The Dream Continues! Button, Brawn GP Dominate Bahrain! Posted by: MSulka on Apr 26, 2009 - 10:28 AM

The Dream Continues! Button, Brawn GP Dominate Bahrain Grand Prix!By Mike Sulka Jenson Button dominated the 2009 Formula One Bahrain Grand Prix in thrilling style. Courtesy of Brawn GP The dream continues! Once a minnow, Brawn GP have won mightily once again with an exciting victory by Jenson Button at the 2009 Formula One Bahrain Grand Prix. For Button, it was a brilliant drive in incredible heat - over 100 degrees. It was the kind of dominant victory that leads to world championships. The deserving Briton came into Bahrain with a solid point lead, and will leave with a 12 point advantage over his teammate Rubens Barrichello. It was Button’s third win in four races this season and his fourth career F1 victory in 156 starts. It was also Brawn GP’s third win in their short four race history. "This was a tough race for us, this weekend we just haven’t had the pace that we had at the first few races, " said Button of his car. "I don’t know where it’s gone, but maybe these guys have started to catch up. The first half of the race was going to be very important because I knew Vettel was going to go long. But I made it work and came out of the last corner of the first lap in third!"

The team echoed those sentiments telling Button on the radio, "Great job Jenson, you won it on the first lap with great overtaking " referring to the great pass of Lewis Hamilton.

A happy Button answered back, "We’re going back to Europe with some very good points. Onward to Barcelona!"

Behind Button, Sebatien Vettel was working hard to prove he could win in the dry after taking a masterful win in Malaysia, but the youngster came up a bit short after qualifying very well on a heavy load of fuel.

"It was a very good result for us," said Vettel who is third in points just one behind Barrichello. "The start was OK, and all of a sudden I was surprised that there was Lewis Hamilton next to me. When I first looked in the mirrors, he was not there. I guess he pushed his special button, and that gave him an advantage into the first corner. I had to give way losing two positions on the first lap. I was stuck behind Jarno Trulli which was a shame because I could have gone quicker. After the first pit stop I got stuck behind him again, but again I was able to stay out longer and take the position."

Polesitter Jarno Trulli and Toyota equaled their best performance of the season with their third podium in four races. While it is a definite improvement for the franchise over their 2008 pace, the questions remain if it is enough ?

Not for a disappointed Trulli.

"I was wanting to get the first win for Toyota," said the Italian. "Unfortunately at the start I had tough luck and lost the position. I want to thank the team because they have done a very good job."

2008 Formula One World Champion Lewis Hamilton started fifth, and had a great launch at the start, but fell back to finish fourth after losing his battle with a brilliant Jense. He is now 22 markers behind in his defense of his title.

In fifth, Rubens Barrichello turned his sixth place starting position on the dirty side of the grid into a fifth place finish. Barrichello had to fight hard coming back through the pack, and was visibly upset by the slow pace of Renault’s Nelson Piquet.

2007 Formula One World Champion Kimi Raikkonen delivered Ferrari their first points of the 2009 season. Ferrari have never missed scoring points in the first four races of their history, and the Finn’s drive kept it that way with a sixth place finish.

Toyota’s Timo Glock and Renault’s Fernando Alonso rounded out the points.

Heading to the Spanish Grand Prix, Button has a solid grip on the points championship knowing that every time an F1 driver has won three of the first four races, they have won the driver’s World Championship.

And given the remarkable circumstances and turnaround at Brawn GP, that would be a very fitting result.

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