Sebastian Vettel started from pole but after just a few laps he had to let Lewis Hamilton pass. "I was struggling a little in the first stint on the intermediate tyres," said Vettel after the race. "Lewis was a bit faster and then I went into Turn 2 too deep, it was quite tricky - he was pushing quite hard and I tried to be on the edge. At some stage I realised it would be too late, so I opened the car because I know the white lines and the green paint afterwards is very slippery, so it's easy to have a spin, and I lost the lead."

He continued: "After that the track surface was drying. I think we could have maybe come in a lap earlier and then I was on the super-softs – I was feeling quite good initially, but there was quite a lot of drop off, I think it was the same for all of us. In the last stint, I did feel I had more speed in the car, but with 20 laps to go it was difficult to know how hard it was going to be at the end, so I couldn't push as hard as I would have liked, but still, second today is an important step."

Despite again expanding his lead, now 85 points, the reigning champion is a little worried about his competitors: "The McLarens are strong in all sorts of conditions and it's clear that for two races now they have made a step forward; we need to make sure we come back strong for the next race."