Starting second, Fernando Alonso goes too deep into the first corner and careers over the grass before rejoining the race

The error helps give McLaren team-mate Lewis Hamilton the chance to open up a two-second lead by the end of lap two

Felipe Massa begins in fifth and finds himself in the top three after another mistake by Alonso lets him through on lap 18

Ferrari colleague Kimi Raikkonen lies in fifth while youngster Hamilton edges closer to a 20-second lead at the front

The safety car makes its second appearance of the race following Robert Kubica's frightening-looking crash on lap 26

After hitting a wall at full speed, Kubica's car somersaults down the track and just avoids colliding with other cars

Kubica eventually comes to a halt after hitting a wall on the opposite side of the track, near the L'Epingle hairpin

Having been safely extracted from the wreckage, reports from hospital say the BMW driver has broken his leg

Hamilton keeps his cool out in front and celebrates his maiden Formula One victory with an accomplished performance

A delighted Hamilton 'does a Dettori' and jumps off his winning McLaren after parking his car in the collecting area

The taste of victory is sweet for Hamilton, who is now eight points ahead of team-mate Alonso in the driver standings