Fernando Alonso a step above in China!

A notch above. Fernando Alonso wins the victory at the Chinese Grand Prix, Sunday April 14, at the end of a perfectly controlled Grand Prix. Starting from third position behind the pole sitter Lewis Hamilton (McLaren) and Kimi Räikkönen (Lotus), the Spanish pilot of the Team Ferrari got off to a better start than the Finn when the lights went out and took second place, just behind the Briton. The Ferraris are going strong at the start of the race, since Felipe Massa also gains two places from the start and finds himself just behind the double Spanish world champion.

After 5 laps spent countering Fernando Alonso's attacks, Lewis Hamilton gave in. Helped by his DRS, the Asturian overtook his rival on the very long straight of the Shanghai circuit and seized the reins of the race for the first time. It is at this moment that the great waltz of pit stops begins, dictated by unpredictable Pirellis. There Mercedes W04 from Hamilton was the first to get rid of the Soft tires, while Alonso followed suit the following lap. A winning strategy: although he left in the middle of traffic among the drivers wearing Mediums, the Ferrari driver retained his advantage over the Briton. Equipped with fresher tires, all the drivers who started from the top 10 gradually catch up with their comrades to return to the front. At the front, it is an impressive Nico Hülkengerg who leads in front Sebastian Vettel and Jenson Button. The three men are the only ones to have started in the Mediums among the first ten, which allows them, for a time at least, to take the lead in the race.

On the 15th and 16th laps, the race gets even more exciting. Vettel enters the pits at the same time as the leader's Sauber: he leaves in front, faster. At the same time, Mark Webber's two sister cars (Red Bull) and Jean-Eric Vergne (Toro Rosso) collide while the Australian was trying to overtake the Frenchman. The Red Bull driver must return to the pits. Further on, Kimi Räikkönen tries to get rid of Sergio Pérez who dangerously cuts him off: the Lotus hits the rear of the McLaren and slightly damages its front wing, which will not be necessary to change. Still on the same lap, Mark Webber came out with a loose wheel. Slowing down to try to bring back his car, the wheel comes off, brushes against other cars and stops. The race is over for the Australian. It was a dark weekend for him.

The five world champions ahead

Coming back behind a Jenson Button that is incredibly economical with its tires? he will only stop twice after two very long stints run on Medium tires? Fernando Alonso takes back control of a race that he will almost never let go of. Perfectly mastering his subject, the Asturian will set a high pace and build a comfortable lead of around ten seconds over his closest competitors. When he stops for the third and final time, the double world champion will be overtaken by Sebastian Vettel for the space of one lap. But the German, also on three stops, would not be able to resist for long, especially since he still had one stop through the pits to complete. Alonso then went without a shot to his first victory of the season, the 31st of his career, and returned to the drivers' championship after his zero points in Malaysia. By shifting his strategy, Kimi Räikkönen was able to regain the advantage over Lewis Hamilton and sign a new podium. After his pole position on Saturday, the Briton must be content with another third place, after the one pocketed at Sepang. Significantly, the first five places in the Chinese Grand Prix are occupied by the five active world champions, since behind this imperial top 3 we find Sebastian Vettel, fourth, and Jenson Button, fifth.

With the French, Romain Grosjean can be relieved: his complicated weekend is finally over. He leaves Shanghai with 2 points for 9th place. Jean-Eric Vergne finished 12th, a very disappointing result compared to his teammate's seventh place Daniel Ricciardo, author of a surprising and remarkable weekend. In their modest cars, Jules Bianchi and Charles Pic finished 15 and 16th after fighting together for a few laps. Both ensure the essential, namely getting ahead of their teammates.

A word on the rankings: Sebastian Vettel retains the lead among the Drivers with 52 points but Kimi Räikkönen comes back on him with 49 points. Fernando Alonso is third with 43 points and Lewis Hamilton has 40. Red Bull has the lead among the Teams with 78 points, Ferrari 73 and Lotus 60.