Race Notes - Barrichello wins Italian GP

Rubens Barrichello won the Italian Grand Prix at Monza today in his Brawn-Mercedes, 2.8 seconds ahead of his team mate Jenson Button, followed 30.6 seconds behind by Kimi Raikkonen in his Ferrari - after Lewis Hamilton crashes out on the last lap from third place.

Adrian Sutil (31.1s) in the Force India-Mercedes finishes in fourth place, followed by Fernando Alonso (59.1s) in the Renault in fifth, Heikki Kovalainen (60.6s) in the McLaren-Mercedes in sixth, Nick Heidfeld (82.4s) in the Sauber BMW in seventh, and Sebastian Vettel (85.4s) in the Red Bull-Renault in the final points paying position.

Hamilton, Sutil and Raikkonen were running light at the start and ran a two-stop strategy, while the Brawns and the rest of the field ran a one-stop strategy. While the first half of the race was dominated by Hamilton, the second half of the race came to the two Brawn drivers when all the stops were done.

The win is Barrichello's third Italian GP victory, the first two while driving for Ferrari. Barrichello has closed the gap by two points in the drivers' standing, and is now 14 points behind his team mate Button - while their closest rivals, Red Bull, had a disastrous day with Vettel only scoring one point, and his team mate Mark Webber crashing on the first lap of the race. Brawn GP now leads the Constructors Championship by 40.5 points over the Red Bull team.

Before the start Jaime Alguersuari goes to the pitlane.

At the start Hamilton leads, Raikkonen passing Sutil for second place and Barrichello battling and taking fourth from Kovalainen. Button gets past Vitantonio Liuzzi, while Webber gets together with Robert Kubca and is off at the second chicane and out of the race, Kubica's front wing is damaged.

On lap 2 Alonso passes Vettel, and then Kubica for 8th place.

On lap 3 Alonso passes Kovalainen for seventh place, Nico Rosberg goes to the pitlane with a damaged front wing.

At lap 5 Hamilton leads Raikkonen by 2.8 seconds, followed by Sutil (4.0s), Barrichello (8.5s), Button (10.4s), Liuzzi (11.6s), Alonso (13.8s), Kovalainen (15.2s), Kubica (17.8s) and Vettel (18.3s) in tenth place - Giancarlo Fisichella in 12th.

On lap 9 Kubica is shown the black and orange flag, the officials wanting him to pit to repair his front wing - he pits the next lap.

Hamilton continues to stretch out his lead to 5.2 seconds on lap 10, while Sutil closes to half a second of Raikkonen.

Renault informs Romain Grosjean to use second-gear in the chicane, as his gearbox is overheating. Alonso is closing in on Liuzzi in sixth place.

Hamilton reports to the pits that his car is oversteering and that his rear tyres are going off.

At lap 15, with the first three runners on a two-stop strategy, Hamilton is the first to make a pitstop, and rejoins in fifth place behind Button.

On lap 16 Kubica pits again and is wheeled into the garage. Rosberg pits as well.

On lap 18 Sutil pits from second place, and rejoins in seventh, behind Alonso.

On lap 19 Raikkonen pits from the lead, and rejoins between Liuzzi and Alonso in fifth place.

At lap 20 Barrichello leads Button by 2.4 seconds, followed by Hamilton (11.4s), Liuzzi (13.4s), Raikkonen (14.8s), Alonso (15.1s), Sutil (17.2s), Kovalainen (18.3s), Vettel (24.4s) and Heidfeld (27.4s) in tenth place.

Algiersuari retires to the pits.

On lap 23 Liuzzi stops on the side of the track with a gearbox problem while running fourth - his race is over.

Hamilton is told by his team that he needs to find a couple of tenths of a second a lap to beat the Brawns on his strategy.

On lap 26 Alonso pits from sixth place, rejoining in tenth. Kovalainen and Vettel pit on the next lap.

On lap 28 Button pits from second place, rejoining in fifth.

Barrichello pits from the lead the next lap, rejoining ahead of Button in fourth place.

On lap 30 Fisichella pits from seventh place.

At lap 31 Hamilton retakes the lead of the race, by 5.4 seconds over Raikkonen, followed by Sutil (6.4s), Barrichello (15.0s), Button (19.5s), Heidfeld (25.9s), Alonso (40.5s), Kazuki Nakajima (43.0s), Jarno Trulli (43.9s) and Kovalainen (45.5s) in tenth place.

On lap 31 Heidfeld pits for his only stop.

On lap 33 Sebastien Buemi overtakes Fisichella for 13th place.

On lap 34 Hamilton makes his second stop - rejoining in fifth place behind the Brawns of Barrichello and Button.

On lap 36 Nakajima and Trulli pit, while Sutil straight-lines the first chicane.

Raikkonen and Sutil running fast laps at the front.

At lap 36 Raikkonen leads Sutil by 1.2 seconds, followed by Barrichello (12.5s), Button (17.6s), Hamilton (21.0), Alonso (40.9s), Kovalainen (46.8s), Timo Glock (47.8s), Heidfeld (52.1s) and Vettel (54.8s) in tenth place.

On lap 37 Buemi pits.

On lap 38 leader Raikkonen and second placed Sutil both pit. Raikkonen's stumbles leaving and Sutil overshoots his pit slightly, slowing both of their stops - the rejoin in the same order in fourth and fifth place. Glock also pits.

On lap 42 Vettel goes wide and runs through the gravel at the second Lesmo corner, but continues.

At lap 45 Barrichello leads Button by 4.3 seconds, followed by Hamilton (6.0s), Raikkonen (18.7s), Sutil (19.3s), Alonso (34.1s), Kovalainen (37.9s), Heidfeld (47.0s), Vettel (53.1s) and Fisichella (60.9s) in tenth place.

Hamilton closes to under 2 seconds of Button in second place.

On lap 49 Trulli and Nakajima make contact at the first corner but continue, then Trulli battles with his team mate Glock, Trulli losing control and going through the gravel in the first Lesmo corner, rejoining but losing a spot to Buemi.

At lap 50 Barrichello continues to lead his Brawn team mate by 4.0 seconds, followed closely by Hamilton (5.4s), Raikkonen (21.4s), Sutil (22.1s), Alonso (36.1s), Kovalainen (38.9s), Heidfeld (52.3s), Vettel (54.7s) and Fisichella (65.8s) in tenth place.

On the final lap Hamilton spins between the two Lesmo corners and crashes into the barrier on the inside on the track - Hamilton gets out of the car okay, and the race finishes under caution.