Though the Tifosi would have hoped for a win for either of the Ferrari drivers, another epic performance from Fernando Alonso is sure to have been sufficient. The Spaniard, who started at 10th on the grid and later would run off course at the Curva Grande, managed to claw his way to third place, with a little help from his teammate Felipe Massa, who finished just one spot behind.
Rounding out the top ten places were Lotus’ Kimi Räikkönen, Mercedes-AMG’s Michael Schumacher, fellow Mercedes-AMG driver Nico Rosberg, Force India’s Paul di Resta, Sauber’s Kamui Kobayashi and Williams’ Bruno Senna.
While Ferrari appeared to have lots of luck at its home event, it proved a very tough day for Red Bull Racing. Reigning world champion Sebastian Vettel climbed up to third by the 20th lap, after starting at sixth, but his indiscretion with Alonso, which led to the Spaniard’s aforementioned run off course, earned him a drive-through penalty.
Then, on the 48th lap, Vettel had to retire from the race due to an alternator problem, costing him valuable points. Meanwhile, his teammate, Mark Webber, suffered a spin just two laps later, flat-spotting his tires and then also retiring.
For the Red Bull team, this was the first time since the 2010 Korean Grand Prix that it’s left without a point.
After 13 rounds of the 2012 season, Fernando Alonso still leads the Drivers’ Championship with 179 points, with Lewis Hamilton now moving into the second place with 142 points, followed by Kimi Räikkönen just 1 point behind.
In the Constructors’ Championship, Red Bull Racing remains the clear leader with 272 points, with McLaren in second on 243 points and Ferrari now in third spot with 226 points.
The teams now wave goodbye to Europe for another year, as the Singapore Grand Prix in a fortnight’s time signals the start of the final run of seven races overseas.
