Alonso registers fourth straight win

Fernando Alonso won his fourth consecutive race Sunday, driving his Renault to an easy victory in the Canadian Grand Prix and widening his lead over Michael Schumacher by 25 points in the world championship standings.

Fernando Alonso won his fourth consecutive race Sunday, driving his Renault to an easy victory in the Canadian Grand Prix and widening his lead over Michael Schumacher by 25 points in the world championship standings.

Alonso, who started from the pole, his fifth in a row, had only a brief challenge from Kimi Raikkonen early in the race but held off the Finn’s attempt to pass him on the 12th lap.

Raikkonen had a horrible day in the pits, having trouble on a tire change during his first stop and stalling his McLaren on another. He was then passed by Schumacher with one lap to go.

But Schumacher, a seven-time winner on the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, also had a rough day and never challenged Alonso. He drove his Ferrari off course once, brushed the wall and cut across the chicane several times to take him out of contention.

This marked the first successful outing for Alonso in Canada. He had failed to finish three of his previous four races here, including last year when he hit the wall while leading.

Giancarlo Fisichella, Alonso’s teammate at Renault, finished fourth. Massa was fifth, Jarno Trulli registered a sixth-place finish for Toyota. David Coulthard finished eighth after starting last because he changed his engine before the race.

The drama of this race began on the opening lap, when Raikkonen jumped past Fisichella to take away second place. The FIA stewards investigated Fisichella for jumping the start, and penalised him with a drive-through pass in the pits.

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Juan Pablo Montoya was also forced to retire after brushing against a wall while coming out of a turn.