Jenson Button wins at Spa , he was followed to the podium by Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen but the race could have had an entirely different complexion had Grosjean not collided with Lewis Hamilton at the start, an incident that sparked a multi-car pile in which the French drivers car was sent flying into back of Sergio Prezs Sauber and then across the nose of Fernando Alonsos Ferrari. All four were dumped out of the race. Hamilton confronted Grosjean in the gravel trap but after being led away the Briton refused to comment in the incident, saying he wished to simply move on. Fernando Alonso meanwhile, emerged dazed from his Ferrari and was helped away from the by circuit medical officials. He later reported that he had stayed in the car briefly as he had experienced a small amount of back pain. I stayed in the car for a few seconds because I had back pain, he said. Then there was a little bit of fire so they came with extinguishers and I decided to jump out because I could not breathe with all the smoke there.I'm lucky that I can be in the car in five days at Monza because looking at the image, we were turning in so you could have a problem with your hands or even your head because [Grosjean's] car was so close, he said. I think we broke everything on top of the car. It was lucky in that aspect.The accident delivered a double blow to Sauber. Kamui Kobayashi, starting from second had looked ideally placed to score his first podium finish but the Japanese driver was also caught up in the chaos at La Source. He retreated to the pits for repair and retook the course but dropped to the back of the field could find now way back into the race and finished 13th. The pile-up was immediately placed under investigation by the stewards and after the race they delivered their verdict: a one-race suspension and a 50,000 fine. An FIA statement on the incident read: The stewards regard this incident as an extremely serious breach of the regulations which had the potential to cause injury to others. It eliminated leading championship contenders from the race. When the debris had been cleared and the race resumed, Button simply strode away from his rivals. Behind him more action unfolded as Nico Hulkenberg briefly jumped into podium contention and Sebastian Vettel put in a superb drive to reach second from a 10th-place start but for Button it would have been white noise, a dull thrum that barely broached the serenity of his progress to his 14th career win. To lead from start to finish, its a very special victory, he said. But I think youre going to say that about every victory. But its really nice to win on a circuit like this. I remember watching Formula One back in the day here it was a little bit different then and theres so much history. Its really good to be a part of that.Button admitted, however, that the one-stop strategy that gave him the comfort zone he needed hadnt been an automatic choice. We werent really sure what to do with the strategy: whether it was going to be a one or a two, and we thought some people might even be doing a three and really we were just playing it by ear, he said. When Nico [Hlkenberg] got into second it did help us a little bit because I could just feel the car and not push it too hard and at that point I still didnt think we were going to do a one-stop, I still thought it was going to be a two. And then on lap 12 the tyres started working and the car felt very consistent, really good to drive and I could control the degradation of the tyres. Its always easier when youre leading a race, to do that.Vettels climb to the second step of the programme was somewhat more harum scarum. When the start lights went out the Red Bull Racing driver got away badly, slipping back to 12th and into the hail of debris raining down on the track from the accident at the front. Vettel negotiated his way through the chaos and then set about finding a way back into points contention. Ultimately, that was achieved by gambling on a one-stop strategy when most around him, save Button, opted for a two-stop race. Finding his starting medium tyre more durable than expected Red Bull Racing opted to keep the German out and he soon climbed from the midfield to third by lap 15. That put him behind Michael Schumacher, who at the time was also pursuing a one-stop race. By lap 19, Vettel had chased his compatriot down and was harrying him on the run up to the Bus Stop chicane. Schumacher took a wide line into the first part and Vettel tucked inside looking for a gap. Suddenly Schumacher cut across the Red Bull driver and dived into pit lane, forcing Vettel to take wildly evasive action. Afterwards, though, Vettel refused to lay blame for the incident at the feet of the Mercedes driver. With Michael I think there was bit of confusion, he said. Probably he wasnt keen to defend his position because he was going tot pits anyway but I thought he would block the inside and then he came on the outside. It was very close under braking. I nearly ran into the back of his car. I tried to get into a better position for the start-finish straight but he kept turning right and went into the pits. I was twice very lucky not to lose my front wing. But I think it was just a bit of confusion. Vettel himself pitted on the lap after the incident and, as Button ahead, had a largely comfortable run to the flag. Like Button, he admitted the one-stop strategy was a response to the race conditions.I had a very poor initial launch and lost positions, he said. But we were able to get through the field though its not that easy when everyone has DRS available: its like a big chain and you sit on the limiter like everyone else. Its difficult to benefit from that but I think we made reasonable progress through the field. And then we were able to have a couple of good laps in clean air, which I think was the right way. That obviously allowed us to come back through the strategy and finish second, which I think after the first lap nobody expected. We didnt expect the tyres to last that well, I think there was some talk before the race, there were some concerns the tyres wouldnt last that long. Probably most people were thinking of two and three stops and one stop seemed out of reach. Same for us but after a couple of laps it was clear that the tyres were lasting pretty well and the pace wasnt bad that was the most important thing for us.Raikkonen meanwhile was having his own struggles. Starting third, the Finn see-sawed his way in and out of the podium positions all afternoon, before finally slotting into third on lap 31. Once there, he tried to make an impression on the 13-second gap to Vettel ahead but it soon became clear that Vettel was pacing himself and Raikkonen settled for third third-place finish of the season and his sixth podium of the year.My car wasnt very nice to drive the whole race, he said. Even yesterday, with new tyres in qualifying, it was OK but we were quite far away from the guys in front of us, so I wasnt expecting a very easy ride and it turned out to be very difficult. I had no grip, he added. The first few laps with new tyres were always good but then sliding: no front end, no rear end, just struggling with the grip and so we had to run a bit more downforce to get grip and we were really slow in a straight line. But we had a third place so its OK. Not the easiest race but pretty OK.Behind the Lotus driver, Nico Hulkenberg, who had raced in second behind Button for much of the opening phase of the race eventually finished fourth having started 11th and Felipe Massa scored his best result since the British Grand Prix with a fifth-place finish. Massas solid performance wont have pleased Mark Webber. The Aussie had predicted a tough afternoon after qualifying seventh and then being forced to start 12th after his RB8 required an unscheduled gearbox change. But with championship rival Alonso removed from the race equation at the start, the afternoon suddenly looked a lot brighter and Webber began a slow climb up the field. He rose as high as fourth by the races mid-point but was later eclipsed by one-stopping team-mate Vettel and also by Massa.The start was pretty wild which can happen here at La Source. Then we settled into a race where it rapidly became clear that it was very difficult for us to overtake on track. After Eau Rouge it was just not possible for us to fight with people on the straight after that. That made it tough. We tried to undercut some people and after that you just roll the dice. The stars just didnt line up too much after the first lap really. I had a bit of luck there but after that pretty much not. We got some good points, but it would have been nice to get a few more.Webber was placed under investigation during the race for a suspect unsafe release in his second pit stop but in the immediate aftermath of the race he was confident he would escape sanction.It was OK, he said. I knew I had Felipe there. I rolled out a little bit, let him merge in and then moved out and took the fast lane. No problem.And so it proved, with the stewards ruling that Webber had indeed delayed his exit to allow Massa to reach his pit box. The result means Vettel climbs above his team-mate into second position in the Drivers Championship with 140 points, just 24 behind the non-finishing Alonso. Webber, meanwhile, sits third with 132 points, now just a single point ahead of Raikkonen. Lewis Hamilton is fifth on 117 points and Buttons win, his first since the opening round in Australia, mean he now has 101 points.
Jenson Button (1st)Im sorry to all the fans if it wasnt very exciting at the front! However, winning a grand prix is never easy: youve always got to look after the tyres and keep an eye on the gap behind. Todays race was particularly tricky to read, in fact, because lots of cars were on different strategies so you never knew exactly where you stood. Turn One looked pretty crazy - in my mirrors, I could see cars all over the place. For me, it was all pretty straightforward though. Having said that, without having been able to gather long-run testing data from Friday, it initially looked like it was going to be a hard race to call. In fact, as things panned out, it was the opposite. It was unusual to be able to run a one-stop strategy. We got to lap 12 and the team asked me how the car was feeling; I told them that the balance was getting better and better, so we were able to get to lap 20 before pitting. We need to score big points in both world championships - and today was exactly what we required. Im a massive team-player, and I fight for the team; I want us to win both world championships and, until I cant mathematically fight for the drivers world championship, I wont give up on it. I think I showed that today.
Lewis Hamilton (DNF)First, I want to offer my congratulations to Jenson. I watched the whole race on TV and he did an absolutely brilliant job. Its great for him and fantastic for the team. It also gives me huge confidence, going into the next race, knowing that our car has got fantastic pace. If we can get it right on our side of the garage, then we ought to be capable of scoring a strong result in Monza. In fact, Im already channelling all my energy into doing just that. Its been a difficult day for me - my race was so short that I didnt even break a sweat out there. I dont really want to talk about the start - I think everyone saw what happened - its just a shame. This wasnt a great day for my world championship hopes either, but I certainly wont be giving up.
Martin Whitmarsh, McLaren team principalFriday was a wash-out, but he didnt put a wheel wrong in the treacherous conditions. Saturday mornings dry running was also tricky, but he handled the challenges it posed superbly. On Saturday afternoon he utterly dominated qualifying. And then, to cap it all, today, he drove utterly flawlessly to record the seasons most imperious race victory; in fact, from lights to flag, he was never headed.In so doing, he made it look easy. But, when a driver manages a race win from pole position, leading all the way, the excellence of his performance isnt always as obvious as when he wins it by attacking from behind. But Jenson has been super-quick all weekend, and he controlled the race with total authority, managing tyre wear masterfully all the way. It wasnt easy, even if it looked that way, and Im extremely proud of him, as is everyone at Vodafone McLaren Mercedes. He scored 25 world championship points for us this afternoon - which are hugely valuable to our constructors world championship effort as well as to his own drivers world championship campaign - but of course we should have scored significantly more points than that. And, had Lewis not been embroiled in a first-corner shunt in which he was entirely blameless, wed have duly scored those extra points. The accident was a great shame for Lewis, and for the other innocents whose races were also ruined, but thats motor racing. We take a great many positives from the 2012 Belgian Grand Prix - not least the fact that we won it, which means that weve now won two grands prix on the trot. Our car is clearly very quick. Now, we aim to take that impressive form forward to Monza, where, in just a few days time, well be aiming to score a hat-trick. Believe me: both world championships remain well within our sights.
1. Button McLaren-Mercedes 1h29:08.5302. Vettel Red Bull-Renault + 13.6243. Raikkonen Lotus-Renault + 25.3344. Hulkenberg Force India-Mercedes + 27.8435. Massa Ferrari + 29.8456. Webber Red Bull-Renault + 31.2447. Schumacher Mercedes + 53.3748. Vergne Toro Rosso-Ferrari + 58.8659. Ricciardo Toro Rosso-Ferrari + 1:02.98210 Di Resta Force India-Mercedes + 1:03.78311 Rosberg Mercedes + 1:05.11112 Senna Williams-Renault + 1:11.52913 Kobayashi Sauber-Ferrari + 1:56.11914 Petrov Caterham-Renault + 1 lap15 Glock Marussia-Cosworth + 1 lap16 Pic Marussia-Cosworth + 1 lap17. Kovalainen Caterham-Renault + 1 lap18. De la Rosa HRT-Cosworth + 1 lap19 Karthikeyan HRT-Cosworth + 30
DNF
Maldonado Williams-Renault 5Perez Sauber-Ferrari 1Alonso Ferrari 1Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes 1Grosjean Lotus-Renault 1
Drivers' Championship standings 1. Alonso 164 2. Vettel 140 3. Webber 132 4. Raikkonen 131 5. Hamilton 117 6. Button 101 7. Rosberg 77 8. Grosjean 76 9. Perez 47 10 Schumacher 3511 Massa 3512 Kobayashi 3313 Hulkenberg 3114 Maldonado 2915 Di Resta 2816 Senna 2417 Vergne 818 Ricciardo 4
1. Red Bull-Renault 2722. McLaren-Mercedes 2183. Lotus-Renault 2074. Ferrari 1995. Mercedes 1126. Sauber-Ferrari 807. Force India-Mercedes 598. Williams-Renault 539. Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1
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