Nico Rosberg held on to the lead for as long as possible, but it was almost inevitable that Lewis Hamilton would regain his speed and take that position. Behind them, though, there was some epic action with all the midfield drivers searching and scrabbling for those final few points positions.

Sebastian Vettel did a great job to come back from a pitlane start, but ended the race slightly frustrated with a lack of performance. Jenson Button dropped out of the points after a difficult afternoon, whilst Pastor Maldonado sneaked into the top ten despite a couple of mid-race penalties.

• 1 places. Jean-Éric Vergne - Car 25 forced car 8 (Romain Grosjean) off the track in turn 1. 5 second time penalty, imposed after the race in accordance of Article 16.3. (1 penalty point awarded, 3 points total for the 12 month period).