| Source: motorsport.com |
The home favourite Sebastian Vettel produced an inspiring win to fend off the Lotuses of Kimi Raikkonen and Romain Grosjean. The three-times world champion placed his stamp on victory very early on by passing the pole-sitter Lewis Hamilton at the first corner, with teammate Mark Webber making it a one-two in as little time. Webber sustained the challenge to Vettel until his first pit-stop, in which a faulty wheelgun caused the right rear tyre to fly off and strike FOM cameraman Paul Allen, who suffered a broken shoulder and cracked ribs. He was subsequently taken to Koblenz Hospital, where he is currently under observation. Webber recovered with a sterling drive to go from twenty-first to seventh by the chequered flag.
The Lotuses of Kimi Raikkonen and Romain Grosjean maintained pressure on the lead throughout the race, both producing strong drives to lock out the podium. Raikkonen became held up behind slower cars after his first pit-stop, but managed to haul Vettel in after a final stop nine laps before the end.
Ferrari-having demonstrated a distinct lack of pace throughout the weekend-endured a somewhat torrid race with Felipe Massa suffering an unusual spin at the end of the third lap, stalling his engine in the process. Fernando Alonso struggled with the car to take it up to fourth by the safety car period in the middle of the race. He stayed there until the end, unable to pass Grosjean with five laps remaining due to the Frenchman's strict unstructions to keep the Spaniard behind as well as depleted soft tyres, thus allowing Raikkonen to close the 2.5 second gap to Vettel.
Mercedes, yet again, remained fairly incognito during the race, with Hamilton plummeting from pole to finish fifth in a drive burdened by excessive rear tyre wear. Rosberg endured the same issue, finishing ninth after failing to improve on a poor qualifying.
This race seemed to send out an ominous message to the front-running few, as Vettel stormed away with his fourth victory in nine races- a statistic no other driver can hold a candle to. Whilst the positions of the leaders seem to change every meeting, Vettel and Red Bull are always in the centre frame; he hasn't finished lower than fourth throughout the season. They are doing a fantastic job, and have opened up a daunting lead of sixty-seven points in the constructors championship, not to mention the thirty-four point lead enjoyed by Vettel. So far they haven't seemed to struggle on any weekend, and look pretty handy for a fourth double-championship in a row.
Lotus seemed to have picked up where they left off towards the beginning of the season. Their pace was undeniably hindered halfway through, with both Raikkonen and Grosjean pointing the finger at the safety car for not securing the top step. It wasn't hard to notice this during the race, seeing Grosjean's immense speed early on and the rate at which Raikkonen was catching Vettel towards the end. This performance may have been a one-off, but people can't forget the fact that Pirelli have altered the rear tyres to make them stronger. Lotus have been able to manage their tyres fantastically well this year, so they need to be watched out for in the coming races.
Conversely, Mercedes desperately need to sort out their race pace. Despite participating in a somewhat controversial tyre test in the run-up to Montreal, high rear tyre wear is still inhibiting their ability to stick the car on the podium. The fact is even more heartbreaking when one looks at their pace in qualifying, when not even Vettel in a Red Bull can touch them. Rosberg has got half a monkey off his back by securing wins at arguably the two most prestigious venues, but Hamilton has yet to fully silence the sceptics who questioned his move. Will he get that elusive first win soon? Not if his Pirellis have anything to say about it.
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