Brazil – Race: Vettel and Webber, donuts and a farewell!

The weather is overcast but not rainy for the last Grand Prix of the 2013 season in Interlagos, Brazil. It’s the last race for Mark Webber in F1, the last Grand Prix with Ferrari for Massa, with Williams for Maldonado, and with McLaren for Pérez; the Mexican, penalized 5 places for a gearbox change after his accident in qualifying, will therefore start from the 19th position.

On the grid, only Jenson Button (McLaren) and Esteban Gutiérrez (Sauber) started on hard tires (orange). The rest of the pack will start on medium tires (white), the softest compound.

The lights go out one by one and the V8s roar one last time in unison! It’s on! Nico Rosberg takes the advantage over Sebastian Vettel. The Red Bull is already threatening the Mercedes while Fernando Alonso, in fourth, is putting pressure on Lewis Hamilton. As they pass the line, Vettel regains the lead and Alonso overtakes Hamilton! The Briton is under pressure from Webber who also gets through! Vettel logically escapes while, in the 3rd lap, Alonso is now threatening Rosberg. Behind them, Romain Grosjean hasn’t had a good start and is in eighth place while his V8 explodes on the way up to the straight line! It’s at this moment that Alonso takes the advantage over the Mercedes for second position.

After 5 laps, Vettel leads Alonso by 5 seconds. Following them are Rosberg, Webber, Hamilton, Massa, Hülkenberg, Ricciardo, Button, and Bottas. The future Porsche endurance driver puts pressure on Rosberg. The Mercedes seem to be in quite some trouble: Webber passes at the start of the 6th lap and sets off after Alonso. Hülkenberg, in 7th, is already complaining about graining on his tires. Sutil, who was in 11th, gets overtaken one after the other by Gutiérrez and Pérez. At the same time, Button gets rid of Ricciardo for the 9th place.

On the 10th lap, Webber threatens Alonso without passing him, but Hamilton overtakes Rosberg, who Ross Brawn told: « If you’re struggling with the tires, don’t hold up Lewis ». Vergne is the first to pit for hard tires. On the 12th lap, Webber easily overtakes Alonso on the straight and flies through the Senna Esses. The battle for 10th place is intense: Bottas defends against Pérez, but the McLaren driver charges past the Finn to enter the points. His teammate, Button, attacks and overtakes Hülkenberg: the Briton is 7th. Rosberg, in great difficulty, is overtaken by Massa. The Brazilian moves into the top 5. At Ferrari, Alonso is informed that rain is not expected anytime soon. It seems that at Mercedes, on the contrary, they’re waiting for a sign from the heavens!

On the 18th lap, Vettel is hard on his tires but remains comfortably in the lead with a 10.9-second advantage over Webber. Alonso is still third, followed by Hamilton and Massa. But the Brazilian enters the pits to switch to medium tires. In the pack, there’s a melee between Sutil, Vergne, Kovalainen, and Bottas. The Williams driver lost a lot in his stop. Alonso enters the pits at the start of the 21st lap to switch to hard tires, unlike Massa but just like Hamilton. At the end of the Top 10: Button puts on a show by overtaking Ricciardo and Maldonado on the straight and then Gutiérrez at the end of the first sector. He reclaims 6th place after having passed Rosberg in the pits. It’s Webber’s turn to stop on the 23rd lap, but the stop goes badly: he loses nearly 3 seconds, and Alonso takes the advantage. It’s Vettel’s turn to present himself on the next lap at Red Bull: the stop goes perfectly, and he retakes the track in the lead on medium tires, just like Webber.

On the 25th lap, Vettel leads ahead of Alonso, but Webber overtakes the Ferrari. The two men engage in a fierce battle for the remainder of the lap until approaching the pits, where the Red Bull pulls away slightly. Behind them, Massa is defending against Hamilton for fourth place. The Brazilian is reprimanded by the stewards and his team for crossing the pit line with all four wheels. An investigation is underway, and the Brazilian is penalized with a drive-through: the Paulista is furious and does not comply when Rob Smedley orders him to pit at the end of the 33rd lap, which he eventually does on the 34th, not without having slowed down Hamilton. Meanwhile, Bianchi informs his pit that he feels raindrops, which the cameras seem to confirm.

On the 35th lap, Vettel leads Webber by 12 seconds, who is himself ahead of Alonso by 4.2 seconds. Hamilton is catching up to the Spaniard. Button is a surprising but convincing 5th. In the pack, there’s a battle between teammates at Williams where Maldonado overtakes Bottas and at Force India where Sutil pits, leaving the way clear for Di Resta. On the 40th lap, Pérez closes in rapidly on Rosberg who is 6th. The Mercedes driver manages to limit the time loss, but the Mexican becomes threatening. The rain is announced as almost imminent as the sky darkens over Sao Paulo and droplets intensify on visors and camera lenses. Button and Massa stop at the pits and come out on mediums and hards, respectively.

After 45 laps, Vettel leads but is passed by Sutil, who regains his lost lap on new tires. Webber and Alonso are on the provisional podium. Rosberg and Pérez pit in turn and rejoin on hard tires. Astonishing image: Vettel in the lead is overtaken by Ricciardo. Bottas and Hamilton have tire issues within seconds of each other after a braking incident! The Finn retires, but the Briton manages to return to his box. Vettel pits to switch to hard tires but a front-right tire is missing! Webber is just behind but doesn’t lose much time. Alonso is also in the pits: the three men return closer than ever, with Webber and Alonso 6 seconds behind the four-time champion.

**On the 50th lap**, Vettel leads, but behind him, Webber and Alonso are pushing hard. Hamilton receives a penalty for causing the accident with Bottas: he must pass through the pits without stopping. As he exits the pits, the Mercedes camera shows an increase in rain, but the track is not at all soaked. Christian Horner frequently steps out to the pit lane to check the weather. Van der Garde is penalized for ignoring blue flags. On the 55th lap, Pérez attacks Rosberg for 5th place, but the Mexican is slightly outpaced by the Mercedes. Hamilton, on his side, is 10th and putting pressure on Ricciardo. He passes the Toro Rosso on the 58th lap.

With 11 laps to go, Vettel leads Webber and Alonso. Button, in 4th, is being chased by a duo of Rosberg and Pérez. Pic retires on the 61st lap due to a right rear suspension issue that caused a harmless spin. Vettel gradually increases his lead, extending it to 8.1 seconds at the start of the 62nd lap. Further back, Maldonado is threatened by Vergne in the battle for the 15th place. Kovalainen is overtaken by Sutil on the straight: the Finn is 14th and has been off the pace since the start of the race. The leading trio finds themselves in traffic, but the gaps remain steady with seven laps to go. In the Senna Esses, Vergne and Maldonado collide, causing the Venezuelan to spin, rejoining in front of Button’s McLaren, slowing him down as Rosberg and Pérez chase the Briton.

With five laps to go, Vettel leads by 8.5 seconds over Webber. Following are Alonso, Button, Rosberg, Pérez, Massa, Hülkenberg, Hamilton, and Ricciardo. The rain seems a bit heavier again, but the track remains dry. Gutiérrez is attacking Di Resta for the gain of the 11th position as raindrops heavily hit the onboard camera of the Sauber. But nothing can stop Sebastian Vettel, who crosses the finish line in first place! Ninth consecutive victory for the German, a record! He finishes ahead of Mark Webber in second for his last race and Fernando Alonso who secures an unexpected podium! Felipe Massa treats the audience to some donuts, following those performed by Vettel to celebrate his victory!

Results of the 2013 Brazilian Grand Prix: