BARCELONA, Spain (CMC):

McLaren's Lewis Hamilton, who has Grenadian ancestry, produced a sound drive to finish third in Formula One's Spanish Grand Prix yesterday.

Despite starting from the third row on the grid after qualifying fifth on Saturday, Hamilton kept clear of trouble throughout the event at Circuit de Catalunya to finish four seconds behind winner Kimi Raikkonen of Ferrari, who clocked one hour, 38 minutes, 19.051 seconds. Felipe Massa, also of Ferrari, finished second - three seconds behind Raikkonen.

'Good to be back'

The 23-year-old Hamilton now lies second in the drivers' standings on 20 points, nine behind the Fin Raikkonen who is the reigning world champion.

"It's good to be back on the podium. After qualifying, we knew it would be a difficult Grand Prix so I am actually pleased to be third," Hamilton said afterward.

"I made a good start and was able to get lots of traction and could go to the right alongside Robert (Kubica) almost imme-diately. I managed to overtake him which is usually not easy as I recall from our battles in Formula Three.