The 2009 Formula One Grand Prix season ended with another one-two finish for Red Bull, as Sebastian Vettel proved the fastest car and driver the track, while teammate Mark Webber barely held off a charging Jenson Button’s Brawn on the final lap. This was Red Bull’s fourth 1–2 finish of the season (Brawn also had four.)
Barrichello’s Brawn finished fourth, four seconds down, with Nick Heidfeld’s Williams three seconds behind him. Kamui Kobayashi in the Toyota turned in the drive of the race, finishing sixth in only his second Formula One grand prix.
The victory moved Vettel into second in the drivers’ Championship.
“The car was fantastic and was working brilliantly on both tire compounds, Sebastian Vettel said after the race, “It was a pleasure, this evening, to be in the car.
“Some of the season was up and down. During the second half we have been very strong; fourth 1–2 for Red Bull racing, so congratulations to the team. They have been pushing a lot, working a lot back in the factory. As we can see the car is getting quicker. It is shame that now the season ends.
It’s just a perfect day, to finish the season on a high.”
Indeed, Red Bull has been the only team to consistently challenge the Brawns; once the team adopted a Brawn-style double diffuser after Turkey, Red Bull shut down Brawn almost entirely. Abu Dhabi marked Jenson Button’s first podium in since Italy, only his second in the last ten races. Barrichello managed two wins after Turkey, while Red Bull scored five.
Obviously Sebastian Vettel and Red Bull Racing will be high on the list of contenders for next year’s World Drivers’ Championship.
The start was almost clean. Mark Webber, head of the Drivers’ Safety Committee, was involved in yet another first lap collision, chopping Barrichello and tearing off his right front wing end plate. However, the missing end-plate seemed not to have slowed him.
As usual, Webber’s version of the incident has him blameless. “I had a pretty good launch I got a bit of a lock on the outside of Seb [Sebastian Vettel] but the main game was trying to get back on the inside to get a clean exit because I knew it was a long run down to turn Five. I got hit quite hard in the left rear at the first corner; I was worried about a puncture. I was quite relived I didn’t have a puncture.”
Quite possibly Rubens Barrichello was equally relieved that Webber’s aggression didn’t put him out of the race.
Barrichello’s Brawn finished fourth, four seconds down, with Nick Heidfeld’s Williams three seconds behind him. Kamui Kobayashi in the Toyota turned in the drive of the race, finishing sixth in only his second Formula One grand prix.
The victory moved Vettel into second in the drivers’ Championship.
“The car was fantastic and was working brilliantly on both tire compounds, Sebastian Vettel said after the race, “It was a pleasure, this evening, to be in the car.
“Some of the season was up and down. During the second half we have been very strong; fourth 1–2 for Red Bull racing, so congratulations to the team. They have been pushing a lot, working a lot back in the factory. As we can see the car is getting quicker. It is shame that now the season ends.
It’s just a perfect day, to finish the season on a high.”
Indeed, Red Bull has been the only team to consistently challenge the Brawns; once the team adopted a Brawn-style double diffuser after Turkey, Red Bull shut down Brawn almost entirely. Abu Dhabi marked Jenson Button’s first podium in since Italy, only his second in the last ten races. Barrichello managed two wins after Turkey, while Red Bull scored five.
Obviously Sebastian Vettel and Red Bull Racing will be high on the list of contenders for next year’s World Drivers’ Championship.
Hamilton Hampered by Brakes, Vettel Unhindered
The start was almost clean. Mark Webber, head of the Drivers’ Safety Committee, was involved in yet another first lap collision, chopping Barrichello and tearing off his right front wing end plate. However, the missing end-plate seemed not to have slowed him.
As usual, Webber’s version of the incident has him blameless. “I had a pretty good launch I got a bit of a lock on the outside of Seb [Sebastian Vettel] but the main game was trying to get back on the inside to get a clean exit because I knew it was a long run down to turn Five. I got hit quite hard in the left rear at the first corner; I was worried about a puncture. I was quite relived I didn’t have a puncture.”
Quite possibly Rubens Barrichello was equally relieved that Webber’s aggression didn’t put him out of the race.
