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Reigning world champion Sebastian Vettel started his 2011 Formula One defense in emphatic style on Sunday, leading the season-opening Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne from start to finish.
McLaren’s 2008 world champion Lewis Hamilton did well to finish second after damaging his car on the first corner while Lotus Renault’s Russian driver Vitaly Petrov achieved his first podium finish.
The 23-year-old German notched up his 11th win in his 63rd Formula 1 race.
Fernando Alonso finished fourth for Ferrari, with Mark Webber in his Red Bull in fifth place. Jenson Button came sixth in his McLaren. CNN International
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Vettel insisted the race had not been as straightforward as it appeared.
“It was not easy, the start was crucial,” he said.
“I had a good getaway, but didn’t know if it was enough until I saw Lewis and Mark [Webber] battling for position.
“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.” BBC Sport
Sauber’s Sergio Perez was an impressive seventh in his first grand prix, remarkably only having to pit once. He finished ahead of teammate Kamui Kobayashi, while Massa was ninth and Toro Rosso’s Sebastian Buemi took the last point in 10th.
It was a bad day for Mercedes, with both Michael Schumacher and Nico Rosberg not finishing.
“I had a good start, made up quite a few positions, then had a good run into turn three, but as I turned in, someone (Jaime Alguersuari) knocked on to my right rear,” Schumacher said. “The consequence was I had a puncture which destroyed the right tire, and driving back to the pits basically destroyed the right floor. In the end the team decided for safety it wasn’t worth staying out.”
“We can take this and be very proud of ourselves,” Hamilton said. “A week or two ago we were not expecting to be anywhere near the top five.”
Petrov’s performance was impressive and would give a boost to a Renault team who lost No.1 driver Robert Kubica to serious injury after a rally crash during the offseason.
“The team did everything perfectly and we should be massively proud,” Petrov said. The Associated Press
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