2009 European Grand Prix

Barrichello ends drought, Button extends lead as Red Bull fails to score.

The 2009 European Grand Prix (formally the 2009 Formula 1 Telefónica Grand Prix of Europe) was a Formula One motor race held on 23 August 2009 at the Valencia Street Circuit in Valencia, Spain. It was the 11th race of the 2009 Formula One season. The race was contested over 57 laps, an overall race distance of 308.9 km (191.9 mi). The winner was Rubens Barrichello for Brawn GP after starting from third on the grid. The 2008 world champion Lewis Hamilton finished second for McLaren-Mercedes, while 2007 world champion Kimi Räikkönen finished in third for Ferrari. Championship leader Jenson Button finished in seventh for the second race in a row, but extended his lead as Red Bull Racing's Mark Webber and Sebastian Vettel both failed to score.

Quick Facts

Winner: Rubens Barrichello
Team: Brawn GP
Significance: Barrichello's first win since the 2004 Chinese Grand Prix

Lore & Background

It was Barrichello's first Grand Prix victory since the 2004 Chinese Grand Prix, 85 races earlier, while he was still driving for Ferrari. He also marked the 100th victory for a Brazilian driver in F1. The race saw the debut of GP2 Series driver Romain Grosjean, who replaced Nelson Piquet Jr. at Renault. It also saw the Grand Prix return of Luca Badoer who had not raced since the 1999 Japanese Grand Prix, replacing the injured Felipe Massa at Ferrari.

Also, Timo Glock scored his first, and Toyota's last, fastest lap. Barring the first lap, no on-track overtakes were recorded during this race, making this one of five Formula One races to have no overtakes. It is the only one out of the five to have neither been held at Monaco (the 2003 and 2021 races), nor under any controversial circumstances (the 2005 United States Grand Prix which had only 6 runners, and the 2021 Belgian Grand Prix, which ran entirely under Safety Car conditions).