United States Grand Prix: Sebastian flies in Texas!

The first corner of the race surprised me, because I expected drama. In fact, privately, I had predicted that Hamilton and Rosberg wouldn't get through the first hairpin, without making contact. Actually, the first few corners were extremely tidy, for everyone. Then all hell broke loose. Perez ran deep in to one of the corners, colliding with the back end of Kimi Raikonnen's Ferrari, and then spinning Adrian Sutil's Sauber around, spreading debris across the circuit. It was very unfortunate for Sutil, who had been so successful in Saturday's qualifying, and led to a lengthy safety car period. It was during this safety car period that Vettel and Red Bull made the decision that resulted in a decent turn around for the German reigning World Champion.

Vettel had been forced to start from the pit lane, due to the fact that he had needed an engine change. As the safety car came out, for the recovery of Sutil's Sauber, Vettel proceeded to make two pitstops, to cover both of his tyre stints, leaving him with an opportunity to go to the end of the race on virtually one set of tyres. Unfortunately, that feat wasn't quite possible, but the decision did give him the chance to have a run at a decent points paying position. On lap forty-nine he was forced to pit one final time, dropping him down to fourteenth, but he fought, with tenacity, back up to seventh place.

It is for this determination that Sebastian Vettel achieves Driver of the Day. He had a couple of opportunities to retire from the Grand Prix, as he reported his lack of pace and his struggle for grip, over the team radio. However, he continued to fight and it paid off in the end. There were some fantastic battles, at different stages of the race. At one point Button and Alonso were trading places, whilst Ricciardo managed to out-pace the two Williams drivers, despite the usual gulf in speed between the teams. Overall, however, the race didn't feature much incident.

The United States Grand Prix wasn't the most action-packed of the season, but it certainly made for an exciting spectacle. The result, at the front, was as predictable as always, with the two Mercedes drivers having very tidy races. That, in itself, was frustrating since we expected to see some action, some contact and maybe even a little foul play. However, Lewis and Nico were extremely civil and boringly responsible. Hopefully we'll see some fireworks in the penultimate race of the season, as both drivers close in on their last chance to take the title.

The Result:

Pos	No	Driver	Team	Laps	Time/Retired	Grid	Pts
1	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	56	1:40:04.785	2	25
2	6	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	56	+4.3 secs	1	18
3	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing-Renault	56	+25.5 secs	5	15
4	19	Felipe Massa	Williams-Mercedes	56	+26.9 secs	4	12
5	77	Valtteri Bottas	Williams-Mercedes	56	+30.9 secs	3	10
6	14	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	56	+95.2 secs	6	8
7	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing-Renault	56	+95.7 secs	18	6
8	20	Kevin Magnussen	McLaren-Mercedes	56	+100.68 secs	7	4
9	25	Jean-Eric Vergne	STR-Renault	56	+103.86 secs	14	2
10	13	Pastor Maldonado	Lotus-Renault	56	+107.87 secs	10	1
11	8	Romain Grosjean	Lotus-Renault	55	+1 Lap	16
12	22	Jenson Button	McLaren-Mercedes	55	+1 Lap	12
13	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	55	+1 Lap	8
14	21	Esteban Gutierrez	Sauber-Ferrari	55	+1 Lap	15
15	26	Daniil Kvyat	STR-Renault	55	+1 Lap	17
Ret	27	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India-Mercedes	16	Engine	13
Ret	11	Sergio Perez	Force India-Mercedes	1	Accident damage	11
Ret	99	Adrian Sutil	Sauber-Ferrari	0	Accident	9

United States Qualifying: So many let downs...

Formula One shot itself in the foot, once again, before the weekend even got underway. The first big news was that the underdogs, albeit very popular teams, Marussia and Caterham would not be taking part in Texas. Very simply put, the inequality in Formula One has pushed two of the teams out of the Championship, leaving only eighteen cars on the grid. Also, it's difficult to take a sport seriously, that, through regulations and imposed penalties, allows its reigning World Champion to be forced to start the race from the pit lane, before the qualifying session has even got underway. The mind boggles!

The biggest news of the session, in my opinion, was Sutil's fantastic performance for the struggling Sauber team. The team have had an absolutely dire season, but this was a small piece of success, which was received with clear enthusiasm and elation. It was only tenth place, but the achievement of actually making it in to the top ten shootout will be a great boost for the team.

The rest of the session was just as tedious as most of the other qualifying sessions. Pole and second place were taken by the usual suspects, although interestingly Nico Rosberg is taking the fight to Lewis Hamilton, by bagging the top spot. The promising thing about the race is that the gloves are off again, at Mercedes. The team have taken the Constructor's Championship, so all that is left is for Lewis and Nico to smash in to each other, block each other and hinder each other. I really don't know who I want to win the Driver's Championship. Hamilton is a Brit, is fair and honest, but he regularly comes across as quite soft and a moaner, which is irritating. Rosberg, on the other hand, is cerebral and smart, with an infectious personality, but he is undoubtedly a cheat. It's a difficult choice, but maybe after this weekend I can make a decision.

The Grid:

Pos	No	Driver	Team	Q1	Q2	Q3	Laps
1	6	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	1:38.303	1:36.290	1:36.067	20
2	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	1:37.196	1:37.287	1:36.443	16
3	77	Valtteri Bottas	Williams-Mercedes	1:38.249	1:37.499	1:36.906	19
4	19	Felipe Massa	Williams-Mercedes	1:37.877	1:37.347	1:37.205	20
5	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing-Renault	1:38.814	1:37.873	1:37.244	17
6	14	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	1:38.349	1:38.010	1:37.610	16
7	22	Jenson Button	McLaren-Mercedes	1:38.574	1:38.024	1:37.655	17
8	20	Kevin Magnussen	McLaren-Mercedes	1:38.557	1:38.047	1:37.706	16
9	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	1:38.669	1:38.263	1:37.804	22
10	99	Adrian Sutil	Sauber-Ferrari	1:38.855	1:38.378	1:38.810	15
11	13	Pastor Maldonado	Lotus-Renault	1:38.608	1:38.467		16
12	11	Sergio Perez	Force India-Mercedes	1:39.200	1:38.554		16
13	27	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India-Mercedes	1:38.931	1:38.598		16
14	26	Daniil Kvyat	STR-Renault	1:38.936	1:38.699		17
15	25	Jean-Eric Vergne	STR-Renault	1:39.250			10
16	21	Esteban Gutierrez	Sauber-Ferrari	1:39.555			10
17	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing-Renault	1:39.621			3
18	8	Romain Grosjean	Lotus-Renault	1:39.679			8

German Grand Prix: Head over heels at Hockenheim!

Yet again, we were treated to an explosive race start. Felipe Massa, made an error of judgement, that resulted in him ending up on his roof. Massa made the decision that, in to the first corner, it was alright that he throw his car in to apex, even though Magnussen was driving there. His Williams was flipped over and sent sliding along the run off area, upside down. It resulted in a red flag, but the fact that Massa walked away unscathed is a testament to the strength of F1 roll hoops.

The racing was on top form again this weekend, which was aided by the success of the two DRS zones. It was the perfect balance between making the passing a little easier and yet still requiring the drivers to work. One thing that didn't work quite so well, again, and with all due respect, was the race marshalling. The handling of Sutil's spin and subsequent stranded Sauber on the start/finish straight, just felt a little chaotic. At the pinnacle of motorsport and in a sport that can be so unpredictably dangerous, I have to say that I think the practice of having voluntary, relatively unqualified marshals is dated and irresponsible. Time and time again, it is all too apparent that the race marshals are a little under prepared, for the incidents they have to deal with. Isn't it about time that these generous heroes are given the adequate training to deal with such a responsible and, let's face it, 'life or death' determining role.

As for the Driver Of The Day, I might as well award it now, so that I can then elaborate on the simply stunning race that Lewis Hamilton had. I don't think it would be inappropriate for me to say that, at times, Lewis' driving was Senna-esque. An example of this would be his fearlessly daring move on Fernando Alonso, in to the very corner that he experienced brake failure on, just the day before. Not to mention the fact that he started in twentieth on the grid and finished third and on the podium. It poses the question, how important is qualifying, for the top drivers? They can qualify at the back of the field and still finish on the podium.

A couple of drivers were a bit naughty today, whilst others showed their inexperience. Daniel Kvyat had a lapse in judgement as he squeezed Perez on to the apex, on a part of the track where a more experienced driver would have provided their competitor adequate room. Sutil did a similar thing to Lewis Hamilton, but in quite a suspect manner, since Hamilton had moved well up the inside of Adrian's Sauber, and Adrian appeared to be looking directly at Lewis' Mercedes, as he turned in. Nobody else picked up on it, but after regularly witnessing F1 driver's quick wits, like Massa in Silverstone, it's difficult to excuse Sutil's delayed action in turning his car away from the passing Hamilton. One thing that was refreshing, was to hear attitude travelling in the opposite direction across the team radio, with Perez's race engineer sounding more like a headmaster than a strategist, "I won't tell you again Sergio, lift and coast." It's about time the teams laid down the law, to some of these headstrong employees.

If I had to pick a moment of the race, it would be Ferrari's attempt to bully Sebastian Vettel. He exited the pits, a flying bull between two prancing horses, and found himself being harassed by Fernando Alonso behind him and Kimi Raikonnen ushering him to the track edge, from the front. He threw caution to the wind and, touching the grass, shot around the outside of Kimi. He then squeezed the two boisterous Ferraris together and then raced away. It's great when these races tell a story, complete with twists and turns, heroes and villains.


Check out The F1 Spectator's German GP podcast and listen to The F1 Spectator himself.
The Result:

Pos	No	Driver	Team	Laps	Time/Retired	Grid	Pts
1	6	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	67	1:33:42.914	1	25
2	77	Valtteri Bottas	Williams-Mercedes	67	+20.7 secs	2	18
3	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	67	+22.5 secs	20	15
4	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing-Renault	67	+44.0 secs	6	12
5	14	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	67	+52.4 secs	7	10
6	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing-Renault	67	+52.5 secs	5	8
7	27	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India-Mercedes	67	+64.1 secs	9	6
8	22	Jenson Button	McLaren-Mercedes	67	+84.7 secs	11	4
9	20	Kevin Magnussen	McLaren-Mercedes	66	+1 Lap	4	2
10	11	Sergio Perez	Force India-Mercedes	66	+1 Lap	10	1
11	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	66	+1 Lap	12
12	13	Pastor Maldonado	Lotus-Renault	66	+1 Lap	18
13	25	Jean-Eric Vergne	STR-Renault	66	+1 Lap	13
14	21	Esteban Gutierrez	Sauber-Ferrari	66	+1 Lap	16
15	17	Jules Bianchi	Marussia-Ferrari	66	+1 Lap	17
16	10	Kamui Kobayashi	Caterham-Renault	65	+2 Laps	19
17	4	Max Chilton	Marussia-Ferrari	65	+2 Laps	21
18	9	Marcus Ericsson	Caterham-Renault	65	+2 Laps	22
Ret	99	Adrian Sutil	Sauber-Ferrari	47	Spin	15
Ret	26	Daniil Kvyat	STR-Renault	44	+23 Laps	8
Ret	8	Romain Grosjean	Lotus-Renault	26	+41 Laps	14
Ret	19	Felipe Massa	Williams-Mercedes	0	Accident	3