Top News

[blacktulip]

Fernando Alonso took full advantage of Ferrari’s competitive renaissance and a rare tardy pit stop from Red Bull to deliver the Maranello squad’s first win of 2011 in an enthralling wet/dry British Grand Prix.

Sebastian Vettel held the lead until half-distance, but was coming under increasing pressure from Alonso when a fumbled tyre change at his second stop handed the lead to the Spaniard.

Alonso seized his chance and romped away to victory, while Vettel had to fend off team-mate Mark Webber in the closing laps, the Red Bull pair taking the chequered flag in line astern.

There was an even tighter battle for fourth place as Lewis Hamilton wrestled with the twin tasks of saving fuel and keeping a fast-closing Felipe Massa at bay. Hamilton came off best from a wheel-banging moment in the penultimate corner – giving the huge crowd something to cheer on an otherwise disappointing day for the British drivers.

Jenson Button’s chances of claiming an elusive Silverstone podium vanished when a wheel wasn’t secured properly at his final pit stop and fell off before he made it out of the pit exit, while a pit mishap also ruined Paul di Resta’s hopes of a points finish after his fine qualifying performance.

[blacktulip]

McLaren and Sauber were fined by race stewards at the British Grand Prix in the hours after the race after both teams were found guilty of unsafe releases of their respective cars from pit stops.

Sauber received a more severe fine of €20,000 for releasing Kamui Kobayashi’s car into the path of the oncoming Williams of Rubens Barrichello, the Japanese driver having already received a stop-and-go penalty for the incident during the race.

Explaining the pit stop, the Swiss team’s technical director James Key said: “During his stop we had a problem which resulted in him being released later than originally planned and unfortunately there was an unintentional clash with a Williams.”

McLaren were fined €5,000 for the incident that saw Jenson Button leave his pit box before his car’s right-front wheel had been properly attached, although the Briton swiftly pulled to the side of the road to retire in the pit exit lane.

"Our pit crew has done a fantastic job all year – but on this occasion they released Jenson before his right-front wheel had been properly attached,” McLaren boss Martin Whitmarsh said.

“It was a case of human error in the heat of the moment – but, as I say, and as I want to stress the point, our pit crew has completed dozens of faultless pit stops under extreme pressure this season and today's error was therefore totally atypical.”

[blacktulip]

Felipe Massa said his pace in the British Grand Prix was compromised by damage to the floor of his Ferrari that occurred shortly after his first pit stop.

The Brazilian just missed out on fourth place in an entertaining last-lap scrap with Lewis Hamilton, but finished 29s behind his race-winning team-mate Fernando Alonso.

“It’s true my pace wasn’t amazing today,” conceded Massa, “but that could have had something to do with the fact my floor was damaged, after I hit something at turn six, maybe a part from another car. I saw the floor when I got out of my car and it was very damaged.”

Massa had no complaints about Hamilton’s driving following their wheel-banging moment at Club on the final lap: “I only just missed out by a fraction on getting past him. It was definitely a fun finish, but I wasn’t in front so it didn’t feel great!”

He also hailed Alonso’s win as a sign of how much Ferrari have improved their car’s performance, and a harbinger of better things in the second half of the season.

“Fernando’s win shows that Ferrari can be better in the second part of the season, and that’s very important,” said Massa.

“I think we have made a step forward this weekend in terms of performance, both in qualifying and the race.

“We have to continue to push on the development of the car: there are many races still ahead of us and having improved the car means we can feel more confident about the second half of the season.”

[blacktulip]

Hamilton admitted he was determined not to let Ferrari rival Felipe Massa demote him one final place in the closing corners of the British Grand Prix having already had his strong drive through the field compromised by the need to save fuel.

After a frustrating qualifying session had left him only 10th on the grid, the McLaren ace picked up several places in the early phase of the race when the track was half wet and half dry and then passed eventual winner Fernando Alonso with a bold move at Copse in the laps after switching to slicks on the still slippery surface.

The 26-year-old was running as high as second after problems for both Red Bull drivers around the second round of stops and succeeded in frustrating Sebastian Vettel in the middle stint, before dropping back behind the RBR driver at the third stops.

However, Hamilton’s chances of an unlikely podium finish were hampered with just over 10 laps to go he was told over the radio that he had to go into fuel-save mode in order to make the 52-lap distance, the Briton soon losing third to Webber thanks to DRS and then coming under late attack from Massa.

On the final lap Massa launched an assault on him on the run from Stowe to Vale, the pair engaging in a spot of wheel banging as Hamilton held firm and the inside line for the final corner at Club to hang onto fourth.

Hamilton, who paid tribute to the sell-out home crowd for the support they gave him during the race, acknowledged his final corners were rather action-packed but said he he has focused on not losing another position.

“I know, that was as close it’s going to get. It was crazy!” he said of his late dice with Massa.

[blacktulip]

Jenson Button believes he could have been celebrating his first ever British Grand Prix podium finish had confusion at his final stop not meant he exited the pit lane with a loose wheel.

The McLaren driver was challenging Red Bull rival Mark Webber for what at the time was fourth place approaching the final pit stop phase and pitted a lap later than the Australian on lap 40.

But as Button began to accelerate into the uphill pit exit lane, and Webber rounded the fast Farm Curve, the Briton pulled onto the grass after spotting that his right-front wheel was working itself loose.

Replays showed that McLaren’s lollipop man had released Button before the nut had been fastened to the wheel, leaving the driver left to think about what might have been.

"So much could have happened in my race today,” he rued.

"Before my final stop I'd had great pace, and I'd caught Lewis, Sebastian [Vettel] and Mark. When they peeled off into the pits, I stayed out for one more lap and I think I would have come out alongside, or even ahead of, Mark after the stop.

"But, as I turned out of the pit lane, my right-front wheel came off and I was forced to stop immediately. The guy on the front-right lost the wheelnut and turned to take another; as he turned, I think his hand moved and the guy on the front jack felt that that was the trigger to lower the car. Then the lollipop lifted. Hopefully, we won't have that sort of issue again.

"It's disappointing – especially in front of the home crowd – because I was really enjoying the race. I'd had good pace all afternoon and really enjoyed a couple of good battles – particularly passing Felipe [Massa] on the inside into Vale.”

Button’s first retirement since last August’s Belgian Grand Prix meant he slipped from second to fifth in the drivers’ standings with his deficit to Sebastian Vettel now a massive 95 points.

He feels a first home podium finish at the 12th attempt went begging this weekend.

[blacktulip]

Felipe Massa insists that Ferrari's Silverstone surge was not simply due to the rule changes favouring their car, and that the team will be just as quick when everyone reverts to Valencia exhaust specification for Germany.

The ongoing debate over the blown diffuser rules led to a series of adjustments during the Silverstone weekend, and with Ferrari taking a commanding win thanks to Fernando Alonso, many felt that the Italian team had benefited from the situation - and therefore that returning to the previous rules interpretation would harm the Italian squad.

But Massa is adamant that the British Grand Prix result was a consequence of Ferrari's development progress and nothing to do with the rules confusion.

"In general our pace at Silverstone was much better than we had expected at this circuit and that is down to an excellent job from the team and those working back in the factory," he wrote in his blog for the team's website.

"So now I expect we can continue to move forward like this in the second half of the season.