2012 Brazilian Grand Prix: F1 Race, Qualifying & Winners

Jenson Button won a rain-affected Brazilian Grand Prix as Sebastian Vettel survived an opening-lap spin to become a three-time world champion. Fernando Alonso finished second, falling just three points short in a dramatic title decider.

Result	Driver / Time	Team
Pole position	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren
Pole time	1:12.458
Fastest lap	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren
Fastest-lap time	1:18.069 on lap 38
First	Jenson Button	McLaren
Second	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari
Third	Felipe Massa	Ferrari

Weekend Schedule

Date	Session	Local Time
23 November 2012	Practice 1	10:00 – 11:30
23 November 2012	Practice 2	14:00 – 15:30
24 November 2012	Practice 3	11:00 – 12:00
24 November 2012	Qualifying	14:00
25 November 2012	Race	14:00

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

Championship background

Sebastian Vettel arrived at round 20 leading the 2012 F1 World Championship on 273 points, with Fernando Alonso on 260. Red Bull Racing headed the constructors’ standings with 440 points.

Race entries

Michael Schumacher made his final Formula 1 start, while Lewis Hamilton raced for McLaren for the last time before moving to Mercedes. Vettel and Alonso arrived as the two remaining championship contenders.

Free Practice

Lewis Hamilton led FP1 while teams sampled Pirelli’s 2013 development tyres as well as preparing for the finale. The different tyre construction complicated comparisons, and overheating quickly became a concern. Kimi Räikkönen lost running to engine trouble, while the championship contenders balanced development work with the immediate demands of the race.

Lewis Hamilton remained quickest in FP2, but blistering in the high temperatures made tyre management a major concern. McLaren compared downforce levels with a cooler, wet race forecast in mind. Mercedes ran without its Coanda exhaust to investigate rear-tyre overheating, while Ferrari showed encouraging consistency over longer runs.

Jenson Button switched back towards Lewis Hamilton’s higher-downforce specification and led FP3, with the leading cars closely matched. Kimi Räikkönen managed only a few laps before another engine problem stopped his Lotus. The threat of heavy race-day rain still complicated setup decisions as teams completed their last dry preparations before qualifying.

Free Practice 1 Classification

2012 Brazilian Grand Prix FP1, 23 November 2012

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	4	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	1:14.131	33
2	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	+0.009s	35
3	2	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	+0.067s	34
4	3	Jenson Button	McLaren	+0.086s	31
5	5	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	+0.261s	28
6	6	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	+0.585s	29
7	10	Romain Grosjean	Lotus F1	+0.588s	33
8	11	Paul di Resta	Force India	+0.607s	34
9	18	Pastor Maldonado	Williams	+0.884s	37
10	12	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India	+0.919s	32
11	7	Michael Schumacher	Mercedes	+0.983s	36
12	14	Kamui Kobayashi	Sauber	+1.124s	31
13	15	Sergio Perez	Sauber	+1.265s	32
14	19	Valtteri Bottas	Williams	+1.282s	23
15	16	Daniel Ricciardo	Toro Rosso	+1.456s	35
16	9	Kimi Räikkönen	Lotus F1	+1.570s	16
17	17	Jean-Eric Vergne	Toro Rosso	+1.917s	35
18	8	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	+2.184s	36
19	20	Giedo van der Garde	Caterham	+2.329s	32
20	24	Timo Glock	Marussia	+2.375s	31
21	21	Vitaly Petrov	Caterham	+2.486s	30
22	25	Charles Pic	Marussia	+3.103s	26
23	22	Pedro de la Rosa	HRT	+3.547s	15
24	23	Narain Karthikeyan	HRT	+3.764s	13

Free Practice 2 Classification

2012 Brazilian Grand Prix FP2, 23 November 2012

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	4	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	1:14.026	35
2	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	+0.274s	40
3	2	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	+0.497s	37
4	6	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	+0.527s	37
5	5	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	+0.566s	37
6	7	Michael Schumacher	Mercedes	+0.628s	36
7	8	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	+0.643s	40
8	3	Jenson Button	McLaren	+0.837s	40
9	10	Romain Grosjean	Lotus F1	+0.968s	37
10	11	Paul di Resta	Force India	+1.103s	39
11	12	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India	+1.105s	40
12	9	Kimi Räikkönen	Lotus F1	+1.345s	39
13	19	Bruno Senna	Williams	+1.406s	45
14	15	Sergio Perez	Sauber	+1.516s	35
15	14	Kamui Kobayashi	Sauber	+1.813s	43
16	16	Daniel Ricciardo	Toro Rosso	+1.876s	39
17	18	Pastor Maldonado	Williams	+1.927s	47
18	17	Jean-Eric Vergne	Toro Rosso	+2.022s	40
19	21	Vitaly Petrov	Caterham	+2.100s	39
20	20	Heikki Kovalainen	Caterham	+2.629s	42
21	22	Pedro de la Rosa	HRT	+3.218s	15
22	24	Timo Glock	Marussia	+3.649s	42
23	25	Charles Pic	Marussia	+4.101s	31
24	23	Narain Karthikeyan	HRT	+4.113s	15

Free Practice 3 Classification

2012 Brazilian Grand Prix FP3, 24 November 2012

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	3	Jenson Button	McLaren	1:13.188	22
2	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	+0.057s	21
3	2	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	+0.197s	25
4	4	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	+0.201s	17
5	10	Romain Grosjean	Lotus F1	+0.232s	24
6	11	Paul di Resta	Force India	+0.298s	21
7	12	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India	+0.414s	22
8	5	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	+0.503s	15
9	18	Pastor Maldonado	Williams	+0.512s	20
10	6	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	+0.524s	17
11	19	Bruno Senna	Williams	+0.760s	20
12	8	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	+0.938s	25
13	15	Sergio Perez	Sauber	+1.002s	26
14	14	Kamui Kobayashi	Sauber	+1.004s	21
15	7	Michael Schumacher	Mercedes	+1.159s	24
16	16	Daniel Ricciardo	Toro Rosso	+1.499s	21
17	17	Jean-Eric Vergne	Toro Rosso	+1.784s	19
18	21	Vitaly Petrov	Caterham	+1.971s	22
19	20	Heikki Kovalainen	Caterham	+2.519s	21
20	24	Timo Glock	Marussia	+2.575s	24
21	25	Charles Pic	Marussia	+2.871s	21
22	22	Pedro de la Rosa	HRT	+3.010s	15
23	23	Narain Karthikeyan	HRT	+3.605s	18
24	9	Kimi Räikkönen	Lotus F1	No time	3

Qualifying

Lewis Hamilton headed qualifying for McLaren, with Jenson Button second and Mark Webber third.

McLaren locked out the front row with Lewis Hamilton ahead of Jenson Button. Vettel qualified fourth, while Alonso faced a difficult starting position further back. Michael Schumacher‘s final qualifying session left him fourteenth.

Qualifying Classification

2012 Brazilian Grand Prix Qualifying, 24 November 2012

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Q1	Q2	Q3	Laps
1	4	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	1:15.075	1:13.398	1:12.458	21
2	3	Jenson Button	McLaren	1:15.456	1:13.515	1:12.513	20
3	2	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	1:16.180	1:13.667	1:12.581	22
4	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	1:15.644	1:13.209	1:12.760	19
5	6	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	1:16.263	1:14.048	1:12.987	25
6	18	Pastor Maldonado	Williams	1:16.266	1:13.698	1:13.174	24
7	12	Nico Hülkenberg	Force India	1:15.536	1:13.704	1:13.206	23
8	5	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	1:16.097	1:13.856	1:13.253	25
9	9	Kimi Räikkönen	Lotus F1	1:16.432	1:13.698	1:13.298	22
10	8	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	1:15.929	1:13.848	1:13.489	26
11	11	Paul di Resta	Force India	1:15.901	1:14.121	—	18
12	19	Bruno Senna	Williams	1:15.333	1:14.219	—	21
13	15	Sergio Pérez	Sauber	1:15.974	1:14.234	—	21
14	7	Michael Schumacher	Mercedes	1:16.005	1:14.334	—	17
15	14	Kamui Kobayashi	Sauber	1:16.400	1:14.380	—	24
16	16	Daniel Ricciardo	Toro Rosso	1:16.744	1:14.574	—	22
17	17	Jean-Éric Vergne	Toro Rosso	1:16.722	1:14.619	—	23
18	10	Romain Grosjean	Lotus F1	1:16.967	—	—	8
19	21	Vitaly Petrov	Caterham	1:17.073	—	—	14
20	20	Heikki Kovalainen	Caterham	1:17.086	—	—	14
21	24	Timo Glock	Marussia	1:17.508	—	—	13
22	25	Charles Pic	Marussia	1:18.104	—	—	14
23	23	Narain Karthikeyan	HRT	1:19.576	—	—	13
24	22	Pedro de la Rosa	HRT	1:19.699	—	—	12

Pastor Maldonado received a ten-place grid penalty after receiving his 3rd reprimand of the season, for missing a call in to the weighbridge from the FIA.

Pedro de la Rosa received a five-place grid penalty for replacing his gearbox.

What happened in the 2012 Brazilian Grand Prix?

Vettel collided with Bruno Senna on the first lap, spun and continued with damage at the back. Alonso moved forward as light rain made tyre choices difficult, with Button and Hülkenberg gaining a large advantage by staying on slicks.

A safety car erased their lead. Hamilton moved to the front after Hülkenberg slid wide, but the Force India later collided with the McLaren while trying to regain first, ending Hamilton’s race and earning Hülkenberg a penalty.

Button inherited the lead as rain returned. Vettel lost time through a confused pit stop after radio trouble, but recovered to sixth, enough to protect the championship even with Alonso running second.

Paul di Resta‘s late crash brought a safety-car finish. Button won ahead of Alonso and Massa, while Vettel secured the title by three points. Schumacher finished seventh, and Petrov’s eleventh place lifted Caterham ahead of Marussia in the constructors’ standings.

Further down the points places, Michael Schumacher, Jean-Éric Vergne, Kamui Kobayashi and Kimi Räikkönen completed the scoring positions. Lewis Hamilton set the fastest lap, but no bonus point was awarded under the 2012 rules.

After the race, Sebastian Vettel headed the drivers’ standings with 281 points, followed by Fernando Alonso on 278. Red Bull Racing led the constructors’ table on 460, with Ferrari on 400.

2012 Brazilian Grand Prix race results

The 2012 Brazilian Grand Prix was held on 25 November 2012, with a scheduled start of 14:00 local time.

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Laps	Time / Retired	Pts.
1	3	Jenson Button	McLaren	71	1:45:22.656	25
2	5	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	71	+2.754	18
3	6	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	71	+3.615	15
4	2	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	71	+4.936	12
5	12	Nico Hülkenberg	Force India	71	+5.708	10
6	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	71	+9.453	8
7	7	Michael Schumacher	Mercedes	71	+11.907	6
8	17	Jean-Éric Vergne	Toro Rosso	71	+28.653	4
9	14	Kamui Kobayashi	Sauber	71	+31.250	2
10	9	Kimi Räikkönen	Lotus F1	70	+1 Lap	1
11	21	Vitaly Petrov	Caterham	70	+1 Lap	0
12	25	Charles Pic	Marussia	70	+1 Lap	0
13	16	Daniel Ricciardo	Toro Rosso	70	+1 Lap	0
14	20	Heikki Kovalainen	Caterham	70	+1 Lap	0
15	8	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	70	+1 Lap	0
16	24	Timo Glock	Marussia	70	+1 Lap	0
17	22	Pedro de la Rosa	HRT	69	+2 Laps	0
18	23	Narain Karthikeyan	HRT	69	+2 Laps	0
19	11	Paul di Resta	Force India	68	Accident	0
Ret	4	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	54	Collision	0
Ret	10	Romain Grosjean	Lotus F1	5	Accident	0
Ret	18	Pastor Maldonado	Williams	1	Accident	0
Ret	19	Bruno Senna	Williams	0	Collision	0
Ret	15	Sergio Pérez	Sauber	0	Collision	0

2012 Brazilian Grand Prix Fastest Laps

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Lap	Time	Avg. Speed
1	4	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	38	1:18.069	198.701
2	3	Jenson Button	McLaren	37	1:18.108	198.601
3	12	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India	38	1:18.210	198.342
4	5	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	36	1:18.623	197.301
5	6	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	37	1:18.879	196.660
6	2	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	39	1:18.903	196.600
7	14	Kamui Kobayashi	Sauber	35	1:18.973	196.426
8	17	Jean-Eric Vergne	Toro Rosso	39	1:18.983	196.401
9	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	36	1:19.090	196.136
10	20	Heikki Kovalainen	Caterham	39	1:19.256	195.725
11	16	Daniel Ricciardo	Toro Rosso	36	1:19.308	195.596
12	11	Paul di Resta	Force India	39	1:19.314	195.582
13	9	Kimi Räikkönen	Lotus F1	34	1:19.444	195.262
14	24	Timo Glock	Marussia	34	1:19.686	194.669
15	7	Michael Schumacher	Mercedes	37	1:20.158	193.522
16	8	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	38	1:20.266	193.262
17	25	Charles Pic	Marussia	36	1:20.310	193.156
18	21	Vitaly Petrov	Caterham	39	1:20.528	192.633
19	22	Pedro de la Rosa	HRT	37	1:21.085	191.310
20	23	Narain Karthikeyan	HRT	40	1:21.544	190.233
21	10	Romain Grosjean	Lotus F1	2	1:22.184	188.752

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

2012 Post-Race F1 Championship Standings

Championship standings after the 2012 Brazilian Grand Prix.

2012 Post-Race F1 Drivers' Championship Standings

POS	Driver	Nationality	Car	PTS
1	Sebastian Vettel	German	Red Bull Racing	281
2	Fernando Alonso	Spanish	Ferrari	278
3	Kimi Räikkönen	Finnish	Lotus F1	207
4	Lewis Hamilton	British	McLaren	190
5	Jenson Button	British	McLaren	188
6	Mark Webber	Australian	Red Bull Racing	179
7	Felipe Massa	Brazilian	Ferrari	122
8	Romain Grosjean	French	Lotus F1	96
9	Nico Rosberg	German	Mercedes	93
10	Sergio Pérez	Mexican	Sauber	66
11	Nico Hülkenberg	German	Force India	63
12	Kamui Kobayashi	Japanese	Sauber	60
13	Michael Schumacher	German	Mercedes	49
14	Paul di Resta	British	Force India	46
15	Pastor Maldonado	Venezuelan	Williams	45
16	Bruno Senna	Brazilian	Williams	31
17	Jean-Éric Vergne	French	Toro Rosso	16
18	Daniel Ricciardo	Australian	Toro Rosso	10
19	Vitaly Petrov	Russian	Caterham	0
20	Timo Glock	German	Marussia	0
21	Charles Pic	French	Marussia	0
22	Heikki Kovalainen	Finnish	Caterham	0
23	Jérôme d'Ambrosio	Belgian	Lotus F1	0
24	Narain Karthikeyan	Indian	HRT	0
25	Pedro de la Rosa	Spanish	HRT	0

2012 Post-Race F1 Constructors' Championship Standings

POS	Car	PTS
1	Red Bull Racing	460
2	Ferrari	400
3	McLaren	378
4	Lotus F1	303
5	Mercedes	142
6	Sauber	126
7	Force India	109
8	Williams	76
9	Toro Rosso	26
10	Caterham	0
11	Marussia	0
12	HRT	0

2012 Formula 1 Race Calendar

Round	Grand Prix	Circuit	Date
1	2012 Australian Grand Prix	Albert Park Circuit, Melbourne	18 March
2	2012 Malaysian Grand Prix	Sepang International Circuit, Sepang	25 March
3	2012 Chinese Grand Prix	Shanghai International Circuit, Shanghai	15 April
4	2012 Bahrain Grand Prix	Bahrain International Circuit, Sakhir	22 April
5	2012 Spanish Grand Prix	Circuit de Catalunya, Montmeló	13 May
6	2012 Monaco Grand Prix	Circuit de Monaco, Monte Carlo	27 May
7	2012 Canadian Grand Prix	Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve, Montréal	10 June
8	2012 European Grand Prix	Valencia Street Circuit, Valencia	24 June
9	2012 British Grand Prix	Silverstone Circuit, Silverstone	8 July
10	2012 German Grand Prix	Hockenheimring, Hockenheim	22 July
11	2012 Hungarian Grand Prix	Hungaroring, Mogyoród	29 July
12	2012 Belgian Grand Prix	Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Stavelot	2 September
13	2012 Italian Grand Prix	Autodromo Nazionale di Monza, Monza	9 September
14	2012 Singapore Grand Prix	Marina Bay Street Circuit, Singapore	23 September
15	2012 Japanese Grand Prix	Suzuka International Racing Course, Suzuka	7 October
16	2012 Korean Grand Prix	Korea International Circuit, Yeongam	14 October
17	2012 Indian Grand Prix	Buddh International Circuit, Greater Noida	28 October
18	2012 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix	Yas Marina Circuit, Abu Dhabi	4 November
19	2012 United States Grand Prix	Circuit of the Americas, Austin, Texas	18 November
20	2012 Brazilian Grand Prix	Autódromo José Carlos Pace, São Paulo	25 November