Motor Racing: Vettel delivers maiden Red Bull victory in China
Posted: 19 April 2009 1707 hrs

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SHANGHAI : Sebastian Vettel was left grinning and calling for more rain-hit Formula One races on Sunday after giving the Red Bull team their wings with a thrilling win in the Chinese Grand Prix.

The brilliant 21-year-old German came home triumphant ahead of his teammate Mark Webber of Australia in a one-two finish for the English-based outfit in treacherous conditions.

The result ended the early-season domination of the new Brawn GP team as Briton Jenson Button finished third ahead of Brazilian teammate Rubens Barrichello.

There were encouraging signs that the troubled McLaren outfit are starting to find their feet with Finn Heikki Kovalainen and British defending world champion Lewis Hamilton finishing fifth and sixth respectively.

Germany's Timo Glock was seventh for Toyota and Swiss rookie Sebastien Buemi came home eighth to claim the final point for Toro Rosso.

But Ferrari again failed to score for the third time this season - now their worst start to a racing year since 1981 with Felipe Massa retiring with mechanical problems and Kimi Raikkonen coming in a midfield position.

And there was agony for Force India which looked on course for its first ever point with Adrian Sutil in sixth with five laps to go, but the German lost control of his car and crashed out.

Despite only coming third, Button stayed on top of the drivers title race with 21 points ahead of Barrichello on 15 with Vettel third on 10.

Vettel was understandably delighted at his second victory, following his breakthrough win for Toro Rosso in Italy last year, where his pole and win made him the youngest driver in Formula One history to achieve such feats.

"Yes, we made it. Thanks for so much hard work. It's fantastic, well done and thanks to the team for a great car, just perfect. It was a dream to drive," said the ecstatic German on the team radio.

Later, he said the wet conditions were tough but, as he has shown before, they suit him.

"We had to push hard in the beginning to get away from the pack and we succeeded. There was a lot of aquaplaning. Sometimes you were just keeping the car on the circuit," said the German.

"I think I had the best conditions, but it was still extremely difficult - especially in the last corner. It's my second win, and the second in the wet. Now maybe we can have some more rain!"

Webber, who has fought back after breaking his leg last November, said his podium finish meant a great deal.

"This means a huge amount. We pushed each other quite hard. They were tough conditions so it's extremely rewarding," he said.

"It's the best result of my career and I hope to go one step better in the future. But it's an incredible result for Red Bull."

With the rain pouring down from start to finish, Button said it was an achievement just to finish.

"It was basically a lake on the last corner and you couldn't brake," he said.

"It was pretty crazy. Every lap, you thought you were going to throw the car off. To finish the race is an achievement and to finish on the podium is fantastic. We couldn't catch the Red Bulls, but they were extremely quick."

Vettel dominated from the start and resisted all challenges as he swept home through the spray.

The race was started under a safety car and there were two other spells of safety car intervention due to the dreadful weather and a spate of accidents and collisions.

In the constructors' title race, Brawn GP continue to lead with 36 after three races ahead of Red Bull on 19.5 and Toyota on 18.5. Ferrari and Force India are the only teams without a point. - AFP/ms