French Grand Prix

It didn’t look good for BMW Sauber in France. The weekend went south early for them when simply no grip could be found in the car during the practice sessions. By the time qualifying came around only minimal improvements could be found. The result was Kubica qualifying 7th and Heidfeld 12th.

All was not lost though and Robert managed to collect a valuable 4 points with his 5th place finish.

British Grand Prix

Nick Heidfeld was the man in Britain leaving Robert in his dust all weekend. For a brief moment it looked like Heidfeld had put his qualifying problems behind him with a 5th place qualifying while Robert could only reach 10th and didn’t even run a lap in Q3.

It was a wet race and Nick does well in the wet pulling off another podium in 2nd place. The weekend continued poorly for Robert who eventually spun out in the wet ending his day in a DNF.

German Grand Prix

This was the team’s home grand prix and qualifying was a bit of a disappointment. Heidfeld still suffering his tire problems in qualifying managed only 12th on the grid and Kubica 7th. Things did improve for Nick during the race with a great race strategy and a timely safety car and he finished in 4th place and also set his second fastest lap of the season.

European Grand Prix

Right from the start of the weekend things looked good for Kubica who only had minimal complaints about the car. Heidfeld on the other hand simply could not get the car to work for him on the hard tire compound. In qualifying Kubica managed a great 3rd place grid position and Nick with all of his qualifying woes still managed Q3 and started 8th.

It was to be the team’s 8th podium in 12 races so far and getting to be a habit. It was Robert who cruised to a third place finish in the race while Nick struggling with the harder tire could only manage 9th. He called his race a disaster.

Robert Kubica

“I started pretty well, but in corner one I went over the kerb and Lewis was closing. In the second corner I was going to overtake Lewis, but I saw Felipe braking quite early. It would have been too much of a risk, as I could have ended up over-shooting the braking point and crashing into him.

“Over the next few laps I was consistently a bit slower than Lewis. Suddenly I saw a white plastic bag flying across the track, but could not avoid it and it went under the car. I couldn’t steer for two corners, which was extremely dangerous.

“Fortunately most of the bag soon flew away, but my confidence was very low over the next sector, and I lost around three seconds. In the end I finished third. Eventually I think my good qualifying result yesterday was crucial for today’s result.”

Belgiun Grand Prix

Spa was another race with the threat of rain on and off. Considering Heidfeld’s well publicized qualifying problems he did manage to out qualify Robert once again with a grid position 5th and Robert starting 8th.

Toward the end of the race with Nick falling down in the order, the rain began and a quick and well timed switch to wet tires allowed him to pass 4 cars and finish in 2nd. Once again another podium for BMW Sauber. Later after Lewis Hamilton was penalized 5 places, Heidfeld was promoted to 2nd.

A pit stop problem for Robert Kubica involving the fuel nozzle meant the best he could do was 6th.

All of which made Heidfeld even happier with his podium finish at Spa, the key to which was his brave decision to change onto wet-weather tyres two laps from the finish. Kubica’s chances of a top-three finish were scuppered by a sticking fuel tank nozzle. It was a rare mishap for the BMW Sauber F1 Team, which topped the fastest pit stop statistics. Kubica went on to finish sixth.

Nick Heidfeld

“When the drizzle set in I was convinced it would be heavier on the next lap and decided to change to wet weather tyres. The team asked me if I meant what I said. When I left the pit lane after the stop I asked on the radio how many laps to go, and my engineer said this one and another one. As I couldn’t see any cars on the track I thought, oh this was probably the wrong decision, but then it paid off. It was a Hero or Zero decision.”

Italian Grand Prix

Qualifying for this race was the poorest of the season for both drivers as a whole. Nick Heidfeld could only manage 10th while Robert Kubica only 11th and missing Q3.

Things worked out well for Kubica however when he opted for a one stop strategy and was again quick to get on wet weather tires. Both these strategies worked in his favour and once again Robert was on the podium in 3rd.

Starting from 10th place Nick also had a pretty good day and pulled himself up into 5th and the team took away another valuable 10 points for the constructors’ championship.

Japanese Grand Prix

With Kubica qualifying 6th and Heidfeld 16th, Japan didn’t look like a place that would be good to BMW Sauber this year, but as the race unfolded and the leaders shuffled back in the pack, Robert driving a mistake free race quietly moved up the field leading the race for a while. Eventually a very fast Fernando Alonso took over and Kubica finished a great 2nd.

Kubica took centre stage at Fuji as the chief protagonists in the World Championship race shunted each other down the field. After 17 laps in the lead the Pole was forced to settle for second place behind Alonso, but had put himself back in contention for the driver’s title. Heidfeld finished a nondescript ninth after an errant tyre strategy in qualifying. Ferrari climbed back to the top of the constructors’ standings.

Robert Kubica

“It’s a great result for the whole team at a time when it is not easy. We have been struggling a little bit recently and we were under pressure from some teams, so this second place is a real boost for our morale. Now we have nothing to lose, but everything is possible.”

So that’s where the numbers came from in 2008.