HAMILTON WINS - FORCE INDIA UPSET @ MONACO GP

The Grand Prix of Monaco, one of the world's best racing spectacles, was completed in dramatic fashion today. McLaren-Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton, last year's dynamic debut, collected ten points with his win and moved into first place in the drivers standings. His teammate, Heikki Kovalainen, finished eighth.

Seventy-eight laps were not completed. Rain and accidents contributed to a slower pace. Force India's Adrian Sutil was on his way to a near-podium finish when Ferrari's over-anxious Kimi Raikkonen bumped into his rear; causing irreperable damage at that late stage of the race. Raikkonen's Ferrari ended up ninth, just out of the points, while the other Ferrari of Felipe Massa took the lowest rung on the podium. The Force India, Ferrari-powered car of Sutil was the last vehicle to exit the race early. Giancarlo Fisichella's Force India only completed about one third of the race.

BMW drivers Robert Kubica and Nick Heidfeld had dramatically different results. Heidfeld was the final finisher in fourteenth position (six racers did not finish) but Kubica, having led some portions of the race, was just three seconds back of Hamilton for second. 

Renault's Fernando Alonso and Nelsinho Piquet were the first two drivers back on dry tires after the city of Monte Carlo began to regain sunshine. Piquet crashed out. Alonso finished a lap back of the race winner in tenth. Renault engines helped Mark Webber in his Red Bull car to a fourth place result. David Coulthard's Red Bull-Renault completed just seven laps.

Timo Glock and Jarno Trulli were often found racing together in the latter part of the race in a small pack. Their Toyota's finished twelfth and thirteenth, respectively. Toyota engines in the Williams car of Kazuki Nakajima met with 2 points after he drove to a seventh place showing. Nico Rosberg's Williams-Toyota was in a shunt about seventeen laps from the chequered flag.

Sebastian Vettel's Scuderia Toro Rossa performed well and managed fifth place, about nine seconds ahead of Ferrari's factory car of reigning world champ Raikkonen. Sebastian Bourdais' STR-Ferrari saw just seven laps of the beautiful circuit.

Rubens Barichello, the most experienced man around Monaco, drove his Honda to sixth position. Honda's Jenson Button was back in eleventh.

Hamilton, in his McLaren-Mercedes, is just three points ahead of Raikkonen, who is just one point ahead of his teammate Felipe Massa, who himself is just two points ahead of BMW's Kubica. Two-thirds of the season remain. Montreal plays host to F1 on the eighth of June. 

Ferrari has a semi-comfortable lead in the team standings; 16 points ahead of McLaren-Mercedes. BMW's turnaround year continues with Kubica's terrific race. The team is just one points behind the Mercedes-powered team. Embarrasingly for recent champions Renault, their engines are helping Red Bull to a six point lead over the French; 15 points to 9.