Mark Webber pips Alonso to third position in 2011 standings

Joyous Jump: Mark Webber ecstatic after winning the 2011 Brazilian Grand Prix.

Aussie Mark Webber (Red Bull) not only won the Brazilian Grand Prix on Sunday, but also leapfrogged over Fernando Alonso in the Formula 1 driver’s championship table to attain a valuable third spot, behind his teammate Sebastian Vettel and McLaren’s Jenson Button. Incidentally, Sunday’s win was Webber’s first in the 2011 F1 season. Mark Webber, who was in contention for the World Championship last year, would be relieved with this win as he was struggling during most of the races this year.

F1 2011 drivers championship table (Click to enlarge)

Jenson Button withstood stiff challenges from Alonso and Webber to maintain second position in the standings. Ferrari‘s Fernando Alonso, who finished fourth in the race and in the standings, had a 12 point cushion over Webber going into this race. However, while Webber was victorious earning 25 points, Alonso managed to finish only fourth which fetched him just 12 world championship points. Thus Webber nosed ahead of Alonso with just a single point lead in the final world championship standings this year.

Sahara Force India’s Adrian Sutil gained the most from his 6th place finish in the race as he jumped two rugs over the Renault duo of Vitaly Petrov and Nick Heidfeld to reach a career best 9th place finish in the standings. Another Force India driver Paul di Resta too reaped the benefits of his 8th place finish on Sunday as he finished 13th in the standings in his debut season.

F1 2011 Brazilian Grand Prix Full Results (Click to enlarge)