British Grand Prix (2013): RESULT

With a Mercedes front row of Hamilton and Rosberg and a Red Bull second row with Vettel and Webber, will the 2013 British Grand Prix at Silverstone follow qualifying?

It’s the ‘home’ Grand Prix at Silvertsone for not just the British drivers, but a chunk of the teams that are based in the UK for their F1 operations.

The front row of Mercedes’ Hamilton and Rosberg (based in Brackley) and a second row of Red Bulls (based in Milton Keynes) promised plenty of action, and that’s what we got. But much of it for the wrong reasons.

Hamilton led from the start and moved ahead strongly, although Rosberg didn’t do so well and fell behind Vettel’s Red Bull, whilst Webber’s Red Bull has a touch with Grosjean’s Lotus, damaging the front wing, and dropping down the grid.

But the race became about the Pirelli tyres disintegrating after contact with kerbs, with Hamilton’s left rear giving out on lap eight down the Wellington straight, Massa’s doing the same two laps later and subsequent failures for the tyres of Vergne and Perez.

The tyres collapses, and subsequent safety car to clear the debris, shuffled the pack to such a degree the race came down to a blat in the last half dozen or so laps as the survivors – and the recoverers – fought it out for a podium after Vettel went out.

At the start of the final rush for the flag, Rosberg was in the lead with Raikkonen, Sutil, Ricciardo and Webber following (great drive from Webber) and Alonso ahead of Hamilton (the other stand-out drive after his tyre loss) in ninth and tenth.

Webber got past Ricciardo, Sutil and Raikkonen in the space of two laps to chase after Rosberg, whilst Alonso and Hamilton managed to sail past all in front to catch up to Webber. And that’s how it ended.

As the race came to a close there was a feeling that, given another lap or so, Webber would have taken Rosberg and Hamilton would have got the best of Alonso.

The Silverstone Grand Prix was certainly exciting, and certainly a spectacle, even without the tyre problems, and it brought out real fighting spirit from Webber and Hamilton, who fought back to take second and fourth.

But the win, deservedly, went to Rosberg and Mercedes. Now, the inquest begins on the Pirelli tyres.