Contenders for Formula One world championship
Five races into the season, are we beginning to see the real contenders emerge for the Formula One drivers’ world championship?
Jenson Button- McLaren- 70 points
The 2009 world champion finds himself at the top of the drivers’ standings having won two of the five races. Button received criticism after he moved to McLaren because he was entering Lewis Hamilton’s territory, but he has shown his qualities by outclassing Hamilton. He won in Australia having made a crucial decision to go on to slick tyres while the track was still wet. Following Sebastian Vettel’s exit, Button was promoted to first, and preserved his tyres to the finish. He also won in China, leading his teammate to a one-two finish. He may not be the quickest driver on the circuit, but he is showing why he is world champion through the consistent drives he has had.
Fernando Alonso- Ferrari- 67 points
After winning the opening race of the season in Bahrain, Alonso has not managed to hit those heights again. The win in Bahrain was followed by a monumental drive in Australia. He was hit in turn one and was pointing the wrong way, and had to make his way through the field. He suffered an engine failure in Malaysia, picked up points in China after getting a penalty for jumping the start, and then finished second at his home Grand Prix in Spain. Alonso hasn’t had the quickest car, but somehow he is hanging in there, and this will be vital as he will eventually find pace and form.
Sebastian Vettel- Red Bull- 60 points
Quite easily Vettel could have won all three of the opening races, but his car’s poor reliability has hampered the German. His pole-position laps have been a sign of the raw pace he has, driving the car on the limit.
He would have won in Bahrain, but for an exhaust problem which forced him to relinquish his lead to Alonso. He led in Australia, but a problem with brakes ended his race. In Malaysia, his first win of the season was overdue, and he eventually he did manage to win a race. He had an indifferent race in China, and that was the first time you could safely say it was a race he didn’t deserve to win. The last Grand Prix in Spain, his car once again tried to disrupt his race, but he managed to get to the finish line with his brakes about to go and salvaged a podium.
Mark Webber- Red Bull- 53 points
The Red Bull has been the quickest car this season, setting five out of five pole positions, and Webber demonstrated this by dominating last weekend. Fresh from winning the Spanish Grand Prix, Webber has managed to put himself into the race as a contender. All season he has been outclassed by his teammate Vettel. In Malaysia, Webber was on pole, but lost it immediately when Vettel dived on the inside to take the lead and eventually the win. The team will have to decide who to back for the world championship, but for the moment, Webber has signalled his intentions, and is as quick as Vettel.
Not up to the challenge?
Those are the main players, but there are drivers who seem to be falling away and need to start picking up points. Alonso’s teammate Felipe Massa is not showing the form that nearly took him to the world championship in 2008, and his lack of pace is puzzling Ferrari. Alonso is the man to back for the rest of the season, and it looks like Massa hasn’t got the capabilities of challenging the Spaniard, let alone become world champion.
Hamilton’s hopes were dented in Spain on Sunday when he had a puncture on the penultimate lap. He was running in second, and would have picked up 18 vital points. He now finds himself in seventh place in the standings and trails by 21 points. At the moment, he has a lot to do to catch up with Button.
Michael Schumacher hoped to be returning to Formula One in a car capable of mounting a challenge, but unfortunately this hasn’t been the case, and the 41-year-old has been left to battle for the lower points positions. It is too late for him to try and win an eighth world championship.
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