Ferrari and Puma today announce long-term partnership

Ferrari and Puma today announced a long-term extension to their partnership.

Puma, the global sport-lifestyle brand will continue to be the official licensing partner for Ferrari branded products and the official supplier of team and race wear for Scuderia Ferrari.  On the back of highly successful six year collaboration, this new agreement will see the two companies work together for a further long term period.

Through this extended partnership, Puma will continue to develop Ferrari licensed footwear, apparel and accessories for global sales and distribution.  As the Formula One race calendar is expanding into new markets, the global reputation and profile of the sport continues to grow, resulting in a projected increase in the sales performance of Ferrari licensed product worldwide.  The partnership has become one of the most commercially valuable licensing relationships for both Puma and Ferrari, and the two companies have strengthened their relationship by developing a complete new collection which will be presented at the end of this year.

Puma is the sport-lifestyle brand with the longest heritage in motorsport, and its development of fire retardant technology has revolutionized driver racewear by dramatically reducing weight while maintaining the optimal performance of safety and comfort. Puma will continue to supply Scuderia Ferrari with the latest technological innovations in team and racewear, enabling Fernando Alonso and Felipe Massa to compete for the coveted Drivers’ and Constructors’ Championships in one of the lightest and safest race suits in F1.

Luca di Montezemolo, Chairman of Ferrari S.p.A., said:

“We have enjoyed a very successful relationship with Puma over the past six years, and we are very happy that this will continue long term.  Their commitment to product design, development and racewear technology is unrivalled in the industry, and they continue to impress us on all counts.  Clearly licensed apparel and footwear is a key business area for us, and it could not be in better hands.  We look forward to continue working with PUMA for many years to come.”

Jochen Zeitz, Chairman and CEO of Puma AG, said:

“We are delighted to continue and deepen our partnership with Ferrari.  To extend a relationship with the most prestigious brand in the automotive industry and the most popular and successful team in Formula One is of great benefit to us both commercially and reputationally.  The Ferrari licensed product development we have undertaken so far has been very successful, and the plans we have for the coming years are equally exciting.  They are an ideal motorsport partner for us in every respect.”

Tyre supplier Pirelli made the racing all the more exciting for the fans and teams alike with their specially manufactured F1 rubber, making team strategy a massive player into how many stops are needed to get the maximum effect from tyre changes.

McLaren driver Jenson Button was first into the corner from the start with Sebastian Vettel getting bogged down at the start and going into the corner side by side with Lewis Hamilton. It was Hamilton who got the better of the scrap leaving Vettel to have to fight off the advances of Nico Rosberg in lap one.

Button was first to pit on lap 14 followed down the pit lane by Vettel and much to the embarrassment of the McLaren driver he turned into the Red Bull box, before continuing into his own.

The mistake allowed Vettel to jump Button and as the pit stops unfolded so did the race leaders, making it difficult to keep tabs on who was on what strategy. As time ticked away it was clear that Vettel was on a two stop race and Hamilton on three stops suddenly became the man to watch as he scythed his way through the field after putting a brilliant overtake on his team mate that forced Button to yield.

Button, Nico Rosberg and Fillipe Massa were sucked in and blown out by Hamilton as he clearly sensed his chance of victory with a handful of laps remaining, only Vettel remained in his way and the defending World Champion was defending for his life.

Having been blocked following a move at the hairpin, Hamilton soon caught the German off guard at turn seven with four laps to go and left Vettel in his wake as he scampered off towards his first win of the season.

A spectacular effort from Mark Webber who started the race in 18th position on the grid saw the Australian come into his own in the final part of the race, showing more pace than any of the other drivers as he worked his way through the field overtaking the likes of Alonso, Rosberg and Button with apparent ease.

From eighteenth to third is no mean feat in a race devoid of safety cars and Webber’s heroics at the wheel of the Red Bull were enormous, but on the day it was Lewis Hamilton who stole the show with an electrifying performance of controlled aggressive driving and sublime clinical overtaking throughout the afternoon.

2011 F1 World Championship – China Grand Prix Results

1.     Lewis Hamilton     Britain     McLaren-Mercedes     56     1h36m58.226
2.     Sebastian Vettel     Germany     Red Bull-Renault     56     5.198
3.     Mark Webber     Australia     Red Bull-Renault     56     7.555
4.     Jenson Button     Britain     McLaren-Mercedes     56     10.000
5.     Nico Rosberg     Germany     Mercedes GP     56     13.448
6.     Felipe Massa     Brazil     Ferrari     56     15.840
7.     Fernando Alonso     Spain     Ferrari     56     30.622
8.     Michael Schumacher     Germany     Mercedes GP     56     31.026
9.     Vitaly Petrov     Russia     Renault     56     57.404
10.     Kamui Kobayashi     Japan     Sauber-Ferrari     56     63.273
11.     Paul di Resta     Britain     Force India-Mercedes     56     68.757
12.     Nick Heidfeld     Germany     Renault     56     72.739
13.     Rubens Barrichello     Brazil     Williams-Cosworth     56     90.189
14.     Sebastien Buemi     Switzerland     Toro Rosso-Ferrari     56     90.671
15.     Adrian Sutil     Germany     Force India-Mercedes     55     1 Lap
16.     Heikki Kovalainen     Finland     Lotus-Renault     55     1 Lap
17.     Sergio Perez     Mexico     Sauber-Ferrari     55     1 Lap
18.     Pastor Moldonado     Venezuela     Williams-Cosworth     55     1 Lap
19.     Jarno Trulli     Italy     Lotus-Renault     55     1 Lap
20.     Jerome d’Ambrosio     Belgium     Virgin-Cosworth     54     2 Laps
21.     Timo Glock     Germany     Virgin-Cosworth     54     2 Laps
22.     Vitantonio Liuzzi     Italy     HRT-Cosworth     54     2 Laps
23.     Narain Karthikeyan     India     HRT-Cosworth     54     2 Laps

Off the line it was the same story for Webber who saw most of the pack of cars pass him as he got bogged down at the start with a failed KERS  system, while Vettel made a text book start to the race ensuring a clear track ahead entering turn one.

It was the Lotus-Renault’s of Nick Heidfeld and Vitaly Petrov that immediately impressed as the red lights went out at the start of the race, Heidfeld going the long way round both McLaren’s in an extraordinary move at turn one to grab second place, while Petrov’s heroics in the same corner put him into fifth place.

With rain threatening to liven up an already exciting race the first round of pit stops saw Heidfeld get jumped by both McLaren’s and the Ferrari of Fernando Alonso, dropping to fifth in the proceedings.

Hamilton began making inroads into Vettel’s lead while Alonso mounted a charge, passing Button with both drivers pulling a substantial lead on Heidfeld.

It was all change again following the second round of pit stops with Button moving back past Alonso and mounting pressure on his team mate Hamilton in a fight for second place.

Hamilton’s pursuit of a podium place was fast disappearing after his third stop for tyres, the harder compound rubber causing all sorts of problems for the Brit and the faster Ferrari of Alonso looming large in his mirrors.

With Hamilton clearly struggling for grip Alonso tucked the Ferrari close in behind the McLaren but was unable to haul his car out of the slipstream quick enough to pass, and caught the rear tyre of his former team mate damaging his own front wing.

With Alonso needing to pit for a new nose cone Heidfeld, Massa and Webber mounted their own final charges on Hamilton who by now was easy meat for the baying pack.

A wonderful overtake on Hamilton with five laps remaining took Heidfeld into third with Webber breathing down the German’s neck as he appeared to at last find some pace in the car with his final set of tyres.

Sebastian Vettel finished another flawless race in first place followed home by Jenson Button and the final podium place going to a richly deserving Nick Heidfeld.

Malaysian Grand Prix 2011 Results:

1.     Sebastian Vettel     Germany     Red Bull-Renault     56     1h37m39.832
2.     Jenson Button     Britain     McLaren-Mercedes     56     3.261
3.     Nick Heidfeld     Germany     Renault     56     25.075
4.     Mark Webber     Australia     Red Bull-Renault     56     26.384
5.     Felipe Massa     Brazil     Ferrari     56     36.958
6.     Fernando Alonso     Spain     Ferrari     56     57.248*
7.     Kamui Kobayashi     Japan     Sauber-Ferrari     56     1m06.439
8.     Lewis Hamilton     Britain     McLaren-Mercedes     56     1m09.957**
9.     Michael Schumacher     Germany     Mercedes GP     56     1m24.896
10.     Paul di Resta     Britain     Force India-Mercedes     56     1m31.563
11.     Adrian Sutil     Germany     Force India-Mercedes     56     1m41.379
12.     Nico Rosberg     Germany     Mercedes GP     55     1 Lap
13.     Sebastien Buemi     Switzerland     Toro Rosso-Ferrari     55     1 Lap
14.     Jaime Alguersuari     Spain     Toro Rosso-Ferrari     55     1 Lap
15.     Heikki Kovalainen     Finland     Lotus-Renault     55     1 Lap
16.     Timo Glock     Germany     Virgin-Cosworth     54     2 Laps
17.     Vitaly Petrov     Russia     Renault     52     DNF, Accident

The incident involving Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton led to both drivers being penalised by the race stewards. Both drivers were given a twenty second time penalty on their finishing position, while this did not affect the outcome for Alonso* who retained his sixth place, Hamilton** was not so lucky and slipped to eighth in the final reckoning.

Clocking a blistering pace in the qualifying session, F1 fans would have been hoping that in race trim at least one the chasing pack might have been able to make a race out of it once the Australian Grand Prix got underway.

Several drivers attempted to keep pace with Vettel from the off, but realistically only Lewis Hamilton in the McLaren appeared to have anything near the pace required, while Fernando Alonso, Jenson Button and even Vettel’s team mate Mark Webber endured awful starts to the race and were never able to make up anywhere close to the time lost on the in the remainder of the race.

To his credit Vettel once again looked imperious leading from the front and drove a perfect race to clinch his first haul of maximum points in 2011.

Hamilton was the happiest of the other runners, finishing the race in second place and leaving the former World Champion driver believing that he is in with a shot at this years championship with the improvements that have been made to the Mclaren in recent weeks.

Vitaly Petrov was the surprise driver of the day, finishing on the third step of the podium comfortably ahead of the chasing Ferrari of Fernado Alonso who had too little too late to bother the Renault-Lotus driver.

Webber and Button made up the top six finishers of the day, with Sebastian Beumi in the Toro Rosso finishing in a creditable eighth place behind Phillipe Massa.

The two Sauber drivers, Sergio Perez and Kamui Kobayashi originally finished the race in seventh and eighth respectively, but both drivers were disqualified after being deemed to have infringed regulations relating to the uppermost wing element on the car.

Sauber have announced that they will appeal against the ruling today, but Force India new British driver Scott di Resta will be hoping that the disqualification will be upheld enabling the rookie to claim a point scoring tenth place on his debut.

Australia Grand Prix results:

1. Sebastian Vettel Germany Red Bull-Renault 58laps 1hr 29m 30.259s
2. Lewis Hamilton Britain McLaren-Mercedes +00m 22.2s
3. Vitaly Petrov Russia Renault-Renault +00m 30.5s
4. Fernando Alonso Spain Ferrari-Ferrari +00m 31.7s
5. Mark Webber Australia Red Bull-Renault +00m 38.1s
6. Jenson Button Britain McLaren-Mercedes +00m 54.3s
7. Felipe Massa Brazil Ferrari-Ferrari +01m 25.1s
8. Sebastien Buemi Switzerland Toro Rosso-Ferrari +1 lap
9. Adrian Sutil Germany Force India-Mercedes +1 lap
10. Paul di Resta Britain Force India-Mercedes +1 lap

11. Jaime Alguersuari Spain Toro Rosso-Ferrari +1 lap
12. Nick Heidfeld Germany Renault-Renault +1 lap
13. Jarno Trulli Italy Lotus-Renault +2 laps
14. Jerome d’Ambrosio Belgium Virgin-Cosworth +4 laps
15. Timo Glock Germany Virgin-Cosworth +9 laps

Rtd Rubens Barrichello Brazil Williams-Cosworth 48 laps completed
Rtd Nico Rosberg Germany Mercedes-Mercedes 22 laps completed
Rtd Heikki Kovalainen Finland Lotus-Renault 19 laps completed
Rtd Michael Schumacher Germany Mercedes-Mercedes 19 laps completed
Rtd Pastor Maldonado Venezuela Williams-Cosworth 94 laps completed

Dsq Sergio Perez Mexico Sauber-Ferrari +01m 05.8s
Dsq Kamui Kobayashi Japan Sauber-Ferrari +01m 16.8s

The newly named Team Lotus are among those who have confirmed their drivers for tye first time, announcing that will be retaining the services of both of last years competitors, veteran driver Jano Trulli alongside Heikki Kovalainen.

Sauber have also announced both drivers for 2011 when new boy Sergio Perez will join the more experienced Kamui Kobayashi.

Red Bull, Ferrari, McLaren and Mercedes will retain the same driver line ups as last season, while of the other established teams Renault have confirmed Robert Kubica only at this stage and Williams have retained the most experienced driver on the circuit, Rubens Barrichello for their challenge next year.

The Full 2011 Drivers  line up so far:
Red Bull
1 Sebastian Vettel
2 Mark Webber

McLaren
3 Jenson Button
4 Lewis Hamilton

Ferrari
5 Fernando Alonso
6 Felipe Massa

Mercedes GP
7 Michael Schumacher
8 Nico Rosberg

Renault
9 Robert Kubica
10 TBA

Williams
11 Rubens Barrichello
12 TBA

Force India
14 TBA
15 TBA

Sauber
16 Kamui Kobayashi
17 Sergio Perez

Toro Rosso
18 TBA
19 TBA

Team Lotus
20 Jarno Trulli
21 Heikki Kovalainen

Hispania
22 TBA
23 TBA

Virgin Racing
24 TBA
25 TBA

Fernando Alonso – Ferrari 2010

Fernando Alonso won the Singapore Grand Prix yesterday after dominating the race from pole position in the Ferrari.

As the race got underway it was Sebastian Vettel in the Red Bull that took to the front but he was quickly knocked off the front spot as he was forced out by Alonso.

The safety car was deployed on lap 3 of the race after Nick Heidfeld hit Tonio Liuzzi from behind leaving the Force India car stranded on the circuit in a dangerous place.  The usual scramble for the pit lane began although the top four drivers remained on track staying on soft tyres.

The safety car was deployed for the second time when Kamui Kobayashi slammed his BMW Sauber into the barrier at the exit of turn 18.

As the safety car left the track, Lewis Hamilton attempted to make a move on Mark Webber in the Red Bull going into turn 7.  It looked as if Hamilton would make it through but cut across the front of Webber who had nowhere to go and the two touched.  Hamilton was out of the running and the incident was investigated by the stewards who decided it was a racing incident and no further action would be taken.

A similar incident then took place between Nick Heidfeld and Michael Schumacher, resulting in the retirement of the Sauber driver and once again although the accident was investigated no action was taken.

With just two laps of the race remaining Sebastien Buemi hit the back of the Lotus driven by Heikki Kovalainen causing it to spin.  As the Lotus limped around the final sector of the lap it burst into flames and after crossing the start/finish line, Kovalainen jumped out of his stricken Lotus, grabbed a fire extinguisher and doused the flames himself as he waited for the marshalls.

Alonso crossed the line to take the chequered flag just 0.2 seconds ahead of Vettel with Mark Webber in the second Red Bull in third.

Jenson Button finished in fourth place ahead of Nico Rosberg in fifth, Rubens Barrichello in sixth, Robert Kubica in seventh, Felipe Massa in eighth, Adrian Sutil in ninth and Nico Hulkenberg in tenth.

Here are the results;

1. Fernando Alonso Spain Ferrari-Ferrari 61 laps 1hr 57m 53.579s
2. Sebastian Vettel Germany Red Bull-Renault +00.2s
3. Mark Webber Australia Red Bull-Renault +29.1s
4. Jenson Button Britain McLaren-Mercedes +30.3s
5. Nico Rosberg Germany Mercedes-Mercedes +49.3s
6. Rubens Barrichello Brazil Williams-Cosworth +56.1s
7. Robert Kubica Poland Renault-Renault +1m 26.5s
8. Felipe Massa Brazil Ferrari-Ferrari +1m 53.2s
9. Adrian Sutil Germany Force India-Mercedes +2m 12.4s*
10. Nico Hulkenberg Germany Williams-Cosworth +2m 12.7s**

all results unofficial

Fernando Alonso – Ferrari 2010

Fernando Alonso crossed the line to take the chequered flag for the Ferrari team yesterday in front of the famous Tifosi fans at the Italian Grand Prix.

It was the McLaren driver Jenson Button that took the lead as the lights went out at the Monza circuit from second on the grid. Felipe Massa tried to slot into second place, racing side by side with the British driver, compromising his team-mates line which resulted in the Spaniard hitting the rear of Buttons’ car.  His team-mate Lewis Hamilton got it all wrong when he got tangled up with the second Ferrari of Felipe Massa, making contact which broke the steering arm of the McLaren and ended his race.

Nico Rosberg moved up to fourth place while the the two Red Bull drivers Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber moved down the field to sixth and ninth respectively.

The Force India driver Adrian Sutil was forced to pit following an incident later in the lap which looked as if it had payed off as he made his way through the back markers but following his second stop Sutil soon dropped back down the order.

Kamui Kobayashi was starting his race from the pit lane following gearbox problems but after only a few laps he was forced back to his pit garage and retired from the grand prix.  Bruno Senna was another retiree later in the race after suffering from a mechanical failure.

Webber passed Michael Schumacher on lap 6 and sailed past his team-mate Sebastian Vettel on lap 19 after the German was heard on the radio to his team complaining of a suspected engine problem.  After losing a lot of ground the pit crew had seemed to have made the required adjustments to the Red Bull and once again Vettel was back up to speed.

Button could not shake off the Ferrari of Alonso and was one of the first to stop on lap 37 for new tyres, followed a lap later by the Ferrari’s of Alonso and Massa. It all played into the hands of the Spaniard who managed to get ahead of the British driver and take the lead to the delight of the Ferrari home crowd.

Alonso crossed the line to win the Italian Grand Prix ahead of Button in second and the second Ferrari of Massa in third.  Vettel took the fourth position ahead of Nico Rosberg and the second Red Bull of Mark Webber in sixth.  Nico Hulkenberg finished in seventh place for the Williams team followed by Robert Kubica in eighth, Michael Schumacher in ninth and Rubens Barrichello in the second Williams in tenth.

The Hispania F1 team received a fine following the race after Sakon Yamamoto was released from his stop while a member of the team was still working on the car.  The mechanic was hit by the right rear wheel of the car and was rushed to the medical centre before being taken to hospital but was released without serious injury.  The team were fined a total of $20,000 for an unsafe pit release.

Here are the results;

1. Fernando Alonso Spain Ferrari-Ferrari 53 laps 1hr 16m 24.572s
2. Jenson Button Britain McLaren-Mercedes +2.9s
3. Felipe Massa Brazil Ferrari-Ferrari +4.2s
4. Sebastian Vettel Germany Red Bull-Renault +28.1s
5. Nico Rosberg Germany Mercedes-Mercedes +29.9s
6. Mark Webber Australia Red Bull-Renault +31.2s
7. Nico Hulkenberg Germany Williams-Cosworth +32.8s
8. Robert Kubica Poland Renault-Renault +34.0s
9. Michael Schumacher Germany Mercedes-Mercedes +44.9s
10. Rubens Barrichello Brazil Williams-Cosworth +64.2s

all results unofficial

Lewis Hamilton

Lewis Hamilton took the victory on Sunday at the Spa Formula 1 Grand Prix after dominating the race in the McLaren from the start.

In an incident packed race which saw the safety car deployed twice, rain was forecast and arrived causing drivers to scramble for the pits for a change of tyres.

Mark Webber had a disastrous start off the line as his anti-stall engaged leaving him down in seventh place by the second corner.  The Australian driver managed to get himself back in contention after moving his way back up to third place.  Fortunately for the Red Bull driver, a bad pit-stop for Robert Kubica in the Renault allowed Webber to take second place where he remained until the chequered flag.

Jenson Button had sat in second position for most of the first part of the race until he was hit by the second Red Bull of Sebastian Vettel.  A mistake by the German driver ended Button’s race after the Red Bull slammed into the side of the McLaren resulting in a drive-through penalty for Vettel who had managed to continue after the collision.  Vettel’s day continued to get worse when he suffered a puncture after coming into contact with Tonio Liuzzi in the Force India.

There was also a coming together on the first lap of the race between Fernando Alonso and Rubens Barrichello, the latter on his 300th Grand Prix starts was left to walk back to the pits on his celebratory weekend.

As the weather appeared to improve more rain was forecast  towards the end of the race giving the teams and drivers a dilemma with their choice of tyres.  As the rain began to steadily increase, the lead drivers tip-toed their way around the circuit while the back markers made a hasty retreat to the pit garages for intermediate tyres.

Hamilton was almost a casualty of the slippery conditions, running out of track and into the gravel trap as he lost all grip.  Fortunately he managed to keep the engine running on the McLaren and got back on track still holding onto the lead and back to his garage for new tyres.

The safety car was again on circuit following the incident with Fernando Alonso at the top of hill when his Ferrari was left stranded after hitting the barriers.

Hamilton crossed the line to take the chequered flag ahead of Webber in second and Kubica in third.  Felipe Massa finished in fourth place followed by Adrian Sutil in fifth, Nico Rosberg in sixth, Michael Schumacher in seventh, Kamui Kobayashi in eighth, Vitaly Petrov in ninth and Viantonio Liuzzi in tenth.

Antonio Liuzzi gained a place in the race after stewards penalised Jamie Alguersuari by adding 20 seconds onto his finish time for cutting the final chicane on lap 42 and was deemed to have gained an advantage.

Here are the results;

1. Lewis Hamilton Britain McLaren-Mercedes 44 laps 1hr 29m 04.268s
2. Mark Webber Australia Red Bull-Renault +1.5s
3. Robert Kubica Poland Renault-Renault +3.4s
4. Felipe Massa Brazil Ferrari-Ferrari +8.2s
5. Adrian Sutil Germany Force India-Mercedes +9.0s
6. Nico Rosberg Germany Mercedes-Mercedes +12.3s
7. Michael Schumacher Germany Mercedes-Mercedes +15.5s
8. Kamui Kobayashi Japan BMW Sauber-Ferrari +16.6s
9. Vitaly Petrov Russia Renault-Renault +23.8s
10. Vitantonio Liuzzi Italy Force India-Mercedes +34.8s

Fastest lap:

Lewis Hamilton Britain McLaren-Mercedes 1m 49.069s lap 32

Mark Webber – Red Bull Racing 2010

The Red Bull Racing driver Mark Webber, crossed the line to take the chequered flag yesterday while his team-mate Sebastian Vettel received a drive-through penalty.

Vettel looked to be on winning form once again at the Hungarian Grand Prix until he was given the penalty for not leaving enough distance between himself and the leading driver Webber during the safety car period.

As the race got underway it was Vettel that took to the front at the first corner, split from his team-mate Webber by the Ferrari of Fernando Alonso.  As Vettel continued from his fantastic start Jenson Button slipped further back moving from eleventh on the grid to fifteenth by the end of lap 1.

The safety car was deployed on lap 15 of the race after debris was seen sitting in a dangerous place on the circuit, leading to the usual rush of cars to the pit lane for a change of tyres.

The McLaren team were the first in with Button gaining five places after his stop and Hamilton getting the jump on the Ferrari of Felipe Massa.  Hamilton retired his McLaren on lap 24 of the race after developing a gear-box problem.

There was carnage in the pit lane as drivers scrambled to get in and out in record time, leading to an accident that’s been expected for a long time.  Robert Kubica was given the sign to leave the pit box as the Force India of Adrian Sutil was entering his, resulting in a retirement for Sutil.  Kubica also retired from the race following a stop-go penalty eight laps later.  The Renault team were handed a $50,000 fine for the unsafe release of their driver after the race.

The Mercedes team were also fined $50,000 for an incident which occurred around the same time, again in the pit lane when their driver Nico Rosberg lost a wheel exiting the pit lane after a wheel nut came loose.

Webber took the option of not stopping along with the other drivers in the hope that he would be able to make enough of an advantage on get out in front when he did eventually pit and it worked perfectly.

There was more controversy further down the field when the Williams driver Ruben Barrichello made a move to pass his former Ferrari team-mate Michael Schumacher in the Mercedes.  Following a radio message from Barrichello claiming the Schumacher was leaving the door open then slamming it shut at the last minute, Rubens eventually made a move to pass the German on the inside.  Schumacher tried to squeeze the Williams out but instead nearly forced Barrichello into the concrete pit wall.  Barrichello claimed in was one of the most dangerous situations he has ever found himself in and the move has landed Schumacher with a ten place grid penalty at the next Grand Prix in Belgium.

Webber crossed the line to take the win followed in second place by the Ferrari driver Fernando Alonso and a furious-looking Sebastian Vettel in third.

Felipe Massa finished in fourth place ahead of an impressive Vitaly Petrov in the Renault in fifth place and Nico Hulkenberg for Williams for sixth.  Pedro de la Rosa came in seventh followed by Jenson Button in eighth, Kamui Kobayashi in ninth and Rubens Barrichello in tenth.

Here are the results;

1. Mark Webber Australia Red Bull-Renault 70 laps 1hr 41m 05.571s
2. Fernando Alonso Spain Ferrari-Ferrari +00m 17.8s
3. Sebastian Vettel Germany Red Bull-Renault +00m 19.2s
4. Felipe Massa Brazil Ferrari-Ferrari +00m 27.4s
5. Vitaly Petrov Russia Renault-Renault +01m 13.1s
6. Nico Hulkenberg Germany Williams-Cosworth +01m 16.7s
7. Pedro de la Rosa Spain BMW Sauber-Ferrari +1 lap
8. Jenson Button Britain McLaren-Mercedes +1 lap
9. Kamui Kobayashi Japan BMW Sauber-Ferrari +1 lap
10. Rubens Barrichello Brazil Williams-Cosworth +1 lap

Fernando Alonso – Ferrari 2010

Fernando Alonso crossed the line to take the chequered flag at the F1 German Grand Prix yesterday after Felipe Massa was forced to follow orders from his team, and moved across to let him pass.

The Ferrari team have been fined $100,000 due to a breach in regulations with the case now being referred to the FIA World Motorsport Council for further consideration.

Massa shot past Sebastian Vettel at the outside of turn one while his team-mate took the inside line and was forced wide by the Red Bull as the McLaren of Lewis Hamilton slotted into fourth place.

At the end of the first lap Sebastian Buemi was back in the pits for a new rear wing while Adrian Sutil was also in for a new nose cone.  Jarno Trulli was forced to retire from the race after suffering a gearbox problem on the Lotus as the Force India cars were seen re-entering after it was discovered that the drivers had both been given each others tyres.

Lewis Hamilton had managed to get ahead of Mark Webber after passing him on the inside of the hairpin on the opening lap with Jenson Button sitting in sixth place.

As the race settled down and the front runners had made their first stops it was clear that Massa was struggling on his new harder compound tyres as he was put under pressure from Alonso who attempted a pass on lap 20.  Massa then put in a number of quick laps, creating a 3 second gap before the second Ferrari driver responded and was back on his tail.

It looked that Massa was going to take his first win since his horrific accident 12-months before until he was radioed by his race engineer Rob Smedley informing the Brazilian that “Fernando is faster than you, confirm that you understand”.

On lap 49, Massa was seen to slow down, allowing Alonso to pass him before his engineer once again came on the radio to apologise, making it obvious to all that this had been team orders.

Alonso crossed the line to take the flag, 4 seconds ahead of his unhappy team-mate followed by the Red Bull of Vettel in third.

The two McLaren drivers Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button finished in fourth and fifth places respectively ahead of Webber who had suffered with an oil problem the entire race.

Robert Kubica was in seventh position followed by the two Mercedes drivers Nico Rosberg and Michael Schumacher finished in eighth and ninth place while Renault driver Vitaly Petrov completed the top ten drivers of the day.

Here are the results;

1. Fernando Alonso Spain Ferrari-Ferrari 67laps 1hr 27m 38.864s
2. Felipe Massa Brazil Ferrari-Ferrari +00m 04.1s
3. Sebastian Vettel Germany Red Bull-Renault +00m 05.1s
4. Lewis Hamilton Britain McLaren-Mercedes +00m 26.8s
5. Jenson Button Britain McLaren-Mercedes +00m 29.4s
6. Mark Webber Australia Red Bull-Renault +00m 43.6s
7. Robert Kubica Poland Renault-Renault +1 lap
8. Nico Rosberg Germany Mercedes-Mercedes +1 lap
9. Michael Schumacher Germany Mercedes-Mercedes +1 lap
10. Vitaly Petrov Russia Renault-Renault +1 lap

all results unofficial