McLaren MP4-25
Encyclopedia
The McLaren MP4-25 was a Formula One
motor racing car designed and raced by McLaren
in the season. The car, which was driven by World Champion Jenson Button
and World Champion Lewis Hamilton
, was officially unveiled at title sponsor Vodafone
's headquarters in Newbury, Berkshire
, United Kingdom
on January 29, 2010.
team complained to the FIA
about the legality of the MP4-25's rear wing. The design uses a small "snorkel" air scoop mounted in front of the driver that channels air through a duct in the cockpit and towards the rear of the car. Changes in the pressure in the duct, in combination with small slots on the rear wing, causes the wing to enter a stalled
state at high speed, reducing aerodynamic drag
and allowing the car as much as an extra 6 mph (9.7 km/h) on straights. The effect is controlled by the driver covering up a small hole in the cockpit with his left leg - this is not considered by the FIA to be a moveable aerodynamic device, which would be banned under the technical regulations. Known internally as the RW80 it is widely called the "F-Duct" system either due to the shape of the air intake or the fact that it is beside the F of the Vodafone
logo. Another term for the system is switchable rear wing (SRW). The car was inspected on the Thursday prior to the Bahrain Grand Prix
and cleared to take part in the race.
with both Jenson Button and Lewis Hamilton reaching the third stage of qualifying at the 2010 Bahrain Grand Prix
. Hamilton got the better of the car in Q3 placing the car fourth on the grid with Button managing eighth. During the race the car proved lacking in downforce causing it to struggle to keep up with the pace of the Ferraris and Sebastian Vettel
who opened up an impressive lead. During an uneventful race Hamilton finished third thanks to a problem with Vettel's car, Button also picked up a place during the race and finished seventh.
In Australia
, Button was the first to come in for slick tyres on a damp but drying track, which lifted him to second place after the other drivers had pitted. He inherited the lead when Sebastian Vettel
retired with brake problems and maintained the position to the end of the race without changing his tyres again. Hamilton finished sixth after a controversial weekend both on and off the track.
In Malaysia
, McLaren seemed to improve their overall pace by three-tenths of a second due to performance updates to the car, with Hamilton recording the fastest lap time in both free practice sessions on Friday. Button also finished in the top ten in all three practice sessions. The first qualifying session was wet and the team relied on the weather radar rather than using common sense to misjudge the weather conditions, failing to send their cars out at the optimum track conditions. Hamilton failed to make it out of the first part of qualifying, setting the 20th best time. Button just made it out of that session, but due to him aquaplaning into the gravel trap, he started seventeenth on the grid taking no further part in the qualifying session. Both drivers finished in the points, with Hamilton finishing sixth and Button eighth.
In China
they scored a dominant 1-2 finish. In Spain
, Hamilton had been running towards the front for the majority of the race, but crashed out on the penultimate lap when a front wheel rim cracked and deflated a front tyre. Meanwhile after qualifying fifth, Button experienced delays during his first pitstop, and got jumped by Michael Schumacher for which he was never able to recover, and finished in fifth place. In Monaco
, the car lacked mechanical grip, with Hamilton and Button qualifying fifth and eighth respectively. Button retired on lap 3 with an overheating engine after a cooling duct was mistakenly left in the radiator, while Hamilton never managed to threaten the pace of the leaders and finished fifth.
In Turkey
, Hamilton and Button qualified second and fourth respectively amongst the two Red Bulls of polesitter Mark Webber
and Sebastian Vettel. In the race, the car's straightline speed was evident when Hamilton challenged Webber for first place during the first stint, but was never able to pass. After being delayed during his pitstop when a rear wheel jammed, he dropped behind Vettel, and was keeping up with the pace with Button trailing behind him, whom after passing Michael Schumacher
on the first lap was quietly matching the pace of the leaders. However on lap 41, the two Red Bulls collided with Vettel retiring and Webber needing to pit for a new front wing. Despite a brief battle for the lead with Button as the race drew slowly to a close, Hamilton was never challenged, and led Button home for McLaren's second one-two finish of the season.
In Canada
, Hamilton claimed the first non-Red Bull pole of the season, and went on to claim the drivers' championship lead as led home Button once again for a 1-2, giving the team the constructors' championship lead. In Valencia
, Hamilton qualified third behind the Red Bulls, with Button in seventh. In the race, Hamilton passed the safety car illegally – deployed after Webber ran into the back and over Heikki Kovalainen's Lotus – and was forced to serve a drive-through penalty. Despite this, Hamilton finished second behind Vettel with Button completing the podium.
McLaren hoped to challenge Red Bull at Silverstone
, introducing new aerodynamic updates for the car. Unfortunately for the team, neither driver could find a good balance and setup for the new updates and reverted to the original package. Hamilton qualified fourth while Button failed to make the top ten, ending up 14th. Hamilton took another second place in the race while Button finished fourth, losing out on the final podium spot to Nico Rosberg
. Hockenheim
proved difficult for McLaren with the team preparing a damage limitation tactics until further major updates were introduced. Hamilton retained his championship lead with fourth, with Button just behind to keep McLaren top of the constructors' championship.
In Hungary
, the circuit's nature hindered McLaren more with Button missing the top ten again and Hamilton nearly two seconds off pole position. Hamilton retired during the race with a gearbox issue, and Button finished a lap down in eighth place. The results of the weekend meant that both championship leads were lost, Hamilton falling four points behind Webber and the team falling eight points behind Red Bull.
The Belgian Grand Prix
looked set to be more successful, with Hamilton second on the grid and Button fifth. As the rain came down, they quickly moved into first and second. However, Sebastian Vettel was very close to Button in second and on lap 16, as the German tried to overtake on the outside of the Bus Stop chicane, he lost control and hit Button's McLaren, eliminating the Briton from the race. Hamilton stayed in the lead until the very end, however, despite a scare as the rain returned in the closing laps.
Button qualified second for the Italian Grand Prix
, with Hamilton in 5th, a reversal of their positions from Spa. Button took the lead from Alonso at turn one, as he needed to on his contrary strategy. Hamilton, meanwhile, attempted to pull the same trick on Alonso's teammate Massa at the second chicane, but instead hit the Brazilian, damaging his front suspension and eliminating him from the race. Button stayed ahead until the pit stops, but Alonso emerged comfortably ahead to take victory. Button was still close at the end, just under 3 seconds behind.
Hamilton and Button were third and fourth on the grid in Singapore
, with just 5 tenths separating the top 5. The two McLaren men stayed in position during a safety car, deployed to clear the wreckage of Vitantonio Liuzzi
's Force India, right up to the pit stops. They emerged behind Mark Webber, who had jumped them in the stops, just in time for a second safety car as Kamui Kobayashi
and Bruno Senna
collided. This closed up the field, and on the restart, Webber was held up by Lucas di Grassi
in the Virgin
, who he was lapping, which allowed Hamilton to close right up. The Brit attempted a move into turn 7, but as he moved across in front of the Australian, the two made contact and Lewis's rear suspension was terminally damaged. For the second time in two races, he had retired due to unnecessary contact with another car. As Webber carried on unscathed, this allowed Button through into fourth, and that was how it stayed until the end of the race.
Qualifying for the Japanese Grand Prix
was held on the morning of the race, after torrential rain at Suzuka
on the Saturday. Hamilton qualified third, but eventually started the race in 8th after a 5 place grid penalty for changing his gearbox. This meant that Button, originally sixth, started fifth. Hamilton had a brilliant start, moving up 6th just behind his team mate before the safety car was deployed due to the first corner incident involving Nico Hülkenberg, Felipe Massa
, Vitaly Petrov
and Vitantonio Liuzzi. The retirement of Robert Kubica
two laps later promoted them to 4th and 5th. Button led during the pit stops, but emerged in fifth, behind Hamilton. Hamilton was in difficulty with his gearbox, however, and Button quickly caught and re-passed him. This was how they finished, meaning that they were now trailing in 4th and 5th in the championship battle.
Hamilton was fourth on the grid in Korea
, with Button down in 7th. The race began in torrential conditions, and was red flagged after three laps under the safety car. A while later, the race began again, still under the safety car, and it remained out until lap 18. On the first racing lap, Hamilton was passed by Nico Rosberg
, and shortly afterwards, Webber spun out of the race, collecting Rosberg as he spun back across the track. This meant that Hamilton was in 3rd, and Button 5th. Button faired very badly in the pit stops, and when things leveled out, he was in 15th, with Hamilton still 3rd. 10 laps from the end, Sebastian Vettel, who was leading the race, suffered an engine failure, gifting Alonso the lead and Hamilton second place, and that was how they finished. The retirements of Petrov, Vettel and Adrian Sutil
meant that Button climbed to 12th by the end. This meant that Hamilton had re-passed Vettel for 3rd in the championship battle, and McLaren were clinging on to second from the ever improving Ferrari.
Brazil
was up next, and in tricky conditions in qualifying, Button was eliminated in Q2 by local hero and fellow top 10 regular Felipe Massa. He started the race from 11th. Meanwhile, Hamilton was upholding the challenge in a decisive weekend for the Woking squad, taking fourth on the grid. Hamilton dropped to 5th at the start, passed by a fast starting Fernando Alonso. Button, meanwhile, had climbed to 9th, but was soon re-passed by a rapidly improving Michael Schumacher
. Button, in a reversal of his Korean luck, did very well from his early pit stop, climbing to seventh, well ahead of Schumacher. Hamilton, meanwhile, had eventually forced his way past the surprise pole sitter Hulkenberg on lap 14. Hamilton was stuck behind the long running Kamui Kobayashi
after his stop, but both he and Button, who was at this point close behind, found a way through. The late pit stop of Nico Rosberg promoted them to 4th and 5th, which were by now their customary positions, and that was how they finished. The championship was now out of Button's reach going to the final round in Abu Dhabi, and it was an outside shot for Hamilton, who was 24 points off Fernando Alonso's lead.
The season concluded with the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix
. Hamilton took 2nd in a critical race for him, with Button in 4th. Button jumped Alonso at the start, which was good for Hamilton, who needed to win with Alonso out of the points and Vettel and Webber both well down. Button led during the pit stops, but when everything was settled down, they were still in the same order, 2nd and 3rd behind Vettel, who went on to take the race and the title. Hamilton was eventually fourth, 16 points off Vettel, while Button was 5th, a further 26 behind. McLaren held on to second in the Constructors', 44 behind Red Bull and 58 ahead of Ferrari in 3rd.
Driver failed to finish the race, but were classified as they had completed >90% of the race distance.
Formula One
Formula One, also known as Formula 1 or F1 and referred to officially as the FIA Formula One World Championship, is the highest class of single seater auto racing sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile . The "formula" designation in the name refers to a set of rules with which...
motor racing car designed and raced by McLaren
McLaren
McLaren Racing Limited, trading as Vodafone McLaren Mercedes, is a British Formula One team based in Woking, Surrey, United Kingdom. McLaren is best known as a Formula One constructor but has also competed and won in the Indianapolis 500 and Canadian-American Challenge Cup...
in the season. The car, which was driven by World Champion Jenson Button
Jenson Button
Jenson Alexander Lyons Button MBE is a British Formula One driver currently signed to McLaren. He was the 2009 World Drivers' Champion.Button began karting at the age of eight and achieved early success, before progressing to car racing in the British Formula Ford Championship and the British...
and World Champion Lewis Hamilton
Lewis Hamilton
Lewis Carl Davidson Hamilton, MBE is a British Formula One racing driver from England, currently racing for the McLaren team. He was the Formula One World Champion.Hamilton was born in Stevenage, Hertfordshire...
, was officially unveiled at title sponsor Vodafone
Vodafone
Vodafone Group Plc is a global telecommunications company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the world's largest mobile telecommunications company measured by revenues and the world's second-largest measured by subscribers , with around 341 million proportionate subscribers as of...
's headquarters in Newbury, Berkshire
Newbury, Berkshire
Newbury is a civil parish and the principal town in the west of the county of Berkshire in England. It is situated on the River Kennet and the Kennet and Avon Canal, and has a town centre containing many 17th century buildings. Newbury is best known for its racecourse and the adjoining former USAF...
, United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
on January 29, 2010.
F-duct
The Red Bull RacingRed Bull Racing
Red Bull Racing is a Formula One racing team based in Milton Keynes, England which currently holds an Austrian licence. It is, along with Scuderia Toro Rosso, one of two teams owned by beverage company Red Bull GmbH. The team have won two Constructors' Championship titles, in and , becoming the...
team complained to the FIA
Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile
The Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile is a non-profit association established as the Association Internationale des Automobile Clubs Reconnus on 20 June 1904 to represent the interests of motoring organisations and motor car users...
about the legality of the MP4-25's rear wing. The design uses a small "snorkel" air scoop mounted in front of the driver that channels air through a duct in the cockpit and towards the rear of the car. Changes in the pressure in the duct, in combination with small slots on the rear wing, causes the wing to enter a stalled
Stall (flight)
In fluid dynamics, a stall is a reduction in the lift coefficient generated by a foil as angle of attack increases. This occurs when the critical angle of attack of the foil is exceeded...
state at high speed, reducing aerodynamic drag
Drag (physics)
In fluid dynamics, drag refers to forces which act on a solid object in the direction of the relative fluid flow velocity...
and allowing the car as much as an extra 6 mph (9.7 km/h) on straights. The effect is controlled by the driver covering up a small hole in the cockpit with his left leg - this is not considered by the FIA to be a moveable aerodynamic device, which would be banned under the technical regulations. Known internally as the RW80 it is widely called the "F-Duct" system either due to the shape of the air intake or the fact that it is beside the F of the Vodafone
Vodafone
Vodafone Group Plc is a global telecommunications company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the world's largest mobile telecommunications company measured by revenues and the world's second-largest measured by subscribers , with around 341 million proportionate subscribers as of...
logo. Another term for the system is switchable rear wing (SRW). The car was inspected on the Thursday prior to the Bahrain Grand Prix
2010 Bahrain Grand Prix
The 2010 Bahrain Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held on 14 March 2010, at the Bahrain International Circuit, Sakhir, Bahrain. It was the seventh Bahrain Grand Prix and the opening race of the 2010 Formula One season. It was the first time since 2006 that Bahrain had hosted the opening...
and cleared to take part in the race.
Racing history
The MP4-25 proved to be a stark improvement over the McLaren MP4-24McLaren MP4-24
The McLaren MP4-24 was McLaren-Mercedes' Formula One car for the 2009 Formula One season. It was revealed at McLaren's headquarters in Woking, United Kingdom on January 16, 2009....
with both Jenson Button and Lewis Hamilton reaching the third stage of qualifying at the 2010 Bahrain Grand Prix
2010 Bahrain Grand Prix
The 2010 Bahrain Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held on 14 March 2010, at the Bahrain International Circuit, Sakhir, Bahrain. It was the seventh Bahrain Grand Prix and the opening race of the 2010 Formula One season. It was the first time since 2006 that Bahrain had hosted the opening...
. Hamilton got the better of the car in Q3 placing the car fourth on the grid with Button managing eighth. During the race the car proved lacking in downforce causing it to struggle to keep up with the pace of the Ferraris and Sebastian Vettel
Sebastian Vettel
Sebastian Vettel is a German Formula One racing driver, currently driving for Red Bull Racing. He is the current World Champion, having won the championship in and ....
who opened up an impressive lead. During an uneventful race Hamilton finished third thanks to a problem with Vettel's car, Button also picked up a place during the race and finished seventh.
In Australia
2010 Australian Grand Prix
The 2010 Australian Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held on 28 March 2010 at the Melbourne Grand Prix Circuit, Melbourne, Australia. It was the second race of the 2010 Formula One season. The race was won by McLaren driver Jenson Button, the first back-to-back Australian Grand Prix winner...
, Button was the first to come in for slick tyres on a damp but drying track, which lifted him to second place after the other drivers had pitted. He inherited the lead when Sebastian Vettel
Sebastian Vettel
Sebastian Vettel is a German Formula One racing driver, currently driving for Red Bull Racing. He is the current World Champion, having won the championship in and ....
retired with brake problems and maintained the position to the end of the race without changing his tyres again. Hamilton finished sixth after a controversial weekend both on and off the track.
In Malaysia
2010 Malaysian Grand Prix
The 2010 Malaysian Grand Prix was the third round in the 2010 Formula One season. It was held in Sepang, Malaysia on April 4, 2010....
, McLaren seemed to improve their overall pace by three-tenths of a second due to performance updates to the car, with Hamilton recording the fastest lap time in both free practice sessions on Friday. Button also finished in the top ten in all three practice sessions. The first qualifying session was wet and the team relied on the weather radar rather than using common sense to misjudge the weather conditions, failing to send their cars out at the optimum track conditions. Hamilton failed to make it out of the first part of qualifying, setting the 20th best time. Button just made it out of that session, but due to him aquaplaning into the gravel trap, he started seventeenth on the grid taking no further part in the qualifying session. Both drivers finished in the points, with Hamilton finishing sixth and Button eighth.
In China
2010 Chinese Grand Prix
The 2010 Chinese Grand Prix was the fourth round in the 2010 Formula One season. It was held in Shanghai, China on April 18, 2010.The race was won by Jenson Button ahead of team-mate Lewis Hamilton....
they scored a dominant 1-2 finish. In Spain
2010 Spanish Grand Prix
The 2010 Spanish Grand Prix was the fifth round of the 2010 Formula One season. It was held on May 9, 2010 at the Circuit de Catalunya...
, Hamilton had been running towards the front for the majority of the race, but crashed out on the penultimate lap when a front wheel rim cracked and deflated a front tyre. Meanwhile after qualifying fifth, Button experienced delays during his first pitstop, and got jumped by Michael Schumacher for which he was never able to recover, and finished in fifth place. In Monaco
2010 Monaco Grand Prix
The 2010 Monaco Grand Prix was the sixth round of the 2010 Formula One season. It was held in the streets of Monaco on 16 May 2010, and was won by Red Bull Racing's Mark Webber.-Background:...
, the car lacked mechanical grip, with Hamilton and Button qualifying fifth and eighth respectively. Button retired on lap 3 with an overheating engine after a cooling duct was mistakenly left in the radiator, while Hamilton never managed to threaten the pace of the leaders and finished fifth.
In Turkey
2010 Turkish Grand Prix
The 2010 Turkish Grand Prix was the seventh round in the 2010 Formula One season. It was held in Istanbul on 30 May 2010. The race was most notable for the collision between both Red Bull Racing drivers Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber, which resulted in Vettel's retirement and Webber's loss of...
, Hamilton and Button qualified second and fourth respectively amongst the two Red Bulls of polesitter Mark Webber
Mark Webber
Mark Alan Webber is an Australian Formula One driver.After some racing success in Australia, Webber moved to the United Kingdom in 1995 to further his motorsport career...
and Sebastian Vettel. In the race, the car's straightline speed was evident when Hamilton challenged Webber for first place during the first stint, but was never able to pass. After being delayed during his pitstop when a rear wheel jammed, he dropped behind Vettel, and was keeping up with the pace with Button trailing behind him, whom after passing Michael Schumacher
Michael Schumacher
Michael Schumacher is a German Formula One racing driver for the Mercedes GP team. Famous for his eleven-year spell with Ferrari, Schumacher is a seven-time World Champion and is widely regarded as the greatest F1 driver of all time...
on the first lap was quietly matching the pace of the leaders. However on lap 41, the two Red Bulls collided with Vettel retiring and Webber needing to pit for a new front wing. Despite a brief battle for the lead with Button as the race drew slowly to a close, Hamilton was never challenged, and led Button home for McLaren's second one-two finish of the season.
In Canada
2010 Canadian Grand Prix
The 2010 Canadian Grand Prix was the eighth round of the 2010 Formula One season. It was held in Montreal, Canada at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve on June 13, 2010. This was the first Grand Prix to be held on the North American continent since the 2008 Canadian Grand Prix...
, Hamilton claimed the first non-Red Bull pole of the season, and went on to claim the drivers' championship lead as led home Button once again for a 1-2, giving the team the constructors' championship lead. In Valencia
2010 European Grand Prix
The 2010 European Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held on the June 27, 2010 at the Valencia Street Circuit in Valencia, Spain. The race, contested over 57 laps, was the ninth round of the 2010 Formula One season. It was won by Sebastian Vettel of Red Bull Racing, who led every lap of the...
, Hamilton qualified third behind the Red Bulls, with Button in seventh. In the race, Hamilton passed the safety car illegally – deployed after Webber ran into the back and over Heikki Kovalainen's Lotus – and was forced to serve a drive-through penalty. Despite this, Hamilton finished second behind Vettel with Button completing the podium.
McLaren hoped to challenge Red Bull at Silverstone
2010 British Grand Prix
The 2010 British Grand Prix was the tenth race of the 2010 Formula One season. On 7 December 2009, it was confirmed that the race would take place at Silverstone for the next seventeen years after the failure of Donington Park to raise the necessary funds to hold the race...
, introducing new aerodynamic updates for the car. Unfortunately for the team, neither driver could find a good balance and setup for the new updates and reverted to the original package. Hamilton qualified fourth while Button failed to make the top ten, ending up 14th. Hamilton took another second place in the race while Button finished fourth, losing out on the final podium spot to Nico Rosberg
Nico Rosberg
Nico Erik Rosberg is a racing driver for the Mercedes GP Formula One team. He races under the German flag in Formula One, although he competed for Finland earlier in his career...
. Hockenheim
2010 German Grand Prix
The 2010 German Grand Prix was the eleventh round of the 2010 Formula One season. It was held in Hockenheim, Germany on 25 July 2010. The race was won by Ferrari driver Fernando Alonso after Felipe Massa controversially slowed to let Alonso through into the lead on lap 49...
proved difficult for McLaren with the team preparing a damage limitation tactics until further major updates were introduced. Hamilton retained his championship lead with fourth, with Button just behind to keep McLaren top of the constructors' championship.
In Hungary
2010 Hungarian Grand Prix
The 2010 Hungarian Grand Prix was the twelfth round of the 2010 Formula One season. It was held in Hungaroring, Hungary on August 1, 2010...
, the circuit's nature hindered McLaren more with Button missing the top ten again and Hamilton nearly two seconds off pole position. Hamilton retired during the race with a gearbox issue, and Button finished a lap down in eighth place. The results of the weekend meant that both championship leads were lost, Hamilton falling four points behind Webber and the team falling eight points behind Red Bull.
The Belgian Grand Prix
2010 Belgian Grand Prix
The 2010 Belgian Grand Prix was the 66th Belgian Grand Prix and the thirteenth round of the 2010 Formula One season. It was held at Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps in Spa, Belgium on August 29, 2010. Williams driver Rubens Barrichello celebrated his 300th Grand Prix...
looked set to be more successful, with Hamilton second on the grid and Button fifth. As the rain came down, they quickly moved into first and second. However, Sebastian Vettel was very close to Button in second and on lap 16, as the German tried to overtake on the outside of the Bus Stop chicane, he lost control and hit Button's McLaren, eliminating the Briton from the race. Hamilton stayed in the lead until the very end, however, despite a scare as the rain returned in the closing laps.
Button qualified second for the Italian Grand Prix
2010 Italian Grand Prix
The 2010 Italian Grand Prix was the fourteenth round of the 2010 Formula One season. It was held in Autodromo Nazionale Monza, Monza, Italy on September 12, 2010...
, with Hamilton in 5th, a reversal of their positions from Spa. Button took the lead from Alonso at turn one, as he needed to on his contrary strategy. Hamilton, meanwhile, attempted to pull the same trick on Alonso's teammate Massa at the second chicane, but instead hit the Brazilian, damaging his front suspension and eliminating him from the race. Button stayed ahead until the pit stops, but Alonso emerged comfortably ahead to take victory. Button was still close at the end, just under 3 seconds behind.
Hamilton and Button were third and fourth on the grid in Singapore
2010 Singapore Grand Prix
The 2010 Singapore Grand Prix, officially the 2010 Formula 1 SingTel Singapore Grand Prix, was the fifteenth round of the 2010 Formula One season, the third Singapore Grand Prix to be held as part of the Formula One World Championship and the eleventh overall. It was held at the Marina Bay Street...
, with just 5 tenths separating the top 5. The two McLaren men stayed in position during a safety car, deployed to clear the wreckage of Vitantonio Liuzzi
Vitantonio Liuzzi
Vitantonio "Tonio" Liuzzi is an Italian race driver who is currently racing in Formula One for the HRT F1 Team. He has homes in Lugano, Switzerland and Pescara, Italy.-Karting:...
's Force India, right up to the pit stops. They emerged behind Mark Webber, who had jumped them in the stops, just in time for a second safety car as Kamui Kobayashi
Kamui Kobayashi
is a Japanese racing driver. He has competed in the GP2 Series, won the GP2 Asia Series, and made his Formula One debut with Toyota in the final two races of when he replaced Timo Glock after the German was injured in a crash during qualifying for the...
and Bruno Senna
Bruno Senna
Bruno Senna Lalli is a Brazilian Formula One racing driver and the nephew of the late three-time Formula One world champion Ayrton Senna. His mother is Ayrton's older sister, Viviane. His father, Flávio Lalli, died in a motorcycle crash in 1996. He wears a slightly modified version of his uncle's...
collided. This closed up the field, and on the restart, Webber was held up by Lucas di Grassi
Lucas di Grassi
Lucas Tucci di Grassi is a Brazilian racing driver who drove for Virgin Racing in the 2010 Formula One season...
in the Virgin
Virgin Racing
Marussia Virgin Racing, the trading name of Virgin Racing Limited, is a Russian owned Formula One racing team based in the United Kingdom and racing on a Russian licence, which made its debut in the 2010 Formula One season. It was granted entry as Manor Grand Prix on 12 June 2009, as one of four...
, who he was lapping, which allowed Hamilton to close right up. The Brit attempted a move into turn 7, but as he moved across in front of the Australian, the two made contact and Lewis's rear suspension was terminally damaged. For the second time in two races, he had retired due to unnecessary contact with another car. As Webber carried on unscathed, this allowed Button through into fourth, and that was how it stayed until the end of the race.
Qualifying for the Japanese Grand Prix
2010 Japanese Grand Prix
The 2010 Japanese Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held on 10 October 2010 at the Suzuka Circuit, in Suzuka, Mie, Japan. It was held as the sixteenth round of the 2010 Formula One season. Contested over 53 laps, the race was won by Red Bull driver Sebastian Vettel after starting from...
was held on the morning of the race, after torrential rain at Suzuka
Suzuka Circuit
, Suzuka Circuit for short, is a motorsport race track located in Ino, Suzuka City, Mie Prefecture, Japan and operated by Mobilityland Corporation, the subsidiary of Honda Motor Co., Ltd..-Introduction:...
on the Saturday. Hamilton qualified third, but eventually started the race in 8th after a 5 place grid penalty for changing his gearbox. This meant that Button, originally sixth, started fifth. Hamilton had a brilliant start, moving up 6th just behind his team mate before the safety car was deployed due to the first corner incident involving Nico Hülkenberg, Felipe Massa
Felipe Massa
Felipe Massa is a Brazilian Formula One racing driver. He finished second in the Drivers' World Championship, and is under contract to race for Scuderia Ferrari until the end of the season.-Early years:...
, Vitaly Petrov
Vitaly Petrov
Vitaly Alexandrovich Petrov is a Russian Formula One racing driver, currently driving for the Lotus Renault GP team. He is known as "Vyborg Rocket" in Russia. He is, to date, the only Russian to have competed in the Formula One World Championship....
and Vitantonio Liuzzi. The retirement of Robert Kubica
Robert Kubica
Robert Józef Kubica is the first Polish racing driver to compete in Formula One. Between 2006 and 2009 he drove for the BMW Sauber F1 team, promoted from test driver to race driver during 2006...
two laps later promoted them to 4th and 5th. Button led during the pit stops, but emerged in fifth, behind Hamilton. Hamilton was in difficulty with his gearbox, however, and Button quickly caught and re-passed him. This was how they finished, meaning that they were now trailing in 4th and 5th in the championship battle.
Hamilton was fourth on the grid in Korea
2010 Korean Grand Prix
The 2010 Korean Grand Prix was the seventeenth round of the 2010 Formula One season. It took place at the Korean International Circuit in Yeongam, South Jeolla, South Korea on 24 October 2010...
, with Button down in 7th. The race began in torrential conditions, and was red flagged after three laps under the safety car. A while later, the race began again, still under the safety car, and it remained out until lap 18. On the first racing lap, Hamilton was passed by Nico Rosberg
Nico Rosberg
Nico Erik Rosberg is a racing driver for the Mercedes GP Formula One team. He races under the German flag in Formula One, although he competed for Finland earlier in his career...
, and shortly afterwards, Webber spun out of the race, collecting Rosberg as he spun back across the track. This meant that Hamilton was in 3rd, and Button 5th. Button faired very badly in the pit stops, and when things leveled out, he was in 15th, with Hamilton still 3rd. 10 laps from the end, Sebastian Vettel, who was leading the race, suffered an engine failure, gifting Alonso the lead and Hamilton second place, and that was how they finished. The retirements of Petrov, Vettel and Adrian Sutil
Adrian Sutil
-Biography:Sutil is the son of professional musicians Monika, a German, and Jorge, a Uruguayan. He has two brothers named Daniel and Raphael. He weighs 165 pounds and is 6 feet tall. A talented pianist, Sutil started karting at 14 before moving up to Swiss Formula Ford 1800 in 2002...
meant that Button climbed to 12th by the end. This meant that Hamilton had re-passed Vettel for 3rd in the championship battle, and McLaren were clinging on to second from the ever improving Ferrari.
Brazil
2010 Brazilian Grand Prix
The 2010 Brazilian Grand Prix was the eighteenth round of the 2010 Formula One season...
was up next, and in tricky conditions in qualifying, Button was eliminated in Q2 by local hero and fellow top 10 regular Felipe Massa. He started the race from 11th. Meanwhile, Hamilton was upholding the challenge in a decisive weekend for the Woking squad, taking fourth on the grid. Hamilton dropped to 5th at the start, passed by a fast starting Fernando Alonso. Button, meanwhile, had climbed to 9th, but was soon re-passed by a rapidly improving Michael Schumacher
Michael Schumacher
Michael Schumacher is a German Formula One racing driver for the Mercedes GP team. Famous for his eleven-year spell with Ferrari, Schumacher is a seven-time World Champion and is widely regarded as the greatest F1 driver of all time...
. Button, in a reversal of his Korean luck, did very well from his early pit stop, climbing to seventh, well ahead of Schumacher. Hamilton, meanwhile, had eventually forced his way past the surprise pole sitter Hulkenberg on lap 14. Hamilton was stuck behind the long running Kamui Kobayashi
Kamui Kobayashi
is a Japanese racing driver. He has competed in the GP2 Series, won the GP2 Asia Series, and made his Formula One debut with Toyota in the final two races of when he replaced Timo Glock after the German was injured in a crash during qualifying for the...
after his stop, but both he and Button, who was at this point close behind, found a way through. The late pit stop of Nico Rosberg promoted them to 4th and 5th, which were by now their customary positions, and that was how they finished. The championship was now out of Button's reach going to the final round in Abu Dhabi, and it was an outside shot for Hamilton, who was 24 points off Fernando Alonso's lead.
The season concluded with the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix
2010 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix
The 2010 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held on 14 November 2010 at the Yas Marina Circuit on Yas Island, an island on the outskirts of Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates. It was the 19th and last round of the 2010 Formula One season...
. Hamilton took 2nd in a critical race for him, with Button in 4th. Button jumped Alonso at the start, which was good for Hamilton, who needed to win with Alonso out of the points and Vettel and Webber both well down. Button led during the pit stops, but when everything was settled down, they were still in the same order, 2nd and 3rd behind Vettel, who went on to take the race and the title. Hamilton was eventually fourth, 16 points off Vettel, while Button was 5th, a further 26 behind. McLaren held on to second in the Constructors', 44 behind Red Bull and 58 ahead of Ferrari in 3rd.
Complete Formula One results
(results in bold indicate pole position; results in italics indicate fastest lap)| Year | Entrant | Engine | Tyres | Drivers | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | Points | WCC |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vodafone Vodafone Vodafone Group Plc is a global telecommunications company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the world's largest mobile telecommunications company measured by revenues and the world's second-largest measured by subscribers , with around 341 million proportionate subscribers as of... McLaren McLaren McLaren Racing Limited, trading as Vodafone McLaren Mercedes, is a British Formula One team based in Woking, Surrey, United Kingdom. McLaren is best known as a Formula One constructor but has also competed and won in the Indianapolis 500 and Canadian-American Challenge Cup... Mercedes |
Mercedes Mercedes-Benz High Performance Engines Mercedes-Benz HighPerformanceEngines Ltd. is a British Formula One engine manufacturer, owned by Mercedes-Benz. Since 1995, their engines have powered McLaren's Formula One cars. For the 2009 season, Mercedes-Benz also supplied the Brawn GP and Force India teams with engines... FO 108X V8 V8 engine A V8 engine is a V engine with eight cylinders mounted on the crankcase in two banks of four cylinders, in most cases set at a right angle to each other but sometimes at a narrower angle, with all eight pistons driving a common crankshaft.... |
BHR 2010 Bahrain Grand Prix The 2010 Bahrain Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held on 14 March 2010, at the Bahrain International Circuit, Sakhir, Bahrain. It was the seventh Bahrain Grand Prix and the opening race of the 2010 Formula One season. It was the first time since 2006 that Bahrain had hosted the opening... |
AUS 2010 Australian Grand Prix The 2010 Australian Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held on 28 March 2010 at the Melbourne Grand Prix Circuit, Melbourne, Australia. It was the second race of the 2010 Formula One season. The race was won by McLaren driver Jenson Button, the first back-to-back Australian Grand Prix winner... |
MAL 2010 Malaysian Grand Prix The 2010 Malaysian Grand Prix was the third round in the 2010 Formula One season. It was held in Sepang, Malaysia on April 4, 2010.... |
CHN 2010 Chinese Grand Prix The 2010 Chinese Grand Prix was the fourth round in the 2010 Formula One season. It was held in Shanghai, China on April 18, 2010.The race was won by Jenson Button ahead of team-mate Lewis Hamilton.... |
ESP 2010 Spanish Grand Prix The 2010 Spanish Grand Prix was the fifth round of the 2010 Formula One season. It was held on May 9, 2010 at the Circuit de Catalunya... |
MON 2010 Monaco Grand Prix The 2010 Monaco Grand Prix was the sixth round of the 2010 Formula One season. It was held in the streets of Monaco on 16 May 2010, and was won by Red Bull Racing's Mark Webber.-Background:... |
TUR 2010 Turkish Grand Prix The 2010 Turkish Grand Prix was the seventh round in the 2010 Formula One season. It was held in Istanbul on 30 May 2010. The race was most notable for the collision between both Red Bull Racing drivers Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber, which resulted in Vettel's retirement and Webber's loss of... |
CAN 2010 Canadian Grand Prix The 2010 Canadian Grand Prix was the eighth round of the 2010 Formula One season. It was held in Montreal, Canada at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve on June 13, 2010. This was the first Grand Prix to be held on the North American continent since the 2008 Canadian Grand Prix... |
EUR 2010 European Grand Prix The 2010 European Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held on the June 27, 2010 at the Valencia Street Circuit in Valencia, Spain. The race, contested over 57 laps, was the ninth round of the 2010 Formula One season. It was won by Sebastian Vettel of Red Bull Racing, who led every lap of the... |
GBR 2010 British Grand Prix The 2010 British Grand Prix was the tenth race of the 2010 Formula One season. On 7 December 2009, it was confirmed that the race would take place at Silverstone for the next seventeen years after the failure of Donington Park to raise the necessary funds to hold the race... |
GER 2010 German Grand Prix The 2010 German Grand Prix was the eleventh round of the 2010 Formula One season. It was held in Hockenheim, Germany on 25 July 2010. The race was won by Ferrari driver Fernando Alonso after Felipe Massa controversially slowed to let Alonso through into the lead on lap 49... |
HUN 2010 Hungarian Grand Prix The 2010 Hungarian Grand Prix was the twelfth round of the 2010 Formula One season. It was held in Hungaroring, Hungary on August 1, 2010... |
BEL 2010 Belgian Grand Prix The 2010 Belgian Grand Prix was the 66th Belgian Grand Prix and the thirteenth round of the 2010 Formula One season. It was held at Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps in Spa, Belgium on August 29, 2010. Williams driver Rubens Barrichello celebrated his 300th Grand Prix... |
ITA 2010 Italian Grand Prix The 2010 Italian Grand Prix was the fourteenth round of the 2010 Formula One season. It was held in Autodromo Nazionale Monza, Monza, Italy on September 12, 2010... |
SIN 2010 Singapore Grand Prix The 2010 Singapore Grand Prix, officially the 2010 Formula 1 SingTel Singapore Grand Prix, was the fifteenth round of the 2010 Formula One season, the third Singapore Grand Prix to be held as part of the Formula One World Championship and the eleventh overall. It was held at the Marina Bay Street... |
JPN 2010 Japanese Grand Prix The 2010 Japanese Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held on 10 October 2010 at the Suzuka Circuit, in Suzuka, Mie, Japan. It was held as the sixteenth round of the 2010 Formula One season. Contested over 53 laps, the race was won by Red Bull driver Sebastian Vettel after starting from... |
KOR 2010 Korean Grand Prix The 2010 Korean Grand Prix was the seventeenth round of the 2010 Formula One season. It took place at the Korean International Circuit in Yeongam, South Jeolla, South Korea on 24 October 2010... |
BRA 2010 Brazilian Grand Prix The 2010 Brazilian Grand Prix was the eighteenth round of the 2010 Formula One season... |
ABU 2010 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix The 2010 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held on 14 November 2010 at the Yas Marina Circuit on Yas Island, an island on the outskirts of Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates. It was the 19th and last round of the 2010 Formula One season... |
454 | 2nd | |||
| Button Jenson Button Jenson Alexander Lyons Button MBE is a British Formula One driver currently signed to McLaren. He was the 2009 World Drivers' Champion.Button began karting at the age of eight and achieved early success, before progressing to car racing in the British Formula Ford Championship and the British... |
7 | 1 | 8 | 1 | 5 | Ret | 2 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 8 | Ret | 2 | 4 | 4 | 12 | 5 | 3 | ||||||
| Hamilton Lewis Hamilton Lewis Carl Davidson Hamilton, MBE is a British Formula One racing driver from England, currently racing for the McLaren team. He was the Formula One World Champion.Hamilton was born in Stevenage, Hertfordshire... |
3 | 6 | 6 | 2 | 14 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 4 | Ret | 1 | Ret | Ret | 5 | 2 | 4 | 2 |
Driver failed to finish the race, but were classified as they had completed >90% of the race distance.