Webber 'massively' disappointed after exit

Webber ran in the points for a significant part of the race, but a rear left tyre failure on lap 38 sent him spinning out of the track.

Although the Williams driver managed to return to the pits, his car was damaged and in the end he retired on lap 55.

"Of course I'm massively disappointed because we could have scored a point here today," said Webber. "I was trying hard to stay with the quicker guys but we had some heat issues with the inside edge of the tyre and then the aerodynamics were affected as a result of the damage.

"We're making it very hard work for ourselves at the moment, everyone is working so hard but we don't have anything to show for it."

Teammate Nico Rosberg also endured a torrid day, the rookie driver struggling with his tyres on his way to 14th position.

"It was very hard for me today, first of all because I started from the back and then because the car was very difficult to drive," he said. "I was doing one qualifying lap after another, and I was on the limit all the time, but I just couldn't drive any quicker. We were struggling with the tyres, and I was also unlucky with the pitstops.

"When we decided to stop for the first time, Button also pitted just in front of me and I lost some time there. We showed some progress in qualifying yesterday so it's a shame that the race went this way. I am now looking forward to Hockenheim, my home Grand Prix, in two weeks' time." 

The race was the sixth in a row where Williams have failed to score a point, in their worst streak since 1984.