Vettel wins Barcelona Grand Prix

Hamilton will be encouraged by his McLaren’s ability to keep pace with a Red Bull car with has so far looked superior, and finished just 0.6 seconds because a relieved Vettel.

Fellow Brit Jenson Button completed the podium after starting fifth, while Mark Webber had to settle for fourth after pipping Vettel to pole on Saturday.

Fernando Alonso was always going to seize any opportunity to dominate in his home-nation, and he didn’t disappoint with a stunning surge to lead the race from a starting place of fourth from the grid. As the lights went out the Ferrari pace man hurled forward and passed the inside of the Red Bulls to lead into turn one, despite being on the dirty side of the track. Alonso led until lap 18 where his decision to delay his pit stop led to him dropping out of the top three.

Alonso eventually finished fifth, ahead of the Mercedes pairing of Michael Schumacher and Nico Rosberg, with Nick Heidfeld eighth while Sergio Perez and Kamui Kobayashi claimed the last two points positions.

If McLaren can match the pace they pulled out on Sunday consistently they have a chance of keeping up with the Red Bulls, who show no signs of slowing. They are in danger of losing touch even at this early stage, and Ferrari are snapping at their heels should they not keep their eye on the ball. Next week we head to Monaco, the most famous street circuit in the world, renowned for it’s unforgiving twists and turns, amidst the yachts and hotels. With fourteen races left and a maximum of 350 points up for grabs, McLaren (or Ferrari) do have the time to turn things around. I’ve got my fingers crossed for a photo finish.

Drivers Standing, Top Ten 1. Sebastian Vettel 118 2. Lewis Hamilton 77 3. Mark Webber 67 4. Jenson Button 61 5. Fernando Alonso 51 6. Nico Rosberg 26 7. Nick Heidfeld 25 8. Felipe Massa 24 9. Vitaly Petrov 21 10. Michael Schumacher 14

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