2010 Belgian GP: Hamilton defies rain and gravel trap at Spa

Lewis Hamilton won the 2010 Belgian GP at the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps for McLaren. He led from the first lap to the last and also set the fastest lap of the race. Joining him on the podium were polesitter Mark Webber (Red Bull) and Robert Kubica (Renault). Hamilton effectively won the race at the start. He was only in danger once: when the rain returned, he slid into the gravel trap but was able to carry on, still in the lead.

According to Wikipedia, it was Hamilton's third win of the season and the 14th of his career. He crossed the line 1.571 seconds ahead of Webber.

Webber threw away his pole position at the start. According to Wikipedia, his engine went into anti-stall mode. Webber dropped well down the order, and Hamilton moved into the lead at La Source. Kubica initially followed in second. At the end of the opening lap a rain shower set in, and several drivers slid off at the Bus Stop chicane. In the chaos, Rubens Barrichello (Williams) slammed into the Ferrari of Fernando Alonso. Barrichello's race was over on the spot – at the very Grand Prix being celebrated as his 300th. According to Wikipedia, the stewards deemed it a racing incident. Alonso continued but had to pit early for intermediates.

On lap two Kubica went off and ran through the run-off area, allowing Jenson Button in the second McLaren to pass him. At the end of the lap the Safety Car was deployed so that Barrichello's Williams could be recovered. After the restart Sebastian Vettel overtook Kubica to run third. Shortly afterwards Bruno Senna parked his HRT. Wikipedia cites a failure of the left-rear suspension as the cause.

In the first half of the race McLaren were on course for a one-two. Hamilton built a lead at the front, while Button kept Vettel behind him. Vettel eventually made his move on the approach to the Bus Stop chicane. He lost control of his Red Bull over a damp bump and hit Button side-on. The radiator on the McLaren was left exposed, and Button had to retire after 15 laps. Vettel pitted for a new front wing and was then handed a drive-through penalty.

That was not the end of Vettel's bad luck. According to both sources, he made contact with Vitantonio Liuzzi (Force India) at the chicane on lap 26 while passing him. Liuzzi's front wing sliced open his left-rear tyre. Vettel had to drive a full lap back to the pits with the puncture and dropped almost to the back of the field. He eventually finished 15th, a lap down.

Michael Schumacher provided the duel between the Mercedes drivers. He overtook his team-mate Nico Rosberg on lap 11, and the two Mercedes cars touched lightly in the process.

According to Wikipedia, Adrian Sutil was the first of the front-runners to make his scheduled stop for the medium compound, on lap 22. Hamilton pitted on lap 25 and kept the lead. Light rain then began to fall again, and the race came alive once more. Hamilton locked up at Rivage, slid through the gravel trap and lightly brushed the wall. However, he rejoined the track without losing the lead. Shortly afterwards the leading group switched to wet tyres.

Kubica lost second place at that stop. He overshot his pit box, and Webber got past him. Wikipedia writes that he was distracted by the switches on his steering wheel and clipped a mechanic's legs in the process.

On lap 38 Alonso's race was over too. He slid over a wet kerb around Les Combes, spun and hit the tyre barrier, breaking his right-front suspension. The second Safety Car turned the race into a four-lap sprint, but Hamilton held on to the lead. One penalty remained: Jaime Alguersuari (Toro Rosso) had cut the chicane to get past Liuzzi. He was given a 20-second time penalty and dropped to 13th.

Winners:

• Michael Schumacher: He had to take a ten-place grid penalty carried over from Hungary. He climbed from 21st to 7th, gaining 14 places.
• Vitaly Petrov: He also gained 14 places. Petrov started 23rd and scored two points for Renault in ninth.
• Pedro de la Rosa and Kamui Kobayashi: De la Rosa made up 13 places to finish eleventh. His grid penalty did not stem from another race but from an extra engine change. His Sauber team-mate Kobayashi went from 17th to 8th.
• Adrian Sutil: He moved up from 8th on the grid to 5th and earned ten valuable points for Force India.
• Felipe Massa: He started sixth and finished fourth, making him the best Ferrari driver on the day.

Losers:

• Button and Barrichello: Both lost 17 places and failed to finish.
• Vettel: He lost eleven places, caused a collision, picked up a penalty and a puncture, and finished without points.
• Alonso: He also lost eleven places. After being hit on the opening lap and crashing out in the rain, he too came away without points.

The win put Hamilton back on top of the 2010 standings with 182 points. Webber was just three points behind on 179. They were followed by Vettel on 151, Button on 147 and Alonso on 141 points. Vettel, Button and Alonso all failed to score at Spa and lost ground to the leaders.

In the constructors' championship the two leading teams were almost level: Red Bull had 330 points, McLaren 329. Ferrari followed in third with 250 points. Heading into the next race, the Italian GP, the title fight was wide open.

In hindsight, the race also held special significance for Kubica: according to Wikipedia, third place at Spa would remain his last podium in Formula 1.