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Published: Monday September 14, 2009 MYT 4:09:00 PM

Sutil floors mechanic in chase of Monza podium

MONZA, Italy (AP) - With a potential podium finish at stake, Adrian Sutil was in such a hurry to pit at the Italian Grand Prix that he knocked down one of his own mechanics.

Sutil had a chance to pass Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen when the two pulled in for their second stop at the same time, but the Force India driver failed to stop in time and bumped into one of the mechanics - slowing the tire change down instead.

"Going into my second stop we had a chance to overtake him in the pit lane and I was pushing really hard, but I was a bit late on the brakes into the box," Sutil said. "I think I have to say sorry to the mechanics for going a bit wide."

The floored mechanic got back to his feet pretty quickly but Sutil could only watch as Raikkonen's red car whizzed by as he pulled out.

Raikkonen finished third after Lewis Hamilton crashed on the final lap, while Sutil had a career best fourth-place for the Indian team, which was coming off a runner-up spot at Belgium.

The Finnish driver has been a bit of a bogeyman for Sutil, who always seems to be stuck behind Raikkonen whenever he's in the running.

"I was stuck behind him the whole race," Sutil said. "I couldn't find an area to pass Kimi. It was really close in the end. He used the KERS (boost) button everywhere and I was a little bit frustrated not to find a chance to pass him."

Teammate Tonio Liuzzi retired with a driveshaft problem after 22 laps while running sixth. The Italian had impressed after replacing Giancarlo Fisichella - who moved to Ferrari - in his first drive since 2007.

"I am racing again and I gave it 100 percent," the former Toro Rosso driver said. "I had an unusual problem, the transmission started making a strange noise and then I lost drive and couldn't push. That's racing." ___

RISING STAR: Nico Hulkenberg followed in the footsteps of Formula One champion Lewis Hamilton and F1 drivers Nico Rosberg and Timo Glock on Sunday after clinching the GP2 series title.

Hulkenberg, who has been touted as a future driver at Williams where he has tested for two seasons, finished third at the Italian Grand Prix to take the F1 feeder series title with one race to go.

Closest challenger Vitaly Petrov of Russia provided his German rival with extensive pressure throughout the race before running wide late to see Hulkenberg become the first driver to win the title before the final round.

Hulkenberg has 90 points to Petrov's 68 with the final race at Portugal next weekend. Brazilian driver Luiz Razia won the 21-lap race after starting from pole position.

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