Why Fernando Alonso is Still the Best Driver on the F1 Grid

It is fair to say that Fernando Alonso is currently experiencing his worst run in Formula 1 since re-joining McLaren in 2015. When I say worst run, I am talking purely in results form not his own personal performance. At the Spanish GP, Alonso pulled out the best qualifying performance seen by anybody in a long time, getting his McLaren-Honda into Q3. Even more amazingly, he ended up starting in 7^th. Although the race pace was still not there for Alonso, his performance in qualifying showed just how good the double World Champion still is.

It has not just been this race weekend that has showed his unquestioned talent, he has shown this dating back to the end of his Ferrari career, when that car was not as good as it should have been. Even during his second stint at Renault between 2008 and 2009, where the car was not on the same level as McLaren and Ferrari, he still managed to score two victories. 

When Alonso debuted with Minardi in 2001, everyone could see how special a driver he was. Though not scoring any points that year, he was constantly quicker than team mates Tarso Marques, and then Alex Yoong, recording a best finish of 10^th at the German GP. Getting more out of his car than people would have expected saw the Renault team sign him up for 2002 as a test driver, before promoting him to a race seat for 2003. Though the team were on the up, they were no match for the power of McLaren, Ferrari and Williams. This did not stop Alonso becoming the youngest driver to score a pole position at the Malaysian GP. He then became the youngest driver to win a race the following year at the Hungarian GP, again in a car that was improving along with its star driver. This progression was complete with his two World Championships in 2005 and 2006. A third title should have followed at McLaren, unfortunately, inter-team politics and a bad attitude cost Alonso and the team that year.

That was the last year that Alonso had a genuine front running car. Two backwards years at Renault saw him more to Ferrari in 2010, which should have been a match made in heaven, with multiple titles for the Spaniard. 2010 should have been the first had it not been for Red Bull’s Vettel storming through at the end of the season. After that, the Alonso that we see now was born, the man that could get more out of a car than anybody else. The 2012 Ferrari was not a title fighter by any stretch of the imagination, yet Alonso not only won races in that car, but kept the title fight going to the final race of the year. As at McLaren previously, the relationship between team and driver went sour, and Alonso re-joined McLaren, who had teamed up with once again with Honda.

This current spell that Alonso is going through with McLaren-Honda however, is the one that is showing that he is the best on the current grid. Yes, you have Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel who are battling at the front and providing some fantastic racing for the fans. Their talent is undeniable, but neither driver has performed in Formula 1 quite like Alonso. In a poor car, he still manages to score points and put himself in positions that other drivers would not be able too. What proves he is the best however is that, this season, despite having the second slowest car, he is still averaging 12^th on the grid, an achievement that nobody else on that grid would be able to achieve in that car. The upcoming Indy 500 race that he will contest, will provide further proof if needed that Fernando Alonso is not only the best in F1, but one of the best in the world right now.    

Spanish GP 2015

Rosberg's Confidence Boost

Nico Rosberg finally got himself a much needed win at last Sunday's Spanish GP, making it his first of 2015. He carried on from his much improved performance in Bahrain and was the faster of the two Mercedes last weekend. He was even able to secure pole position, the first time this season that Lewis Hamilton has not started on pole. It was a beautifully calculated drive from Rosberg as he led away from the lights with no issues at all. His team mate Hamilton had a slower start and was down in 4th place by the first corner, only to come out in 3rd behind Sebastian Vettel's Ferrari. The two had a very good battle which was eventually won on strategy on Mercedes’ part, opting for Hamilton to three stop. His pace for this strategy to work was phenomenal, setting several fastest laps and comfortably came out ahead of Vettel to make it a Mercedes one-two at the end. What stood out for me over the weekend was how much more calm and assured Rosberg seemed compared to other races this season. I'm sure Bahrain would have boosted his confidence in the beginning, but this result will have gave him the belief that he can catch Lewis and take the title fight to him. The race at the weekend also made me think of a massive similarity in their rivalry to that of Prost and Senna. Hamilton's sheer speed and determination was typical of what Senna was like and the methodical drive of Rosberg for me had all the characteristics of a Prost-like drive. The Monaco GP cannot come soon enough!

9th Different Winner in 9 Years

An amazing statistic caught my eye over the weekend and that was Rosberg's win was the 9th different winner in the past 9 years at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya. This is a circuit where teams spend most of their winters fine tuning their cars and enhancing performance. Even during in-season testing, this is the place where the teams will be. With all of the data and information they must possess about the track, it amazes me that no one can come to this circuit and make it their own, so to speak.

What Is Happening at Red Bull?

Red Bull's rotten season continued in Spain as they endured yet another very tough weekend. The four time World Champions were out performed by both Toro Rosso's and were nowhere in the race, finishing a lowly 7th and 10th, whilst also being lapped in the process! Daniel Ricciardo did manage to finish ahead of both Max Verstappen and Carlos Saenz, but Dani Kvyat was beaten by Sainz. Although Ricciardo has scored points in every race this season, it is nowhere near where he wants to be. So what is the issue this year? From what I can see there are 2, maybe 3, reasons at a push that are to blame. Number 1 and probably the easiest to blame is the Renault power unit. It has been slow and unreliable since the Red Bull and other Renault teams first rolled out of the garage. Ferrari seemed to have gained and overtook and they are miles away from Mercedes. The only saving grace for Renault is that the Honda power unit is slower. There has been a lot of speculation that Audi are looking to enter an F1 partnership with someone and I think Red Bull would be a brilliant fit. Number 2, the car itself. You could forgive Adrian Newey for designing a car that is slightly off once in a while after all the success he has had during his career. However, the team cannot hide from the fact that the car itself isn't good enough either, and whether that is down to Newey wanting to look at other opportunities, who knows? But it definitely needs addressing.

Number 3, at a push, is replacing Sebastian Vettel with Dani Kvyat. For me, you can't replace a 4 time World Champion with a driver with one season under his belt, albeit a very impressive one. I think you need someone with the experience and winning mentality, someone like Kimi Raikkonen or Fernando Alonso, and I think that this is another reason they are struggling.

Battle of the Finns

Another fascinating battle unravelled on Sunday as Valtteri Bottas and Kimi Raikkonen enjoyed a hard fought battle over 4th and 5th place. Raikkonen had a quiet weekend overall and wasn't really anywhere in the race, although he was on a different strategy to that of team mate Vettel and did lead. A tyre blanket issue meant he wasted a set of the faster medium tyres and qualified back in 7^th. Bottas again showed why he could be on Ferrari's radar for next season after qualifying in 4^th and again had a solid race. His cool calm style ensured he was able to be in a position to fight with a Ferrari for the second race in a row, and once again came out on top. Raikkonen tried everything to get past his younger countryman but just couldn't do it. It was a battle I'm sure all fans enjoyed, and I'm sure it won't be the last one we see from them this season. 

A Shout Out to the Pit Crews

We all know that in Formula 1, a pit stop has the potential to make or break your race on any given day. The guys in the pit lane practise for hours upon hours every day to ensure they can get those four tyres changed at lightning speed. It all pays off when you see 4 tyres being change in 2.1 seconds! During the race we saw two incidents which made me think “who in Earth would want to be a front jack man?” (an opinion I've already held for years anyway). The two incidents I'm referring to are Fernando Alonso brake failure and Romain Grosjean's failure to stop. With Alonso's, the guy on the front jack's reactions were that of a cat. Alonso's brakes had failed and was unable to stop in his pit box. Imagine yourself stood there with a car coming at you at 50mph, I wouldn't fancy that! It shows how their reactions need to be incorporated at all times, not just when changing the tyres. It really could have been a serious incident, thankfully though, nobody was hurt. Now Grosjean's incident for me was very scary. He not only overshot his pit box, but caught the jack at the same time. The jack man somehow managed to hold on despite being thrown in the air, and jacked the car up. I was watching and wincing but thankfully once again, nobody was hurt. Although the guy appeared to be winded badly, he still managed a smile and thumbs up for the camera which was good to see.