As it happened: 2011 Australia - The Race

• 06:00

  Good morning, it's race day and we're live for the Australian Grand Prix!

• 06:02

  It's quite early in the UK, and getting on for evening in Albert Park.

• 06:02

  We've had four excellent sessions of F1 action so far this weekend, but it's all been building up to this. The race.

• 06:03

  It looks a lot brighter at the track now than previously - the driver's have already been up and about for the parade: http://yfrog.com/hsl6updj

• 06:04

  If you're following along live, then please join in the comments at Sidepodcast: https://sidepodcast.com/post/live-australia-2011-the-race

• 06:05

  We've got a poll going on over there - who will be leading out of the first corner? Make sure you have your say.

• 06:05

  If you fancy something a bit more, well, fancy, whilst commenting, check out https://sidepodcast.com/dashboard for Twitter, live updates and this here FBFB all in one place.

• 06:06

  If you've missed any of the F1 action so far, I can recommend taking two minutes (exactly) to catch up: https://sidepodcast.com/news/mark-webber-and-jenson-button-lead-free-practice-friday-in-australia and https://sidepodcast.com/news/sebastian-vettel-takes-pole-position-for-the-australian-grand-prix

• 06:08

  It's David Coulthard's 40th birthday today, and Mercedes GP presented him with a book of photographs and a cake shaped like the Scottish flag.

• 06:11

  Timo Glock's girlfriend tries his helmet on for size. Perhaps she'll be in the car later instead of him?

• 06:12

  Qualifying Positions

  1	S Vettel	Red Bull
  2	L Hamilton	McLaren
  3	M Webber	Red Bull
  4	J Button	McLaren
  5	F Alonso	Ferrari
  6	V Petrov	Renault
  7	N Rosberg	Mercedes
  8	F Massa	Ferrari
  9	K Kobayashi	Sauber
  10	S Buemi	Toro Rosso

• 06:13

  Neither HRT car managed to qualify within the 107% required, and the FIA have confirmed the pair are not allowed to race.

• 06:13

  Team principal Colin Kolles is still proud, though: "The circumstances in which we arrived were not as desired. We created a miracle again, but it wasn't enough. We'll be back stronger than ever in Malaysia. There we will have more time to test the car and show where the F111 really belongs.

• 06:13

  The class of 2011 comes together for a photo.

• 06:15

  Vettel stormed to pole position yesterday, about eight tenths faster than everyone else. He played it down though: "In the end, it doesn't matter if you're in front by one thousandth or a little bit more."

• 06:16

  Tweet from @MikeGascoyne: 15 mins to pit lane opening. Tension building up, off to pit wall, see you there

• 06:17

  Now, let's get you set up with some links and data. Live timing: http://www.formula1.com/live_timing/live_timing.html

• 06:18

  Autosport will have lap by lap updates: http://live.autosport.com/commentary.php/id/324

• 06:18

  The BBC live stream and updates can be found here: http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/motorsport/formula_one/9436948.stm

• 06:23

  Two drivers to watch, after a relatively poor qualifying: Nick Heidfeld, who was thoroughly outshone by Petrov in the Renault. Rubens Barrichello who spun his Williams and thwarted his own qualifying chances.

• 06:23

  They start 18th and 17th respectively.

• 06:25

  I'm also curious what Michael Schumacher can achieve, starting 11th on the grid, and sandwiched between two Toro Rossos.

• 06:26

  The HRT garage is pretty quiet, although both cars are in there. As per the rest of the weekend, there are mechanics around just one of the cars.

• 06:29

  The BBC are showing Jake and Eddie taking on Lewis and Jenson around the Top Gear track in a McLaren transporter.

• 06:30

  McLaren transporter. They're running through some tricky parking moves between cones with vases on.

• 06:33

  Button: "F1 is so competitive at the moment, we've had five different teams winning the world championship in five different years. You can't have one slip up during the season."

• 06:34

  After some time in the big transporter, the boys are let loose in a couple of McLaren supercars. That looks more fun!

• 06:37

  Comment from Stuart Taylor: how many safety cars today? I'm going for 4

• 06:38

  Back to Albert Park and the cars are on the grid. Nothing changes, as Red Bull mechanics block any view of the rear of the car.

• 06:40

  Vettel: "We have a long race ahead of us... it's a challenging track, new tyres, first time, the same fuel in the car. Really looking forward but it's not going to be easy."

• 06:41

  More from Vettel: "Generally, the tyres behave differently on track when we are driving to when we are starting. It's a new challenge, we had some practice in the winter but this is the first time we all go at the same time."

• 06:41

  Tweet from @InsideFerrari: The race is about to start: 20 minutes to the formation lap. Both Felipe and Fernando are going to the grid.

• 06:42

  Jenson Button: "I'm pretty happy with where I am, after what we've been through I think this is a great place to be. Our starts are pretty good, I don't know whether they're using KERS or not, no one knows, that makes it very exciting for the stretch down to the first corner."

• 06:42

  

  18°C

  Track	24°C
  Humidity	62%
  Wind speed	4.7mps

• 06:44

  Tweet from @WilliamsF1Team: If we don't win, I'm keeping my fingers crossed for a home win for Mark! http://twitpic.com/4dsnia

• 06:44

  Vitaly Petrov: "All weekend we have quite a good car, so we must be proud of our place on the start grid. We just need to focus on this race now."

• 06:45

  The drivers are heading to the front of the grid for a minute's silence in respect to Japan and the other recent natural disasters.

• 06:46

  A lot of the grid still talking though, a minute's silence isn't really practical when you've got an imminent race to prepare for.

• 06:49

  Christian Horner: "First of all, the gap is irrelevant, position is the thing that's important. We were delighted to get the pole... disappointed not to lock out the front row. We didn't use KERS yesterday, it was a strategic decision. We'll see how it pans out today.

  "KERS has advantages and disadvantages... yesterday we elected not to use it. We just need to wait and see. The performance of the car was very good, Sebastian was in awesome form... so we go into the race, it's a bit of a voyage of discovery especially with the new tyres and the rear wing. It's going to be fascinating to see how it unfolds."

• 06:49

  A view from the marshalling post via @elephino_

• 06:53

  Tweet from @autosportlive: The drivers now head back towards their cars and begin to focus on the job immediately in hand. 58 laps of hard racing await them.

• 06:54

  Circuit Data

  Albert Park
  Local timezone	+1100 GMT
  First race	1996
  Number of laps	58
  Circuit length	5.303km
  Race distance	307.574km
  Start offset	0.000km

• 06:55

  The traditional Qantas flypast.

• 06:55

  Race Data

  (source Mercedes GP)
  Average speed	230kph
  Full throttle	69%
  Gear changes	56 per lap

• 06:57

  Tweet from @sarahholtf1: A two-stop strategy should work in Melbourne but the word is teams are still mulling over two or three stops. #bbcf1

• 06:57

  Mercedes live data shows Michael Schumacher adjusting his steering wheel in the cockpit on the grid.

• 06:59

  The pole on our thread has now closed, and the overwhelming majority went for Vettel - leading in and out of the first corner.

• 06:59

  The mechanics are clearing the grid for the formation lap.

• 07:00

  The top runners will be starting on the softer tyre, the top ten all with yellow sidewalls.

• 07:00

  Schumacher is the first man to choose his tyres and he's gone for softs as well.

• 07:01

  Everyone got off the grid cleanly, no dramas yet.

• 07:02

  Tweet from @autosportlive: It looks like most of the drivers with an open choice of tyres have opted for the soft compound as well.

• 07:02

  Vettel leads the pack back onto the main straight and they begin to re-form the grid.

• 07:03

  Race started.

• 07:04

  Vettel gets a good start, Webber gets ahead of Hamilton down the line but the McLaren keeps the position.

• 07:04

  Completely clean first corner, just one Virgin car running wide.

• 07:04

  Petrov had a great start, up to fourth.

• 07:04

  Barrichello went off track and is now last.

• 07:05 Lap 1

  Alguersuari pits.

• 07:05 Lap 1

  Alonso fell down to 10th, up to 9th now. Massa improved upwards, Button currently chasing him for 5th position.

• 07:06 Lap 1

  Michael Schumacher also pits.

• 07:06 Lap 1

  You'd suspect that Mercedes and Toro Rosso came together - Schumacher had a rear puncture.

• 07:07 Lap 2

  Paul di Resta is up to 10th from 14th on the grid.

• 07:07 Lap 3

  Race Control: DRS is enabled.

• 07:08 Lap 3

  Button takes the inside line to try and get past Massa, but the Ferrari keeps position. For now...

• 07:08 Lap 3

  This is the first use of DRS and, drum roll please... makes no difference.

• 07:09 Lap 4

  Button was close enough behind Massa to use his rear wing, it flipped up as they rounded onto the main straight, and it had zero effect.

• 07:10 Lap 5

  Driver Positions

  Pos		Driver
  1	0	Sebastian Vettel
  2	0	Lewis Hamilton
  3	0	Mark Webber
  4	2	Vitaly Petrov
  5	3	Felipe Massa

• 07:11 Lap 5

  Rubens ran into the gravel on the opening lap, similar to his issue in qualifying. Back up to 15th at the moment.

• 07:12 Lap 6

  Alonso has passed Rosberg, so is up to P7 now.

• 07:13 Lap 6

  Team radio from Button (about Massa): "He's got to stop moving on the straight like he is."

• 07:13 Lap 6

  Vettel isn't scampering away with the lead as we might have expected, still just a three second gap to Hamilton.

• 07:15 Lap 8

  One to Watch

  Felipe Massa	vs.	Jenson Button
  5th	+0.3s	6th

• 07:15 Lap 8

  Tweet from @OfficialRGP: Nick says that the track is quite low grip at the moment.

• 07:16 Lap 8

  Lewis Hamilton puts in the fastest lap of the race so far.

• 07:16 Lap 9

  Alonso has caught up to the back of Button, so the McLaren is stuck between two Ferraris now.

• 07:17 Lap 9

  Buemi has overtaken Paul di Resta, who in turn is trying to hold off his teammate Sutil for 11th position.

• 07:17 Lap 9

  Team radio from Webber: "Rears are starting to go."

• 07:19 Lap 11

  Exactly the same message from Vettel on the radio.

• 07:19 Lap 11

  Red Bull mechanics are getting ready for a stop - a little earlier than they would like.

• 07:19

  Recent Lap Times

  Felipe Massa
  Lap 6	1:33.700
  Lap 7	1:34.004
  Lap 8	1:33.833
  Lap 9	1:33.869
  Lap 10	1:34.490

• 07:20

  Lower is better on that graph, obviously.

• 07:20

  Maldonado has pulled off track.

• 07:21

  Button took to the escape road and got past Massa, which means he should give the place back.

• 07:21 Lap 12

  However, Alonso has got past Massa, so he may have to give back two places.

• 07:21 Lap 12

  Webber has pitted, blink and you'll miss it. Hard tyres on the Red Bull.

• 07:23 Lap 13

  Fernando Alonso pits and Ferrari bolt on some scrubbed soft tyres.

• 07:24 Lap 14

  Race Control: Incident to be investigated.

• 07:24 Lap 14

  Button tells his team that he was ahead and Massa pushed him off track, hence he took to the escape road and legitimately has the position.

• 07:25 Lap 14

  Felipe Massa has pitted, so there's no way the position can just be reversed. Any penalty would be a drive through or similar.

• 07:25 Lap 14

  Vettel pits from the lead.

• 07:25

  Pit Stop Analysis

  Driver	Felipe Massa
  Team	Ferrari
  Pit lane	23.842s
  Stopped	4.3s

• 07:26 Lap 15

  Race Control: Drive through for Button for exceeding the track limit.

• 07:26 Lap 15

  Hamilton inherits the lead, with Petrov up to second, but neither have stopped yet.

• 07:27 Lap 16

  Vettel returned to the track in third position, so he should be safely back in the lead when the other two pit.

• 07:27 Lap 16

  Pit Stop Analysis

  Driver	Sebastian Vettel
  Team	Red Bull
  Pit lane	22.603s
  Stopped	3.4s

• 07:28 Lap 16

  Alguersuari, Buemi and Heidfeld have all pitted.

• 07:28 Lap 16

  Alonso puts in the fastest lap so far - 1:31.904.

• 07:28 Lap 16

  Hamilton pits from the lead.

• 07:29 Lap 17

  Hamilton returns to the track behind Vettel but just in front with Button, and Jenson doesn't push the position.

• 07:29 Lap 17

  Rosberg, Kobayashi and Sutil all pit.

• 07:29 Lap 17

  Pit Stop Analysis

  Driver	Lewis Hamilton
  Team	McLaren
  Pit lane	23.227s
  Stopped	4.2s

• 07:30 Lap 17

  Kovalainen locks up and bounces across the grass as he regains control of the Lotus. Heikki is currently in 13th.

• 07:30 Lap 18

  Button takes his drive through.

• 07:31 Lap 18

  With the pit lane impediment, we're looking at about a 22 second penalty for Button.

• 07:31 Lap 18

  Kovalainen runs wide.

• 07:31 Lap 18

  Alguersuari and Kovalainen pit - that's two stops for Jaime now.

• 07:32 Lap 18

  Trulli has also stopped.

• 07:32 Lap 19

  Buemi gets past Sutil, although he has also used plenty of excess run off to make the position stick.

• 07:33 Lap 20

  Glock pits, as Renault report they were worried about damage on Heidfeld's car but after the stop found nothing to concern.

• 07:34 Lap 20

  Driver Analysis

  Driver	Sebastian Vettel
  Team	Red Bull
  Position	1
  Started	1
  Stops	1
  Last lap	1:31.810
  Best lap	1:30.800

• 07:34 Lap 20

  Button pits for his actual stop.

• 07:35 Lap 21

  He returns to the track just in front of Paul di Resta, who starts pushing for position.

• 07:36 Lap 22

  Heikki Kovalainen is out, his car off to the side of the track.

• 07:37 Lap 22

  Rubens passes Kobayashi in a great overtaking move for 9th position.

• 07:38 Lap 23

  Glock has pitted and it looks like he's out of the race for now.

• 07:38 Lap 23

  Schumacher also takes to the garage and climbs out of the car.

• 07:39 Lap 23

  One to Watch

  N Rosberg	vs.	R Barrichello
  8th	+0.4s	9th

• 07:39 Lap 23

  And they hit!

• 07:39 Lap 23

  Yellow flags.

• 07:39 Lap 23

  Track is clear.

• 07:40 Lap 24

  Rubens appeared to have front wing damage, whilst smoke plumes from Rosberg's car. Both are continuing on for now.

• 07:40 Lap 24

  Pérez pits from the top 10.

• 07:41 Lap 24

  Yellow flags as Rosberg has pulled over to the side of the track. Both Mercedes cars out.

• 07:41 Lap 25

  Barrichello pits for a new front wing.

• 07:41 Lap 25

  Comment from Stuart Taylor: "between 99 and 100%, how much would you say that was Rubens's fault?" - Brundle

• 07:42 Lap 25

  Rosberg and Rubens come together.

• 07:43 Lap 25

  Button has successfully used his rear wing to make a pass!

• 07:43 Lap 25

  He moved up to 7th, passing Kobayashi.

• 07:43 Lap 26

  Race Control: Incident between Rosberg and Barrichello to be investigated.

• 07:44 Lap 27

  Driver Positions

  Pos		Driver
  1	0	Vettel
  2	0	Hamilton
  3	0	Webber
  4	2	Petrov
  5	0	Alonso
  6	2	Massa
  7	-3	Button
  8	1	Kobayashi
  9	1	Buemi
  10	6	Sutil

• 07:44 Lap 27

  Webber pits from third.

• 07:45 Lap 27

  Top Speeds

  Sector 1	Barrichello	270kph
  Sector 2	Sutil	292kph
  Sector 3	Kobayashi	297kph
  Speed trap	Button	313kph

• 07:46 Lap 28

  Lapped Cars

  Pos	Driver	Laps Down
  13	S Pérez	1
  14	J Alguersuari	1
  15	R Barrichello	1
  16	J Trulli	1
  17	J D'Ambrosio	2

• 07:46 Lap 28

  Alonso pits.

• 07:47 Lap 29

  Tweet from @OfficalLRGP: Actually we think there is some slight bodywork damage on Nick's car, probably from lap 1. Still he is pushing on and will keep battling.

• 07:47 Lap 29

  About halfway through, Vettel continues to lead, building up a gap to Hamilton, with Petrov clinging on to third place.

• 07:48 Lap 29

  Race Control: Drive through penalty for car 11 (Barrichello) for causing a collision.

• 07:49 Lap 30

  Rubens serves his drive through.

• 07:51 Lap 31

  Glock is back out on track, after appearing to retire earlier. Currently last.

• 07:52 Lap 32

  Michael Schumacher: "I had a good start, I made up quite a few positions. I was already past Kobayashi but then first corner, everything got a bit tight and I had to slow down... I got going again, as I turn into turn three, somebody knocked on my right rear...

  "The consequence was I had a puncture, and destroyed the rear tyre coming back to the pits and that destroyed the rear floor... I'm pretty sure we had bent suspension, it wasn't equal. Entertaining twenty laps I did, but it wasn't worth it and the team quite rightly decided for safety to come in and not to risk anything."

• 07:53 Lap 32

  Heidfeld and Massa both pitted whilst I was busy listening to Schumacher.

• 07:53 Lap 33

  Retirements

  Driver	Reason	Lap
  Maldonado	Mechanical	12
  Kovalainen	Mechanical	22
  Schumacher	Floor damage	23
  Rosberg	Accident	24

• 07:54 Lap 33

  Hamilton runs really wide, the McLaren bouncing across the grass.

• 07:55 Lap 34

  David Coulthard is suggesting the McLaren has a broken undertray which may explain the lack of control.

• 07:55 Lap 34

  Kobayashi has pitted.

• 07:55 Lap 34

  Tweet from @clubforce: Paul's engineer telling him to 'keep pushing'...Good job Paul on your F1 racing debut!

• 07:57 Lap 35

  Vettel continues to lead with a 12 second gap over Hamilton now.

• 07:57 Lap 35

  Sparks fly under Hamilton's car. He doesn't seem to be losing too much time but may not be able to chase Vettel.

• 07:58 Lap 36

  Team radio to and from Vettel: "Have you got no grip left?"

  "It's really bad now, tyres starting to go off."

• 07:59 Lap 36

  Vettel pits from hte lead.

• 07:59 Lap 37

  Hamilton also pits, meaning Vettel has to go around the McLaren mechanics. Bit of extra pressure, but a decent stop.

• 08:00 Lap 37

  Petrov pits for Renault, and further back Alguersuari in for Toro Rosso.

• 08:01 Lap 37

  Hamilton's team radio confirms they don't want to make another stop, so it's all about managing the tyres for him now.

• 08:01 Lap 37

  Paul di Resta pits.

• 08:02 Lap 38

  Button pits from fifth place.

• 08:02 Lap 38

  Beautiful stop for Jenson there.

• 08:03 Lap 39

  Fastest Laps

  Driver	Lap	Time
  F Alonso	31	1:30.081
  F Alonso	29	1:30.097
  S Vettel	17	1:30.800

• 08:03 Lap 39

  Petrov is down to fifth after getting caught up behind Alguersuari coming out of the pits.

• 08:04 Lap 39

  Pérez is doing a great job in 8th, ahead of teammate Kobayashi in 9th.

• 08:05 Lap 40

  Pérez just put in the fastest lap of the race: 1:29.962.

• 08:06 Lap 41

  Alonso is closing up to Webber now, he had the opportunity to use the DRS on this lap but was too far back to make the difference.

• 08:07 Lap 41

  Tweet from @MarussiaVirgin: Jérôme's times are just under a second away from TRU. It'll be interesting to see how they compare after they have both stopped. JdA in now

• 08:07 Lap 42

  Lap Analysis

  Sergio Pérez on lap 41
  Sector 1	30.1	271kph
  Sector 2	23.7	291kph
  Sector 3	36.5	297kph

• 08:07 Lap 42

  Mark Webber pits from third place, allowing Alonso through.

• 08:08 Lap 42

  Further down the order, Barrichello also pits. Fourth time for the Williams.

• 08:08 Lap 42

  Webber runs wide at turn three, struggling to get his tyres warmed up.

• 08:09 Lap 43

  Alonso pits now as well, will he come out in front of Webber?

• 08:10 Lap 43

  Yep, Alonso easily makes it out in front of the Red Bull. No sign of Webber at all actually!

• 08:10 Lap 44

  There's Webber now, he's catching back up to the Ferrari.

• 08:11 Lap 44

  One to Watch

  F Alonso	vs.	M Webber
  4th	+0.3s	5th

• 08:11 Lap 44

  Webber sets the fastest lap of the race - 1:29.686

• 08:13 Lap 46

  Team radio to Alonso: "Remember to use the KERS."

• 08:14 Lap 46

  Fastest lap for Alonso: 1:29.608.

• 08:16 Lap 48

  Ted Kravitz reports that there has been a planned swap of position at Force India, Sutil now ahead of Paul di Resta in 11th and 12th.

• 08:17 Lap 48

  Battle For 1st

  Pos	Driver	Gap
  1st	VET	--
  2nd	HAM	+11.3
  3rd	PET	+32.6
  4th	ALO	+42.6

• 08:17 Lap 48

  Button overtakes Massa... finally! 6th position for the McLaren.

• 08:20 Lap 50

  Inter-Team Battle

  Toro Rosso
  Sébastien Buemi	9th
  Jaime Alguersuari	14th

• 08:20 Lap 50

  Eight laps to go.

• 08:21 Lap 51

  Championship Prediction

  Pos	Driver	Pts
  1	S Vettel	25
  2	L Hamilton	18
  3	V Petrov	15
  4	F Alonso	12
  5	M Webber	10

• 08:22 Lap 51

  Team radio to Hamilton: "Eight laps to go. Please look after the car, the car is damaged."

• 08:22 Lap 51

  Massa puts in the fastest lap of the race so far 1:29.451.

• 08:23 Lap 52

  Pérez has only stopped once, and it looks like that's all he will do!

• 08:23 Lap 52

  Rubens Barrichello pits and heads to the garage, it looks like a double retirement for Williams as well.

• 08:23 Lap 52

  Recent Lap Times

  Lewis Hamilton
  Lap 48	1:30.785
  Lap 49	1:30.753
  Lap 50	1:31.010
  Lap 51	1:31.312

• 08:24 Lap 52

  Hamilton's times are falling off quite rapidly now. He's just got six more laps to nurse the car home.

• 08:26 Lap 54

  Recent Lap Times

  Sébastien Buemi
  Lap 49	1:32.579
  Lap 50	1:32.093
  Lap 51	1:31.957
  Lap 52	1:32.448

• 08:26 Lap 54

  Massa is chasing Buemi hard for 9th position, but so far the Ferrari can't make it through. Vettel is closing up behind the pair to lap them.

• 08:27 Lap 55

  The Ferrari is through, pretty easily as Massa outbrakes Buemi to get past.

• 08:28 Lap 55

  Sector 1 Comparison

  Driver	Time	Speed
  S Vettel	30.3	272kph
  L Hamilton	30.7	261kph
  V Petrov	30.6	269kph

• 08:28 Lap 55

  Alonso is catching up to Petrov now. Three laps remain and just a couple of seconds in it. Does he have enough time?

• 08:28 Lap 55

  David Coulthard: "He's got plenty of experience of following Petrov, but not much experience of passing him."

• 08:29 Lap 56

  One to Watch

  V Petrov	vs.	F Alonso
  3rd	+2.2s	4th

• 08:30 Lap 57

  Driver Positions

  Pos		Driver	Stops
  1	0	S Vettel	2
  2	0	L Hamilton	2
  3	3	V Petrov	2
  4	1	F Alonso	3
  5	-2	M Webber	3

• 08:31 Lap 57

  FInal lap.

• 08:33 Lap 58

  Sebastian Vettel wins the Australian Grand Prix!!

• 08:33 Lap 58

  Hamilton comes in second, and Petrov third.

• 08:34

  Alonso didn't have the laps to make the difference.

• 08:34

  Mark Webber has pulled off track immediately after the finish line, stopping at the end of the pit lane.

• 08:35

  Team radio from Vettel: "Thank you boys, fantastic race. Really controlled, thank you very much. Excellent stop. We learnt a lot today, keep that in mind."

• 08:35

  Tweet from @autosportlive: It was a typical commanding performance from the world champion, who starts his title defence in the best possible way.

• 08:37

  Championship Standings

  Pos	Driver	Pts
  1	S Vettel	25
  2	L Hamilton	18
  3	V Petrov	15
  4	F Alonso	12
  5	M Webber	10
  6	J Button	8
  7	S Pérez	6
  8	K Kobayashi	4
  9	F Massa	2
  10	S Buemi	1

• 08:37

  Tweet from @MikeGascoyne: Good race from Jarno, in the end that was the pace we expected from winter testing, got to get in right in malaysia

• 08:39

  Driver of the day is a toss up between Petrov and Pérez, and on balance, Sergio gets it. A rookie driver, finishes 7th on a one-stop strategy, when everyone around him stops at least twice, sometimes thrice.

• 08:39

  Who are you handing driver of the day to?

• 08:40

  Race Winner

  Driver	Sebastian Vettel
  Team	Red Bull
  Race time	1:29:30.259
  Race distance	307.574km
  Average speed	206.184km/h

• 08:41

  The top three take to the podium, with new black Pirelli caps.

• 08:42

  Your race winner.

• 08:44

  And they spray the champaaaaagne.

• 08:44

  Petrov on the podium.

• 08:45

  Christian Horner confirms Red Bull haven't had KERS on their car at all this weekend.

• 08:46

  Interview with Christian Horner: "We were a bit nervous about telling everyone before the race, but we ran it on Friday, we weren't happy about the reliability, we thought it was a potential risk, so we took it off both cars.

  "It's quite a complex system, it's an interesting technology, but Adrian being Adrian, he wouldn't compromise."

• 08:49

  Interview with Martin Whitmarsh: "It's a healthy result, inevitably you're always going to be disappointed if you haven't won the race. Lewis did a great job, his pace was not quite Sebastian's but not too far behind, he then damaged the car. He had an excursion but it either broke of it's own accord or in that excursion. From that point on, he was losing a lot of downforce...

  "I think Jenson, unlucky at the start... I'd say Felipe was reasonably spirited in his defence, and Jenson felt he had no alternative to leave the track to get past him... we asked the FIA what do you want us to do, we got no advice... Jenson did a great job to fight his way back and get some solid points. Overall it would be nice to have two cars on the podium, but two weeks ago I would have taken this result quite happily."

• 08:49

  Final Gaps

  Pos	Driver	Gap
  1st	VET	1:31.946
  2nd	HAM	+22.2
  3rd	PET	+30.5

• 08:52

  Press conference quotes - Sebastian Vettel: "Obviously it was a good race, in the end things calmed down a bit... I don't think it was an easy race, the start was crucial. Being on the clean side, I had a good getaway but I didn't know it was enough until I saw Lewis and Mark battling for position...

  "After my stop it was crucial to get past Jenson which I could do immediately... after that I think the second part of the race, I didn't know what was going on behind with Lewis, if he was dropping off or not... All in all a very good race, I think there was a lot of things to learn today."

• 08:52

  Vettel:

• 08:54

  Press conference quotes - Lewis Hamilton: "A week or two ago, we were not expecting to be anywhere near the top five. It's the longest the car's ever lasted. I think it's a great achievement for us. Strategy is one we can work on but generally we've got good pace and I'm looking forward to the next race."

• 08:55

  Lewis: "The plank and part of the floor is massively damaged. I don't know when it happened, it might have happened when I went off but I think it happened before that."

• 08:56

  Press conference quotes - Vitaly Petrov: "I am very happy to sit with these guys here, the whole weekend was pretty good for us. We came here with some new parts, from free practice our car looks strong. Qualifying was not too bad. We just focused on our race, today I think the team did everything perfectly. We must be proud of our place today."

• 08:58

  Interview with Jenson Button: "I got an okay start, and then I was surprised to see Petrov on the inside, then I got stuck behind Massa. That was the worst move of the race because he was so slow. He's the most difficult person to overtake. He blocked very well but he just slowed us both down massively. I tried to overtake him round turn 11, he went so deep in the corner, pushed me wide... I was in front before we entered the corner, and then I didn't know what to do.

  As soon as Ferrari saw that happen, they pitted Massa, and as soon as that happens you get a drive through, so I don't know if that was on purpose or not. I got a drive through, and then I had to fight my way through which was quite fun but being that far back was quite frustrating because the pace was better than that."

• 09:00

  So that was it, the first race of the year done and dusted. It wasn't an epic but it was a decent start to 2011.

• 09:00

  The racing seems quite different to last year, there is still plenty to get used to - both for us and for the drivers.

• 09:01

  Red Bull look supreme, epic pace even without KERS. Vettel makes the best start to his championship defence, Webber as usual struggles at home.

• 09:01

  Petrov did an amazing job, particularly compared to Heidfeld who had a really tough day.

• 09:02

  Both Williams and Mercedes suffered double DNFs, so there is nowhere to go but up from them for the rest of the season.

• 09:03

  I'm signing off now, so we must make a date in our diaries for two weeks time when F1 rolls into Malaysia. More early starts, but equally, plenty more fun and games to come.

• 09:03

  Have a great day and see you soon!