FUJI (Japan), Oct 12: Renault’s Fernando Alonso stormed to his second win in a row at a wild Japanese Grand Prix on Sunday, while McLaren’s championship leader Lewis Hamilton plunged from first to last and failed to score.

Hamilton finished in 12th after starting on pole, with Ferrari’s Felipe Massa battling to eighth – later promoted to seventh – to close the gap on the Briton to five points with two races left.

The Formula One title rivals both received drive-through penalties, Hamilton for cutting across Kimi Raikkonen’s Ferrari and causing mayhem behind him in a mad dash to the first corner.

Massa, who survived several scrapes during the race, was similarly penalised after the Brazilian collided with Hamilton on lap two, spinning the McLaren and leaving the Briton at the back of the field.

Hamilton, who won in Japan last year before the title slipped from his grasp as Raikkonen made up a 17-point deficit over the final two races, denied his championship hopes had suffered serious damage.

“I don’t think it makes any difference,” said the 23-year-old. “I’m already getting over it. We’re going to make sure we win the last two races – not at any cost, but we plan on winning.”

BMW-Sauber’s Robert Kubica finished second to boost the Pole’s outside chances of the championship, while Raikkonen’s third place ended his title defence.

Massa picked up what could be a crucial extra point after stewards penalised Frenchman Sebastien Bourdais for a tangle with the Brazilian as the Toro Rosso emerged from the pits on lap 51.

Hamilton has 84 points with Massa on 79. Kubica has 72 with races in China and Brazil remaining.

Raikkonen, who started alongside Hamilton on the front row, earned Ferrari six points, lifting them back above McLaren in the constructors’ race. Ferrari have 142 to McLaren’s 135.

McLaren’s Heikki Kovalainen suffered a blown engine as the team failed to score a point for only the second time this year.

Renault’s Brazilian rookie Nelson Piquet finished fourth with Toyota’s Jarno Trulli taking fifth at the Japanese team’s home circuit.

Toro Rosso’s Sebastian Vettel, a winner in Italy last month, was promoted to sixth while Australian Mark Webber moved up to eighth for Red Bull.

Japan’s only Formula One driver Kazuki Nakajima was 15th and the last finisher in his home debut for Williams.

Results:

1. Fernando Alonso (Spain) Renault 1:30:21.892; 2. Robert Kubica (Poland) BMW Sauber +00:05.283; 3. Kimi Raikkonen (Finland) Ferrari 00:06.400; 4. Nelson Piquet (Brazil) Renault 00:20.570; 5. Jarno Trulli (Italy) Toyota 00:23.767; 6. Sebastian Vettel (Germany) Toro Rosso 00:39.207; 7. Felipe Massa (Brazil) Ferrari 00:46.158; 8. Mark Webber (Australia) Red Bull 00:50.811; 9. Nick Heidfeld (Germany) BMW Sauber 00:54.120; 10. Sebastien Bourdais (France) Toro Rosso 00:59.085; 11. Nico Rosberg (Germany) Williams 01:02.096; 12. Lewis Hamilton (Britain) McLaren 01:18.900; 13. Rubens Barrichello (Brazil) Honda 1 lap; 14. Jenson Button (Britain) Honda 1 lap; 15. Kazuki Nakajima (Japan) Williams 1 lap.

Retired: Giancarlo Fisichella (Italy) Force India 46 laps; Heikki Kovalainen (Finland) McLaren 51 laps; Adrian Sutil (Germany) Force India 59 laps; Timo Glock (Germany) Toyota 61 laps, David Coulthard (Britain) Red Bull 67 laps.

Fastest lap: Massa, 1:18.426, lap 55.

—Reuters