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With the AT&T
Williams team drivers starting the fifty eight lap 2010 Turkish Grand Prix
from fifteenth and seventeenth it was going to be a difficult race. This was
a poor performance by the Williams standard. On the grid Rubens Barrichello
would line-up ahead of team-mate Nico Hulkenberg on what was a sunny but
cloudy day. Di Grassi's Virgin would suffer an oil leak problem which would
see his mechanics working on his car in the garage as the rest of the field took their places on the grid. If he did
start it would be from the pit lane. Bridgestone was supplying the hard and
soft compounds for the weekend. The top ten would all be starting on the
softer tyre after qualifying.
With Webber on pole the grid would move away for their parade lap. He was
followed by Hamilton, Vettel, Button, Schumacher, Rosberg, Kubica, Massa,
Petrov, and in tenth Kobayashi. The second Ferrari of Alonso was down in
twelfth, also starting on the softer tyre. The start of the race would see
Webber leading from Vettel through turn one. Hamilton was able to pass
Vettel with Schumacher behind the Red Bull. Button was fifth from Rosberg,
Kubica, and Massa. Button would pass Schumacher for fourth going into Turn
twelve. Nico would pit on lap two after having gone off the track. Rubens
was way down in terrible twentieth after a poor start. Buemi would also pit
with a flat rear tyre. Lap two and Webber was fastest 1m:33.685. Rubens was
now in seventeenth and Nico down in twenty third. Sutil would pass Kobayashi
for tenth.
Lap three and Hamilton was fastest, 1m:33.411, as he closed right onto the
rear of Webber. Lap four and it was now Vettel's turn to go fastest,
1m:33.280, as Webber continued to fend off Hamilton. Rubens was in sixteenth
and right behind Liuzzi. Nico was still in twenty third, his prospects of
any result in the race well and truly over. Lap five and Hamilton was again
fastest, 1m:33.177, as he continued to follow Webber. Nico had moved up to
twenty first as a worried Sam Michael followed the race from the Williams
garage. Lap six and Webber had responded with a 1m:32.905 as Rubens
complained about a part of Liuzzi's rear wing possibly going to fall off.
Alonso was still in twelfth and stuck behind Kobayashi.
Nico was up to twentieth but he was only passing slower cars as on lap nine
Webber went fastest again with a 1m:32.764. Rubens was still following
Liuzzi while at the front Hamilton went fastest on lap ten with a 1m:32.422
to still be a few tenths behind Webber> Kobayashi and Barrichello would pit
on lap eleven. Rubens had started on the softer tyre and had taken on the
harder tyre. Lap eleven and Vettel had picked up his pace with a 1m:32.403.
Eleventh placed Alonso would pit changing from the softer to the hard tyre.
Hamilton was really pressuring Webber as Button went fastest on lap twelve,
1m:32.224. Petrov, Sutil, and De la Rosa would all pit from ninth through to
eleventh. Hamilton was looking for a place to pass as Kubica, Massa, and
Liuzzi would all pit. Kubica and Massa were seventh and eighth prior to
pitting.
Vettel would pit from third on lap fifteen joined by Schumacher. Alguersuari
would also pit from seventh. Nico and Rubens were running in eighteenth and
nineteenth. Webber and Hamilton would pit on lap sixteen as Button set a new
fastest lap, 1m:32.027, as Webber comes back out in front of Hamilton.
Rosberg would pit from fourth while it was confirmed that Hamilton had a
small problem with the left rear tyre during his pit stop. Button was
leading from Webber and Vettel. Hamilton was now fourth followed by
Schumacher, Rosberg, Kubica, Massa, Petrov, and Alonso in tenth. Button
would pit on lap seventeen after having set a new fastest lap on lap
sixteen. Hamilton would beat this with a 1m:31.534 on lap seventeen. Webber
was now leading from Vettel and Hamilton.
Everyone had taken on the harder tyre for the last forty laps of the race.
Hamilton would try to pass Vettel going into Turn twelve with the McLaren
0.5 seconds behind the Red Bull. Vettel was 0.8 behind Webber while for
Williams Nico and Rubens were in seventeenth and eighteenth. Lap nineteen
and Webber was fastest with a 1m:31.499. Both Williams drivers would move
past Kovalainen to see them now sixteenth and seventeenth. lap twenty and
Hamilton seta new fastest lap with a 1m:31.347. The weather radar
was now showing that rain was expected in fifteen minutes time, as dark
clouds grew over the circuit. The top three continued to run close together
with fourth placed Button 1.2 seconds behind Hamilton. Lap twenty three and
Webber set a new fastest lap with a 1m:31.335. Fifth placed Schumacher was
twenty seconds behind Button with Rosberg a further 2.1
seconds behind his team-mate.
A 1m:31.148 from Webber on lap twenty four with his lead now 1.1 seconds
over Vettel. Both Williams drivers were having lonely drives at the rear of
the field as Vettel went fastest on lap twenty six with a 1m:31.083. There
was a train of cars running behind sixth placed Rosberg. Lap twenty eight
and a new fastest lap from Webber but he was beaten by Vettel with a
1m:30.824. Rubens was now right behind Nico as the track temperature
dropped. Vettel was now just 0.6 behind Webber with Hamilton the same margin
behind Vettel. Rubens would pass Nico going into Turn twelve, with Rubens sixteenth and
Nico seventeenth. lap thirty one and Webber was fastest lap but was beaten
by Button with a 1m:30.469. Both McLaren's were still holding onto the Red
Bull pair. Button continued to push going fastest on lap thirty two,
1m:30.349. Button would find a few hundredths with a 1m:30.345 as he
followed the top three.
Nico was beginning to struggle on his worn set of tyres as he ran in
seventeenth place. Trulli would retire on the side of the track as team-mate
Kovalainen pitted on lap thirty five. Hamilton was running behind Vettel as
Webber continued to lead. As the laps counted down there would be a few
spots of rain appearing but the race would all change as on lap forty one
the Red Bull pair would make contact as Vettel moved past Webber as they ran
down to Turn twelve. Vettel would suffer a flat rear right tyre and would
pull off the track to retire. As Vettel saw Webber going past as the pair were on the run
off area Vettel would way his hand at his team-mate. Webber was running in
third but was forced to pit to get a new front nose. He was able to come
back out in third while Vettel went into the teams truck after he had walked
back to his pit.
Hamilton was now leading from Button followed by Webber, Schumacher,
Rosberg, Kubica, Massa, Petrov, Alonso, and Kobayashi was in tenth. Replays
seemed to show that Vettel had moved to the right and this would see himself
and Webber make contact. Button had set a new fastest lap on lap forty two
with a 1m:29.895. Both Williams drivers were now a lap down while at the
front we now had the McLaren drivers fighting over the lead. Button would pass Hamilton going through the final corners but
Hamilton was able to move ahead going through Turn One. They came together
slightly as they turned into Turn One. Buemi would pass Nico for sixteenth
while Rubens was running in fifteenth. Senna would retire in his pit as
Hamilton completed lap fifty. Sutil had passed Kobayashi for tenth while at
the front Button appeared to have backed off while he was been told to save
fuel.
Lap fifty two and Button was now 2.5 seconds behind Hamilton. Webber was
still in third followed by Schumacher, Rosberg, Kubica, Massa, Petrov,
Alonso, and Sutil in tenth. Lap fifty three and Webber set a new fastest
lap, 1m:29.195, as Alonso passed Petrov for eighth going into Turn three.
Petrov would drop to thirteenth and would pit with a flat tyre after making
contact with Alonso, seeing Kobayashi move up to tenth. Rubens was now
fourteenth and Nico seventeenth. Chandhok would retire in his pit as
Hamilton lead now by 3.3 seconds while Schumacher was still fourth from team-mate Rosberg
fifth, Kubica sixth, Massa seventh and Alonso in eighth. Hamilton would
start his final lap and would complete it to cross the finish line to secure
victory in the 2010 Turkish Grand Prix. With Button second it was a McLaren
one-two. Webber would still lead the championship coming home in third.
For the Williams team it was another frustrating race that would see the
team again fail to secure a points scoring result. How the Williams team is
going to turn this slump in performance around is going to be the big issue
for the team. With the team having to prepare for the next race in Canada in
two weeks time the team is going to struggle to make any real headway in
their quest to find extra performance from the FW32. |