Sebastian Vettel moved into the 2012 Formula 1 Championship lead after claiming a third consecutive victory in Korea this morning. Having started from 2nd place, Vettel took the lead from Red Bull teammate Mark Webber into Turn 1 and kept his position throughout the whole race.
Mark Webber finished second ahead of both Ferraris of Fernando Alonso, who now trails Vettel by 6 points in the standings, and Felipe Massa. Massa drove a brilliant race, and was at some point faster than his teammate, though he was ordered to back off.
It was a disastrous race for McLaren, with Lewis Hamilton finishing tenth due to heavy tyre degradation and a later confirmed suspension failure; Jenson Button meanwhile retired on the first lap after an incident with Sauber’s Kamui Kobayashi.
The Lotuses of Kimi Raikkonen and Romain Grosjean crossed the line in fifth and seventh respectively, sandwiching Force India’s Nico Hulkenberg in sixth.
Toro Rosso drivers Jean-Eric Vergne and Daniel Ricciardo enjoyed a superb afternoon as the duo finished eighth and ninth after having started from 16th and 21st.