Fisi out of Flav’s favor

According to Suzuka gossip, Giancarlo Fisichella received a stern dressing-down after ceding Japanese GP victory to Kimi Raikkonen on the last lap. Sources said Renault boss Flavio Briatore slammed his fist on the pitwall as his Roman driver failed to resist the quicker advance of Finn Kimi.

''The last lap happened,'' 'Flav' said afterwards, ''and in the end it was a good race for sport.''

Briatore described Fisichella's driving as 'very correct', sparking the question of whether he wished the 32-year-old should have defended his lead with more vigor.

''Absolutely not,'' said the Italian. ''It is painful and I am not happy, and I was surprised to have Kimi overtake in those circumstances.''

Fisichella, who has struggled to keep up with world champion teammate Fernando Alonso this year, said McLaren's Raikkonen had been near impossible to keep behind.

''He was much quicker than me, especially on the straight,'' Giancarlo said. ''I am a little bit disappointed but his car was just quicker than our car, as usual. What can I do?''

And, faced with the possibility of pushing even harder, Fisichella replied: ''I always try to keep my position but I also didn't want to end up in a collision.''