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Hamilton wins accident-filled Australian GP

Stan Rayan

Only seven cars finish the race; forgettable day for Force India

— Photo: AFP

STEERING CLEAR: Lewis Hamilton took the chequered flag in the chaotic season opener in Melbourne on Sunday.

MELBOURNE: He had come painfully close to the Formula One crown last year. This season he could not have asked for a better start. Lewis Hamilton won a chaotic Australian Grand Prix here on Sunday, a dramatic thriller that saw only seven cars finishing the race.

Missing on the podium, and from the points, were the Ferraris which made the celebration all the more bigger.

While some of the big names, including Ferrari’s World champion Kimi Raikkonen and Renault’s Fernando Alonso were busy finding their way through the midfield maze, pole-starter Hamilton was in the box seat and made the most of it.

Fantastic

“I feel fantastic. What a dream start to the season and my championship challenge,” said the 23-year-old Englishman. “I’m sorry not to have Heikki (Kovalainen) with me on the podium as a one-two would have been a great reward to the team.”

The race was packed with drama and the safety car appeared thrice, nearly wiping out Hamilton’s heavy leads.

“The three safety car periods meant that there was never time to relax and the whole situation was a bit like Canada last year when I claimed my first victory,” said Hamilton.

Life without driving aids, like the engine braking system and traction control, made things difficult for the drivers. And it was soon evident with five cars going out in the opening lap itself.

BMW’s Nick Heidfeld finished second five seconds behind Hamilton while Williams’ Nico Rosberg, who took his first Formula One podium, and Fernando Alonso took the next two positions.

The pick

Despite all the drama, the best piece of action was the one involving Alonso and Kovalainen on the penultimate lap. Kovalainen went past the former world champion boldly, desperate to make some lost ground, but Alonso replied cheekily and overtook him a few seconds later.

Raikkonen, who started from the eighth row after finishing 16th in the qualifiers, also looked impressive today. He quickly climbed up and at one stage had a running battle with Kovalainen for the second spot.

Barrichello disqualified

Engine trouble, however, forced the Finn to call it a day with five laps to go but he still picked up a point after sixth-place finisher, Honda’s Rubens Barrichello, was excluded from the list for pulling out of the pit-lane when the lights were still red. Barrichello’s rush, even before the fuel could be removed, pushed down a mechanic. That action left everybody stunned.

Toro Rosso’s Frenchman Sebastien Bourdais, a multiple Champs Car champion, was the most impressive rookie here, finishing seventh. He was in the fourth spot for some time but was forced to give up after his engine failed when he had two laps to go.

Final placings: 1. Lewis Hamilton (McLaren, 1 hr, 34 mins, 50.616 secs, 10 pts), 2. Nick Heidfeld (BMW, +5.4s, 8), 3. Nico Rosberg (Williams, +8.1s, 6), 4. Fernando Alonso (Renault, +17.1s, 5), 5. Heikki Kovalainen (McLaren, +18.0s, 4), 6. Kazuki Nakajima (Williams, +1 lap, 3), 7. Sebastien Bourdais (STR-Ferrari, +3 laps, 2), 8. Kimi Räikkönen (Ferrari, 53 laps, engine failure, 1).

Did not finish: Robert Kubica (BMW, 47 laps, accident), Timo Glock (Toyota, 43, accident), Takuma Sato (Super Aguri, 32, transmission), Nelsinho Piquet (Renault, 30, accident damage), Felipe Massa (Ferrari, 29, engine), David Coulthard (Red Bull, 25, accident), Jarno Trulli (Toyota, 19, electrical), Adrian Sutil (Force India, 8, hydraulics), Mark Webber (Red Bull, 0, accident), Jenson Button (Honda, 0, accident), Anthony Davidson (Super Aguri, 0, accident), Sebastian Vettel (STR-Ferrari, 0, accident), Giancarlo Fisichella (Force India, 0, accident). Rubens Barrichello (Honda, 58 laps, +52.4s, disqualified from sixth place for exiting the pits under a red light).

Fastest lap: Heikki Kovalainen (1:27.418s, 43rd lap).

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