Going into the last race before the mid-season break, Sebastian Vettel and Ferrari hit the jackpot with a phenomenal victory at the 2015 Hungarian GP. The German started well from his third place on the grid and was quick to surge ahead of the two Mercedes drivers who started from the front row of the grid. From then on, the four-time champion's lead was never really threatened. Team-mate Kimi Raikkonen too was going strong before misfortune struck in the form of a failed engine forcing him to retire from the race. The Finn was comfortably running in second behind Vettel before he started complaining about loss in power. Had he taken the second best spot, it would have been the Scarlet Team's first 1-2 victory after the 2010 German Grand Prix.
Mercedes' Matters
It just wasn't the right day for the Mercedes team in Hungary. Although the two drivers posted phenomenal times to secure a 1-2 on the grid for the race, they couldn't get off to a great start allowing both Vettel and Raikkonen to pass. To make matters worse, Hamilton ran off the track in the opening lap dropping him down to 10th place. Although he managed to gradually make his way up, a collision with Daniel Ricciardo forced him into the pits for a front wing change. The reigning champion could only manage a sixth place finish after that. Meanwhile, Nico Rosberg had a similar outing as he too got involved in an incident with Ricciardo due to which he suffered a puncture. The German finished the race in eighth.
Red Bulls Rule the Day
The two Red Bull drivers despite having their ups and downs throughout the race managed to stick ahead of the order and ensure that they secured two podium places. Daniil Kvyat took his first ever podium finish in second while Ricciardo placed third at the end of the race. The two Red Bull drivers managed to maintain good enough pace to ensure that they had the podium places in sight throughout the race. And then they also had a stroke of luck with Raikkonen's retirement and Hamilton's spin off on the opening lap to help them get there.
McLaren makes it count
Like Red Bull, McLaren too had a similar story to tell. Fernando Alonso and Jenson Button didn't have a great qualifying round and were unable to make it into Q2 thanks to a 15th and 16th place in the first qualifying session. But then with all the penalties and collisions both the drivers could gradually make their way up the order to bring home 12 valuable points for the team. Alonso took a respectable sixth place to the chequer while Button managed to finish in ninth place.
Half Time
Halfway into the season, Hamilton and Mercedes still lead the championship tables. Rosberg stands 21 points behind his team-mate while Ferrari holds second place 147 points behind the championship leading Mercedes. However, Sebastian Vettel's victory in the final race before the mid-season break will give the team just the confidence they need to come back strong in the second half. Moreover, if history is anything to go by, Vettel has always proven to be more productive in the second half of the season than the first. Raikkonen meanwhile should get his part right and keep the points flowing from his end as well. If Ferrari manage to do this successfully, then we sure have a game on our hands.
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