Webber captured the pole, announcing from the first that he was a serious contender for the win. He very nearly threw that win away before the first corner, colliding with Rubens Barrichelo.
At the start Webber took off down the left side of the track and Barrichelo charged up the right. Webber inexplicably cut right and rammed Barrichelo. Both cars continued but Webber earned a drive-through penalty for his efforts.
“I lost Rubens completely at the start; I thought he was gone a little bit to the left so I went to the right and banged into him,” Webber explained. “That’s not normally my style and I got a drive-through penalty for that.
“It’s an incredible day for me. I wanted to win so badly after Silverstone, as I thought I had a good chance there, then after yesterday’s pole I knew I was in a good position to try and win the race today. It’s just an incredible day for all the people who have helped me get to where I am today.”
Force India’s Adrian Sutil had his team’s best race ever, running in second behind Barrichelo but unfortunately this did not last. Sutil pitted, and exiting the pits came upon the Ferraris of Felipe Massa and Kimi Räikkönen. Sutil tried to squeeze inside Räikkönen but there wasn’t room. The two scars collided, destroying Sutil’s front wing and sending Sutil back into the pits, and to the back of the pack.
The Ferraris were running well all day, until lap 34, when Räikkönen pulled off with a broken engine. Massa drove an excellent race, staying in the top six most of the day and finishing third, ahead of both Brawns.
