British Grand Prix Analysis

Ferrari won their first Grand Prix of the 2011 season when Fernando Alonso clinched the British race ahead of leader Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber.

Incredibly it was Alonso and Ferrari’s first victory since the Korean Grand Prix in October last year.

And while the result is a breakthrough for Ferrari, it will hardly put too much concern into the Red Bull camp after their drivers finished second and third.

Vettel continued his incredible run of the finishing in the top two in every race of the season so far too, moving him 80 points ahead of Webber who finished third for the third consecutive Grand Prix.

The Australian will be frustrated by that, particularly after winning pole position and a last lap bid to overtake his teammate would have increased tensions in the Red Bull camp too.

Final Result:

1.Fernando Alonso (Ferrari)

2.Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull Renault)

3.Mark Webber (Red Bull Renault)

4.Lewis Hamilton (McLaren Mercedes)

5.Felipe Massa (Ferrari)

6.Nico Rosberg (Mercedes)

7.Sergio Perez (Sauber)

8.Nick Heidfeld (Renault)

9.Michael Schumacher (Mercedes)

10.Jaime Alguersuari (Toro Rosso)

Vettel had a bright start on the front row, beating Webber to the first turn. The German led the race, until the first pit stops, when Red Bull had issues with his left rear and Alonso stepped in from there, aided by Lewis Hamilton who moved into second ahead of Vettel who struggled to find a way past as the Spaniard built his lead.

Vettel would eventually pass Hamilton as he began to slow and he was ordered to monitor his fuel consumption which slowed him even further. Webber took that opportunity to overtake him and claim a spot on the podium, although the Australian pushed for more late on but was denied.

Alonso said: “I saw the problem in the pit stop with Sebastian and we were in the lead at that moment, but who knows what might have happened after that.

“I knew it was a race to be calm, make no mistakes, to not be off the track, and with that I knew the car had enough for victory and it came.”

Vettel said: “I lost a lot to Fernando behind Lewis. I couldn’t get past initially, and it gets more difficult.”

The German added on his late battle with Webber: “Obviously, we were racing each other, [and] I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that, but, from a team point of view, if you have the cars quite isolated in second and third, [when] the first car is away [and] the fourth car is pretty far away as well, there’s no point in racing and trying to do something stupid because the points for the team are the same.”

Webber said: “The team radioed me about four times, asking that I maintain the gap to Seb. But I wasn’t happy with that because you should never give up in Formula 1, so I continued to push. If Fernando had retired on the last lap, we would have been battling for the lead.”

Drivers Championship:

1.Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull Renault) 204 points

2.Mark Webber (Red Bull Renault) 124 points

3.Fernando Alonso (Ferrari) 112 points

4.Lewis Hamilton (McLaren) 109 points

5.Jenson Button (McLaren) 109 points

6.Felipe Massa (Ferrari) 52 points

Constructors Championship:

1.Red Bull Renault, 328 points

2.McLaren, 218 points

3.Ferrari, 164 points

4.Mercedes, 68 points

5.Renault, 65 points