European GP 2016

Rosberg Boosts Championship Lead

The European GP returned to the F1 calendar after a 4-year absence to give Nico Rosberg the title boost he needed, with a comfortable win at the Baku street circuit in Azerbaijan. The excitement before the race was building as the supporting GP2 races had seen carnage and brilliant action. Even the F1 practice sessions and qualifying was a brilliant watch, as the winding street circuit was catching out even the best drivers. Ultimately though, as with many of the new circuits in recent years, the race fell flat and Rosberg eased to a 20 second victory. Sebastian Vettel did what he could to challenge Rosberg, but could only finish a distant 2nd. Sergio Perez continued his superb form to take another 3rd place for Force India, ahead of Kimi Raikkonen who finished 4th. Lewis Hamilton finished almost a minute behind Rosberg in 5th, after he suffered technical issues throughout. Williams' Valtteri Bottas was 6th, ahead of the Red Bull pair of Daniel Ricciardo and Max Verstappen. Nico Hulkenberg and Felipe Massa rounded off the points positions with 9th and 10th respectively.           

It was a comfortable afternoon for the championship leader who led every lap of the race after fending off Ricciardo at turn 1. From then on, he drove off into the distance to record his 19th win in Formula 1. His team mate Lewis Hamilton however did not have as easy an afternoon as his team mate and championship rival. Throughout Friday and Saturday, Hamilton looked almost certain to overhaul Rosberg in the championship come the end of the race on Sunday. His pace was scintillating throughout practise, and going into qualifying he was building momentum. This came to an end in Q2 however when Hamilton pushed that bit too hard and ending up crashing out of qualifying and started 10th. As with Rosberg in Canada, many expected Hamilton to fly through the field and maybe challenge Rosberg. Again, as with Rosberg, Hamilton struggled to make it through the field due to an engine settings problem on his car, the tight and twisty nature of the track certainly didn’t help. 

Elsewhere on track, it was a very drab race with nothing else really happening. Red Bull's race was ruined by strategy calls due to the risk of safety car deployments. Unfortunately for Red Bull, there was no such incidents. One highlight of an otherwise dull race was the performance of Jenson Button who came from 19th on the grid to finish in 11th place. Despite expectations before the race, there was next to no drama at all, with 18 of the 22 drivers finishing the race.  

Perez Equals Mexican Podium Record

Sergio Perez's rejuvenated Formula 1 career continued at the European GP as he equalled Pedro Rodriguez's record of 7 podiums for a Mexican driver. It is amazing what can happen in just three years. His 2013 season was a disaster at McLaren, with a series of high profile errors leading to the team dismissing him after one season. Force India could clearly see the talent the young Mexican possess and have really changed his career prospects in the sport. His performance in Baku, I believe, has put him in pole position to take Kimi Raikkonen's seat at Ferrari in 2017, should Ferrari drop the Finn.    

His podium in Baku was his second in three races, and that was after a big mistake in practice resulted in him receiving a 5 place grid penalty. Without the penalty, Perez would have started an incredible 2nd place behind Rosberg. Furthermore, Perez's race craft was brilliant throughout the race. To top everything off, Perez overtook Raikkonen, despite knowing that Raikkonen had a time penalty and would have finished behind Perez. What Perez did with this move was send out a clear message to the F1 world, especially Ferrari. What is certainly clear is that Perez has matured since the McLaren fiasco and is ready to return to the F1 big leagues. Ferrari would be foolish not to seriously consider Perez for 2017.   

Has the Radio Ban Gone Too Far?

Not for the first time in F1, rules and regulations off the track dominated the post-race talk, with the radio ban sparking huge debate. Lewis Hamilton and Kimi Raikkonen suffered with technical issues throughout the race that could have been solved with a reset message from the team. However, due to the restrictions on radio communications, both drivers were not able to solve their issues. This message effectively ruined Hamilton's race as he was seriously down on power. Hamilton was getting more frustrated as the race progressed and threatened to reset everything to solve the issue. Eventually Hamilton figured out the issue and made the changes. By the end of the race, he was the fastest on the circuit. This has led to the debate about the ban. Many feel that this ban cost the fans the opportunity to see what Hamilton could do coming through the field. Had the ban been a bit more relaxed, an actual race might have broken out. With this ban in place, I feel it has taken something away for the fans. I used to enjoy listening to what went on inside the cockpit as it gave a brilliant insight into just how focused these drivers need to be. There has to be a happy medium with regards to this ban. I agree that drivers should not be almost coached by their engineers throughout the race, but these cars are extremely complicated. Knowing how to reset every little thing and focus on racing is a challenge. There has to be a way of balancing this out so that we do not have to keep talking about the ban. Formula 1's talking points should be made on the track not off it.

Canadian GP 2016

Rosberg's Gap Down to Nine as Hamilton Wins

Nico Rosberg has seen his championship lead cut to just nine points as Lewis Hamilton claimed victory at the Canadian GP in Montréal. Hamilton finished ahead of Sebastian Vettel and Williams' Valtteri Bottas. Max Verstappen bounced back from a disappointing Monaco showing to finish 4th ahead of championship leader Rosberg. Kimi Raikkonen's recent poor form continued as he finished in 6th. Daniel Ricciardo's scrappy race saw him finish 7th ahead of Nico Hulkenberg, Carlos Sainz and Sergio Perez.

Hamilton's victory was not as straight forward as he would have hoped as Vettel, who was on a different strategy to Hamilton, pushed him hard throughout. Vettel got off to a dream start as he came from 3rd to lead into the first corner. Behind Vettel, the two Mercedes had another coming together, although not as severe as the one in Spain. It did however see Rosberg having to run wide at turn 2 and drop to 10th. Rosberg was on a recovery drive from lap 1 and seemed to have the same tyre issues that cost him dearly in Monaco. He did not surge back through the pack like many would have expected. He did what he could and so easily could have finished 3rd. As he was chasing Bottas for the final podium place he peeled off into the pits after a slow puncture was discovered by the team. Rosberg recovered again and was hunting down Verstappen for 4th and made his move on the penultimate lap when he went up the inside of the young Dutchman at the final chicane. Unfortunately for Rosberg, he lost the back end of his Mercedes under braking and spun off into the run off area. He was fortunate not to hit anything and held off Raikkonen's challenge on the final lap to secure 5th but it could have been more for Rosberg.

After his scintillating start, Vettel led the opening stint of the race and was locked into a two-stop strategy after Ferrari opted to stop him under the virtual safety car that was caused by the retiring Jenson Button on lap 12. With Vettel pitting, Hamilton was able to use his one-stop strategy to his advantage. Vettel re-took the lead whilst Hamilton made his one and only stop but conceded the lead after making his second stop. Vettel looked as though he was pulling Hamilton in as the laps tumbled but, another uncharacteristic mistake by Vettel saw him run wide as the final chicane and all but gift Hamilton his 45th victory in Formula One.

The main talking point from the race was surely Rosberg's championship lead eroding so dramatically over the past two races. Three weeks ago, Rosberg looked to be in total control of the championship having won four of the first five races. By the time the European GP in Azerbaijan is complete in just 7 days, Hamilton could have toppled Rosberg for the championship lead. Rosberg needs a strong showing at the European GP but possibly more importantly, the team need to work out their start procedure. In Canada, we saw a carbon copy of Australia where the Mercedes pair where almost at a standstill as Vettel left them for dust. If Ferrari keep improving their engine performance at the rate they are now, and are able to jump the Mercedes at the start, Mercedes will have a real fight on their hands.

Who is Making the Ferrari Pit Calls?

Something does not seem right at Ferrari this season. After the Canadian GP, Ferrari team boss Maurizio Arrivabene said that the team overestimated the tyre degradation, naming this the reason that the team opted to pit Vettel under the virtual safety car.

I bring this up because this is not the first time this season that the Ferrari team have made a call on strategy which has resulted in them throwing away a victory. In Australia, the decision not to run the medium tyre due to their lack of knowledge handed victory to Nico Rosberg who ran the medium tyre. Possible errors in Spain meant that with no Mercedes on track, Ferrari let another possible victory slip through their fingers, handing it to Max Verstappen. The latest episode has now occurred in Canada. Vettel did what he had to on the track but I believe that the team have been letting him down from the pit wall. Vettel could have easily had two victories this season, but strategy calls have cost him. Even after his second stop in Canada, Vettel closed to within 4.3 seconds of Hamilton and closing still until his error completely binned his chances of victory. It is an area that needs to be improved before big pressure arrives from the top of the Ferrari company.

Who Will be at Williams Next Season?

Although it is still early in the season, it doesn't mean that the rumours about the 2017 driver line up can't begin. Over the Canadian GP weekend, it was the Williams team driver line up that had the rumour mill buzzing. Rumours that Jenson Button will leave McLaren and return to the team that gave him his debut back in 2000 were all over the press. Neither party were quick to play down the reports but stopped short of saying something was in place. Ron Dennis has made no secret of his desire to have Stoffel Vandoorne in the McLaren car in the not so distant future and a move to Williams may suit both parties. So who would partner him? Rumours going round claim that this will be Felipe Massa last at the team and would probably mean his last in the sport. With Max Verstappen being tied down at Red Bull now, it may be possible that Ferrari would turn their attention to Bottas to replace Raikkonen who, after a promising start to the season has went on a downward spiral. However others such as the Force India pair of Hulkenberg and Perez, Toro Rosso's Carlos Sainz and even Haas' Romain Grosjean would believe they should be looked at as well. At the moment, it looks like Williams hold the key to the driver market for the 2017 season, although it is very early days.    

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. 

U.S GP 2015

Hamilton Makes History

Lewis Hamilton took victory at the U.S grand prix and in doing so, ensured a third World Championship, becoming the first British driver to successfully defend his title. He also joins an elite list of drivers, including his idol, Ayrton Senna in winning three championships. Nico Rosberg finished second after a mistake cost him victory, and the chance to extend the championship race for a further week. Sebastian Vettel took third after coming through from 14^th, with Max Verstappen taking a fantastic fourth. Sergio Perez finished fifth with Jenson Button taking a brilliant sixth place. Carlos Sainz, who started last, finished behind Button in seventh, with Pastor Maldonado eighth, Felipe Nasr ninth and Daniel Ricciardo rounding off the top ten. It could have been all so different at the front however, with changeable conditions from the start and virtual safety cars and individual errors. Ultimately though, the day belonged to Hamilton, who took his tenth victory of the season.

The whole weekend in Austin had been a complete washout, with qualifying not taking place until the Sunday morning, and even then the rain was still coming down hard. The session only got as far as Q2, where the conditions were deemed unsafe. Nico Rosberg took pole position ahead of Hamilton; but with the race only hours later, the forecast was that the rain would pass and we could go racing.

When the time for the race came, it was still very damp, with everyone starting off on the intermediate tyre. With a tricky first corner on the cards, it was Hamilton who got to turn one first, but with a seemingly over aggressive move on Rosberg, forcing the German off track. This saw him drop down into fifth place behind the Red Bull pair of Dani Kvyat and Daniel Ricciardo and Sergio Perez's Force India. In the damper conditions, it was the Red Bull's that looked more comfortable, with Kyvat taking the lead from Hamilton with ease, but ran wide and surrendered that lead before the first virtual safety car of the day occurred.

When the racing resumed, the track began to dry out and drivers started to struggle with the intermediates. Ricciardo wasn't struggling however, and breezed past the struggling Hamilton for the lead. Hamilton's struggles then allowed Rosberg past for second before drivers started pitting for dry tyres. The dry tyres saw the Red Bull charge dwindle, and both Rosberg and Hamilton resumed a Mercedes one-two, with Rosberg leading and pulling a gap to Hamilton. A safety car period caused by Nico Hulkenberg's broken Force India brought Hamilton back into the play, only for a second virtual safety car to hamper Hamilton again, as he stayed out and Rosberg pitted for fresh tyres. This wasn't the last twist in this race however, as a heavy crash from Kvyat brought out the safety car again, allowing Hamilton to pit without losing position and able to challenge Rosberg. On fresh rubber, Hamilton put pressure on Rosberg and forced him into an unforced error, costing him victory and the opportunity make Hamilton wait another week at least for his title.

Sainz and Verstappen Talent Shines Again

Many people pay so much attention to the fact that Red Bull have threatened to quit F1 next year if they can't get a competitive engine deal. What many people haven't seemed to pay attention to is the fact that that pull-out could also have an effect on Toro Rosso. Don't get me wrong, there has been whisperings of their future as well but not on the scale that it should be on.

This is a team with so much talent it would be an absolute travesty is it wasn't on the grid next season. The U.S grand prix was a prime example of the sheer talent the team possess. Obviously, it isn't the only time this season that we have seen both drivers drive tremendous races, but it just highlights what the team itself brings to the grid. Max Verstappen will be a World Champion one day that much is clear; his 4th place in the U.S grand prix was another testament to how good he is. When everyone was struggling in the damp conditions, Verstappen kept control and drove a brilliant race. Carlos Sainz, despite a few silly errors, especially speeding in the pit lane, finished a solid seventh place. This was after starting last on the grid! Had he not have had a time penalty, he would have finished sixth. Again, his on track overtakes and coolness behind the wheel is something that can't be ignored. Like I have said before, it is just a pity for him that Verstappen is his team mate this year. Hopefully, this team will be here next year because this would be a colossal waste of talent.

Sauber Celebrate 400th GP Weekend

It wasn't just Lewis Hamilton celebrating a milestone at the U.S grand prix. Sauber celebrated their 400th GP weekend, a magnificent achievement for the small team from Switzerland, who have been in the sport since 1993. The team has had many ups and downs over the last 22 years, but still have a rich history within the sport. Many great drivers have driven for them over the years, including former World Champion Jacque Villeneuve, although he wasn't to be the driver to deliver the teams first, and only win in F1. Under the BMW guise, Robert Kubica stepped up on a crazy and dramatic day at the 2008 Canadian GP, and headed a BMW Sauber one-two with team mate Nick Heidfeld. When BMW left the sport at the end of 2009, Peter Sauber bought back control of the full team. It has been a difficult five years financially for the team, who have never made any secret of this. Despite this, on track they have had some very strong performances, most notably in Malaysia 2012, where Sergio Perez probably should have won the race, only to be beaten to the flag by Fernando Alonso and ended up second. The team has done brilliantly with the limited resources at its disposal, and I'm sure that they will be racing against the odd for many more years to come. Here's to another 400 GP weekends.    

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.

      

The End of Many Eras

2013 won’t live long in the memory of F1 fans. It will effectively be known as the year of Sebastian Vettel and Red Bull. It hasn’t been the greatest season ever; bringing back memories of the dominance of Michael Schumacher in the early 2000s. Vettel has been in a different league to all other drivers, especially since the Belgian Grand Prix. Despite that, there have been a lot of positives from the season. For me however, the end of the 2013 season brings up a lot of emotion. We have long lasting driver/team partnerships end as drivers move on to pastures new, relationships ending before they even really got going and of course, the V8 era is over.

Long Relationships End

The final race in Brazil saw Mark Webber compete in his last F1 race. What a performance it was from Webber too, as he stormed to a brilliant second place. How different it could have been for Mark, not just in this race but it his whole career. He had his usual sluggish start, but came back at both Mercedes and Fernando Alonso's Ferrari. A possible win was there for Webber as well, had he not have to queue behind Sebastian Vettel. The fear of a safety car saw Vettel pit and, had Red Bull told Mark, he could have done an extra lap and surely come out in the lead. It would have been a fairytale ending for Webber but, as usual for him, it didn’t quite work out for the popular Australian. He can be proud of his career for Red Bull, and the fact that in his final race he was still challenging at the sharp end of the grid would give him great satisfaction. I really hope he has a successful career for Porsche because he deserves it. I've said before he deserved better treatment from Red Bull; he was just unfortunate that their blue eyed boy happened to be his team mate. 

An eight year relationship has also ended with Felipe Massa signing off his Ferrari career with a 7^th place finish at his home event. It could have been a fairytale ending for Massa as well had it not been for a soft drive through penalty. Has was driving a solid race in fourth when he was given a penalty for crossing the white line at pit entry. Personally, I think it was a ridiculous penalty. We see race after race, driver after driver, not respecting the track limits and gaining an advantage in doing so, and nothing is ever done. So for Massa to cut the pit lane entry a bit further down than normal, and get a penalty, I thought was harsh; he couldn’t possibly have gotten an advantage. Yes, he was warned about it but still, I don’t see the advantage that he could have gained. I think what makes things worse, well for me anyway, was that Alonso was willing to move over and let Massa onto the podium. A nice gesture from Alonso after all Massa has done for him since 2010. I sincerely hope that Williams can produce a good car for 2014, and give Massa a chance to fight near the front again in F1. He will be a fantastic team leader and I wish him all the best.

Doomed From The Start?

When Sergio Perez was announced at McLaren last year, I found myself asking why? Surely there are better drivers on the grid? So when the news broke that he was to be replaced by Kevin Magnusson for 2014, I wasn’t really surprised. If you look at Perez’s F1 career with Sauber, yes it was impressive at times but overall, he didn’t look like a top team driver; at least not yet. I do believe that in a few seasons time, if he is able to stay in F1, he will be ready for a drive in a top team.

Unfortunately for Perez, his one season at McLaren may have cost him a top team drive in the future. In fairness to Perez however, this McLaren has been one of the worst I've seen, which hasn’t helped his cause. He out qualified Jensen Button 10-9 over the season as well, but when it comes to the race, Button has outperformed Perez, even though Button hasn’t been anywhere near his best this season. Ultimately I think Perez will still be in F1 next year, possibly back at Sauber or even Force India. The short marriage at McLaren may have made Perez a stronger driver, or it could have hit him harder than it appears.

R.I.P V8 Engines

The end of the 2013 season also saw the final race for the 2.4 V8 engines that have served F1 since 2006. Since the introduction of these engines, five different Driver’s World Champions have emerged from as many manufacturers. To add to that, five out of the seven Driver’s Championship battles have been decided at the final race of the season, including the incredible final races in Brazil in 2007 and 2008 where Kimi Raikkonen and Lewis Hamilton became champion. Let’s not forget in 2010 as well, where Sebastian Vettel began his F1 dominance by winning the title in the final round in Abu Dhabi. Seven manufactures have made engines during this eight year period (Renault, Ferrari, Mercedes, Honda, Cosworth, BMW, and Toyota) and three have dominated in this time span. Ferrari, Mercedes and Renault have won every single race since 2006 with the exclusion of just two. That is an incredible 145 wins of out 147. The two exclusions being the Hungarian GP in 2006 where Jenson Button’s BAR Honda won and the 2008 Canadian GP where Robert Kubica’s BMW Sauber took the top step. The dominance is set to continue in 2014 as these are the only engine manufactures participating next year, until Honda makes its return in 2015. The question is how will the 1.6 liter turbo engines for next year have an impact on the racing? There are many critics of the new engines, however there were many critics when the V10 engines where scrapped in 2005 and look how well the V8’s have done since their introduction. Only time will tell if these engines will be a hit as well.