Spanish GP 2016

Verstappen Tares Up Record Books

Max Verstappen ended Nico Rosberg's winning streak by winning the Spanish GP on his debut for Red Bull. In doing so, Verstappen broke countless records in F1, something that was bound to happen sooner or later. Kimi Raikkonen finished 2nd behind the Dutchman, with Ferrari team mate, Sebastian Vettel rounding off the podiums with a 3rd place finish. Verstappen's team mate, Daniel Ricciardo finished 4th after a puncture spoilt his chances of a podium finish. Valtteri Bottas ran a very lonely race coming in 5th, with local boy Carlos Sainz coming home 6th in the Toro Rosso, ahead of Sergio Perez in the Force India. Felipe Massa mounted a great recovery race from 18th after a poor qualifying to finish in 8th just ahead of Jenson Button's McLaren and Toro Rosso's Dani Kvyat rounding off the top 10. Both Mercedes retired on lap 1 after colliding with each other at turn 4, allowing for a very refreshing race, one that will live long in the memory of Max Verstappen.

Verstappen became the youngest ever grand prix winner at just 18 years and 228 days, eclipsing Sebastian Vettel's previous record of 21 years and 73 days. He also beat Vettel's record of the youngest podium finisher by the same margin. When Verstappen led his first full lap of the Spanish GP, he became the youngest leader of a Formula 1 race, again beating Vettel's record of 20 years and 89 days (Japanese GP 2007). Moreover, Verstappen became the first Dutchman to win a Formula 1 race, which in turn will surely raise the sports popularity in the Netherlands.

After the Mercedes pair took each other out, it was a straight fight between Ferrari and Red Bull, but not between Ricciardo and Vettel like many would have predicted. Both teams decided to split their strategies, putting Ricciardo and Vettel on a 3 stopper, with Raikkonen and Verstappen going for a 2 stopper. This raised eyebrows due to the early nature of the second stops, as the tyres were not predicted to go too far. However both Verstappen and Raikkonen managed their medium compound tyres superbly and made their two stoppers work to take the top 2 steps on the podium. What we saw in the battle between Verstappen and Raikkonen was just how good Verstappen is, holding off the 2007 World Champion brilliantly with some great race craft. It also showed how good the Red Bull car actually is. In the final sector, Verstappen was able to bridge just enough of a gap, because of the Red Bull's superiority, coming out the final corner. Although had Raikkonen been more aggressive at turn 1 on the occasions he was close, it could have been Raikkonen on the top step. Behind them, a brilliant battle between Vettel and Ricciardo unfolded with some fantastic racing between the pair. A puncture to Ricciardo spoilt a fight to the finish with Vetter, and again had Ricciardo managed to make a move on Vettel stick, it could have been a 3 horse battle for victory. This was not the case however, and the scenes at the end were of a jubilant teenager and a very proud father. Monaco should be a cracker in two weeks time because it is not a track where the Mercedes will run off into the distance. Red Bull will be there or there abouts due to the high downforce nature of the track. 

Mercedes Implode 

 

The incident on lap 1 at turn 4 between Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg has been coming since mid 2014. We have seen flash points on track between the pair, notably Spa in 2014 where they touched wheels, causing a puncture to Hamilton, and again in Austin last year where an aggressive Hamilton hit Rosberg at the 1st corner. What we saw in Spain though was a Senna/Prost style collision, that could have been avoidable. Hamilton had a poor start from pole which allowed Rosberg to get the initial jump on Hamilton. Coming out of turn 3, Hamilton was so much quicker than Rosberg who went on the defence. The rest is history. Rosberg keeps his advantage over Hamilton, but team relations surely must be strained by the latest scuffle. The race stewards put it down as a racing incident, something the two drivers agreed with, although Rosberg seemed to agree through gritted teeth. Personally, I believe it was a case of over aggressive attacking against over aggressive defending, which is not necessarily a bad thing, it just needs to be managed now by Mercedes. Both drivers want to beat each other so badly, but there will be a time when the Mercedes team will have to do something before it ruins their own championship goals.

The Kvyat Fallout 

Before the Spanish GP, it was announced that Dani Kvyat would drop down from Red Bull to Toro Rosso to make way for Max Verstappen. Kvyat's indifferent form since joining Red Bull at the start of 2014 has ultimately cost him. His antics at his home race in Russia were not the reason for the switch, but certainly would have had an effect. Kvyat was clearly torn up by the demotion over the weekend but to see Verstappen win on his debut would have been a tough pill to swallow. Had it been Kvyat in Verstappen's place, I don't think Red Bull would have came away with a win in Spain. Kvyat has shown glimpses of how good he is with two podium finishes for Red Bull, but the ruthless Dr Helmut Marko felt a change was needed. Marko has had a history of wielding the axe on young Red Bull drivers, even when they have done a solid job, take Jean-Eric Vergne for example. What this has done also is put to rest the speculation that Verstappen will be racing for Ferrari or Mercedes in the near future, a smart move for everybody at Red Bull. Kvyat will have to pick himself up and prove that he should be back in that team, although I do not see that happening any time soon.

Russian GP 2016

7th Heaven for Rosberg

In cruising to yet another victory at the Russian GP, Nico Rosberg entered a very exclusive club, becoming only the 4th driver in the sport’s history to achieve the feat of winning 7 races in a row. Reigning World Champion Lewis Hamilton finished a distant 2nd to Rosberg again, but mounted a brilliant drive from 10th after another engine issue in qualifying kept him out of the pole position shootout. Kimi Raikkonen scored Ferrari's 700th podium in Formula 1 after finishing 3rd behind the two Mercedes. Valtteri Bottas couldn't make the most of a front row start as he finished 4th, with his team mate, Felipe Massa bringing his car home 5th. There were welcomed points for McLaren and Renault as Fernando Alonso and Kevin Magnussen finished 6th and 7th respectively, both scoring their first points this season. The Haas team returned to the points with Romain Grosjean finishing 8th ahead of Force India's Sergio Perez and McLaren's Jenson Button who finished in 10th, and set a new record for points scoring in consecutive seasons - his 17th point scoring season in succession. However, the main talking point of the race was again Dani Kvyat and Sebastian Vettel. It was handbags in China in my view but Russia was a different story as Vettel crashed out as a result of Kvyat. 

Rosberg once again got a stunning start and managed to avoid the chaos behind him. In China, Kvyat had plenty of space to put a move on Vettel, much to the Germans annoyance at the manner and speed at which it was done. Fast forward two weeks to Russia, and Kvyat is charging off the grid into turn one. They made it through into turn 2 and Kvyat just couldn't slow down and went straight into the back of Vettel. To make matters worse, going through turn 3 Kvyat hit Vettel again, causing the former World Champion to spin off into the barriers. Vettel was understandably furious with the young Russian, racing in front of his home fans, and gave a foul mouthed assessment of the situation. Further back more collisions occurred which saw both Esteban Gutierrez and Nico Hulkenberg collide with each other, taking them both out of the race. With another chaotic start and bits of car everywhere, the safety car made and appearance whilst all of the debris was cleared up. To make matters worse at Red Bull, the accident that Kvyat caused had a horrible effect on team mate Daniel Ricciardo's race, who had to make an emergency stop under the safety car and had to queue up behind Kvyat. Effectively, the whole team’s race was over by turn 1. As always however, there are drivers who benefit from this kind of situation. This time round it was Alonso and Magnussen, who qualified right down the field but were able to score good points.  

Despite all of this, the accomplishment of Nico Rosberg should not be overlooked. Rosberg's performance was nothing short of perfect, as it has been all season. Many people point to Lewis' reliability issues, but I believe that Rosberg has the edge over Hamilton regardless. Hamilton has been very sulky about the situation, but he must not forget the issues that have plagued Rosberg in previous seasons. I'm not implying that Rosberg would have won any championships during that time, but he may have been closer. Rosberg should enjoy the wave of luck he is finally getting in F1 while he can, because like the great Murray Walker says, anything can happen in F1, and it usually does.   

Formula Junior Starts in 2016

Maybe at some point in 2016 we will see a start to a race where the first corner is not littered with Formula 1 car parts. I can't remember a season or streak of races where so many collisions have occurred during the first few corners, or opening laps. Australia saw the heavy incident involving Alonso and Gutierrez which came further into the race. From Bahrain through until Russia, the starts to the pinnacle of motor racing have been nothing short of something you can view in GP2. Everybody enjoys close action racing going into turn 1, but the results lately have robbed fans of potentially thrilling races. Incidences in Bahrain involving Hamilton and Bottas stand out, and in China there were bit of front wing flying everywhere. Russia though was the tipping point. Kvyat steaming into Vettel like that was nothing short of amateur, and Vettel had every right to react in the manor he did. I think his interview during the race was handled in a brilliant manor by Vettel as he could have easily stood and slated Kvyat. He remained professional in my opinion and rightly went to speak to Red Bull boss Christian Horner. I believe the problem is many drivers are being thrown into F1 at such a young, inexperienced age. Yes, drivers such as Vettel, Alonso and Hamilton started at a young age, but had been through several racing formulas beforehand. Kvyat for example raced in GP3 for one season and came into F1. Max Verstappen didn't even do that before becoming F1's youngest ever driver. Although he will undoubtedly become World Champion one day, I think he should have had more junior formula experience, as is the case with many others. On Kvyat however, he can take some comfort in the fact that Romain Grosjean was being labelled as a liability on the circuit, and how he is one of the finest drivers out there. Just something to think about.

The Unflappable Finn

What is it about Finnish drivers in F1 and their inability to crack under pressure? As far as I can remember, the only time I've seen a Finn flap in F1 was back in 1999 when Mika Hakkinen spun at the Italian GP and lost it. That was a one off. I bring this up because watching Valtteri Bottas at the Russian GP was a joy to behold. Starting P2 on the grid with the faster Ferrari's behind him (thanks to Vettel's grid penalty) and obviously Hamilton who would charge through the field. Vettel obviously never managed to get near Bottas, but when Hamilton did he put him under enormous pressure which many drivers would crack under. Bottas never once showed a sign of cracking and it took a brilliant move by Hamilton to get past the unflappable Finn. Unfortunately for Bottas, his Williams just wasn't quick enough to get in a podium fighting place, but his race as a whole was brilliant.  

Chinese GP 2016

Rosberg Eases to Sixth Consecutive Victory

Another dominant display from Nico Rosberg ensured that he maintained his 100% start to 2016 with victory in China. Sebastian Vettel recovered after a first corner incident with team mate Kimi Raikkonen to finish 2nd with Red Bull's Dani Kvyat finishing behind Vettel in 3rd. Another recovery drive saw Daniel Ricciardo finish 4th ahead of Kimi Raikkonen, who also had to recover after the Vettel incident. Felipe Massa drove a solid race to finish 6th with Lewis Hamilton coming from 22nd on the grid to finish 7th. The Toro Rosso pair of Max Verstappen and Carlos Sainz were 8th and 9th with Valtteri Bottas rounding off the point scoring positions in 10th. All 22 drivers finished the race, with bad days for the Renault team as their cars only managed 17th and 22nd. Romain Grosjean's stunning start to the season stuttered on what was his 30th birthday as the Haas couldn't adapt to the conditions in China and he finished a very lowly 19th.

After showing his dominance in qualifying by setting his fastest Q2 time on soft tyres, it was Rosberg's to throw away from the start. Everybody around Rosberg started on the super-softs which would last only a matter of laps, so if anyone was going to stop Rosberg, they had to do it off the line. Step up Daniel Ricciardo, who from an outstanding 2nd on the grid, got the jump on Rosberg into turn one. Behind them, it was bedlam with the race resembling that of a dodgem park. The other fast starting Red Bull of Kvyat saw a fantastic opportunity to take the two scarlet Ferrari's into turn 1 which in turn led to the dodgems that followed. Vettel felt aggrieved by the young Russians manoeuvre which resulted in Vettel colliding with Raikkonen, ruining the Finns race before it even started. As a result of Raikkonen coming back on the track without his front wing, Felipe Nasr in the Sauber had to take avoiding action that only led him into the charging Hamilton, who lost his front wing and really his chance of a podium finish. That was until all of the debris caused leader Ricciardo's tyre to puncture, adding more debris to the track and resulting in a safety car, essentially bringing Hamilton and Raikkonen back into play. The majority of the field decided to pit to ditch their super-softs, allowing drivers who started on the softs to move up the field, notably Pascal Wehrlein in the Manor and Esteban Gutierrez in the Hass moved into 4th and 5th. From the restart, Rosberg drove off into the distance and was barley seen for the rest of the race. Vettel's charge through the field after the safety car was tremendous to watch. Watching his overtakes for me shows that his all round talent is most certainly there despite what people may say. He had his hands full when it came to the two Red Bulls but showed brilliant race craft to get past. His team mate Raikkonen also showed why he won a World Championship with a superb drive, showing the Kimi of old. Despite these brilliant drives, I don't think they would have gotten near Rosberg who controlled the race superbly and won by a stunning 37 seconds.

Vettel Criticises Kvyat

Sebastian Vettel did not hide his displeasure with Red Bulls Dani Kvyat after the race, and during for that matter. Vettel firmly believed that Kvyat should not have tried to pass him at turn 1 citing that there was not enough room which forced Vettel into Raikkonen. Vettel referred to the move over team radio as suicidal, saying Kvyat came at him like a torpedo. Looking at the footage from a height and onboard, I believe Vettel was really trying to make excuses for colliding with Raikkonen, especially with the Ferrari boss Sergio Marchionne present in Shanghai. Vettel had left more than enough space which Kvyat was not going to ignore. He was travelling at great speed, but nothing to suggest that he was going to be unable to stop. The mistake ruined Vettel's race and he did superbly to come back and score a podium. Even without the mistake, I don't think Vettel could have beaten Rosberg on the track simply because Rosberg looked too good. Vettel even confronted Kvyat in the cool down room before the podium to show his displeasure in which Kvyat laughed his complaint off by simply replying "yea but I'm on the podium and so are you"  

Midfield Competitiveness a Joy to Watch  

Despite the fact that Nico Rosberg drove off into the distance to record a comfortable win at the Chinese GP, it was still a cracking race thanks to the midfield battle. We as fans are so lucky to witness this golden age of F1, with so many talented drivers and teams on the grid, Despite all of the childish political problems that occur on a weekly basis, it does not take away the fact that the on track action has been fantastic over the last few seasons. It seems to have been taken up a level this season thus far, keeping fans on the edge of their seats from start to finish. This is down to the emergence of future title challengers such as Max Verstappen, Carlos Sainz just to name two. Also due to experienced drivers such as Romain Grosjean, Nico Hulkenberg being at these midfield teams, it really spices up the races. The progression of the midfield teams is something that also contributes, with all of them upping the pace and their reliability, despite a couple of them running into serious financial trouble. I feel as though this season, the gains made by Renault, Ferrari and even Honda have added an extra ingredient to the recipe. Bridging this engine gap has certainly brought the action closer together, although not at the front where we want it to happen. Nevertheless, it is bringing the action closer together somewhere on the track, making the racing edge of your seat stuff and a joy to watch.       

Bahrain GP 2016

Bahrain GP 20165 in a row for Rosberg

Nico Rosberg scored his 5th consecutive win at the Bahrain GP to maintain his perfect start to 2016. Kimi Raikkonen came home 2nd, breaking the record for podium finishes at the same race, whilst Lewis Hamilton had to recover yet another race to finish 3rd. It was another solid 4th for Daniel Ricciardo and Romain Grosjean went one better than he did in Australia, bringing his Haas home in 5th. Max Verstappen was 6th for Toro Rosso, with the Williams pair of Felipe Massa and Valtteri Bottas coming in 7th and 8th. Dani Kvyat was 9th after starting 18th and Stoffel Vandoorne was 10th on his McLaren debut, deputising for the injured Fernando Alonso. It was a day to forget for Sebastian Vettel however as his engine starting smoking on the formation lap and didn't make it to the start.

This failure for Vettel was one of a few incidents that robbed the fans of a potential fascinating battle for the victory, which Rosberg took comfortably in the end. At the start, Rosberg once again got the jump on Hamilton, whilst Raikkonen was almost static and fell back. In the run down to turn one, the fast starting Williams’ were right up there with the Mercedes’, and Bottas tried to go up the inside of Hamilton before with him, causing the Mercedes body damage. The result of this saw Hamilton fall back down the field and another damage limitations drive was needed for the World Champion. Bottas also received a drive through penalty for causing a collision, something I believe was harsh simply because there was definitely a gap for Bottas to try and go for. This, along with Raikkonen's poor start, allowed Rosberg to control the race from the front again and win comfortably. Had Vettel started, Hamilton avoided contact, and Raikkonen started well, it could have been an absolute cracker up front. A significant thing with this victory is the number five. No driver has ever won five races in a row and not won the World Championship. A sign perhaps?

After another shocking qualifying session, the racing again was exciting to watch, albeit not at the front where everyone wants it. Easily from 4th down to last place, cars were going up the inside, around the outside, any possible way just to make up one place, even if it was just for 11th, 12th or 13th. Pascal Wehrlein was a superb example of this throughout the race, eventually finishing in 13th place and showing the progress the Manor team are making with the Mercedes engines. Amongst all the overtaking, bits of front wing and everything else seemed to be flying all over the place. By the end of lap 1 Hamilton was missing bits of car, as was Bottas and Ricciardo. Sergio Perez also had a collision resulting in a new front wing. Formula 1 had turned into a demolition derby for a few laps at least.

Reliability an Issue for Ferrari

Sebastian Vettel's failure on the formation lap at the Bahrain GP is the second reliability issue the team has had this season. In Australia, Kimi Raikkonen had some kind of engine issue which saw flames shoot out from the overhead air duct. Vettel also had issues in practise that looked like engine or gearbox but turned out to be a loose wheel. Even the fact that a loose wheel was the culprit, it still shows that Ferrari have issues. A problem with the wheel gun and the wheel nut was the issue in Bahrain. The most concerning however would definitely be the engine issues that seem to be plaguing the team. They have clearly made progress with the power unit and closed the gap to Mercedes.

The fact that they seem unwilling to run the car to full capacity with regards to the engine shows that the team are aware of this, even if they don't want to openly admit it. Sebastian Vettel has came out and said that the team are surprised by their reliability issues. These engine troubles could also have ramifications for Sauber and Haas who both run 2016 Ferrari engines. For their season to have a real title push, they really need to sort this out fast, or risk losing more ground to Mercedes.

Haas F1 Fallout?

After the Bahrain GP I posted a question on twitter asking should the likes of Williams, Force India and Sauber feel aggrieved by the fantastic start the team have made to F1 life? It prompted many different responses ranging from definitely yes, to absolutely not. Personally I don't think they should. What the Haas team has done should be the new blueprint for any team wanting to compete in Formula 1. In 2010 when Caterham (Team Lotus), HRT and Virgin Racing came to the grid with no proper financial backing or plan it was a disaster waiting to happen. HRT and Caterham failed to score a single point in Formula 1 during their short tenures in the sport. Virgin Racing have had two name changes, now running under the Manor name and have scored just two solitary points in this their 7th season. Haas in just two races have scored 18 points. The idea of planning out the team and setting it up the way Gene Haas has should be applauded. Essentially they are a Ferrari B team with the amount of Ferrari equipment that has been used and using former Ferrari test driver Esteban Gutierrez as one of its drivers. Williams have been vocal in their opposition to the way Haas have entered F1 but fail to mention that they started in very similar fashion. I can see the point of view of Force India and Sauber a bit more as they have been completely independent since joining F1, and never made a secret of the financial difficulties they've encountered. It was even rumoured at Bahrain that the next race in China could be one too many for the Sauber team, something I pray is not true. But what's done is done now, and it is up to these teams to play catch up or maybe try and strike similar deals elsewhere. 

Brazilian GP 2015

Rosberg Setting Himself For 2016

Nico Rosberg recorded back to back victories for the first time since May with his victory in Brazil. The result secured second place in the Driver's Championship and continued his recent resurgence. Lewis Hamilton finished second and is still to win in Brazil, even though he put Rosberg under several periods of pressure. Behind the dominant Mercedes pair, the Ferraris were a distant third and fourth, with Sebastian Vettel leading Kimi Raikkonen. Vettel couldn't do anything to get close to the Mercedes, meaning his debut season at Ferrari will see him finish third in the Drivers Championship with Abu Dhabi still to come.

As has been custom this season, the Brazilian Grand Prix didn't deliver much in excitement, despite its history of delivering an unpredictable and exciting race. It started off well, with the Mercedes coming very close to contact at turn one. The incident was almost identical to that of the U.S grand prix, except it was Rosberg who made sure Hamilton wasn't going around the outside of him. This allowed Rosberg to open up a small lead during the first stint. Reliability issues looked like they were creeping for Romberg, who was looking very cautious on the brakes for several laps after the first round of pit stops, thus allowing Hamilton to move within DRS range - but eventually dropping back. Hamilton came back at Rosberg during the third stint, but frustration was starting to get to Hamilton as he couldn't get passed Rosberg. Interlagos' tight confines and narrow straights make overtaking extremely difficult, and Hamilton's frustration spilled over onto the team radio as he requested a different strategy from Rosberg in an attempt to get past. However, Mercedes stuck to their long held policy of keeping their drivers on the same number of stops. And with Mercedes not budging, both drivers stopped three times and Hamilton finished 7.7 seconds being Rosberg. Rosberg's recent good form is hopefully putting him in a good position going into 2016.

Behind the Mercedes and Ferrari's, Valtteri Bottas finished in fifth, but couldn't get close enough to close with his fellow countryman for the third time in four races. His fifth place was enough to secure third place for Williams in the Constructors Championship for the second year running. Meanwhile, having seen Force India team-mate Sergio Perez take the plaudits in recent races, Nico Hulkenberg returned to form to take a fine sixth, and secure his team fifth place in the standings - the best finish in their history. Daniil Kvyat was seventh for Red Bull with Romain Grosjean, Max Verstappen and Pastor Maldonado rounding off the points positions.

Massa Excluded From Home Race

The local hero, Felipe Massa, was disqualified from the Brazilian GP after his tyres were found to breach their temperature limits before the race. Massa had originally finished 8th, after what had been a tough weekend for the Brazilian, who seemed to have some set up issue. He was disqualified after the race for exceeding the revised parameters to ensure tyre safety, which were introduced at the Italian GP following Sebastian Vettel's tyre failure in Belgium. The issue was flagged up after almost half an hour had passed in the race. An FIA technical report into the incident reported that on the grid, the tread temperature and minimum starting pressure on Massa's car was checked after the "5 minute" signal was given. The report went on to say that the temperature measured on the tread of the right hand side rear tyre of Massa's car was 137c, which is 27c above the maximum tread temperature of 110c. The corresponding tyre pressure at 137c was 20.6 psi, 0.1 psi above the minimum starting pressure.

Although this is a violation of the regulations, something stands out about this incident. At the Italian GP in September, both Mercedes cars were found to be under the minimums et by Pirelli. However, after three hours of deliberations by the race stewards, Hamilton's victory stood. How is the incident in Brazil any different, apart from the very different outcomes? Is it because its Williams and not Mercedes? Or is it because it was Felipe Massa and not Lewis Hamilton? Whatever the reason for the different outcome one thing is clear, there needs to be more consistency in applying these rules. 

Has Hamilton Went On Holiday?

After Lewis Hamilton was beaten to pole position and race victory for the second race in a row by Nico Romberg, questions have already crept in about Hamilton's commitment now that he has captured his third World Championship. Rosberg has also secured his fifth consecutive pole position as well, something that Hamilton hasn't seemed too concerned by. Although his calmness over Rosberg's qualifying performances suggests he has switched off for the season, his racing determination counters that argument. This determination was underlined by his request to move onto a different strategy to his team mate, just so he could get past him and beat him.

Something that hasn't escaped my attention is Hamilton's life outside the track since winning the title, and the effect it has had. His arrival to Brazil was delayed by a day because of a fever, which Hamilton has admitted was brought on by a hectic schedule since winning his third title three weeks ago, and a minor car accident in Monaco. A lot has been made about his off track antics since winning the championship. Let's be honest, if you had just won your third F1 World Championship, emulating your hero, you'd probably party hard as well. His minor accident was apparently a result of his fever and general exhaustion.

In Abu Dhabi, Hamilton can match his career best haul of 11 wins from last season, whilst another podium finish would tie the all-time record of 17 podium finishes in a season held jointly by Sebastian Vettel and Michael Schumacher. These personal records will hopefully show that Hamilton is still giving it his all, and that he will want to equal these records. I don't think that Hamilton has switched off for the season, I think that Nico Rosberg has realised that he needs to start now if he is to put in a serious bid to get the World Championship out of his team mate’s hands next year.

 

Mexican GP 2015

Rosberg's Professional Response

A week after handing team mate Lewis Hamilton a third World Championship with an error in the U.S GP, Nico Rosberg responded superbly and won his first race since the Austrian GP in June. He finally converted a pole position into race victory for the first time since the Spanish GP in May. All of the talk before the race would be the run down to turn one, especially with what happened in America the week before. Everyone was expecting fireworks between the two Mercedes, but this didn't materialise. Rosberg led from lights out, holding the inside line through the long turn one, and built himself a nice two - three second lead throughout the first stints of the race. What was most impressive was that when Hamilton put in the fastest lap of the race, Rosberg seemed to be able to up his pace that little bit more again.  

Mercedes seemed to expect that the race would only require one pit stop, however with 25 laps, remaining Rosberg was called into the pits for a second time. Hamilton was also told to come in for a second time but decided to stay out a bit longer whilst questioning whether his tyre wear was bad enough to warrant a second stop. Hamilton's enquiries and objections fell on deaf ears, and the team urged the World Champion to pit again, claiming safety concerns were the reason for pitting both drivers again. Hamilton's refusal to pit straight away brings back the question of “is a driver bigger than the team?”. We saw this massively at Red Bull in 2013, with the now famous "multi 21" incident between Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber. That day, Vettel ignored team orders and went on to claim victory, leading many fans and experts to condemn Vettel's actions, claiming he was above the team. Although Hamilton's decision didn't really effect the race outcome, it is not good to openly defy your team, especially on the grounds of safety.

Behind the two Mercedes, there was a race happening. Valtteri Bottas claimed 3rd place after the most hard and eventful way of getting there. Bottas' Williams collided with fellow countryman Kimi Raikkonen for the third race in a row, putting the Ferrari driver out on the spot. Bottas then battled on completing 62 laps on the same set of medium compound tyres, and kept the Red Bull's behind him in the process - a fantastic effort! Dani Kyvat, who was passed by Bottas after the safety car was out for Vettel's crash, finished closely behind the Finn for fourth, whilst Daniel Ricciardo in the other Red Bull finished in fifth. Felipe Massa came home sixth ahead of Nico Hulkenberg's Force India. The man the Mexican fans came to see, Sergio Perez finished eighth, helping Force India tighten their grip on fifth in the constructors championship. Toro Rosso's Max Verstappen came home ninth whilst Romain Grosjean rounded off the top ten. McLaren's double race weekend scoring came to an end after a very tough 3 days. Fernando Alonso only lasted one lap whilst Jenson Button only finished ahead of the Manor pair of Will Stevens and Alex Rossi. 

Torrid Weekend for Ferrari

To say Ferrari had a poor weekend would be an understatement. Ferrari's weekend was abysmal. Sebastian Vettel was seen as the driver to take the fight to Mercedes, like he normally would. Unfortunately for Vettel, he collided with Ricciardo going into turn one, which saw the German suffer a puncture.
Naturally, Vettel dropped to the back of the field but, being the fantastic talent that he is, he was able to start fighting his way back through the pack. His race turned again when an uncharacteristic error saw him spin off at turn four and fall back through the field. He stayed out of the barrier on this occasion, but later on in the race he spun at turn four again and ended up in the barriers.

Meanwhile, Kimi Raikkonen had started from the back row after receiving a 30 place grid penalty for engine changes. Raikkonen was also on a charge and looking good for some decent points until his collision with Bottas. Unlike their previous skirmish in Russia, it was Raikkonen who came off worse this time. This poor afternoon saw Ferrari have neither car classified for the first time since the Australian GP way back in 2006. They will be hoping to bounce back in Brazil in two weeks time.

Mexico's Welcome Return

Formula 1 returned to Mexico for the first time in 23 years. The last time F1 was in Mexico, I was two years old and had no apprehension of what Formula 1 was. After watching the whole weekend's coverage I have been struggling to understand why F1 left Mexico in the first place. Since its last race in 1992, the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez has had a bit of work done to it, including the renaming of the final corner, which changed from Peraltada to Mansell bend and a brand new pit complex, bringing it right up to date with the more modern tracks in F1.

Okay, so the race on Sunday wasn't the most spectacular event ever, but after all of the build up and hard work put in, it was definitely enjoyable. What stood out most without a doubt was the Mexican fans. This is clearly a country who loves their F1 and it was clear all weekend. Packed grandstands and incredible noise levels is what F1 is all about. No doubt their hero Sergio Perez's recent performances were a factor in this as well. To be honest though, even if Perez had retired from every race this season, he would have still had the same amount of support. Support and pressure that he handled incredibly well. A lot of drivers would have cracked under that kind of pressure, but not Perez. It was obvious that Perez was loving the support and attention he received, and didn't let his fans down with another points finish. Next year's event should be another cracker for everyone and another Mexican will be on the grid in the form of Esteban Gutierrez, who will be driving for the newly formed Haas F1 team. 

Russian GP 2015

Rosberg Retires as Hamilton Closes in on Third Championship

Nico Rosberg's title challenge is all but over after he retired from the lead of the Russian grand prix and handed the win to team mate Lewis Hamilton; who now only needs two points to clinch his third world championship. Sebastian Vettel came home in second place whilst Sergio Perez finished a spectacular third place. But, unfortunately for Perez and Force India, it was the retirement of Rosberg that caused a lot of the talk after the race. Having taken pole position on the Saturday, Rosberg made a brilliant start and kept the lead into the first corner, something that has somewhat eluded him in recent races. No doubt he would have had last year's nightmare start on his mind, where he out braked himself into turn 1, ruining his tyres and his race. No such problem this time though as he kept Hamilton behind him and set about building a gap. However, Romberg’s luck just wasn't there again, as he seemed to have a problem on lap 6. By lap 8, he had pulled into his pit box and turned the engine off. His race and championship were over. For Hamilton though, it was another casual Sunday afternoon drive for the British driver, who cruised another win closer to equalling Ayrton Senna's haul of three World Championships.

Behind Rosberg and Hamilton at the start, Nico Hulkenberg caused bedlam whilst spinning at turn 1, causing Max Verstappen to pick up a puncture and fall to the back of the grid. Amongst all this, Kimi Raikkonen managed to creep into third place ahead of his team mate Vettel and fellow countryman Valtteri Bottas. A few laps later, a huge crash where Romain Grosjean lost control of his Lotus at turn three resulted in the barriers needing a quick repair job. This incident not surprisingly brought out the safety car again, at which point Sergio Perez made his only stop of the race. Perez was able to make good uses of his tyres, as we have seen him do over the years and kept a tight hold on the final podium place. With older tyres though, both Raikkonen and Bottas were catching the Mexican hand over fist. With just two laps to go, Bottas got a head of Perez, as did Raikkonen, and Perez's first podium since Bahrain 2014 seemed to be gone. There was one more twist involved however. Raikkonen wanted that final podium place, and had one lap to get his move done. He went for a move on Bottas which ultimately took out his countryman, allowing Perez to drive through and take the final podium place. Raikkonen's antics saw him penalised thirty seconds and end up finishing in eighth.

Perez's Quality Shining Unnoticed

Over the last few years, it has been Nico Hulkenberg that has grabbed the headlines as F1's most underrated, should be in a top car driver, and obviously with great justification. He won the Le Man 24hour in June, and constantly displays his talent at every event. His team mate Sergio Perez seemingly had his shot at a top drive at McLaren and blew it massively, not displaying the talent that saw him replace Lewis Hamilton for the 2013 season. 2013 wasn't the season that Perez thought it would be, with the team’s decline starting steadily, with Perez's highest finish for the team a 4th place. We must not forget that this is a driver who could have, and probably should have, won the Malaysian grand prix in 2012 for Sauber, only to finish second behind Fernando Alonso. Throughout his time at Saucer, he showed just how good of a driver he is, especially with his tyre management.

When the announcement came in near the end of the 2013 that Perez wouldn't be getting kept on at McLaren, there were a lot of people who thought that that was it for Perez and his F1 career. Step in Force India to save him from the F1 abyss and inject a resurgence into his career. Since he signed for Force India, he has been the Perez of old, with some really eye catching performances - especially this season. His confidence has came back which has been a key factor in his F1 stock rising again. What stands out most for me is that whilst Perez has had two podiums for the team, the more highly rated Hulkenberg has none. Potentially, Force India have one of the strongest driver line ups on the grid, if only they could produce the car to go with the talent they have in it.

Sainz Has Eventful Weekend

During qualifying, Carlos Sainz suffered what could only be described as a horror crash. Sainz crashed into the barriers at turn 13 at 200mph and hit the barrier with an impact around 46G. Sainz spent the night in hospital and many wondered if he would race at all on the Sunday. Unbelievably, Sainz was cleared to race and didn't look back. He did admit to feeling dizzy at the beginning of the race, which does throw questions about his fitness into the spotlight. Despite this, Sainz had a fantastic race and his retirement late on was very harsh on the young Spaniard. If Max Verstappen wasn't his team mate this season, I believe a lot of talk would have been about Sainz. If you look at the amount of times Sainz has retired from a points position, he would be right up there with Verstappen. Sainz's only issue with having Verstappen as a team mate is that Max is still on a learning curve, and can only get better. Sainz obviously is still very young and on a learning curve himself, and still has plenty of time to establish himself in Formula 1.

      

Japanese GP 2015

Mercedes Bounce Back From Singapore Slump

Lewis Hamilton consolidated his lead at the top of the drivers' championship after a dominating drive saw him take victory at the Japanese GP. His closest challenger and team mate Nico Rosberg came home in 2^nd with Sebastian Vettel taking the final podium place. For Hamilton and Mercedes, it was back to business in Japan after the horror show of Singapore. A heavy crash in qualifying for Dani Kvyat prevented Hamilton from taking pole position from Romberg, but it didn't take Hamilton long to take the lead. A brilliant start from Hamilton allowed him to get alongside Rosberg into turn 1 and muscle his way into the lead. From then on, it was like a Sunday afternoon drive for Hamilton as he edges closer to a 3^rd World Championship. The result also saw Hamilton equal his hero Ayrton Senna's record of 41 grand prix victories. The joy was evident on Hamilton's face as he received his trophy in front of the thousands of Japanese fans.

Behind the Mercedes pair, the Ferrari pair also enjoyed another strong afternoon, even though they couldn't match the Mercedes for pace. Kimi Raikkonen beat fellow Finn Valtteri Bottas to 4th place, whilst Nico Hulkenberg came from 13th on the grid to finish a brilliant 6th. A stand out result, and possibly the most needed one, was the Lotus double points score with Romain Grosjean finishing 7th ahead of Pastor Maldonado. It was a difficult weekend for the team, whose equipment was late in arriving and were locked out of their hospitality unit all weekend. Things were so bad that Bernie Ecclestone stepped in to feed the team. Hopefully the Renault buy-out of the team will happen very soon. The Toro Rosso pair rounded off the points places, with Max Verstappen 9^th and Carlos Sainz 10^th after starting 17^th and colliding with the pit lane bollard. It was a torrid day for Red Bull, with Dani Kvyat starting from the pit lane after his huge crash in qualifying and finishing a lowly 13^th. Team mate Daniel Ricciardo finished 15^th after starting 7^th, but a collision with Felipe Massa as they went through turn 1 meant he had to pit for repairs.

Rosberg Not Tough Enough

For the second season running, Lewis Hamilton has proven how good he truly is. For the second season running, Nico Rosberg has shown how good he can be but, unfortunately for Rosberg, he is nowhere near Hamilton's level. The difference between Hamilton and Rosberg is that Hamilton is so much more consistent and willing to win at all costs. The aggression that he produced at turn 1 to get past Rosberg is the real difference between the two drivers. Had those roles been reversed, I don't believe Rosberg would have shown the same ruthlessness as Hamilton. Both have the same machinery, but only one has that win-at-all-costs attitude. Rosberg's conservatism has cost him many times this season, and it did so again at the Japanese GP. When Hamilton overtook Rosberg, Rosberg managed to slip to 4^th place behind Sebastian Vettel and Valtteri Bottas, and ultimately cost him any chance of catching and passing Hamilton. He did well to get past Bottas and eventually undercut Vettel at the pit stops, but after that there was nothing he could do to get near Hamilton, let alone pass him. We've seen over the years Hamilton's ability to get quick laps in when they are needed, but in Rosberg's case he hasn't been able to deliver in that respect. Rosberg's body language has a defeated look to it, and he will want this season to end so he can go away over the winter and look at ways to improve himself and come back in 2016 a better driver.

Alonso in New McLaren Outburst

It's fair to say, Fernando Alonso's return to McLaren hasn't went the way the Spaniard would have liked. 11 points scored all season, seriously down on power and reliability issues the length of my arm, you can understand why the double World Champion isn't a happy man. His latest outburst over the team radio at the Japanese GP, Honda's home grand prix, has left many wondering if Alonso will be in F1 at all next year, never mind at McLaren.

Alonso finished a lap down in 11th place after describing his team's performance during the race as very embarrassing. His damning verdict came early in the race whilst he was briefly running in the points, but was passed with ease by Carlos Sainz's Toro Rosso and Marcus Ericcson's Sauber. Both moves were in the DRS zone going into turn 1, with the Honda power unit showing how much power it was lacking. To make matters worse for Alonso and the team, Max Verstappen also overtook Alonso at the same point leading to Alonso calling his engine a GP2 engine. This latest outburst from Alonso did not go down well with Ron Dennis, the McLaren CEO, who came out and said he was unhappy with Alonso's remarks. Alonso is adamant that he will see out his contract with the team, which has another two years to go. However, I can see another early divorce for Alonso and McLaren if the team don't improve next year. If the team struggles in the final 5 races the way they have all season, it may happen even sooner. 

Italian GP 2015

Italian GP 2015

Hamilton's Title to Loose

Lewis Hamilton took another step towards his third World Championship this weekend with an utterly dominant victory in the Italian GP. His steps towards the title were helped massively when his closest challenger, and team mate, Nico Rosberg's engine blew up with just two laps remaining. Sebastian Vettel took second place in his first race in Italy for Ferrari, with Felipe Massa rounding off the top 3. Despite winning by a huge 24 seconds and extending his championship lead by 53 points, Hamilton was made to wait 3 hours for the victory to be confirmed as a debate over the legality of his tyre pressures was raised. 

In response to the tyre failures in Belgium two weeks prior, Pirelli had raised the minimum recommended tyre pressures, with the rears needing to be at 19.5psi. However, immediately after the chequered flag fell, it was announced that before the race Hamilton's left rear pressure was .3psi below and that Rosberg's was 1.1psi below the recommended limit. Thankfully for Hamilton however, the FIA concluded that both tyres in question were at the correct limits when they were fitted to the car.

Behind Hamilton, the massive following of Ferrari fans were hoping race day would continue their strong weekend, with Kimi Raikkonen lining up behind Hamilton in 2nd place. Sadly for the fans and team, they couldn't turn Saturday’s qualifying pace into race pace, and couldn't get near the Mercedes of Hamilton. Raikkonen, almost stalling and being last to the first corner, certainly didn't help the cause either. He did however manage to battle back through the field, and finished in 5th behind fellow Finn Valtteri Bottas.

Raikkonen's battle through the field was possibley the only in-race action that would have kept viewers interested. Once again, the excitement, action and turning points that fans want to see on track has come off the track. If it isn't the bitter divorce spat between Red Bull and Renault, or Honda claims of progress, it's something else. This weekend's theme: tyre pressures. This season has produced some, quite frankly, rubbish grand prix's, with actions and spats overshadowing the spectacle that is the race.  

McLaren and Honda at Breaking Point

When McLaren announced that they were to be teaming up with Honda once again, I remember how much excitement went through my system in anticipation to see the great duo reunited. I wasn't alive during the McLaren-Honda dominance of the 1980's, but I have watched so much footage of it that my mouth watered at the prospect of seeing this again. So you can imagine how disappointed I am, and I'm sure McLaren and its fan base are too, at the utter shambles that has been the 2015 season.

At the Italian Grand Prix, the partnership reached breaking point, as rumours circulated that McLaren have asked Honda to remove Yasuhisa Arai from his position of chief motorsport officer at Honda. Arai is under huge pressure after a series of promises have went undelivered, and the team have shown very little sign of progress since the beginning of the season. Arai was present at a press conference at Monza and was given what was described as a brutal interrogation. He rejected suggestions that he should resign, and unbelievably reiterated his belief that Honda have a better engine than Renault.

It is claimed that McLaren are so disillusioned by Honda's lack of progress over the season that they wrote to the company's president asking for Arai to be removed. The whole situation has now became such a farce, that it is now getting embarrassing for both McLaren and Honda. The claim from Arai that the Honda engine has more horsepower than the Renault was the final straw for me. Arai said that for the Italian Grand Prix, the Honda engine would have more horsepower than the Renault, and be quicker in a straight line. How wrong can one man be? The Honda power unit is poor. There is no other way of putting it. Fernando Alonso has come out and said that they are losing 3 seconds a lap to the Mercedes due to the lack of power on the straights. If there were signs of progress in the races, there is a good chance that nobody would be talking about this issue. If you could see McLaren blistering down the start/finish straight challenging the likes of Red Bull and Williams, then it would ease the pain for the team. Even if they were doing this and the engine went up in smoke, at least its progress. Something has to be done and done quickly.

Monza Must Stay

Bernie Ecclestone has been very pessimistic about the future of the Italian GP continuing at Monza beyond its contract which runs out next year. The thought of not seeing Monza on the F1 calendar is a tragic one. Even the thought of Imola replacing Monza is still not an option as far as fans and drivers alike are concerned. Sebastian Vettel said to lose the Italian GP for money issues would be like ripping out our hearts. Monza has staged grand prix racing since 1922. It is up there with the likes of Monaco Spa and Silverstone for its rich history, and to lose it from the calendar would be a kick in the teeth for the sport’s history and heritage. It's combination of fast straights and chicanes means it presents a different challenge to more modern circuits such as Russia and Abu Dhabi. With these characteristics, it means drivers are massively in favour of keeping it on the calendar. Because of races such as Azerbaijan, Bahrain and Abu Dhabi bringing lots of money to the table, it puts races such as Italy under threat. In the end, it all comes down to money - the only thing Bernie Ecclestone seems to have an interest in. Teams such as Ferrari and McLaren get extra prize money given to them because of their history in the sport; so to protect circuits such as Monza, why doesn't Bernie give them a discount of sorts for holding the race because of their history? Just an idea.