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Reports earlier in the week that Alonso thought his new teammate was being given preference by the British-based McLaren team were allayed by the warm hug they gave each other when they reached the victory podium.
The two then turned to the cheering crowd with arms over each other’s shoulders, smiling widely.
“We’re very, very close on the track and I think we are getting closer and closer off track,” Hamilton said. “And our respect for each other I think is growing and it’s great. We’re really happy for the team. But, once again, I’m just proud and honored to be sitting next to him as I’ve always looked up to him for the last few years.”
Ferrari had won six of the previous seven F1 races at Indy, five of them by now-retired Michael Schumacher. But, this time, the McLarens were just too strong.
The Ferraris of 2006 Indy runner-up Felipe Massa and Raikkonen, who replaced Schumacher, battled each other most of the day before finishing third and fourth, respectively, with Renault rookie Heikki Kovalainen fifth, followed by Toyota’s Jarno Trulli and Red Bull’s Mark Webber.
“It was difficult to fight the McLarens with their consistency and their pace,” said Massa, sounding somewhat frustrated. “We’re going to work a lot the next two weeks to improve the car. The championship is not so close, but we need to keep fighting.”
BMW Sauber’s Sebastian Vettel, a 19-year-old rookie filling in for Robert Kubica and making his first F1 start, finished eighth, earning the final point. Kubica missed the race after sustaining a concussion and a sprained ankle in a spectacular crash in Canada.
Fifteen of the 22 cars were running at the finish.
Honda’s Rubens Barrichello, a former USGP winner when he was with Ferrari, didn’t make it past the start, colliding with Toyota’s Ralf Schumacher and Red Bull’s David Coulthard as they fought for position near the back of the grid on the start. All three were out before completing a lap.
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