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India sure to become a favourite fixture

Ferrari's Felipe Massa in action at the Indian Formula One Grand Prix at the Buddh International Circuit in Noida, on Sunday.

The inaugural Indian Grand Prix exceeded all expectations as everyone who graced the venue showered rich praise on the event and facilities.

- Inaugural Indian Grand Prix exceeds expectations

The reaction from the Formula One community and local officials alike was overwhelmingly positive, a feeling that India is sure to become a favourite fixture once the teething problems were resolved.

Photographs: Getty Images

Jordan changes tracks in Delhi

Eddie Jordan tries his hand at the drums at the F1 Rocks India Afterparty in Delhi.

Force India score points at home

British singer Boy George poses with Force India driver Paul di Resta at the F1 Rocks India Afterparty.

Force India scored a couple of points at their home Grand Prix after Adrian Sutil finished ninth, while Di Resta could only manage 13th place.

Grid girls add glamour

Grid girls add a bit of glamour to the F1 Rocks India Afterparty.

The Cuban Brothers have a ball

The Cuban Brothers sent the crowd into a frenzy at the F1 Rocks India Afterparty in Delhi.

'Indian Grand Prix was a great event'

Guests pose in front of the Sahara Force India F1 car at the F1 Rocks India Afterparty.

Team co-owner Vijay Mallya expressed his delight with his team's performance in front of their home fans.

"Today's Indian Grand Prix was a great event and I hope that all the fans enjoyed the day as much as I did. We targeted points and that's exactly what we delivered with Adrian's excellent drive to ninth. As for Paul, he performed well, but we went very aggressive with the strategy to cover the chance of a safety car. In the end it didn't work out, but we needed to cover our bases. These two points are important for our championship battle and I'm delighted that Sahara Force India will go down in the record books for scoring points in the inaugural Indian Grand Prix," he said after the race.

Vettel full of praise for Indian GP organisers

Sebastian Vettel celebrates on the podium after winning the Indian Grand Prix.

Red Bull's double world champion cruised to the chequered flag for his 11th victory in 17 races this season.

The German was full of praise for the newly-built Buddh International Circuit and lauded the organisers for coming up with the spanking track in such a short time.

"It's great to see what the people did here with the arena in such a short amount of time. There were little bit (hiccups) here and there but it is common in a first race. I am sure next year everything will be perfect," the German said.

Winners remember Wheldon, Simoncelli

Sauber's Kamui Kobayashi has an engine problem at the start of the Indian Grand Prix.

Britain's Jenson Button, the 2009 world champion, consolidated his grip on second place overall by finishing 8.4 seconds behind the German, while Ferrari's Fernando Alonso took third place a further 15.8 seconds adrift.

The podium finishers remembered IndyCar racer Dan Wheldon and Moto GP rider Marco Simoncelli who died recently in crashes, with second-placed Jenson Button dedicating the race to the two drivers.

95,000-odd crowd at Indian GP

A bevy of dignitaries, filmstars and cricketers were among the 95,000-odd crowd that thronged the Buddh International Circuit to witness the inaugural Indian Grand Prix.

Cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar, a self-confessed Formula One fan, waved the chequered flag at the end of the race.

Uttar Pradesh chief minister Mayawati Devi did the honours to bring the curtains down on a successful event by presenting the winner's trophy to Vettel amid loud cheers at the stands.