McLaren's Lewis Hamilton first win since August

A delighted Lewis Hamilton paid tribute to McLaren's pit team after a tactically perfect race saw him move into second behind Sebastian Vettel in the F1 drivers' championship, while Jenson Button was left to rue his pit-lane blunder. The 26-year-old McLaren driver, world champion in 2008, surged through the field on fresh tires in the closing stages before brilliantly passing the German with less than five laps remaining. The win in Shanghai was the 15th victory of Hamilton's Formula One career and brought Vettel's recent winning streak to an end.
"I'm overwhelmed. There is a long road ahead of us but I’m absolutely over the moon. It feels like a long time since I’ve been sitting here,” said Hamilton, whose previous victory came in Belgium last August.
Hamilton tactically outsmarted the 23-year-old German who had pitted earlier and whose worn-out treads cost him speed in the closing laps.
"A big thumbs up to the guys back at factory, who put their heart into making the car what it is on the GP weekend. It feels amazing," said Hamilton.

Walk in the park for Sebastian Vettel

Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel got his world championship defense off to the best possible start in Albert Park on Sunday evening. The German beat Lewis Hamilton’s KERS-assisted rush as they had a drag race to the first corner, and thereafter that was all she wrote. Vettel was 2.4s ahead at the end of the opening lap, and simply controlled the pace to win by 22.2s after a problem with the floor of Hamilton’s McLaren caused an off-course moment in Turn One on Lap 32 and cost him some downforce. At times the Englishman was able to match Vettel’s pace and he did a better job controlling his tyres in the first part, as both ran two-stop strategies in a race in which all the gloomy predictions about Pirelli’s tires proved completely unfounded.

Behind them, Red Bull’s Mark Webber originally ran third ahead of fast-starting Vitaly Petrov in the Renault, who benefited when McLaren’s Jenson Button kept Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso out wide going into Turn One at the start. As Webber faded after being the first to change tires, Petrov moved into the third place he maintained throughout as he became the first Russian ever to stand on the podium after an excellent race.