After Race 14: Korea

The bizarre (and dangerous) moment when a fire car took to the track mid-race
Source: FOM TV images

1. Sebastian Vettel (last week: 1^st, no change) (Season high: 1^st, low: 4^th)

Did anyone really expect a different outcome from the Korean race? Sebastian Vettel continued his Asian dominance with a second consecutive Grand Chelem and can clinch his fourth title in Japan if Fernando Alonso fails to finish in the top eight.

Not for the first time this season...
Source: Infiniti Red Bull Racing

2. Fernando Alonso (last week: 2^nd, no change) (Season high: 1^st, low: 13^th);
3. Kimi Räikkönen (last week: 3^rd, no change) (Season high: 2^nd, low: 12^th);
4. Lewis Hamilton (last week: 4^th, no change) (Season high: 2^nd, low: 9th)

Vettel’s dominance was enhanced by the erratic weekends for his three closest rivals although the three world champions provided us with some outstanding wheel-to-wheel racing. Fernando Alonso clings onto his second position in the F1 Power Rankings despite a hugely mediocre weekend as the Ferrari was off the pace. Kimi Räikkönen endured another tough quali session but rebounded superbly in the race to defeat team-mate Romain Grosjean to P2 while Lewis Hamilton, who started on the front row, suffered from inexplicable incompetence from his Mercedes team as they acknowledged his tyre wear but kept him out on track losing bundles on time mid-race. This trio have been well-matched this year but nowhere near Vettel/RBR. 

The Hulk had a superb race
Source: Sauber F1 Team (Facebook)

5. Nico Hülkenberg (last week: 7^th, up two spots) (Season high: 5^th, low: 19^th)

Simply outstanding from The Hulk: a second top-five finish in three races saw him elevate Sauber above Toro Rosso in the standings and, once again, raise question as to why he is not yet in a ‘top’ seat. His calmness in the battle against the Alonso and Hamilton was superb and he fully utilized the improved late-season Sauber and its excellent traction to hold them off throughout the race. It will be a shame if he is not in the Lotus next season. 

Smiles all round at Sauber as they move up in the Constructors' standings (Hulk & Monisha Kaltenborn)
Source: Sauber F1 Team (Facebook)

=6. Mark Webber (Season high: 1^st, low: 15^th) & Nico Rosberg (Season high: 2^nd, low: 12^th) (both were =5^th last week, down one spot); Romain Grosjean (last week: 9^th, up three spots) (Season high: 6^th, low: 22^nd)

Sparks for Nico Rosberg, fire for Mark Webber: the unlucky pair drop down a spot solely due to Nico Hülkenberg’s performance. It’s almost somewhat fitting that Webber’s dreadful luck continues right up until the end of his career; he was having a fine race as he recovered from his grid penalty before  suffering a puncture and then was the victim of Adrian Sutil haplessly losing control of his car, resulting in the Aussie’s day, literally, going up in smoke. Rosberg was also in the mix for a podium until his front wing spectacularly failed down the main straight. Grosjean, meanwhile, matches his season-high F1 Power Rankings of sixth after notching his third podium of the season (coincidentally, in all three races, the VET-RAI-GRO podium has been identical). 

The surreal thermal imaging camera showing Webber's fire
Source: FOM TV images

=9. Sergio Pérez (last week: 11^th, up two spots) (Season high: 8^th, low: 17^th) & Jenson Button (last week: 10^th, up one spot) (Season high: 5^th, low: 16^th)

The two McLaren drivers once again find themselves locked together in the F1 Power Rankings, moving up to ninth place having both bounced back from adversity during the race. JB required an early pit-stop to replace his front wing while Checo saw his front right tyre spectacularly explode down the main straight after a poor strategy call from the team. As I mentioned last week, McLaren seem to be treating Sergio Pérez quite harshly with their comments, there was nothing to separate the two drivers all weekend (Checo outqualified JB by 0.003 secs) and deserves more concrete assurance about his future.

11. Esteban Gutiérrez (last week: 12^th, up one spots) (Season high: 11^th, low: 22^nd)

It’s finally coming together for Esteban Gutiérrez. He made it into Q3 for the second race running, proving Singapore was no fluke, and made a superb start (up to sixth in the first two corners) but lost out in the Turn 3 mêlée through no fault of his own. He agonizingly came up just short of scoring a point, finishing eleventh, matching his F1 Power Rankings position this week – a season-high.

12. Daniel Ricciardo (last week: 13^th, up one spot) (Season high: 5^th, low: 18^th)

After his disappointing Singapore exit, Daniel Ricciardo bounced back with a strong Sunday drive in Korea. A mediocre team qualifying saw both STRs drop out in Q2 but Ricciardo was one of the big gainers in the aforementioned T3 shuffle and he held his own in the top ten all day long – having been the only gambler to start the race on the harder tyre. Brake failure eventually saw both Toro Rossos retire in the dying stages, robbing the Aussie of his point(s).

13. Felipe Massa (last week: 8^th, down five spots) (Season high: 3^rd, low: 15^th)

Korea perfectly summed up Felipe Massa’s season: consistently inconsistent. Having lined up alongside Alonso on the grid, he proceeded to throw away his decent quali effort in Turn 3 – almost wiping out both team cars in the process – causing absolute havoc. Aided by the safety car, Massa battled back to score points but he lost ground to Hülkenberg in the battle for the 2014 Lotus drive. 

Massa found himself at the back of the field in the opening stages
Source: Caterham F1 Team (Facebook)

14. Jules Bianchi (last week: 15^th, up one spot) (Season high: 6^th, low: 15^th)

Another solid weekend from Jules Bianchi (his penalty for blocking Paul di Resta in qualifying was extremely harsh); he has re-signed with Marussia for 2014 and will look to build on a promising rookie campaign.

15. Giedo van der Garde (last week: 14^th, down one spot) (Season high: 12^th, low: 22^nd) & 16. Charles Pic (last week: 19^th, up three spots) (Season high: 7^th, low: 19^th)

Charles Pic equalled his best result of the season (fourteenth) as he edged Giedo van der Garde in the Caterham battle. VDG had an eventful race, which included picking up a drive-through penalty amidst the first lap mayhem, but still managed to finish on the tail of his team-mate – enough to keep him ahead in the F1 Power Rankings.

17. Jean-Eric Vergne (last week: 18^th, up one spot) (Season high: 5^th, low: 20^th) 

JEV moves up one spot despite a hugely underwhelming weekend (mainly due to others having even worse performances) which saw him bottom of Q2 and retire late on with brake failure. Outperformed by Ricciardo, he said it best, “I just want to get to Suzuka…”

18. Pastor Maldonado (last week: 20^th, up two spots) (Season high: 12^th, low: 22^nd)

Credit Pastor Maldonado for a solid race – although he still ended up behind his team-mate. The Venezuelan gained massively from the turn one shenanigans and ran strongly until the safety cars bunched the field up and he was powerless to defend those behind him due to his tyre-life.

19. Paul di Resta (last week: 16^th, down three spots) (Season high: 5^th, low: 19^th)

Wow. Nineteenth in the F1 Power Rankings is a far cry from his outstanding first half of the season. Unfortunately for PDR, as crunch time for 2014 contracts commences, those performances have almost been forgotten as Force India flounders in the midfield battle. Even worse for Paul, it was his own mistake that ended his race.

20. Max Chilton (Season high: 17^th, low: 22^nd) & Valtteri Bottas (Season high: 10^th, low: 21^st) (both were =20^th last week, no change)

No change for either driver this week. Both were solid, if somewhat unspectacular.

Story of the season at Marussia as Bianchi leads Chilton
Source: Marussia F1 Team (Facebook)

22. Adrian Sutil (last week: 17^th, down five spots) (Season high: 5^th, low: 20^th)

Oh dear. The less said about Sutil, the better. He was rightly branded a ‘clown’ by Martin Brundle during commentary after his incident with Webber. His Melbourne heroics have long been forgotten and, unlike Webber, if he’s not in the F1 paddock in 2014, he won’t be missed.

All views expressed in this blog are my own and no copyright infringement is intended.

After Race 13: Singapore

You know how this works by now, let's get cracking...

1. Sebastian Vettel (last week: 1^st, no change) (Season high: 1^st, low: 4^th)

Sebastian Vettel clinched his third career Grand Chelem (pole, win, FL, led every lap) – becoming only the second driver in F1 history (after Jim Clark) to complete one in three consecutive seasons. His 33^rd career win moves him ahead of Fernando Alonso into sole possession of 4^th-all-time. More booing again on the podium and credit Martin Brundle for discouraging it – it is the responsibility of the rival big teams to stop the domination, namely Ferrari, Mercedes and McLaren.

2. Fernando Alonso (last week: 2^nd, no change) (Season high: 1^st, low: 13^th)

Another super Sunday drive from the double world champion; a ridiculous start saw him gain four spots by turn two and he then mastered his tyres to finish second, as Ferrari’s safety car gamble paid off.

Alonso gave his good friend a lift home - they were both reprimanded
Source: FOM TV images

 3. Kimi Räikkönen (last week: 4^th, up one spot) (Season high: 2^nd, low: 12^th)

In his first race since the Ferrari announcement – and also the revelation that he has not been paid all season – it looked as if Kimi Räikkönen would be on course for a low-key weekend with back pain limiting his potential, something reflected by his Q2 exit while Romain Grosjean netted third. However, like Alonso, he used the SC to help him eek out his tyre life and netted a superb podium on the bumpy street track.

4. Lewis Hamilton (last week: 3^rd, down one spot) (Season high: 2^nd, low: 9th)

Strange weekend for Lewis Hamilton. We’ve become used to seeing him really come alive on the street circuits but, just like in Monaco, it was Nico Rosberg who was the lead Mercedes through quali and the race.

=5. Mark Webber (last week: 5^th, no change) (Season high: 1^st, low: 15^th) & Nico Rosberg (last week: 6^th, up one spot) (Season high: 2^nd, low: 12^th)

In the end, Mark Webber’s final Singapore Sling turned out to be a rather miserable affair. He’ll be disappointed at how big the gap to Vettel was through quali and the race but he was on course for a solid P4 until his late mechanical failure. To rub salt in the wounds, the wonderful post-race scenes of the Aussie hitchin’ a ride home with Alonso resulted in Webber picking up a ten-place grid penalty for Korea as it was his third reprimand. Rosberg, as mentioned earlier, had a strong weekend and was unlucky not to finish on the podium after the safety car jumbled up the strategies – but such things happen on street circuits.

7. Nico Hülkenberg (last week: 7^th, no change) (Season high: 7^th, low: 19^th)

Having been stunned by Esteban Gutierrez in quali, The Hulk bounced back in the race and enjoyed battling for points once again. He was rightly fuming at having to let Sergio Pérez past him by the stewards – and rightly so, replays showed that Checo clearly tapped Nico Hülkenberg, forcing him to cross the white line off the track. He is peaking at the right time as he aims for a 2014 Lotus seat.

8. Felipe Massa (last week: 8^th, no change) (Season high: 3^rd, low: 15^th)

Given the recent news, it was rather amusing to see Felipe Massa outqualify his team-mate but that was corrected within metres off the start line. Massa had a solid race to finish where he started but it was strange Ferrari opted to pit him in the final stint rather than gamble on a double podium.

9. Romain Grosjean (last week: 10^th, up one spot) (Season high: 6^th, low: 22^nd)

Another case of “what might have been” for Romain Grosjean. An excellent third on the grid saw him spend the whole race in podium contention until a problem with the air consumption ended his race – much to Grosjean’s expected dismay.

10. Jenson Button (last week: 11^th, up one spot) (Season high: 5^th, low: 16^th)

A decent race for JB and all credit to McLaren for gambling on a podium in their final stint. He was a staggering nine seconds a lap off the pace in the closing stages as his tyres fell away and an eventual seventh place finish is probably a fair result.

11. Sergio Pérez (last week: 11^th, no change) (Season high: 8^th, low: 17^th)

No change for Checo: he was shaded by Jenson Button through the latter half of the weekend and was rather lucky to finish above Hülkenberg for the reasons mentioned above. The comments from Martin Whitmarsh are strange and extremely harsh – Checo has had a decent season, all things considered.

12. Esteban Gutiérrez (last week: 17^th, up five spots) (Season high: 12^th, low: 22^nd)

Easily Guti’s best display in F1; the young Mexican made Q3 for the first time this season and had a strong race. His inexperience showed in the closing stages as he struggled to maintain a top-ten position on worn tyres but it was an encouraging weekend, nonetheless.

13. Daniel Ricciardo (last week: 9^th, down four spots) (Season high: 5^th, low: 18^th)

Another excellent qualifying performance from Daniel Ricciardo but it evaporated as the lights went out with a dreadful start. A poor rookie mistake saw him crash upon entry to the grandstand tunnel.

14. Giedo van der Garde (last week: 15^th, up one spot) (Season high: 12^th, low: 22^nd)

Another strong race for VDG moves him to the top of the Caterham/Marussia battle for the first time in the F1 Power Rankings. He once again mixed it with the Williams in the early stages and wound up finishing top of the class after the gruelling two hour race.

15. Jules Bianchi (last week: 13^th, down two spots) (Season high: 6^th, low: 15^th)

It’s a season low for Jules Bianchi although that’s more due to the recent rise of Giedo van der Garde that deserves credit. A tough race for Bianchi saw him need a new steering wheel in the early stages after a gearbox problem but he was once again comfortably quicker than Max Chilton – even if the latter decided to disobey team orders and hold him up.

16. Paul di Resta (last week: 14^th, down two spots) (Season high: 5^th, low: 17^th)

The desperate times continue for PDR. Eliminated in Q1 once again, he put in a strong early performance to get some crucial TV coverage as he ran third during the first round of pit-stops. He was on course for solid points until a poor mistake saw him end his night in the barriers.

17. Adrian Sutil (last week: 19^th, up two spots) (Season high: 5^th, low: 20^th)

A rather anonymous race from Adrian Sutil although he did manage to score a point thanks to the late demise of both his team-mate and Webber.

18. Jean-Eric Vergne (last week: 15^th, down three spots) (Season high: 5^th, low: 20^th) 

Another man with a rather non-descript weekend. Outqualified by Ricciardo, the two STRs ran together in the early stages but neither looked likely to score points despite showing decent pace in practice.

19. Charles Pic (last week: 18^th, down one spot) (Season high: 7^th, low: 19^th)

I’m not going to lie, this is a straight copy’n’paste from last week: “The battle at Caterham has evened up recently, which does not reflect well on the team’s ‘veteran’.”

=20. Max Chilton (last week: 20^th, no change) (Season high: 17^th, low: 22^nd), Pastor Maldonado (Season high: 12^th, low: 22^nd) & Valtteri Bottas (Season high: 10^th, low: 21^st) (both were =21^st last week, up one spot) 

Little to separate this trio. Williams were disappointing once again – finishes of 11^th and 13^th were flattered by the retirements while Chilton was again outperformed by Bianchi.

All views expressed in this blog are my own and no copyright infringement is intended.

After Race 12: Italy

Formula 1 bid farewell to Europe for another season with the off-track action more intriguing that the on-track action. Such has been F1’s globalization over the past decade, there are still a whopping seven races to go – there were only two races after the 2003 Italian GP! This week’s F1 Power Rankings were delayed in order to include the Ferrari 2014 driver announcement.

The Magic of Monza: the Tifosi pose for Alonso
Source: Fernando Alonso, Twitter

1. Sebastian Vettel (last week: 1^st, no change) (Season high: 1^st, low: 4^th)

The triple world champion extended his title lead to over two race victories and tied Fernando Alonso for 4^th-all-time with 32 wins (only Schumi 91, Prost 51, Senna 41 are ahead). The Tifosi booed him but that was to be expected, and Sebastian Vettel won’t care one bit as long as he’s racking up the big trophies.

Flashback 2008: Vettel takes his maiden win for Toro Rosso at Monza
Source: F1 Fanatic

2. Fernando Alonso (last week: 3^rd, up one spot) (Season high: 1^st, low: 13^th)

Ferrari’s qualifying drafting failed once again but Alonso took an easy second place on Sunday. He was nowhere near Vettel, however, and best of the rest is all he can hope for this season. The signing of Kimi Räikkönen will shake things up at the Scuderia (ironic, given The Iceman’s laid-back nature) and it will be an unwelcome wake-up call to Alonso.

3. Lewis Hamilton (last week: 3^rd, down one spot) (Season high: 2^nd, low: 9th)

Having been hugely self-critical of his qualifying performance – branding himself an idiot – Lewis Hamilton then found himself on the back foot early in the race with a slow puncture. He rebounded magnificently with an excellent drive to pick up a couple of points but, with Vettel winning again, it was scant consolation.

 4. Kimi Räikkönen (last week: 3^rd, down one spot) (Season high: 2^nd, low: 12^th)

Rather like the clichéd London buses, Räikkönen failed to score points for the second race running having scored in the previous twenty-seven. He misjudged his braking into the tricky first corner which necessitated a new front wing and he spent the race in catch-up mode but, unlike Hamilton, he was unable to crack the top ten. Ferrari 2014 can’t come soon enough as far as he is concerned.

Räikkönen celebrates winning the 2007 title for Ferrari
Source: BBC Sport

5. Mark Webber (last week: 5^th, no change) (Season high: 1^st, low: 15^th)

Five weeks at #5 for Mark Webber; his last F1 race in Europe ended on a high as he finally cracked the spectacular Monza podium after over a decade of trying.

6. Nico Rosberg (last week: 7^th, up one spot) (Season high: 2^nd, low: 12^th)

Nico Rosberg moves up one spot in the rankings although that is more by default than anything else. A solid, but distinctly mediocre, weekend saw him both qualify and finish sixth as he spent virtually the entire race behind Nico Hülkenberg.

7. Nico Hülkenberg (last week: 13^th, up six spots) (Season high: 7^th, low: 19^th)

Monza saw the return of The Incredible Hulk: a stunning qualifying lap saw him take third and, unlike Valtteri Bottas in Canada, he managed to hold his own in the race and finish a superb fifth – enough for him to score his highest F1 Power Rankings position to date – just ten seconds behind Vettel. Even if the Sauber seemed suited to the low downforce circuit, The Hulk still had to finish the job off in one of this season’s stand-out performances. His main concern will be where he’ll end up next season. Monisha Kalternborn told Sky Sports that 18-year-old Sergey Sirotkin will almost certainly be in one Sauber – and you’d have to think that Esteban Gutierrez will retain the other. With his outside shot at a Ferrari having evaporated, the options are thinning out, with Lotus the best available option. Otherwise, he faces losing a richly-deserved place in F1 due to (lack of) money for the second time, after Williams in 2010.

 

The Hulk put in the performance of the weekend
Source: F1 Fanatic

8. Felipe Massa (last week: 13^th, up five spots) (Season high: 3^rd, low: 15^th)

With his Ferrari days now officially coming to an end, Felipe Massa scored his best finish in seven races with after a fine weekend and he would have also gained a good deal of personal satisfaction from having outqualified Alonso. In a similar way Hülkenberg, you’d imagine it was Lotus-or-nowhere for the Brazilian in 2014.

You somehow can't see Fernando & Kimi like this...
Source: Fernando Alonso, Twitter

9. Daniel Ricciardo (last week: 16^th last week, no change) (Season high: 5^th, low: 18^th)

Finally confirmed as an RBR driver for 2014, Daniel Ricciardo put in an important performance to silence any lingering doubters that he was the wrong choice as he qualified and finished an excellent seventh.

10. Romain Grosjean (last week: 8^th, down two spots) (Season high: 6^th, low: 22^nd)

Disappointing weekend for Lotus – especially in qualifying as both cars dropped out in Q2. Grosjean kept his nose clean and brought the car home a solid eighth in a solid, if unspectacular, performance.

=11. Jenson Button (last week: 6^th, down five spots) (Season high: 5^th, low: 16^th) & Sergio Pérez (last week: 10^th, down one spot) (Season high: 8^th, low: 17^th)

The McLaren duo are both fallers in this week’s F1 Power Rankings and they are level with each other for the third time in four weeks. Checo outqualified JB and was running ahead of him until a slow pit-stop elevated the Englishman. Thereafter, it appeared that Sergio Pérez was quicker than his team-mate but just could not find a way past him as both McLarens lacked straight line speed.

13. Jules Bianchi (last week: 11^th, down two spots) (Season high: 6^th, low: 13^th)

There were no repeated heroics by the backmarkers this weekend after they excelled in the inclement Spa qualifying but Jules Bianchi, once again, did his usual solid job for Marussia.

14. Paul di Resta (last week: 9^th, down five spots) (Season high: 5^th, low: 17^th)

Force India’s mid-season slump continues as PDR failed to score for the fourth consecutive race, having finished in the top ten in seven of the first eight races; the change in Pirelli tyres has hurt them more than anyone else. Like Räikkönen, he misjudged his braking on the opening lap but, unlike the Finn, saw his suspension disintegrate. Another man in contention for a Lotus 2014 seat, this loss of form will not help him.

 

di Resta was reprimanded for his first lap collision, captured here by FOM's new on-board thermal imaging camera
Source: FOM TV images

=15. Jean-Eric Vergne (last week: 16^th, up one spot) (Season high: 5^th, low: 20^th) & Giedo van der Garde (last week: 12^st, down three spots) (Season high: 12^th, low: 22^nd)

A weekend of missed opportunities for JEV. STR had a good car and Jean-Eric Vergne had the opportunity to show the senior team picked the wrong driver but he committed a costly error exiting Parabolica in Q3, similar to his Silverstone mistake, before his early engine failure on Sunday. Next season will be critical for him – he will need to beat his team-mate, whether it be António Félix da Costa, Carlos Sainz, Jr. or Daniil Kvyat. Meanwhile, Giedo van der Garde’s good form continued as he outqualified Charles Pic, but a miscommunication over his second pit-stop saw him surprise his mechanics.

17. Esteban Gutiérrez (last week: 19^th, up two spots) (Season high: 15^th, low: 22^nd)

Slowly but surely, Guti is finding his feet in F1. Sure, he was knocked out in Q1 for the umpteenth time this season and he finished half a minute behind Hülkenberg but his racecraft has improved significantly over the last two races – he even managed to finish on the tail end of the mammoth midfield battle, just behind the McLarens, rather than his usual anonymous performances.

18. Charles Pic (last week: 18^th, no change) (Season high: 7^th, low: 19^th)

No change for Pic this week. The battle at Caterham has evened up recently, which does not reflect well on the team’s ‘veteran’.

19. Adrian Sutil (last week: 15^th, down four spots) (Season high: 5^th, low: 20^th)

Poor weekend for Adrian Sutil. Savagely blocked Hamilton in qualifying, for which he picked up a deserved penalty, before a hugely underwhelming Sunday afternoon drive.

20. Max Chilton (last week: 20^th, no change) (Season high: 17^th, low: 22^nd)

No change this week for Max Chilton but it was a solid weekend from the young Brit and probably the closest he’s been to Bianchi all season.

=21. Pastor Maldonado (Season high: 12^th, low: 22^nd) & Valtteri Bottas (Season high: 10^th, low: 21^st) (both were =21^st last week, no change)
Not much to say about Williams as their dreadful season continues.

After Race 11: Belgium

The summer recess came to an end as the daunting Spa-Francorchamps and its notoriously fickle climate kicked-off the second half of the season. Let’s crack on…

Class of one: Vettel dominated on Sunday
Source: Red Bull Racing (Facebook)

1. Sebastian Vettel (last week: 1^st, no change) (Season high: 1^st, low: 4^th)

The fat lady is already clearing her throat (what more is there to say?). A dominant race from Sebastian Vettel as Red Bull went aggressive, for once, on straight-line speed and it paid off handsomely with his opening lap manoeuvre on Lewis Hamilton up the Kemmel straight. With a 46 point lead over an ever-changing nearest rival, he can effectively afford two DNFs in the final eight races. Note: this was Vettel’s 31^st victory, which ties him for 5^th in the all-time list. It was also his 54^th podium, which puts him =10^th.

2. Lewis Hamilton (last week: 2^nd, no change) (Season high: 2^nd, low: 9th)

Hamilton took a surprise pole position for the second race running but failed to capitalize on it this time around. He’s effectively taken on Vettel’s role from previous seasons whereby he’d rack up pole positions but fail to convert them. Another solid podium but, quite simply, it’s not enough. Note: like Vettel, this was also Hamilton’s 54^th podium, for =10^th all-time.

3. Fernando Alonso (last week: 4^th, up one spot) (Season high: 1^st, low: 13^th)

After a hugely underwhelming July, which looked set to continue into this second half of the season after a disappointing qualifying performance, Fernando Alonso and Ferrari resurrected their season on Sunday afternoon with a superb drive from ninth to second. However, it was still not enough as they failed to beat the one man they most needed to. Quite simply, they need to win in front of the Tifosi next time out.

The podium featured an interesting gatecrasher - Greenpeace were protesting against Shell
Source: Getty Images

 4. Kimi Räikkönen (last week: 3^rd, down one spot) (Season high: 2^nd, low: 12^th)

The most unexpected sight of the weekend was Kimi Räikkönen’s Lotus parked in his garage during the race. The Iceman’s record of 27 consecutive points-finishes came to end with brake failure – a rogue helmet visor tear-off allegedly deemed the culprit. It was Räikkönen’s first DNF since his Germany 2009 and he’s now 63 points behind Sebastian Vettel.

5. Mark Webber (last week: 5^th, no change) (Season high: 1^st, low: 15^th)

A hugely mediocre weekend for Mark Webber: third on the grid evaporated with a sluggish opening lap and he ended up finishing over half a minute behind his team-mate. Alonso also gained revenge on him for ‘that move’ into Eau Rouge.

6. Jenson Button (last week: 8^th, up two spots) (Season high: 5^th, low: 16^th)

JB moves up to sixth, matching the position where he both started and finished at Spa-Francorchamps. It could have been even better but McLaren opted to play it extremely safe with his strategy. You get the impression that this team seems almost directionless under Martin Whitmarsh: their 2013 car has flopped and there is a certain degree of limbo to next year’s plans as they await Honda’s arrival in 2015.

7. Nico Rosberg (last week: 7^th, no change) (Season high: 2^nd, low: 12^th)

No change for Nico Rosberg after a solid weekend. It looked for a moment that he might steal an excellent pole position but he was once again shaded by Hamilton. The two Mercedes shared pretty similar race pace but Rosberg is over 100 points behind Vettel – and you can guarantee that Ross Brawn will enforce team orders in a heartbeat if he deemed it worthy.

8. Romain Grosjean (last week: 6^th, down two spots) (Season high: 6^th, low: 22^nd)

Disappointing weekend for Romain Grosjean, although it was still a million miles better than last year’s catastrophe which saw him banned for the Italian GP after the first corner crash. It was a largely forgettable race for Lotus, although at least Grosjean picked up a few points.

9. Paul di Resta (last week: 10^th, up one spot) (Season high: 5^th, low: 17^th)

It looked for a few minutes on Saturday that an inspired call would see PDR clinch his first pole position before he was eventually squeezed down to P5. A poor start saw him slide into the midfield, which better represented Force India’s race pace – on the track where they netted their only other pole to date with Giancarlo Fisichella in 2009. He was the victim in the mid-race collision between his team-mate and Pastor Maldonado which ended his chance of scoring any points.

 

Maldonado destroys the rear of di Resta's car
Source: FOM TV images

10. Sergio Pérez (last week: 8^th, down two spots) (Season high: 8^th, low: 17^th)

Another man who should have finished in the points is Sergio Pérez; the young Mexican was having a solid race until he over-aggressively defended his overtaking manoeuvre on Grosjean into Les Combes. Although it looked innocuous enough, Checo had moved across on the Frenchman, pushing him onto the kerb – which technically exceeds track limits – hence the penalty for not leaving one car’s width. It was a needless move but he’ll learn from it.

11. Jules Bianchi (last week: 13^th, up two spots) (Season high: 6^th, low: 13^th)

Giedo van der Garde and both Marussias made it into Q2 after they gambled on the conditions perfectly. While it was the Dutchman who stole the show, Jules Bianchi continued his extremely impressive rookie season by once again thrashing Max Chilton in both quali and the race.

 

Bianchi attack Eau Rouge in the early stages of quali
Source: Marussia F1 Team (Facebook)

12. Giedo van der Garde (last week: 18^st, up six spots) (Season high: 12^th, low: 22^nd)

He might not last for long at these dizzying heights in the rankings but credit where credit’s due: VDG was outstanding at what is effectively his home race. His superb Q1 lap saw him qualify 14^th and he even managed to beat a Williams in the race. Best of all, he beat Charles Pic for the second consecutive race (we’ll forgive him for his practice crash).

 

Giedo van der Garde running ahead of the normal midfield runners in the early stages
Source: Crash.net

=13. Nico Hülkenberg (last week: 11^th, down two spots) (Season high: 9^th, low: 19^th) & Felipe Massa (last week: 15^th, up two spots) (Season high: 3^rd, low: 15^th)

Another anonymous race for The Hulk, although he did feature in the top ten in the early stages after an excellent start. There was little joy thereafter as he slowly slid backwards and, for once, Esteban Gutiérrez actually seemed to have the better Sunday afternoon drive.

He is joined in the rankings by the man he could replace at Ferrari next year: Felipe Massa’s race went the opposite way to Nico Hülkenberg’s as he spent most of the race recovering places he lost from his a poor start. All things considered, seventh place was not too bad for Massa but he was miles behind Alonso, again.

15. Adrian Sutil (last week: 19^th, up four spots) (Season high: 5^th, low: 20^th)

A solid ninth-place finish for Adrian Sutil sees him rise four places in the F1 Power Rankings after a difficult couple of races. Not much more to say other than Paul di Resta again had the upper hand.

=16. Jean-Eric Vergne (Season high: 5^th, low: 20^th) & Daniel Ricciardo (Season high: 5^th, low: 18^th) (both were =16^th last week, no change)

Awful weekend for STR. JEV in particular looked as if he was on course for a strong weekend with excellent practice pace but the team got Q1 horribly wrong. Both drivers progressed through the field but ultimately relied on the misfortune of others for Daniel Ricciardo to pick up a solitary point; the Aussie all-but-confirmed as an RBR driver next year by Mark Webber in an interview to Australian television. Jean-Eric Vergne’s final stint was hampered by a slow puncture.

18. Charles Pic (last week: 14^th, down four spots) (Season high: 7^th, low: 19^th)

Disappointing weekend for Pic: he was the odd-man-out as his fellow perennial backmarkers gambled on slicks and made it into Q2 before dropping out of the race early with an oil leak.

19. Esteban Gutiérrez (last week: 21^st, up two spots) (Season high: 15^th, low: 22^nd)

One of his best races in F1 so far! Gutiérrez showed flashes of speed in qualifying but Sauber simply timed his run too early and he ended up on the back row but he drove very well to battle amongst the midfield during the race. His penalty for exceeding track limits on Pastor Maldonado was correct but it was refreshing to see him have something other than an anonymous race and he was not too far off Hülkenberg at the checkered flag.

 

Gutiérrez had one of his best races to date
Source: Sauber F1Team (Facebook)

20. Max Chilton (last week: 22^nd, up two spots) (Season high: 17^th, low: 22^nd)

I almost ranked him ahead of Guti but it’s still a two-place rise in this week’s F1 Power Rankings for Chilton. Credit him for squeezing into Q2 on the slick tyres in the tricky conditions but he was once again comfortably beaten by Bianchi throughout the weekend.

=21. Pastor Maldonado (last week: 12^th, down nine spots) (Season high: 12^th, low: 22^nd) & Valtteri Bottas (last week: 20^th, down one spot) (Season high: 10^th, low: 21^st)

I mentioned after Hungary that Maldonado, who had finally claimed Williams’ first point of the season, would need to continue that form to stay there. I also mentioned that the eight place gap did not reflect Valtteri Bottas’ season to date in respect to his team-mate. Well, here we are, Pastor has plummeted after his mindless crash into the Force Indias: he was never going to be able to squeeze into the pit lane. Bottas had a weekend to forget: another one caught out in Q1 and he never recovered from it. Back to the drawing board for the team.

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