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Summary Jenson Button coasted to his second victory of the season at the crash-marred Belgian Grand Prix.
Jenson Button kept calm amid the chaos of the crash-marred Belgian Grand Prix on Sunday to record his second win of the season, while Formula One championship frontrunner Fernando Alonso saw his overall lead trimmed after being sent flying off the track following Romain Grosjeans reckless driving.It was Buttons first victory at Spa and the 14th of the British drivers career and probably one of the easiest as he led from start to finish, oblivious to the mayhem behind him.This is such a special circuit, so to get a victory here from light to flag is very special, Button said. It hasnt been an easy year for me. Were going to enjoy this for a little while longer before we head to Monza and hopefully do the same.Button triumphantly zigzagged across the track as he approached the finish line and then clapped his hands together in celebration. He then stood on his McLaren and leaned his head back as he clenched both fists.The car felt very good to drive and I could control the degradation of the tires. Its always easier to do that when youre leading, said Button, who climbed to sixth place overall. Its a massive long shot to win the title, but today proves that you can claw back 25 points very quickly. Theres still 63 points to make up, but anythings possible.Alonso, who is chasing his third F1 title, was relieved not to be badly hurt.You can have an injury in your hand or your head with a crash like that, so I am lucky in that aspect, Alonso said. I felt a train coming with a big, big hit.Defending champion Sebastian Vettel benefited from the mayhem to finish second and cut Alonsos lead to 24 points putting the two-time champion right back in contention.I was reasonably confident because I know anything can happen here and you can overtake, Vettel said.Kimi Raikkonen was third, continuing the consistent form hes shown all season long with his third straight podium and sixth overall.My car was not the nicest to drive the whole race, Raikkonen said. I was fighting to get the best out of it and we managed to get some key points, so that was the main thing.The crash also took out Mexican driver Sergio Perez, and Grosjean who was given a one-race ban for dangerous driving and will miss the Sept. 9 race in Monza, Italy.Grosjean went for a small gap and clipped Hamiltons McLaren. That sent both cars spinning and led to Grosjeans Lotus flying over Alonsos Ferrari, which then took out Perezs Sauber. All four drivers escaped injury.A visibly frustrated Hamilton briefly confronted Grosjean after the incident and tapped the side of his own helmet with his finger after getting out of his car.Following a miserable days qualifying on Saturday, Vettel was relieved to get on the podium after starting from 10th on the grid.It was a crazy race, after the first corner where a few cars went off, the German driver said. The car was quite good in the race and we were able to pick up some pace. It was a fantastic race, great to come second.Germanys Nico Hulkenberg was fourth for Force India, ahead of Ferraris Felipe Massa in fifth and Red Bulls Mark Webber, who had started from 12th because of a gearbox penalty.Alonso, who had picked up points in every race this season, was lucky to escape serious injury as Grosjeans Lotus went over his car and narrowly missed the Spaniards head.Button was not affected by the crash and maintained his lead as the safety car went out onto the track and piles of smashed car parts were cleared.
