page_title: 2010 Brazilian Grand Prix
section_title: Race
hierarchical_section_title: 2010 Brazilian Grand Prix / Race
caption_attribution_description: Formula One 2010 Rd.16 Japanese GP: Mark Webber (Red Bull) at autograph session on Thursday.
context_page_description: The 2010 Brazilian Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at the Autódromo José Carlos Pace in the city of São Paulo on 7 November 2010. It was the 18th round of the 2010 Formula One World Championship and the 38th Brazilian Grand Prix to be held as part of the series. Red Bull driver Sebastian Vettel won the 71-lap race from a second position start. His teammate Mark Webber finished second and Fernando Alonso of Ferrari third.
  Nico Hülkenberg for the Williams team took the only pole position of his career by recording the fastest lap in qualifying. Vettel and Webber overtook Hülkenberg for the first two positions at the start of the race. Vettel was able to maintain the lead until his first pit stop to switch tyres and Webber led for two laps until he made his own pit stop. Vettel thereafter was able to maintain first position through negotiation of slower traffic for the rest of the race to take his fourth victory of the season and the ninth of his career. Webber was 4.2 seconds behind in second as Alonso drew closer to the former in the final ten laps, albeit not close enough to pass and finished third.
context_section_description: The 71-lap race took place in the afternoon from 14:00 Brasilia Time (UTC−02:00). The weather at the start was dry and clear, with the air temperature between 24 to 25 °C (75 to 77 °F) and the track temperature from 47 to 51 °C (117 to 124 °F); conditions were expected to remain consistent throughout the race, and no rain was forecast. Klien stopped his car at the exit to the pit lane and failed to start due to fluctuating fuel pressure. Trackside equipment moved his car to the pit lane, where the Hispania Racing mechanics repaired it. When the race commenced, Hülkenberg spun his tyres, allowing Vettel to pass him on the inside for the field into the Senna S chicane. Webber held off Hamilton on the outside for third place. At the exit to the Descica do Lago corner Webber lined up a pass on Hülkenberg on the Reta Oposta straight. An oversteer stopped Hülkenberg from accelerating early and his braking early let Webber into second place. Hamilton, in an unbalanced car, was able to fend off Alonso on the inside at the exit of Descica do Lago turn for fifth and continued to do so for the rest of the lap.
  Behind the first four drivers, Schumacher fell to tenth due to a driver error putting him onto the grass. Kubica moved from seventh to sixth and Button advanced from eleventh to ninth. Petrov made a slow start, mounting a kerb at the exit of the Senna S Chicane to avoid colliding with Alguersuari and fell to 22nd. Towards the end of lap one, Hamilton was slow out of Junção turn, allowing Alonso to challenge him on the main straight, but Hamilton retained fourth place at the Senna S chicane. Alonso tried again and took fourth from Hamilton after Descica do Lago turn. Alonso immediately began to gain on Hülkenberg. On lap three, Schumacher passed Button before the Senna S chicane for ninth place. Alonso closed up to Hülkenberg and began to pressure him for third position.
  At the start of lap four, Alonso steered right to attempt an overtake on Hülkenberg; the latter blocked Alonso into the Senna S chicane; Hülkenberg ran with his rear wing at a high angle, making him vulnerable to a pass and it required him to steer left and brake later than Alonso. On lap five, Alonso again failed to pass Hülkenberg on the outside into the Senna S chicane. This allowed Hamilton to close up to Alonso, albeit not close enough to pass him. On the seventh lap, Alonso slipstreamed Hülkenberg, who ran wide at the entry to the Descica do Lago turn and Alonso passed him on the inside cresting a hill towards Ferradura corner for third position. The time Alonso lost behind Hülkenberg was ten seconds, dropping him 11 seconds behind Vettel.
  On lap eight, Hamilton made an unsuccessful overtake on the outside of Hülkenberg for fourth into the Senna S chicane. This was due to a lack of tyre grip, and he sought to conserve his tyres since he did not want to overheat them in the aerodynamic turbulence created by the airflow over the rear of Hülkenberg's car. In his first lap out of aerodynamic turbulence, Alonso was unable to close up to the Red Bull cars; Vettel opted to avoid tyre strain and losing grip in case of a safety car deployment. Hülkenberg blocked Hamilton from passing him on the inside at the start of the 11th lap, notwithstanding Hamilton's more powerful engine. They drew alongside going into Descica do Lago turn as Hülkenberg maintained fourth.
  At the conclusion of the same lap, Button, separated by slower cars, made the race's first pit stop to switch onto the medium compound tyres, emerging in 18th position. Button's faster pace meant he was followed in due course by: Massa, Barrichello, Hülkenberg, Kubica, Heidfeld, Alguersuari, Liuzzi and Buemi over the next seven laps. Massa and Barrichello each had wheel nut installation problems, requiring them to make a second pit stop. Both drivers rejoined behind Button. Hamilton made his first stop for the medium compound tyres on lap 21. He emerged in sixth position, narrowly ahead of his teammate Button. At the front of the field, Alonso entered the pit lane to switch to the medium compound tyres on
caption: Mark Webber started from third and improved to a second-place finish
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