Red Bull’s Vettel wins Australian Grand Prix
March 27th, 2011 - 5:21 pm ICT by ANIMelbourne, Mar 27(ANI): Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel got his title defence off to a perfect start with a pole-to-flag victory in Sunday’s Australian Grand Prix at Melbourne’s Albert Park.
Vettel finished over 20 seconds ahead of McLaren’s Lewis Hamilton after holding a commanding lead for the entire 58 laps.
“It was not easy, the start was crucial. I had a good getaway, but didn’t know if it was enough until I saw Lewis and Mark [Webber] battling for position,” the BBC quoted Vettel, as saying.
“After my stop it was crucial to get past Jenson, which I could do immediately, so that was very, very important. There were a lot of things to learn today and we need to have another look at the race,” he added.
Renault GP’s Vitaly Petrov earned a career first podium finish after securing third, ahead of Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso and Red Bull’s Mark Webber.
McLaren’s Jenson Button, aiming for his third straight Australian victory, finished sixth.
Seven-time champion Michael Schumacher was in the pits in his Mercedes with just two laps run and eventually was forced to retire with engine problems.
Hispania Racing Team’s Narain Karthikeyan missed the race after he failed to set a qualifying lap under new rules requiring drivers to get within 107 per cent of the fastest time. (ANI)
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Tags: albert park, australian grand prix, champion michael schumacher, commanding lead, fastest time, fernando alonso, grand prix melbourne, jenson button, laps, lewis hamilton, mark webber, narain karthikeyan, pits, podium, red bull, s lewis, sebastian vettel, time champion, title defence, vitaly petrov