Sebastian Vettel takes victory in incident-filled Singapore GP

Sebastian Vettel has taken a highly important victory at the Singapore Grand Prix, after a timed-capped incident-filled race which saw poleman Lewis Hamilton drop out of the race with a suspected gearbox issue. Vettel was followed home by Jenson Button in 2nd, with Fernando Alonso a distant 3rd for Ferrari.

The race began relatively incident-free, as Lewis Hamilton led at the front ahead of Sebastian Vettel and Jenson Button. The Williams of Pastor Maldonado dropped back from 2nd to 4th, whereas further back the Caterham of Vitaly Petrov made contact with Felipe Massa. This saw Massa pick up a puncture and Petrov loose his front wing, with both pitting for repairs after the opening lap.

As the opening laps ticked away, Lewis Hamilton dominated out in front, opening up a considerable gap to the Red Bull of Sebastian Vettel. By lap 8, the first pit stops began to occur as Mark Webber became the first driver to make a scheduled pit stop. The leaders pitted several laps later, with Sebastian Vettel on lap 11 and Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton on lap 12. This gifted the lead to Jenson Button, who eventually pitted on lap 13 and handed the lead back to team-mate Hamilton.

However, disaster struck on lap 22 when Lewis Hamilton was seen coasting to a halt on the track, with a suspected gearbox issue plaguing his McLaren. This gifted the lead to Sebastian Vettel, as Hamilton disconsolately walked away from his stricken machine. Mark Webber, Pastor Maldonado and Fernando Alonso pitted once again on lap 28 and 29, before the first safety car period was caused after the HRT of Narain Karthikeyan slammed into the wall at turn 18 and subsequently retired.

Kimi Raikkonen chose the moment perfectly to pit for Lotus under the safety car conditions, a trick which the majority of the front runners copied as Sebastian Vettel and Jenson Button both pitted from the front. Pastor Maldonado’s superlative race weekend was brought to a sudden conclusion during the safety car period, when the Venezuelan driver was ordered to return to the pits to retire due to a suspected hydraulic issue.

Jenson Button and Sebastian Vettel nearly collided prior to the restart, as the German driver slowed suddenly to bunch the pack up in preparation for the restart of the race. The field had barely negotiated half a lap before the safety car was brought out once again, after the Mercedes of Michael Schumacher slammed heavily into the rear of the Toro Rosso of Jean-Eric Vergne. The German blamed the incident on brake issues on his Mercedes, as the safety car once again reappeared at the front of the pack.

As the safety car continued to lead the field, Mark Webber, Nico Hulkenberg and Sergio Perez all elected to pit. Vitaly Petrov also pitted for Caterham, but stopped at the end of the pit lane due to a wheel nut issue. However, the Caterham mechanics were able to fix the issue and send the Russian back out again, as the race was resumed on lap 42.

Felipe Massa and Bruno Senna nearly came together through turn 13, as the Brazilian driver practically exceeded track limits through turns 11 and 12 to overtake his fellow countryman. Nico Hulkenberg ruined his race in the latter stages of the event, as the German driver defended heavily against the oncoming Sauber’s of Sergio Perez and Kamui Kobayashi. Both made contact with the rear of Hulkenberg’s Force India, and both sustained damaged front wings. Eventually Hulkenberg picked up a puncture, after a much heavier incident with Kobayashi.

As the race drew to a conclusion, the race stewards inevitably decided to make it a timed race, as running to the full distance would run over the two hour mark. Bruno Senna’s miserable weekend continued on lap 58, as the Brazilian driver retired with a loss of power on his Renault-powered Williams.

However, after assuming the lead when Lewis Hamilton retired, Sebastian Vettel looked unstoppable at the front and stormed to his 23rd career victory. The reigning World Champion was followed home by the sole remaining McLaren of Jenson Button, with Championship leader Fernando Alonso an important 3rd for Ferrari.

The Formula 1 circus now moves swiftly on to one of the most legendary tracks in Asia, with the Japanese Grand Prix around the superb Suzuka circuit. As the Championship draws to a conclusion, consistent and competitive results are a necessity for any driver wishing to claim the Drivers’ Championship come November.

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