Formula One: Button takes first blood from Vettel in Australian Grand Prix

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McLaren's Jenson Button won the Australian Grand Prix in a thrilling start to the season on Sunday as he held off two-time defending champion Sebastian Vettel in second place.

Button took full advantage of an error by pole-sitting team-mate Lewis Hamilton to lead from the start of the race. Hamilton finished third with Vettel's Red Bull colleague, Mark Webber, fourth.

Button, the 2009 champion, finished second to Vettel in last year's standings but way ahead of Hamilton in fifth, and the affable Briton will be delighted to throw down the gauntlet to both rivals in the year's first race.

Vettel, 24, is aiming to become just the third man to win three championships in a row, while Hamilton is determined to bounce back from his poor showing in 2011.