Hamilton's mechanics were frantically repairing a fuel leak on his car before the start of the race, but their hard work paid off as he finished ahead of Vettel. The German's Red Bull team-mate Mark Webber put in a sensational performance to claim the final podium position.
The Woking-based team made the dream start as both their drivers overtook Vettel at the first corner. Vettel hit back in the middle stages of the race, but ultimately the pit stop strategy cost him dearly.
The two McLaren drivers, Vettel, Felipe Massa and Nico Rosberg all led the race at one stage, but Red Bull's decision to put Vettel on a two-stopper saw him drop to P2 as Hamilton on a fresher set of rubbers overtook him on lap 52.
Webber, who started 18th on the grid, charged up the field pretty much the whole afternoon and he was rewarded with a P3 after overtaking Button on the penultimate lap.
Mercedes claimed their best result of the weekend as Rosberg hung onto P5 with Massa and Fernando Alonso fifth and sixth.
Results
01. Lewis Hamilton McLaren 1:36:58.226
02. Sebastian Vettel Red Bull +5.198
03. Mark Webber Red Bull +7.555
04. Jenson Button McLaren +10.000
05. Nico Rosberg Mercedes Grand Prix +13.448
06. Felipe Massa Ferrari +15.840
07. Fernando Alonso Ferrari +30.622
08. Michael Schumacher Mercedes Grand Prix +31.026
09. Vitaly Petrov Renault +57.404
10. Kamui Kobayashi Sauber +1:03.273
11. Paul di Resta Force India +1:08.757
12. Nick Heidfeld Renault +1:12.739
13. Rubens Barrichello Williams +1:30.189
14. Sebastien Buemi Scuderia Toro Rosso +1:30.671
15. Adrian Sutil Force India +1 Lap
16. Heikki Kovalainen Team Lotus +1 Lap
17. Sergio Perez Sauber +1 Lap
18. Pastor Maldonado Williams +1 Lap
19. Jarno Trulli Team Lotus +1 Lap
20. Jerome d' Ambrosio Virgin Racing +2 Laps
21. Timo Glock Virgin Racing +2 Laps
22. Vitantonio Liuzzi HRT F1 Team +2 Laps
23. Narain Karthikeyan HRT F1 Team +2 Laps
Did not finish
24. Jaime Alguersuari Scuderia Toro Rosso +47 Laps
Source: Planet-F1
