honda looked promising in fourth.
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