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What a difference a week makes

Image credit: Motorsport Images

This time last week Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes had a race to forget in Hockenheim and it quite simply was a bad day at the office for the Silver Arrows. But today and seven days later, Hamilton and Mercedes were back on the top step of the podium.

A gamble by Mercedes to put Hamilton on the mediums to chase down Max Verstappen with 22 laps to go paid off and hats off to the strategists and of course Hamilton for wiping out a 20-second deficit before getting past Verstappen with four laps left. It was another gripping race and a fine way to go into the summer break.

If the last four races are anything to go by, we really are in for an intriguing second half to the season. Can Red Bull continue to take the fight to Mercedes and can Ferrari finally secure a first win of 2019? Belgium can’t come sooner enough.

Bouncing back

Not every race and qualifying session will go swimmingly well and you are bound to have a bad day at the office at some point during the season. Mercedes had that last Sunday. But champions always find a way of bouncing back and not giving up. And today Mercedes and Hamilton proved that.

The Hungaroring along with Monaco is one of the most difficult tracks to overtake on and even though Hamilton was able to get by his team-mate Valtteri Bottas on the opening lap, he just wasn’t able to get past Verstappen until Mercedes made a gamble on lap 48 and brought Hamilton in to put him on fresh medium tyres to chase down the Dutchman. It was gamble Mercedes could afford to take as they had a big enough gap to pit and come back out ahead of the Ferrari’s.

Its big decisions like those that can look great if it works but terrible if it doesn’t. But in this case, Mercedes and Hamilton played a blinder. With a new set of medium tyres bolted on, it was ‘Hammer Time’ and the Brit quite literally just went for it. 10 laps to go, Hamilton was 11 seconds behind Verstappen but five laps later he was all over the Red Bull driver and then went around the outside of Turn One on lap 67 to take the lead.

It just goes to show that if you don’t give up, you can achieve anything and Hamilton and Mercedes were living proof of that today. Credit to them and well done! Its hard to see anyone stopping Hamilton and Mercedes and with a 62 point lead in the Drivers Championship, the Brit is well on his way to secure what could be a sixth title. Still a long way to go this season but Hamilton and Mercedes are well on their way.

As for Hamilton’s team-mate for 2020 will it be Bottas? It was another difficult day for the Finn. Following contact with Charles Leclerc and needing a new front-wing, it was always going to be a case of damage limitation for Bottas and he ended up coming home in eighth. With a decision expected before the start of the Belgian Grand Prix weekend on who will partner Hamilton for 2020, it seems like its going to be an anxious wait for Bottas.

But you can’t help but feel Bottas has missed out on opportunities to close the gap on Hamilton in the Drivers especially in the last two races. With Hamilton failing to score big points in Germany, it was a chance for Bottas to capitalise. And having started on the front row in Hungary, again it was another chance to score big points. Its opportunities like these you need to take and Bottas hasn’t taken them. Maybe the summer break has come at a good time for Bottas, a chance for him to recharge the batteries and come back stronger for the second half. But for sure there are questions over whether Bottas will be at Mercedes for 2020. We will see.

Standout drives

Of course Verstappen will be gutted to have not won today but finishing second is not disastrous and he qualified on pole for the first time in his career. So many positives Red Bull and Verstappen can take from the weekend. And if he can put together a string of wins in the second half of the season, you just never know what could be possible.

The Ferrari’s of Sebastian Vettel and Leclerc finished behind the top two but a full minute behind Hamilton which I’m sure will be a concern for the Scuderia. But as for Vettel, two podium finishes on the trot now and something to build on going into the remaining races of the season.

But I want to single out two drivers Carlos Sainz and Alexander Albon. Righly so Lando Norris is getting many plaudits and has done an impressive job at McLaren so far this season. But with Sainz I just feel that his performances are going under the radar and he is not getting enough credit as his performances deserve.

To beat the Red Bull of Pierre Gasly and once again pick up strong points with a fifth place finish, the Spaniard secured another fantastic result for McLaren. McLaren are best of rest after the big three and Sainz has played a big part in that. Had he not signed a contract for 2020, I genuinely feel Red Bull could have looked at Sainz as a possible team-mate for Verstappen next season if they do drop Gasly. For me Sainz has been one of the standout drivers of 2019 and has done a stellar job.

And another driver who continues to impress in his debut season is Alexander Albon. Hungary was expected to be a difficult weekend for Toro Rosso and yet Albon was able to secure a priceless point for the team. Another fine result for the Thai driver whose stock will no doubt continue to rise. And if Red Bull do drop Gasly, Albon may well be a driver they look at.

If Albon can build on what he has achieved so far this season, the Red Bull hierarchy will have a tough decision on their hands come the end of the season on whether they promote Albon to Red Bull for 2020. But I’m sure Daniil Kvyat and Gasly will have something to say about that.

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Who said F1 was boring?

What we witnessed at Hockenheim yesterday was a truly remarkable race and just why we love Formula One. And what a difference 24 hours can make. Just ask Sebastian Vettel.

If the last two races at Hockenheim are anything to go by it begs the point that you cannot get rid of the circuit from the F1 calendar. The calendar is not the same without the historic circuits of Hockenheim, Monza and Silverstone (by the way great news it has been awarded a new five-year contract).

We’ve seen so many classic races at Hockenheim and it really would be shame if F1 didn’t go racing there again. In my humble opinion, yesterday’s race was the best race of 2019 so far. There is just something about a wet race that spices things up and boy it did just that yesterday.

With drama from start to finish, it was an incident filled race with so many talking points. Max Verstappen won a thrilling race and some people might have forgotten that the Dutchman had a poor start to the race as did his team-mate Pierre Gasly.

Even if Verstappen did survive a 360 spin in the stadium section of Hockenheim, he drove another brilliant race, made the right calls and he is getting better and better race by race. Alongside Lewis Hamilton, Verstappen has been one of the most consistent drivers since Monaco of last year and the way he has matured so much and the way he is driving at the minute, I’m so impressed with him. Scary to think that he is only still 21 years-old and there is more to come.

It is not a case of if Max Verstappen will be a World Champion, it is a case of when. With the strides Honda have made this season in particular and give them credit where it is due, maybe staying at Red Bull might be the wise option for Max. Everything is going for the Dutchman and why change something when it is not broken. Max once out in front really was in a class of his own and like Lewis, he is just as good in changeable conditions.

Joy for one half of the Red Bull garage not so good for the other half. It was a DNF for Pierre Gasly and the weekend didn’t start off great for the Frenchman as he had a heavy shunt in FP2 on Friday. Saturday was better having qualified 4th but the race was a struggle for Gasly and you just know the speculation will mount as to whether he will be with the team for 2020. We will see.

Vet-meister

Come the end of Saturday, Sebastian Vettel will have probably been thinking ‘I need a miracle’ on race day to have any chance of picking up a strong result. Had he and team-mate Charles Leclerc had engine issues on Saturday, both drivers would have been in for a shot at pole.

But what a difference 24 hours make and Sebastian through being in the right place at the right time was able to pick his way through the field and make it onto the second step of the podium. It was a great drive from the German and it was also much needed. Contrast to last year, maybe this could be the result that kick-starts his season. A win in Hungary and Ferrari will be going into the summer break feeling optimistic.

Yesterday will have been a case of ‘what if’ for so many drivers and that includes Leclerc. Leclerc had made good progress in the opening laps and Ferrari’s strategists had put him in a great position with perfect strategy calls in the first half of the race.

But Leclerc ran wide at the penultimate corner on lap 28, after gambling on dry-weather tyres on a drying track. He got on to the slippery run-off, which resulted in him sliding into the gravel. Without that, we could so easily have been talking about a first win in F1 for Leclerc but it wasn’t to be.

Coming of age

Well what a last couple of days Toro Rosso’s Daniil Kvyat has had. Becoming a father on Saturday and then putting in a stunning drive to take third place and the team’s first podium since 2008. If anything Kvyat really has come back to F1 as a more mature driver and I’ve been really impressed with him as well as his team-mate Alex Albon who had another great race to finish sixth.

Toro Rosso have been going about their business quietly putting in solid but not spectacular performances. But all that changed on Sunday. Whilst most drivers around them were having issues both Kvyat and Albon kept their noses clean and came away from Hockenheim with a big haul of points.

If both Toro drivers continue to put in strong performances from now until the end of the season, Dr Helmut Marko will have a very tough decision on his hands. If and it is an if at this stage, but if Gasly was to be dropped, who would replace him? Take a chance on Albon or go for the experience of Kvyat who I feel would go into Red Bull better equipped than first time round.

Standout performances

He may have just missed out on the podium but Lance Stroll and Racing Point can take so much confidence away from Hockenheim. It was a great call from the team to put the Canadian on slicks under the Safety Car which triggered everyone else to pit for slicks. And then albeit very brief, Stroll found himself leading the race.

He might not have been able to hold off Vettel and Kvyat, but it was still an excellent result for Stroll and Racing Point. It was another strong performance from Carlos Sainz who came home in fifth. Fine drive from the Spaniard even if he did get away with a spin.

And well done to Robert Kubica for picking up his and the first point of the season for Williams.

Not so good

You win some you lose some, it turned out to be a horror of a day for Mercedes on Sunday. Everything was going swimmingly well for Lewis until he ran wide at the penultimate corner, slid across the slippery run-off and hit the wall.

And with a damaged front-wing he came into the pits by going on the wrong side of the bollard and his pit crew were not ready for him. And then onwards it all went downhill. With the troubles Lewis was having, it was a great opportunity for Valtteri Bottas to take advantage but he didn’t. He made his own mistake at the first corner towards the end of the race, spun and lost his front-wing. Not a great day for Mercedes.

But an incredible race and for sure a classic!

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Heartbreak for Leclerc

From the outside looking at the result of the Bahrain Grand Prix if you didn’t watch the race, you would think it was a comfortable 1-2 finish for Mercedes. But it was far from that.

Charles Leclerc was denied a fairytale first win down to his hybrid system failing after dominating the majority of the race. You can’t help but feel sorry for the Ferrari man but his time will come for sure and if he carries on putting in drives like he did in Bahrain, it will be a case of when rather than if as to when he will make it onto the top step of the podium this year.

I think that I’d be right in saying that we were treated to a cracking race in Bahrain and if this is a sign of things to come with so many battles throughout the field, then we are in for a superb 2019 season.

Ferrari Bahrain race woes – Mercedes benefit

After strong performances in all three practice sessions and a front-row lockout in qualifying at Bahrain, this was the time for Ferrari to bounce back following a not from ideal weekend in the season opener in Australia.

And for a while it certainly looked like a Ferrari 1-2 was on the cards in the race. But Sebastian Vettel with 20 laps to go spun while being passed by Lewis Hamilton and then ended up suffering a front wing failure. Vettel’s spin was another unforced error from the four-time World Champion and its incidents like these that can make a big difference come the end of the season.

What can you say about Charles Leclerc and his race? Yes the Monegasque made a poor start to the race and dropped behind Valtteri Bottas and Vettel. But boy Charles bounced back quickly.

Leclerc - Bahrain
Image source: Getty Images

A fantastic move at the start of the second lap on Bottas and then on lap four going past his team-mate Vettel on the outside of Turn Four and then sailing off into the distance.

It all was going swimmingly well for Leclerc. But sport can be so cruel at times and in the closing laps of the race, Leclerc was told on team radio he had suffered a failure of the MGU-H, the part of the hybrid system that recovers energy from the turbo.

From then onwards, Leclerc was a sitting duck and both Hamilton and Bottas swept by. Had their not been a late safety car, due to a late double DNF for both Renault drivers, Max Verstappen would probably have got past as well. But Leclerc at least finished on the podium, not that it would have felt like a consolation knowing it could so easily have been him standing on the top step of the podium.

And the man who took top spot was Lewis Hamilton. You have to be in the right place at the right time to pounce on any bad situations ahead of you and Lewis did just that to win an enthralling race. And with Bottas coming home in second, the Finn still finds himself leading the Drivers’ Championship by a single point from his team-mate.

Despite a 1-2 for Mercedes it wasn’t the strongest of the weekends for them and Ferrari if they haven’t already from the race in Bahrain and in pre-season, have certainly given the Silver Arrows something to think about for the season. But as I have said, you have to be in the right place to take advantage of misfortunate events and Mercedes did just that.

Midfield battle

Well if it was entertaining at the front, it was just as entertaining in the midfield with battles galore from start to finish. Other than Leclerc, my star driver of the day was McLaren’s Lando Norris who drove a brilliant race to finish sixth. Norris didn’t have the best of starts but recovered superbly and even had a great battle with Kimi Raikkonen.

It is still very much early days but it looks as though McLaren have made significant improvements which is great to see. Carlos Sainz had he not been forced to retire could so easily have made it a double points finish for McLaren but it wasn’t to be. The signs though look promising for the team.

It was a horrible end to the weekend for Renault with both Nico Hulkenburg and Daniel Ricciardo suffering almost simultaneous technical malfunctions in the final laps of the Bahrain Grand Prix. It has not been easiest of starts to the season for the Aussie and it was always going to be tough to pull off a one-stop strategy. Hulkenburg looked set for another points finish but was forced to retire in the closing stages of the race.

Another rookie who has had a decent start to the season is Toro Rosso’s Alexander Albon. The Thai driver scored his first ever points in F1 with a ninth place finish in Bahrain so well done to him. Toro Rosso are well in the midfield mix and could potentially surprise one or two people this season.

And the top ten was rounded out by Racing Point’s Sergio Perez. It was a tough weekend for the ‘Pink Panthers’ and even Perez himself said it was going to be tough to score points after qualifying 14th. But to come away with a point will I’m sure feel like a bonus. And with major upgrades planned at the start of the European season for the team, it will be interesting to see how Racing Point progress this season especially now with new fresh investment.

It was a great race in Bahrain with so many great battles throughout the field and hoping this is just a sign of more things to come.

Star Driver: Has to be Charles Leclerc.

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Two Races and Two Crackers

At the beginning of the season I honestly felt 2012 was going to be a memorable year for Formula One. And if the first two races are anything to go by, we are going to be in for another cracking season of Formula One.

Two different winners in the first two races, exactly what the neutral will have wanted after Sebastian Vettel blitzed the field in 2011. However do not underestimate Red Bull and Vettel yet. You would be a fool to write them off and we have yet to see the best of the RB8.

But the first two races have been a joy to watch and I am very much looking forward to the Chinese Grand Prix this month. Bring on the next 18 races.

McLaren

Without question McLaren could have been celebrating two victories rather than the one. But the Woking-based team have made a strong start to 2012 and it is great to see a strong McLaren at the beginning of the season. Question is can they maintain their fine start to the season.

Jenson Button was simply brilliant at the season opener in Australia and after getting past his team-mate Lewis Hamilton on the opening lap, Button put in a Vettelesque performance. Jenson always seems to excel at Albert Park and yet again he did a stellar job in Australia.

The 2009 World Champion could so easily have got a strong result in Malaysia. But after damaging his front wing in a collision with HRT’s Narain Karthikeyan, Jenson failed to recover and finished a lowly 14th. Jenson was at fault for the collision and even he admitted that it was a clumsy mistake after the race.

Nonetheless I can see Jenson winning more races this season and if McLaren continue to improve the car, there is absolutely no reason why Button cannot be in contention for the Drivers title come the end of the year.

Two poles and two third place finishes for Lewis Hamilton. I’m sure Hamilton would liked to have been celebrating two wins after qualifying on pole in Australia and Malaysia. But if you said to Lewis he would be on 30 points after the first two races, he probably would have taken that after what happened last year.

It was evident on the podium how Hamilton was feeling after the Australian Grand Prix. But personally I do not think Lewis should be too disheartened by how he has performed this year. It has been a decent start to the season for the 2008 World Champion and there are positives Lewis can take from the opening two races.

Ferrari

Fernando Alonso winning in Malaysia was a result I’m sure many of us were not expecting at the beginning of the Malaysian weekend. But Alonso’s win at Sepang will no doubt give everyone at Ferrari a massive boost ahead of the Chinese Grand Prix.

Based on what we have seen, Ferrari’s race pace has been pretty good but qualifying has been nowhere near good enough. Alonso was only able to qualify ninth in Malaysia although he started the race eighth due to Kimi Raikkonen’s five place grid drop.

Felipe Massa has failed to make it into Q3 this season and the Brazilian is yet to score his first points of the season. The fact that Felipe has continued to struggle to get the best out of the Ferrari will crank up the pressure on him.

He needs a strong result from somewhere and that result could kick start his season. Even finishing on the podium would be a huge relief for him and Ferrari. Massa just needs to string some points finishes together and if he does that the pressure will lessen.

Winning in Malaysia will give Alonso impetus for the rest of the season and I can see Fernando getting stronger and stronger as the season goes on. But Ferrari need to give both Alonso and Massa a competitive car in which they can challenge for wins and podiums.

The F2012 has struggled in qualifying and yet the race pace is pretty good which I find mystifying. It remains to be seen what progress Ferrari make for the remainder of the season.

Red Bull

It has not been a stellar start to 2012 for Red Bull and out of the two drivers you have to say Mark Webber will be the more satisfied. We have yet to see the best of the RB8 but its not as if Red Bull are a million miles away from McLaren.

Qualifying was a major strong point for Sebastian Vettel and Red Bull last year but in 2012, Red Bull have so far failed to make it onto the front row. But you would expect to see a Red Bull qualify on pole at some point during the season.

The neutral so far will no doubt love the fact that the reigning Constructors Champions have not had it all their own way and that Vettel has not made the flying start that we were all expecting. There is still a very long way to go and do not underestimate Red Bull and Sebastian.

What happened in Malaysia between Vettel and Narain Karthikeyan was a racing incident. Narain unintentionally ruined Vettel’s race and Sebastian needs to realise that backmarkers are racing their own race as well as letting the big boys get past.

The 2010 and 2011 World Champion will bounce back and once the RB8 is on par with the McLaren, I can see Vettel giving Lewis and Jenson a tough time. Vettel though does have a challenge on his hands to beat both McLaren drivers.

Two fourth place finishes for Mark Webber. Not a bad start to the season for the Aussie and at least he has momentum heading into the weekend at China. It has not been a spectacular start to 2012 for Webber but it has been a solid start nonetheless.

The former Williams driver has been able to get the best out of the Red Bull car and being in front of Vettel in the Drivers Standings will psychologically do Webber the world of good. Will Webber be in front of Vettel come the end of the year? The likely answer is no but you never know what Mark could achieve come the end of the season.

Consistency is the key to winning a Championship and if Webber can continue to pick up strong points finishes, perhaps the Australian can go onto become a challenger for this years Drivers Championship. Only two races have gone and the season is only young but Mark can be pretty pleased with his performances in Australia and Malaysia.

The Rest

First and foremost, massive congratulations to Sauber and Sergio Perez for an astonishing second place at Sepang. Perez has performed remarkably well since making his debut in Australia last year and he has certainly proved that he can look after his tyres well.

Had the Mexican not ran wide in the latter stages whilst chasing Fernando Alonso in Malaysia, it could have been a whole lot better for Sergio. But lets not take anything away from Sauber. Finishing second was a terrific result for the Swiss team and that result will give the likes of Lotus, Force India, Toro Rosso and even Williams a glimmer of hope that they can go onto achieve similar results this season.

We all love it when the underdog produces something out of the blue. I hope Sergio’s result at Sepang is a sign of things to come.

Mercedes will be looking to score some big points in China after two disappointing results in the opening two races. One point from two races was not the start Mercedes will have wanted but there are encouraging signs.

Michael Schumacher has been impressive in qualifying but has failed to convert those strong qualifying performances into a points finish. But you could argue he was not at fault for his retirement in Australia and only being able to finish tenth last time out.

Had Romain Grosjean not collided with Schumi on the opening lap in Malaysia, maybe Michael could have gone on to get a strong result. The seven-times World Champion was also on course to score points in Australia but was forced to retire from the race after losing drive.

It has not been the best of starts to the season for Nico Rosberg but I can see Nico challenging for podiums from now till the end of the season. If he can qualify consistently in the Top 6, I do fancy Rosberg to pick up some podium finishes. There is cause for optimism at Mercedes regardless of what is happening off-track and I believe Rosberg will bounce back after two disappointing races.

Kimi Raikkonen has made a solid and positive start on his return to Formula One. And based on what I have seen, there is no reason why Lotus cannot challenge Mercedes to finish at least fourth in the Constructors.

Raikkonen scythed through the field brilliantly in Australia to finish seventh after qualifying a lowly 18th. And he was also able to make his way up to fifth in Malaysia after qualifying 10th (Did have a five place grid drop). Like Rosberg, I fancy Kimi to be challenging for podium finishes and who knows even go for a race win.

Romain Grosjean will no doubt be frustrated with how his races have panned out in 2012 but once he has scored his first points in Formula One, I’m sure we will see the Frenchman finishing in the points on a regular basis.

Considering the car is not at its best yet, Force India have done well to score eight points overall in the first two races. Paul di Resta scored points in Australia and Malaysia with team-mate Nico Hulkenburg finishing ninth last time out at Sepang. The in team battle at Force India will be an intriguing one and it is a battle I cannot call in terms of who will come out on top.

Also big congratulations to Jean-Eric Vergne and Daniel Ricciardo for scoring their first points in Formula One so early in their Toro Rosso careers. Big things are expected of Ricciardo and to score points on his Toro Rosso debut at his home Grand Prix will have delighted the Aussie.

Vergne performed admirably in Malaysia and was on the verge of scoring points in Australia but Force India’s Paul di Resta pipped the Frenchman to the finishing line on the final lap.

Williams have already beaten their points tally of last season and this years car is a massive improvement from the FW33. Bruno Senna did a great job in Malaysia and was able to bring the car home in sixth.

Pastor Maldonado has had terrible luck so far in 2012 and was on course to score points in both Australia and Malaysia. But a driver error at Albert Park and engine failure in Malaysia means Maldonado still remains on zero points. But Williams, Pastor and Bruno can take plenty of positives heading to China and things do appear to be on the up.

The midfield is tightly bunched up and there is nothing to choose between any of the teams. If Perez’s result at Malaysia is a sign of things to come, then do expect some more shock results. The midfield battle is just as fiercely competitive as the battle at the front.

Finally on the new teams. Charles Pic has adapted to life at Marussia well and finishing both races will do his confidence the world of good. I do expect Caterham to be able to get closer to the more established midfield teams come the end of 2012 despite the poor start to this season. As for HRT, they will be aiming to beat Marussia for the third consecutive year and it was great to see all 24 cars starting the race in Malaysia. Hopefully the HRT’s can qualify within the 107% Rule for every race.

I really hope China serves up another memorable Grand Prix and if the first two races are anything to go by, we are certainly in for another cracker.

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The Wait Is Almost Over! – 2012 Formula One Season Preview – Part 2

Lotus

The Enstone-based team have been pretty impressive in Pre-Season testing but I don’t expect them to finish ahead of Red Bull and McLaren in Australia. However I can see Lotus fighting the likes of Ferrari and Mercedes regularly this year.

Lotus (named as Lotus Renault GP last year) started 2011 in fine fashion as they finished on the podium in the opening two races. But the team really struggled in the second half of the season and only just finished ahead of Force India in the Constructors. Consistency is the key for success and last year Lotus were too inconsistent in my view.

All the attention will be on Kimi Raikkonen as the Finn returns to Formula One after a two year break. And no doubt comparisons will be made about how Kimi fares on his return to the sport compared to Michael Schumacher’s first year at Mercedes.

Its great to see Kimi back in a Formula One car and he has already proved in Pre-Season testing he still has the speed. The question is can Lotus provide Kimi with a competitive car for the 2007 World Champion to challenge for podiums. Does Raikkonen also have the determination and enthusiasm to succeed on his comeback to Formula One?

I personally feel Kimi has what it takes to win another Drivers title and its up to Lotus to provide Raikkonen the tools for him to be at the sharp end of the grid. It will be interesting to see how Kimi approaches this season and which Kimi turns up.

Along with Raikkonen, Romain Grosjean will be making a second return to Formula One. And I think the Frenchman is better equipped and has the pedigree to do well in 2012. I also reckon Grosjean can give Raikkonen a run for his money this season.

Romain was literally thrown at the deep end in 2009 when he replaced Nelson Piquet Jnr at the European Grand Prix. Grosjean failed to make a major impression and struggled for the remainder of the 2009 season.

But having been crowned GP2 Champion last year and done a solid job for Lotus in the Free Practice Sessions towards the end of 2011 season, Grosjean will be bullish about his chances of doing well in 2012.

This is a second chance for Grosjean to establish himself in Formula One and I think this time round he can.

Force India

2012 could potentially be a year where I think Force India could surprise one or two people and even challenge for the odd podium. With Paul di Resta and Nico Hulkenburg driving for the team this year, the in-team battle at Force India will be very intriguing.

Putting aside what happened off-track, I do have sympathy for Adrian Sutil after he finished ninth in the Drivers Standings and had another decent season in 2011. But Force India have decided to go with di Resta and Hulkenburg for this year.

There is no arguing that Paul di Resta was Formula One’s Rookie of the Year in 2011. The Scotsman impressed against his more experienced team-mate Sutil last season despite the German eventually scoring more points come the end of the year.

Di Resta did a superb job in first full season as a Formula One driver and who can forget his qualifying performance at Silverstone where he ended up sixth. And lets not forget his fine sixth place finish in the race at Singapore.

The VJM05 has been pretty reliable throughout Pre-Season testing without any major problems although Test Driver Jules Bianchi did shunt the car on the third day of testing at Jerez.

If Force India can continue where they left off last season then there is no reason why di Resta cannot have another strong season. And I’m sure Force India will be aiming to battle with the likes of Lotus and Mercedes. The future is bright for di Resta and he is a force to be reckoned with.

The Hulk is back. Not the Incredible Hulk but Nico Hulkenburg. The German having endured a frustrating 2011 by being on the sidelines as Force India’s Reserve driver now has a race seat for 2012. And its up to Hulkenburg to grasp this opportunity.

I did feel sorry for Hulkenburg when he was ousted from Williams at the end of the 2010 season. That was despite the German qualifying on pole in Brazil and being one of the Rookies of the Year.

It is a shame that money seems to count more than talent and Hulkenburg was replaced by Pastor Maldonado. Williams’ loss but Force India’s gain. Hulkenburg will want to prove a point in 2012 and I fancy the German to have solid and successful season.

Sauber

The Swiss team were able to hold off Toro Rosso for seventh in the Constructors last season. After a bright start, Sauber’s form in the second half of the season dipped due to their lack of resources. But like Force India, Sauber have two exciting drivers on their books.

Kamui Kobayashi has been a revelation since making his Formula One debut in Brazil 2009. His driving style has proven to be a hit with many fans but he will be hoping Sauber can develop the car throughout the whole of the 2012 season.

Kobayashi finished in the Top 10 for seven consecutive races (If you count the team’s disqualification in Australia) and things appeared to be on the up. But post-Silverstone, Sauber were unable to make significant improvements to the car which led to them being overtaken by Force India in the Constructors.

The Japanese driver is only 25 and if he can consistently finish in the points, maybe the likes of Red Bull and Ferrari might take a punt on him in the future. And Kobayashi might well target the Top 10 of the Drivers Championship this year.

Sergio Perez certainly had an eventful 2011 and the Mexican made a flying start to his Formula One career, albeit Sauber were disqualified from the opening race due to a rear-wing rule breach.

Perez was able to make his one stop strategy work to bring the car home in seventh but was then later disqualified. However he was fortunate to survive a horrific crash during qualifying at Monaco.

There are plenty of positives Perez can take from the way he performed last year and he was more than a match for Kobayashi throughout 2011. Perez is a product of Ferrari’s Junior Drivers Programme and if the 22 year-old can do a fine job for Sauber this year, he could be in a Ferrari sooner rather than later.

Toro Rosso

Helmut Marko and the Red Bull hierarchy were certainly ruthless in getting rid of both Sebastian Buemi and Jaime Alguersuari. Harsh in my view because I thought Buemi and Alguersuari performed well in 2011.

But the decision has been made and Daniel Ricciardo and Jean-Eric Vergne are the new driver-line up for the team. No pressure then on Ricciardo and Vergne to deliver the results for Toro Rosso.

There has been a lot of hype surrounding Ricciardo and now it is time for the Australian to prove he is worth a place in Formula One. I was surprised by how well Ricciardo did at HRT and he was able to get the better of Tonio Liuzzi on many occasions.

Finishing in the points at his home Grand Prix would be a dream start for Ricciardo and no doubt he will want to get the better of his team-mate from the start of the season.

A lot has been said about Ricciardo being the new Sebastian Vettel and this year is a massive season for the 2010 Formula Renault 3.5 runner-up. If Ricciardo can perform well consistently in 2012 then who knows he might be in a Red Bull in 2013 or 2014.

It is all about giving youngsters a chance and Jean-Eric Vergne has now been given an opportunity to shine. Fernando Alonso started off at Minardi and now look where he is. Anything is possible if you take your chances.

If I am being honest, I haven’t seen much of Vergne apart from the Practice Sessions he participated in for Toro Rosso towards the end of the 2011 season. The Frenchman must have done something right in the Practice Sessions and Formula Renault last year for Toro Rosso to take him on this season.

JEV will face the same pressure as Ricciardo in trying to deliver results for the team and take Toro Rosso forwards. Franz Tost, Helmut Marko, Dietrich Mateschitz along with the Red Bull hierarchy will be expecting big things from Ricciardo and Vergne this year. Along with Mercedes, Toro Rosso are another team who are under pressure to improve this year.

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2011 Italian Grand Prix Podcast on Formula1 FanCast

Formula1 FanCast’s Manish Patel and Formula One pundit Will Vincent look back on an exciting Italian Grand Prix.

Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel edged closer to his second consecutive Drivers title after the German made it eight wins in 2011 with his latest victory came at the illustrious Monza. Providing results go his way and he wins in Singapore, Vettel will be crowned World Champion.

Delight for one Red Bull driver but disappointment for the other as Mark Webber retired from the race. The Australian lost his front wing at Turn two after trying to get past Felipe Massa and then Webber went straight into the wall at the Parabolica on lap five. It was yet another frustrating weekend for Mark.

McLaren’s Jenson Button finished Sunday’s race second ahead of team-mate Lewis Hamilton who came home in fourth. Button is currently ahead of Lewis in the Drivers Championship and some would say this is Jenson’s best chance to stay ahead of Hamilton.

The Tifosi turned out in their thousands hoping to see a repeat of last years Italian Grand Prix where Fernando Alonso stepped onto the top step of the podium. The Spaniard in this years race finished third with Felipe Massa in sixth.

Michael Schumacher put in another fine performance to beat his Mercedes team-mate Nico Rosberg. Schumacher finished the race fifth and was involved in an enthralling battle with Lewis Hamilton.

Toro Rosso have fond memories of Monza after Sebastian Vettel picked up their first and only win in F1 at Monza in 2008. This year Jaime Alguersuari once again came through the field to finish in an impressive seventh place and Sebastian Buemi finished in tenth.

Force India’s Paul di Resta came home in eighth and Renault’s Bruno Senna scored his first ever points in Formula One as he took the chequered in ninth.

Visit http://www.formula1fancast.com to keep up to date with the latest Formula One news and you can also follow us on Twitter @Formula1FanCast.

You can also visit http://www.youtube.com/user/TheManishism to listen to all the Formula1 FanCast podcasts this year.

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Hamilton Back In The Game – German Grand Prix Review

You know how they say things come out of the blue, well Lewis Hamilton’s victory at the Nurburgring certainly was unexpected.

Hamilton had written off McLaren’s chances of challenging Red Bull at the German Grand Prix and yet in qualifying, Lewis only found himself five-hundredths of a second behind pole sitter Mark Webber on Saturday.

The 2008 World Champion put in a sensational lap in Q3 and things were about to get a whole lot better for him on race day. No doubt Lewis will have been on a high come the end of Saturday and that was without doubt Hamilton’s best qualifying performance of the season. Managing to split the Red Bull’s as well was a fine effort from Lewis.

The Brit was able to leapfrog Webber at the start and then went onto drive a faultless race. You could argue the turning point came on lap 33 when Hamilton pulled off a tremendous move on Fernando Alonso by taking the outside line at Turn 2 to get past the Spaniard. That has to be a contender for overtaking manoeuvre of the season so far.

But on the other side of the coin, Jenson Button had yet another weekend he will want to forget. After only being able to qualify 7th and a full second behind his team-mate, qualifying did not go to plan for the 2009 World Champion. And on Sunday, Button made a poor start and was then later forced to retire due to hydraulics problems.

It was not the best of weekends for Jenson and he will be hoping for a strong weekend in Hungary. Being a whole second behind Hamilton in qualifying will have been a concern for Button.

I’ve said this time and time again but Button does need to improve his qualifying to give himself a chance of at least challenging Red Bull and Ferrari. But Lewis’ performance in Germany will give Jenson hope that McLaren are getting closer to Red Bull.

Despite not winning the race, Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso put in another strong performance to finish the race 2nd behind Hamilton. Alonso may have been slightly disappointed to have only managed to qualify 4th. But as we have seen in 2011, both Alonso and Felipe Massa have made flying starts in the majority of races.

Since Monaco, Ferrari and Alonso have been pretty impressive and for me it was no surprise the Spaniard won at Silverstone. But its just frustrating that Ferrari seem to get into their stride during the middle part of the season and not at the beginning of the season as we have seen this year and in 2010.

Make no mistake though Ferrari are back and don’t underestimate Fernando Alonso. Fernando’s team-mate Felipe Massa came home 5th after losing out to Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel on the final lap in the final pit stop. Massa was in front of Vettel heading into the pit lane on the final lap but Sebastian left the pit lane ahead of Felipe after the Ferrari pit crew were slow to release the Brazilian.

Massa for me has made a solid start this year and I would love to see him win another race. Felipe is the No.2 driver at Ferrari but there have been occasions where the Brazilian has finished in front of Fernando so Alonso has not had it all his own way in 2011.

Sebastian Vettel is still 70+ points clear of the second placed man in the Drivers standings but Sunday’s race was not a walk in the park for last years World Champion.

It was the first time really where we saw Vettel making rare mistakes although he did make an error on the final lap of the Canadian Grand Prix to allow Jenson Button to take the chequered flag.

For sure Vettel is in the box seat even though he finished the race 4th. And the likes of Hamilton, Webber and Alonso would like to be where Seb is in the Drivers standings. I still fancy Vettel to take the 2011 crown but the last two Grand Prix’s have given McLaren and Ferrari hope that they can take the fight to Red Bull.

As for Mark Webber he put in a fantastic lap on Saturday to qualify pole. But on Sunday, the Australian was unable to capitalise and finished the race 3rd.

It was another missed opportunity for Webber to convert pole into a race win. Just how many chances does he need to try and win his first race of 2011?

Mark did finish the race ahead of Sebastian so that will be a huge boost. But yet again Mark did not make the best of starts to the race. Like Massa, I would love to see Webber win a race this year but he needs to convert pole into race victories.

Along with Lewis Hamilton, Force India’s Adrian Sutil will have been a contender for driver of the day after the German finished the race in a superb 6th place. Sutil was able to make his two stop strategy work and he even beat both Mercedes drivers.

Sutil had a good solid weekend and he will be hoping for more of the same at the Hungaroring. The battle for 6th in the Constructors between Sauber, Force India and Toro Rosso might just go down to the wire and I would not like to call who will come out on top.

There has also been speculation about Nico Hulkenburg wanting a Force India race seat for next season so it will be interesting to see driver line-up at the team next season.

Nico Rosberg and Michael Schumacher finished Sunday’s race 7th and 8th for Mercedes. It was a double points finish for the team but this was supposed the season where we saw both drivers challenging Red Bull, Ferrari and McLaren on a regular basis. But it has not panned out like that.
I’m one of those who still feel we have yet to see the best of Nico Rosberg. This is Rosberg’s 6th season in Formula One and some will argue he should have won a race by now.

But to be fair to him he has not been given a car in which he can challenge for race victories. Look at how long it took for Jenson Button to record his first victory.

Sauber’s Kamui Kobayashi finished in the points yet again as he finished 9th. And Lotus Renault’s Vitaly Petrov picked up the final point as he came home in 10th.

HRT’s Daniel Ricciardo finished the race in what was only his second start in Formula One. And well done to Karun Chandhok who managed to finish the race. The Indian driver replaced Jarno Trulli for the German Grand Prix weekend and I suppose the best he could have wished for was to finish the race.

The German Grand Prix Podcast will be uploaded tommorow so watch this space.

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British Grand Prix Podcast on Formula1 FanCast

Formula1 FanCast’s Manish Patel and Scratch Radio’s Will Vincent look back at an entertaining 2011 British Grand Prix.

Just as we thought Sebastian Vettel was going to make it seven wins out of nine, a rare mistake from the Red Bull pit crew allowed Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso to leapfrog the German and go onto to take his first win of 2011.

Alonso still finds himself 90+ points behind Vettel in the Drivers standings but could the result at the British Grand Prix be the result that turns the season around? Only time will tell.

Felipe Massa also played his part in this stunning Grand Prix. The Brazilian had some great battles with both Jenson Button and Lewis Hamilton. Massa finished the race 5th.

It was another frustrating weekend for McLaren as Hamilton ended Sunday’s race 4th and Button was forced to retire. Qualifying yet again proved to be McLaren’s Achilles heel and the team will be looking for a strong a result in Germany.

Nico Rosberg was the first of the two stoppers to finish the race as he finished in 6th. Rosberg’s team-mate Michael Schumacher despite having to serve a stop go and change his front wing picked up two points and finished 9th.

Schumacher recovered well but the seven-times World Champion could have finished higher up had he not caused a collision with Sauber’s Kamui Kobayashi.

Sauber’s Sergio Perez continues to impress in his debut season as he finished 7th ahead of Lotus Renault’s Nick Heidfeld. And Jaime Alguersuari continued his revival with another points finish.

Force India’s Paul di Resta had a sensational Saturday by qualifying sixth. But di Resta lost roughly 25 seconds during his second stop in the race as the team were expecting Adrian Sutil. That pit stop ruined di Resta’s race and then the Scotsman collided with Sebastian Buemi. It was an unfortunate end to what promised to be a decent weekend for Paul.

And finally Daniel Ricciardo made his Formula One debut with Hispania. The best the Aussie could have hoped for was to finish the race and that’s exactly what he did.

You can follow Manish Patel on Twitter (@Baggies20) and you can also read about Manish’s opinions on every Grand Prix weekend by visiting his blog: https://mannyi.wordpress.com/

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The D Word – 2011 European Grand Prix Podcast on Formula1 FanCast

It was yet another weekend where Sebastian Vettel blew away the field and dominated qualifying and the race to pick up his sixth win of the season at this years European Grand Prix.

Vettel’s team-mate Mark Webber finished the race 3rd so it was not the perfect weekend for Red Bull. Webber however did have a strong weekend in Valencia and managed to get onto the front row in qualifying.

Home favourite Fernando Alonso came home in second to give the home crowd something to cheer about. Alonso and Ferrari are going in the right direction and in the race the Spaniard managed to get past Webber in the final round of pit stops.

Felipe Massa finished 5th and not for the first time this season, the Brazilian made a flying start to the race.

It was not the best of weekends for McLaren as Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button finished 4th and 6th. Surprisingly it was Ferrari who were Red Bull’s main competitors in Valencia and McLaren struggled for pace throughout the weekend.

Both Jenson and Lewis along with Paul di Resta will be hoping for strong results at the British Grand Prix.

Nico Rosberg only managed 7th for Mercedes with Michael Schumacher coming home in a lowly 17th place.

Toro Rosso’s Jaime Alguersuari made his two stop strategy work by coming home in 8th. There has been plenty of speculation about Alguersuari’s future at Toro Rosso but the Spaniard has now recorded back to back points finishes.

Another driver who had a decent weekend was Force India’s Adrian Sutil. The German made it into Q3 for the first time this season and finished the race 9th. Paul di Resta was in the hunt for points but could only finish 14th.

Williams had another disappointing weekend as both Rubens Barrichello and Pastor Maldonado finished outside the points. 2011 so far has been a frustrating one for Williams and the team will be hoping the second half of the season will be a vast improvement.

Finally Team Lotus outqualified and finished the race ahead of both Virgin and Hispania cars. Lotus are getting closer to the established midfield teams as the weekends go by.

Don’t forget you can get involved with our next podcast on Formula1 FanCast. Next week we will be looking ahead to the much awaited British Grand Prix and we would like you to tell us your favourite British Grand Prix’s of all time and your thoughts on the new Silverstone wing. You can get in touch with us through Twitter @Formula1FanCast or @Baggies20.

 

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