• Belgian GP

Raikkonen takes Ferrari's first win of 2009

Raikkonen swigs champagne after Spa victory © Sutton Images

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• Race:
• Belgian Grand Prix

• Championship:
• FIA Formula One World Championship

• Drivers:
• Giancarlo Fisichella
• |
• Kimi Räikkönen
• |
• Sebastian Vettel

• Teams:
• Ferrari
• |
• Racing Point
• |
• Red Bull

• Circuits:
• Spa-Francorchamps

Kimi Raikkonen held off a determined challenge from Force India's Giancarlo Fisichella to record Ferrari's first win of the season at the Belgian Grand Prix.

The race was not short of drama, with world champion Lewis Hamilton crashing out in a four-car pile-up on the first lap which forced an early safety car period. It also accounted for championship leader Jenson Button.

Raikkonen started in sixth and used his KERS advantage to perfection to move into second position in the first few corners, putting immediate pressure on Fisichella who had started on pole. On the restart Raikkonen outpaced Fisichella and he retained his lead to record his fourth win at Spa by under a second. Sebastian Vettel drove solidly to take third.

Rubens Barrichello only made a small inroad into team-mate Button's lead at the top of the drivers' championship in a race he won't look back on with fondness. He made a slow start off the grid, gained some lost ground with an early stop behind the safety car, but finished with smoke billowing from his Brawn. Seventh place and two points cut Button's advantage to 16 points.

Mark Webber finished ninth after being hit with a drive-through penalty for straying into the path of another car after his first pit stop, and Adrian Sutil continued to show signs of his and Force India's improvement with an impressive drive after an early collision had sent him into the pits. But Luca Badoer, the last of the 14 who finished, had another poor race for Ferrari.

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.