2015 Spanish F1 Grand Prix makes its Deutsche mark

2015 Spanish F1 Grand Prix makes its Deutsche markSpain F1 GP Auto RacingMercedes driver German's Nico Rosberg, right, leads the race after the start during the Spanish Formula One Grand Prix at the Barcelona Catalunya racetrack in Montmelo, just outside Barcelona, Spain, Sunday, May 10, 2015. (AP Photo/Andres Kudacki)Image Credit: ASSOCIATED PRESSAUTO-PRIX-F1-ESPMercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team's German driver Nico Rosberg leads after the start of the Spanish Formula One Grand Prix at the Circuit de Catalunya on May 10, 2015 in Montmelo on the outskirts of Barcelona. AFP PHOTO / LLUIS GENE (Photo credit should read LLUIS GENE/AFP/Getty Images)Image Credit: LLUIS GENE via Getty ImagesSpanish F1 Grand PrixMONTMELO, SPAIN - MAY 10: Nico Rosberg of Germany and Mercedes GP leads Sebastian Vettel of Germany and Ferrari and Lewis Hamilton of Great Britain and Mercedes GP into the second corner during the Spanish Formula One Grand Prix at Circuit de Catalunya on May 10, 2015 in Montmelo, Spain. (Photo by Clive Mason/Getty Images)Image Credit: Clive Mason via Getty ImagesAUTO-PRIX-F1-ESPFerrari's German driver Sebastian Vettel leads as he drives at the Circuit de Catalunya on May 10, 2015 in Montmelo on the outskirts of Barcelona during the Spanish Formula One Grand Prix. AFP PHOTO / JOSEP LAGO (Photo credit should read JOSEP LAGO/AFP/Getty Images)Image Credit: JOSEP LAGO via Getty ImagesAUTO-PRIX-F1-ESPFerrari's Finnish driver Kimi Raikkonen, Scuderia Toro Rosso's Belgian-Dutch driver Max Verstappen, Williams Martini Racing's Finnish driver Valtteri Bottas, Scuderia Toro Rosso's Spanish driver Carlos Sainz Jr and Infiniti Red Bull Racing's Australian driver Daniel Ricciardo drives at the Circuit de Catalunya on May 10, 2015 in Montmelo on the outskirts of Barcelona during the Spanish Formula One Grand Prix. AFP PHOTO / JOSEP LAGO (Photo credit should read JOSEP LAGO/AFP/Getty Images)Image Credit: JOSEP LAGO via Getty ImagesSpanish F1 Grand PrixMONTMELO, SPAIN - MAY 10: Sebastian Vettel of Germany and Ferrari leads Lewis Hamilton of Great Britain and Mercedes GP during the Spanish Formula One Grand Prix at Circuit de Catalunya on May 10, 2015 in Montmelo, Spain. (Photo by Clive Mason/Getty Images)Image Credit: Clive Mason via Getty ImagesSpanish F1 Grand PrixMONTMELO, SPAIN - MAY 10: Daniel Ricciardo of Australia and Infiniti Red Bull Racing drives next to Pastor Maldonado of Venezuela and Lotus during the Spanish Formula One Grand Prix at Circuit de Catalunya on May 10, 2015 in Montmelo, Spain. (Photo by Paul Gilham/Getty Images)Image Credit: Paul Gilham via Getty ImagesSpanish F1 Grand PrixMONTMELO, SPAIN - MAY 10: Max Verstappen of Netherlands and Scuderia Toro Rosso drives during the Spanish Formula One Grand Prix at Circuit de Catalunya on May 10, 2015 in Montmelo, Spain. (Photo by Clive Mason/Getty Images)Image Credit: Clive Mason via Getty ImagesSpanish F1 Grand PrixMONTMELO, SPAIN - MAY 10: Kimi Raikkonen of Finland and Ferrari drives during the Spanish Formula One Grand Prix at Circuit de Catalunya on May 10, 2015 in Montmelo, Spain. (Photo by Mark Thompson/Getty Images)Image Credit: Mark Thompson via Getty ImagesSpanish F1 Grand PrixMONTMELO, SPAIN - MAY 10: Carlos Sainz of Spain and Scuderia Toro Rosso drives during the Spanish Formula One Grand Prix at Circuit de Catalunya on May 10, 2015 in Montmelo, Spain. (Photo by Clive Mason/Getty Images)Image Credit: Clive Mason via Getty ImagesSpanish F1 Grand PrixMONTMELO, SPAIN - MAY 10: Nico Rosberg of Germany and Mercedes GP leads Sebastian Vettel of Germany and Ferrari and Lewis Hamilton of Great Britain and Mercedes GP during the Spanish Formula One Grand Prix at Circuit de Catalunya on May 10, 2015 in Montmelo, Spain. (Photo by Dan Istitene/Getty Images)Image Credit: Dan Istitene via Getty ImagesSpanish F1 Grand PrixMONTMELO, SPAIN - MAY 10: Valtteri Bottas of Finland and Williams locks up ahead of Lewis Hamilton of Great Britain and Mercedes GP during the Spanish Formula One Grand Prix at Circuit de Catalunya on May 10, 2015 in Montmelo, Spain. (Photo by Clive Mason/Getty Images)Image Credit: Clive Mason via Getty ImagesSpanish F1 Grand PrixMONTMELO, SPAIN - MAY 10: Nico Rosberg of Germany and Mercedes GP leads Sebastian Vettel of Germany and Ferrari during the Spanish Formula One Grand Prix at Circuit de Catalunya on May 10, 2015 in Montmelo, Spain. (Photo by Paul Gilham/Getty Images)Image Credit: Paul Gilham via Getty ImagesSpanish F1 Grand PrixMONTMELO, SPAIN - MAY 10: Daniil Kvyat of Russia and Infiniti Red Bull Racing drives during the Spanish Formula One Grand Prix at Circuit de Catalunya on May 10, 2015 in Montmelo, Spain. (Photo by Mark Thompson/Getty Images)Image Credit: Mark Thompson via Getty ImagesAUTO-PRIX-F1-ESPWilliams Martini Racing's Brazilian driver Felipe Massa and Lotus F1 Team's French driver Romain Grosjean drive at the Circuit de Catalunya on May 10, 2015 in Montmelo on the outskirts of Barcelona during the Spanish Formula One Grand Prix. AFP PHOTO / JOSEP LAGO (Photo credit should read JOSEP LAGO/AFP/Getty Images)Image Credit: JOSEP LAGO via Getty ImagesAUTO-PRIX-F1-ESPSauber F1 Team's Brazilian driver Felipe Nasr and Sauber F1 Team's Sewdish driver Marcus Ericsson drive at the Circuit de Catalunya on May 10, 2015 in Montmelo on the outskirts of Barcelona during the Spanish Formula One Grand Prix. AFP PHOTO / JOSEP LAGO (Photo credit should read JOSEP LAGO/AFP/Getty Images)Image Credit: JOSEP LAGO via Getty ImagesAUTO-PRIX-F1-ESPFerrari's Finnish driver Kimi Raikkonen, Scuderia Toro Rosso's Belgian-Dutch driver Max Verstappen, Infiniti Red Bull Racing's Australian driver Daniel Ricciardo, McLaren Honda's Spanish driver Fernando Alonso, Lotus F1 Team's Venezuelan driver Pastor Maldonado and Lotus F1 Team's French driver Romain Grosjean drives at the Circuit de Catalunya on May 10, 2015 in Montmelo on the outskirts of Barcelona during the Spanish Formula One Grand Prix. AFP PHOTO / JOSEP LAGO (Photo credit should read JOSEP LAGO/AFP/Getty Images)Image Credit: JOSEP LAGO via Getty ImagesAUTO-PRIX-F1-ESPInfiniti Red Bull Racing's Australian driver Daniel Ricciardo and Lotus F1 Team's Venezuelan driver Pastor Maldonado drives at the Circuit de Catalunya on May 10, 2015 in Montmelo on the outskirts of Barcelona during the Spanish Formula One Grand Prix. AFP PHOTO / JOSEP LAGO (Photo credit should read JOSEP LAGO/AFP/Getty Images)Image Credit: JOSEP LAGO via Getty ImagesAUTO-PRIX-F1-ESPMcLaren Honda's British driver Jenson Button and Sahara Force India F1 Team's German driver Nico Hulkenberg drives at the Circuit de Catalunya on May 10, 2015 in Montmelo on the outskirts of Barcelona during the Spanish Formula One Grand Prix. AFP PHOTO / JOSEP LAGO (Photo credit should read JOSEP LAGO/AFP/Getty Images)Image Credit: JOSEP LAGO via Getty ImagesSpanish F1 Grand PrixMONTMELO, SPAIN - MAY 10: Max Verstappen of Netherlands and Scuderia Toro Rosso drives ahead of Pastor Maldonado of Venezuela and Lotus during the Spanish Formula One Grand Prix at Circuit de Catalunya on May 10, 2015 in Montmelo, Spain. (Photo by Clive Mason/Getty Images)Image Credit: Clive Mason via Getty ImagesAUTO-PRIX-F1-ESPLotus F1 Team's French driver Romain Grosjean (L) and Scuderia Toro Rosso's Spanish driver Carlos Sainz Jr drives at the Circuit de Catalunya on May 10, 2015 in Montmelo on the outskirts of Barcelona during the Spanish Formula One Grand Prix. AFP PHOTO / TOM GANDOLFINI (Photo credit should read Tom Gandolfini/AFP/Getty Images)Image Credit: TOM GANDOLFINI via Getty ImagesSpanish F1 Grand PrixMONTMELO, SPAIN - MAY 10: Lewis Hamilton of Great Britain and Mercedes GP drives during the Spanish Formula One Grand Prix at Circuit de Catalunya on May 10, 2015 in Montmelo, Spain. (Photo by Clive Mason/Getty Images)Image Credit: Clive Mason via Getty ImagesSpanish F1 Grand PrixMONTMELO, SPAIN - MAY 10: Carlos Sainz of Spain and Scuderia Toro Rosso drives during the Spanish Formula One Grand Prix at Circuit de Catalunya on May 10, 2015 in Montmelo, Spain. (Photo by Clive Mason/Getty Images)Image Credit: Clive Mason via Getty ImagesSpanish F1 Grand PrixMONTMELO, SPAIN - MAY 10: Nico Rosberg of Germany and Mercedes GP crosses the finish line to win the Spanish Formula One Grand Prix at Circuit de Catalunya on May 10, 2015 in Montmelo, Spain. (Photo by Mark Thompson/Getty Images)Image Credit: Mark Thompson via Getty ImagesSpanish F1 Grand PrixMONTMELO, SPAIN - MAY 10: Nico Rosberg of Germany and Mercedes GP celebrates in Parc Ferme after winning the Spanish Formula One Grand Prix at Circuit de Catalunya on May 10, 2015 in Montmelo, Spain. (Photo by Mark Thompson/Getty Images)Image Credit: Mark Thompson via Getty ImagesAUTO-PRIX-F1-ESP-PODIUMMercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team's German driver Nico Rosberg celebrates on the podium after the Spanish Formula One Grand Prix on May 10, 2015 at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo on the outskirts of Barcelona. AFP PHOTO / LLUIS GENE (Photo credit should read LLUIS GENE/AFP/Getty Images)Image Credit: LLUIS GENE via Getty ImagesAUTO-PRIX-F1-ESP-PODIUMMercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team's senior race engineer Tony Ross (2L), Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team's German driver Nico Rosberg (2R) and Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team's British driver Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari's German driver Sebastian Vettel celebrate on the podium after the Spanish Formula One Grand Prix on May 10, 2015 at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo on the outskirts of Barcelona. AFP PHOTO / LLUIS GENE (Photo credit should read LLUIS GENE/AFP/Getty Images)Image Credit: LLUIS GENE via Getty ImagesSpanish F1 Grand PrixMONTMELO, SPAIN - MAY 10: Nico Rosberg of Germany and Mercedes GP celebrates on the podium with Lewis Hamilton of Great Britain and Mercedes GP and Sebastian Vettel of Germany and Ferrari after winning the Spanish Formula One Grand Prix at Circuit de Catalunya on May 10, 2015 in Montmelo, Spain. (Photo by Clive Mason/Getty Images)Image Credit: Clive Mason via Getty Images2008 Grand PrixMSRP$22,210ShopReviewsMore Photos2015 Bahrain F1 Grand Prix2015 Chinese Formula One Grand Prix2015 Malaysian F1 Grand PrixRace recap: 2015 Australian F1 Grand PrixHottest Cars and Trucks in AmericaMost Popular Cars By StateJonathon Ramsey

The first race of the European Formula One season inaugurates the second phase of the Championship. Teams overhaul their cars with the big updates they've been working on since Australia, and at the end of The Battle of Spain we find out how the positions on the field have changed.

Mercedes-AMG Petronas driver Nico Rosberg brought a big update to his psychology, straight-up beating teammate Lewis Hamilton to take his first pole position of the season. Mercedes owns the front row and Ferrari maintains its status as primary challenger, Sebastian Vettel lining up in third. Williams proved it's been hitting the books to do better in class, though, Valtteri Bottas slotting into fourth. And Toro Rosso's visit to a track that rewards strong aero rewarded them with the best team grid position since the Italian Grand Prix in 2008: Carlos Sainz secured fifth, ahead of Max Verstappen in sixth.

Kimi Räikkönen's bout of Saturday woes – it seems the Finn is always handicapped by lots of tiny issues – continued in Barcelona with one of his sets of prime tires getting cooked by malfunctioning tire warmers. He recovered well enough to take seventh on the grid, but he's got some strong competition ahead of him. He led three other drivers in the Continuous Issues department, Daniil Kvyat unable to wrestle his Infiniti Red Bull Racing higher than eighth, Williams driver Felipe Massa getting it wrong in Turn 3 to fall five places behind his teammate Bottas, and Daniel Ricciardo in the second Red Bull enduring another engine change and sloppy car behavior to get tenth.

And while it turned out to be a steady race a little rough around the edges, the positions on the battlefield just might have changed. A little.



Of the 66 laps in the race we might have seen Rosberg for three of them – maybe. The German got a smashing start, had a clear lead into Turn 1, and after that we checked in occasionally during his two pit stops and again at the checkered flag. He owned the entire weekend the way we're used to seeing his teammate do, and the cameras left him alone to run his race. No one got within seven seconds of him during the first third, and as the pit stop strategies played out that cushion grew. He finished seventeen seconds ahead of Hamilton, and 45 seconds ahead of third-placed Vettel.

Hamilton, on the back foot all three days, stumbled out of the gate. His rear wheels spun when taking off on the formation lap, then did so again at the start, and he got swamped in the dash to Turn 1 but limited the damage to getting passed by Vettel. Unable to get around the Ferrari because his car wouldn't behave when he closed the gap, then suffering a botched wheel change during his first pit stop on Lap 14, he nevertheless switched to a three-stop strategy to get around the Ferrari toward the end of the middle stint. He then rang off a bunch of fast laps on the hard compound tire. Hamilton fought to nearly the end, until he realized there was no way he was going to catch Rosberg, then settled for second place. Not the result he wanted, but considering his start and the difficulty in overtaking in Jerez, second place wasn't a bad recovery.



There's a good chance commentators will continue to dissect Ferrari's tactics for Vettel in this race. When Hamilton switched to a three-stopper, Ferrari stuck with two stops and didn't bring Vettel in to cover Hamilton's move. When the Brit reeled off blistering laps, there was nothing the German could do to recover the time, third place his best fate after completing his second stop on Lap 41. Vettel said the Mercedes was too much for the Ferrari anyway, but in that case it seemed even stranger not to play the daring hand.

Valtteri Bottas tried to keep his Williams in the game up front and switched to a two-stop strategy, but after a mostly quiet race he then spent the last six laps fighting off Kimi Räikkönen. Both Finns have proved they won't crack when they have the right tools: Bottas using his power unit's extra boost to keep Räikkönen from getting close enough to pass on the front and back straights. It was a replay of Bahrain, in fact, when he worked the same playbook to keep Vettel behind him. Bottas and Räikkönen crossed the line less than a second apart in fourth and fifth places. Felipe Massa in the second Williams came home sixth, barely seen for the entire grand prix and the last man not to be lapped.



The final four top-ten finishers, Daniel Ricciardo, Romain Grosjean in the Lotus, Carlos Sainz, and Daniil Kvyat, seemed to be constantly mixing it up until their order settled down on Lap 30. Ricciardo duked it out a couple of times with the Toro Rosso drivers, who went backward once the race began. Grosjean came together with his teammate Pastor Maldonado on Lap 9, leading to Maldonado running his race until retiring on Lap 43 with a rear wing missing a right endplate. Sainz and Kvyat, in another bout of sister-team rivalry, fought for a few laps at the end of the race and their cars touched, Sainz coming out on top and avoiding a penalty from the stewards, but it's likely that Red Bull won't want to see that kind of bumping and grinding again.



Hamilton still leads the Driver's Championship with 111 points, but Rosberg's win gets him to 91 points, just a win and a Hamilton retirement from the top of the chart. Vettel lurks in third with 80 points. Mercedes' third one-two of the season gets them to 202 points in the Constructor's Championship, ahead of Ferrari with 132 and Williams with 81. The next race is in Monaco in two weeks, a race Rosberg has won the last two years and that Hamilton hasn't won since 2008. If Rosberg can take it again this year – but fairly – we might have a European season to start cheering about. We'll see you then.Featured Gallery2015 Spanish Grand Prix

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