And
so here we are: the penultimate F1 Power
Rankings of the season as we look ahead to the Abu Dhabi finalé. Usually
these rankings are done in the immediate aftermath of a race weekend but I
decided to double it up as a preview for Abu Dhabi as well.
The
2014 driver’s championship has gone to the wire – and that’s regardless of
double points. The difference will come if Nico Rosberg wins and Lewis Hamilton
finishes third, fourth or fifth – places which would have been good enough for
overall glory with the normal points system (or the few other permutations of
the same tone if Nico finishes multiple places above Lewis).
At
the back of the grid, meanwhile, who knows what’s going on? Caterham didn’t
appear to get enough of the crowdfunding needed but will be in Yas Marina in
any case – with Kamui Kobayashi and Will Stevens. Marussia also came
desperately close but ultimate came up short. Once again, we spare a thought
for all the hardworking employees at both teams through these difficult moments.
 |
| The customary Merc winning family photo Source: Mercedes AMG Petronas (Facebook) |
We’ll
never know if Hamilton’s spin during the pit sequence cost him the victory or
not. We can hypothesize till the cows come home but that’s all it will be. You’d
have to think he only needs his car to stay reliable and he’ll join Fernando
Alonso and Sebastian Vettel as multiple world champions on the grid.
2. Nico Rosberg
Rosberg
leaps up to P2 in this week’s F1 Power
Rankings after a superb weekend under the most intense pressure. Both team
drivers knew that the title could neither be won nor lost in Interlagos but
Rosberg swept every session – including all three quali rounds – en route to a
crucial victory to enhance the possibility of him emulating his father as a
world champion.
 |
| Rosberg had the measure of Hamilton all weekend Source: Mercedes AMG Petronas (Facebook) |
#ForzaJules
– You’re place in these rankings are set in stone for this season. Lovely to
hear the news he has been moved to France and his condition has very slightly
improved. Still a long way to go but all our prayers are with you and Michael.
#KeepFightingMichael
4. Daniel Ricciardo
Ricciardo
slips to 4th in the F1 Power
Rankings after suffering his first DNF since Malaysia, ending a run of 16
points-scoring finishes. Depending on how the finalé goes, it’s not
unreasonable to assume that the Aussie will end up P2 in these rankings.
 |
| RBR have been entertaining their fans in Dubai Source: Infiniti Red Bull Racing (Facebook) |
It
all went wrong on Sunday for Bottas, and that’s two straight races he has been
beaten by his team-mate. Still, it’s been an extremely impressive sophomore
season from the Finn.
6. Daniil Kvyat
His
Russian quali heroics aside, Kvyat has suffered a bit of a slump since it was
announced he’s moving to the senior team. That said, his racing has been solid –
just the end product missing. He recovered well from his grid penalty to take
P11, ahead of his team-mate.
7. Felipe Massa
Massa
was the feel-good story of the weekend, even though he his best not to finish
on the podium in front of his crowd. Caught speeding during his first trip into
the pits, he then later stopped off in the McLaren pit-box en route to his own.
 |
| Massa with a celebration that evokes memories of 2008 Source: Williams F1 Team (Facebook) |
It’s
a one place drop for K-Mag but he just about stays ahead of Jenson Button after
a solid, if unspectacular Brazilian weekend. A solid top-ten effort in quali was
backed up with a ninth place finish despite struggling with tyre wear.
=9. Sebastian Vettel, Fernando
Alonso & Jenson Button
Three
world champions find themselves locked together near the foot of the top-ten
after varying weekends that ultimately saw them finish 4-5-6. Button had a
strong weekend after an underwhelming performance in North America. Vettel
chased him home after recovering from a scruffy opening lap, running wide at
the corner that almost cost him the 2012 championship. His move to Ferrari is
now confirmed, as is Alonso’s exit. He edged out Räikkönen for P6 in what was
another average weekend for the Scuderia.
=12. Kimi Räikkönen & Nico Hülkenberg
The
return of The Hulk! Always a good track for Nico H, and so it proved once again
as he led the way in the opening stint as the strategies played out. Hülkenberg
ran inside the top ten for most of the afternoon and came up just short of
overtaking Räikkönen. The Finn himself had a good weekend running a rare
two-stop strategy, and will be hoping to carry this momentum into Abu Dhabi
and, more importantly, next season when Vettel arrives.
 |
| The Hulk once again led in Brazil Source: Sahara Force India (Facebook) |
No
two ways about it, bad weekend for both drivers. Checo was on the back foot
after his well-deserved grid penalty from Austin for knocking himself and Sutil
out of the race, and failed to make any headway on Sunday. Having comfortably
been the better Force India driver in the second half of the season, the
pendulum has swung back towards The Hulk, although both drivers should start
2015 on an even-keel. JEV, meanwhile, gave up his car to Max Verstappen in FP1
and then saw his running end early in FP2 with a mechanical failure. He never
recovered from it.
16. Romain Grosjean & 17. Pastor
Maldonado
Maldonado
ran towards the back of the field for most of the day but popped up to P12 at
the checkered flag. Grosjean, meanwhile, went the other way. Threatened to
score a point or two in the first half of the race and was still in contention
in the closing stages before his Lotus failed him.
=18. Esteban Gutiérrez & Adrian
Sutil
Stevie
G almost led the race in the early stages as the stops cycled through but ultimately
ended up tumbling down the timesheets after that promising opening quarter to
his race. Sutil started from the pit-lane as late technical woes affected him
pre-race and he was consigned to finishing last. You would think both drivers
have little to race for as it’s unlikely any other team will be interested in
them next for next season.
 |
| Gutiérrez actually had a decent fight with Kimi in the early stages Source: Sauber F1 Team |
Well,
one of these drivers is allegedly back for Yas Marina while the other is set
for next season, so they stay above Max Chilton.
=22. Max Chilton & André
Lotterer
(nothing to see here)
All views expressed in this blog are my own and no copyright
infringement is intended.
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