Petrov comes out of the shadows

In this race, the start is very important and Hulkenberg don't miss it. Neither do the Barwa, Grosjean rising to second position. But, slower, the Frenchman is overtaken by Filippi. Behind, Chandhok stalled on the grid while, on the third lap, Perez et Kobayashi (DAMS) hang on and make a mistake. At the front, Filippi charges Hülkenberg and manages to overtake him. But the one who takes advantage of the situation is Petrov, who takes over the two drivers and takes the lead of the race, never to let go. Everything collapsed for Hülkenberg, who also saw Zuber overtake him.

For Grosjean, the race is unlike the first two rounds of the season. Far from the lead, the Frenchman is dropped by Valerio. For the French teams, things are not getting any better. Hülkenberg (ART) gets stuck in traffic and d?Ambrosio (DAMS) makes a mistake. In the lead, Petrov is ahead of Filippi, who pits, leaving provisional second place to Parente. But the Portuguese loses control of his car and sees his race stop. Sixteen laps from the finish, Petrov leads ahead of Filippi, Zuber, Valsecchi, Villa and Hülkenberg. But the German comes out too wide and is passed by Valerio, while Valsecchi offers himself Zuber.

The end of the race confirms the hot and cold of the Barwa Addax team. The hot one for Petrov, who controls the race head perfectly. The cold for Grosjean, who is not in the running and who retires eight laps from the end. As Villa presses Valerio for fifth place, he is surprised and overtaken by Hülkenberg, Maldonado and Van der Garde. The final laps also condemned Zuber, then third, who slowed down and was passed by his rivals, to finish in tenth position.

After Monaco, a circuit where overtaking is impossible, this Istanbul race offers an attractive scenario, even if some drivers would have done without it. Vitaly Petrov adds a victory to the Barwa team's purse but, behind, the places of honor go to drivers usually far from the podium. Filippi finished second, followed by Valsecchi, Valerio, Hülkenberg, Maldonado, Van der Garde and Villa, who will have the chance to start on pole on Sunday, under the reverse grid rule.