2010 Korean Grand Prix

The 2010 Korean Grand Prix was the seventeenth round of the 2010 Formula One season. It took place at the Korean International Circuit in Yeongam, South Jeolla, South Korea on 24 October 2010. This was the first Formula One race to be held in South Korea.

Ferrari's Fernando Alonso won the race to retake the drivers' championship lead after Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel retired on lap 46 from a race-leading position, due to engine failure. Alonso claimed the championship lead from Vettel's team-mate Mark Webber, as Webber spun out of the race on lap 19 and collected Mercedes' Nico Rosberg in a resultant collision. McLaren's Lewis Hamilton and the other Ferrari of Felipe Massa completed the podium in a race that was delayed – and eventually suspended for 45 minutes – due to persistent rain at the circuit.

Background
Following increased hostilities between North Korea and South Korea in the wake of the ROKS sinking of the South Korean corvette Cheonan in March 2010, Bernie Ecclestone had declared that the race would be in jeopardy if political tensions continued to escalate, and would be abandoned in the event that the army crossed the border. On 27 September 2010, Ecclestone expressed doubts that the circuit would be ready despite the tarmac having been laid. A final inspection of the circuit took place on 11 October, with the FIA's Charlie Whiting certifying the circuit was ready on 12 October. As the topmost layer of the surface was only completed ten days before the race, the oils and bitumen chemicals in the tarmac did not have time to be scoured away by the elements, leading circuit designer Hermann Tilke to predict the surface would be slippery, making the race challenging for drivers and exciting for fans. The slippery surface was evident when safety car driver Bernd Mayländer slid off the circuit while driving installation laps.

Following the Japanese Grand Prix, five drivers remained in contention for the title. However, as they finished behind rivals Sebastian Vettel, Mark Webber and Fernando Alonso, the McLarens of Jenson Button and Lewis Hamilton remain more than 25 points behind championship leader Webber, meaning they are slowly falling behind in the title race.

Free Practice
Other than the general complaint of a dirty track surface due to the asphalt being laid out recently, the layout of the Korean International Circuit received generally positive reviews with many drivers enjoying lapping the circuit. Renault's Robert Kubica commented that while the first sector is "boring", the track layout as a whole is "10 times better than Abu Dhabi". Michael Schumacher praised the demanding nature of the track and admitted to being "pleasantly surprised" with the track. While the last corner of the track was liked by many drivers, they were also quick to criticise the dangerous pit lane entry that the last corner leads to. After discussions with FIA race director Charlie Whiting, it was confirmed that a few areas of the track will undergo some tweaks to address the concerns of the drivers, including the final corner and turn 16.

Qualifying
Notes:
 * 1) – Renault's Vitaly Petrov was given a retroactive five-place grid penalty for causing an avoidable accident with Williams' Nico Hülkenberg at the start of the Japanese Grand Prix.

Standings after the race

 * Drivers' Championship standings


 * Constructors' Championship standings


 * Note: Only the top five positions are included for both sets of standings.