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 World Championship. 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.
It was Barrichello's first Grand Prix victory since the 2004 Chinese Grand Prix, 85 races before, while he was still driving for Ferrari. He also marked the 100th victory for a Brazilian driver in F1. Hamilton's second place granted him another podium, while Räikkönen's third place was his second podium in a row. The race saw the debut of GP2 Series driver Romain Grosjean. He replaced Nelson Piquet Jr. at Renault. This race also saw the Grand Prix return of Luca Badoer who had not raced since the 1999 Japanese Grand Prix. He replaced the injured Felipe Massa at Ferrari. Also, Timo Glock scored his first, and Toyota's last, fastest lap.
No overtakes were recorded during this race.
Report
Background
Jenson Button headed into the weekend still on top of the Drivers' Championship by 18.5 points in front of Mark Webber who had jumped ahead of team-mate Sebastian Vettel, who was on 47 points was only 3 points ahead of Brazilian Rubens Barrichello.
Brawn GP still lead the Constructor's Championship by 15.5 points from Red Bull Racing, with a further 58.5 points separating them from defending champions Ferrari. Ferrari had jumped Toyota after Kimi Räikkönen has finished 2nd place in the previous race.
Lewis Hamilton of McLaren-Mercedes won the last race in the championship, 4 weeks previously in Budapest for the Hungarian Grand Prix. He qualified 4th on the grid and won the race in dominating style to take his first race victory since the 2008 Chinese Grand Prix. Hamilton's win also marked the first victory for a car equipped with KERS. Kimi Räikkönen earned second place, his best result of the season. This however was only his second podium and his fourth points scoring finish of the season. Mark Webber finished third, Jenson Button finished 7th, and Rubens Barrichello came 10th while Sebastian Vettel retired because of suspension damage.
Felipe Massa dominated the 2008 race, leading 50 of 57 laps from pole and setting the fastest lap in the process. Former European Grand Prix winners Rubens Barrichello and Fernando Alonso were also racing, though Massa is the only winner at Valencia.
Massa would miss the Grand Prix after he underwent surgery following an accident in the second part of qualifying at the Hungarian Grand Prix. He had life-threatening injuries including a fractured skull, and it was expected that he would be in recovery for at least six weeks. Consequently, this Grand Prix would see the return of Luca Badoer to Formula One in order to replace Massa. Badoer has the record for most races in Formula One without points with 48; he was perhaps closest to scoring points when he retired from fourth in the 1999 European Grand Prix for Minardi.
Meanwhile, Renault announced on 4 August that Nelson Piquet Jr.'s contract with the team had been terminated with immediate effect; this decision was made after Piquet had not scored a single point all season. His replacement Romain Grosjean was announced on 18 August. It was believed that he would be racing for the remainder of the season.
Renault had initially been suspended from the Grand Prix as a result of the events that led to a wheel coming off Alonso's car during the Hungarian Grand Prix. However, Renault appealed to the FIA Court of Appeal, who overturned the suspension, and enabled Alonso to race at his home Grand Prix.