Tire gamble boosts Button in F1 win

McLaren’s Jenson Button survived a first-corner collision and successfully gambled on a bold tire strategy to win a thrilling Formula One Australian Grand Prix at Melbourne on Sunday.

Button was the first driver prepared to change from intermediate tires to slicks on a drying track, and drove the final 52 laps on a wearing set of soft tires to claim back-to-back race wins in Melbourne.

The 2009 world champion tangled with Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso at the first corner, and inherited the lead just before half distance when pole sitter and race leader Sebastian Vettel ended up in a gravel trap after the brakes on his Red Bull failed.

Renault’s Robert Kubica was 12 seconds behind in second place, driving doggedly to hold off faster rivals and finish ahead of Ferrari pair Felipe Massa and Alonso. The top four drove most of the race uninterrupted on one set of tires, while their rivals behind them elected to stop for fresh rubber.

Boldest of all was Button, who changed to slicks when the track was still damp, carefully navigated while he got heat into his tires, and was rewarded with a victory in just his second race with McLaren, having won the world title with Brawn GP last year.

Rain postpones U.S. events

Rain throughout the Southern United States postponed several events on Sunday, including NASCAR’s Goody’s 500 Sprint Cup race at Martinsville, Va.; IndyCar’s Honda Grand Prix at St. Petersburg, Fla.; and the inaugural NHRA Four-Wide Nationals at Concord, N.C.

All three events were rescheduled for today.