Formula 1: Alonso narrowly misses out on rostrum position
Fernando Alonso of Spain finished the Belgian Grand Prix in fourth place. Alonso, who drives a Ferrari fitted with shock absorbers made by ZF Friedrichshafen AG, even led the race for a while. He was in third place in the final stages of the race, but had to let Jenson Button pass him four laps before the finishing line. After twelve of the season’s 19 races, two-time world champion Alonso is ranked third overall and is just ten points away from second place. Alonso’s team colleague Felipe Massa picked up four points in Spa-Francorchamps, finishing in eighth place.
Sauber-Ferrari driver Kamui Kobayashi, whose car is likewise fitted with ZF shock absorbers, failed to score any points in the Belgian Grand Prix. Kobayashi of Japan fell back a number of places during a safety car phase and eventually finished in twelfth place.
Results, GP Belgium (B), 12th round, FIA Formula 1 World Championship, 26 Aug–28 Aug 2011:
1. Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull Renault, 1h 26m 44.893s
2. Mark Webber, Red Bull Renault, + 3.741s
3. Jenson Button, McLaren Mercedes, + 9.669s
4. Fernando Alonso, Ferrari, + 13.022s, ZF
5. Michael Schumacher, Mercedes, + 47.464s
6. Nico Rosberg, Mercedes, + 48.674s
7. Adrian Sutil, Force India Mercedes, + 59.713s
8. Felipe Massa, Ferrari, + 1m 6.076s, ZF
9. Vitaly Petrov, Renault, + 1m 11.719s
10. Pastor Maldonado, Williams, + 1m 17.615s
Drivers’ standings:
1. S. Vettel, 259 points; 2. M. Webber, 167; 3. F. Alonso, 157; 4. J. Button, 149; 5. L. Hamilton, 146; 6. F. Massa, 74; 7. N. Rosberg, 56; 8. M. Schumacher, 42; 9. V. Petrov and N. Heidfeld, 34 each.
Constructors’ standings:
1. Red Bull Renault, 426 points; 2. McLaren Mercedes, 295; 3. Ferrari, 231; 4. Mercedes, 98; 5. Renault, 68; 6. Sauber Ferrari, 35; 7. Force India Mercedes, 32; 8. Toro Rosso Ferrari, 22; 9. Williams, 5.
Other results:
Spa-Francorchamps (B), 8th round, Porsche Supercup, 26 Aug–28 Aug 2011:
1. Kuba Giermaziak, Porsche, 26m 58.941s, ZF
2. René Rast, Porsche, + 0.531s, ZF
3. Nick Tandy, Porsche, + 4.091s, ZF
4. Jeroen Bleekemolen, Porsche, + 5.118s, ZF
5. Christian Engelhart, Porsche, + 8.117s, ZF
6. Sean Edwards, Porsche, + 9.679s, ZF
7. Norbert Siedler, Porsche, + 10.258s, ZF
8. Sebastiaan Bleekemolen, Porsche, + 12.911s, ZF
9. Kévin Estre, Porsche, + 14.175s, ZF
10. Stefan Rosina, Porsche, + 15.602s, ZF
Drivers’ standings:
1. R. Rast, 123 points; 2. S. Edwards, 116; 3. K. Giermaziak, 112; 4. N. Siedler, 106; 5. J. Bleekemolen, 100; 6. N. Tandy, 95; 7. C. Engelhart, 73; 8. K. Estre, 71; 9. S. Rosina, 61; 10. P. Huisman, 52