Everybody HRTs...sometimes

Spanish minnows HRT (formerly Hispania Racing Team) have folded after failing to find a buyer. Hispania have been trying to find a buyer for some time now, but the cutoff point to secure entry for the 2013 season was Novermber 30. They failed to deliver their entry fee in time, and thus, will not be part of that season.

The cash-strapped outfit have always been marginal with their budget, but a fourth season has proved to be a step too far. Entering the sport in 2010 with two other new teams, they hold an unenviable record of never scoring a point in their short tenure. That distinction is shared also by Caterham and Marussia, the other newbies, but the former; backed by Malaysian govornment and business supremo Tony Fernandes have made reasonable strides towards their first elusive point in F1, as too, have Marussia.

Other minor teams have come and gone, some more succesful, some similarly fated, and in terms of their length of stay it looks like HRT have ranked somewhere in the middle. A story that still breaks my heart to this day is that of Minardi. The tiny Italian outfit roamed the F1 circus for 21 years before being bought by Red Bull. They rather sportingly continued the Italian Tradition, dubbing them 'Toro Rosso' but before those days money was always a problem. At the other end of the spectrum is Mastercard Lola. They failed to qualify for the 1997 Australian GP and then quit, comparatively making HRT look ever-present.

HRT ran almost entirely without sponsorship for the duration of their stay in Formula One. Their first challenger, the 'F110' was dark grey, with white lines along the contours of the chassis; however they changed the white to a more Spanish red colour after their home event. In the vain of Jordan F1's final season, the team opted to run with their' drivers' first names on the side of the car in their inaugural season. This generally made the livery appear more cluttered, but distracted audiences from the lack of funding. Their only major sponsor was Brazilian bank 'Cruzeiro do Sol'.

In 2011 they hired a Holywood designer - Daniel Simon, to add a new image to the car. Unfortunately, motifs of  "Cool Spot" and "This could be you" were not enough to tempt any more sponsors, and the livery remained relatively unchanged all season. Their final car was mainly white with gold and red streaks and was proabably the most handsome of the three, but no better performances came from it.

The team were never really competitive and fell outside of the 107% rule X times. Both Karthikeyan and Liuzzi did this at the 2011 Australian Grand prix. They repeated this again in Monaco that year but were allowed to take part given that their practice times were 'fast' enough. The first race of the year proved troublesome again in 2012 and they had to sit out the Aussie race again. Karthikeyan was too slow in Spain but allowed to take part. The last time they did this was Korea 2012. Their best position was an ironically lucky 13th place in the incidedent-packed 2011 Canadian GP, thanks to Tonio Liuzzi.

HRT DRIVERS

2010
Karun Chandhok
Bruno Senna
Christian Klien
Sakon Yamamoto

2011
Narain Karthikeyan
Vitantonio Liuzzi
Daniel Ricciardo

2012
Pedro de la Rosa
Narain Karthikeyan

It's unfortunate that you're leaving F1, Hispania. You were fun to have, but often lapped, out and a mobile chicane. Perhaps it was just your time. Fare thee well, Spanish Minnows!

Brazil in the Wet sees Victorious Vet'

The 2012 Formula One season has been one of the most amazing in the sport's history, and today it concluded in a typically unpredictable fashion. Going in to the title decider at Brazil, Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel led Ferrari's Fernando Alonso by 13 points. There were many possible permutations, but fourth place for the German would guarantee the World Title. Qualifying was as hectic as usual, with the McLarens looking like the cars to beat. The Silver cars did not disappoint, with the team's 62nd front-row lockout, a new record for the sport. Hamilton fronted the field with team mate Button right beside him. Felipe Massa made a great effort on Saturday and plonked his Ferrari fifth, just behind Vettel. Alonso didn't help his chances by qualifying only 8th, however a gearbox penalty for Maldonado boosted him to 7th.

On Sunday there was much speculation about the weather. The teams' radars seemed to predict a dry race, but the skies bulged with moisture. The menacing grey clouds had a real sense of foreboding, and they tore open minutes before the start. It wasn't the drenching we had sometimes been accustomed to at the Autodromo José Carlos Pace, (2003, 2008) but the tricky conditions would leave tacticians with a lot of number-crunching to do later in the race. For the twentieth and final time, the cars prepared for the start. As the drivers skated over the now-greasy tarmac, the eyes of the sporting world leaned forwards in their armchairs. Finally, after some thrilling racing, it would come down to the next 90 minutes. At the start Hamilton was fastest to drop his clutch, and maintained his lead with Button behind. However, Vettel got a woeful start and dropped to 7th by the third corner. Alonso managed to climb to fifth by that time, but in those circumstances Vettel would still be victorious.

Going into the undulating turn 4, Vettel got a whack from Brazilian favourite Bruno Senna, damaging the Red Bull and crumpling The Williams' suspension. The carnage didn't end there, as Bruno's car didn't lose momentum, and clattered into the back of Sergio Perez. Vettel dropped to 22nd, while both South Americans were eliminated. Continental compatriot Maldonado also retired off-camera, on lap 2. Vettel didn't have to stop following the incident, but had it ALL to do. There was no safety car and so the rest of the field ran their races as normal.

Alonso pulled a cracking move on his team mate and Mark Webber to get up to fourth place at the start of the second lap, but Alonso fourth and Vettel 21st was STILL not enough for the title. Fernando knew this and chased down an impressive Nico Hulkenberg in third. He got the German on lap 3, but his triumph was short-lived. He made a mistake at turn 1, a place where everyone seemed to be going off, and had the work to do all again in fourth. Romain Grosjean had a heavy crash on lap 5. He careered into the wall just before Juncáo, the final turn of the lap after touching the slippery white lines on the edge of the corner. The McLarens still headed the field, and on lap 7, Button got the better of his outgoing colleague. For the next ten or so laps Jenson was harassed by The Force India, and Hulkenberg soon found himself in uncharted territory - he was promoted to second when Hamilton pitted for Intermediate tyres, and then blitzed past Button to take the lead at the start of Lap 19. It was the first time Force India had led a race since Belgium 2009, and the first time for Nico since starting this race 2 years ago on Pole for Williams.

And there the German remained. The safety car was deployed on lap 23 due to a lot of debris on the track, caused by Nico Rosberg having a puncture, the Toro Rossos making slight contact, and the first lap melee. The racing didn't resume until lap 30 due to the shortness of an Interlagos lap, and Hulkenberg backed the pack up cleverly so that no one could steal a march on him. The cars hurtled towards the first corner once more and he and the McLarens maintained the order up front, but behind the two Red Bulls and Kobayashi went three abreast into the first turn. Webber's squirming car went wide after getting its tyres wet, and Kamui inched past Vettel to take sixth. It seemed the old Kobayashi was back after a more tame season than we had been used to.

Kobayashi, not content with interfering with one title contender's agenda, went on to overtake Fernando Alonso for fifth, although he was re-passed within a lap. Two great rivals of the past, Raikkonen and Schumacher had a very close battle at, you guessed it, turn 1, with the Finn overcoming the outgoing German. It was the last race for a number of drivers in their respective cars: Hamilton for McLaren, Perez for Sauber, Hulkenberg for Force India, Pic for Caterham, and the last race ever for Michael Schumacher. It also might turn out to be HRT's last race, as the beleaguered Spanish outfit must find a new buyer before the end of November.

Less-experienced Hulkenberg made a mistake on lap 49 to hand Hamilton the lead. Like Grosjean he touched the white lines, but magnificently drifted his Force India to stop from spinning. This left him sandwiched between the two McLarens, but Nico wasn't going to take it lying down. By lap 55 he had got to withing touching distance, but the pair were in traffic. With Glock and Kovalainen ahead, Hulkenberg had to take avoiding action, but he was also inside of Hamilton's car. His precarious position was worsened by being on the damp section of the track, and he pirouetted a full 180 degrees, tagging the front of Lewis' car in the process. That left Hamilton's car in tatters, and was a very disappointing end to his McLaren career (for now). Nico gathered himself and maintained second but it didn't last long - race control determined he was at fault for the incident, and he received a drive-through penalty.

Button kept his head and drove calmly at the front. He had a huge lead, because he chose NOT to put on intermediate tyres when the conditions changed. Many thought it was an afternoon downpour, but Jenson sensed a passing shower, and stayed with dry tyres. Massa and Alonso were some 20 seconds back as they opted for intermediate tyres, and unable to challenge for the win. So, with Alonso third and Vettel seventh, at that point it was Vettel who would easily win the title. Ferrari wasted no time in deputising Massa and predictably he moved over for Maranello's favourite son. Second to seventh is a gap of only 12 points though, and Fernando would need a slip up from Sebastian to have a chance of winning the title.

Seb did not oblige. In fact, he gained a place, at Michael Schumacher's expense. The legendary 7-time champion let what many would call his 'reincarnation' sweep by and up to sixth. As things stood, Vettel would win with a 3-point margin. The battle for 10th in the constructors' championship was at its climax, and Vitaly Petrov got by Caterham-bound Charles Pic for 12th. This put Caterham in the crucial 10th place. Though neither team had scored a point, this was the highest either team had finished thus far. Paul di Resta binned his Force India into the wall just a few hundred meters from the finish line on lap 70 (of 71) and brought out the safety car. This promoted Petrov to 11th, and Pic 12th, to give Caterham 10th in the constructors'. But more importantly, it pretty much froze the cars in their positions.

Button trundled over the line at a sluggish 50mph, with Alonso behind. Then Massa, Webber, Hulkenberg... and the 2012 World Champion Sebastian Vettel! The 3-point margin stayed, and Sebastian made history again. Not only did he join the triple-world champion club, but he was the youngest EVER to do it, at just 24 years of age. He also joined the super-exclusive 3 consecutive championships club, Along with the man who finished behind him, Michael Schumacher, and Juan Manuel Fangio. Almost nothing could beat this day for Vettel. He was last on the first lap, but did more than what was required to succeed. And lest we forget the efforts of Fernando Alonso. He dragged his 'dog' of a Ferrari (As described by Eddie Jordan) through the season, producing four wins, and 278 points. The look on his face in Parc Fermé was almost enough to break your heart. He leered at Vettel reveling in his brilliance, being hoisted by teammates and friends, and engulfed by journalists, and the look in his eye dreamed that he wished it was him. But it just wasn't to be.

Lap Leaders:
Hamilton (1-7)
Button (8-18)
Hulkenberg (19-48)
Hamilton (49-54)
Button (55-71)

Finishing Positions
1. J Button, McLaren
2. F Alonso, Ferrari
3. F Massa, Ferrari
4. M Webber, Red Bull
5. N Hulkenberg, Force India
6. S Vettel, Red Bull
7. M Schumacher, Mercedes
8. J Vergne, Toro Rosso
9. K Kobayashi, Sauber
10. K Raikkonen, Lotus
11. V Petrov, Caterham
12. C Pic, Marussia
13. D Ricciardo, Toro Rosso
14. H Kovalainen
15. N Rosberg, Mercedes
16. T Glock, Marussia
17.P de la Rosa, HRT
18. N Karthikeyan, HRT



Out/Unclassified
P di Resta, Force India (Crash)
L Hamilton, McLaren (Collision damage)
R Grosjean, Lotus (Crash)
P Maldonado, Williams (Damage)
B Senna, Williams (Collision damage)
S Perez, Sauber (Collision damage)

Madly Abu Dhabi

There have been some memorable races in the 2012 Formula One Season but today saw perhaps the most memorable one. With Qualifying providing ample entertainment via Sebastian Vettel's fuel margin error, the race continued in a similar vein. Hamilton had secured his fourth front-row in as many races in the UAE, never lining up outside the top two there. Yas Island was an adequate setting for such a spectacular race and by 5pm local time the 23 cars were lined up for the start, with Vettel starting in the pitlane. His penalty warranted starting from the back of the grid, but the team opted to take him out of Parc Ferme conditions and work on the car, changing various engine maps and gear ratios. The grid then changed to 22 cars, as Pedro de la Rosa's HRT was wheeled into place behind Vettel, following a tyre blanket entangling itself round the rear axle of his car.

At the start Hamilton maintained his top spot, but Kimi Raikkonen blasted past Maldonado and then Webber before turn 1 to put himself second. The Finn might have gained places by overtaking but plenty of other drivers did so in less conventional fashion, when Hulkenberg, di Resta and Senna tangled. The latter two cars limped round for repairs but Hulkenberg, the soon-to-be-Sauber driver was out on the spot. The first lap saw further incidents between Rosberg and Grosjean and also Vettel, who whacked the rear of a recovering Senna.

The action did not die down early with many drivers passing one another, until an off-the-pace Karthikeyan slowed into turn 15, and a hard charging Rosberg launched over the back of him on lap 7. The Tech-pro barrier collected Nico safely and Karthikeyan was perfectly OK too, but the Mercedes flailed several feet into the air. The only real injuries in this incident were to Hamilton's lead as the Safety Car slashed it. Raikkonen, Maldonado, Alonso and Webber were all poised to pounce on it but Hamilton found himself pulling away after the restart. Alonso pulled a cracking move on Maldonado to move up to P3, but when Webber tried to emulate the Spaniard a few laps later, he got all in a spin and lost several places. More stubbornness from the Aussie rotated Felipe Massa when he went to avoid him.

Some masterful blocking from Romain Grosjean saw Vettel overtake him over the white lines and therefore off the track. The FIA got back to Seb and he duly let the Frenchman back past, but within a few corners the Red Bull was long gone once more. Hamilton, having been fastest in almost every session of the weekend, had a rotten stroke of luck when his engine suddenly died on lap 21. It was heartbreaking for him considering his supreme performances but it just wasn't to be. Investigations after the race proved that a faulty fuel pump caused his demise, a fault team prinicpal Martin Whitmarsh blamed squarely on Mercedes. That left Raikkonen to maintain a lonely campaign up front, pulling out a seismic lead over Alonso. Sadly that was ended on Lap 38 by yet another incident, this one involving four cars. As di Resta left Turn 10, Grosjean made up ground and looked to pass. In braking for turn 11 Perez also joined the Melee and went to overtake Grosjean as well. As di Resta took the corner Perez went wide to avoid him, and then cut accross Grosjean in the next corner. Mark Webber then swept through and snagged his rear right on Romain's front left, and the two were out on the spot.

The ensuing safety car leveled the playing field again with Kimi leading Alonso, Button, Vettel and Maldonado. Vettel managed to sneak past Button at Turn 11 - a place where most of the overtaking occured yet strangely, there are no grandstands. Vettel's progress had gone largely unnoticed due to all the incidents up front, but he had gone from the Pitlane to the podium following some brilliant strategising by the team. The final few laps saw Raikkonen under real pressure from Alonso but the Iceman clung on to win his first Grand Prix since Belgium 2009 and the first since returning to the sport. It also marked the end of a dry spell for the Enstone-based Lotus team, formerly known as Renault. Their last win came courtesy of none other than Fernando Alonso in the 2008 Japanese Grand Prix at Fuji.

Lap Leaders
Hamilton (1-20)
Raikkonen (21-55)

Finishing Positions
1. K Raikkonen, Lotus
2. F Alonso, Ferrari
3. S Vettel, Red Bull
4. J Button, McLaren
5. P Maldonado, Williams
6. K Kobayashi, Sauber
7. F Massa, Ferrari
8. B Senna, Williams
9 P di Resta, Force India
10 D Ricciardo, Toro Rosso
11. M Schumacher, Mercedes
12. J Vergne, Toro Rosso
13. H Kovalalinen, Caterham
14. T Glock, Marussia
15. S. Perez, Sauber
16. V Petrov, Caterham
17. P de la Rosa, HRT

Out/Unclassified
C Pic, Marussia
R Grosjean, Lotus (Crash)
M Webber, Red Bull (Crash)
L Hamilton, McLaren (Fuel Pump)
N Rosberg, Mercedes (Crash)
N Karthikeyan, HRT (Crash)
N Hulkenberg, Force India (Crash)