Kovalainen seizes first Grand Prix win in Hungary after last-gasp Massa blowout

First of many: Kovalainen snatches the lead to triumph at Hungary

It handed Hamilton’s popular Finnish team-mate Heikki Kovalainen his first victory in 28 attempts, with Toyota’s Timo Glock an impressive second. Kimi Raikkonen, who supplanted the unfortunate Massa as Hamilton’s nearest title rival at five points off the top, was third.

Hungary’s cramped track is not renowned for serving up high drama but yesterday’s action was absorbing from the start as Massa gambled by taking on Hamilton around the outside of the first corner.

The Brazilian braked late as they came close together and by the time Hamilton sought to push Massa out wide on the exit of the corner and hold his position, the red car had wriggled through.

Hamilton said: ‘I had one of my best ever starts but Felipe had an even better one. I covered my ground on the inside. He locked up and then turned, I thought we were going to touch, so I slowed down even more. But he still pulled it off and I lost a place. It won’t happen again.’  

Delight: Kovalainen became the seventh consecutive different winner at Hungary - and the Finn celebrates his first Grand Prix victory in style

Massa extended his lead to 3.5 seconds before he pitted for the first time. Hamilton went in on the next lap but Massa had established a four-second advantage by halfway with Kovalainen handily placed in third.

It was lap 41 when Hamilton’s left front tyre popped. He ran into the gravel but managed to nurse the car back to the pits to be re-shod, falling back through the field as he did so. He re-emerged in 10th place.

Thinking back to the 2007 Turkish and Chinese grands prix, he said: ‘It’s just unfortunate I was the one to get a puncture and it was a case of “oh no, not again”. Last year it happened twice and that’s what really lost me the championship.

‘It can be very costly but today Kimi didn’t win. It actually helps that Heikki has won and Glock was second. They are taking points off everyone else so I’m quite happy.

Heartbreak: Felipe Massa walks back to the Ferrari pits following his last-gasp engine failure

‘I think I drove well. I didn’t make any mistakes. I just had a puncture. I brought the car home as safely as possible and scored as many points as I could. There’s not much more you can ask for.’

Massa’s mood was understandably dark after smoke started to seep out of his car as he powered down the start-finish straight for what should have been the penultimate time.

‘It was a perfect race in many ways, one of my best, but it’s one of the most frustrating races in my career,’ he said.

Hamilton, who was told of his rival’s misfortune over the radio, was pragmatic. ‘It’s another point for me, which is good,’ was his response, despite missing out on a hat-trick of wins.

Quick off the blocks: Massa (front middle) darts past Hamilton at turn one

It was one small place for Hamilton but one giant leap for Kovalainen. Within days of being offered a new McLaren contract, the 26-year-old has verifiable evidence of his value to one of the sport’s great teams.

‘It is a fantastic moment,’ he said, delight written all over his face.

‘It is a moment I have been targeting for many years since I started to get an idea about becoming a F1 driver. 

Outstanding: Timo Glock realised his potential with a stunning second - a meagre two weeks after crashing into the home straight at Hockenheim

‘I started to work hard and improve my fitness. I have spent a lot of time to achieve this goal. Hopefully, this is the first of many. We just need to keep concentration, have a little break and try to maximise this break, then go to the next round and try to repeat it.’

Formula One heads into its summer vacation prior to the European Grand Prix at Valencia on August 24 with the championship delicately poised. At this point last year, Hamilton held a 20-point advantage over Raikkonen and still could not complete the job. This year’s smaller lead over the world champion, with Massa eight behind, sets up a tantalising denouement over the seven remaining races.  

Back on track? Raikkonen snatched third place

Massa was bullish, talking of being ‘completely in the fight’. Hamilton was equally positive about the overall picture, saying: ‘I’m going to make sure I work very hard and that physically I am well prepared for the rest of the season. I’m going to make sure we keep up with the performance we have and I think you’ve seen how strong we are today.’

What we also witnessed was Ferrari’s strength on a slow track which was not thought likely to flatter them. Their speed is ominous, especially on warm tarmac, even if Raikkonen was outperformed again by his team-mate.

He said: ‘We were a bit lucky, but if I can’t get qualifying right we are going to end up every race in the same situation like this. We need to sort it out.’

Hungarian Grand Prix standings