Formula 1: Ferrari Bounce Back at German Grand Prix

Ferrari pulled off a much-needed 1-2 before the summer break of the ongoing Formula 1 season. Red Bull's Vettel started on pole position, and he jammed front row starter Alonso against the pit wall. Massa seized the opportunity starting from the 2nd row and took the lead. He held the lead till the 49th lap, where then it seemed that he purposely slowed down to give Alonso the lead. Obviously, even though it is illegal, this must have been a team order, since Alonso is ahead in the driver's standings, and has a realistic chance at the world championship title. Vettel had to be satisfied with the last podium position, and both the McLarens lacked the pace to trouble the top 3 and finished 4th and 5th respectively.

Race Classification

1. Fernando Alonso (Ferrari) 25 pts
2. Felipe Massa (Ferrari) 18 pts
3. Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull-Renault) 15 pts
4. Lewis Hamilton (McLaren Mercedes) 12 pts
5. Jenson Button (McLaren Mercedes) 10 pts
6. Mark Webber (Red Bull-Renault) 8 pts
7. Robert Kubica (Renault) 6 pts
8. Nico Rosberg (Mercedes Benz GP Ltd) 4 pts
9. Michael Schumacher (Mercedes Benz GP Ltd) 2 pts
10. Vitaly Petrov (Renault) 1 pt

Driver Standings

Position	Driver	Team	Points
1	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren-Mercedes	157
2	Jenson Button	McLaren-Mercedes	143
3	Mark Webber	Red Bull-Renault	136
4	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull-Renault	136
5	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	123
6	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes Benz GP Ltd	94
7	Robert Kubica	Renault	89
8	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	85
9	Michael Schumacher	Mercedes Benz GP Ltd	38
10	Adrian Sutil	Force India-Mercedes	35
11	Rubens Barrichello	Williams-Cosworth	29
12	Kamui Kobayashi	BMW Sauber-Ferrari	15
13	Vitantonio Liuzzi	Force India-Mercedes	12
14	Vitaly Petrov	Renault	7
15	Sebastien Buemi	STR-Ferrari	7
16	Jaime Alguersuari	STR-Ferrari	3
17	Nico Hulkenberg	Williams-Cosworth	2

Constructor Standings

Position	Team	Points
1	McLaren-Mercedes	300
2	Red Bull-Renault	272
3	Ferrari	208
4	Mercedes Benz GP Ltd	132
5	Renault	96
6	Force India-Mercedes	47
7	Williams-Cosworth	31
8	BMW Sauber-Ferrari	15
9	STR-Ferrari	10
10	Lotus-Cosworth	0
11	HRT-Cosworth	0
12	Virgin-Cosworth	0

Ferrari will have to pull off some more of these finishes to get closer to the top of the standings. The Hungarian Grand Prix will take place this coming weekend, after which the Formula 1 season goes in for a 4 week break.