2012 Korean Grand Prix: F1 Race, Qualifying & Winners

Sebastian Vettel took the championship lead with victory in Korea, heading a Red Bull one-two. Fernando Alonso finished third, while Lewis Hamilton endured a difficult afternoon and salvaged only the final point.

Result	Driver / Time	Team
Pole position	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing
Pole time	1:37.242
Fastest lap	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing
Fastest-lap time	1:42.037 on lap 54
First	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing
Second	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing
Third	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari

Weekend Schedule

Date	Session	Local Time
12 October 2012	Practice 1	10:00 – 11:30
12 October 2012	Practice 2	14:00 – 15:30
13 October 2012	Practice 3	11:00 – 12:00
13 October 2012	Qualifying	14:00
14 October 2012	Race	15:00

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

Championship background

Fernando Alonso arrived at round 16 leading the 2012 F1 World Championship on 194 points, with Sebastian Vettel on 190. Red Bull Racing headed the constructors’ standings with 324 points.

Race entries

The 12 teams kept the same race line-ups for the Korean Grand Prix. Dani Clos, Giedo van der Garde, Jules Bianchi, Valtteri Bottas also took part in practice.

Free Practice

Dry conditions finally gave teams a straightforward start to a Korean Grand Prix weekend. Lewis Hamilton led FP1 as McLaren sought to recover from its handling difficulties in Japan. Ferrari compared rear wings, while Lotus began evaluating its Coanda-effect exhaust development, adding technical interest beyond the opening lap times.

Sebastian Vettel led Red Bull’s FP2 one-two, although the longer-run contest looked closer. Lewis Hamilton failed to complete a clear supersoft lap, while Sergio Pérez stopped after losing power. Lotus compared Kimi Räikkönen’s revised exhaust with Romain Grosjean’s conventional car, gathering a baseline before deciding whether to retain the development for the race.

Sebastian Vettel looked strong in FP3, but Mark Webber’s position understated his pace after an electrical problem prevented a supersoft run. Lotus continued with its different exhaust configurations. Ferrari’s single-lap deficit remained a concern despite encouraging Friday race simulations, making qualifying particularly important to Fernando Alonso’s chances of challenging Red Bull.

Free Practice 1 Classification

2012 Korean Grand Prix FP1, 12 October 2012

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	4	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	1:39.148	23
2	5	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	+0.302s	21
3	2	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	+0.427s	21
4	6	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	+0.706s	23
5	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	+0.940s	21
6	7	Michael Schumacher	Mercedes	+1.073s	21
7	8	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	+1.248s	24
8	10	Romain Grosjean	Lotus F1	+1.274s	22
9	11	Paul di Resta	Force India	+1.292s	19
10	3	Jenson Button	McLaren	+1.332s	21
11	9	Kimi Räikkönen	Lotus F1	+1.781s	14
12	18	Pastor Maldonado	Williams	+1.900s	25
13	12	Jules Bianchi	Force India	+1.992s	21
14	14	Kamui Kobayashi	Sauber	+2.072s	19
15	15	Sergio Perez	Sauber	+2.366s	20
16	16	Daniel Ricciardo	Toro Rosso	+2.448s	23
17	17	Jean-Eric Vergne	Toro Rosso	+2.873s	25
18	19	Valtteri Bottas	Williams	+2.879s	23
19	20	Heikki Kovalainen	Caterham	+2.956s	24
20	24	Timo Glock	Marussia	+3.027s	13
21	25	Charles Pic	Marussia	+3.558s	22
22	21	Giedo van der Garde	Caterham	+3.672s	19
23	22	Pedro de la Rosa	HRT	+5.369s	23
24	23	Dani Clos	HRT	+6.587s	22

Free Practice 2 Classification

2012 Korean Grand Prix FP2, 12 October 2012

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	1:38.832	33
2	2	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	+0.032s	33
3	5	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	+0.328s	28
4	3	Jenson Button	McLaren	+0.387s	29
5	7	Michael Schumacher	Mercedes	+0.498s	31
6	6	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	+0.590s	30
7	8	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	+0.752s	36
8	4	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	+0.885s	25
9	12	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India	+0.907s	33
10	9	Kimi Räikkönen	Lotus F1	+1.007s	26
11	10	Romain Grosjean	Lotus F1	+1.125s	28
12	19	Bruno Senna	Williams	+1.257s	32
13	11	Paul di Resta	Force India	+1.280s	34
14	14	Kamui Kobayashi	Sauber	+1.613s	28
15	15	Sergio Perez	Sauber	+1.913s	11
16	17	Jean-Eric Vergne	Toro Rosso	+1.957s	31
17	16	Daniel Ricciardo	Toro Rosso	+2.165s	32
18	18	Pastor Maldonado	Williams	+2.368s	33
19	20	Heikki Kovalainen	Caterham	+2.770s	23
20	24	Timo Glock	Marussia	+3.764s	28
21	25	Charles Pic	Marussia	+4.234s	21
22	21	Vitaly Petrov	Caterham	+4.235s	22
23	23	Narain Karthikeyan	HRT	+5.037s	36
24	22	Pedro de la Rosa	HRT	+5.701s	24

Free Practice 3 Classification

2012 Korean Grand Prix FP3, 13 October 2012

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	1:37.642	17
2	4	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	+0.527s	12
3	3	Jenson Button	McLaren	+0.869s	13
4	10	Romain Grosjean	Lotus F1	+0.940s	16
5	9	Kimi Räikkönen	Lotus F1	+1.024s	18
6	5	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	+1.063s	12
7	2	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	+1.124s	7
8	6	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	+1.149s	13
9	18	Pastor Maldonado	Williams	+1.191s	16
10	12	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India	+1.290s	17
11	15	Sergio Perez	Sauber	+1.312s	17
12	8	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	+1.368s	20
13	7	Michael Schumacher	Mercedes	+1.508s	18
14	11	Paul di Resta	Force India	+1.514s	18
15	14	Kamui Kobayashi	Sauber	+1.703s	14
16	17	Jean-Eric Vergne	Toro Rosso	+1.806s	17
17	16	Daniel Ricciardo	Toro Rosso	+1.895s	18
18	19	Bruno Senna	Williams	+2.064s	18
19	21	Vitaly Petrov	Caterham	+3.472s	14
20	20	Heikki Kovalainen	Caterham	+3.795s	19
21	25	Charles Pic	Marussia	+4.042s	16
22	24	Timo Glock	Marussia	+4.420s	15
23	23	Narain Karthikeyan	HRT	+5.203s	15
24	22	Pedro de la Rosa	HRT	+5.240s	14

Qualifying

Mark Webber headed qualifying for Red Bull Racing, with Sebastian Vettel second and Lewis Hamilton third.

Mark Webber took pole ahead of Sebastian Vettel and Lewis Hamilton. Daniel Ricciardo received a gearbox penalty, Charles Pic was penalised for an additional engine, and Narain Karthikeyan needed permission to race after failing to set a time.

Qualifying Classification

2012 Korean Grand Prix Qualifying, 13 October 2012

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Q1	Q2	Q3	Laps
1	2	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	1:38.397	1:38.220	1:37.242	17
2	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	1:38.208	1:37.767	1:37.316	13
3	4	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	1:39.180	1:38.000	1:37.469	16
4	5	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	1:39.144	1:37.987	1:37.534	19
5	9	Kimi Räikkönen	Lotus F1	1:38.887	1:38.227	1:37.625	17
6	6	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	1:38.937	1:38.253	1:37.884	16
7	10	Romain Grosjean	Lotus F1	1:38.863	1:38.275	1:37.934	20
8	12	Nico Hülkenberg	Force India	1:38.981	1:38.428	1:38.266	18
9	8	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	1:38.999	1:38.417	1:38.361	17
10	7	Michael Schumacher	Mercedes	1:38.808	1:38.436	1:38.513	18
11	3	Jenson Button	McLaren	1:38.615	1:38.441	—	11
12	15	Sergio Pérez	Sauber	1:38.630	1:38.460	—	13
13	14	Kamui Kobayashi	Sauber	1:38.719	1:38.594	—	14
14	11	Paul di Resta	Force India	1:38.942	1:38.643	—	15
15	18	Pastor Maldonado	Williams	1:39.024	1:38.725	—	16
16	16	Daniel Ricciardo	Toro Rosso	1:38.784	1:39.084	—	13
17	17	Jean-Éric Vergne	Toro Rosso	1:38.744	1:39.340	—	14
18	19	Bruno Senna	Williams	1:39.443	—	—	9
19	21	Vitaly Petrov	Caterham	1:40.207	—	—	7
20	20	Heikki Kovalainen	Caterham	1:40.333	—	—	10
21	25	Charles Pic	Marussia	1:41.317	—	—	8
22	24	Timo Glock	Marussia	1:41.371	—	—	8
23	22	Pedro de la Rosa	HRT	1:42.881	—	—	7
—	23	Narain Karthikeyan	HRT	No time	—	—	1

Daniel Ricciardo received a five-place grid penalty for an unscheduled gearbox change.

Charles Pic was given a ten-place grid penalty for exceeding the maximum number of engines permitted for use over the course of the season.

Narain Karthikeyan failed to set a time after having a brake failure. He was allowed to race at the stewards’ discretion.

What happened in the 2012 Korean Grand Prix?

Vettel passed Webber at the start, while Alonso moved ahead of Hamilton. Kamui Kobayashi collided with Jenson Button and Nico Rosberg in the opening phase, eliminating both and damaging his own race.

The Red Bulls established control ahead of the Ferraris. Massa passed Hamilton and closed on Alonso, but was asked to remain behind his championship-contending team-mate.

Hamilton struggled with an anti-roll-bar problem and excessive tyre wear, then collected a strip of artificial grass on his car late in the race. Vettel also had to heed warnings about front-tyre wear, but retained his lead.

Vettel won ahead of Webber and Alonso, with Massa fourth and Räikkönen fifth. Hülkenberg finished sixth, while both Toro Rossos scored. Vettel moved six points ahead of Alonso with four rounds remaining.

Further down the points places, Romain Grosjean, Jean-Éric Vergne, Daniel Ricciardo and Lewis Hamilton completed the scoring positions. Mark Webber set the fastest lap, but no bonus point was awarded under the 2012 rules.

After the race, Sebastian Vettel headed the drivers’ standings with 215 points, followed by Fernando Alonso on 209. Red Bull Racing led the constructors’ table on 367, with Ferrari on 290.

2012 Korean Grand Prix race results

The 2012 Korean Grand Prix was held on 14 October 2012, with a scheduled start of 15:00 local time.

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Laps	Time / Retired	Pts.
1	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	55	1:36:28.651	25
2	2	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	55	+8.231	18
3	5	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	55	+13.944	15
4	6	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	55	+20.168	12
5	9	Kimi Räikkönen	Lotus F1	55	+36.739	10
6	12	Nico Hülkenberg	Force India	55	+45.301	8
7	10	Romain Grosjean	Lotus F1	55	+54.812	6
8	17	Jean-Éric Vergne	Toro Rosso	55	+1:09.589	4
9	16	Daniel Ricciardo	Toro Rosso	55	+1:11.787	2
10	4	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	55	+1:19.692	1
11	15	Sergio Pérez	Sauber	55	+1:20.062	0
12	11	Paul di Resta	Force India	55	+1:24.448	0
13	7	Michael Schumacher	Mercedes	55	+1:29.241	0
14	18	Pastor Maldonado	Williams	55	+1:34.924	0
15	19	Bruno Senna	Williams	55	+1:36.902	0
16	21	Vitaly Petrov	Caterham	54	+1 Lap	0
17	20	Heikki Kovalainen	Caterham	54	+1 Lap	0
18	24	Timo Glock	Marussia	54	+1 Lap	0
19	25	Charles Pic	Marussia	53	+2 Laps	0
20	23	Narain Karthikeyan	HRT	53	+2 Laps	0
Ret	22	Pedro de la Rosa	HRT	16	Throttle	0
Ret	14	Kamui Kobayashi	Sauber	16	Collision damage	0
Ret	8	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	1	Collision damage	0
Ret	3	Jenson Button	McLaren	0	Collision	0

2012 Korean Grand Prix Fastest Laps

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Lap	Time	Avg. Speed
1	2	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	54	1:42.037	198.104
2	6	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	48	1:42.242	197.707
3	5	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	52	1:42.442	197.321
4	15	Sergio Perez	Sauber	49	1:42.495	197.219
5	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	55	1:42.499	197.211
6	12	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India	54	1:42.645	196.931
7	18	Pastor Maldonado	Williams	55	1:42.679	196.865
8	17	Jean-Eric Vergne	Toro Rosso	48	1:42.721	196.785
9	4	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	49	1:42.721	196.785
10	10	Romain Grosjean	Lotus F1	44	1:42.783	196.666
11	9	Kimi Räikkönen	Lotus F1	51	1:42.822	196.592
12	16	Daniel Ricciardo	Toro Rosso	45	1:43.148	195.970
13	7	Michael Schumacher	Mercedes	49	1:43.184	195.902
14	19	Bruno Senna	Williams	49	1:43.411	195.472
15	11	Paul di Resta	Force India	48	1:43.517	195.272
16	25	Charles Pic	Marussia	52	1:44.462	193.505
17	20	Heikki Kovalainen	Caterham	43	1:44.955	192.596
18	21	Vitaly Petrov	Caterham	50	1:45.013	192.490
19	24	Timo Glock	Marussia	42	1:45.236	192.082
20	14	Kamui Kobayashi	Sauber	3	1:47.066	188.799
21	23	Narain Karthikeyan	HRT	39	1:47.068	188.795
22	22	Pedro de la Rosa	HRT	9	1:49.861	183.996

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 Korean Grand Prix.

2012 Post-Race F1 Drivers' Championship Standings

POS	Driver	Nationality	Car	PTS
1	Sebastian Vettel	German	Red Bull Racing	215
2	Fernando Alonso	Spanish	Ferrari	209
3	Kimi Räikkönen	Finnish	Lotus F1	167
4	Lewis Hamilton	British	McLaren	153
5	Mark Webber	Australian	Red Bull Racing	152
6	Jenson Button	British	McLaren	131
7	Nico Rosberg	German	Mercedes	93
8	Romain Grosjean	French	Lotus F1	88
9	Felipe Massa	Brazilian	Ferrari	81
10	Sergio Pérez	Mexican	Sauber	66
11	Kamui Kobayashi	Japanese	Sauber	50
12	Nico Hülkenberg	German	Force India	45
13	Paul di Resta	British	Force India	44
14	Michael Schumacher	German	Mercedes	43
15	Pastor Maldonado	Venezuelan	Williams	33
16	Bruno Senna	Brazilian	Williams	25
17	Jean-Éric Vergne	French	Toro Rosso	12
18	Daniel Ricciardo	Australian	Toro Rosso	9
19	Timo Glock	German	Marussia	0
20	Heikki Kovalainen	Finnish	Caterham	0
21	Vitaly Petrov	Russian	Caterham	0
22	Jérôme d'Ambrosio	Belgian	Lotus F1	0
23	Charles Pic	French	Marussia	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	367
2	Ferrari	290
3	McLaren	284
4	Lotus F1	255
5	Mercedes	136
6	Sauber	116
7	Force India	89
8	Williams	58
9	Toro Rosso	21
10	Marussia	0
11	Caterham	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