The 2012 Summer Olympics are at London but the Grand Prix was in Hungary this week.
With three wins under Fernando Alonso's belt this season, the other drivers on the grid are looking forward to answering Ferrari's number one driver at the iconic Hungaroring circuit.
Saturday qualifying displayed newfound pace for McLaren, Lotus and Redbull. Setting the pace in Q1, Q2, and Q3, Hamilton's laps dominated the weekend, setting a time four tenths clear of second place man Romain Grosjean of Team Lotus Renault.
Sebastian Vettel managed to score fastest time for sector two but severely lost time in the final sector of his flying lap, putting him third on the grid. Displaying consistent performance for McLaren, teammate Jenson Button slots into the second row of the grid at fourth. Likewise, Lotus Renault's strong pace allowed Kimi Raikkonen to qualify fifth on the grid, just ahead of Fernando Alonso.
Less than a tenth behind, Alsonso's teammate Felipe Massa qualifies behind in seventh. Paster Maldonado qualifies eighth on the grid, Bruno Senna laps Q3 for the first time to slot ninth on the grid while Nico Hulkenberg's efforts places him as the last car in the top ten.
A difficult start for Team Mercedes, Michael Schumacher started the race way down in seventeenth on the grid. Unfortunately, Schumacher's Mercedes had failed to start during the formation lap, forcing his race to begin from the pit lane. Perhaps a little too eager to get things started again, Schumacher was further penalized with a drive through penalty for speeding in the pit lane, ultimately dropping the German veteran racer even farther down the grid.
A contrast in fortunes, the quick Kimi "Iceman" Raikkonen managed to claw away at the leaders and even pulled off a dramatic pass on teammate Romain Grosjean. Stretching his second stints five laps longer than Grosjean, Raikkonen earned a better pit stop strategy that allowed him to exit the pits just as Grosjean dived for turn one. Side by side at the apex, Raikkonen had the speed and experience to get Grosjean to let off the gas.
During the closing laps, the tires on the Red Bell began to return as Sebastian Vettel now eyed a pass Grosjean for a chance at the podium. A nice battle commenced between the two young drivers but ultimately, Grosjean manages to keep the Red Bull at bay and clinched the final step of the podium for Team Lotus Renault.
Farther up ahead, Lewis Hamilton enjoyed a marvelous drive. Unchallenged for sixty-nine laps, Hamilton left the pack for his second victory of the season and yet another win at Hungary for McLaren. To date, no team has won at the Hungaroring more times than the Woking based racing team.
Following the podium performances of Hamilton, Raikkonen, and Grosjean, Sebastian Vettel scored some important points after finishing fourth. Finally, the remaining point finishers are Alonso, Button, Senna, Webber, Massa and Rosberg.
Despite the Fifth place finish, Alsonso stretches his championship points lead to 164, with Webber at a distant second at 124 points.
After Hungary, Formula 1 will be enjoying a month-long break for the teams to regroup. The Belgium Grand Prix will not be until the first weekend of September so be sure to enjoy the London Summer Olympics for now!
