Let's start with the winner of the race. Fernando Alonso won in front of his home fans to become the first double winner of 2012 and he ended the historical run of different winners. His win also means that he now leads the championship by a staggering 20 points from second-placed man Mark Webber. Yesterday, I said Alonso is in danger of falling behind Vettel and Hamilton following his poor 11th-position qualifying. Obviously Alonso read my review and was on a mission to prove me wrong... So let's look at just how Alonso won the race after starting in 11th.
A typically great start from the Spaniard meant that he was able to jump a few places straight off the line. Jenson Button was one of his victims as his woes continued. Then he pulled off some stunning overtakes to reach 4th at a track where we do not usually see a lot of overtakes. With a comfortable 4th position reached and seven places climbed a safety car was deployed. Taking this opportunity to make pit-stops for fresher tyres Alonso followed Lewis Hamilton in to the pit lane. However, despite strong first stops for both Button and Hamilton, McLaren returned to old ways and encountered yet another problem in the pits. This meant that Lewis was stationary for over 14 seconds and Ferrari were able to release Alonso ahead of the Brit. So Alonso was now up into 3rd and, with the pack bunched up again, Romain Grosjean was next on Alonso's hit list. Immediately after the restart Alonso got the job done and the Frenchman had no answers to Alonso's skill and experience. Sebastian Vettel, I'll look at him in more depth later on, got a comfortable getaway from the rest of the drivers but only a couple of corners later he came to a sudden stop. Alonso drove past him and that was it... He controlled his tyres and his pace to take the win with no one presenting a real challenge to him. So 11th to 1st and 111 points in the Drivers' championship. He must be pleased with that. He is also now the only driver to have finished in the points at every race so far. Showing consistency pays off, Alonso had been outperforming his car at the beginning of the season but the team seem to have made significant progress. However, contrasting Alonso's performances with Felipe Massa's shows that he is just a genuine racer and, many would argue, the most complete! He described this win as the most special of all his wins and I expect it means even more in a season like this one. This has been great weekend for Spanish sports fans, that's for sure. Of course, this Grand Prix shows just how, and this is becoming the most used word on my blog, unpredictable this season is so Alonso may have a comfortable lead right now but everything could change in just a short space of time.
Sebastian Vettel will be hoping that this is the case. He is now 26 points off the lead but has underlined that everything can change every fortnight. He also said that he takes confidence in Red Bull's updates and progress away from this weekend rather than anger. He had a "sensational" start, in his own words, and was significantly faster than everyone else before the first round of pit stops. Not only did he pull out of the DRS zone but he built a lead of approximately 10 seconds in a matter of laps. After he pitted, he retained the lead and went on to pull out a 20 second lead over Grosjean, who was running in second. The German clearly had pace in Qualifying and he had it in abundance again today. The news of a safety car deployment must have hurt considering how hard he had worked to pull out such a lead. Even at the start he pulled out a huge lead but didn't hurt his tyres any more than his competitors. Nevertheless, he used the opportunity to pit and he controlled the pack well behind the safety car. He also got a good restart and there was every possibility of him reopening the lead he had. Then, as I mentioned above, he had to immediately stop his car on the side of the track and watch as all of his championship rivals passed him. It is thought that a problem with the alternator was what ended his race prematurely but Red Bull are still investigating the cause. In a season so tight, consistency and finishes in the points will be the deciding factor and this is now Vettel's second no-points result. He is still in the hunt for the title but he will have to hope that he has had his share of bad luck this season and that Alonso's is yet to come.
Adding insult to injury, Vettel is now also behind his teammate Mark Webber in the Drivers' championship. Vettel is fourth and Mark second. Webber started the race in 19th and, with this being Valencia, many had written his chances off. His start wasn't that sensational but he was surrounded by cars that he was obviously significantly faster than. Despite this he spent a lot of the race out of the points positions but the safety car and some special overtakes helped him to climb through the pack. He finished in fourth and this high finish was helped by a few DNFs for those in front of him. Regardless, Webber drove a great drive and I think he is definitely in my top 2 for driver of the day. Climbing 15 places is no mean feat at any track but at Valencia, I think it will mean more for his confidence; especially considering Mark's history with this track. Beating Vettel in the championship will also be a nice comfort for him even if it is only by 6 points. Now, honestly, who had written him off for the title? *raises hand*
So whose misfortunes helped Webber? His teammate's for one but Romain Grosjean also lent a hand. After Vettel's retirement Grosjean was second behind leader Alonso. However, he then experienced a similar fate to Sebastian. Lotus have confirmed that his problem was with the alternator. Lotus were faster than Ferrari yesterday so had Grosjean not had this issue he could very well have become the eighth different winner from eight races. I'm sure he would have settled with second place though if it meant he could add to his podium tally. Even after this big disappointment, to know what you have done all you could but your car let you down, Grosjean was still smiling as he spoke to the media after his race had ended. I am really glad he has been given a second chance in Formula 1; not just because of his happy and humble personality but also because he has been giving world champions of the sport a run for their money. As the season goes on, his experience and confidence will increase so I expect big things to come from him in future races.
Kimi Raikkonen went on take 2nd place instead of his Lotus teammate. Grosjean's retirement meant Hamilton was now in 2nd and for a number of laps he defended well against the man we call the Iceman. At one point he even extended the gap between himself and Kimi as it seemed the Finn's tyres were wearing away. However, this breathing space only lasted a short while. A few mistakes from Hamilton, including running wide on the last corner twice, meant Raikkonen got very close once again and this time was able to pull off a clean and tidy pass against Hamilton to claim position. This is Raikkonen's second second-place finish, the first came in Bahrain, so his comeback is going strong. He still looked a bit downcast after the race as he basically said he wouldn't be happy unless he won. Could he go one better in the coming races? Lotus have looked capable of winning on several occasions now but have not yet managed to clinch the top-step on the podium. Should they win, will it be Kimi or Romain to do it for them? I think it is looking more likely to be the Frenchman right now but Kimi is more than capable also. Oh and I said above that Mark was in my top 2 drivers of the day. Kimi shares that position with him...
Michael Schumacher took the final podium spot and it was a really special moment for him. To say he's had a poor season would be an understatement so to finish so high up in the points, especially after Qualifying 12th, is a great achievement. And we can now say that the comeback is officially on. We know Mercedes are able to win races so could that be next on his return to his former glory? I genuinely hope so. I have been slightly critical of him this season and doubted for how much longer we can put his form down to bad luck but I have wanted him to do well. Luck was on his side today. In a field of a handful of DNFs he did not fall victim to any incidents and finished ahead of his Chinese Grand Prix winner Nico Rosberg. Hopefully this is a sign of things to come for the veteran driver and not merely a 'one-off' incident.
Now on to Lewis Hamilton's race. He didn't get as good a start as Vettel but it wasn't bad. He was unable to get anywhere near Sebastian so DRS was out of the question. His focus had to be on retaining second as opposed to gaining on Vettel. He was unable to do so and lost position to Grosjean. He was shocked at his Qualifying performance indicating that McLaren didn't have a lot of pace so to see him losing out to a Lotus was not a huge surprise. Pit stops followed and it was a tidy one from McLaren. Lewis' tyres were off and on in a mighty impressive 2.9 seconds. I've already told you what happened to Lewis during the safety car phase, and I doubt McLaren fans will want it repeated, but his second stop cost over 14 seconds. Just as everyone was talking about how the practice McLaren put into stops seems to have paid off, they went and effectively ruined Lewis' race. That may be slightly harsh... This meant he was behind Alonso and any hopes of a win were gone. He was also closer to Pastor Maldonado. As the race went on he lost a place to Raikkonen and then Maldonado advanced on the 2008 champion. He came very close to passing him but Lewis retained the driving line and Maldonado was pushed off the race track. As he moved back onto it he collided straight into Lewis; sending Lewis into the barrier and out of the race. This was a golden opportunity for Hamilton to gain an advantage over Vettel but his lead remains at 3 points and he is now 23 off the lead. The stewards analysed the Maldonado incident and decided Pastor was at fault. They chose to give him a 20-second penalty. This means that he loses the one point he won by finishing 10th. His Williams teammate Bruno Senna now holds that point instead. Usually opinions on penalties really do vary but with regards to this one, it seems to me, that most fans are in agreement; it was not harsh enough. Maldonado's reckless driving here cost him and Lewis a lot of points. He had more pace than the McLaren and could have easily passed him before the end of the race. Raikkonen was gone by that point so he only needed to make one pass for a podium finish. Lewis definitely lost the most as a result of the incident and he may feel that the penalty is unjust.
A lot happened at this circuit; that much is clear! It was an extremely interesting and exciting race. The thrill of Valencia 2012 was thanks to, in no small part, the Pirelli tyres and if I see further criticism of what they've
offered I will be shocked. Do we need further evidence of the positive impact they're having on Formula 1? So Valencia has been the race of the season so far, in my opinion. Would you agree? Get it touch and let me know.
There is honestly so much more that happened in the race that I haven't even covered. Just like yesterday, I could double this review in length but that will make for much longer reading for you. Therefore, I promise to add more posts all about Valencia and previewing what today's events mean for the British Grand Prix, which will take place in a couple of weeks' time. I will also add a 'Setting the Scene' for the race so look out for my choice; there are many events from the race that would be worthy as my pick!
So we have our first double winner of 2012 in Fernando Alonso in a Ferrari that was heavily criticised at the beginning of the season. I guess they are showing why they have the reputation that they do in Formula 1. Alonso now has a nice lead, can he continue to build on it or is his share of bad luck still to come? Can Vettel and Hamilton move onwards and upwards from their misfortunes today and keep Alonso on his toes? Everything is still to play for and everything could change instantly. Well not instantly but in a fortnight... As for the Constructors' championship, Red Bull have somehow increased their lead thanks to the performance of Mark Webber. Is everything still to play in this particular championship battle? We may be able to answer some of this questions after the British Grand Prix as the 2012 F1 season draws closer to it's halfway point.
Aqsa
P.S Jean-Eric Vergne has been given a 10 place grid-drop for Silverstone and a 25,000 Euro fine! More on that to come...
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pretty well written again :)
ReplyDeleteThank you, I had limited time to write this so it might seem a bit rushed! Updates to come... :)
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