Petrov wins Turkey feature race
Vitaly Petrov emerged victorious from an eventful GP2 Series feature race in Istanbul this afternoon
The Russian crossed the line 6.5 seconds clear of Super Nova's Luca Filippi, with Durango's Davide Valsecchi completing the podium.
Petrov was in control for most of the race, having taken the lead on lap 3 when pole-sitter Nico Hulkenberg and Filippi were so caught up in their own fight that they left a gap for the Barwa Addax car to sneak through at the final corner.
With a clear track ahead, Petrov set about opening a gap and had stretched his lead out to 10.7 seconds before the safety car was brought out 12 laps later to remove the car belonging to Alvaro Parente, who had spun out of second place at Turn 8 and stopped across the track.
Alberto Valerio worked hard for his eventual finishing position of fourth, which put him ahead of Hulkenberg, Pastor Maldonado, Giedo van der Garde and Javier Villa, who will start from pole for the sprint race tomorrow morning. That will offer some consolation to the Spaniard after he lost four places in as many corners three laps before the finish.
Almost half of the field failed to make it to the finish due to a combination of incidents and mechanical problems, the most notable victim being Romain Grosjean, who slowed to a halt with a couple of laps remaining.
The Frenchman had already endured a difficult afternoon, having lost several places when he spun while trying to go around the outside of Filippi at Turn 8 on the opening lap, and was running outside the points when he retired.
Others who suffered mishaps but were able to continue included Lucas di Grassi, who was forced into the pits early on to have a new front wing fitted, and Karun Chandhok, who fell to the back of the field when he failed to get away from the start line.
The proliferation of incidents elsewhere in the field promises a busy evening for the stewards, with no less than five cars under investigation for various mishaps. This comes after four drivers were dealt grid penalties for yellow flag infringements during practice yesterday.
Classified:
Pos Driver Team Time
1. Vitaly Petrov Barwa Addax Team 57:57.260
2. Luca Filippi Super Nova Racing + 6.563
3. Davide Valsecchi Durango + 7.155
4. Alberto Valerio Piquet GP + 19.649
5. Nico Hulkenberg ART Grand Prix + 19.948
6. Pastor Maldonado ART Grand Prix + 23.967
7. G.van der Garde iSport International + 25.216
8. Javier Villa Super Nova Racing + 27.011
9. Lucas Di Grassi Fat Burner Racing Engineering + 28.508
10. Andreas Zuber FMS International + 28.835
11. Davide Rigon Trident Racing + 29.312
12. Diego Nunes iSport International + 29.712
13. Daniel Clos Fat Burner Racing Engineering + 31.849
14. Karun Chandhok Ocean Racing Technology + 34.559
15. Ricardo Teixeira Trident Racing + 39.001
Not Classified:
Driver Team Laps
Roldan Rodriguez Piquet GP 26
Romain Grosjean Barwa Addax Team 25
Edoardo Mortara Telmex Arden International 20
N.Panciatici Durango 18
Alvaro Parente Ocean Racing Technology 15
Giacomo Ricci DPR 14
Luiz Razia FMS International 13
J.D'Ambrosio DAMS 7
Michael Herck DPR 4
Sergio Perez Telmex Arden International 1
Kamui Kobayashi DAMS 1
Fastest lap: Chandhok, 1:36.679 on lap 14
Hulkenberg earns maiden GP2 pole
Di Grassi takes first victory of 2009
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