Vodafone McLaren Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton finished the inaugural Singapore Grand Prix, the first night race in Formula 1 history, in third place. After 61 eventful laps (309.087km) with two Safety Car periods, Lewis came home 5.9sec behind winner, former teammate Fernando Alonso, to extend his championship lead over title rival Felipe Massa, to seven points, after the Ferrari driver failed to score any points.

"A positive end to a difficult weekend at this fantastic new venue. I started well, but then my rear tyres faded and, although we had good pace, I wasn’t in a position to challenge Felipe ahead of me. During my first pit stop I lost a bit of time because everybody came in due to the Safety Car period. After that I was unfortunately stuck behind David and although I was clearly faster it was really difficult to overtake him. After the second re-start, I tried to stay as close as possible behind Nico; however, I didn't want to take chances - particularly as the Ferraris were outside the points. Also, this is not a track where overtaking is easy. The first night race in Formula 1 history was great fun, and I now look forward to the forthcoming double-header in Japan and China."

Meanwhile, teammate Heikki Kovalainen ended up crossing the line 10th after a coming together with the BMW of Robert Kubica at the start of the race damaged his car.

"I made a good start and was going to pass Kubica round the outside at the first two corners. Unfortunately he touched me and almost spun me around. My underfloor was slightly damaged as a result. I lost momentum and two cars overtook me,” he explained. “When the Safety Car came out and the pitlane was opened a couple of laps later, Lewis and I came in and I had to wait behind him until it was my turn. It then was a strange race and most of the time I was in traffic with no overtaking chances. Halfway through the race I had brake problems and had to conserve them until the finish. I’m happy for Lewis and the team now that he has extended the championship lead and we are on top of the Constructors’ rankings. I will now go for it in the next races and help to make sure that we stay ahead in both championships."

After 15 out of 18 races, Vodafone McLaren Mercedes has taken the lead in the Constructors' Championship with 135 points ahead of Ferrari with 134 points.