2009 Turkish Grand Prix: F1 Race, Qualifying & Winners

Jenson Button made it six victories from seven races in Turkey after an opening-lap error cost Sebastian Vettel the lead. Red Bull Racing filled the remaining podium places, but Brawn GP’s championship leader again combined speed and strategy to keep the opposition at arm’s length.

Result	Driver / Time	Team
Pole position	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing
Pole time	1:28.316
Fastest lap	Jenson Button	Brawn GP
Fastest-lap time	1:27.579 on lap 40
First	Jenson Button	Brawn GP
Second	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing
Third	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing

Weekend Schedule

Date	Session	Local Time
5 June 2009	Practice 1	10:00
5 June 2009	Practice 2	14:00
6 June 2009	Practice 3	11:00
6 June 2009	Qualifying	14:00
7 June 2009	Race	15:00

All times are local. The race time is the scheduled start; weather delays and interruptions are described below.

Championship background

Jenson Button arrived at round 7 leading the 2009 F1 World Championship on 51 points, with Rubens Barrichello on 35. Brawn GP headed the constructors’ standings after the preceding race with 86 points.

Race entries

The 10 teams kept the same race line-ups for the Turkish Grand Prix.

Free Practice

Nico Rosberg led FP1, which was briefly stopped when cars tore up artificial turf beside the circuit. Several drivers spun as they explored the available grip, but there were no major accidents. The interruption added a practical concern to the teams’ opening setup work around Istanbul Park’s demanding sequence of corners.

Heikki Kovalainen headed FP2 as McLaren and Renault showed encouraging single-lap pace. Sebastian Vettel lost substantial running after a mechanical problem stranded his Red Bull Racing car, though he returned once it had been recovered. Giancarlo Fisichella and Kazuki Nakajima also made contact and spun during an incident-filled afternoon.

Felipe Massa gave Ferrari encouragement by edging Fernando Alonso in a largely incident-free final practice. The entire field was covered by less than a second and a half, underlining how closely matched the cars appeared over a lap. Jenson Button and Sebastian Vettel remained further down the order before revealing their true qualifying pace later that day.

Free Practice 1 Classification

2009 Turkish Grand Prix FP1, 5 June 2009

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	16	Nico Rosberg	Williams	1:28.952	24
2	1	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	+0.311s	23
3	9	Jarno Trulli	Toyota	+0.319s	26
4	15	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	+0.385s	18
5	3	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	+0.390s	22
6	17	Kazuki Nakajima	Williams	+0.419s	21
7	4	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	+0.446s	25
8	7	Fernando Alonso	Renault	+0.470s	24
9	23	Rubens Barrichello	Brawn GP	+0.573s	25
10	2	Heikki Kovalainen	McLaren	+0.638s	20
11	22	Jenson Button	Brawn GP	+0.795s	20
12	20	Adrian Sutil	Force India	+0.912s	22
13	10	Timo Glock	Toyota	+0.982s	26
14	8	Nelson Piquet	Renault	+1.180s	18
15	14	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	+1.224s	22
16	5	Robert Kubica	BMW Sauber	+1.693s	22
17	6	Nick Heidfeld	BMW Sauber	+1.737s	20
18	21	Giancarlo Fisichella	Force India	+1.777s	22
19	11	Sebastien Bourdais	Toro Rosso	+1.886s	24
20	12	Sebastien Buemi	Toro Rosso	+1.992s	26

Free Practice 2 Classification

2009 Turkish Grand Prix FP2, 5 June 2009

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	2	Heikki Kovalainen	McLaren	1:28.841	37
2	7	Fernando Alonso	Renault	+0.006s	35
3	5	Robert Kubica	BMW Sauber	+0.215s	35
4	17	Kazuki Nakajima	Williams	+0.250s	37
5	15	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	+0.361s	4
6	9	Jarno Trulli	Toyota	+0.366s	41
7	16	Nico Rosberg	Williams	+0.416s	40
8	23	Rubens Barrichello	Brawn GP	+0.464s	35
9	14	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	+0.542s	39
10	8	Nelson Piquet	Renault	+0.560s	38
11	3	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	+0.575s	38
12	22	Jenson Button	Brawn GP	+0.589s	33
13	1	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	+0.594s	31
14	10	Timo Glock	Toyota	+0.677s	40
15	4	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	+0.679s	33
16	6	Nick Heidfeld	BMW Sauber	+0.709s	40
17	20	Adrian Sutil	Force India	+1.240s	33
18	21	Giancarlo Fisichella	Force India	+1.250s	38
19	11	Sebastien Bourdais	Toro Rosso	+1.454s	39
20	12	Sebastien Buemi	Toro Rosso	+1.788s	37

Free Practice 3 Classification

2009 Turkish Grand Prix FP3, 6 June 2009

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	3	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	1:27.983	26
2	9	Jarno Trulli	Toyota	+0.039s	21
3	10	Timo Glock	Toyota	+0.111s	23
4	17	Kazuki Nakajima	Williams	+0.139s	19
5	5	Robert Kubica	BMW Sauber	+0.337s	20
6	23	Rubens Barrichello	Brawn GP	+0.349s	21
7	22	Jenson Button	Brawn GP	+0.377s	19
8	16	Nico Rosberg	Williams	+0.381s	19
9	4	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	+0.432s	16
10	15	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	+0.468s	18
11	8	Nelson Piquet	Renault	+0.520s	15
12	1	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	+0.580s	19
13	14	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	+0.695s	18
14	6	Nick Heidfeld	BMW Sauber	+0.732s	19
15	2	Heikki Kovalainen	McLaren	+0.755s	19
16	20	Adrian Sutil	Force India	+1.067s	18
17	11	Sebastien Bourdais	Toro Rosso	+1.093s	19
18	12	Sebastien Buemi	Toro Rosso	+1.184s	21
19	7	Fernando Alonso	Renault	+1.278s	15
20	21	Giancarlo Fisichella	Force India	+1.438s	17

Qualifying

Sebastian Vettel was fastest in every qualifying segment and reclaimed pole with his final lap after Jenson Button had briefly moved ahead. Rubens Barrichello improved to third, leaving Mark Webber fourth. The closely matched leading group set up another Brawn GP–Red Bull Racing contest.

Lewis Hamilton was eliminated in Q1 as McLaren’s inconsistent weekend continued. The Q2 battle was particularly tight, with Fernando Alonso and Nico Rosberg just reaching the final shootout while Nick Heidfeld, Kazuki Nakajima, Timo Glock, Heikki Kovalainen and Adrian Sutil missed out.

Qualifying Classification

2009 Turkish Grand Prix Qualifying, 6 June 2009

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Q1	Q2	Q3	Laps
1	15	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	1:27.330	1:27.016	1:28.316	17
2	22	Jenson Button	Brawn GP	1:27.355	1:27.230	1:28.421	22
3	23	Rubens Barrichello	Brawn GP	1:27.371	1:27.418	1:28.579	19
4	14	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	1:27.466	1:27.416	1:28.613	20
5	9	Jarno Trulli	Toyota	1:27.529	1:27.195	1:28.666	24
6	4	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	1:27.556	1:27.387	1:28.815	24
7	3	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	1:27.508	1:27.349	1:28.858	23
8	7	Fernando Alonso	Renault	1:27.988	1:27.473	1:29.075	20
9	16	Nico Rosberg	Williams	1:27.517	1:27.418	1:29.191	27
10	5	Robert Kubica	BMW Sauber	1:27.788	1:27.455	1:29.357	20
11	6	Nick Heidfeld	BMW Sauber	1:27.795	1:27.521	—	16
12	17	Kazuki Nakajima	Williams	1:27.691	1:27.629	—	20
13	10	Timo Glock	Toyota	1:28.160	1:27.795	—	18
14	2	Heikki Kovalainen	McLaren	1:28.199	1:28.207	—	18
15	20	Adrian Sutil	Force India	1:28.278	1:28.391	—	18
16	1	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	1:28.318	—	—	9
17	8	Nelson Piquet	Renault	1:28.582	—	—	8
18	12	Sébastien Buemi	Toro Rosso	1:28.708	—	—	12
19	21	Giancarlo Fisichella	Force India	1:28.717	—	—	11
20	11	Sébastien Bourdais	Toro Rosso	1:28.918	—	—	9

What happened in the 2009 Turkish Grand Prix?

Sebastian Vettel initially held the lead, then ran wide at Turn 10 and handed Jenson Button the advantage. Rubens Barrichello’s start was ruined by a clutch problem, dropping him into the midfield. His recovery became increasingly difficult after contact with Heikki Kovalainen and Adrian Sutil, while Jenson Button steadily built a margin at the front.

Red Bull Racing put Sebastian Vettel on three stops, allowing him to close rapidly on Jenson Button during his lighter middle stint. He could not make the pass he needed, however, and his extra stop eventually put him behind Mark Webber. Jenson Button’s two-stop plan remained firmly on course.

Jenson Button won ahead of Mark Webber and Sebastian Vettel, with Jarno Trulli fourth and Nico Rosberg fifth. Robert Kubica scored his first points of the season, while Rubens Barrichello’s difficult afternoon ended with a gearbox failure. With his nearest championship rival failing to score, Jenson Button left Istanbul Park with an even stronger lead.

After the race, Jenson Button headed the drivers’ standings with 61 points, followed by Rubens Barrichello on 35. Brawn GP led the constructors’ table on 96, with Red Bull Racing on 56.5.

2009 Turkish Grand Prix race results

The 2009 Turkish Grand Prix was held on 7 June 2009, with a scheduled start of 15:00 local time.

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Laps	Time / Retired	Pts.
1	22	Jenson Button	Brawn GP	58	1:26:24.848	10
2	14	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	58	+6.714	8
3	15	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	58	+7.461	6
4	9	Jarno Trulli	Toyota	58	+27.843	5
5	16	Nico Rosberg	Williams	58	+31.539	4
6	3	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	58	+39.996	3
7	5	Robert Kubica	BMW Sauber	58	+46.247	2
8	10	Timo Glock	Toyota	58	+46.959	1
9	4	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	58	+50.246	0
10	7	Fernando Alonso	Renault	58	+1:02.420	0
11	6	Nick Heidfeld	BMW Sauber	58	+1:04.327	0
12	17	Kazuki Nakajima	Williams	58	+1:06.376	0
13	1	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	58	+1:20.454	0
14	2	Heikki Kovalainen	McLaren	57	+1 lap	0
15	12	Sébastien Buemi	Toro Rosso	57	+1 lap	0
16	8	Nelson Piquet	Renault	57	+1 lap	0
17	20	Adrian Sutil	Force India	57	+1 lap	0
18	11	Sébastien Bourdais	Toro Rosso	57	+1 lap	0
Ret	23	Rubens Barrichello	Brawn GP	47	Gearbox	0
Ret	21	Giancarlo Fisichella	Force India	4	Brakes	0

2009 Turkish Grand Prix Fastest Laps

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Lap	Time	Avg. Speed
1	22	Jenson Button	Brawn GP	40	1:27.579	219.422
2	15	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	51	1:27.622	219.314
3	14	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	42	1:27.809	218.847
4	9	Jarno Trulli	Toyota	40	1:27.868	218.700
5	10	Timo Glock	Toyota	56	1:27.883	218.663
6	17	Kazuki Nakajima	Williams	58	1:27.988	218.402
7	5	Robert Kubica	BMW Sauber	58	1:28.008	218.352
8	4	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	58	1:28.061	218.221
9	3	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	41	1:28.176	217.936
10	6	Nick Heidfeld	BMW Sauber	43	1:28.214	217.842
11	16	Nico Rosberg	Williams	36	1:28.222	217.823
12	8	Nelson Piquet	Renault	45	1:28.340	217.532
13	7	Fernando Alonso	Renault	57	1:28.389	217.411
14	23	Rubens Barrichello	Brawn GP	37	1:28.526	217.075
15	1	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	53	1:28.562	216.986
16	12	Sebastien Buemi	Toro Rosso	57	1:28.624	216.835
17	11	Sebastien Bourdais	Toro Rosso	53	1:29.022	215.865
18	2	Heikki Kovalainen	McLaren	41	1:29.174	215.497
19	20	Adrian Sutil	Force India	55	1:29.192	215.454
20	21	Giancarlo Fisichella	Force India	3	1:34.070	204.281

Only drivers with a recorded lap time appear. Average speeds are in km/h. No fastest-lap bonus point was awarded.

2009 Post-Race F1 Championship Standings

Championship standings after the 2009 Turkish Grand Prix.

2009 Post-Race F1 Drivers' Championship Standings

POS	Driver	Nationality	Car	PTS
1	Jenson Button	British	Brawn GP	61
2	Rubens Barrichello	Brazilian	Brawn GP	35
3	Sebastian Vettel	German	Red Bull Racing	29
4	Mark Webber	Australian	Red Bull Racing	27.5
5	Jarno Trulli	Italian	Toyota	19.5
6	Timo Glock	German	Toyota	13
7	Nico Rosberg	German	Williams	11.5
8	Felipe Massa	Brazilian	Ferrari	11
9	Fernando Alonso	Spanish	Renault	11
10	Kimi Räikkönen	Finnish	Ferrari	9
11	Lewis Hamilton	British	McLaren	9
12	Nick Heidfeld	German	BMW Sauber	6
13	Heikki Kovalainen	Finnish	McLaren	4
14	Sébastien Buemi	Swiss	Toro Rosso	3
15	Robert Kubica	Polish	BMW Sauber	2
16	Sébastien Bourdais	French	Toro Rosso	2
17	Giancarlo Fisichella	Italian	Force India	0
18	Adrian Sutil	German	Force India	0
19	Nelson Piquet	Brazilian	Renault	0
20	Kazuki Nakajima	Japanese	Williams	0

2009 Post-Race F1 Constructors' Championship Standings

POS	Car	PTS
1	Brawn GP	96
2	Red Bull Racing	56.5
3	Toyota	32.5
4	Ferrari	20
5	McLaren	13
6	Williams	11.5
7	Renault	11
8	BMW Sauber	8
9	Toro Rosso	5
10	Force India	0

2009 Formula 1 Race Calendar

Round	Grand Prix	Circuit	Date
1	2009 Australian Grand Prix	Albert Park Circuit, Melbourne	29 March
2	2009 Malaysian Grand Prix	Sepang International Circuit, Sepang	5 April
3	2009 Chinese Grand Prix	Shanghai International Circuit, Shanghai	19 April
4	2009 Bahrain Grand Prix	Bahrain International Circuit, Sakhir	26 April
5	2009 Spanish Grand Prix	Circuit de Catalunya, Montmeló	10 May
6	2009 Monaco Grand Prix	Circuit de Monaco, Monte Carlo	24 May
7	2009 Turkish Grand Prix	Istanbul Park, Istanbul	7 June
8	2009 British Grand Prix	Silverstone Circuit, Silverstone	21 June
9	2009 German Grand Prix	Nürburgring, Nürburg	12 July
10	2009 Hungarian Grand Prix	Hungaroring, Mogyoród	26 July
11	2009 European Grand Prix	Valencia Street Circuit, Valencia	23 August
12	2009 Belgian Grand Prix	Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Stavelot	30 August
13	2009 Italian Grand Prix	Autodromo Nazionale di Monza, Monza	13 September
14	2009 Singapore Grand Prix	Marina Bay Street Circuit, Singapore	27 September
15	2009 Japanese Grand Prix	Suzuka International Racing Course, Suzuka	4 October
16	2009 Brazilian Grand Prix	Autódromo José Carlos Pace, São Paulo	18 October
17	2009 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix	Yas Marina Circuit, Abu Dhabi	1 November