Torrente Retirement Hands Bianchi British Grand Prix Victory

Qualifying:

Pos#DriverConstructorTime
127Jules BianchiPrecision-Mercedes48.724
218Sebastian VettelCaterham-Judd48.738
396Diego Álvarez TorrentePrecision-Mercedes48.777
473Daniel MelroseRed Bull-Ferrari48.917
564Dave CassidyFerrari48.935
61Pastor MaldonadoSauber-Judd48.938
711James James DaviesToyota48.902*
86Artem MarkelovMansell-Mercedes49.001
935Sergey SirotkinMansell-Mercedes49.001
1055Santiago UrrutiaWilliams-Ferrari49.072
1147Lando NorrisCaterham-Judd49.345
1214Marcel Agyemang-BaduFAST-Mercedes49.374
1357Dean StonemanSauber-Judd49.398
1433Salvatore MiccoliFerrari49.489
1522Kazuki NakajimaToyota49.547
1699Mike RockenfellerRed Bull-Ferrari49.600
173Marvin KirchhöferWilliams-Ferrari49.603
1823Alexander AlbonDawson-Judd49.995
1994Pascal WehrleinCalinetic-Judd50.107
2056Einar ÁrmannssonCalinetic-Judd50.124
2110Pierre GaslyDawson-Judd50.124
2219Jordan DaviesTheodore-Ferrari50.170
237Charles LeclercFAST-Mercedes50.178
2498Bradley DagnallTheodore-Ferrari50.323

* given three-place grid penalty for causing an avoidable accident

Report:

Even with 12 races remaining it feels like Torrente's title dreams died at Donington Park along with his car.

Most pundits predicted that the British Grand Prix would be a one-sided affair with Precision-Mercedes rolling to an easy 1-2. Thankfully, this prediction turned out to be nonsense and a true battle ensued.

Sebastian Vettel, who struggled this season, was able to put his massive skill to use and nearly stole pole position on Saturday. Even then, he stuck around, only a second or two behind race leader Bianchi.

During the pitstop phase, Bianchi’s teammate successfully completed an overcut, taking the lead and then extending it to 5 seconds before disaster struck: a motor failure took him out of the running on lap 42.

This allowed Dave Cassidy to pass Daniel Melrose on the second-to-last lap to secure a vital podium finish for Ferrari. Sergey Sirotkin and Pastor Maldonado both impressed in fifth and sixth as well.

Race:

Pos#DriverConstructorTime/RetiredPoints
127Jules BianchiPrecision-Mercedes44:25.67615
218Sebastian VettelCaterham-Judd+3.73812
364Dave CassidyFerrari+15.25610
473Daniel MelroseRed Bull-Ferrari+16.8698
535Sergey SirotkinMansell-Mercedes+27.0526
61Pastor MaldonadoSauber-Judd+36.8205
747Lando NorrisCaterham-Judd+40.7434
833Salvatore MiccoliFerrari1 Lap3
96Artem MarkelovMansell-Mercedes1 Lap2
1099Mike RockenfellerRed Bull-Ferrari1 Lap1
1157Dean StonemanSauber-Judd1 Lap0
1211James James DaviesToyota1 Lap0
1394Pascal WehrleinCalinetic-Judd1 Lap0
147Charles LeclercFAST-Mercedes1 Lap0
1556Einar ÁrmannssonCalinetic-Judd2 Laps0
1622Kazuki NakajimaToyota2 Laps0
173Marvin KirchhöferWilliams-Ferrari2 Laps0
1810Pierre GaslyDawson-Judd2 Laps0
1923Alexander AlbonDawson-Judd2 Laps0
2055Santiago UrrutiaWilliams-Ferrari2 Laps*0
2198Bradley DagnallTheodore-Ferrari3 Laps0
2219Jordan DaviesTheodore-Ferrari3 Laps0
DNF96Diego Álvarez TorrentePrecision-MercedesMotor0
DNF14Marcel Agyemang-BaduFAST-MercedesCollision0

Fastest Lap:

Diego Álvarez Torrente – 49.382

Infinite Improbability Drive Of The Race:

Sebastian Vettel – he fought the superior Precisions with his own talent alone.

Reject Of The Race:

Santiago Urrutia – ruins both Williams’ and FAST’s afternoon with an overeager move through the first corners.