The Korean Grand Prix may only be four years young, but it has certainly given us some exciting and dramatic moments, most of which came from the inaugural rain-hit Korean Grand Prix in 2010.
The Korea International Circuit was finished just in the nick of time, although improvements were made over the course of the weekend. The final track inspection was pushed back on numerous occasions but race director Charlie Whiting gave it the green light and the race went ahead.
Mixing three distinct sectors, the track is certainly a challenge and even more so in wet conditions. That is exactly what faced grid in 2010. For more of a look at the track check out my 2013 Korean GP preview.
The 2010 title was going down to the wire and with Korea hosting the 17th round of the season, the race was a vital one in shaping who would clinch the crown. Sebastian Vettel was on a high after winning the previous round in Japan, closing to within 14 points of team-mate and leader Mark Webber and level on points with second place man Fernando Alonso.
Meanwhile the two McLaren drivers still had a shot of the title, although they were both over 25 points behind, heading to Korea. This made it five drivers in contention for the coveted top spot.
The Korea International Circuit was given a largely positive reaction by the F1 drivers, with many praising its three unique sectors, challenging corners and overtaking opportunities.
However drivers did raise concerns over the pit entry and exit after an incident during Friday practice involving Nico Rosberg and Jaime Alguersuari. Changes were subsequently made in time for the next Korean Grand Prix 12 months later.
Lewis Hamilton started his weekend off on the right foot by topping first practice. His best time of 1m40.887 came towards the end of the session, just under a tenth faster than Robert Kubica. Rosberg, Vettel and Button rounded out the top five in what was a rather spread out field.
Mark Webber headed the field in second practice with a best time of 1m37.942, considerably faster than the times set in FP1. The track continued to increase in grip and driver's pushed to find the limit on the newly constructed circuit. Alonso, Hamilton and Kubica followed behind with Button finishing just within the top five, despite losing track time with an exhaust problem.
The sun was out for the final practice session of the race weekend, with Robert Kubica leading the way for Renault, just 0.050 seconds clear of Hamilton in second. Alonso, Webber and Rosberg completed the top five and were all within two tenths of the pace-setter.
Qualifying arrived and it was the usual 'new teams' exiting in Q1. Trulli led the pack in 18th with Glock and Kovalainen close behind. Di Grassi, Yamamoto and Senna rounded out the results. Vitantonio Luizzi was the sole mid-field runner to exit the first qualifying session in 17th.
Webber and Vettel finished Q2 at the top of the time sheets, making it through to the top 10 shoot-out. It was a frantic battle in the mid-field but Hulkenberg, Kobayashi and Heidfeld just missed out. Sutil, Petrov, Alguersuari and Buemi rounded out those in the drop-zone.
The top 10 shoot-out was hotly contested with Alonso holding provisional pole after the first runs. He improved his time on his second attempt but the Red Bull duo of Vettel and Webber bettered his benchmark to lock out the front row. Hamilton finished behind Alonso in fourth with Rosberg, Massa, Button, Kubica, Schumacher and Barrichello completing the runners in Q3.
Race day arrived for the first ever Korean Grand Prix, and what an eventful race it was. The big talking point ahead of the race was the rain; heavy downpours drenched the newly finished circuit and caused havoc.
The race started behind the safety car but despite the slow pace, drivers complained about the atrocious visibility due to the heavy spray that was kicked up by flooded circuit. The race was stopped on lap three and didn't restart for another 40 minutes.
The race eventually got back up and running but the safety car was still required for a further 14 laps. Reaction was mixed with Vettel and Button declaring that conditions were as worse as before, but Hamilton declared that the track was almost ready for intermediates and was keen to get underway and race.
So after a lengthy wait, the inaugural Korean Grand Prix got underway on lap 17 with Vettel leading the pack into the first corner. Lewis Hamilton lost fourth place to Nico Rosberg at the third turn and Michael Schumacher was also on the move.
At the end of the first racing lap, Vettel had eked out a three second lead over the chasing pack. Adrian Sutil out-braked himself into turn one and narrowly avoided collecting a Williams as he slithered across the circuit.
Vettel's lead was slashed shortly after thanks to team-mate Mark Webber. The Aussie, who was the championship leader heading to Korea, ran wide at turn 12 and spun into the barrier. With broken rear suspension, his Red Bull RB7 travelled back across the circuit and collected Nico Rosberg. The safety car was deployed as the mud-soaked cars were removed.
Several mid-field runners took the chance to pit for intermediate tyres but conditions were still treacherous. When the action restarted on lap 24 the chaos continued. Several drivers went off track with Di Grassi spinning into the wall on lap 26.
Button was the first front-runner to pit for intermediates on lap 27, diving into the pit lane after losing a place to Michael Schumacher on the following lap. However it proved to be ill timed and he emerged behind slower traffic. The safety car was deployed once again on lap 31 after Sebastien Buemi crashed into Timo Glock at turn three.
The front-runners dived into the pit lane to change to intermediates. Alonso lost out to Hamilton in the pit stop sequence but got his own back on the race restart, taking advantage of a mistake by the Brit at turn one to reclaim second place.
Button dropped down the pack after a forceful move by Adrian Sutil. The race delay meant that the darkness was closing in as Vettel crossed the line to complete lap 40. Vitaly Petrov chose that lap to have a monumental crash at the final corner, although a safety car wasn't required.
The race was turned on its head six laps later after Sebastian Vettel dramatically retired from the race with an engine failure. The German pulled off track on the run to turn three to make it a double DNF for Red Bull Racing.
That promoted Fernando Alonso into the lead of the race. That is exactly where he stayed, crossing the line under darkening skies on lap 55 to win the race by 15 seconds. Hamilton and Massa rounded out the podium finishers. Ferrari had to wait until the 2013 Spanish Grand Prix for another double podium finish.
Schumacher had a strong race to finish in fourth ahead of Kubica and Vitantonio Luizzi. Both Williams drivers finished in the points with Barrichello crossing the line in seventh and Hulkenberg in 10th, the Sauber duo of Kobayashi and Heidfeld splitting them.
It was a disappointing race for Jenson Button after struggling for grip and tyre temperature after switching to the intermediate tyres. He finished ahead of the back-markers, Kovalainen winning the battle ahead of Senna and Yamamoto.
The race proved to be crucial for the world championship. Webber's retirement meant Alonso left Korea in the lead of the title and Vettel dropped to fourth place.
Mixing three distinct sectors, the track is certainly a challenge and even more so in wet conditions. That is exactly what faced grid in 2010. For more of a look at the track check out my 2013 Korean GP preview.
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| (c) F1Fanatic |
Meanwhile the two McLaren drivers still had a shot of the title, although they were both over 25 points behind, heading to Korea. This made it five drivers in contention for the coveted top spot.
The Korea International Circuit was given a largely positive reaction by the F1 drivers, with many praising its three unique sectors, challenging corners and overtaking opportunities.
However drivers did raise concerns over the pit entry and exit after an incident during Friday practice involving Nico Rosberg and Jaime Alguersuari. Changes were subsequently made in time for the next Korean Grand Prix 12 months later.
Lewis Hamilton started his weekend off on the right foot by topping first practice. His best time of 1m40.887 came towards the end of the session, just under a tenth faster than Robert Kubica. Rosberg, Vettel and Button rounded out the top five in what was a rather spread out field.
Mark Webber headed the field in second practice with a best time of 1m37.942, considerably faster than the times set in FP1. The track continued to increase in grip and driver's pushed to find the limit on the newly constructed circuit. Alonso, Hamilton and Kubica followed behind with Button finishing just within the top five, despite losing track time with an exhaust problem.
The sun was out for the final practice session of the race weekend, with Robert Kubica leading the way for Renault, just 0.050 seconds clear of Hamilton in second. Alonso, Webber and Rosberg completed the top five and were all within two tenths of the pace-setter.
Qualifying arrived and it was the usual 'new teams' exiting in Q1. Trulli led the pack in 18th with Glock and Kovalainen close behind. Di Grassi, Yamamoto and Senna rounded out the results. Vitantonio Luizzi was the sole mid-field runner to exit the first qualifying session in 17th. Webber and Vettel finished Q2 at the top of the time sheets, making it through to the top 10 shoot-out. It was a frantic battle in the mid-field but Hulkenberg, Kobayashi and Heidfeld just missed out. Sutil, Petrov, Alguersuari and Buemi rounded out those in the drop-zone.
The top 10 shoot-out was hotly contested with Alonso holding provisional pole after the first runs. He improved his time on his second attempt but the Red Bull duo of Vettel and Webber bettered his benchmark to lock out the front row. Hamilton finished behind Alonso in fourth with Rosberg, Massa, Button, Kubica, Schumacher and Barrichello completing the runners in Q3.
Race day arrived for the first ever Korean Grand Prix, and what an eventful race it was. The big talking point ahead of the race was the rain; heavy downpours drenched the newly finished circuit and caused havoc.
The race started behind the safety car but despite the slow pace, drivers complained about the atrocious visibility due to the heavy spray that was kicked up by flooded circuit. The race was stopped on lap three and didn't restart for another 40 minutes.
The race eventually got back up and running but the safety car was still required for a further 14 laps. Reaction was mixed with Vettel and Button declaring that conditions were as worse as before, but Hamilton declared that the track was almost ready for intermediates and was keen to get underway and race.
So after a lengthy wait, the inaugural Korean Grand Prix got underway on lap 17 with Vettel leading the pack into the first corner. Lewis Hamilton lost fourth place to Nico Rosberg at the third turn and Michael Schumacher was also on the move.
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| (c) Getty Images |
Vettel's lead was slashed shortly after thanks to team-mate Mark Webber. The Aussie, who was the championship leader heading to Korea, ran wide at turn 12 and spun into the barrier. With broken rear suspension, his Red Bull RB7 travelled back across the circuit and collected Nico Rosberg. The safety car was deployed as the mud-soaked cars were removed.
Several mid-field runners took the chance to pit for intermediate tyres but conditions were still treacherous. When the action restarted on lap 24 the chaos continued. Several drivers went off track with Di Grassi spinning into the wall on lap 26.
Button was the first front-runner to pit for intermediates on lap 27, diving into the pit lane after losing a place to Michael Schumacher on the following lap. However it proved to be ill timed and he emerged behind slower traffic. The safety car was deployed once again on lap 31 after Sebastien Buemi crashed into Timo Glock at turn three.
The front-runners dived into the pit lane to change to intermediates. Alonso lost out to Hamilton in the pit stop sequence but got his own back on the race restart, taking advantage of a mistake by the Brit at turn one to reclaim second place.
Button dropped down the pack after a forceful move by Adrian Sutil. The race delay meant that the darkness was closing in as Vettel crossed the line to complete lap 40. Vitaly Petrov chose that lap to have a monumental crash at the final corner, although a safety car wasn't required.
The race was turned on its head six laps later after Sebastian Vettel dramatically retired from the race with an engine failure. The German pulled off track on the run to turn three to make it a double DNF for Red Bull Racing.
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| (c) AUSmotive |
Schumacher had a strong race to finish in fourth ahead of Kubica and Vitantonio Luizzi. Both Williams drivers finished in the points with Barrichello crossing the line in seventh and Hulkenberg in 10th, the Sauber duo of Kobayashi and Heidfeld splitting them.
It was a disappointing race for Jenson Button after struggling for grip and tyre temperature after switching to the intermediate tyres. He finished ahead of the back-markers, Kovalainen winning the battle ahead of Senna and Yamamoto.
The race proved to be crucial for the world championship. Webber's retirement meant Alonso left Korea in the lead of the title and Vettel dropped to fourth place.
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