Sebastian Vettel wins Belgian Grand Prix

Sebastian Vettel strengthened his hopes of securing back-to-back Formula One world titles with his and Red Bull's first Belgian Grand Prix victory.

It is now seven wins from 12 races this season for Vettel who holds a 92-point cushion over team-mate Mark Webber after the Australian finished second for the second successive year.

After his 17th career win, Vettel is in such a commanding position he has now scored more points so far this season - 259 - than he did in winning the title last year with 256.

The result was also the 10th one-two for Vettel and Webber, making them the fourth most successful pairing in F1 history.

Jenson Button produced a storming performance to claim third from 13th on the grid, but it was another wretched race for McLaren team-mate Lewis Hamilton as he crashed out on lap 13 following a collision with the Sauber of Kamui Kobayashi.

The two Britons are now 110 and 113 points respectively adrift of Vettel, with Ferrari's Fernando Alonso 102 down after he finished fourth in his Ferrari.

PA