China Qualifying: Tedious in Shanghai

The most exciting thing to occur in qualifying for the Chinese Grand Prix involved the Red Bulls, as the two feuding team mates both failed to make it through to the top ten shoot out. It's a massive shock for fans, rival fans and the teams alike. We might only be two races in to the season, but it has become apparent that Red Bull Racing may once again be the dominant force this year and at the very least will be clear title contenders. For Red Bull, this qualifying outcome is likely to be a major blow, and the team will be left hoping that the race is as unpredictable as others and that they can draw out a reasonable result. It's fair to say that the next 24 hours will be a salvage operation for the chaps with wings.

The success story of the Chinese qualies has to be Lewis Hamilton's Stirling effort to take the pole position. It was quite a performance for a driver who entered preseason testing, humbly claiming that he and the team didn't expect to achieve very much at all this season. Surprisingly, the Mercedes cars were fast all the way through qualifying and topped the timing sheets in all three of the sessions. It'll be interesting to see if Mercedes can keep up the challenge that they seem to be posing to the likes of Red Bull and Ferrari.

One shock result, further down the order, came in the shape of Toro Rosso's Ricciardo, who first of all popped his sister Red Bull car in to the top ten shoot out and then proceeded to out qualify an impressed Jenson Button, who was quoted as saying over his team radio 'Ricciardo?! Wow!' It was a great effort by the Toro Rosso driver who showed that he can mix it with the big boys. We might see him challenging for the win in the race. We've seen that kind of thing from the likes of Force India already and neutral fans will agree that it's nice to see these unlikely heroes throwing a spanner in the works.

Malaysian GP Race: Bittersweet victory

After all of the action of the Malaysian Grand Prix, controversy won the day again, with Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber ending in an uncomfortable conflict. Numerous altercations have occurred between the two Red Bull drivers, but this one will be remembered as one of the more palatable, since both understood what had happened and appeared instantly prepared to work towards remedying the situation.

Returning to the start of the Grand Prix, the big incident through the first couple of corners involved last year's major title contender, Fernando Alonso, who found himself struggling to hold on to second place with a damaged front wing. As he drove through turn two he got a little too close to the rear end of Vettel's Red Bull and made contact. It was hanging on and throwing up sparks for a full lap, during which Mark Webber swapped positions with the Ferrari driver time and time again. It seemed inevitable that Fernando would pit at the end of the lap, to have the nose replaced, but he drove on and at the end of the start/finish straight the wing came away and lodged under the front of the car, leaving Alonso a spectator, as the car hurtled in to the gravel. Fortunately, the car slowed down before making contact with the barrier, but I would argue that it was a dangerous decision by Ferrari, when regulation states that if there is damage that can cause an accident then the car must be pitted.

With Alonso out of the running it became a straight battle between Red Bull Racing and Mercedes, which would continue to the end of the Grand Prix. Lotus didn't figure too heavily in the front fight and neither did McLaren, Jenson Button suffering in one of his pitstops, with a wheel that wasn't properly attached to his car. Pit stops were a big feature of this race, with Force India having a nightmare, culminating in Di Resta and Sutil having to retire. Toro Rosso and Caterham had an incident, when Vergne was released straight in to Charles Pic, causing damage to both cars. A similar incident occurred between Raikonnen and Hulkenberg, with the drivers avoiding contact, however it was a feud which continued for many laps after. Need I say much about Lewis Hamilton, driving through his old team's pit box...

As the Malaysian Grand Prix approached its conclusion. The Red Bull drivers found themselves in first and second, whilst the Mercedes drivers were in third and fourth. There was quite a distance between the two teams but not much distance between team mates and it was this circumstance that led to the controversy. Understandably, the teams radioed instructions to their respective drivers that they wanted them to hold position, protect their tyres and (in Hamilton's case) preserve fuel. Rosberg, who felt that he was faster, communicated his frustrations to the team, but obeyed the orders. Vettel took matters in to his own hands and decided to fight Mark Webber, his team mate and the worthy winner, who had turned his engine down (under team orders) to ensure he made it to the end of the grand prix. What ensued was a risky and heated battle, resulting in Vettel snatching the lead and driving to an undeserved victory.

The post race formalities were awkward and uncomfortable, with Vettel admitting his wrong doing and stating that he wished he hadn't won, Webber regretfully pointing out that the team needed to be strong and work together, and Lewis Hamilton explaining how it wasn't the usual good feeling on the podium. This race was exciting, but we are all becoming accustomed to watching respectful and fair racing, and for that reason the final result left a very bitter taste. Fortunately it seems that the drivers are fully aware of that fact and we can expect this sort of thing not to happen again for a very long time.

Malaysian GP Qualifying: Everybody loves the sunshine

The qualifying in Malaysia started in predictably sunny and dry conditions, allowing the teams to set up the cars in a more optimum way to what they had to for qualifying in Australia. However, it wouldn't prove to be that way throughout the session.

Q1 was dry and, despite this, still managed to throw up a couple of surprises. Mark Webber and Sebastian Vettel both left it very late to secure their places in the second session of qualifying. They looked to be massively off the pace, whilst once again the Force India cars were looking extremely competitive, as were the Lotus cars. Sutil is really relishing the new found pace and performance in his Force India and is likely to be a cause for concern to the front runners again on Sunday. It'll only be a matter of time before Sutil is considered one of them, instead of just in amongst them...

The Red Bull drivers made it through to Q2, Sebastian Vettel by the skin of his teeth, and as Q2 got underway it became clear that something was worrying all of the teams. It was revealed that the reason all of the cars were out on track at the same time, and desperately trying to get a decent lap in, was that rain was on its way. It was inevitable that it would catch somebody out and that somebody was Paul Di Resta, who found himself pirouetting through the KLIA Curve. He didn't fair any better after that and ended up qualifying fifteenth. He and the team will have to work on an interesting strategy for the race.

Sebastian Vettel cut it close again, in Q2, and was lucky not to be a victim of the same fate as Di Resta. He was just outside the elimination zone and joined the other ten cars as they went out for the final session of qualifying, on intermediate tyres. As the cars completed lap after lap, the times got quicker and quicker on a drying track. Unbelievably, and probably to all of his rivals' dismay, Vettel managed to bag pole position. The two Ferrari's are hot on his heels again and it will just be a case of whether Seb can keep them behind him this time.

Surprise in Oz!

The Australian Grand Prix didn't provide much excitement and didn't really get the blood flowing. There was literally no contact between any of the cars, and the only incident was Pastor Maldonado spinning off in to the gravel on the first corner. There were a few retirements, however they were all due to technical issues and created little to no drama. It wasn't a boring race though and certainly threw up a few surprises.

One thing that wasn't a surprise however, was Mark Webber's terrible start, just like many of the races in 2012. He will have to do a lot to convince us that he hasn't started this season the way he means to go on. Driving exactly the same car as Vettel, he struggled for pace and appeared to be unable to undo the damage he did by being so sluggish off the line. Vettel didn't fair too well either. Despite starting from pole position and keeping the lead through the first few laps, he was unable to replicate the dominance from the front that we have grown so accustomed to in Formula One.

The Pirelli tyres, which it had been said were more durable and less prone to 'falling off the cliff' as last year, appeared to be a lot worse. They were lasting five or six laps before drivers were falling victim to their rivals without being able to put up much of a fight at all. Hamilton made a great effort at resisting a pass from Alonso in one of these situations, locking up both of his front tyres and holding the position. Frustratingly, the defense was never going to stick because Alonso popped his Ferrari on to Lewis' inside for the next corner and shot past easily. As the race went on, it grew more frustrating and more disappointing.

The surprises came in the shape of the Lotus cars and the Force India cars, whose pace was beyond what any of us expected. Sutil had a very competitive race and was in the front running pack for most the race, something that the race officials often failed to realise as misplaced blue flags waved time and time again, when Sutil was racing a Lotus or a McLaren. Raikonnen ran a sublime race and was a very worthy winner. It's nice to see the outspoken but lovable finn back at the top and arguably where he belongs. It wasn't a predictable result but it was a predictable path that led to it, in respect of tyre degradation and other teams' consistent pace through the grand prix. It has to get more exciting in Malaysia!

Rain, rain, go away!

The qualifying in Australia eventually got underway, after a long wait for the weather to abate and the track to dry. A feeling of deja vu was difficult to shake, as a brief run for the cars on Saturday morning (GMT) was interrupted yet again by moaning drivers and over-fearful race officials, who deemed the circuit too dangerous to drive on. I can't believe I'm discussing the wet conditions again, but I remember when Formula One cars raced in all conditions. I would suggest that either drivers, teams and officials are overreacting these days, or the cars are simply not capable of driving in the wet anymore. However, if the latter is the case, then wet tyres should be scrapped and the series should be a dry-conditions-only formula.

When the qualifying was finally restarted, at midnight (GMT), Q2 was run on a drying as opposed to a dry track. Everybody played it safe and sensible, running on the intermediate tyre, except that is for McLaren. Ludicrously, McLaren opted to experiment on slick tyres, in the closing few minutes of the session and predictably (at least to the vast majority of us) shot themselves in the foot. The team left Perez no time to put in a sensible lap, to get him in to the final top ten shoot out, leaving him in a starting position of fifteenth. They only just managed to get Button through to the final session, but clearly a few people at McLaren are suffering with jet lag.

The big story of the qualifying session this morning was the storming laps by the two Red Bull drivers. Their start to the season is in massive contrast to last season, but one thing seems ominously conclusive, Red Bull Racing are still top of the league and, if this start is an indication of what the rest of the season will deliver, then they may be on for another dominant championship bid. Let's all hope that the other teams can peg them back in the race... 

Waiting with bated breath...

We've seen out another one. Another winter of discontent. Whilst the teams slog away creating, testing and redesigning their machines, we wait in the wings, ready to savour the gladiatorial battle that commences in Australia. The annual break is a difficult time for the fans, twiddling our thumbs and counting down the days, the hours, the minutes.

But, the time is almost upon us again. The engines are revving up, the flags are being unfurled and we're ready. We're ready to climb in to our dressing gowns and hunker down in to the individually moulded spaces in our sofas. Race control are communicating with us from the other room, asking if we want a tea or a coffee, a bacon or sausage sandwich. The remote has launch control switched on and the TV is turned up so we can push to pass.

Lewis Hamilton will hear more than just his race engineer in his earphones, as thousands of English fans bark their own orders, guidance and criticism at their television sets. Thousands of us will tell Martin Brundle, and the rest of our living rooms, exactly what we think of his verdict on driver of the day and whether Fernando Alonso should have attempted this pass or that move. Many of us will concede that on a second look, we did indeed exaggerate a little, the incident wasn't quite as bad as we first thought, and we may just have been wrong.

One thing is for certain. The passion will spill over again, from both sides of the camera, from drivers, teams and fans alike. Sleepy heads will stumble out of bed in the early hours, barbecues will be arranged around race weekends, and shopping trips will be rushed, just to be home for the Saturday qualifying session. The green flag will drop, the lights will go out and we'll all be in it together, wrapped up in our own little world, for those two glorious hours.

It's time to go racing.

The final act...

So, the season is over, and what an ending! As the beginning of the Brazilian Grand Prix approached, it threatened to be a bit of a foregone conclusion. However, that threat was rather weak, as the misty rain refused to abate and more rain was forecast for the rest of the Grand Prix. Everybody knew what was required of them if they were to achieve their various goals, but all of that seemed to be dropped by the wayside, as the cars exited the fourth corner, leaving the reigning World Champion facing the wrong way.

Vettel went in to the race with very little to do, relatively speaking. He was leading the championship by fifteen points and his race should have been straight forward. Alonso, on the other hand, had a far more difficult prospect ahead of him. Sat on the grid, he was aware that he needed at least a third place finish, with Sebastian finishing out of the points, if he was to take the championship.

When the red lights went out, Vettel was sluggish getting away, whilst Alonso had his usual storming start and found himself up in third, exactly where he needed to be if he was to take the title. Then, the unthinkable happened for Red Bull, as Bruno Senna ploughed in to the side of Vettel, on the fourth corner, spinning him round and resulting in half a dozen cars appearing to hit each other and Sebastian. To everyone, including the Red Bull team and Vettel himself, it looked like the young German was out of the race. Seb's race engineer was heard saying, over the team radio, "stay out to see how the car behaves, we cannot fix it". Unbelievably, a few minutes later, Vettel was banging in fastest laps and the damage, although extensive, appeared to be cosmetic only.

As the race progressed, rain, safety cars and pit stops continuously mixed up the pack and it became difficult to judge how the final positions would shake out. Many drivers had excursions off the black stuff. Kimi Raikonnen bounced through the mud, in true Finnish rally style, whilst Alonso, overran the first corner more than once. Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button looked like they might cap off the season with a truly inspired result, until Lewis and Niko Hulkenberg had an unfortunate coming together on the first corner. Hamilton's race, season, and time at McLaren were brought to an abrupt end.

It was Jenson who managed to take one final win for McLaren, which was sort of poetic, since he is the driver that is staying with the British based team. Alonso did everything that could have been expected of him, and similarly Massa was resilient and ever the team player. His reaction on the podium summed up his sheer gratitude at being gifted another shot after the accident that saw him suffer a traumatic head injury a couple of years ago. Fernando was exceptionally graceful in defeat. He looked, understandably, disappointed but full of thanks for the efforts of his Ferrari team. All of the drivers were fantastic ambassadors of the sport in Brazil, but the worthy world champion was Sebastian Vettel.

It was a tense final few laps, that saw Sebastian climb to the required position and Alonso struggle to come near to a flying Button. It was nail-bitingly obvious that a failure or a mistake, from almost any of the cars in the top ten, could have swung the championship outcome in one or other's favour. However, Vettel was the deserving winner. The Brazilian Grand Prix made it two races in which Sebastian had found himself plumb last, for whatever reason, and had then worked his way up to the front of the pack to take valuable points.

This season has been record-breaking, unpredictable and utterly, utterly thrilling. Nobody would have guessed that this season could be as good as last season and yet it was arguably better. Red Bull Racing and Sebastian Vettel have done it again, despite having a relatively poor start to the championship fight. Congratulations to them and thank you to all the people who have followed my blog throughout the season. I wish the racing could continue right on through the winter, and for us, the spectators, we have to wait till next March. However, for the teams, the race does continue, seamlessly on, as they strive to design, develop and innovate faster than their rivals, all in preparation for the 2013 season...