Sebastian Vettel took a clam victory in Valencia ahead of Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button.
A major collision between Mark Webber and Heikki Kovalainen caused both drivers to retire. The Red Bull hit the rear of the Lotus, flipping Webber into the air where he landed the wrong way up before smashing into the barriers. Thankfully neither driver was injured.
The collision bought out the safety car, mixing the grid up. Vettel continued to lead Hamilton, however Button was the big winner, moving from seventh to fourth, whilst both Ferrari lost several places as they stacked in the pits.
Hamilton became the subject of an FIA investigation after Fernando Alonso claimed he was held up by the McLaren driver during the SC period. The result of that investigation found Lewis guilty of passing the SC, resulting in a drive-through penalty, though he remained second after opening up a large enough gap.
Once the order became clearer, the race settled down into the usual Valencia style, i.e. nothing much happened.
Until Kamui Kobayashi and Jenson Button came up to lap Bruno Senna and Timo Glock. Senna clipped the rear of Glock, damaging his front wing and puncturing Glock’s rear – all a result of the two squabbling, rather than getting out of the way to allow the front-runners to pass.
In a rather unusual situation, Button, Barrichello, Hulkenberg, Kubica, Petrov, Sutil, Liuzzi, Buemi and De la Rosa (cars: 1, 9, 10, 11, 12, 14, 15, 16 and 22) are under investigation for speeding during the SC period. Possibly changing the result dramatically.
Kobayashi managed to pass Alonso on the penultimate lap, then Buemi in the final corner of the final lap, taking sixth, possibly higher as a result of the FIA investigations.
Race results for the European GP
| # | Driver | Team | Time | Pit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | S. Vettel | Red Bull | 1:40:29.571 | |
| 24 | M. Webber | Red Bull | Retired (L9) | |
| 03 | J. Button | McLaren | +7.658 | |
| 02 | L. Hamilton | McLaren | +5.042 | |
| 14 | F. Massa | Ferrari | +46.621 | |
| 09 | F. Alonso | Ferrari | +32.809 | |
| 16 | M. Schumacher | Mercedes | +48.826 | |
| 12 | N. Rosberg | Mercedes | +44.382 | |
| 05 | R. Kubica | Renault | +22.122 | |
| 11 | V. Petrov | Renault | +43.287 | |
| 04 | R. Barrichello | Williams | +20.627 | |
| 22 | N. Hulkenberg | Williams | Retired (L50) | |
| 13 | V. Liuzzi | Force India | +45.890 | |
| 06 | A. Sutil | Force India | +25.168 | |
| 10 | P. de la Rosa | Sauber | +42.414 | |
| 07 | K. Kobayashi | Sauber | +30.965 | |
| 15 | J. Alguersuari | Toro Rosso | +48.239 | |
| 08 | S. Buemi | Toro Rosso | +31.299 | |
| 23 | H. Kovalainen | Lotus | Retired (L9) | |
| 21 | J. Trulli | Lotus | +4 laps | |
| 19 | T. Glock | Virgin | +2 laps | |
| 17 | L. di Grassi | Virgin | +1 lap | |
| 20 | B. Senna | Hispania | +2 laps | |
| 18 | K. Chandhok | Hispania | +2 laps |
(All timing unofficial)
