Robert Baxter wrote:EPIC GP
Results:
[*] L Hamilton
[*] M Webber
[*] R Kubica
[*] F Massa
[*] A Sutil
[*] N Rosberg
[*] M Schumacher
[*] K Kobayashi
[*] V Petrov
[*] V Liuzzi
[*] P de la Rosa
[*] S Buemi
[*] J Alguersuari (penalty)
[*] N Hulkenberg
[*] S Vettel
[*] H Kovalainen
[*] L di Grassi
[*] T Glock
[*] J Trulli
[*] S Yamamoto
Retired:
[*] F Alonso - Accident - Lap 38
[*] J Button - Accident - Lap 16
[*] B Senna - Suspension - Lap 6
[*] R Barrichello - Accident - Lap 1
Lap 1: What a dreadful start from Webber. It's almost as if he was standing still. Hamilton takes advantage - he leads into the first corner. Kubica second then Button. Wow. And there's a yellow flag. Can't see why. Drama. Spots of rain are falling now. And it's slippy. Loads of cars go wide at the Bus Stop chicane - at least nine. And there's contact - Barrichello and Alonso. Alonso manages to get into the pits, Barrichello's car doesn't look good.
Lap 2: Button is all over Kubica and manages to get second. Safety car is out.
Lap 3: There's blue sky. That was a really quick shower. Very tricky to work out tyre strategy with these conditions. Glock came in for wets but then had to change them again. Two stops already for him.
Lap 4: Hamilton goes wide at La Source when the safety car comes in but he hangs on to first. Kubica is struggling and Vettel nabs him for third at the same corner. Ted Kravitz says Alonso will come in again - to change to dry tyres. Showers are unlikely now for the next 30 minutes.
Lap 5: Alonso does indeed come in. That's his second stop and he is in 20th place. Hamilton is flying at the moment. He sets a 1:53.065 and he leads Button by 2.7 seconds. Vettel is 1.1 seconds further back.
Lap 7: Hamilton leads by 4.8 seconds and is told: "You're pace is good." The teams are not expecting rain in the near future. Alonso has moved up to 17th place. Vettel is 0.6 seconds off Button. I forgot to mention that Barrichello's crash did rule him out of the race. Not the way to celebrate his 300th GP.
Lap 10: Button is told that rain is expected in 20 minutes and that he will stay out until then. Vettel and Kubica were under investigation for the incident when the Red Bull man claimed third but no action will be taken. Hamilton leads by 5.6 seconds.
Lap 11: Vitaly Petrov takes the Mercedes of Nico Rosberg on the outside of Les Combes. Schumacher is behind the Renault driver and joins in the move at Turn Seven. There's a little bit of contact between the Mercedes drivers. Rosberg has a bit of front wing damage but they are going to keep him out. Petrov in ninth, Schumacher 10th, Rosberg 11th.
Lap 13: Button has Vettel all over him but the McLaren driver is holding up the rest of the pack. Button has bit of front wing damage and has balance problems as a result but is staying out. Hamilton, therefore, can streak away and his lead is now 8.3 seconds.
Lap 16:
VETTEL AND BUTTON COLLIDE. Unbelievable. As the rain starts to fall again, Vettel gets a run on Button coming out of Blanchimont but as he gets on the outside he veers into the Briton coming into the Bus Stop. Vettel is able to crawl into the pits to change his front wing but Button is out. The incident is under investigation. Massive moment.
Lap 19: Vettel gets a drive-through penalty for that. Hungary and now Belgium. Incredible. Hamilton and Webber will not be complaining though. Hamilton leads by 10.5 seconds, then it is Kubica, Webber, Massa, Sutil and Schumacher. Alonso is in ninth.
Lap 20: In comes Vettel. How costly will these drive-throughs be for the German?
Lap 22: In comes Webber for his stop. Very quick. He will come out in fourth. Vettel sets the fastest lap of 1:50.868. BBC pit-lane reporter Ted Kravitz says that when Vettel served that drive-through, the McLaren mechanics all came out to the pit lane with their arms folded to give him a lingering stare. Moody.
Lap 23: Kubica in for his stop, so is Massa.
Lap 24: Now it's the turn of leader Hamilton. Text book, the stop was 4.2 seconds.
Lap 25:... and Hamilton gets out in front. What power from Sutil as he takes Schumacher coming up the hill into Les Combes for fifth. Feel the Force. Or something.
Lap 26: More drama - Vettel has a puncture. Vettel overtakes Vitantonio Liuzzi at the Bus Stop but the Force India driver's front wing slices open the left rear tyre of the Red Bull. Vettel cannot get into the pits so has to crawl all the way around the track with a flat tyre. Liuzzi does manage to get in and has a new front wing.
Lap 27: Vettel comes in for new tyres, they are the softer compounds, while Massa is told that rain will arrive in 10 laps. Hamilton is on easy street at the moment, he's 8.6 seconds clear of Kubica.
Lap 30: This is Hamilton's to lose, he is 11.2 seconds clear now after setting a fastest lap of 1:49.422. Hang on though, this is not over yet - there are some very threatening clouds in the distance. Stay tuned.
Lap 32: Hamilton is told that he will remain on the slicks until "it is definitely ready for inters". Hamilton leads by 12.9 seconds, then it is Webber in third 2.2 seconds off Kubica. Massa is fourth, Sutil fifth, Alonso ninth, Vettel 19th.
Lap 34: The rain is falling. Glock comes in for full wets. Tellingly, Hamilton and Webber decide to stay out. Is that the right decision?
Lap 35: Hamilton is tip-toeing around the circuit, he tells his team that the rain falling heavier now. He gets a reply that they "do not want to jump too early". AND HE GOES OFF. He's in the gravel at Rivage. More drama. He keeps his head though and gets back on the track.
Lap 36: Loads of cars pile into the pits now. It's all going off. Alonso and Vettel touch wheels in the pits. The Mercedes duo are on inters and Vettel is on full wets. How long will this rain last? Nick Hulkenberg is still out on slicks still. Interesting. Kubica overshoots his pit-lane box, that's a very costly delay as Webber gets out in front of him for second. Hamilton still leads.
Lap 38: Vettel has to come in again for another set of full wets. BBC pit-lane reporter Ted Kravitz says the German burnt out his previous set as it was not yet wet enough on the track. ALONSO SPINS. He touches the paint coming out of Les Combes coming into Malmedy, he smacks into the barrier and sits in the middle of the track. The Spaniard clambers out and runs to safety. HE'S OUT. Safety car.
Lap 39: Vettel says it is not wet enough but his team reply that their spotters believe it is and that those drivers on inters are struggling. There's a bit of spray coming off the cars now and Hamilton complains that the safety car is going too slow. I can't keep up. This is absolutely superb.
Lap 40: The safety car is in at the end of this lap. Lotus technical chief Mike Gascoyne tells the BBC that intermediates are the tyres to be on now as it is drying up.
Lap 41: Hamilton gets off cleanly and keeps the lead over Webber. Rosberg overtakes team-mate Schumacher for sixth - that will put a smile on the younger man's face. Whoa, Jarno Trulli spins his Lotus coming down into Pouhon. He's lucky no-one smacked into him.
Lap 42: Hamilton leads Webber by 1.6 seconds with the Australian leading Kubica by the same distance. Will there be any more drama? Vettel is in 15th by the way, no points for him.
End of the race.: Hamilton's done it, that's his third victory of the season and his first since Canada. A significant victory for Hamilton, especially with three of his rivals not scoring any points. The cars are quickly diverted the wrong way into the pits to avoid a lengthy in-lap and Hamilton leaps out of the car. Kubica was third, Massa fourth, Sutil fifth, Rosberg sixth and Schumacher seventh. Vettel ended up in 15th.