Dubai: Sebastian Vettel recorded his fourth victory in five races this season by winning in Barcelona, but he was pushed all the way by Lewis Hamilton and only crossed the line six-tenths of a second ahead of the Briton.
With Mark Webber and Vettel having trounced the opposition in qualifying, the race was expected to be a walkover for Red Bull, but pre-predictions were swiftly torn up and the battle for victory was fought all afternoon.
The first surprise came when Fernando Alonso vaulted from fourth on the grid into the lead by the first corner.
Alonso ultimately slumped to fifth place after struggling with tyre degradation, but Hamilton stepped into the breach to challenge Vettel, finally moving into passing range with 10 laps remaining.
By that stage Hamilton seemed to have more grip and the faster car, but Vettel managed to extend his lead at the top of the drivers' championship to 41 points.
Results
1 Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull) 1:39:03.301
2 Lewis Hamilton (McLaren) +0.6s
3 Jenson Button (McLaren) +35.6s
Monaco Grand Prix
A late red flag helped Sebastian Vettel continue his dominance of the 2011 season as he saw off challenges from Fernando Alonso and Jenson Button. The championship leader looked like he would be caught after making just one pitstop.
The Red Bull driver led the early laps, but dropped behind Button after a problematic stop. Vettel's delay appeared to set Button up for his first victory but, as the Briton visited the pits, the German made his tyres last until the race was suspended with six laps after a midfield pile-up.
Results
1 Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull) 2h 09m 38.373s
2 Fernando Alonso (Ferrari) +1.1s
3 Jenson Button (McLaren) +2.3s
