Tag: Awards

2020 is a year many will be looking to put behind them, but let’s quickly focus on it once more and dish out a few awards – some orthodox, some less so – for a season that nobody will ever forget.

Driver of the Year

There were a few contenders for this award. Max Verstappen was excellent all year and took the battle to the superior Mercedes cars more often than he had any right to. Pierre Gasly topped off a fantastic redemption arc with an unlikely victory in Monza and there were also stellar performances from Sergio Pérez and Daniel Ricciardo.

Ultimately, though, it has to go to that man again – Lewis Hamilton. At the end of a season where he broke record after record and matched Michael Schumacher‘s high-tide mark of seven world titles, it would be wrong to give it to anybody else. Car number 44 won 11 of its 16 races and, whether or not that car is the class of the field, that takes some doing. Plus, who am I to argue with Her Majesty?

Honorable Mentions: Max Verstappen, Pierre Gasly, Sergio Pérez.

Team of the Year

Now for a more controversial choice. Yes – as previously mentioned – Mercedes were once again the class of the field. By a long shot. But there were also mistakes, such as the radio calls to Hamilton in both Monza and Sochi, and controversies, such as the ‘Tracing Point’ saga and DAS.

McLaren clinching third in the Constructors’ Championship is a huge achievement and took a real team effort. Both drivers were excellent and very consistent throughout the season, the pit crews were error-free and management topped things off with a crucial investment and the signing of Ricciardo for 2021.

Third place is huge for the Woking team and shows that they continue to head in the right direction. After all, what would the odds of McLaren finishing ahead of Ferrari have been just a couple of years ago?

Honourable Mentions: Mercedes

Race of the Year

The German Grand Prix was a fairly clear winner for the 2019 ‘Race of the Year’ but this time round it isn’t quite so clear cut. Eventful races in Italy and Sakhir produced shock winners and the cold weather in Portugal produced plenty of intrigue.

The Turkish Grand Prix takes the gong, though. Starting off with a shock maiden pole position for Lance Stroll, it was action-packed as drivers struggled with the slippery, wet tarmac after a recent resurfacing and a downpour on Sunday morning. And it proved to be just as momentous as it was chaotic, with Hamilton producing a victory thoroughly worthy of wrapping up a historic seventh world title.

Honourable Mentions: Italian Grand Prix, Sakhir Grand Prix, Portuguese Grand Prix

Drive of the Year

When Hamilton contracted Covid-19, George Russell was unexpectedly thrust into the limelight with a chance in the dominant Mercedes at the Sakhir Grand Prix. The young Briton already had a strong reputation, having never been outqualified by a teammate after nearly two seasons in the sport.

But surely this was too big of an ask? Russell only had the three practice sessions to grow accustomed to his new machinery and barely fit into the car. On Saturday, though, he would finish qualifying just two hundredths behind Valtteri Bottas and then topped that by beating his vastly more experienced teammate off the line to lead on Sunday.

Sadly, the fairytale was not to be, thanks to some horrendous luck and a Mercedes blunder – which the next award shall expand on – but Russell nonetheless grabbed the sport’s attention and is now surely one season at most away from a seat much nearer the front of the field.

Honourable Mentions: Sergio Pérez in Sakhir, Lewis Hamilton in Turkey, Pierre Gasly at Monza

Blunder of the Year

So, yes, that blunder…

Mercedes are totally infallible and unflappable…99% of the time. But that 1% tends to be pretty disastrous. Hamilton’s pit stop at Germany in 2019 was comedic and embarrassing – especially due to the team wearing effective fancy dress in honour of 125 years in motorsport – but perhaps more understandable as Hamilton had crashed and immediately driven into the pits on a wet but drying track.

The disastrous pit stop in Sakhir was perhaps more costly and equally embarrassing. Mercedes called both drivers in for a ‘safety stop’ and had to double-stack, but a radio issue led to a miscommunication and confusion as Russell drove off with some of Bottas’s tyres and the Finn then sat there for 30 seconds as that realisation dawned upon the mechanics.

Russell had to pit again for the correct tyres the following lap and, to add salt to the wound, would pick up a puncture as he raced back through the field.

Honourable Mentions: Mercedes at Monza, Racing Point at Imola

Crash of the Year

The multi-car pile-up at Mugello would have taken ‘Crash of the Year’ comfortably in recent years. But 2020 had another surprise in store for the F1 world, in the shape of the most horrifying crash in decades.

When Romain Grosjean speared into the barriers at the start of the Bahrain Grand Prix and produced an instantaneous fireball, many at home and in the garages feared the worst. But, after two agonising minutes of no replays and no information, it was confirmed Grosjean had miraculously escaped and was safely sitting in the medical car.

The impact measured 53G but the Haas driver somehow remained conscious. He then found a way to escape the mangled wreckage – minus one shoe – and leapt over the barrier, aided by the heroic medical team, to safety. It is not the way Grosjean would have imagined he would enter retirement, but he is now surely just pleased to have reached it at all.

Honourable Mentions: Multi-car pile-up at Mugello, Lance Stroll in Bahrain

Overtake of the Year

Any overtake through Eau Rouge – yes, I know…it’s Raidillon actually – looks great, but the manner in which Pierre Gasly kept his foot in as Pérez squeezed him into the wall on the run up makes this one extra special.

The bravery was particularly poignant as Gasly remembered his close friend, Anthoine Hubert, who had sadly died in a crash at the same corner a year earlier.

Honourable Mentions: George Russell in Sakhir, Kevin Magnussen in Spain

Opening Lap of the Year

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ChdaNDFI30

Whilst it was the other Alfa Romeo driver, Antonio Giovinazzi, who relentlessly made up positions at the start in 2020 – obviously helped by qualifying towards the back each time – Kimi Räikkönen surely had the best opening lap of the year.

As the pack slithered round in the freezing conditions in Portugal, ‘The Iceman’ lived up to his name, climbing from 16th to 6th in one tour of the 4.692 km circuit. There’s life in the old dog yet.

Honourable Mentions: Sebastian Vettel in Turkey, Antonio Giovinazzi at Monza

Best Day of Silly Season

‘Silly season’ got underway before a wheel had been turned in anger in 2020. With Covid-19 halting matters in Melbourne and then ultimately causing a four-month delay, there was at least some action to discuss in the driver market.

Especially so when, in the space of 24 hours, Sebastian Vettel was confirmed to be leaving Ferrari at the end of the season, Carlos Sainz was named as his replacement and then Ricciardo filled the vacant seat at McLaren.

Honourable Mentions: Vettel replacing Pérez, Pérez replacing Albon

Best Vocal Performance

Vettel’s surprise farewell song to his Ferrari team was very touching, but the performance maybe left a little to be desired. Lando Norris, however, belted out a radio check in Mugello with the confidence of a drunk man in a karaoke bar.

Honourable Mentions: Sebastian Vettel in Abu Dhabi

Happy New Year, one and all!

But let’s quickly focus on 2019 just once more and dish out some awards for what was a pretty eventful season.

Driver of the Year

It is near impossible to separate Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen but, having just won a sixth title and more than half of the 2019 races, this award has to go the world champion. Both men barely put a foot wrong all year but we are yet to find out whether Verstappen can keep that level of up over the course of a title battle. Hopefully we won’t have to wait too long to find out.

Hamilton has been operating at that level for some time now and discussions have moved from whether he is the greatest of his generation to whether he is the greatest of all time. Whilst it may sometimes feel a little dull watching one man win 50% of the races, we should all be appreciative that we are witnessing greatness and the creation of a legend. It was similar during the Michael Schumacher years and many now look back on that time with much nostalgia.

Honourable Mentions: Max Verstappen, Carlos Sainz

Team of the Year

Once again, you just can’t overlook the champions. Yes, there was the utter fiasco of the German Grand Prix with Benny Hill-esque scenes as the team ran about, bumping into each other in their fancy dress outfits. But that was almost a nice reminder that this juggernaut of metronomic success was, in fact, human.

Over the past three seasons, Mercedes haven’t always had the fastest car. But their operational level is such that they still finish each year with the championship having looked a formality by the end. This is now arguably the greatest team in F1 history. Can they keep it up for another year? It seems very likely. Can they even then carry their supremacy over into the new set of regulations? You wouldn’t bet against it.

Honourable Mentions: McLaren, Red Bull

Race of the Year

The second half of the Brazilian Grand Prix was full of incident, entertainment and drama but the German Grand Prix had all of those from the first lap to the last. The only wet race of the year made up for the lack of another (and made you wonder whether Bernie was right about those sprinklers all along…) with absolute carnage from the outset.

A literal soaped-up drag strip on the outside of the final corner added to the Wacky Racers scenes and left many drivers sliding helplessly into the wall. There was the aforementioned Mercedes pit stop, Lance Stroll temporarily leading, Sebastian Vettel fighting through from last to second and a Toro Rosso on the podium for the first time in over a decade. Yeah, it was alright.

Honourable Mentions: Brazilian Grand Prix, Austrian Grand Prix, British Grand Prix

Drive of the Year

It is very hard to pick just one drive as there are so many different factors that are hard to compare – just look at all the honourable mentions below – and that’s before you even consider the Hamilton dominations which, whilst less spectacular, are just as impressive.

But I’m going for Pierre Gasly‘s second place at Interlagos. After such a tough year – both professionally and personally, with a demotion to Toro Rosso and the loss of his close friend Anthoine Hubert – Gasly’s performances towards the end of the season were highly commendable. And they were capped off by a shock podium in Brazil. Gasly had been ‘best of the rest’ throughout the weekend and thus was in position when all those around him lost their heads. He kept his and the outpouring of emotion on the radio after was genuinely moving.

Honourable Mentions: Leclerc in Bahrain, Verstappen in Austria, Vettel in Germany, Hamilton in Hungary, Sainz in Hungary, Norris in Belgium, Albon in Belgium

Blunder of the Year

Unfortunately Vettel is front and centre in both the main contenders for this award. His mistake at the Italian Grand Prix, spinning out in front of the Tifosi (whilst his teammate went on to win) and then rejoining unsafely was amateurish. But the collision between the two Ferraris in Brazil had greater ramifications.

Whilst the championships were already decided, this was acutely embarrassing for such a proud marque as Ferrari. It was easily avoidable. And yet, it seemed equally inevitable. As the sparks flew from Leclerc’s destroyed front right suspension, the tensions that had been boiling under the surface for a few races came to the fore.

Honourable Mentions: Vettel in Italy, Bottas in Germany, Grosjean in Britain

Rookie of the Year

A tough one as each has done very well in varying circumstances. Alexander Albon came in with little hype but drove well at Toro Rosso and earned himself a mid-season promotion to Red Bull. In the difficult circumstances of a top drive halfway through your rookie year and a teammate the calibre of Verstappen, he has performed very respectably.

George Russell has also done all he can with a very poor Williams, thoroughly outperforming Robert Kubica and completing a 21-0 qualifying head-to-head whitewash. But then the Pole was an unknown quantity upon his return and was effectively driving with one hand. So, all things considered, Lando Norris takes the gong. He suffered some terrible luck throughout the year but was generally neck-and-neck with his more experienced teammate, Carlos Sainz. A few stellar performances – including sixth in his second ever race – clinch the deal. Plus, he’s just so damn likeable.

Wheel-to-Wheel Battle of the Year

Hamilton and Verstappen in Hungary was box office and had more at stake but the battle between Leclerc and Verstappen at Silverstone was personal. And lasted practically half the race.

Coming just one race after Verstappen controversially bumped Leclerc out of the way with a couple of laps remaining in Austria to take the win, the young Monegasque decided he was going to get his own back. He did everything in his power (and just about within the rules) to remain ahead and set the stage for what is sure to be a thrilling rivalry for many years to come.

Honourable Mentions: Hamilton vs Verstappen in Hungary, Kvyat vs Albon in Hungary, Hamilton vs Bottas in Britain, Grosjean vs Sainz vs Ricciardo vs Stroll in Singapore

Controversy of the Year

Whilst the rest of 2019 was not without controversy, there is a clear winner here. The decision to penalise Vettel in Canada for rejoining the track in an unsafe manner, which effectively handed the win to Hamilton, sent shockwaves through the sport. And the reaction to it changed the way Race Director Michael Masi has handled the regulations ever since.

I went into great depth in my race report at the time – and still feel the penalty was just about the correct decision all things considered – but it came on the back of six consecutive Mercedes victories and was a less than ideal time to hand out a penalty that resulted in another one. Ferrari hung their victory flag in Maranello nonetheless and the sport recovered with a new outlook on applying rules and some excellent races soon after.

Honourable Mentions: Verstappen not being penalised in Austria, Ferrari’s engine legality, the Ferraris clashing in Brazil, the Haas–Rich Energy debacle

Crash of the Year

There were no Fernando Alonso or Marcus Ericsson-sized crashes this year, so instead the award can go to the most bizarre crash. Daniel Ricciardo not checking his mirrors and reversing into Daniil Kvyat in Azerbaijan was just downright comical.

Honourable Mentions: Magnussen in Canada, Bottas in Austria, Albon in China

Bromance of the Year

This was very much a year for bromance. Amongst others, we had Hamilton and Vettel, Ricciardo and pretty much everyone, but the duo at McLaren really took it to another level.

Norris and Sainz were as inseparable off the track as they were on it. Hopefully it can last if McLaren continue their upward trajectory and start fighting for podiums or wins…

Honourable Mentions: Ricciardo and Verstappen, Hamilton and Vettel, Norris and Albon

Press Conference of the Year

No real competition here.

The Championship in 60 Seconds