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Kovalainen, who started on the front row, punctured a tire after tangling with Raikkonen and never recovered to finish 12th.
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The result was encouraging for Kovalainen considering he was in hospital two weeks ago after being knocked unconscious from a high-speed crash into a wall at the Spanish GP.
"I think it's been the most competitive weekend for me. Hopefully it carries on from this," Kovalainen said.
Kovalainen's slip-up allowed Robert Kubica of BMW Sauber to remain in the title race. The Polish driver finished fourth and has 24 points. Teammate Nick Heidfeld moved up from ninth to finish fifth.
Renault's Fernando Alonso, Mark Webber of Red Bull, Nico Rosberg of Williams, Red Bull's David Coulthard and Jarno Trulli of Toyota round out the top 10.
No driver has won the same race in three consecutive years since Michael Schumacher's four straight victories at the U.S. Grand Prix from 2003-06.
Hamilton overtook Kovalainen at the first turn to sit behind Massa, with Kubica moving up to third. Raikkonen overtook Alonso to move into his starting spot of fourth.
Hamilton overtook with an inside move with Massa too late to close the gap as the two cars nearly touched. Hamilton was nearly five seconds clear before pitting again to start the 32nd. He kept his hard tires on and rejoined in third place behind the Ferraris.
"When I saw him on my side I said go and we'll see at the next stop where we'll be," Massa said.
Kovalainen worked his way out of a battle with Timo Glock near the tail of the field, the Finn eventually getting past the Toyota driver as well as Honda's Jenson Button.
Hamilton finished the last 13 laps on the soft tires, but couldn't get reel in Massa's five-second lead.
"At the end it was quite tough, the softer tire was definitely the worse tire," Hamilton said.
Giancarlo Fisichella, starting last after earning a grid penalty in practice, flew up and over Kazuki Nakajima's Williams car to take the two drivers out early on in the race.
The next stop on the F1 calendar is the 55th Monaco GP at Monte Carlo on May 25.
