Vettel leads Red Bull one-two at Spa

Sebastian Vettel led a Red Bull one-two at Spa-Francorchamps – one of RBR’s supposed weakest tracks.

It was the German’s seventh win of the season, the first since the European GP. He took the chequered flag 3.7s ahead of his teammate Mark Webber while Jenson Button took third place for McLaren-Mercedes.

Alonso finished in fourth position ahead of Michael Schumacher. Rosberg, Sutil, Massa, Petrov and Maldonado completed the top ten.

Lewis Hamilton crashed on lap 12 after a collision with Kobayashi’s Sauber.

How the race panned out :

Nico Rosberg made a storming start from fifth on the grid and was up in 2nd place at the first corner. He soon attacked Sebastian Vettel and took the lead. Massa was third ahead of Hamilton and Alonso. The Spaniard passed the McLaren driver for P4 on lap 2.

Further down the order there was a big scrap in the first corner. Jaime Alguersuari was one of the biggest casualties and had to retire on lap 2 with a broken front suspension. Bruno Senna, Timo Glock and Heikki Kovalainen were also involved and pitted at the end of the opening lap. Glock and Senna were both handed a drive through penalty for causing a collision.

At the front, Vettel reclaimed the lead on lap 3. His teammate Webber and McLaren’s Button pitted for fresh tyres on lap 4. The German came in next time round, handing the lead back to Rosberg. The Mercedes driver soon found himself under pressure from Alonso, who had passed his teammate Massa for third. He kept him at bay for a while but relinquished the lead on lap 7.

Hamilton attacked him one lap later. Alonso stopped for new tyres on this same lap, promoting the Briton to the lead. He pitted on lap 10 as Vettel passed Rosberg for P2 and eventually the race lead. When the German came in for new rubber, Alonso moved up in 2nd place ahead of Kobayashi and Webber. The Australian soon dispatched the Sauber driver to take P3.

The Japanese then had to deal with a charging Hamilton. The McLaren driver overtook him but Kobayashi fancied his chance to take his position back and the two of them collided. Hamilton went off track and hit the barrier. His race was over and the Safety Car had to be deployed to clear the debris.

Vettel, amongst others, took the opportunity to pit for new tyres. He rejoined in third place behind his teammate Mark Webber. Alonso was the new race leader.

Daniel Ricciardo stopped his HRT on track – just before Blanchimont - on lap 15.

The race resumed on lap 17. Alonso managed the restart well while Vettel immediately passed Webber for P2. The German was soon all over the rear wing of the Ferrari and made his move on lap 18 to retake the lead. Having taken on some fresh tyres during the SC period, the World Champion set a rapid pace to pull a gap over Alonso.

Further down the order, Button put Schumacher under pressure for P7. The German defended well but the McLaren driver eventually found a way past. Sutil was Button’s next target and was disposed off on lap 23. The Briton rapidly closed on Massa and passed him on lap 25. Rosberg was only 2 seconds up the road and lost fourth place to Button one lap later.

On lap 30, Alonso pitted for the 2nd time and took on a set of hard tyres. Vettel pitted from the lead in the following lap and rejoined in 3rd place behind Button. Rosberg, Massa, Petrov and di Resta stopped in the same lap. Webber stopped on lap 31.

Button was in the lead but lost it to Vettel on lap 32 as the German made the most of his fresher tyres. The McLaren pitted at the end of this lap and took another set of softs, having started the race on the harder option. He rejoined in fourth place.

Ten laps to the chequered flag, Vettel had a 6.5s advantage over Alonso. Webber was third, 4.2s behind the Spaniard. Button was a further 6s down the road. Rosberg was fifth ahead of Sutil and Schumacher. The former World Champion moved up one place on lap 35.

Webber soon closed on Alonso and found his way past on lap 37. His rapid pace encouraged his teammate to up his own pace and defend his 8s margin. Behind them, battles developed for 3rd and 5th place as Button and Schumacher respectively closed on Alonso and Rosberg.

Rosberg’s cause was not helped by the need for him to save fuel and he surrendered on lap 42. In the meantime, Button deprived Alonso of a podium position. At the front, Vettel managed the gap to Webber and crossed the finish line 3.7s ahead of his teammate to take his seventh win of the season.