Formula 1: 2012 Season Review #1

Vettel and Alonso duel for the title

What a season 2012 has been; 20 races across 5 continents in 9 months. From Australia and Malaysia to the United States and Brazil, the 2012 season went down to the wire with Sebastian Vettel and Fernando Alonso fighting it out for the ultimate prize. With 8 different winners from 6 different teams, 2012 had variety to go with action, drama, suspense and surprise; this season will no doubt stand-out as a true classic for years to come.

Much like I did with my Mid-Season Reports back in July, I'll run through the grid on a team by team basis, looking at who impressed, who disappointed and who surprised in 2012. First up, Red Bull Racing.

Red Bull Racing: A+

Drivers' Championship: 1st - Vettel, 6th - Webber

Constructors Championship: 1st

Vettel wins in Bahrain, his first of five wins in 2012

For the third successive year then, Red Bull Racing have taken out both titles, carving out an era not unlike that McLaren enjoyed in the late eighties and Ferrari enjoyed in the early noughties. The benchmark for team and driver alike, Red Bull Racing have fought to the top of one of the most competitive eras the sport has ever experienced. 

Unlike 2011, 2012 hasn't all gone Red Bull's way. They endured some early season wobbles and technical difficulties to rack up 7 race wins, 4 of which were successive from Singapore through to India. Vettel was untouchable for much of these rounds, leading from start to finish for the most part. This blinding pace at this key point of the season was the tipping point for the team as they surged towards both titles. 

For Vettel, he exits the 2012 season as the youngest three time World Champion and with a reputation that is only going upwards. He has weathered the storm at times this year and prevailed on top; whilst the technical excellence of the RB8 has helped, the car has by no means been bullet-proof, two retirements in Valencia and Italy as evidence of this. As a result, Vettel has done brilliantly to stay on track and come through as the overall winner. 

In Webber, Red Bull have the perfect team-mate to compliment their undisputed leader. Mark has the pace, daring and know-how to challenge and push Vettel (as well as beat him on occasion) but no longer disrupt the status quo (as he had begun to in 2010). Mark racked up two great wins in Monaco and Britain but faded in the final third of the season, the reason for which I am unsure. He eventually finished the season 6th, behind both McLarens, Fernando and Kimi, a result he no doubt feels down in the mouth about.

Scuderia Ferrari: B

Drivers' Championship: 2nd - Alonso, 7th - Massa

Constructors' Championship: 2nd

Fernando and Felipe pose in Brazil

Has Ferrari's season really been all that bad? Cast back to Melbourne and the Scuderia's situation looked dire; to go into the final round as contenders for the Drivers' title is no doubt an achievement in itself. 

Their car might not have lived up to the standards of McLaren and Red Bull, but by the end of the season, the limiting nature of the F2012 was being greatly exaggerated. On many an occasion in the middle of the season, Ferrari had a hugely competitive car; think back to Alonso's win in Germany or his third place in Monza, both instances in which the F2012 was punch-for-punch as good as the best. 

There is no doubt in my mind however, surrounding the achievements of Fernando Alonso this season. The guy has proved yet again why he is regarded as the best and most complete driver on the grid by driving like a man possessed all season. Determined, aggressive and assertive, Alonso is the perfect racing driver, melding together both a cool head in defence and a flair for attack. 

His drives in Sepang, Valencia, Italy, New Delhi  Abu Dhabi, Austin and Interlagos are all examples of how he can turn a dire looking situation into one of  greatness; he finished on the podium more often than anyone this season, usually from outside the front three grid rows. Add to this commanding drives under pressure in races such as Germany and it is easy to afford Alonso the praise so many send his way. Had someone been smiling on him on the opening laps in Belgium and Japan, Fernando would now be the youngest triple World Champion instead of Seb. 

As it stands, 2012 is another missed opportunity for both Fernando and Ferrari; the duo have failed to deliver the World Championship they seek for the third successive year. They can however, take heart from 2012; second in the Constructors' is their highest placing since 2008 and Felipe Massa's upward trend in form since mid-season means 2012 hasn't at all been a disaster for Maranello.

McLaren Mercedes: C-

Drivers' Championship: 4th - Hamilton, 5th - Button

Constructors' Championship: 3rd

Hamilton leads Button in Brazil

On the surface, it would appear that McLaren's 2012 campaign is one that is full of positives. However, seven race wins, three of which were successive, flatter McLaren's season, one that has in fact slipped through their fingers. The Woking team started the season with the quickest car in both qualifying and the race, a dominant victory for Jenson Button in Australia was evidence of this. It took however until the Canadian Grand Prix in June for McLaren to win again and by the British Grand Prix in July, McLaren were down in the doldrums, playing catch up as they have done so many times before in recent years. 

Three consecutive wins in Hungary, Belgium and Italy may have put McLaren back in the hunt but disastrous reliability in the following months put a stopper on any Championship challenge mounted by both Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button. Mechanical issues in Singapore, Korea and Abu Dhabi cost Lewis Hamilton in excess of 50 championship points and two race wins, whilst Jenson Button was robbed of a second place finish in Monza through another mechanical failure. Too many times in 2012 did McLaren fail to capitalise on opportunities; four front-row lockouts yielded zero one-two finishes. 

In retrospect, Lewis Hamilton deserved to challenge for the title until the very end this season. Every title challenger has had ups and downs this season, but Lewis has indeed has the worst of it, poor luck greeting him at seemingly every turn. When offered a chance at victory, Lewis jumped at it; his brilliant victory in Austin is proof of this. The team will no doubt be weaker now that he has jumped ship for Mercedes GP next season.

Meanwhile, Jenson Button's season has been equally mixed. Wins in Australia, Belgium and Brazil have been counteracted with a mixture of unreliability and a fragile car. Much like Lewis, he deserved better this year.
On the whole, McLaren's season can be seen as something of a missed opportunity.

Lotus F1 Team: B

Drivers' Championship: 3rd - Raikkonen, 8th - Grosjean

Constructors' Championship: 4th 

Crash kid: Romain Grosjean has been in both the
headlines and the barriers too often this year

Finally managing to clinch that all important win in Abu Dhabi, Lotus F1 can go into the winter break and rest easy; their season hasn't been all that bad. Third place for Kimi in the Drivers' Championship and Fourth in Constructors' is a step up from last season and a position from which they can attack 2013. 

Of course, as any F1 team principal will tell you, not all that bad is not good enough. Like McLaren, Lotus let too many opportunities slip through their grasp this season; possible victories in Bahrain, Valencia and Hungary would have put them right in the mix. 

Add to this the ongoing trials of young rookie Romain Grosjean, a driver who has become well acquainted with the stewards office throughout the year; causing the now infamous Belgian Grand Prix first corner incident landed him with a one-race ban. If there was a first lap calamity to be had, you could have bet your life Grosjean was involved and at fault. At the time of writing, it is as yet unknown whether this will have cost him his seat at Lotus in 2013 or not.

On the other side of the garage, Kimi Raikkonen's return has been a fantastic story for Formula 1. The laconic Finn has provided some brilliant drives this year as well as some side-splitting comic moments. All together now; "Just leave me alone, I know what to do"

Mercedes AMG F1 Team: D

Drivers' Championship: 9th - Rosberg, 13th - Schumacher

Constructors' Championship: 5th

Rosberg's sole win of the year came in China

For Mercedes, 2012 has been something of one step forward and two steps backwards. It all started so positively for them, a win in China compounding their early season promise. They were showing every sign of being a team on the up.

Fast forward to the final third of the season and the situation was massively different at Mercedes. Only six points from the final six races (all six scored by Schumacher in Brazil) is hugely disappointing given their early success. 

In their defence, the team's focus had switched to 2013 long before then. The dwindling performance of Schumacher had led Ross Brawn and co. in search of a new team leader for the future. Signing up Lewis Hamilton from McLaren is a huge coup and underlines the team's big ambitions in F1. It does also lumber them with the added pressure to perform; with Schumacher, the team could always point to the German's age as an excuse for poor results. With Lewis on board, Mercedes have nowhere to hide and have forced themselves into the spotlight. 

Rosberg sealed his first career win early (and finished second in Monaco) but the lack of development on the car hurt his chances of scoring anything from Singapore onwards. He has finished up the season seventh every year since 2009 so to slip backwards in 2012 will be frustrating. 

Meanwhile, Schumacher's third comeback season has been more of the same. Highlights include pole position in Monaco (kind of) and third in Valencia but other than that, it's been more mediocrity from an ageing legend. 

As for 2012, Mercedes have suffered something of a difficult chapter that has seen them slip from fourth to fifth overall, even coming under pressure from Sauber late on. Poor form from a team with such a large budget and potential.

Check back for Parts #2 and #3 of my Formula One Season Review in the coming days!

In the meantime, here are each and every Race Report from 2012. Enjoy!