Sport
Lewis Hamilton wins Hungarian Grand Prix
Alonso has 164 points, followed by Webber with 124 and Vettel with 122. Hamilton is fourth with 117, ahead of Raikkonen with 116.
Alonso was able to accomplish his main goal other than victory, to keep the Red Bulls firmly behind him. The Spaniard extended his lead over Webber by six points and lost only two points to Vettel.
“It’s a positive result, no doubt about it,” said Alonso, who turned 31 on Sunday. “We have a lead of 40 points courtesy of a car that has not been the best in this first half of the season. Now we must try to make a good leap forward in terms of performance to allow us to keep the lead.”
“In the long term, what we have now will not be enough,” the 2005 and 2006 champion said.
The race was cut to 69 laps from 70, after an extra positioning lap was added when Michael Schumacher switched off the engine on the starting grid, worried about the overheating of his Mercedes.
It was a dreadful race for the seven-time world champion, who was given a drive-through penalty for speeding on pit lane and retired after 58 laps while in 18th place.
“After I had started from the pit lane, I picked up a penalty and then a puncture. Everything you do not need came together,” said Schumacher, whose best result so far in 2012 has been third in Valencia but who has failed to finish six of the 11 races. “I am sure we will be looking much better in the next races to come.”
The Hungaroring race was the last event before a monthlong break, resuming with the Belgian GP on September 2.
COpyright 2012 The Associated Press
