The Indianapolis Grand Prix is the 7th race of the season, the 8th at the Brickyard for Formula One, and the 2nd in which Lewis Hamilton will start from pole.
Race to begin under scattered cloud, a track temperature of 59 degrees, air temperature 36, humidity 34% and growing, pressure 993 mBar with winds of 1.3mps blowing up the main straight, with the direction of travel.
All drivers away for the parade lap, concrete dust ahead of Alonso’s grid slot from an earlier oil spill. Cars slow to form up, Hamilton waiting for 45 seconds.
Lap 1 – Hamilton holds position, yellow flag as middle runners come together. Vettel heading across the grass at turn one, Ralf Schumacher locks up and crashes into the side of David Coulthard, the German retires while the Scot returns to the pit for a new front nose. Raikkonen drops to sixth behind Heidfeld and Kovalainen.
Lap 2 – Fisichella spins at turn 4. David Coulthard pits, right side pod too badly damaged to continue. Barrichello also pits with front suspension damage and retires.
Lap 6 – Wurz and Liuzzi battle for eleventh and twelfth.
Lap 7 – Hamilton leads Alonso by two seconds, with Massa a further two seconds behind.
Lap 9 – Button is being chased down by Fisichella for sixteenth. Fisichella passes Button at turn eight, but the Brit holds onto his position through turn ten, however Giancarlo slipstreams him down the back straight to take the position.
Lap 11 – Wurz again challenges Liuzzi down the main straight but fails to hold position, Liuzzi complains of vibration over the radio. Sato under investigation for passing under yellow flag.
Lap 14 – Sato spins into the gravel at turn four and beaches the car, while under pressure from Sutil.
Lap 18 – Alonso sets the fastest lap of the race so far, only for Hamilton to set a fastest first sector on the following lap.
Lap 19 – A marshal drops a blue flag onto the track on the main straight.
Lap 20 – Heidfeld makes a mistake and falls behind Kovalainen, just ahead of Raikkonen. Hamilton pits, along with Massa. Both cars take on soft compound tyres, with Heidfeld taking on harder compound tyres.
Lap 21 – Alonso pits and rejoins behind Jarno Trulli. Kovalainen leads the race.
Lap 24 – Raikkonen pits and takes on soft compound tyres.
Lap 26 – Button holds position against Speed despite the American slip streaming the driver down the back straight.
Lap 27 – Hamilton has three slow laps with traffic. Kovalainen pits, Raikkonen on a charge and passes Heidfeld. Both cars ahead of Kovalainen after his stop.
Lap 28 – Fisichella passes Liuzzi through turns 6 and 7.
Lap 29 – Trulli third having not stopped. Hamilton leads Alonso by just over a second.
Lap 33 – The gap between Hamilton and Alonso is just 0.6 seconds.
Lap 38 – After being held up by Liuzzi, Alonso closes on Hamilton – both drivers side by side down the main straight. Hamilton putting his car to the left to hold position.
Lap 39 – Alonso drives close to pit-wall, perhaps a bit frustrated being behind the Brit.
Lap 40 – Rosberg pits from fourth, fuel hose slow to come off.
Lap 41 – Raikkonen increasing speed in fourth, taking a second a lap out of the leading McLarens.
Lap 44 – Button pits for his single stop, losing seven seconds with fuel-rig issues.
Lap 46 – Alonso runs wide at turn eight losing a second. Raikkonen just two seconds behind Massa.
Lap 50 – Alonso pits.
Lap 51 – Hamilton pits, Ferrari also ready for Raikkonen. Hamilton rejoins ahead of Alonso.
Lap 52 – Massa pits from the lead.
Lap 54 – Raikkonen less than a second behind Massa.
Lap 55 – Heidfeld complains of problems with power steering and retires from the race at turn eight.
Lap 60 – Trulli and Webber battle for seventh, Trulli pushing Webber onto the grass at turn ten.
Lap 64 – Massa makes a mistake into turn one and Raikkonen closes, but fails to pass.
Lap 66 – Davidson passes Button for twelfth position at the end of the main straight.
Lap 69 – Rosberg retires with engine failure, stopping at the end of the pit straight.
Lap 72 – Liuzzi retires to the pits.
Lap 73 – Lewis Hamilton wins. Vettel grabs a point on his debut with BMW Sauber.
1. Hamilton
2. Alonso
3. Massa
4. Raikkonen
5. Kovalainen
6. Trulli
7. Webber
8. Vettel
Fastest lap, Raikkonen, lap 49: 1:13.117
