We all went into the Brazilian Grand Prix thinking that Vettel’s faster car and higher qualifying spot than Alonso meant that he’d cruise to his third-straight World Drivers’ Championship. That lasted until Turn Four and we were treated to the best race of the season as Vettel came from the back of the field to barely win his third Championship. Continue reading
F1 2012
F1 Power Rankings: Brazilian Grand Prix
After eight months and nineteen races, the 2012 Formula One World Championship comes down to the 20th and final race. Red Bull may have clinched the World Constructors’ Championship in the United States but the World Drivers’ Championship is still up for grabs. Sebastian Vettel leads Fernando Alonso by 13 points heading into the Brazilian Grand Prix but history shows that the battle for the title isn’t over. In 2010, Vettel won his first championship by overcoming 15 point gap to Alonso in the final race of the season. When race wins were only worth 10 points, Kimi Raikkonen came from 7 points back to win the 2007 World Championship.
Can Alonso come from behind to win the title and how does Vettel rate his chances of becoming a three-time World Champion? I examine this and more in this week’s Formula One Power Rankings. Continue reading
F1 United States Grand Prix: Texas Two-Step
The last time Formula One was racing in America, the race was won by Lewis Hamilton, his second win in a row, and a young driver named Sebastian Vettel made his F1 debut driving for BMW-Sauber and became the youngest driver to score a point. Five years later, Formula One returned to America and it was once again Lewis Hamilton who scored the win and Sebastian Vettel, this time driving for Red Bull, once again scored points but finished 2nd instead of 8th. Continue reading
F1 Power Rankings: United States Grand Prix
We’ve reached the penultimate round of the 2012 Formula One World Championship and the championship battle has another twist in store. Formula One is returning to America on the brand new Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas. Sebastian Vettel combined luck and speed to stay on top of the World Drivers’ Championship but Fernando Alonso’s race pace showed he shouldn’t be counted out yet. Who has the upper hand with a maximum of 50 points still on the board? Continue reading
Formula One: 2012 Abu Dhabi Young Drivers’ Test Recap
The final of this season’s three Young Drivers tests was held at the Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi last week. As you may recall, Young Drivers tests were held earlier in the year at Silverstone and Magny Cours. The remaining six teams to not put their prospective future drivers through their paces stayed in Abu Dhabi after the Grand Prix to hold the final in-season test of 2012. Continue reading
F1 Abu Dhabi GP: A Bit of Luck and A Bit of Skill
After being disqualified from qualifying and starting from the pit lane, it appeared as though Sebastian Vettel would see his lead in the World Drivers’ Championship shrink, if not disappear altogether. However, the speed of the Red Bull combined with some luck with the safety car mitigated the damage.
Fernando Alonso was able to shrink the lead but didn’t take the win. Kimi Raikkonen benefited from a great start and a little bit of luck to win his first race since returning to Formula One. Continue reading
F1 Power Rankings: Abu Dhabi Grand Prix
There are only three races to go in the 2012 Formula One World Championship but there are only two drivers still in the hunt for the World Drivers’ Championship. It’s a straight shootout between Sebastian Vettel and Fernando Alonso. The German driver has the advantage in both the points and in out right speed from his car. Can Alonso catch him? I examine that and more in this week’s Formula One Power Rankings. Continue reading
F1 Indian GP: Four In A Row
The season started with seven different race winners from the first seven races. The narrative has changed slightly as the last four races have been won by one man. Sebastian Vettel picked up his fourth-straight race win after leading every lap of the race from pole. Elsewhere, there was a news update on next season’s Grand Prix of America and more developments in the 2013 driver market. Continue reading
F1 Power Rankings: Indian Grand Prix
The 2012 Formula One World Championship returns to India for the second with a new points leader for the first time since June. Fernando Alonso took the World Drivers’ Championship lead at the European Grand Prix but Sebastian Vettel left Korea with the Championship lead for the first time since the Spanish Grand Prix. Will momentum be on Vettel’s side over the last four races or can Alonso mount a comeback? I start answering that question in this week’s Power Rankings. Continue reading
F1 Korean GP: Looking For A Three-Peat
In the two races since the European portion of the season ended, Sebastian Vettel has dominated proceedings. So it wasn’t much of a surprise that Vettel took his third-straight race victory. His win and Alonso’s third place finish has given the twice-defending champion the lead in the World Drivers’ Championship. Meanwhile, some interesting news broke in the paddock about Force India owner Vijay Mallya and Formula One got a new TV partner in America. Continue reading
The Lowdown 