Button wins season finale as Red Bull driver claims the title
Sunday 25 November 2012 22:52, UK
Formula 1, there really isn't anything quite like it. In the finale of all finales, the 2012 season ended with a heartbreaking near-miss for Fernando Alonso after an afternoon of relentless drama finally ended with Sebastian Vettel crossing the line in sixth place to claim his third title.
Alonso, all the while, was beyond reproach as he rounded both Felipe Massa and Mark Webber to charge forth and into fourth. There he stayed until Hulkenberg's ill-advised move wrecked Hamilton's farewell party and handed victory to Button. Further afield, Caterham were the big winners as they jumped into tenth position in the Constructors' Championship, a result which is worth at least $10m in prize money and will very possibly hand the F1 career of Heikki Kovalainen a last-gasp reprieve. But first and foremost, this was Vettel's day as F1 bowed down to Sebastian the Third and the rest of us were given a powerful, unforgettable reminder of why we follow this thing which is sometimes a sport, sometimes a business, frequently unfathomable, but almost always captivating entertainment. As we've always said, F1 is so much more than just a race. PG