Fernando Alonso was left to rue the end of his recent run of fine form, but not his Championship hopes.
Alonso endured a day to forget in Sunday's Belgian Grand Prix as rain at the Bus Stop chicane on the first lap resulted in Rubens Barrichello ploughing into the Spaniard's Ferrari.
Although Alonso was able to continue, further heavier rain later in the race when he was running in eighth saw him spin and collide with a wall, damaging his front-right suspension.
With title rivals Lewis Hamilton and Mark Webber one and two, Alonso, who had finished finished first and second in the last two races, now finds himself 41 points adrift of the McLaren star.
"The first of the seven 'finals' went badly for me and for two of the other five finalists," said Alonso as Sebastian Vettel finished 15th, primarily after crashing into and retiring Jenson Button.
"The remaining two got the maximum result that means we will have to make up the ground lost today somewhere else.
"It is very disappointing because this is a bad result, but it does not mean I have given up on my chances of winning the title."
Although Felipe Massa lifted Ferrari's spirits by finishing fourth, the Maranello marque have slipped to 80 points behind Red Bull, who are only a point clear of McLaren in the Constructors' standings.
Despite the situation, it has prompted team principal Stefano Domenicali to remind people of what happened in 2007 when Hamilton lost the title after holding a 17-point lead - under the old system - with two races remaining.
"The weekend definitely did not end well for us, even if Felipe's fourth place at the end of an impeccable and error free race in conditions that were far from easy, is an important result," said Domenicali.
"Fernando saw his race compromised right from the first lap, the unwitting victim of an accident.
"Then, despite fighting his way up the order, he ended up off the track in the sort of incident that can easily happen in a rain-affected race.
"Apart from that we must recognise our performance in this grand prix did not match our expectations.
"It interrupted a positive trend that began a few races ago, and now we have to understand why immediately and take the necessary countermeasures.
"Although the situation in both Championships is certainly more difficult, it is still not impossible for us to reach our targets.
"For those with short memories, I remember three years ago we found ourselves in a much worse situation, and we all know how it went in the end."
