page_title: Vitaly Petrov
section_title: 2010
hierarchical_section_title: Vitaly Petrov / Formula One / Renault (2010–2011) / 2010
caption_attribution_description: Vitaly Petrov driving for Renault F1 at the 2010 Bahrain Grand Prix.
context_page_description: Vitaly Aleksandrovich Petrov is a Russian racing driver who drove in Formula One for Renault F1 Team in 2010, Lotus Renault GP in 2011 and Caterham F1 Team in 2012. Born in Vyborg, he is known as the "Vyborg Rocket" in Russia. He was the first Russian to compete in the Formula One World Championship.
context_section_description: Petrov was linked to joining Sauber, Renault F1 and Campos for the 2010 season. He was announced as a Renault driver on 31 January and thus he has become the first Russian driver in the Formula One World Championship (Igor Troubetzkoy raced a Ferrari Formula One car in 1948). He was signed for a one-year deal, with an option for a further two. He was very close to signing for Campos but he felt Renault was the best option for him. He also mentioned that he had no major sponsors from Russia backing him just his dad and some of his friends. Petrov stated that his goal is to start scoring points by mid-season. His teammate for his debut season was Robert Kubica, who like Petrov – who stands at 185 cm (6 ft 0.8 in) tall – is one of the tallest drivers on the grid. After qualifying seventeenth, Petrov's first race ended prematurely when the team found his right-front suspension strut to be damaged, which the Russian suspected to have been caused by hitting a kerb too hard. He had been chasing Rubens Barrichello for tenth place and a World Championship point at the time of the incident.
  He finished his first race at the Chinese Grand Prix, and in doing so, scored his first F1 points, as he finished in seventh position. This race was also noted for his overtakes of Michael Schumacher and Mark Webber under heavy rain. After qualifying for the Turkish Grand Prix he started ninth. But after a collision with Fernando Alonso in the closing laps, he suffered a puncture and was forced to make a pitstop. On returning to the track he set the fastest lap of the race, finishing fifteenth.
  In Hungary, Petrov qualified seventh, ahead of much respected teammate Robert Kubica. He finished in 5th place, his highest finish to date, while in Belgium, Petrov started in 23rd place, after failing to set a time in qualifying because of a first-session crash. He made up 14 places in changeable conditions to finish 9th, resulting in his third consecutive points finish. Petrov retired on the first lap of the Japanese Grand Prix after colliding with Nico Hülkenberg, and crashed out of seventh place in the Korean Grand Prix. He qualified tenth for the final round of the season in Abu Dhabi, ahead of Kubica who qualified eleventh. In the race, Petrov pitted under an early safety car period which moved him up the order when drivers ahead of him pitted. Fernando Alonso and Mark Webber both came out behind him and Petrov remained ahead of them until the end of the race, which stopped the title contenders' progress and enabled Sebastian Vettel to win the title.
caption: When Petrov drove for Renault at the 2010 Bahrain Grand Prix, it was the first time a Russian had driven in the Formula One World Championship.
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