Mercedes powered teams had a successful Italian Grand Prix last weekend. Brawn GP managed to secure 1st and 2nd with Rubens Barrichello leading home team mate and world championship leader Jenson Button. The Brawn GP duo were able to turn round a reasonably poor qualifying result (they qualified 5th and 6th respectively) into an impressive, and important result. After Jenson Button's poor finishing record of late the second place he earned settles his nerves and gives him increased confidence as he enters the last 4 races of the season. Meanwhile Barrichello has closed the gap to championship leader Button to 14 points. Brawn GP {link} now lead the team's championship by an impressive 40.5 points.
Force India {link} continued their highly impressive showing at high speed, low downforce circuits with Adrian Sutil claiming 4th overall from 2nd on the grid. This result helped counter the disappointment of seeing Antonio Liuzzi cost to a halt after 22 laps.
McLaren continue to show impressive pace but the race result proved to be quite frustrating. Lewis Hamilton lead the early stages of the Italian Grand Prix after starting on pole position and settled into a comfortable 3rd position once all the fuel stops had finished. Sadly, after giving his all in an attempt to catch and pass Jenson Button for 2nd a driver error resulted in a half spin which saw the MP4-24 slam into the barriers and instant retirement. Heikki Kovalainen qualified 4th and finished 6th which wasn't what he would have hoped for as he battles to justify his position in the McLaren {link} team.
BMW Sauber's fortunes continue to fluctuate and they enter the twilight of their F1 life. After a poor performance in qualifying (Robert Kubica qualified 13th two places in front of Nick Heidfeld) Kubica's race very short and action packed as he and Mark Webber came together and into retirement on the first lap. Heidfeld battled on and finally finished in the points in 7th overall. Neither BMW driver is in the top 10 of the world championship and BMW Sauber {link} are down in 7th in the team's championship, probably not the end the team would want to their Formula 1 experience.
Italian Grand Prix results:~
1. Barrichello Brawn GP / Mercedes
2. Button Brawn GP / Mercedes
3. Raikkonen Ferrari
4. Sutil Force India/Mercedes
5. Alonso Renault
6. Kovalainen McLaren Mercedes
7. Heidfeld BMW Sauber
8. Vettel Red Bull / Renault
9. Fisichella Ferrari
10. Nakajima Williams / Toyota
11. Glock Toyota
12. Hamilton McLaren Mercedes
13. Buemi Toro Rosso / Ferrari
14. Trulli Toyota
15. Grosjean Renault
16. Rosberg Williams / Toyota
Retired Liuzzi Force India / Mercedes
Retired Alguersuari Toro Rosso / Ferrari
Retired Kubica BMW Sauber
Retired Webber Red Bull / Renault
2. Button Brawn GP / Mercedes
3. Raikkonen Ferrari
4. Sutil Force India/Mercedes
5. Alonso Renault
6. Kovalainen McLaren Mercedes
7. Heidfeld BMW Sauber
8. Vettel Red Bull / Renault
9. Fisichella Ferrari
10. Nakajima Williams / Toyota
11. Glock Toyota
12. Hamilton McLaren Mercedes
13. Buemi Toro Rosso / Ferrari
14. Trulli Toyota
15. Grosjean Renault
16. Rosberg Williams / Toyota
Retired Liuzzi Force India / Mercedes
Retired Alguersuari Toro Rosso / Ferrari
Retired Kubica BMW Sauber
Retired Webber Red Bull / Renault
