Button and Hamilton taken out

Jenson Button and Lewis Hamilton were both involved in first-lap carnage in today’s Belgian Grand Prix.

The current championship leader and reigning world champion were both taken out in an accident at the top of the hill of the Spa circuit through the Les Combes turn.

The accident also accounted for the Renault of Romain Grosjean and Jaime Alguersuari in his Toro Rosso, forcing the safety car into play.

It left just 16 cars to contest the remainder of a race that began with a minor collision at the opening La Source hairpin between the Toyota of Timo Glock and Adrian Sutil in his Force India.

Sutil was forced into the pits at the end of a chaotic first lap, as were the Toyota of Jarno Trulli and Rubens Barrichello in his Brawn GP.

Starting from second on the grid, veteran Trulli was slow away and through La Source, dropping a number of places, resulting in him being tagged at Les Combes.

Barrichello, who was starting fourth, stalled when the five red lights disappeared, and was last by the time the Brazilian took the first corner.

The safety car stayed out for two laps whilst track marshals cleared away the four wrecked cars, and when the racing resumed Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen soon took the lead.

The Finn had made his way up to second from sixth on the grid by the end of lap one, running behind the pole-sitting Giancarlo Fisichella in his Force India.

With the power boost of KERS, Fisichella had no answer to the 2007 world champion as he powered past the Italian down the long straight on the approach to Les Combes.

Behind the leading duo, BMW Sauber’s Robert Kubica was running third after six laps, followed by Glock, Red Bull’s Mark Webber, the second BMW Sauber of Nick Heidfeld and the second Red Bull of Sebastian Vettel.