An overjoyed Fernando Alonso couldn't quite believe it when he won Sunday's inaugural Singapore GP after starting 15th on the grid.
Spaniard revels in unexpected return to top step of the podium
Fernando Alonso was overjoyed after winning the Singapore Grand Prix from 15th on the grid.
The Renault driver, who came into the race without a podium all season, proved to be the quickest man in two of the weekend's three practice sessions.
It appeared any chance a points finish had been undone when he experienced a fuel pressure problem during Saturday's qualifying, leaving 15th on the grid for the first nigh race in Formula One history.
The Spaniard opted to start the race on a three-stop fuel load in the hope of making up places at the start, however, Renault switched strategy to a two-stopper after he was badly held up to Jarno Trulli during the first stint.
But moments later when his team-mate Nelson Piquet Jnr crashed, bringing out the safety car, Alonso found himself in prime position to take the lead, which he held onto to take the win.
"It's a fantastic first podium of the season and first win," he said. "I'm extremely happy and can't believe it right now.
"I think I need a couple of days to realise that we won a race this year which seemed impossible all season to be that close to the top guys."
Luck
Alonso conceded that he had enjoyed his fair share of luck during the race.
"We've been competitive since Friday and unlucky in qualifying but lucky today," he continued.
"We started at the back and the first safety car helped me a lot and I was able then to win the race.
"We chose to do a very aggressive first stint because we knew starting fifteenth you can't overtake and we thought about one stop but had concerned about the brakes, so we tried something very different with a short first stint, try to make as many places and see from there.
"After that we got in front and were able to build a gap to the guys behind us. The car was very good. I was with the better tyre in the last stint so had a bit of an advantage over Nico (Rosberg) and I was able to pull away."
