The Formula One circus rolled into Silverstone this past weekend, to thrill enormous British crowds. The 100,000+ people in the stands and around the circuit on grass banks, were hopeful of a British victory, and with three Brits starting in the top ten it seemed a real possibility, especially in changeable conditions where we know Jenson Button, in particular, excels. Unfortunately, the highest placed Brit, come the finish, was Lewis Hamilton in fourth place. However, crowds and fans would not be too disappointed considering the excitement they were treated too.

With Sebastian Vettel having won six out of eight races this season, and as he blasted past Mark Webber before even reaching turn one, it looked like we would have a familiar story: Sebastian Vettel wins, Red Bull domination continues. Yet that was not the case. Round nine of this enthralling F1 season threw up great surprise, excitement and great challenges for the drivers and teams alike.

The opening stages were extremely difficult for drivers as a unique situation had developed whereby half the circuit was bone-dry, and half was soaking wet. The intermediate tyre was the only option, and the drivers had to contend with maintaining the tyre durability whilst maintaining enough heat and grip to be fast all the way around the circuit. Vettel, unsurprisingly, did a superb job and by the first round of pit-stops, when the track had now dried out, he had a significant lead. The McLaren’s and Ferrari’s in the meantime were scrapping for position, while the two Red Bull drivers sailed ahead. Button pulled off the pass of the day as he tore round the outside before then diving up the inside of Felipe Massa’s Ferrari. Hamilton also pleased the British crowd with a brave move up the inside of Fernando Alonso as they headed into the famously fast Copse Corner. Alonso would then fight back to re-pass Hamilton on lap 24.

Once everyone had switched to dry tyres we then began to see increased pace from Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso. He managed to catch Webber in second before then overtaking him with a bold move. Alonso then set about hunting down Vettel in the lead, and as Red Bull, uncharacteristically, had a slow second stop, Alonso leapfrogged Vettel in the next pit-stop phase. We then looked set to have an intense battle between Vettel and Alonso for the victory. However, Alonso stormed away with the lead and went on to win. It was an incredible victory for the Spaniard, and a great day for Ferrari fans the world around. Webber pushed hard to challenge Vettel, however, Red-Bull team orders kept him at bay in the closing stages, whilst Massa and Hamilton fought fearlessly all the way to the finish line with Hamilton coming home in fourth, Massa fifth.

Jenson Button, however, had a weekend to forget as he was forced to retire after a pit-lane blunder from his mechanics. They failed to attach the front right wheel properly and consequently Button was left a dejected figure.

The British Grand Prix, to some extent, had to deliver following the controversy on Saturday surrounding the meetings and arguments over the use of exhaust gases to generate further downforce. Politics and technical jargon aside, the 2011 British Grand Prix was a bare-knuckled brawl between world class drivers, epitomised by Massa and Hamilton trading body parts in the final turns. Bring on Germany in two weeks!