Ferrari Win British Grand Prix Epic

If the talk in motorsport before the 2011 British Grand Prix was whether McLaren could do anything to stop Red Bull running away with this season's championship, it ended by the time the chequered flag was shown.

After an excellent drive and victory by Fernando Alonso, McLaren had dropped out of the frame as the main challengers, with Ferrari's resurgence in the sport they dominated for so many years becoming the main debating point.

And while it won't be known for a couple more races whether Ferrari will be able to sustain their challenge, they ensured that Silverstone will be remembered for a great team and driver occasion.

Before the race, the previous nine had seen the two Red Bull drivers take pole position in each one, but it was Fernando Alonso who broke the monopoly, not the British drivers Jensen Button and Lewis Hamilton in front of their home fans according to monacoproperty.net

It was a bad day for McLaren, and most of their poor fortune can be put down to the team in the pits rather than their drivers. Jensen Button had to retire from the race late on from a good fifth position when the mechanics left off a wheel nut during a pit stop, while Lewis Hamilton did well to finish fourth after being warned by his team that his fuel was running low, and he had to conserve some of it or face not finishing the race at all.

But while Britain bemoaned the fate of their two main hopes for victory at Silverstone, Italy and Spain were celebrating as Ferrari driver Alonso stepped on to the podium to receive the winners cup and traditional bottle of champagne.

Sebastian Vettel came second, but with Australian Mark Webber his Red Bull teammate in hot pursuit for the final few laps, the Red Bull team issued Wbber clear instructions to not challenge Vettel, and Webber had to settle for third place.

It wasn't only Mclaren who uncharacteristically let their drivers down during pit stops - Sebastian Vettel was left stranded for a while by his mechanics - but whether or not he had problems in the pit lane Fernando Alonso deserved his - and Ferrari's - first victory of the 2011 F1 season.

Acknowledging Alonso and Ferrari's superiority at Silverstone after the race, Vettel commented that he thought he had to accept 'fair and square' that Ferrari had beaten them.

Looking back on the last couple of Grand Prix he added that there has been a bit of a trend, that Ferrari had been very strong on race days, and showed that Red Bull needed keep pushing and improving the car.

He said that no matter what Silverstone would have been a tight race because Ferrari had very good pace. It was not just him being unlucky and finishing second because of a mistake, and that Fernando Alonso very competitive.

The drivers' championship has changed in recent races, with McLaren drivers Jensen Button and Lewis Hamilton dropping from being the main challengers to Vettel and currently holding fourth and fifth places, with Vettel's teammate Mark Webber second, and Fernando Alonso now third, and while a long way behind the leader a few more victories will ensure 2011 is kept alive for the rest of the season.

But the Grand Prix world now moves on to Germany for the next race, and Sebastian Vettel will have an extra edge in his quest for another win, as this time it will be his home Grand Prix with huge support from the spectators.