Hamilton Nearly Wins In Barcelona

This year's Barcelona Grand Prix proved to be a real thriller, as Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel battled for victory, with Vettel crossing the finishing line just half a second ahead of his closest rival.

Tickets were sold out weeks ago, with tens of thousands of Spanish F1 fans along with several thousand from Andorra flocking to the Catualunya circuit hoping for a great day's racing - and they weren't to be disappointed.

With four wins out of five - Hamilton having the only victory this year - the young German driver knew that a win in Barcelona would provide a good gap before the jewel in the crown - the Monaco Grand Prix - next weekend.

And Monaco could be pivotal as it's much more of driver v driver than any of the other races, with the streets of Monte Carlo providing the perfect arena for the drivers to show off their skills. A win at Monaco - bar any accidents - will virtually assure Vettel of this year's championship, while victory for Hamilton could be the turning point for a duel to the finish.

The good news for those F1 fans hoping that it won't effectively be over when Monaco is finished is that while Vettel in his Red Bull won, Lewis Hamilton and Jensen Button in their Mercedes McLaren's secured second and third places, with the Red Bull of Mark Webber coming in behind them - suggesting perhaps that McLaren have the capability of turning the season round at the Monaco Grand Prix.

But for Barcelona the race was edge of the seat stuff from start to finish as Spaniard Fernando Alonso went from fourth on the grid to lead into the first corner - to the delight of the home fans.

Alonso kept the lead right through to lap 18, keeping Vettel, Hamilton and Button at bay when Vettel outmanouvered Alosno during the pit stops, and the race was from then set up between Vettel and Hamilton for 1 and 2, and Button, Alonso and Australian Mark Webber battling for third.

And while Hamilton and his McLaren kept within a couple of seconds of snatching victory for the last ten laps, Vettel drove error free to ensure his Barcelona win.

Speaking at the post-race press conference Vettel confirmed surprise at McLaren's progress saying McLaren were very strong, Lewis in particular, adding that the last few lap felt like China (where Lewis Hamilton won) with his tyres fading.

Acknowledging the superiority of the Red Bull, Hamilton commented that he wasn't expecting to be so quick, and as the race went on he had some serious pace, but that Vettel was massively quick in the high speed corners - an omnious sign perhaps for next weekend's Monaco Grand Prix where overtaking is more difficult than the Barcelona circuits.

As F1 fans head back to their Spanish and Andorra homes this evening the talk will be about next weekend's race, and whether McLaren will be able to pip the Red Bulls to a famous Monaco Grand Prix victory - in a couple of days time they will know!