The Season So Far

Image :www.f1.com – Vettel celebrates in Bahrain

If you’ve been living on Mars or perhaps the Outer Hebrides since March, here is my handy guide to how the 2012 season has panned out so far.

Australia

Mclaren dominant, Button led from the front, drive of the day from Pastor Maldonado  who was 5^th  until a last lap crash.

Malaysia

Alonso wins in a rain soaked Sepang,  21 year old Mexican Sergio Perez an impressive second, Button crashed into a HRT , Hamilton gets his second pole position of the season and finishes 3^rd.

China

Rosberg wins an entertaining GP by 22 seconds, his Mercedes team mate, Michael Schumacher was also on the pace but had to retire after an error from his pit crew. Vettel qualified 11^th and worked his way up to 5^th , Button and Hamilton were 2^nd and 3^rd respectively.

 Bahrain

There was doubt that this race would even go ahead due to the unstable political position of the country. These doubts were compounded when the Force India team were attacked by petrol bombs. The Red Bulls of Vettel and Webber looked strong while the McLaren’s were way off the pace; tyre strategy looks to be even more crucial than ever this season. Vettel wins and Lotus gain a double podium with Kimi Raikkonen and Romain  Grosjean coming 2^nd  and 3^rd . Schumacher hauled himself up from 10^th to 22^nd and the Williams team see a double retirement after a double points finish in China.

Spain

Lewis Hamilton was at the centre of yet more controversy as his pole sitting car was moved to the back of the grid after it was found to not have enough fuel. Pastor Maldanardo wins on Frank Williams 70^th Birthday. Alonso 2^nd at his home Grand Prix, the Lotus’s of Raikkonen and Grosjean finished 3^rd and 4^th.  So far ,5 races 5 different winners.

 Monaco

Michael Schumacher grabs pole but gets a 5 place grid penalty . Webber wins, being pushed all the way by Rosberg ,Mark Webber backgflips into the Red Bull pool in celebration –  a 3^rd victory here in 3 years for Red Bull.

 Canada

Hamilton makes it 7 winners in 7 in what is becoming the best start to an F1 season in living memory. Grosjean takes 2^nd with Perez climbing from 15^th to clinch 3^rd and the drive of the day.Three  points separate the top 3 drivers.

Lewis Hamilton 88 Fernando Alonso 86 Sebastian Vettel 85

 Valencia

Alonso wins from 11^th after a cut and thrust Grand Prix in the Mediterranean, multiple crashes and punctures provided the  afternoons drama , Pastor Maldanardo  ended up T boning Lewis Hamilton in the penultimate lap after being forced  almost of the track by the McLaren driver. Kimi Raikkonen 2^nd and Schumacher 3^rd after starting 12^th.

Fernando Alonso 111 Mark Webber 91   Lewis Hamilton 88

Silverstone

It was a  rain addled weekend as Ferrari and Red Bull shared the spoils on the podium ( Webber, Alonso , Vettel). With the Lotus Renault of Kimi Raikkonen and Romain Grosjean  scoring a solid 5^th and 6^th position, Mclaren’s lack of pace was evident as Button and Hamilton sunk to 8^th and 10^th respectively.

Fernando Alonso 129  Mark Webber 116 Sebastian  Vettel 100

German Grand Prix

 Alonso takes his 3^rd victory of the season  with Vettel coming second and a rejuvenated Jensen Button  taking 3^rd ( later promoted to 2^nd ) after Sebastian Vettel was penalised for being off the Circuit during an overtaking manoeuvre  while passing Jenson Button. Lewis Hamilton was forced to retire after gearbox damage and veteran Michael Schumacher grabbed the fastest lap of the day  completing  a  1.18 725 lap on his home circuit.

Fernando Alonso 154  Mark Webber 120 Sebastian Vettel 110

Hungarian Grand prix

Hamilton gains his second victory of the season after retiring from his 100^th race in Germany, the Brit held of challenges from both Lotus drivers to take victory at the Hungororing . Alonso finished 5^th  but stretched his  Championship lead to 40 points after Vettel could only manage 8^th.

Fernando Alonso- 164   Mark Webber  124  Sebastian Vettel -110

Belgian Grand Prix

The first race back after the mid season break went off with a  bang as Romain Grosjean caused a huge  shunt at the first corner of the Spa circui, leaving Hamilton and Alonso both out of the race ( the Frenchman was later banned for one race and fined €50,000 after being found to have caused 7 first lap collisions in 12 races .)

There was also a memorable 4 way duel for the final podium position between Schumacher, Raikkonen, Hulkenburg and Webber. Jenson Button qualified on pole for the first time in 5o races and led from the front, while World Champion Sebastian Vettel made his way from 10^th on the grid to 2^nd .

Fernando Alonso-164  Sebastian Vettel -140 Mark Webber 132

Italian Grand Prix

Hamilton led from the  front in an exciting affair in Monza, moving into second in the Championship in the process, Sergio Perez was an impressive 2^nd after qualifying 12^th  for Sauber team that have come a long way this year. Sebastian’ Vettels 2^nd alternator failure of the weekend put him out of contention and dropped him out of the Championships top 3. Tyre choices were the words on everyone’s lips this weekend, as smart tactics from Perez  enabled him to switch to the faster medium tyres in the last six laps of the race.

Fernando Alonso 179  Lewis Hamilton 121 Kimi Raikkonen 141

Singapore grand prix

 World Champion Sebastian Vettel dominated the seasons only night race from start to finish, in what is was also the final street race of the season. Lewis Hamilton’s gearbox failure realistically ended his chances of a second World Title, Button was second and Alonso third, followed by a very impressive 4^th position by Scot Paul Di Resta , who is tipped to move to McLaren next season.  It was another consistent performance from the Lotus team claiming 6^th and 7^th positions and cementing themselves as the fourth team in Formula 1.

Fernando Alonso-  194 Sebastian Vettel -165  Kimi Raikkonen- 149

Japanese Grand Prix

Michael Schumacher announced his retirement for the second time at the beginning of the weekend, the 43 year who has won two world titles at Suzuka could only finish 11^th. It was a dream day for Red Bull as Vettel romped to victory from pole closing the gap on Alonso to just 4 points. The Ferrari driver was forced to retire after the first lap due to a puncture, his teammate Felipe Massa finished 2^nd. Sauber’s Kamui Kobayahsi became the only the third Japanese driver to achieve a podium place, his victory  even sweeter as it came in front of his home fans.

Fernando Alonso 194 Sebastian Vettel 190 Kimi Raikkonen 157

Next Up : The Korean GP: Issues of Eastward Expansion